Chapter 100: Saving Lives with Billions

Chapter 100: A Billion-Dollar Rescue

With Bi Wanwan, Song Xuyi, and Ding Gao already assigned tasks, the rest of Team A was deployed, rushing to the crime scene.

The explosion had transformed the three-story residential building into a towering inferno. To ensure fire truck access and prevent injuries from falling debris, the police cordon had to be repeatedly expanded.

Guan Yingjun was forced to park at the intersection. He presented his credentials to the uniformed officers guarding the perimeter before leading his team into the scene.

"Detective Guan," a middle-aged man in a military green shirt shook hands with Guan Yingjun. "Long time no see."

"Superintendent Yang," Guan Yingjun turned to look at the building. "The fire is so intense. How are you certain it was a deliberate gas explosion?"

Yang Ningyu explained, "Gas leaks typically cause explosions and fires confined to a single floor. This one engulfed an entire building! It would take at least a dozen or twenty propane tanks exploding simultaneously to achieve this effect."

As he spoke, his gaze drifted to Jian Ruochen, glancing at him a couple of times.

The young man looked even more spirited than on TV. Despite his long hair, he appeared anything but delicate—instead, he exuded a sharp, competent air.

Yang Ningyu withdrew his gaze and said, "A few survivors managed to escape the building. You should start by taking their statements. Once the fire is completely extinguished, you can examine the scene."

"Okay, appreciate your work." Guan Yingjun patted Yang Ningyu’s arm and led the team toward the ambulances.

The towering flames illuminated a scene straight from hell.

A little boy, wrapped in a brown blanket, was covered in dust and grime, crying with his mouth wide open. Beside him sat a dazed little girl with disheveled hair and a torn dress. Her leg was bleeding profusely, only roughly bandaged.

Soon, a nurse rushed over with a gurney, lifted the girl onto it, and pushed her into the ambulance, urgently saying, "Quick, take her to Mary Hospital. This child can’t wait any longer."

"I want Mommy," the girl said timidly through tears.

"You…" The nurse looked troubled.

Jian Ruochen glanced back at the charred window and leaned in to say to the girl, "Your mommy is still busy. How about we wait until she’s done?"

The girl clutched at the hem of her dress and remained silent.

Jian Ruochen got into the ambulance, took her hand, and said, "Let’s go to the hospital by ourselves today. When Mommy is done, we can show her how brave you were, okay?"

The girl stared into Jian Ruochen’s amber-colored eyes, her fear gradually fading, and slowly nodded. "Then you have to tell her I’m at Mary Hospital and ask her to come pick me up soon."

"Okay." Jian Ruochen released her hand and got out of the ambulance.

The nurse breathed a sigh of relief and leaned out to say, "Thank you."

She hadn’t chosen pediatrics precisely because she wasn't good with children.

The West Kowloon Major Crimes Unit’s renowned Criminal Psychological Consultant really did have some skills.

She had thought the Public Relations Section had come up with some new PR stunt.

Sigh…

You really can’t believe groundless rumors.

Jian Ruochen watched as the ambulance sped off into the city.

Behind him, the wailing little boy was staring wide-eyed at Guan Yingjun.

Guan Yingjun crouched down and managed a smile. "What’s your name? Where are your parents?"

The chubby boy hiccupped from crying, so scared he fell backward onto the ground, kicking his small boots and waving his arms, crying even louder.

Jian Ruochen turned at the sound and noticed the boy lifting his leg.

The boots he wore were ordinary—a pair of light brown little Martin boots, small and cute.

But the laces on these Martin boots were tied using the straight bar lacing method, exactly the same as the uniformed officer who had recorded the video!

Guan Yingjun also noticed this, his expression turning cold.

The little boy gradually stopped crying, secretly pulling his feet in and sitting up properly.

Oh my god.

Grandma’s warning, "If you keep crying, Lord Guan will come take you away," was actually true!

Is this Lord Guan?

He really is as fierce as the one enshrined in the altar, but his face isn’t red.

Why isn’t it red?

The child’s eyes darted around, his survival instinct taking over as he stammered cooperatively, "My name is Park Jianian, I’m 4 years old, I go to kindergarten. My daddy is Park Young-seung, my sister is Park Meilin, and my mommy is Liao Min. The phone number is 193-XXXX-XXXX. Daddy said if I get lost, I should ask the police for help and call this number."

Guan Yingjun: …Was he really that scary?

Jian Ruochen smiled slightly, jotted down the phone number, and led the little boy to another ambulance. Crouching down, he asked, "Park Jianian, was the girl standing next to you earlier your sister?"

