"The other party is not simple," Zhao Zhonghai took off the black apron he was wearing and threw it aside. Then he turned to leave, quickly closed up his stall, and said, "I'll go with you!"

Lin Chuan was immediately deeply touched. After hearing the news, Zhao Zhonghai did not scold him, nor did he complain. He even decided to join Lin Chuan in the search for Goudan. This moved Lin Chuan very much. Lin Chuan nodded and said, "Okay!"

After packing up, Zhao Zhonghai took a black canvas bag from beneath the cart and slung it over his shoulder.

"Let's go!" Zhao Zhonghai waved his hand.

Lin Chuan was unprepared, but he did not need any preparation.

"I'm going with you guys," Song Xiaojia hastily said.

"You'll only mess things up if you go," Lin Chuan glared at Song Xiaojia and said, "You go back."

"Lin Chuan, let me go with you. Goudan's kidnapping, I can't be uninvolved," Song Xiaojia urgently said, "Besides, if you guys go to another place and need the police's help, I can negotiate with them. It will be somewhat more convenient with me there."

"No," Lin Chuan shook his head.

"You must take me there," Song Xiaojia also became anxious, suddenly hugging Lin Chuan's arm, and said, "At worst, I will listen to everything you say, isn't that enough?"

"Are you sure?" Lin Chuan frowned.

"Sure," Song Xiaojia quickly nodded and raised her hand to swear.

"Get in the car," Lin Chuan waved.

Then, the three of them quickly got into the car. The vehicle sped along East River. Nobody knew where the other party would flee to. Song Xiaojia took out a map of Jiang Province from her belongings. The East River is a branch of the Yangtze River and is also considered an important river in Jiang Province. Along the East River, there are several cities, with the provincial capital situated at the junction of the East River and the Yangtze River. This place possesses a large quantity of quality water resources and is rich in fishery resources.

With the advancement of industrialization, the provincial capital has transitioned from its past single-industry resources to become a city with diversified industries.

Looking at the map, Zhao Zhonghai said, "Go to the provincial capital."

"Why?" Song Xiaojia was stunned and said, "If the speedboat goes from Jiangbei City to the provincial capital, it will take at least three hours. Why not choose Jiangnan City where they can get off within forty minutes, or Lin City which is just an hour and a half away?"

Zhao Zhonghai glanced at Song Xiaojia and then analyzed, "Jiangnan City has an underdeveloped economy and a small urban area, plus it's so close to Jiangbei City, they definitely worry that the police might have set up an ambush at the docks. The same goes for Lin City. But the provincial capital is different, it has a large water area, and they can find anywhere to disembark. Moreover, the transportation in the provincial capital is complex, making it harder for the police to investigate. It's also easier for the other party to escape."

"If we don't intercept them here, Goudan will be in danger," a glint of murderous intent flashed in Lin Chuan's eyes.

"Hmm," Zhao Zhonghai appeared very calm.

Goudan is his child; his heart is actually in chaos, but precisely because Goudan is his child, he must remain calm. Without a calm mind, he would not be able to analyze the other party's every move, nor would it be possible to rescue his own child.

Song Xiaojia was somewhat puzzled, "Why do you say that?"

"Every move they make before they leave the provincial capital is dangerous," Lin Chuan said through clenched teeth, "Goudan is a hostage in their hands. Moreover, I suspect there will definitely be people to meet them in the provincial capital. Once they leave the provincial capital, Goudan will no longer have any value to them. They definitely won't want to carry a burden on their journey. With their style, Goudan's death is certain."

"Ah?!" Song Xiaojia was dumbfounded and also very anxious, saying, "Then... what should we do? No, I must immediately notify the provincial capital police to assist in the investigation."

"Stop," Lin Chuan glared at her and said, "Didn't you say you'd listen to me?"

"I... but Goudan is in danger," Song Xiaojia became flustered, "The police must act quickly."

"Once the police take action, they will inadvertently alert the suspects," Lin Chuan said coldly, "Alarming them will cause the other party to panic and take desperate measures, putting Goudan's safety at even greater risk."

"Then... what should we do?" Song Xiaojia was on the verge of tears, feeling sorry for this girl who had been a police officer for only a year but had encountered such a difficult case. She wanted to save Goudan but couldn't seek help from the police. To a kid who had been taught from a young age that 'police can do anything,' not calling the police was indeed hard for her.

"We must solve this all by ourselves," Lin Chuan narrowed his eyes.

"But, you have no idea how many people they have," Song Xiaojia said calmly, looking at Lin Chuan, "And they have guns. Just the three of us are no match for them."

Lin Chuan turned to look at Zhao Zhonghai.

Zhao Zhonghai revealed a disdainful smile.

"It's not the three of us; it's the two of us," Lin Chuan pointed to himself and Zhao Zhonghai.

"What do you mean?" Song Xiaojia glared at Lin Chuan and said, "Are you planning to ditch me?"

