Nominal: Hou Liangping blocking the door? He was slapped away!

On the other side, the large screen at the Jingzhou Public Security Bureau's command center was flashing wildly.

Zhao Donglai has not given up on the arrest and is directing the operation through a microphone.

"Set up roadblocks on all major traffic arteries throughout the city!"

"Roadblocks have been set up at all highway exits out of the city!"

"Long-distance bus stations and airports conducted a comprehensive overnight search!"

"Arrest Ding Yizhen immediately upon discovery!"

After issuing the orders, Zhao Donglai irritably loosened his tie. Where on earth had he gone? The command center was in an uproar with ringing phones. All officers were mobilized overnight.

The tranquility of Jingzhou's main urban area was completely shattered by the ubiquitous sirens.

A white Jinbei van painted with emergency medical supplies livery sped along the asphalt road.

The siren wailed all the way, drawing the attention of passersby.

The carriage was filled with the pungent smell of disinfectant.

Ding Yizhen's obese body was tightly wedged on the narrow stretcher. To enhance the realism, the old man was dressed in a blood-stained non-woven hospital gown. A white sheet was haphazardly covering his lower body. His entire head was wrapped in a headscarf, revealing only a pair of fierce-looking eyes.

His thick chin trembled incessantly. Two layers of fat were bunched together. He felt a burning, throbbing pain in his crotch, as if he were about to burst and urinate.

A young man with a buzz cut sat in the driver's seat. He was a henchman secretly kept by the Shanshui Group. His driving skills were excellent.

Ding Yizhen leaned forward with difficulty and asked in a low voice.

"How's it going outside? Those cops haven't caught up yet, have they?"

The crew-cut young man glanced at the back of the truck in the rearview mirror and interrupted impatiently.

"Mayor Ding, shut your mouth. The first checkpoint is just ahead. If we're caught, we'll all be in jail!"

The intersection was cordoned off with yellow and black police tape. Three armored vehicles with flashing lights completely blocked all four lanes. Seven or eight heavily armed SWAT officers, with submachine guns at their ready, were checking each passing vehicle.

The ambulance slammed on the brakes. The tires scraped a long black mark on the asphalt. It stopped in front of the police cordon.

A policeman wearing a reflective vest strode over and knocked on the driver's side window.

"Random inspection. Turn off the engine and get out of the car."

The SWAT officer's instructions were swift and decisive. His other hand was already on the baton at his waist.

The crew-cut young man rolled down the car window immediately. His face was filled with anxiety.

"Comrade! This is an ambulance from the Third Municipal Hospital!"

"There was a critically ill patient in the carriage who had suddenly suffered a massive hemorrhage."

"If we had delayed treatment by even five minutes, the person would have died. If this leads to a fatal lawsuit, who will bear the responsibility for this medical malpractice?"

The special police officers, still somewhat skeptical, shone their powerful flashlights into the carriage.

The sheets were deathly white. A glaring smear of blood stained the edge. Ding Yizhen's swollen, bluish-purple face, wrapped in the non-woven fabric, was truly terrifying. He was a living dead, on the verge of death.

The special police hesitated whether to get into the car and uncover the white cloth for a closer inspection.

In the line of cars waiting for inspection, a black Toyota Prado suddenly floored the accelerator. The engine roared like a beast as it crashed into the rear of the Cayenne in front of it.

The massive impact sent the Cayenne spinning halfway around on the spot. The Cayenne then crashed into a three-wheeled truck parked nearby.

Chaos erupted immediately. Two burly, shirtless men emerged from the SUV, each wearing extremely thick gold chains around their necks.

The big man got close to the Cayenne window and punched the glass.

"Get out of the car! Do you even know how to drive?!"

The Cayenne driver wasn't about to back down. He grabbed the steering wheel lock and jumped out.

"You fucking cut me off and you think you're right?!"

The two sides immediately started wrestling. The steering wheel lock slammed against the hood, making a loud thud.

The crowd of onlookers grew denser and denser, completely blocking the three lanes used for the inspection.