Park Jianian nodded, "Yes."

"Then wait here for a while, okay?" Jian Ruochen said softly.

Park Jianian peeked in Guan Yingjun’s direction. Seeing that "Lord Guan" wasn't looking his way, he felt safe and nodded, sitting on the small stool prepared by the medical staff.

Jian Ruochen watched him for a moment before turning to interview other victims sitting on small stools.

His tone was gentle, his demeanor calm, and his words were logical and soothing. Though his face showed no smile, his voice carried a soft, uplifting reassurance.

The cries in the medical area gradually subsided as the questioning progressed.

Jian Ruochen hadn't found Park Young-seung or Liao Min among the dozen or so survivors, realizing they were likely in serious trouble.

Park Young-seung was probably the one who had recorded the crime scene.

Without finding him, it would be difficult to find who gave him orders.

Could this explosion be meant to silence him?

How brutal!

He walked over to Guan Yingjun. "Detective Guan, I’ve finished questioning the survivors."

Guan Yingjun was going over the blast investigation report as he flipped through it. "What did you find?"

Jian Ruochen said, "Most people didn’t know what happened. I focused on asking what they knew about Park Young-seung’s family."

"Most people had nothing but good things to say about Park Young-seung and his wife, praising Park Young-seung as good-hearted and always helping neighbors in the building with repairs like fixing water pipes. When he married Liao Min, they hung wedding candies on every neighbor's doorknob, and later, when Park Meilin and Park Jianian were born, they also gave out candies to celebrate the babies' first month."

Jian Ruochen took out a confession record form and handed it over. "Detective Guan, an elderly man mentioned that Mr. Park has been worried lately about getting a primary school spot for Park Jianian. He wants his child to attend a better private school."

"After talking with the survivors, I learned that this private school not only charges high fees but also has requirements for parents' professions and education. The minimum education requirement is a bachelor's degree. Park Young-seung has a good educational background, but Liao Min stopped her studies after high school."

Guan Yingjun glanced at it and said, "So that gives Park Young-seung a motive for accepting his superior’s assignment to record the execution."

"That's if he really is the one who recorded the execution," Jian Ruochen sighed.

If Park Young-seung died in this fire, the perpetrator would be hard to catch, and the whole thing with the recording would likely get buried.

The fire gradually subsided.

One survivor after another was carried out of the charred building.

But there was no sign of Park Young-seung or Liao Min.

Guan Yingjun’s expression grew increasingly grim.

Soon.

Zhang Xingzong, covered in dust and sweat, ran over, panting heavily, "Detective Guan, we found Liao Min and Park Young-seung under the collapsed rubble. Park Young-seung was shielding Liao Min and seems to be seriously injured. But... but the fire department’s crane just got called away to another location, and we can’t lift the slab right now!"

Guan Yingjun raised an eyebrow. "Just called away? Where else did a fire break out?"

Tears welled up in Zhang Xingzong’s eyes: "Jinmao Tower, a major fire broke out 40 minutes ago. Fire departments across Hong Kong have sent support..."

What are we going to do now?

Were we just going to stand by and watch two living people be crushed to death?

Even if they weren’t key figures in the case, they shouldn’t die like this.

Zhang Xingzong was on the verge of tears: "Detective Guan, what do we do now?"

Jian Ruochen thought for a moment and suddenly said, "Can we use the construction team’s crane?"

Zhang Xingzong choked back a sob and let out a confused "Huh?"

"We can," Guan Yingjun said.

Jian Ruochen then took out his phone. "Let me make a call."

He walked aside, pressed the mushy, unresponsive buttons, and spent half a minute scrolling through the contacts Luo Binwen had input before finding the construction team’s number. He successfully dialed.

It was the middle of the night.

Boss Liu, after a busy day, was in bed snoring with his wife.

The sudden ring of his phone startled him awake. Groggily answering, his tone was less than pleasant, "Hello? Who is it? Calling so late at night."

Jian Ruochen said, "This is Jian Ruochen. I need you to temporarily dispatch a crane to Mid-Levels Elegant Residence. There’s been a fire here, and people are trapped."

Mr. Liu suspiciously checked the caller ID and realized it was indeed his young boss, who usually kept to himself and focused solely on dabbling in police work.

For a moment, he wasn’t sure if he was dreaming or awake.

His head was spinning.

Out of professional habit, he hesitated for a moment. "Well, about this..."

Jian Ruochen said, "2 million. After it’s done, you and your crew can split it. Hurry, saving lives is urgent. The cost of emergency vehicle dispatch and fuel is on me."

