136: Chapter 136 The ledger is lost, Zhao Lintai is furious

After Shen Jianan finished her conversation with Su Mo, Cao Zhen accompanied her with a smiling face and personally escorted Shen Jianan out of the police station.

Watching Shen Jianan's car lights fade into the distance and disappear into the night, the smile on Cao Zhen's face gradually faded.

He slowly took his phone out of his pocket and called Shen Zhendong.

After a few rings, the call was answered, and Shen Zhendong's slightly urgent voice came through: "Hey, Old Cao, how is the situation?"

Cao Zhen smiled slightly, turned and walked back into the police station, saying relaxedly: "Don't worry, you still don't trust me when I handle things? Jianan has already left, and she doesn't seem to have any suspicions."

"Hmm, that's good." Shen Zhendong seemed to heave a sigh of relief, but then sighed again, "This child, she really doesn't let people worry."

Cao Zhen coughed lightly and comforted: "It's a good thing for young people to have drive; didn't we come through the same way when we were young? Old Shen, you have to learn to let go and let the children venture out."

"Sigh, one step at a time, I suppose." Shen Zhendong's tone revealed a hint of helplessness.

Cao Zhen paused, then suddenly said sternly: "Oh, by the way, I'm afraid tonight's case will have to be reported to National Security. I'm telling you in advance so you can be mentally prepared."

"Reported to National Security? What's going on?" Shen Zhendong's voice rose a few notches instantly.

Cao Zhen explained: "According to Jianan, the man who fought with that young man named Qin Yi is called Chen Mo. I checked the internal System, and there is only one person who is both good at Hung Ga Kuen and named Chen Mo, but his detailed information requires National Security clearance to access."

"Is that so," Shen Zhendong's tone became grave, "It seems we underestimated that Brother Dao's ability."

"Yes," Cao Zhen also sighed, "Jianan's unauthorized action this time really disrupted our plans. Now that Brother Dao has gone into hiding, our surveillance strategy for him will have to be adjusted accordingly."

"Hmm," Shen Zhendong pondered for a moment, "You arrange this matter."

"Okay," Cao Zhen replied, "What about Jianan's station? Should we notify them, or suppress this matter?"

"Just follow the normal procedure," Shen Zhendong's tone revealed a hint of craftiness, "That Director Han at her station was involved with Brother Dao during the last case at the International Finance Center; we can just use this matter to test his reaction!"

"Understood," Cao Zhen laughed, "Then I'll listen to you."

After the two chatted for a few more sentences, Cao Zhen suddenly remembered something and said: "Oh right, looking at Jianan's reaction just now, it seems she has a very good impression of that young man named Qin Yi."

"Oh? Is that so?" Shen Zhendong's voice revealed some interest, "How is that young man?"

"Cough," Cao Zhen chuckled, "I've only seen the surveillance footage, I haven't seen the Immortal Master yet. However, your daughter knew that Qin Yi was injured in the fight, so she let him go back to rest and even said she would contact him tomorrow after he wakes up... This is so unorganized and undisciplined..."

"Hahaha," Shen Zhendong laughed out loud, "I didn't expect our Jianan to be able to do something like this? It's certainly interesting."

"Who's to say it isn't?" Cao Zhen also laughed, "I was quite surprised to hear about this too. But having said that, that kid's skills are indeed quite good, it should be the type Jianan likes..."

"Hahaha," Shen Zhendong laughed again, "Thanks for the reminder, Old Cao, I'll find some time to meet that kid."

"Hmm," Cao Zhen nodded, "That's fine, but don't scare him off. As for matters of the heart, I think you should still respect Jianan's own thoughts."

"Understood, understood," Shen Zhendong replied repeatedly, "Alright Old Cao, it's getting late, I won't disturb you any longer. Let's hang up."

"Hmm, you get some rest early too. Hanging up." Saying this, Cao Zhen hung up the phone and walked up the steps.

...

4:00 AM, the night still shrouded Jingnan City.

Chen Mo had been driving for nearly four hours, forcing himself to stay alert, and finally arrived at the old house on the outskirts of Jingnan City where Chen Hu had hidden the ledger.

He turned off the engine, got out of the car, looked around vigilantly, and only after confirming that no one was around did he walk to the rear car door with peace of mind.

Opening the door, he dragged out Chen Hu, whose hands and feet were tied, and warned him expressionlessly: "I'm going to untie you now. If you dare to play any tricks, don't blame me for being ruthless!"

Chen Hu had been tied up for a long time, and his expression appeared somewhat listless. He shook his head nervously, and because his mouth was taped, he could only make "woo woo" sounds, his eyes filled with fear and submission, signaling that he had no ulterior motives.

Seeing this, Chen Mo reached out and untied the ropes on Chen Hu's hands and feet.

With the restraints on his hands and feet removed, Chen Hu couldn't wait to use his uninjured hand to tear off the tape on his mouth, but because he was afraid of the pain, his movements were both clumsy and slow.

Chen Mo saw this, and a wave of impatience welled up in his heart. He reached out and tore it off roughly, and with a "rip" sound, the tape was quickly pulled off.

"Ah!" Chen Hu screamed in pain, his mouth burning, blood flowing down his lips, a flash of resentment in his eyes, but it was quickly drowned out by fear.

