The longer the Qiuzhen story, the more interesting it was. What was even more surprising was the fact that Qiuzhen stated that the person in the black hat later met someone who knew Zhengyi.

"Zhengyi's friend is a member of a secret security agency. So the man in the black hat must be one of the secret agents too," said Shanquan.

"Yes. I saw him last night at Jongharng station too. Luckily, I've changed my appearance, so he didn't recognize me," Qiuzhen said.

"What was he doing at the station?" Shanquan asked.

"Just like me, he only ordered food. At that time, my attention was divided because I was listening to the conversation between the two other people who were also there. One of the two people was the neighbor we saw at the station. When our neighbor left the food stall, I decided to follow the man. So I don't know what happened next to that guy who likes to wear the black hat."

"About that guy. I don't think we need to worry anymore. He's part of a secret security agency. So he's not our enemy."

"That's right, Biaoshu. I also thought so when I heard what our friends had to say."

"About our neighbor. Can you repeat the things you caught last night from the conversation between our neighbor and his friend?" Shanquan asked.

Earlier, when he met Shanquan at the station, Qiuzhen had already briefly told him about the conversation he overheard last night. However, because they were in such a hurry earlier, Shanquan had not yet one hundred percent grasped everything Qiuzhen had told him. This time, at Shanquan's request, Qiuzhen recounted the contents of the conversation the two people had at a stall at the station in more detail.

One of the two was the person they had seen at the station, their new neighbor. Qiuzhen explained the contents of the conversation clearly. At first glance, what Qiuzhen said sounded very suspicious. But Shanquan realized he should not be careless. There were so many things that didn't look like they really were.

"Our new neighbor always seems to be curious about people's business. But I'm still not sure if he's involved in anything illegal. Of course, I can't be sure what exactly he's doing," said Shanquan.

Qiuzhen also explained that he discovered a secret passage connecting the underground station to their house while following their neighbor, who was always curious about other people's affairs.

"I think you're right about our neighbor. Maybe he's used to going back and forth from his house to the station through the underground passage. There are so many branches of the passage below our house. Those passageways may be part of a network of underground passages created in ancient times." Shanquan took a deep breath. He didn't know if that was a good thing or a bad thing for them.

Qiuzhen's story then revolved around the events of today, where Qiuzhen decided to return to Dafeisi Tower to resolve the curiosity that had plagued him. The thing that Qiuzhen said was extraordinary. Shanquan never imagined that there would be a secret room behind the service elevator in Dafeisi Tower. While in the building, Shanquan had already explored the place. He had also been on the roof of Dafeisi Tower. But of course, it never occurred to Shanquan that there was a secret room and stairway whose entrance was from the top of the building.

Shanquan had also entered the basement, Floors B1, B2, and B3. At that time, Songfei and his friends from the detective and mystery club invited Shanquan and his friends to go underground. Somehow Songfei was able to get the iron-grid padlock lock attached to the stairs on the ground floor that led to the basement. They were all aware that they really shouldn't go down there. But the ban was not an obstacle for Songfei and the company.

At that moment, Hanrong was very cooperative. He didn't stop them at all. The night watchman in Dafeisi Tower didn't really care about what they were doing, either. The building was almost empty. Nothing of value was left by the owner there. So, even though they weren't allowed to enter the basement, the night watchman just let them do their thing. As long as Songfei and company gave him some money for a pack of cigarettes, the night watchman wouldn't chirp to his superiors.

"So the people hiding in the building's basement are in the same group as the woman whose kidnapping incident was witnessed by Yingyue," said Shanquan. "This series of events is really like a movie story."

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

Qiuzhen recounted that when he appeared on the roof of the building, there were already people waiting for him. Apparently, Hanrong contacted those people.

"Who are they? The police or criminals?" Shanquan asked the questions impatiently.

"They are members of the Public Security Bureau in this city. So, a kind of special police. Not the same as the police who investigate ordinary criminal cases. So this case is not an ordinary criminal case. Apparently, the Public Security Bureau has been targeting this group of criminals."

"Huh! So Hanrong is a member of the Public Security Bureau? He doesn't look like an undercover cop at all."

"I don't know what Hanrong's actual position in the bureau is. He didn't introduce himself to me as part of the unit. It's possible that he was just an informant. But from Hanrong's interactions with the two people I spoke to, it seemed that Hanrong is not just an ordinary informant. So I can't be sure."

"Then what happened next to the two people who had been hiding in the basement for a few days?"

"The people from the Public Security Bureau have evacuated them. So they're safe now."

"Were the criminals in that incident part of the same group as the people who kidnapped Xinxiu?"

"I only found out tonight when Biaoshu told me earlier that Xinxiu was kidnapped. So I didn't ask them about it."

Ah! I'm sure they knew about the kidnapping. But they definitely wouldn't tell Qiuzhen about it. I guess that kind of thing is their official procedure.

"Did you tell them about the people who followed Xinxiu and Zhengyi?"

"Of course. From the photos in Hanrong's bag, I think the Public Security Bureau had been watching you guys for a long time. But I don't know if they have any suspicions about you or not."

"Did you tell them about what happened to Yingyue?"

"I didn't tell them I was hiding in the box and overheard some conversation. So I didn't tell them about the kidnapping. But Biaoshu and Miss Lüqiu already told Hanrong all about it. So they must have looked into it."

"Then what about Zhengyi's friend? Did he not appear at Dafeisi Tower at all?"

"When I told them about Zhengyi's friend and the person in the hat, agents from the Public Security Bureau seemed to recognize them. At first, they didn't want to talk about it. But then, one of them whispered to me that Zhengyi's friend and the man in the hat were members of the Public Security Intelligence Agency. So those people are not the same as them."

"Ah! Of course. Zhengyi's friend isn't from this city. So he's a Public Security Intelligence Agency agent on duty here."

Shanquan sighed. The general public didn't know much about those kinds of things. Information about the structure of the security bureau was not widely published. Many security agencies were operating in the same field and place. Something like that sometimes made the handling of a problem overlap.

In fact, it was not uncommon for problems to arise. For example, the competition between each of those institutions when carrying out their duties. Shanquan was a little worried that the competition between the police, the Public Security Bureau, and the city's branch of the Public Security Intelligence Agency would actually make the settlement of their case not go smoothly.

"Is there anything else Biaoshu would like to ask?"

"It's getting late. We'd better get some rest now."

The two of them then inched to one corner of the room. They tapped the iron rods as a sign that they were ready to go up. After reaching the top, they saw Yiren, who was standing, nodding.

"You guys are taking too long. I almost fell asleep several times," said Yiren.

"Sorry! We had a little chat. I can't believe the time has gone by so fast."

The three of them then closed the hole and put the big pot on it again. Done that, they walked into the house. After washing their faces and hands, they immediately went to their respective rooms. That night Shanquan slept so soundly. Qiuzhen's explanation earlier had lifted some of the weight that had been on his mind. The men burst into Dafeisi Tower, most likely not to silence Yingyue but to recapture their two captives who managed to escape.