Animal Detective

Chapter 195 Taking a Back Route

Chen Chao jumped into the police car, and Shen Xin slammed on the gas.

The tires screeched as they came to a screeching sound, and the car launched forward.

Even so, Chen Chao kept shouting "Hurry up, hurry up!"

Shen Xin turned on the siren, sped onto the road, and drove away.

Upon discovering that the tiger hadn't been drugged and stolen, but had simply run away, Chen Chao immediately called Lü Youwei.

At this hour, Lü Youwei should still be in bed.

This phone call from Chen Chao probably scared him half to death.

But that's nothing.

What truly made Chen Chao extremely anxious was that right after he hung up the phone, Xu Xuhao, the captain of the public security brigade on duty at the branch command center, called him.

He knew that Chen Chao had arrived after receiving the report.

Then he called Chen Chao and told him that he had just received a report from the public that a tiger had appeared in Houxia Daijiatang.

He confirmed repeatedly that it was a tiger, the kind with the character "王" (king) on ​​its head.

He asked Chen Chao, who was closest, to take people to handle the situation. He had already notified the fire department, emergency services, and the forestry bureau to provide immediate support.

He is currently reviewing surveillance footage, looking for traces of the tiger.

Upon hearing this news, Chen Chao's scalp tingled; he had a feeling that something was about to escalate.

This is a live tiger. Even if it has been raised in captivity for many years, it can still go on a killing spree if provoked.

Just like Tian Haiming, the claw marks on his arm are obviously left by this tiger.

Even Tian Haiming's sudden heart attack may be related to this tiger.

Police cars followed one after another. Shen Xin stepped on the gas and sped off. A few minutes later, he arrived at Daijiatang, which was only two kilometers away from Sanbao Temple.

The village was small, with a few scattered factories. Shen Xin had never been here before, and when he slammed on the brakes, he had already missed it.

He quickly reversed the car.

It's a small factory called Xingda Packaging.

At that moment, a person was standing at the factory gate, waving at the police car.

As soon as the car came to a complete stop, Shen Xin quickly got out.

"Where's the tiger?" Chen Chao asked urgently.

It must have been this security guard who called the police.

He was over forty years old, and he wasn't wearing a coat; he was even only wearing one shoe.

"Inside, inside."

He pointed to the factory area and said with lingering fear, "It scared me to death! I was dozing off when I heard someone scratching at the glass. I opened my eyes and, good heavens, it was a tiger!"

"I was terrified and quickly hid to call the police. The tiger kept scratching at the glass, and after a while it stopped moving. I peeked out and thought it had run away, so I prepared to open the door and run."

"When the door was halfway open, I saw the tiger hiding behind the forklift, its tail sticking out. It was preparing to ambush me!"

"Luckily I have sharp eyes, otherwise I would be dead. I escaped by jumping out of the window."

Middle-aged people are talkative and gossip.

Chen Chao raised his hand to interrupt him, quickly ran behind the gate, and peered out as if facing a formidable enemy. Not seeing the tiger, he asked, "Where's the tiger?"

The middle-aged man also peeked out and then shook his head.

Shen Xin didn't see it either.

The factory area is not large; it's just a small factory.

Shen Xin noticed that the workshop door was closed, so the tiger was probably still in the yard, hiding in some corner.

Or have they already escaped?
Even Da Mei could leap up that two-meter-high wall, let alone this big cat in the flowery jacket.

Sun Jingyi and his colleagues who came to Sanbao Temple with him, as well as colleagues from Houxia Police Station, also came along.

Chen Chao waved to them urgently, signaling them to avoid the main gate.

The colleague from Houxia Police Station was named Wang Xin, and he brought Lu Wenxue with him.

I nervously made my way behind the guard post, avoiding the view of the factory gate.

"Captain Chen, is the tiger inside? What do we do now?" Wang Xin pressed himself tightly against the outer wall of the guard post and asked.

Chen Chao was also at a loss.

Having been a police officer for over a decade, I've never dealt with anything like this before.

If we were to catch a suspect, we could disperse everyone and surround the exit from all sides.

