When we arrived at the police cemetery, after burying Gao Mingqiang's body, all the police officers present raised their guns and fired them into the sky in front of the tombstone.
The continuous gunfire echoed through the desolate police cemetery. Although many martyrs were buried here to keep Gao Mingqiang company, we decided to visit him often. We hope you are still happy and blissful in that world, watching over us and protecting us as we completely destroy the Polaris International Criminal Organization!
Gao Mingqiang, we will always remember you, forever.
I caressed his tombstone, looking at his once passionate face. He charged forward for everything, and even when his family was murdered, he remained righteous and fearless. How many people like him are left in this world? It was drizzling softly, but we didn't use umbrellas. We just calmly looked at Gao Mingqiang's photograph. This was our last intimate moment together. After leaving, even if we returned, the feeling would be different, because Gao Mingqiang would slowly fade with time.
Everyone's clothes were soaked, but no one wanted to leave. It was only when Director Zhang spoke that the crowd, still immersed in overwhelming grief, was roused.
"Let's not linger here. We still have a case to investigate. Pull yourselves together. So that Gao Mingqiang's spirit in heaven can see us destroy the Polaris International Criminal Organization, and for the honor of the Chinese People's Police, as well as the safety and lives of the people, we must be more resourceful and brave than ever before. We must completely eradicate these detestable criminals, criminal groups, and criminal organizations, and restore a free and green living environment for all of us!!"
"Yes! We heard you!" Everyone clenched their fists and responded, looking up at the countless erect tombstones in the police cemetery, those predecessors who had sacrificed their lives for criminal investigation...
When I left this time, I also visited the adjacent police dog cemetery and paid respects to Da Hei, who had sacrificed his life for criminal investigation. This police dog was buried among the tombstones of the martyrs, not far away. Many police dogs who had sacrificed their lives for the police were buried in this area.
I looked at a few tombstones, including those of other breeds. These were all meritorious dogs. As I was gazing at one of the tombstones, someone suddenly patted my shoulder from behind: "He Sheng, did you know that at the police cemetery earlier, a police officer named Li Chaliang, in order to prevent robbers from entering the bank vault, was stabbed more than ten times and shot in the head more than a dozen times. But even in death, he did not let the criminals succeed in their robbery. He successfully delayed them until police support arrived and completely surrounded the criminals. Another officer named Huang Zhiming, while rescuing citizens during floods, did not evacuate at the designated time and was submerged by the flood. He was less than 20 years old when he died. There was also an officer named Yang Guangqi, who clashed with criminals on the rooftop. Because there were hostages at the time, he took their place for their safety and was later taken into the sea by the criminals and drowned... Additionally, there was a police dog named Dahua, who was shot and killed fighting drug dealers, and another police dog named Daming, who was kicked to death by criminals. In short, they all shed blood and sacrificed their lives for criminal investigation during their lives. These police officers, along with Da Hei and other police dogs who sacrificed their lives for criminal investigation, all lie here. But they will still silently guard us."
It was Lu Chusheng. He patted my shoulder and looked towards my father's tombstone in the distance. Since we were here, neither of us forgot to visit him.
It wasn't that I wanted to see Da Hei first, but because I hadn't seen him for a long time, and with Gao Mingqiang's sacrifice this time, it reminded me of the scene when it bit the bomb last time. The deafening explosion took it away from us forever, and even its remains were scattered by the wind.
After paying respects to my father, I stood up and gazed into the distance with Lu Chusheng.
Back at the provincial department, we still had no results in tracking He Qing, whom we had been following for a long time. At that moment, another misfortune befell us. I was in my office when my phone suddenly rang. When I picked it up, I saw it was Ling Xiaotao calling. She usually never contacted me, except for work-related matters.
"He Sheng, where are you? I'm in danger. Someone is watching me at my home. Can you come quickly?"
"What's going on?"
"I think I've been targeted. No matter what, come over first!"
I quickly got dressed and rushed out. The next second, I received a location. Since it was my first time going to Ling Xiaotao's house, I didn't know where she lived.
I sped to a villa and was stunned to realize that Ling Xiaotao was quite wealthy, living in such a place.
However, this was an independent villa. Although it should have had excellent anti-theft equipment, the danger level would still be very high if she lived here alone.
I immediately went to the door, but as I tried to open it, I found it locked from the inside. I shouted inside, "Ling Xiaotao! What's wrong? Open the door!"
There was no response from inside the villa. I became anxious and took a few steps back, then slammed hard against the door. But this kind of door was specially designed, and I couldn't open it like this. Moreover, there was a fingerprint lock next to it, so it seemed I needed to find someone.
Just as I was about to make a call, I suddenly felt a sharp pain in the back of my head. Then, my vision went completely black, and my head felt heavy as I passed out.
I don't know how long passed before I regained some consciousness. As I opened my eyes, I found myself and Ling Xiaotao tied together, our hands bound behind our backs, with a pillar between us. This room looked like a room in a factory, with an old layout, dust all around, and some hanging iron hooks. Tools like wrenches and hammers were hung on the walls.
The floor was not made of bricks and tiles, but ordinary concrete cement. I thought for a while, but Ling Xiaotao still didn't react. I carefully nudged her arm with my shoulder, and she slowly woke up. Realizing our situation, Ling Xiaotao exclaimed, "He Sheng, where is this?"
"Don't you know? I received your call earlier!"
"Ah, so you really came? What was I saying? I was being watched earlier and wanted to ask for your help. I didn't expect to be gagged in the room and pass out."
"Damn it, it looks like we've fallen into their trap. Their target probably wasn't you, but me!"
I recounted being attacked, and Ling Xiaotao immediately felt embarrassed: "It's all my fault. I shouldn't have called you if I had known!"