Chapter 63.1

Wu Yuanming had never anticipated that Jin Yuanchao and Quan Aiguo’s fake police identities would be exposed. In the past, the two had successfully impersonated officers without anyone daring to question their authenticity. People would usually be intimidated just by seeing their uniforms, trembling in fear.  

Additionally, since their impersonation stints were infrequent, there had never been any reports against them.  

Wu Yuanming couldn’t have foreseen that today’s encounter with Qin Qingman would be so disastrous. Not only did she refuse to play by the expected rules, but her sharp mind and thorough knowledge of various legal clauses had, within a few sentences, torn apart Jin Yuanchao and Quan Aiguo’s facade as fake police officers.  

“Father… w-what do we do now?” Wu Weimin stammered in panic.  

He was well aware that Jin Yuanchao and Quan Aiguo were imposters. However, this was the first time he had seen their identities exposed so publicly.  

Impersonating police officers was a serious crime. While Jin Yuanchao and Quan Aiguo had only used their uniforms to intimidate and had not committed any overly outrageous acts, a fake was still a fake. As long as nothing went wrong, they could get away with it. But now that their ruse had been uncovered, the consequences would be catastrophic.  

When Wu Weimin asked his father for a solution, Wu Yuanming’s mind was equally muddled.  

He wanted Jin Yuanchao and Quan Aiguo to run, but the enraged crowd had surrounded them from all sides, blocking every possible escape route.  

“Maybe… we should have them confess,” Wu Yuanming muttered, thinking it might be the only viable solution.  

“Father, are you stupid, or are they? Do you think they’d actually listen to us?”  

Wu Weimin’s voice was barely a whisper. They were close enough to Jin Yuanchao and Quan Aiguo that not only could the crowd not overhear their conversation, but the two imposters couldn’t hear it either.  

Wu Yuanming’s face twisted into a bitter expression.  

He knew full well that there was no way Jin Yuanchao and Quan Aiguo would confess. A confession would mean certain execution. It didn’t matter whether they had committed any other crimes—just the act of impersonating police officers was a capital offense.  

“Fake police! They’re fake police officers! Catch them! Catch them!”  

“Don’t let them escape! Catch the imposters!”  

The crowd erupted into chaos, their emotions boiling over with fury. Several strong young men from the crowd charged forward, their movements swift and determined.  

The Wu father and son reacted just as quickly, abandoning Jin Yuanchao and Quan Aiguo and fleeing the scene without a second thought.  

The scene was chaotic—chaotic until a gunshot rang out.  

The gunshot was like a pause button pressed on the mayhem. Everyone froze. No one dared to move as their eyes locked onto Jin Yuanchao and Quan Aiguo.  

Fear and terror were etched on every face.  

Because Jin Yuanchao was holding a gun.  

The gunshot just now had been fired by him.  

A figure slowly collapsed to the ground. The person’s chest gradually turned crimson as blood seeped out. The blood was warm, steaming faintly in the cold air. But it didn’t stay warm for long. Soon, it cooled, freezing into icy clots.  

“Wei… Weimin!”  

Wu Yuanming stared at his son lying lifeless on the icy ground, unable to believe what he was seeing. In that brief moment of shock, Wu Weimin, who had just moments ago been wide-eyed with terror, had lost all the light in his eyes, leaving them hollow and empty.  

Everyone was stunned.  

Jin Yuanchao was also momentarily paralyzed, but he recovered quickly, his instincts kicking in.  

He lunged toward Qin Qingman, his hand reaching out to grab her.  

Qin Qingman, still standing on the tractor, had been wary of him from the start. There was no way she would let him succeed this time. The moment Jin Yuanchao moved, Qin Qingman snatched up a sturdy stick she had kept at her side and swung it with all her strength.  

As soon as Qin Qingman acted, Bao Shengli and two other male comrades on the tractor sprang into action. They pounced on Jin Yuanchao and Quan Aiguo, determined to prevent them from firing again.  

A sharp “thwack!” echoed in the cold air.  

Qin Qingman hadn’t aimed for Jin Yuanchao’s hand that was reaching for her; instead, she struck the hand holding the gun.  

She had poured all her strength into that swing, and her aim was true. The force was enough to nearly shatter Jin Yuanchao’s wrist. The gun flew out of his grasp, spiraling uncontrollably through the air.  

“Get down! Be careful—the gun might fire!” Qin Qingman shouted sharply.  

The crowd, already terrified by Wu Weimin’s death, instinctively dropped to the ground at her warning. Even Wu Yuanming, consumed with grief over his son, threw himself to the icy ground, prioritizing his own safety.  