"Shut up! Stop acting pitiful for me, go get the ledger!" Chen Mo glared at him, his tone full of impatience.

Chen Hu covered his painful mouth and led the way tremblingly. The two soon arrived in front of the old house. Seeing that the door was locked, Chen Mo frowned, "Where is the key?"

Chen Hu pointed carefully at the bluestone slab Chen Mo was stepping on, "Big Brother, please move aside first." He explained with a fawning smile.

Chen Mo stepped back two steps and watched Chen Hu squat down, struggling to lift the bluestone slab, and dig out the red brick underneath, revealing a key wrapped in a plastic bag.

"Not bad, hidden quite well." Chen Mo sneered, his tone carrying a hint of sarcasm.

Chen Hu smiled awkwardly and inserted the key into the lock. With a "click," the door lock opened. He pushed the door open and signaled for Chen Mo to follow.

After entering the old house, Chen Mo quickly closed the door, engaged the bolt, looked around vigilantly, and asked, "Where is the ledger?"

Chen Hu pointed towards the main room, "It's hidden in that room." He said timidly, then walked quickly towards the main room.

Arriving at the location where the ledger was hidden, Chen Hu skillfully moved a few bluestone bricks on the wall, but suddenly froze.

At this moment, the hidden compartment was empty; the ledger and the gold bars were nowhere to be found. He sat on the ground with a thud, his fingers trembling as he pointed at the empty compartment, saying in a panicked voice: "How, how is this possible..."

Seeing this, Chen Mo was filled with rage. He pushed Chen Hu aside and reached into the compartment, but felt nothing. He glared at Chen Hu, "Where are the things?"

"I, I don't know either..." Chen Hu stammered in defense, "I clearly put them here... The ledger and the nearly one hundred gold bars from the Underground Bank are all gone..."

"Damn it, didn't you say no one else knew about this place?" Chen Mo roared, his eyes revealing dangerous signals.

"It's... it is..." Chen Hu answered tremblingly, "No one else should know about this place... This house is our ancestral home, there hasn't been anyone in the village for a long time..."

"Then did the things just vanish into thin air?" Chen Mo demanded, his tone full of threats.

Chen Hu was also frightened by this sudden turn of events. He shook his head shivering, his eyes full of confusion and fear: "I... I really don't know... My gold bars... My gold bars worth millions..."

Watching Chen Hu's hysterical appearance, Chen Mo was very irritable, but after his anger subsided, he quickly regained his composure. He took a deep breath, took out his phone from his pocket, walked out of the main room, and dialed Zhao Lintai's number in the cold night.

The phone rang in the quiet night, and after four or five rings, it was answered by Zhao Lintai.

From the other end of the phone came his lazy and slightly sleepy voice: "A-Mo, how did things go? Did you get the ledger?"

Chen Mo frowned tightly and said in a deep voice: "Boss, there were some hitches, the ledger is gone."

Hearing this, Zhao Lintai was instantly wide awake, and his voice became serious: "What happened? How could the ledger be gone?!"

Chen Mo recounted in detail what happened in the old house just now, including Chen Hu's reaction and the abnormality of the hidden compartment. After listening, Zhao Lintai couldn't help but frown and asked suspiciously: "Could it be that dog Chen Hu is deliberately playing us?"

"Judging from his reaction, it doesn't seem like it." Chen Mo shook his head and continued, "However, the door lock is intact, it doesn't look like anyone has been in."

"Then how could the ledger disappear for no reason?" Zhao Lintai was clearly puzzled by this.

"This..." Chen Mo frowned and pondered, when suddenly his gaze swept over the wall of the old house, and a thought flashed through his mind. He continued: "Unless Chen Hu was followed when he was hiding the ledger. Judging by what he said, besides the ledger, he also hid nearly a hundred gold bars taken from the Underground Bank. With so many gold bars, it's very likely that it attracted the attention of someone with ulterior motives."

"Damn it, nearly a hundred gold bars, Chen Hu is quite greedy! This useless dog who fails more than he succeeds!" Zhao Lintai cursed angrily.

"Boss, what should we do next?" Chen Mo asked, "Do you think it's possible that this was done by the police?"

"The police?" Zhao Lintai pondered for a moment, "This possibility is small. If the police had acted, Jingnan should already be in an uproar by now."

"Could it be that they are secretly planning some operation? After all, this incident involves so many officials, they must be very cautious." Chen Mo proposed his own conjecture.

"What you say has some merit." Zhao Lintai nodded in agreement, "Like this, I will first find my connections in Jingnan to inquire and see if there is any movement from the police side."

"Okay Boss." Chen Mo replied, "Then how should Chen Hu be handled?" He looked back at Chen Hu, who was still sitting in the main room, howling like he had lost everything.

The other end of the phone fell into a short silence. Ten seconds later, Zhao Lintai's cold voice came again: "You ask him again, see if he knows who took the ledger. If he says he doesn't know, there is no need to keep him, just dig a hole in his old house and bury him! It just so happens that we can pin this matter on the bastard who took the ledger!"

Chen Mo felt a chill in his heart, but still replied without hesitation: "Yes Boss, I understand!"

"Hmm, that's it!" After Zhao Lintai finished speaking, he hung up the phone.

...