Chapter 111: The Situation Escalates Further

Ye Chen laid out his thoughts and discussed them with Madam Chen and Xu Moyu, reaching several conclusions.

The pressing issues to address were as follows:

First, they needed to understand the investigation results of the mass disappearance of children at the farm.

A key phrase here was "mass disappearance."

How was that even possible?

A large group of children vanished without a trace—sounds like a joke!

Even if wild beasts had attacked them, there would be at least some remains left behind.

If Ye Chen were to get involved in the farm case or dig through it again, the question wasn’t just whether the authorities would allow it; time-wise, it was simply too costly.

Moreover, the investigation was being led by Gong Xiao from Squad Three.

From what Ye Chen had learned, Gong Xiao acted somewhat rashly but was full of a strong sense of justice, working with both roughness and attention to detail.

Therefore, no matter how far Gong Xiao's investigation had progressed, it was certainly worth referencing.

Second, they needed to determine whether the two recent child disappearances in the Outer City were related.

Based on what was known, Eggie had disappeared while walking alone, with no witnesses reporting any abduction.

Still, given how small Eggie was, being suddenly snatched away wasn’t impossible.

As for the second case, Ye Chen was unfamiliar with the family involved, so he couldn’t intervene as directly as he had with the Lu family.

After all, the residential areas in the Outer City were assigned to specific squads.

Though the original squad leader, Zhu Zi, had vanished without a trace, given the bad blood Ye Chen had with Squad One, would they even allow him to meddle?

It was uncertain if they would share accurate information with them at all.

Third, if these incidents were orchestrated by humans, what was the motive?

Kidnapping for ransom? It didn’t seem likely.

Take the Lu family, for example. They were now wealthy, but at the time of Eggie’s disappearance, they were struggling below the poverty line.

Perhaps Lu’s father still didn’t know the exact balance in their account.

So what would kidnapping Eggie achieve—just because she was cute?

Yes, Eggie was indeed adorable; that was why Ye Chen had initially suspected some pervert was involved.

As for the farm children, Ye Chen was certain their families were economically worse off than even the Outer City residents.

If it was for money, that was just foolish—why kidnap Iron Egg?

As Ye Chen pinched the bridge of his nose, deep in thought, a team member’s communicator in the office suddenly emitted a series of electronic tones:

“Brother, I miss you. When will you come find me...?”

Others’ devices buzzed with soft vibrations.

Xu Moyu casually grabbed his communicator and winked at the adjacent team member. “How’s that ringtone? Pretty good, right?”

Madam Chen frowned, snorting coldly. “Such frivolous sounds! Let’s go—the captain’s called a meeting.”

...

Since Ye Chen had joined the Outer City Patrol Headquarters, this was the first time the entire squad had been called together.

Usually, they operated in small patrol teams, receiving separate tasks or reporting individually.

He guessed this full-squad meeting was related to the conference Captain Dai had attended earlier that morning.

All team members lined up in Captain Dai’s office, standing at attention from tallest to shortest.

Xu Fan, the shortest, stood near the door. The captain gave a subtle signal, and Xu obediently closed the door.

Well, good instincts—he must have stood in that spot many times before.

Captain Dai unscrewed his thermos lid, removed his glasses, set them on the desk, blew on the tea leaves, moistened his lips, and began speaking slowly:

“Listen carefully. I will speak, and you are not to interrupt.”

His tone brooked no argument.

“Recently, whether it’s the child disappearances at the farm outside the city or the five cases that occurred in the Outer City, the higher-ups have issued unified instructions.”

What? Five cases?

Ye Chen was stunned by this unexpected figure, feeling as if his head had been struck by lightning five times, his mind buzzing.

Two cases had already demanded his utmost attention.

Now the number five was chilling to contemplate.

Captain Dai, without his glasses, could vaguely see the expressions of those across from him shifting dramatically.

That was why he removed his glasses: they magnified details, and looking too closely was painful to the eyes.

And what came next was even more explosive—ignorance was bliss.

“The directive from above is to take residents’ appeals seriously, record, inquire, and soothe accordingly, then...

“Continue daily patrols as usual. Report any incidents to me first—no unauthorized external disclosures are allowed.”

Everyone held their breath, waiting for more from Captain Dai.

But after a long pause, all they heard was the sound of him sipping tea.

That was it? Just that?

What did it mean? Were they being told to show up but not to exert effort? What about the safety of those missing children?

Ye Chen’s heart began to rage.

Captain Dai put down his thermos, put his glasses back on, and began observing.

Scanning the room, he noticed the three of them—Ye Chen’s group—were the most visibly frustrated.

Even Xu Fan’s face was flushed red, which surprised him.

“All right, I have been clear. Do not come asking me anything further!”

He said this with absolute determination.

“Disperse. Get on with your tasks.”

Under Captain Dai’s stern gaze, the team filed out in single file.

Ye Chen rooted himself to the spot, unwilling to leave, but Chen Bingfeng and Xu Fan forcibly pulled him out.

Ye Chen didn’t understand Captain Dai’s temperament, but they did.

Arguing with the captain now would only yield no benefits later.

...

In the team office, Ye Chen smoked in silence.

This was the first time he had been so brazen within the headquarters, his mood heavy with frustration.

What exactly was the headquarters implying—disregarding human lives?

No, Captain Dai hadn’t said it was the headquarters’ decision, only that it came from “above.”

What did “above” mean?

If Ye Chen remembered correctly, the Outer City Patrol Headquarters reported to the Inner City Patrol Headquarters.

Could it be the Inner City’s decision?

But what concern did incidents at the farm and in the Outer City have with them?

Or was there an even higher authority interfering...

Thinking about the tangled layers of bureaucracy, Ye Chen anxiously scratched his head.

No, the urgent matter was to get hold of the investigation report on the farm case.

Could he approach Captain Gong Xiao privately?

Ye Chen took a single drag from his cigarette, letting the rest burn slowly during his contemplation.

Long ash silently fell onto the floor.

The light outside the team office dimmed.

A voice came from the doorway: “Ye Chen, come out.”

Ye Chen snapped back to reality and looked toward the door.

The sun hung at a moderate height.

In his sight was Captain Dai’s figure, backlit and somewhat obscured in shadow.

His elongated shadow stretched all the way to Ye Chen’s feet.

Captain Dai smiled gently: “Not busy today, right? Hmm, I guess you’re not busy. Come out for a walk with me.”