Hong Kong variety show: The mastermind behind the scenes is emerging.

At 7:00 AM, the core sealed-off area of ​​Yuminfang Building.

The sunlight, extremely stingy, pierced through the thick clouds and shone on the dilapidated, crowded, and bustling slum of Kwun Tong, Kowloon.

At this time of day, the area outside the building would normally be bustling with the aroma of morning tea, the cries of vendors, and the hurried footsteps of office workers.

But today, the place is eerily quiet, with only a suffocating, chilling atmosphere permeating the air.

"Click, click."

Countless black military boots pounded on the puddle-filled road, splashing up muddy water.

The entire Yu Min Square building has been completely turned into an isolated island. At the innermost level, there are a hundred PTU officers armed with Remington shotguns and wearing blue berets, who have sealed off every exit and every sewer manhole cover of the building with yellow police tape.

Outside the cordon, however, lies an even more spectacular sight.

To facilitate Fang Jiexia's "big event" plan, the police specially set up a temporary "official media area" on the rooftop of the shopping mall directly opposite the building.

Reporters from dozens of television stations and newspapers across Hong Kong, like a flock of vultures smelling blood, had set up their cameras and microphones early on. Huge television broadcast vans filled the entire street, and thick black cables snaked across the ground like blood vessels.

"Good morning, everyone! Welcome to our special morning news report. I'm your host, Liu Yu!" A female reporter excitedly reported to the camera, "As you can see, the police have cordoned off the Yu Man Square Building behind us! According to reliable sources, the mastermind behind the infamous kidnapping case of Fok Siu Tong, which was previously reported by our station and was the former most wanted criminal on Hong Kong Island—Da Dong—is trapped in this building!"

"Today, the police are determined to bring these desperate criminals to justice and wash away their past disgrace!"

……

Inside several police command vehicles loaded with sophisticated instruments, Fang Jiexia, wearing a neatly tailored bulletproof windbreaker and a headset, stood in front of a huge wall of surveillance cameras.

Her gaze was calm and sharp, like that of a Hollywood director commanding a vast army on set. However, her film set was somewhat unique.

"Report on your readiness status, all units," Fang Jiexia commanded into the microphone.

"Squad A of the Flying Tigers (SDU) has arrived at the rooftop rappelling point. The demolition team is in position."

"Teams B and C have secured the two main entrances to the building, and heavy breaching hammers are in position."

"Sniper Alpha has locked onto the target window on the 9th floor, but the target is obscured and cannot be locked on."

The sound coming through the earpiece was the highly professional and perfectly composed tactical report from the police elites.

"very good."

Fang Jiexia glanced at the Seiko watch on her wrist; the hands had just crossed 7:05.

She turned around and waved to the makeup artist behind her: "Makeup touch-up, I'm going out to face the media."

A few minutes later, Fang Jiexia, surrounded by a group of senior police superintendents, strode out of the command vehicle and arrived at the makeshift press conference platform in front of the cordon.

"Splash—!"

Countless flashes lit up instantly, illuminating her delicate yet resolute face like that of a movie star.

Facing the cameras of millions of Hong Kong citizens, Fang Jiexia adjusted her gold-rimmed glasses, her voice clear and powerful, exuding an undeniable authority:

"Fellow citizens and friends from the media."

"I am Fang Jiexia, Senior Inspector of the Public Relations Department, who is in charge of the operation on site."

"On behalf of the Royal Hong Kong Police Force, I would like to inform all citizens of Hong Kong that we have accurately located the hideout of the mastermind behind the kidnapping of Mr. Fok Siu-tong—the notorious criminal Ho Yiu-tung (nicknamed Tai Tung) and his accomplices!"

Fang Jiexia stretched out her hand and pointed with unwavering determination to the dilapidated tenement building behind her:

"They are currently inside this building, and the police have complete control of the situation! This is not just an arrest, but the strongest warning the police force is sending to all criminals!"

"I urge other residents in the building to remain calm, lock their doors and windows, and refrain from leaving the building without permission. The police have the capability and confidence to completely eliminate this gang of thugs while ensuring the safety of residents!"

"The operation will officially begin in half an hour! Please stay tuned!"

These words were spoken with resounding force and exuded an air of dominance.

The message was instantly transmitted to every corner of Hong Kong via television signal.

……

Room 903, Yuminfang Building.

In this dimly lit rented room of less than 40 square meters, the air was filled with a strong smell of iodine, blood, and gunpowder.

The curtains were drawn tightly shut, letting in only a faint sliver of light.

He Yaodong (Da Dong) was shirtless, with thick bandages wrapped around his chest, the marks left by stray bullets when he broke through the encirclement at Kwai Chung Wharf.

He was sitting in front of that broken television with only a black and white screen, clutching an AK-47 tightly in his hand, his eyes fixed on the policewoman on the screen who was talking eloquently.

"Brother Dong...we're surrounded."

Eighth Middle School and Fatty, his two brothers who had crawled out of piles of corpses with him, were now deathly pale. Through the gap in the curtains, they could see the densely packed police and snipers downstairs.

"These cops... they're actually serious."

He Yaodong let out a cold laugh through his teeth. There was no fear in his eyes, only an indifference that suggested he had long since become indifferent to life and death.

"I bet they even know our house number; they're planning to use us as news material."

He Yaodong picked up the last bottle of liquor from the table, tilted his head back and took a big gulp, the pungent alcohol burning his throat.

"Brothers, it looks like we can't escape this time." Da Dong wiped the wine stains from the corner of his mouth, turned to look at his two brothers, and a trace of guilt flashed in his eyes. "I'm sorry, I couldn't take you back to our hometown to build a big house."