"What's going on over there! Send three people over there to control the situation!" The officer in charge immediately raised his walkie-talkie and called out.

The SWAT team had to forcibly break up the fight. Riot shields were positioned between the two groups.

The crew-cut henchman was delighted. It was one of his outposts who had come up and offered him a way out.

He floored the accelerator. The Jinbei van scraped the edge of the rearview mirror of the armored vehicle next to it, forcibly driving over the speed bump. Taking advantage of a gap created by the crowd, it sped through the first checkpoint and disappeared into the distance.

Two more checkpoints were set up in succession. The same trick was repeated.

Every time an ambulance is stopped and its background is about to be investigated, several other vehicles always conveniently appear on the outskirts to cause trouble. Some henchmen of the Shanshui Group even abandon their vehicles and flee to attract the attention of the police.

The entire surveillance network was riddled with holes by this group of criminal gangs.

The Jinbei van was like a slippery eel, plunging headlong into the darkness of the airport expressway.

The crew-cut young man parked the car smoothly at the back entrance of the VIP special security checkpoint at Handong International Airport. There wasn't a soul in sight.

"We've arrived. Get off!"

There are no noisy tour groups waiting to check in here, only the high-level guest doors that are always open.

Ding Yizhen tumbled off the stretcher, using both hands and feet. She didn't even bother wiping the sweat from her face. She hastily ripped off her blood-stained non-woven hospital gown and threw it into a roadside trash can.

Two men in ground staff uniforms came out of the door. They supported Ding Yizhen on either side and led her inside. They didn't even bother to check or verify her identity at the front desk.

The spacious and luxurious private waiting room featured extremely soft sofas. On the mahogany coffee table, a newly issued business green card passport was neatly arranged, along with a ticket for a direct flight to Los Angeles across the ocean.

Ding Yizhen grabbed the passport from the table. After seeing that the photo was of herself...

"Thank God! We can finally leave this wretched place!"

He plopped down on the leather sofa. He picked up the ice water on the coffee table and gulped down half a bottle.

Conference Room No. 1, Hantong Provincial Party Committee Compound.

It was just past 3:30 a.m. Not a single person uttered a sound. The water in their teacups had long since gone cold.

Ji Changming gripped the red intercom. His face was a deep, purplish-red. The few sparse strands of hair on his head were plastered to his scalp by cold sweat.

He hung up the phone. Under the watchful eyes of all the Standing Committee members, he spoke with extreme difficulty.

"Distinguished leaders, Director Zhao Donglai just reported that we still haven't been able to find Ding Yizhen."

Liu Changchun slammed his hand on the conference table, causing the black folder in front of him to jump high into the air.

The governor was unusually furious. His face turned purple, and the veins on his neck throbbed.

Zhao Lichun sat in the main seat. He rested his forehead on the back of his hand, his face etched with exhaustion and worry—a truly heartbroken demeanor.

"Comrade Changchun, calm down. This is an outcome no one wanted to see."

He turned to look at Gao Yuliang and Li Dakang. He began to practice this extremely skillful, official-style Tai Chi.

"There are still loopholes in our cadre team in Handong. Such a large, living person, and so many police officers can't be kept in check. This shows that our anti-corruption mechanism has been severely exploited at the implementation level!"

Zhao Lichun spoke eloquently, but inwardly he was filled with smug laughter.

Li Dakang, sitting at the end, breathed a huge sigh of relief.

Good riddance. Now that I'm gone, no one can implicate me. That bastard Ding Yizhen usually uses my name to bully others. If we hadn't cut off contact, my political life, Li Dakang's life, would have ended here tonight.

Since you, Zhao Lichun, want to use me as a scapegoat, that's wishful thinking.

Li Dakang composed himself. His earlier panic had vanished, replaced by an extremely angry and agitated expression.

"Governor Liu! Secretary Lichun! Our Jingzhou Municipal Party Committee must conduct a thorough self-examination regarding this matter!"

"I am the Party Secretary of Jingzhou City! Ding Yizhen is an official from Jingzhou. I will definitely deal with Zhang Shuli seriously when I get back!"