Courtyard House: I Have Countless Bodyguards

At four in the morning in southern Baoding, the sky was pitch black, and the joint arrest team had already secretly surrounded the black market.

Liu Jianguo took a deep breath of the cold air and nodded heavily to Wang Weiguo, who was gripping a submachine gun tightly beside him.

The next moment, he suddenly leaned out from behind cover, raised his right arm high, aimed the Type 54 pistol at the dark night sky, and pulled the trigger without hesitation.

"Bang--!"

A sharp, piercing gunshot rang out, like a boulder thrown into still water, instantly shattering the deepest silence before dawn and sending an unmistakable signal for a general offensive to all the ambush points.

The echoes of the gunshots were still reverberating in the air when dozens of investigators and security personnel, who had been lying in ambush behind broken walls, in ditches, and in dilapidated houses, suddenly leaped out like cheetahs that had been waiting for a long time.

They swarmed in from all directions, quickly forming an encirclement. Countless bright beams of flashlight, like sharp swords, crisscrossed and cut through the darkness, firmly locking onto the black market personnel who had just woken up from their sleep or were in the middle of a transaction.

"Don't move!"

"From the Public Security Bureau!"

"Hands on your head! Crouch down! Quickly!"

Stern shouts, chaotic footsteps, the clatter of billiard balls being knocked over, and terrified screams erupted in an instant, and the entire entrance area of ​​the black market was completely under control within seconds.

However, deep within the black market area, from the direction of a secluded courtyard, came a sudden burst of rapid and intense gunfire.

"Snap! Snap! Tap tap tap..."

The thud of bullets hitting the earthen wall was clearly audible, indicating that the reconnaissance team that had infiltrated earlier had engaged in a fierce firefight with the stubborn enemy entrenched in the courtyard and had been met with strong resistance.

Liu Jianguo frowned, a cold glint flashing in his eyes, and immediately growled:

"Wang Weiguo, take all your men and follow me to support the inside. Section Chief Zhao Guang, you command the security section and the comrades from the Municipal Bureau to clear out the outer perimeter, control all stragglers, and don't let a single one escape. Move out."

Liu Jianguo took the lead, along with Wang Weiguo and more than ten other elite team members, using the ruins as cover to quickly maneuver towards the direction where the gunfire was most intense.

Upon approaching, they saw a rather sturdy, secluded courtyard that had become a stubborn fortress. The gate was tightly closed, and flames were constantly spewing from multiple windows, indicating a fierce barrage of fire.

The seven or eight scouts who arrived earlier were pinned down by a hail of bullets on the stone mill and in the corner of the wall outside the courtyard. They were unable to raise their heads and could only occasionally risk peeking out to fire a few shots blindly in return. The battle was completely stagnant, with the enemy on the defensive.

Liu Jianguo lay behind a low wall, watching this frustrating scene, his temples throbbing with anger.

"Damn it, they're still reluctant to use grenades after fighting like this? Are they waiting to take them back and hand them over?" Liu Jianguo cursed inwardly and immediately changed tactics.

He roared, "All hands, prepare your grenades! Target the courtyard ahead! On my command. Three-second delay, throw!"

Before he finished speaking, he had already taken a Type 67 wooden-handled grenade from his belt, bit off the safety cap with his teeth, and pulled the trigger with his little finger, silently counting down the seconds.

"one two three!"

He then used his waist and abdomen to generate power, and with a swing of his arm, he accurately threw the hissing, smoking grenade at a window that was spitting flames.

"bomb!"

Wang Weiguo and the others almost simultaneously threw their grenades with all their might. Seven or eight grenades, accompanied by the whistling of death, pierced the night sky and fell into the courtyard.

"Boom! Rumble—!"

Deafening explosions rang out one after another, flames shot into the sky, and shrapnel flew everywhere. The gunfire in the courtyard stopped abruptly, replaced by piercing screams and chaotic shouts.

The concentrated bombardment of grenades was highly effective. The enemy in the courtyard was clearly stunned by the bombardment, and the surviving gunmen began to fire blindly outwards without any strategy, completely losing their previous rhythm.

Hand grenades are a powerful tool for deterring such stubborn positions. "No one would expect us to use this," Liu Jianguo thought to himself.

But his battlefield experience told him that although the enemy was in disarray at this moment, the remaining enemy forces might be more dangerous.

To ensure the absolute safety of the assault team and completely destroy the enemy's morale, he decisively issued another order:

"Don't stop, it's working very well. One more round, a full-scale bombing, plow the yard clean."

At his command, a second wave of grenades rained down on the courtyard, and even more violent explosions rang out again, filling the air with smoke and dust that almost engulfed the entire courtyard.

After two rounds of satisfying grenade bombardment, the courtyard was in a mess, with most of the walls collapsed, and the gunshots and shouts inside had faded away.

Liu Jianguo judged that the time was right, suddenly stood up, pointed his gun forward, and his voice was like a sharp blade being drawn from its sheath:

"Go! Charge in. If you encounter any armed resistance, open fire immediately without warning and kill them on sight."

Wang Weiguo led the assault team like tigers descending a mountain, kicking open the deformed and damaged courtyard gate and rushing into the courtyard amidst the smoke and gunpowder.

There were more than a dozen corpses lying haphazardly in the courtyard, most of them mutilated and killed in a gruesome manner.

Several wounded men were groaning in pools of blood. Without hesitation, the team rushed into the crumbling main room and dragged out four survivors covered in dust and blood, shivering, from corners, under beds, and cabinets.

Liu Jianguo stepped through the rubble into the house, his cold gaze sweeping over the four men before finally settling on the face of a middle-aged man who, though disheveled, still retained a hint of ferocity and ruthlessness in his eyes. He pointed his gun at the man and asked coldly:

"You are the one who calls himself Master Dong."

Under the threat of several gun barrels, the man was already pale as a ghost, trembling like a leaf, and answered in a trembling voice:

"I dare not... I dare not accept such praise... I am... I am Wang Dong... Sir, please spare me... please spare me!"

Liu Jianguo snorted coldly, his face expressionless: "Wang Dong, hmph, handcuff them all. Take them back and interrogate them thoroughly. I need to know their connections, not a single one can be missed!"

As dawn broke, the operation came to a complete end, and a large contingent escorted the prisoners back to the agricultural repair factory.

Liu Jianguo immediately ordered Zhao Guang and Zhao Qiang to join forces and conduct an emergency interrogation of Wang Dong and the other four main prisoners.

After making the arrangements, he took some time to go to the factory office and found Wang Mengzhu, who was anxiously waiting for news.

"Section Chief Wang, we have completely dismantled Dongye Wang Dong's black market den, and all the main leaders have been arrested."

He first informed the reporter of the results, then changed the subject, his tone becoming sincere and serious:

"However, for safety reasons, I still recommend that you apply for a transfer away from Baoding as soon as possible. The enemy's intelligence network is deeply entrenched. Although this stronghold has been destroyed this time, there is no guarantee that there won't be any survivors who will seek revenge. It is too risky for you to stay here."

After listening, Wang Mengzhu lowered her head, her hands tightly clasped together, and remained silent for a long while before responding in a voice barely audible:

"Um...I understand. Thank you...thank you, Director Liu."

Her reaction was somewhat ambiguous; she seemed to have taken it to heart, yet she also seemed hesitant. Perhaps it was fear of the unfamiliar environment, or perhaps it was worry about the difficulty of the transfer, making it hard for her to make a decision immediately.