At two o'clock in the morning, a large number of police cars rushed back.
This gambling raid was an operation that could rank among the top ten in Yongnan County's history, with over three hundred people arrested in the casino alone.
The police had made several trips back and forth.
The amount involved was over two hundred thousand yuan. While this might not seem like much in later years, it was a considerable sum in 1998, equivalent to over two million yuan today.
Many people had used their family savings to gamble, seeking maximum profits.
Little did they know that gamblers rarely ended well. In the eyes of the bookies, they were all fat fish, and except for a very few who knew when to quit, all their money was pocketed by the house.
Fenggu Garden, past two in the morning, was still brightly lit.
A harsh shattering sound continuously echoed from a room. The entire room was a mess, strewn with fragments of porcelain, a shocking sight.
Everyone in the room held their breath, as if frozen, the oppressive atmosphere weighing down on their hearts.
"Who can tell me why this is happening? Why?!"
"Without any warning, they struck tonight. We received no prior information!"
On the floor in the center, Han Shifei stood barefoot, radiating a sinister aura, having smashed nearly all the porcelain.
Watching Han Shifei vent his fury, everyone trembled, daring not to utter a word.
The police's sudden crackdown on the casinos in the southern part of the city that night had caught everyone completely off guard. Even now, everyone was still bewildered.
Because before this, they would always receive advance notice of any stirrings, but this time was an exception, leading to tremendous losses!
The casino in the south of the city was their biggest earner, with daily profits amounting to a colossal sum. Its complete shutdown now meant devastating losses.
Furthermore, many key operatives and their subordinates had also been apprehended.
Especially Hei Xiong and Huang Lao San, who knew a lot of secrets. If the police managed to pry information from them, the consequences would be almost unimaginable.
Not long ago, someone from their side had tried to call, only to find that the phones of people who had benefited from them greatly were all switched off. This result further fueled everyone's panic.
Was this truly the end?
Were the authorities planning a complete sweep?
If that were the case, it would be troublesome, and they would need to consider their escape routes.
In the stifling room, everyone's mind raced with different speculations.
"Brother, I'll go personally and find that Mr. Hong right now to ask him what this is all about," a middle-aged man suddenly stood up and said in a deep voice.
He was Han Shifei's younger brother, Han Shihong, forty-five years old, but appearing to be only in his early forties, and undoubtedly a prominent figure in Yongnan County. Besides Han Shifei, no one dared to defy his wishes.
However, Han Shihong was more low-key than Han Shifei, managing his own affairs most of the time, responsible for the grain business and protection money.
Huang Lao San's arrest tonight had also unsettled him, as Huang Lao San was his man and knew certain things.
The Mr. Hong mentioned by Han Shihong was the highest official from PC, who had often accepted their benefits. To think that he was now playing disappearing act was particularly infuriating.
Standing beside Han Shihong were Zhou Yitong, Zhang Wenbo, and Man Niu, among others, each with a grim expression.
Man Niu, in particular, had a look of lingering fear in his eyes. He had actually been planning to go to the casino in the south of the city tonight to gamble a few rounds. Halfway there, he received a call from his favorite mistress and changed his route for a rendezvous.
Unexpectedly, he had thus narrowly escaped disaster, a small mercy in the midst of misfortune.
"That old scoundrel, if he's playing hide-and-seek, do you think we can find him now?" Han Shifei sneered.
Han Shihong was immediately rendered speechless, his face ashen.
Just then, a notification sound chimed. Zhang Wenbo quickly pulled out his phone, and as he glanced at it, the wrinkles on his old face contorted violently.
"Young Master, I just received a message. The action tonight also involved that Mr. Qin!" Zhang Wenbo reported.
"What did you say?"
Han Shifei's eyes widened, and everyone else looked astonished. What did Qin Chuan have to do with tonight's operation?
"Young Master, look!"
Zhang Wenbo handed the phone to Han Shifei. As Han Shifei raised his foot to take the phone, he inadvertently stepped on a broken piece of porcelain, immediately gashing his foot and causing him to gasp in pain.
"Brother!"
"Young Master!"
Everyone was startled. The quick-thinking Zhou Yitong immediately rushed to get medicine and bandages, while Han Shifei sank onto a chair.
Zhang Wenbo quickly handed the phone over. Han Shifei's expression grew progressively darker as he read, until it was completely overcast.
The message clearly described how Qin Chuan had intercepted Hei Xiong and Huang Lao San, and then, with Qin Yang's formidable martial prowess, had heavily injured Hei Xiong.
"Everyone, take a look at this message!"
Han Shifei tossed the phone over. The others crowded around to read it. After a long silence, everyone erupted in anger, grinding their teeth.
"Damn it, it's that Mr. Qin again!"
"How can this Mr. Qin be so persistent, he's everywhere!"
"Could it be that this Mr. Qin orchestrated this police crackdown?"
The group babbled incessantly, almost all of them cursing Qin Chuan's ancestors, revealing the depth of their hatred for him.
"Impossible! Where could this Mr. Qin get so much power?" Man Niu stated firmly.
"Why is it impossible? Don't forget, Mr. Qin has latched onto Ye Qingping's gilded ship. What if this was Ye Qingping's doing?" Zhang Wenbo said coldly.
"And don't forget, we were the ones who ordered the arson of his development project! And that project was a matter of political achievement for Ye Qingping!"
A single sentence stunned everyone, their faces growing increasingly grim.
If this were indeed the case, then everything would make sense.
Qin Chuan and Ye Qingping were allies. Ye Qingping desired political achievements and the construction of a new city, which naturally depended on development projects. The more projects built, the higher his achievements.
Now, they had burned Qin Chuan's development project, which was tantamount to indirectly sabotaging Ye Qingping's political achievements. How could Ye Qingping not be enraged?
None of those present were fools. They quickly pieced together the connections, and their faces grew more and more troubled.
If Ye Qingping was indeed behind this, then they were in serious trouble!
"Ye Qingping..."
"Qin Chuan..."
As everyone's faces turned exceptionally grim, Han Shifei softly murmured. His fair complexion was filled with a deep malevolence, and a hint of murderous intent flickered in the depths of his eyes.
"Everyone, stop overthinking. When dawn breaks, we'll go and observe the situation at the police station."
"If there's any room for negotiation, then everything can be discussed. If not..."
Han Shifei paused here, and the hidden murderous intent in his eyes suddenly surged tenfold.
"Then if they want me to fall, I'll make them fall first!!"
"In this world, aren't there countless people who meet with accidents every day?"
Hearing Han Shifei's murderous words, everyone's hearts shivered...