But this is a tiger; if people scatter, it's just a freebie.

And he probably brought his own gun.

If personal safety is threatened, it is acceptable to use firearms as an emergency evasive maneuver.

But Chen Chao was afraid of missing.

Even a suspect might not be able to be hit, let alone a tiger as fast as the wind.

Even if you hit it, with its huge size, it probably won't kill you right away. It can leap into the air and knock you to the ground, killing you in one bite.

So this is just a headache.

He didn't rush to act. In this situation, the best course of action was to wait for support—for animal experts and for the special police.

Before that, Chen Chao turned to Lu Wenxue and asked him if he was familiar with the tiger and whether it was possible to control it.

He remembered that during the circus performance, the tiger wasn't leashed, yet it was very obedient and did whatever it was told.

This is not a wild tiger; it's a captive-bred one.

Unexpectedly, Lu Wenxue shook his head and waved his hands decisively, saying in a panic, "Officer, this Da Chun has obviously gone mad, I dare not provoke it."

He figured that if the tiger didn't go berserk, it wouldn't be able to escape.

Shen Xin said, "Captain Chen, let's wait for reinforcements."

This is the safest approach.

Anyway, as long as the tiger is trapped in the factory area and doesn't come out or hurt anyone, there's no problem.

Once professionals from the forestry bureau or zoo arrive and administer some anesthesia, the matter will be resolved.

Chen Chao nodded.

Indeed, this is the safest method.

He peered out, using the gradually brightening morning light to search for traces of the tiger.

"Where did it hide?" Chen Chao frowned.

Actually, there weren't many things piled up in the yard, so there wasn't any obvious place where a tiger could hide.

Shen Xin found it strange too.

There were forklifts, plastic buckets, and wooden pallets scattered around the yard. The tiger was so big that it seemed impossible to hide it.

Just then, someone tugged at the corner of his clothes.

Shen Xin subconsciously turned his head and his eyes widened instantly.

Right behind them, at the end of the courtyard wall, a tiger was slowly walking out.

It must have already spotted the group, stopped, and turned to look in their direction.

In the morning light, it looked majestic and imposing, its mouth slightly open, exhaling puffs of hot air, and several fangs were clearly visible.

"Shen Xin, is the tiger... behind us?"

Sun Jingyi didn't dare turn his head and asked in a voice as soft as a mosquito's buzz.

Shen Xin nodded slightly and nudged Chen Chao next to him with his elbow.

Sun Jingyi's cheeks twitched in fright.

Chen Chao turned around, so shocked that the hairs on his body stood on end.

Who would have thought that while they were still discussing what to do, the tiger had already taken a shortcut.

Wang Xin poked Lu Wenxue with his arm.

Lu Wenxue also froze, his eyes asking whether he should run away.

Da Chun just stood there, staring at everyone without moving.

No one dared to move.

In that instant, Shen Xin recalled all the animal documentaries he had ever watched before.

It seems that if you see a bear, you can lie down and pretend to be dead.

What about the tiger?
I don't remember.

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed that Chen Chao had slowly unholstered his gun and pulled out his pistol.

Just as the standoff was reaching its conclusion, a car drove up from the direction of the road leading into the village.

The police car blocked the narrow village road, so the sedan stopped and honked its horn.

In the quiet of the early morning, its horn blared out in a way that sounded incredibly jarring.

It was as if the battle horn had been sounded.

Shen Xin could see very clearly that the tiger was obviously startled.

Startled, Shen Xin was also terrified.

"run!"

Chen Chao shouted and grabbed Shen Xin's shoulder, then ran away.

Everyone scattered like birds and beasts in an instant.

Shen Xin followed Chen Chao and ran to the back of the police car in one breath, his heart pounding wildly.

Turn around and look.

The tiger didn't charge; it had already disappeared behind the wall.

"Get in the car and get in the car!"

Chen Chao gestured for everyone to get into the car.

Shen Xin quickly opened the car door and got in. Even after closing the door, he still felt a chill run down his spine.

This feels just like the gunfight that happened in Huibei Village last time.

(End of this chapter)