The gun hit the ground with a crisp sound, the ice beneath it amplifying the noise.  

The surface was slick and smooth, causing the weapon to slide across the frozen ground, skidding for several meters before finally coming to a stop.  

It was a modified pistol—not quite like the standard issue Mauser used by the police, but similar in design. Qin Qingman recognized it immediately. It was a makeshift weapon. If the gun was a fake, then there was no way these men could be real police officers.  

Breathing heavily, Qin Qingman jumped off the tractor and made her way toward the fallen gun.  

The weapon had been knocked out of Jin Yuanchao’s hand, making it unlikely to fire accidentally. Still, she had shouted her warning earlier out of concern for the crowd. If the gun had ended up in the hands of someone with ill intent, it could have posed an even greater danger.  

The safest course of action was to take possession of the gun herself.  

As Qin Qingman moved to retrieve the weapon, Bao Shengli and the two male comrades who had tackled Jin Yuanchao and Quan Aiguo kept the pair pinned firmly to the ground. They weren’t going to let these two imposters cause any more harm.  

The three men lunged at Jin Yuanchao and Quan Aiguo from the truck bed, attacking from above, which gave them an absolute advantage.  

Bao Shengli and the two male comrades were not light in weight, and their combined pressure almost crushed Jin Yuanchao and Quan Aiguo. Though no blood was coughed up, they were nearly squeezed to the point of soiling themselves, and their internal organs felt as if they had been forcibly rearranged.  

As a result, Jin Yuanchao and Quan Aiguo lost their ability to move.  

At this moment, Qin Qingman retrieved the gun, which had already been loaded. Looking at the weapon, a wave of lingering fear washed over her.  

Had it not been for her sheer luck, that shot would have claimed her life.  

Had Wu Weimin not fled in her direction, and had she not been closely watching Jin Yuanchao, noticing something was wrong and leaping into the truck bed just in time, the bullet that killed Wu Weimin earlier would undoubtedly have been meant for her.  

Qin Qingman trembled slightly all over.  

She searched the original owner’s memories thoroughly but found no trace of Jin Yuanchao or Quan Aiguo. Why did Jin Yuanchao try to kill her when his false identity was exposed? While Qin Qingman admitted that the animosity between them stemmed from her revealing their fake identities, she couldn’t shake the feeling that Jin Yuanchao’s intent to kill her went beyond just that.  

There must be another reason.  

Qin Qingman approached Jin Yuanchao and Quan Aiguo with a cold expression on her face.  

The two were still being firmly pinned down by Bao Shengli and the others. They had been crushed so thoroughly that their eyes were rolling back into their heads.  

If this continued for a few more minutes, they would likely be suffocated to death.  

Not wanting Bao Shengli and the others to end up with blood on their hands, Qin Qingman gave a soft command, “Comrade Bao Shengli, tie them up and notify the Public Security comrades to take over. We don’t have the authority to enforce the law.”  

Since she had relied on the law to protect herself earlier, she was determined to adhere to it.  

“Understood.”  

Bao Shengli nodded heavily and stood up.  

If his previous obedience to Qin Qingman stemmed from her relationship with his wife, his respect for her now was born of genuine admiration. Qin Qingman’s earlier act of knocking the gun out of Jin Yuanchao’s hand had been to save lives.  

As long as the gun remained in Jin Yuanchao’s possession, more lives could have been lost.  

With Qin Qingman’s instructions, Bao Shengli and the two male comrades finally climbed off Jin Yuanchao and Quan Aiguo. While they were considering what to use to bind the two, the crowd that had been lying flat on the ground slowly got up.  

With the passage of time, the situation became clearer to everyone.  

Some people silently removed their belts and handed them to Bao Shengli.

With the binding materials in hand, Jin Yuanchao and Quan Aiguo were promptly tied up tightly. Not only were their hands bound, but their feet were also restrained—at the ankles, calves, and thighs. With this method, not only was escape impossible, but the two couldn’t even stand up.  

Jin Yuanchao and Quan Aiguo were drenched in sweat, gasping heavily as their lungs greedily sucked in air. They used every ounce of strength they had, inhaling deeply even though the icy air stabbed painfully into their lungs. For the first time, they realized how precious and intoxicating the ability to breathe could be.  

“Comrade Qin… what should we do with them?” Bao Shengli asked hesitantly, his gaze shifting from Wu Weimin’s lifeless body to Wu Yuanming, who was slumped on the ground, seemingly paralyzed.  

It was evident that Wu Yuanming and his son were connected to Jin Yuanchao and Quan Aiguo, the two impostors pretending to be public security officers. However, since Wu Yuanming had not confessed yet, he was still officially the director of Hongqi Farm. As an employee, Bao Shengli had no authority to deal with his superior.  