Boss Liu immediately straightened up: "Yes, sir!"

Whether it was a dream or not, he was going to seize the opportunity to earn this money.

No, wait—saving lives was paramount. Even in a dream, he should do something good.

Oh man, Boss Jian is really...

What a guy!

·

Zhang Xingzong, who was negotiating with the fire department some distance away, was stunned by what he overheard.

Just like that, 2 million was gone!

You won't find another police department in Hong Kong that could replicate the investigative methods of West Kowloon Major Crimes Unit Team A!

None!

This was throwing money at a problem to save a life!

Only Jian Ruochen could pull off something like this.

5 million to "buy" evidence in a vice case, 2 million to save a life.

Zhang Xingzong thought with a sigh.

Ah...

The male escort menu was overpriced.

Under the cover of night, Guan Yingjun reached out and gently pinched the back of Jian Ruochen’s neck, whispering, "I don't know how to thank you—"

"Ah..." Jian Ruochen interrupted, "2 million is just a few days' interest. I can’t even spend it all..."

It’s simply impossible to spend.

This 10 billion—after spending it for almost half a year, it keeps growing and growing! It’s almost reaching 20 billion.

Whenever he eats breakfast at home, he has to listen to reports on his assets. After calculating the numbers, he has to listen again to Uncle Luo’s "lecture about how saving money is a losing investment."

It’s really tough.

The Fire Department's perspective:

They used to find the members of the West Kowloon Region Serious Crime Unit quite a pain.

After all, in a smoke-filled fire, no one appreciates being grilled right after pulling people from a fire.

In the past, they had encountered situations where they were short-staffed. Simply waiting around was not an option, and there were even cases where officers got killed while trying to move debris by hand, only to face secondary collapses.

No one had ever thought that money could buy their way out.

This was not in their training manual.

The fire chief approached and said, "Thank you, Consultant Jian Ruochen... but this—"

Jian Ruochen raised a hand to stop him. "Liao Min and Park Young-seung are key witnesses involved in a high-profile investigation. You’ve done your best to save them."

The fire chief bit back what he was going to say, hesitating as a thought crossed his mind: Could it be that Consultant Jian was worried the rescued individuals would insist on repaying him with everything they have?

He’s truly kind.

Jian Ruochen added, "Sometime, I’ll donate two more cranes to your team. Next time something like this happens, you can use both and keep one as backup."

The fire chief’s gaze toward Jian Ruochen had completely changed. It felt like he was looking at a saint. He wanted to say more, but the cranes arranged by Boss Liu showed up fast.

He had no choice but to immediately return to his post and work with his colleagues to rescue the survivors.

Heavy concrete and rebar were lifted away.

Survivors buried deep underground were carefully placed on stretchers and transported into ambulances.

Jian Ruochen looked at Park Young-seung and Liao Min. Park Young-seung’s back was shredded, while Liao Min had no major injuries on her upper body, though her lower legs were in bad shape.

He followed the stretcher for a short distance, grabbing the chubby kid who had been waiting obediently on a chair in the survivor area. Leaning into the ambulance, he said, "Take them to Mary Hospital. Their daughter is there too."

On the stretcher, Park Young-seung’s bloodied lips moved slightly.

Mary Hospital was a teaching hospital of the Hong Kong University Medical School—expensive, and they couldn’t afford the bills.

Jian Ruochen glanced at his attire.

His gaze swept over the straight-laced combat boots before turning to Guan Yingjun.

Guan Yingjun said, "Mr. Park, just blink. Twice for yes, once for no."

He stared directly at Park Young-seung. "Was it you who recorded the video during the execution?"

With great difficulty and slowness, Park Young-seung blinked two times.

Jian Ruochen breathed a sigh of relief.

With Park Young-seung’s identity confirmed, the motive behind the incident was now established. Those two blinks were crucial.

Two million well spent.

Guan Yingjun reached out a hand toward the ambulance. Jian Ruochen automatically took it, using the support to hop down, leaving the kid inside.

Guan Yingjun said, "I suspect someone is trying to take them out. Your treatment will be handled by the West Kowloon Major Crimes Unit. Focus on recovering—I’ll come see you tomorrow."

Zhang Xingzong, watching from a distance, glanced at Guan Yingjun, then at Jian Ruochen.

He felt an inexplicable itch all over.

Strange, really strange.

But what exactly was strange?

Jian Ruochen shot a glance at Zhang Xingzong. "What’s wrong?"

Zhang Xingzong snapped out of it. "Oh, I was thinking... since those people upstairs are in such a hurry to silence Park Young-seung, does that mean they know someone got the tape to you?"