"Women should stay out of men's business," Lin Chuan admonished in a deep voice.

"You!" Song Xiaojia was infuriated. After all, she was a police officer herself. How could she just be cast aside when it came to saving someone? It was utterly baffling. But since she had already agreed to listen to Lin Chuan, she could only pout and sit obediently to the side.

Two hours later, the car swiftly arrived at the provincial capital.

Zhao Zhonghai looked at the expanse of water before the city, seriously analyzing where the other party was most likely to come ashore. They definitely wouldn't choose one of the regular docks. Soon, Zhao Zhonghai found a place. Pointing at the map, he said, "Yanjiang Road number seventy, this place is remote, an abandoned dock that's been unused for a while."

"Might the other party choose a place without a dock to come ashore?" Lin Chuan analyzed seriously: "Speedboats don't need much water depth. Besides, the other party is in for a quick job and likely won't care about the damage to the speedboat. So..."

"That's possible," Zhao Zhonghai said with a cigarette in his mouth.

After a moment of silence, Song Xiaojia, who was beside them, said curiously, "I happen to know a place."

"What place?" Zhao Zhonghai asked.

"Red Maple Ridge," Song Xiaojia said awkwardly. "It's a botanical garden in the provincial capital, very secluded, located at the confluence of the East River and the Yangtze River. The water there is deep and the banks are low. During the day, many people play there, but at night, it becomes eerie. There used to be frequent robberies and even rapes there... So now, hardly anyone dares to go there at night."

"Really?" Zhao Zhonghai was taken aback and said, "Let's go there then."

"Sure," Lin Chuan nodded and said, "Such a good spot, they definitely won't pass it up."

After that, they drove to Red Maple Ridge.

Red Maple Ridge is a botanical garden in the provincial capital, open for free. It has many maple trees, and when autumn comes, red maples are everywhere, attracting many people to admire the leaves. At this time around dawn, probably no one would come. Indeed, upon their arrival, it was truly eerie inside.

They parked the car, turned off the engine, and proceeded on foot.

"It's really cold in here." Song Xiaojia, who was only wearing a police uniform, felt alright during the day, but at night the temperature dropped sharply, below zero.

Lin Chuan took off his coat and draped it over Song Xiaojia, saying, "Put it on, don't catch a cold."

Song Xiaojia stood there stunned, looking at Lin Chuan who was left with only an undershirt, she felt a slight touch of emotion inside. Biting her red lips, she said, "Jerk, you obviously care about someone but pretend to be as cold as your jacket."

A trace of girlish shyness appeared on Song Xiaojia's face. She blushed, wrapped herself in Lin Chuan's oversized jacket, and quickly caught up with his pace.

Red Maple Ridge was pitch black without any street lights. Near the outskirts of Red Maple Ridge, several cars were parked with their bodies rocking unsteadily, indicating there were likely couples engaging in car sex inside.

Walking deeper, one could feel the chill of the mist hitting their faces.

"It's so cold." Song Xiaojia wrapped herself in the coat, blowing on her hands for warmth.

The three hunkered down by the shore, surveying the surroundings, but there didn't seem to be anything special. Zhao Zhonghai set down his black canvas bag on his shoulder, unzipped it, and pulled out a pair of black gloves. Lin Chuan quickly recognized them as Oakley military gloves, the kind only found in the American military. The gloves, black with joint-shaped protective pads on the back of the hands made from carbon fiber material—protect the knuckles from injury and can augment punching power in a fight. The ventilation holes at the base of the fingers looked like the O-mark logo.

The palms and fingertips, with their breathable goatskin, provided excellent non-slip properties, and the rubber particles on the fingertips were also designed for grip, especially when holding firearms, providing an excellent hand feel. These gloves were extremely difficult to come by in the country, and even abroad, they were quite expensive. A pair of gloves cost upwards of seven hundred dollars, not including tax.

Next, Zhao Zhonghai also pulled out a Nepalese military knife, tucking it into his waist, and strapped two American military daggers to his calves.

All of these moves were carried out very efficiently.

Song Xiaojia was surprised: "You... You actually have so many restricted knives hidden?"

"Brother Zhao, I didn't expect you to be so well-equipped," Lin Chuan said with a smile.

"For self-defense," Zhao Zhonghai replied.

These items were Zhao Zhonghai's collection and also meant for his self-defense. Now that his son had been kidnapped, how could he sit idly by? He had taken out all his treasured belongings.

Just as the three were about to proceed to scout out the situation, suddenly, rustling footsteps came from the woods.

"Take cover!" Lin Chuan hurriedly said.

The three quickly hid behind the trees. Not far away, there was whispering. Although it was not clear, they could barely make out that those people belonged to the same group as Eagle. Lin Chuan, with his keen ears, heard the name Eagle mentioned. He signaled Zhao Zhonghai with a hand gesture.

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