“Tie him up as well,” Qin Qingman said, casting a glance at Wu Yuanming. She did not lower her guard just because he looked utterly defeated and sat motionless on the ground.  

She had observed Wu Yuanming’s reaction after Wu Weimin was shot dead. A man who could instantly focus on preserving his own life in such a situation was inherently selfish. Selfish people were rational and would not give up an opportunity to escape.  

Bao Shengli froze for only a second before hurriedly pulling out his belt to bind Wu Yuanming. He tied him up with the same thoroughness as the impostors.  

Once Wu Yuanming was securely tied and thrown next to Jin Yuanchao, everyone’s attention turned back to Qin Qingman.  

A life had been lost. This was no small matter.  

By now, it was the 1970s, a time when most ordinary people rarely encountered incidents of unnatural death. The crowd was not only frightened but also completely inexperienced in dealing with such situations. Instinctively, they looked to Qin Qingman, who remained the calmest among them.  

They trusted her.  

“Comrade Bao Shengli,” Qin Qingman instructed, “take two comrades with you and drive to the county. First, take Auntie Guiying to receive medical treatment. Second, report to the county public security bureau. Hongqi Farm has encountered not only impostors pretending to be public security officers but also firearms and a fatality. This is a major case, and the county’s public security comrades must be involved. This is the primary crime scene and must be preserved.”  

After finishing her instructions, Qin Qingman turned to the onlookers, addressing them directly. “Comrades, you are all witnesses and therefore serve as living evidence. None of you can leave.”  

“But… it’s so cold here,” someone in the crowd murmured softly. It wasn’t that he was unwilling to be a witness; he was genuinely freezing. His cotton jacket wasn’t thick enough, and he was almost numb from standing around watching the commotion.  

“Comrade,” Qin Qingman asked, “where is the canteen? How many people can it hold at once?”  

Qin Qingman turned to an elderly man in the crowd who appeared to have some authority. He was dressed in a cadre uniform, likely a member of the farm’s leadership.  

“The canteen is not far from here, about four to five hundred meters away. You can still see this spot from the entrance,” the elderly man explained. After a pause, he added, “It’s the main dining hall of the general team. It can accommodate over a hundred people at once.”  

There were only fifty or sixty people present.  

“All areas with traces should be enclosed with straw mats to protect the scene. No one is allowed to step inside. Assign guards to watch over it. Everyone here, please move to the canteen and wait for the county’s public security comrades to arrive,” Qin Qingman decisively issued her instructions.  

She could tell that the others had no experience handling such situations, so she took charge without hesitation.  

“Listen to Comrade Qin. Everyone go to the canteen and wait,” the elderly man said to the crowd.  

“Deputy Director Zhou…”  

It was at this moment that the crowd recognized the elderly man.  

“Hello, Comrade Qin,” Zhou Bangguo said, extending his hand to shake hers. His expression was extremely serious. “I’m Zhou Bangguo, the deputy director of Hongqi Farm. Your arrangements are very reasonable, and I believe you are more suited to handling today’s situation. I’ll cooperate with you.”  

“Comrade Zhou, then I’ll take the lead,” Qin Qingman replied, not one to be modest.  

She then turned to the two male comrades who had helped Bao Shengli subdue Jin Yuanchao and Quan Aiguo. “Comrades, given the special circumstances, we’ll handle things differently. What are your names?”  

“I’m Tian Wenshi.”  

“I’m Lei Zhiwen.”  

The two introduced themselves to Qin Qingman.  

Qin Qingman looked them over. Lei Zhiwen was taller, in his early thirties, and had a more composed demeanor. She addressed him first, “Comrade Lei, could you please lead a few of the stronger comrades to secure the scene? The weather is cold, so we’ll need to rotate the guards until the county public security comrades arrive.”  

“Understood, Comrade Qin.”  

Lei Zhiwen immediately began selecting several people from the crowd to help secure the area.  

“Tian Wenshi Comrade, please also pick a few people to take these three back to the canteen for detention. No one should be allowed to contact them,” Qin Qingman instructed. She chose Tian Wenshi for this task because he seemed sharp and capable of handling it efficiently.  

“Understood, Comrade Qin. I’ll take care of it right away.”  

Tian Wenshi nodded seriously, then started selecting people from the crowd to carry Jin Yuanchao and the others to the canteen.  

Once she had delegated these tasks, Qin Qingman carefully wrapped the gun she had taken from the scene in a handkerchief and tucked it into her chest. It was a crucial piece of evidence, and she didn’t trust anyone else to keep it safe.