"Dong-ge! Don't say things like that!"

With bloodshot eyes, Ba Zhong pulled back the bolt of his gun with a click. "We Shanwei men aren't afraid of death! Even if we die, we'll take a few cops down with us! Killing one is enough, killing two is a bonus!"

"That's right! Let's fight them!" Fatty gritted her teeth and hung the last two grenades on her waist.

"good!"

Da Dong stood up and smashed the bottle of soju on the ground.

"Bring out all the equipment! Since these cops want to put on a show for all of Hong Kong, let's give them a good show! Let them know that even the Flying Tigers would have to knock out a few teeth if they wanted to take down the three of us brothers!"

The room was filled with the madness and desperation of a cornered beast.

……

In the same building, room 303, compared to the despair and tragedy on the 9th floor.

At this very moment, in this safe house on the third floor, the atmosphere has completely reversed, filled with extremely absurd dark humor.

"puff--!!!"

Ye Guohuan, who was getting information through a live stream, spat out the Pu'er tea he had just drunk when he heard Fang Jiexia say "the target is Da Dong," spraying it all over Ah Zhong's face.

"Cough cough cough... Holy crap!"

Coughing, Ye Guohuan pointed at the television, then slumped onto the sofa as if his bones had been removed, letting out a wild, triumphant laugh: "Hahahaha! Da Dong?! He Yaodong?!"

"So, after all that, these hundreds of cops, even bringing in the TV station, were just here to arrest that unfortunate Da Dong?!"

"You scared the hell out of me! I thought it was because of our gold shop robbery!"

Ah Zhong and Ah Jin, who were standing next to him, were also completely dumbfounded, followed by a huge and unbelievable surprise.

"Brother Huan, does that mean... we weren't exposed?" Ah Jin wiped the tea off his face and asked tentatively.

"Nonsense! If we were exposed, the policewoman would be calling us by our nicknames!"

Ye Guohuan picked up a piece of roast goose that he hadn't finished eating last night, took a big bite, his mouth was full of oil, and his arrogant and domineering expression returned to his face.

"Damn it, we're really unlucky to be hiding in the same building as that Da Dong," Ye Guohuan said, chewing on his meat and casually crossing his legs. "Since he's not coming for us, that makes things easier."

"Hurry! Move faster!"

Ye Guohuan immediately gave the order: "Put away all those AK-47s and grenades! Clean up all the spent bullet casings on the table! Hide these boxes of money in the hidden compartment!"

"From now on, we are 'good citizens' in this building! We are innocent victims!"

Upon hearing this, Ah Zhong and Ah Jin immediately began tidying up the house in a flurry of activity.

A few minutes later, the AKs that had killed countless people were hidden away. The three ruthless bandits who had just been ready to fight the police to the death were now surprisingly well-behaved, changing into old-fashioned shirts and shorts, and even taking out a deck of cards to pretend to play "Dou Dizhu" (a popular Chinese card game).

"Brother Huan, what do we do now? Run?" Ah Zhong asked.

"Running away is a joke! The area outside is completely sealed off; if you go out, you'll just get questioned." Ye Guohuan calmly picked up a hand of cards. "Didn't you hear what the policewoman said? She told residents to lock their doors and windows and not go out. Let's listen to the officer and stay home obediently."

"Once they've finished fighting with Da Dong, the police will definitely evacuate the residents. Then we can blend into the crowd and swagger out!"

"A pair of 3s! Do you want them?!" Ye Guohuan excitedly played a pair of cards.

"Um... right, number 2?"

"Damn, do you even know how to play cards?! I play a pair of 3s and you play a pair of 2s?"

……

7:30 a.m., inside the command vehicle.

Fang Jiexia took a deep breath as she looked at the various teams that were all in position on the monitor.

She was unaware that Ye Guohuan, the "audience" upstairs, was watching the show, and she was also unaware that Da Dong, the "protagonist" upstairs, had laid a trap.

All she knew was that this moment was the highlight of her career.

"Action!"

Fang Jiexia coldly uttered that word into the microphone.

"Operation begins!"

"boom--!"

With a command given.

On the rooftop of Yuminfang Building, several Flying Tigers members dressed in all-black combat uniforms skillfully attached their rappelling ropes and, like a few black falcons, descended from the sky in an instant!

at the same time.

The two entrances downstairs.

"Break down the door!"

"Bang!!"

The massive rammed door smashed open the building's rusty security door.

Two teams of special police officers, armed with riot shields and MP5 submachine guns, surged into the dark corridor in a perfectly standard tactical formation, like a black tide.

"Go! Go! Go!"

"Stay hidden! Proceed with the search!"

Behind these special police officers, several accompanying police photographers were holding DV cameras, closely following the steps of the assault team.

The shaky camera work, the rapid breathing, and the imposing silhouettes of the special police officers.

After being edited by the police broadcast van, it was broadcast to various television stations and then appeared on the television screens of millions of households across Hong Kong in a very shocking way!

Wow! So handsome!

"It's really live! The police stormed in!"

In the tea restaurants and living rooms, countless citizens held their breath, their eyes glued to the unprecedented sense of realism and tension.

Fang Jiexia looked at the near-perfect image on the monitor and smiled with satisfaction.

The script has begun, and the actors are in place.

But in her arrogance, she forgot that in this real battlefield of killing, there is never a perfectly perfect script.

The moment the Flying Tigers' boots stepped onto the 9th floor.

The moment the first booby trap was triggered.

This show will completely slip out of her control and turn into a real meat grinder!