Police officer Chen Shu.

"Commander Chen, Commander Chen. The reporters will be coming over to film in a bit, so please make way for them. It'll be quick. Once they're done filming, we'll go up to the lobby. You can say a few polite words to them, and then you can lead them away."

Wu Niusuo approached at some point, his face full of flattery, and asked Chen Shu to come over and cooperate with the interview.

Chen Shu had no intention of openly confronting the leader of the local armed group in public. After briefly scanning the crowd in the cell, he led Wang Yan and Zhu Yiba upstairs to the lobby.

As Chen Shu took his first step up the stairs, he glanced back at the cell.

The group of people who had just been "captured" or "rescued" walked out of the cell in a line, heads down and dragging their feet. They showed neither fear of being arrested by the police nor joy of regaining their freedom. They all had the same expression: numb.

Back in the hall, Chen Shu was surprised to find that it had been decorated.

A long table covered with a red cloth was placed in the best-lit spot. Behind the table were two high-backed chairs, each with a document in front of it.

Chen Shu couldn't help but look up at the ceiling, fearing that another banner might be hung up, saying something about celebrating joint law enforcement between the two countries or solving some case, which would be incredibly embarrassing.

As it turned out, what they feared most came to pass; there really were such signs hanging there, and not just one, all in standard Chinese characters. The content roughly stated things like "Joint Chinese-Burmese Operation a Complete Success," "Telecom Fraud Industry Chain Thoroughly Cracked Down," and "Hostages Successfully Rescued"...

The red background and yellow lettering were particularly glaring under the lobby lights, forming an extremely ironic contrast with the group of numb and listless so-called rescued people in the basement.

Chen Shu looked up, pondering his next move. His thoughts were still a bit jumbled, but he was certain he wouldn't just lead the group downstairs back home.

We still don't know where Xiao Zhao is.

Zhu Yiba's desire for revenge still needs to be managed.

Then, since it's a joint law enforcement operation, we have to achieve some results.

Thinking of this, Chen Shu's lips twitched almost imperceptibly. He didn't know when it started, but when he considered problems, he would put the tasks assigned by his unit at the lowest level.

Maybe Chen Chuan is right. He is someone who appears to be well-behaved on the surface, but deep down he is unwilling to accept any arrangements.

He can cooperate and play the part if the higher-ups want political achievements, a grand spectacle, and reports that please everyone. But once the curtain falls, there can be no one left behind in the rescue and the tasks that need to be done.

Even if the other side has the leader of the most powerful armed group in the area.

"Is it selfish?"

Chen Shu touched his waist, it was empty. He glanced to the side and saw that the Type 64 pistol on police liaison officer Wang Yan was gleaming.

Wang Yan noticed Chen Shu's gaze, pointed to the documents on the table, and said, "Officer Chen, although this looks very informal, this is really the procedure here. They will bring the people from the cells up in a while, and we can take them away after signing these documents."

At this moment, Wu Niusuo, Badula, and Lin Hua also came up from the basement.

Seeing Chen Shu staring intently at the banner, Wu Niusuo assumed that the other party was satisfied with his arrangement in the hall and happily approached him.

"Commander Chen, you came in such a hurry this time, in such a short time, and look how well I've arranged this place. You have no idea how crowded and chaotic it was back then; I even moved this table from my own office..."

The director, dispatched from Myanmar to Dalalin, stood before the commander representing the joint law enforcement efforts between China and Myanmar, speaking fluent Mandarin with an air of elation, completely oblivious to the inconsistencies in his words.

Unsurprisingly, this guy must have made quite a bit of money here. But there's nothing you can do; you can't impose your own moral standards on everyone.

Lin Hua from the Mandalay intelligence branch approached and asked, "Commander Chen, what's the next step?"

Chen Shu remained silent, only glancing at the heavily armed soldiers patrolling and on guard throughout the hall. The telecom fraud perpetrators had all fled; what were these soldiers guarding against?

After a while, Ang Suling walked over like a star surrounded by the moon, all smiles. Then, as Chen Shu had expected, he and Chen Shu sat down at the two main seats at the long table.

Ang Suling handed the documents on the long table to Chen Shu with both hands, saying, "Commander Chen, these are the handover documents. Please sign them. After you sign, these people can leave with you."

Without a second thought, Chen Shu picked up the pen and signed the document printed in both Chinese and Burmese. The pen tip touched the paper very lightly, as if nothing had happened.

The flash went off.

Click! Click! Click!

After the signing was completed, Ang Soling was the first to stand up and lead the applause.

Someone handed over a banner with the words "Enforcing the Law for the People" written in Chinese on it.

Ang Soling personally handed the banner to Chen Shu, and the two shook hands, smiling and greeting the cameras flashing across the room. This joint law enforcement operation concluded successfully.

"Commander Chen, I will arrange for a vehicle to take you to the nearest port immediately." Ang Suling tilted his head slightly, smiling amiably, and then gestured towards the door. His meaning was clear: he wanted Chen Shu and his group to leave with him.

Chen Shu nodded, but didn't move an inch.

"Commander Chen?" Ang Suling raised his voice slightly, his smile unchanged, but his eyes turned colder. "You have obtained what you wanted. Now, it's time to go back."

The two stared at each other for a few seconds.

The nearby soldiers moved closer, whether intentionally or unintentionally.

Chen Shuxian looked away and turned to look at the twenty-three people hiding in the corner of the hall. He then walked over and stopped in the innermost corner.

There was a person curled up there, with their eyes closed.

His hair was shaved half-bald, patchy in different places, and his face was swollen and deformed. His left eye was just a slit, and there was blood on both corners of his mouth.

The color of his T-shirt was so faded that it was impossible to tell if it was dirt or bloodstains, which had seeped into the fabric layer by layer. His exposed arms were covered with cigarette burns, one after another, some of which had scabbed over, while others were still oozing yellow fluid.

His right hand and right forearm were haphazardly wrapped in someone's clothes, standing stiffly upright, covered in dark brown bloodstains.

This was the only one in the group who was seriously injured.

Chen Shu squatted down.

His eyes suddenly welled up with tears. He cautiously reached out his hand, and when his fingertips touched the clothes covering the other person's wound, the person's entire arm trembled violently, and then he opened his barely usable right eye.

The man's eyes first showed blankness, then confusion, and finally disbelief.

"Book...Book...Brother Book? Is that you?"

Am I dead?

I like Policeman Chen Shu.