Official excuse: I've put you on patrol in Handong, and the whole province is in a panic.

An Changlin immediately said, "I'll arrange for the Criminal Investigation Division to be dispatched."

Su Zhe raised his hand to stop him: "We don't need to use local police forces from Jinghai."

An Changlin's face darkened, but he did not refute.

Su Zhe said, "Chang Shan, Li Chengyang, you two will lead the personnel seconded from the provincial department to cooperate with An Xin. An Xin will draft the action plan, and Changshan will be responsible for personnel deployment."

An Xin looked at Su Zhe, whose previously lifeless face finally seemed to come alive again.

He said, "Team Leader Su, aren't you using local police from Jinghai?"

Su Zhe said, "I don't know the extent to which the Jinghai police force has been infiltrated, so I won't use it for now."

An Changlin said with a wry smile, "Team Leader Su, those words are harsh, but I can't refute them."

An Xin said, "If we use people from the provincial department, the success rate will be higher. Xu Jiang's people have several fixed locations: Bai Jinhan back alley, the auto repair shop on Haiwan Road, and the old dock warehouse."

Su Zhe said, "You lead the way, and make the arrest."

An Xin said, "It's easy to arrest subordinates; Xu Jiang might not even be in Jinghai."

Su Zhe said, "Then let the Jinghai underworld know one thing first: the working group has arrived, and they won't just sit in the office listening to reports."

An Xin nodded: "I understand."

Su Zhe added, "Also, Gao Qiqiang won't be idle either. Do you think this incident was orchestrated by Xu Jiang's family, or is it a joint effort?"

An Xin said, "Xu Jiang's men are at the hotel entrance, and closing the store is more like Gao Qiqiang's method. The Construction Group is now more focused on isolation; those on the outside are causing trouble, but the core members are not showing up."

Su Zhe said, "Then let's file cases along both lines simultaneously. Bai Jinhan and the Construction Group should be listed as key targets for investigation first."

An Changlin said, "Team Leader Su, formally filing a case requires procedures."

Su Zhe looked at him: "I know the program better than you do. What you need to do is prevent the program from being used to drag out a case."

An Changlin nodded: "I understand."

An Xin picked up the pen on the table and said, "I'll write down the arrest list now."

Su Zhe said, "Let's leave as soon as we finish writing."

An Xin looked at him and asked, "Team Leader Su, what if things continue to be chaotic in Jinghai tonight?"

Su Zhe said, "Arrest as many as they come. If the Jinghai Detention Center isn't enough, transfer them to the next city. If the next city isn't enough, report to the province for coordination. Evil cannot prevail over good—this isn't just a slogan, it's action."

An Xin was silent for a while, then said, "I've been waiting to say these words for many years."

Su Zhe looked at him and said, "Then let's not wait any longer, go and do it."

When An Xin turned to leave, her steps were much faster than when she entered.

An Changlin watched his retreating figure and said in a low voice, "Team Leader Su, An Xin has suffered too much these past years."

Su Zhe said, "The fact that this person hasn't bent even after being worn down like this means he's still usable."

An Changlin asked, "What about me?"

Su Zhe looked at him.

An Changlin said, "I also submitted materials to the working group."

Su Zhe said, "I know."

An Changlin smiled wryly: "Then why didn't you say so earlier?"

Su Zhe said, "Director An, you are the director of the Jinghai City Public Security Bureau. Submitting the materials does not absolve you of responsibility."

An Changlin lowered his head and said, "I accept."

Su Zhe said, "If acceptance isn't enough, prove it with actions."

Chapter 47: Chaos in Jinghai, Su Zhe Reveals His Facial Recognition Trump Card

As night fell over the streets of Jinghai, the first round of arrests had already begun.

An Xin sat in the passenger seat of the provincial vehicle, holding a hand-drawn route map. She said to Changshan, "Don't turn on the police lights at the intersection ahead. There are lookouts at the back gate of the repair shop. As soon as the car lights come on, the people will run away."

Changshan said into the walkie-talkie, "Attention all vehicles, turn off your hazard lights and proceed according to Comrade An Xin's route."

