The river water lapped against the fishing boat, making a dull sound. Chen Mo's hand holding the satellite phone trembled slightly. Zhao Jianfeng's phone was turned off, which meant that he was very likely to have met with something bad. Li Ran's sacrifice filled Chen Mo's heart with anger and guilt even more. He looked down at the USB drive in his hand. This was currently the only key evidence that could reveal the "Deep Sea Project", but without Xu Mingyuan's fingerprints, everything was just empty talk.
The rain gradually lessened, and a hint of pale pale appeared on the horizon. Chen Mo pulled out a tattered raincoat from the fishing boat and put it on himself. He carefully felt towards the urban area. He dared not take the main road and could only move forward along the muddy path by the river, always on guard against any movement around him.
When passing by a shantytown, Chen Mo heard a fierce quarrel. He moved closer quietly and looked through the dilapidated window. He saw several hooligans surrounding a middle-aged man. One of them was threatening with an iron rod, "Doctor Wang, don't toast and refuse to drink. Have a drink as a punishment!" Boss Xu asked you to change the dressing for that little girl. How dare you refuse?
Chen Mo's pupils suddenly constricted. "Little girl", "Change the dressing", wasn't this referring precisely to Zhao Jianfeng's daughter? He clenched his fist and decided to take a risk. Taking advantage of the gangsters' inattention, Chen Mo suddenly rushed in and knocked down two of them in a few moves. The rest, seeing the situation was not good, fled in a panic.
Who are you? Doctor Wang, who was rescued, looked at Chen Mo in shock.
I'm a friend of Zhao Jianfeng. Chen Mo said briefly, "Why did they ask you to change the dressing?"
Doctor Wang sighed, "Captain Zhao's daughter was given chronic poison. When I found out, I refused to change the medicine as they requested. I never expected that they would come knocking."
What about Captain Zhao? Chen Mo asked eagerly.
Captain Zhao was captured by another group of people after drawing away the pursuers. I only heard them say that they would take Captain Zhao to "New Moon Bay".
Chen Mo's heart gave a jolt. New Moon Bay was an abandoned resort on the outskirts of Jiangcheng City. It was rarely visited by people and was a good place to hold hostages. He made up his mind promptly and decided to rescue Zhao Jianfeng first. Maybe there he could find clues about Xu Mingyuan and thus unlock the USB drive.
Before leaving, Chen Mo placed Dr. Wang in a safe place and instructed him to take good care of Zhao Jianfeng's daughter. Then, he stole a motorcycle and sped towards Crescent Bay.
The gate of Crescent Bay is tightly closed, surrounded by barbed wire and cameras. Chen Mo hid his motorcycle far away and, taking advantage of the terrain's cover, quietly sneaked into the mountain villa. Just as he was looking for the place where Zhao Jianfeng was detained, he suddenly heard a familiar coughing sound. He followed the sound and went there. In a cell in the basement, he saw Zhao Jianfeng, who was beaten all over his body.
"Brother Zhao!" Chen Mo called softly.
Zhao Jianfeng raised his head, a trace of surprise flashing in his eyes: "Why are you here?"
"Don't ask so many questions yet. I'll take you out." Chen Mo quickly pried open the prison door and supported Zhao Jianfeng to walk out.
Just as they were about to escape from the manor, a round of applause came from behind them. "Captain Chen, it's been a long time." Xu Mingyuan's voice echoed in the spacious hall. He emerged from the shadows, followed by a group of armed bodyguards, among whom Su Qing was also.
"Xu Mingyuan, don't be complacent!" Chen Mo glared at him angrily, "Your crime will be exposed to the public sooner or later!"
"Just the USB flash drive in your hand?" Xu Mingyuan sneered, "Without my fingerprints, you can do nothing." However, I do appreciate your persistence. If you are willing to submit to me, I can spare your life.
"Dream!" Chen Mo refused without hesitation.
"Then don't blame me for being impolite." With a wave of his hand, Xu Mingyuan's bodyguards immediately surrounded him.
At the critical moment, a sudden siren sound came from afar. Xu Mingyuan's expression changed slightly, clearly not expecting the police to show up suddenly. Chen Mo took the opportunity to pull Zhao Jianfeng out of the encirclement. Amid the chaos, he saw a hint of hesitation flash in Su Qing's eyes, as if she was weighing something up.
The two finally escaped from Crescent Bay and got into a police car to pick them up. It turned out that it was Dr. Wang who got in touch with a colleague he trusted after Chen Mo left, which enabled him to arrive in time.
"Brother Zhao, do you know where Xu Mingyuan's lair is?" Chen Mo asked.
Zhao Jianfeng thought for a moment and said, "When I was arrested, I heard them mention a place - the 'Underground Palace', which should have been the place where they conducted illegal transactions."
Chen Mo clenched the USB drive in his hand tightly, a trace of determination flashing in his eyes: "Alright, then let's go to the 'Underground Palace'. This time, we must catch them all!"