Mr. Rat of the Steam World

Chapter 76 Urgent Situation

When Lu Ran received the news of the bombing of Manchester, the news had already spread throughout the entire Biden estate.

This matter has blown up too much.

After all, there was a similar terrorist attack earlier this year, but that was a minor incident, and there was even an internal whistleblower, so it didn't cause too much damage.

But this time was different. A team of hundreds of people, Molotov cocktails, and explosives created a deafening roar that disturbed many residents who were sound asleep in the middle of the night.

The only saving grace was that the well-prepared stakeout and interference forced the saboteurs to use a significant portion of their explosives on the police, so the actual damage was not as extensive as initially thought. Only a few large pieces of equipment in one workshop were destroyed, which dealt a considerable blow to the Manchester foundry, which had begun operating normally after Biden took over.

"But even if there are many people, aren't they just ordinary people? If we were prepared in advance, why couldn't we stop them?"

Lu Ran was looking at the three intelligence reports in his hand: newspapers scattered throughout the manor, a written account of the scene from the money-grubber of the Black Gold Factory, a letter of apology from Inspector Edwin, and more details from the scene.

After looking at it from three angles, Lu Ran's brows furrowed even more deeply.

"Aren't you afraid of getting hurt? You'd be fine even if you were shot?"

Lu Ran found it somewhat unbelievable.

After all, he had witnessed it firsthand; Dane himself was not immune to bullets and was killed on the spot by a group of bullets firing in succession.

That's a gun! What carbon-based life form wouldn't be afraid of that?

Lu Ran carefully analyzed every detail in the document to ensure there were no omissions.

"He was shot for the first time, fell to the ground, and showed obvious signs of injury."

"Blood-stained bullets were found at the scene, seemingly squeezed out of the bodies of the masked men."

"Recovery ability?"

Lu Ran took a deep breath and muttered to himself.

"It seems to be not entirely the same as Dane's. If it is a localized mutation like Dane's, there should be other means of attack besides Molotov cocktails and homemade explosives... instead of just smashing things with a crowbar, looking like there are limited means of resistance."

However, judging from the description provided by the money-grubber, it seems to lean more towards the characteristics of civilian armed forces rather than beings with extraordinary power. Otherwise, at the very least, they should be using a combination of strong bodies and gunpowder to attack, rather than being clumsy and vulnerable to attacks as depicted.

"No, I still have to go back to the factory."

Because he was at Biden's estate, there were some details he couldn't disclose, since some of the surveillance angles were clearly beyond human capabilities.

Therefore, Lu Ran didn't even know how the Lude organization made its connections and coordination; he still needed to communicate with Cai Mi in person to clarify these things.

Moreover, with the matter escalating so much, he was also worried that the two pairs of brothers he had his eye on might have gotten involved as well. What if he finished cleaning up his black gold factory but couldn't find any more tools to use?

However, before leaving, Lu Ran didn't forget to finish up Afra's place.

For example, the illegal drug experiments at the black gold factory that she was so obsessed with...

Lu Ran polished the plot like writing a novel, using up several sheets of paper. He then rubbed his slightly sore hands with some effort, looked at the few pages of paper he had finally finished writing on the table, and let out a long sigh of relief.

The story is compelling, and to make it easier to reuse Bella and "Detective Mouse Number One" in the future, Lu Ran emphasized the key role of the two animals in the mission.

That should satisfy you now.

Of course, we didn't forget to catch up, exchange greetings, express gratitude, and have some casual, everyday conversation.

He carefully folded the letter and tucked it into a clean envelope. He glanced out the window; it was already noon.

time does not wait.

Lu Ran grabbed the slightly heavy envelope, nimbly jumped off the desk, and ran out of the stone house.

When they returned to the second floor of the main house, Afra was sitting at her desk in the bedroom, with the thick book "Rise of Kingdoms: Britain" open on the table. Her brows were slightly furrowed, and her fingers were unconsciously twirling a strand of hair at her temple, as if she was trying to understand the historical fragments inside.

"Squeak~"

The soft chirp made Afra look up from her book. When she saw Lu Ran holding an envelope by the door, her eyes lit up instantly, her previous focus replaced by excitement.