Li Chengyang's voice came through the walkie-talkie: "Received."

An Xin added, "It's best to make a move simultaneously in Bai Jinhan's back alley. Xu Jiang's men communicate very quickly; if one group is captured, the other will scatter."

Changshan asked, "Have you arrested them before?"

An Xin smiled and said, "I've arrested some and released others. It's not that I wanted to release them, it's just that the cases just disappeared as they progressed."

Changshan glanced at him: "This time is different."

An Xin folded the route map in her hand and said, "I hope it's different."

Inside the auto repair shop on Haiwan Road, several thugs were playing cards.

Someone outside shouted, "Police!"

The card players threw down their cards and ran towards the back door, only to find Li Chengyang and his men already blocking the way as soon as the back door opened.

"Get down!"

"Hands to head!"

"Anyone who runs will be charged with resisting arrest!"

Even as he was pinned to the ground, Ma Zi continued to curse, "Which police station are you from? Do you know who I'm with?"

An Xin walked over, squatted down, and looked at him: "Ma Zi, do you remember me?"

Ma Zi looked up and saw An Xin clearly. The sound effect of his curse cut off, and then he sneered, "An Xin, didn't you go to the propaganda department? Why are you out arresting people again?"

An Xin said, "Yeah, even someone from the propaganda department can arrest you."

Ma Zi said, "What's the use of arresting me? I'll be out tomorrow."

An Xin handcuffed him and said, "You can try this time."

At the same time, many people were also arrested in Bai Jinhan's back alley.

Mad Donkey wasn't caught. His underlings insisted that he was drunk and caused trouble, that they didn't know Xu Jiang, and that they weren't acting under anyone's orders.

Before midnight, the first group of rioters were sent to a temporary checkpoint.

Su Zhe sat in the temporary office of the Jinghai Zhixin Hotel, looking at the summary table.

An Xin walked in and said, "Team Leader Su, we arrested twenty-seven people. Eleven of them are directly related to the vandalism at the hotel entrance. The others are involved in vandalism along the street, disorderly conduct, and threatening businesses to shut down."

Su Zhe asked, "Did anyone tell Xu Jiang?"

An Xin shook her head: "Not yet. Xu Jiang isn't in Jinghai, and Mad Donkey hasn't been caught either. All the people below have been interrogated; they only said it was for personal conflicts and causing trouble while drunk."

Cheng Du, standing to the side, said, "Gao Qiqiang's side has also made moves. Many shops on the commercial street are closed. The shop owners said that someone had given them advance notice, telling them not to open for business for the next few days."

Su Zhe asked, "Who greeted us?"

Cheng Du said, "The shop owner dares not say. In recent years, the Construction Group has been doing things much more cleanly in Jinghai than in Xujiang. They use the Chamber of Commerce, property management, construction teams, and even private lending to pressure people and don't easily let group personnel show up."

An Xin chimed in, "Gao Qiqiang is harder to investigate than Xu Jiang. Xu Jiang is an old scoundrel, and he's sloppy in his work. Gao Qiqiang has been disguised as an entrepreneur for years, but most of his work is done by outsiders."

Li Wei handed over another document and said, "Team Leader Su, the number of police incidents in Jinghai has surged tonight, mainly concentrated in Jiuchang Street, the building materials market, Haiwan Road, the area around Baijinhan, and the vicinity of Mangcun."

Yang Hong said, "People have started posting online that things have gone chaotic in Jinghai since the work group arrived, questioning whether the outside work group has disrupted local order."

Su Zhe took the phone, glanced at it, and said, "You've moved pretty quickly."

An Xin said, "This is their usual tactic. In the past, when higher-ups came to investigate, the streets would become chaotic, businesses would close, and the public would suffer inconvenience. In the end, all the resentment would be directed at the investigation team. When the investigation team wanted to investigate, the local authorities would say they needed to maintain stability first. Once the investigation team left, everything would go back to normal."

Su Zhe asked, "What do you think their core strategy is this time?"