30: Chapter 30: When an old general takes the field, one is worth two.

Early in the morning, clutching the stack of documents that looked like "wanted posters" printed by Lin Ning, the three of them—Jin Er and his companions—took the bus and swayed their way to the destination.

They toured all three addresses provided by Lin Ning.

The three exchanged glances. Being old hands in the game, they had seen it all, and they immediately understood the situation at the car dealership and the massage parlor.

The troublesome one was the suspected fake base station telecom fraud operation.

Jin Er: "Brothers, let's go back to the old residential complex and stir things up."

Upon entering the residential complex, the three didn't rush toward the buildings. Instead, like three drops of oil, they naturally blended into the elderly activity area, which was the liveliest spot in the complex during the morning.

In the pavilion, a few old men were arguing until their faces were red and their necks were thick over a chess move.

Xu San watched the game with his hands behind his back and suddenly chimed in: "Hindsight is 20/20, that's a dead end. Oh, you can't move there!"

An old man glared at him: "That's not playing by the rules, is it!"

Xu San smiled apologetically and passed around cigarettes. "Couldn't help it, really couldn't help it. Oh, the youngsters are making so much noise every day that I can't sleep, it's really agitating." As he spoke, he gestured with his chin toward Building 216.

The old men lit their cigarettes, taking a break, and started chatting.

"Oh, you're talking about the group rental on the 6th floor! They turn night into day and it's so noisy; Sister He downstairs has argued with them so many times because of it."

Another old man added: "They say it's some gaming team, and those big computer towers are buzzing all day. Old Zhu shouldn't have turned the place into a group rental; the extra money he's making is dirty money!"

Xu San sighed and shook his head: "That Old Zhu! He's got nearly ten people living in there, right?"

The old man in the black clothes shook his head, looking disgusted. "What do you mean nearly ten? There are 16 permanent residents! Every few days, a few more come to stay temporarily. My home is in the building opposite, and I can see it clearly every day!"

The one in the brown jacket chimed in: "Hey, that group of people, let me tell you..."

Jin Er stood on the fitness equipment, swaying his legs back and forth, listening to the aunts gossip about whose family did what. He chimed in with a few words and naturally joined the conversation.

When Jin Er reined in his reckless behavior, he actually possessed a refined aura, making him the best-looking and most charismatic of the three. "There are really more and more outsiders in our residential complex now!"

As he spoke, he tilted his head toward Building 216. "Every day there are more than a dozen young men hanging around in groups; why does it feel so chaotic! I don't even dare let my daughter go over there to play."

The curly-haired aunt agreed upon hearing this: "Exactly! Old Zhao! What did Old Zhu say when you went to find him last time?"

Aunt Zhao rolled her eyes and complained: "Group rentals have high rent; that person is obsessed with money, do you think he cares about us old neighbors?"

The more she thought about it, the angrier she got, and she cursed in a low voice: "If they push me too far one day, I'll get the police to investigate them!"

Jin Er raised an eyebrow and lowered his voice: "What's wrong? Is there really something fishy?"

Aunt Zhao also lowered her voice: "Have you ever seen any decent person sneaking out to throw away trash in the middle of the night every day!? They definitely aren't good people!"

Jin Er asked curiously: "What are they throwing away?"

"Who can see clearly in the middle of the night! Anyway, it doesn't seem like anything good." Aunt Zhao said with conviction, "I live close by, you guys don't know, that group of people often..."

Zhang Shitou didn't join the crowd. He just walked around the area of Building 216, slowly circling twice as if exercising.

He focused on three places: the trash collection point, the window of 603, and the vehicles parked downstairs. After silently noting something down, he turned and walked toward the complex's trash processing station.

At the trash station, Zhang Shitou, with an honest and simple look on his face, appeared embarrassed and anxious. He bent slightly and said to the old man dealing with the trash: "Old Brother, look... oh... my wife threw away something useful of mine in a trash bag. Do you think I could look for it?" As he spoke, he slipped a box of Hongtashan cigarettes into the old man's hand...

Meanwhile, at the Tiger Might Fighting Gym. Lin Ning was gritting his teeth while running, adjusting his breathing while enviously watching the two people fighting fiercely on the ring.

When would he be able to finish physical training and enter actual combat?

"Ha-hu... hu..."

"Pay attention to your breathing frequency, don't get distracted!" The coach's voice rang in his ears.

In the evening, at the small restaurant by Juma Bridge. Lin Ning looked at the three brothers in front of him and listened to them chatter away.

He couldn't help but give a thumbs up; these old veterans really were the best, one was worth two!

Where did you guys get so many tricks and ways to fish for information!

Lin Ning silently summarized in his heart: check-in time, number of people, temporary license plate numbers, daily schedule, excuses used, suspicious behavior, the landlord, neighbors' opinions...

He put away the voice recorder and decided to go back and organize it into a detailed report.

Hey! He found that feeling from when he was a corporate slave!

But why was his mood so different? Oh, he was working for himself, so that was fine!

In a great mood, Lin Ning smiled and said: "Hard work, hard work! Send the expenses you need reimbursed to my phone, and I'll transfer them to you along with the subsidy and the base pay!"

Zhang Shitou then silently handed a black plastic bag to Lin Ning.

"What's this?" Lin Ning was stunned.

Zhang Shitou opened the bag, inside there was another dirty bag. "Inside are phone cards, probably over a hundred of them, some still attached to broken card holders. I estimate they might have some evidentiary value!"

Lin Ning's eyes widened: "I... damn! Brother Shitou, you... where did you get this?!"

Zhang Shitou kept a straight face: "The trash station!"

"You dug through the trash can?!" Lin Ning's voice went up an octave, and he pinched the handle of the plastic bag with his fingers, full of disgust.

Zhang Shitou rolled his eyes: "The outer bag is clean! Why are you acting like a germaphobe? Our room isn't any cleaner than the trash station, and you're living there just fine, aren't you?!"

Jin Er and Xu San laughed out loud nearby.

After eating and drinking his fill, he returned to the rental apartment. Lin Ning sat down at the computer, legs spread and supporting his waist.

He compiled the information Jin Er and the others had gathered into a document and sent it to Officer Li Feng along with a voice message: "There is a suspected fake base station telecom fraud group in Cuiling Residential Complex in your jurisdiction. See the document I sent you for detailed information. A bag of phone cards has been sent to you via courier, please be ready to receive it."

A few minutes later, Officer Li Feng called directly.

"Damn! Lin Ning!" Officer Li Feng's voice on the phone was surprised and happy. "Are you for real? There's physical evidence too?!"

Lin Ning, who was massaging himself with a fascia gun, smiled: "I never joke about justice."

Officer Li Feng: "..."

"I think you never joke about the reward money!" Officer Li Feng laughed and scolded, but his tone was filled with irrepressible excitement. "Alright! I will report this immediately, wait for my news!"