"A letter has arrived?" Afra closed the book, her movements so quick she almost knocked over the teacup beside her.

"Is it Sherlock's? Let me see it."

After handing over the letter, Lu Ran watched Afra reading intently and then quietly slipped out.

"Bella, attack!"

"Wang!"

...Black Gold Factory.

When Lu Ran arrived, the workshop had already been cleaned very thoroughly. Several gray rats were lined up and washing themselves in the pool. He jumped off Bella and quickly found the money-grubber in the back workshop, who was eyeing the new territory.

Having experience excavating Territory No. 1, only the Money-Grubber is capable of planning and managing this even larger territory.

The money-grubber was taken aback when he saw Lu Ran, and then he heard a slightly hurried tone.

“Tell me everything from the beginning, starting with how the surveillance footage was discovered.”

"it is good."

Clearly, this guy knew Lu Ran would ask this question, and had already mentally reviewed the whole incident in an organized manner. Now, as he recounted it in detail, Lu Ran easily understood the cause and effect of the matter.

Surveillance revealed that the problem lay with the trio who had previously tried to capture and roast Bella.

After the scout rats had been monitoring for so long, the trio finally made a slight move, but unexpectedly, they opened the door and ran to the base of the nearby wall to dig out a roll of paper.

Because his attention was entirely focused on the trio, the scout mouse didn't notice when the thing was buried, or even when the coded message was sent to the trio to alert them that the secret message had arrived and they should hurry up and retrieve it.

Even so, through casual conversation among the trio, they managed to find out what they were planning to do: attack the Manchester foundry and teach it a lesson.

Then there was no news for a while, until that night when the three of them suddenly went out quietly, their faces covered and dressed in black.

By this point, it was too late to notify Edwin again.

There was almost no communication between the members of this organization, so much so that even in the end, the mouse couldn't find out who was the person who organized the organization.

All they could do was track down a large number of masked men, watch them disperse and enter each household, and then, as soon as it got light, they would pretend to be nonchalant bystanders and step forward.

"It's just self-deception."

Lu Ran suddenly said.

With such a large commotion, the municipal government doesn't care whether it's a hundred people mixed in with thousands; they can simply define a range and arrest everyone.

"No, the Wright family!"

Lu Ran cursed under his breath and quickly asked.

"Did the family that was being monitored also participate in this matter?"

The money-grubber nodded affirmatively: "Yes."

"Damn it."

Upon hearing this, Lu Ran hurriedly rushed out, but instead of going to Wright immediately, he wanted to first sound out Edwin.

Before he even reached the police station, a large crowd had already gathered at the entrance. The men were wearing overalls stained with oil and coal dust, the women wore faded headscarves, and many had dark, wrinkled faces. Children were gathered at the back or the edge of the crowd.

"Why are you arresting people arbitrarily!"

Several agitated young men, their faces flushed, roared at the tightly closed doors of the police station. Others shook the cold iron bars of the station doors with all their might, producing a dull, grating clanging sound.

"Let go!"

"Old John is usually a very nice person. So what if he's a police inspector? He says he's seen him before!"

"Come in!"

A dozen or so police officers formed a thin human wall at the entrance, gripping their batons or pistols tightly, muzzles pointing downwards but ready to be raised at any moment.

The lead officer used his baton to hold back the chests of the workers who had been shoving him the most recently. His steps were constantly pushed backward by the impact, and his police hat tilted as he was pushed.

"Back off! Back off!"

Lu Ran had just arrived and was originally planning to sneak into the police station by bypassing the crowd, but unexpectedly, he overheard the jeer and stopped in his tracks, shrinking into a corner and staring intently at someone in the crowd.

The person had an ordinary appearance; he was the kind of person you wouldn't notice if you threw him into a crowd.

But just now, when he shouted "Charge in!" his voice was the loudest and his body movements were the most exaggerated, yet his feet seemed to be oiled, slipping outwards without leaving a trace.

When the truly agitated youth was shoved in front of the police officers' batons, he retreated to the second or third row of the crowd, his eyes quickly scanning his surroundings amidst the chaos, before slowly backing away.

“This person…” Lu Ran frowned slightly, pushed off with his hind legs, and followed.

(End of this chapter)