Seeing Zhou Xuan's confident expression, Fu Yuanshan realized he was increasingly unable to understand Zhou Xuan's abilities, yet he also felt a strange trust in Zhou Xuan. He sighed and said, "Alright, I'll give it a try first, but I'm not sure if it will work."
Zhou Xuan held Fu Yuanshan's hand and said firmly, "Brother Fu, this isn't just a trial, it has to work. If this doesn't work, and the four of us have already eliminated the danger, then no matter how many achievements you have made, it won't be enough to sustain this. Today's events have had too great an impact!"
Fu Yuanshan certainly knew this, but he was indeed unsure.
Wei Haihong watched his second brother, Wei Haihe, frantically strategizing with the city leaders, and was at a loss for what to do. Zhou Xuan sounded confident, but he wasn't entirely sure. Zhou Xuan had saved him during the attack at sea, but Zhou Xuan couldn't possibly subdue the assailant; he only had the ability to heal wounds. If he could eliminate the assailant, wouldn't he have already killed the person who attacked him back then?
Therefore, Wei Haihong still dared not hold too much hope, but he also harbored a tiny glimmer of hope, after all, there were still too many unbelievable things about Zhou Xuan. He could not be viewed with common sense or ordinary standards.
Fu Yuanshan arrived at the temporary platform set up in the command post with a sense of unease. Among the seven or eight people in this circle, all were high-ranking officials at the ministerial level or above, except for his superior, Director Chen, who held the lowest position.
But Fu Yuanshan only had the authority to speak with Director Chen, so he could only secretly tug at Director Chen's sleeve. Director Chen's brows were furrowed as he stared at him and asked, "What is it?" Director Chen was furious. This matter had alarmed the higher-ups, and there was no way to erase it. Someone had to take the blame. And that person... Fu Yuanshan was almost certainly responsible. Although he had just solved a major case, he hadn't had the luck. Who told him he was so unlucky to get caught up in this mess?
If they were lucky, given how big the capital is, why would these three murderers choose to go to the eastern part of his jurisdiction? Of course, for Director Chen, anything within the capital is a problem for him.
"Director Chen, I'm confident I can resolve this crisis, but I need the leadership to give me this opportunity," Fu Yuanshan said in a low voice to Director Chen.
"Are you confident?" Director Chen was taken aback, then asked with delight. "What method? Tell me quickly. Stop talking nonsense!"
Indeed, it's an extremely urgent matter right now, and there's no time for him to explain things slowly.
Fu Yuanshan nodded and said, "Yes, Director Chen, I have only one condition: I have one person. If we can negotiate with the murderer inside, as long as we can get him inside to face the criminal, this crisis can be resolved."
Director Chen was taken aback again. Then, he said angrily in a low voice, "What are you doing? We're in a crisis, what are you doing causing trouble? Do you think your men are Superman? This isn't a movie shoot!"
Fu Yuanshan couldn't say it outright. He thought to himself that his person might really be a superman, but he couldn't tell Director Chen directly. He gritted his teeth and said in a low voice, "Director Chen, you are my old leader and superior. How could I mess around with you? I believe my party spirit and position guarantee that I can absolutely minimize the losses in this crisis. The only condition is that you give me this opportunity!"
At this point, Fu Yuanshan knew he had no way out. To retreat would mean the end of his future. He was gambling his hopes on Zhou Xuan. Even if it was a gamble, there was still a sliver of hope, which was better than having no hope at all!
Director Chen was stunned. He knew the branch bureau chiefs well; Fu Yuanshan was capable and not just a pure peacemaker. However, in the current plan at the scene, no matter which plan they followed, they couldn't guarantee the hostages' complete safety, because these three assailants seemed to be highly trained veterans. They didn't seem like novices; their self-defense, their methods of dealing with the police, and their prior preparations were all beyond the capabilities of novices. Furthermore, their sniper couldn't guarantee a single shot would kill the assailant strapped with explosives.
Furthermore, based on the sniper's brief report, the killer's explosives were electronically controlled. Even if hit by a single shot, no one could guarantee that he wouldn't press a button in his final moments. A dead person's hand might instinctively press a button in the instant before death. This gamble was the biggest concern for the leaders present!
"Are you telling the truth?" Director Chen stared intently at Fu Yuanshan and asked, "Fu Yuanshan, you should understand the situation. As the saying goes, there are no jokes in the military. If the consequences are not as expected, it won't just be you, but also me who will be unable to back down or extricate myself."
"I understand, Director Chen. I only ask that you give me this opportunity. My men are ready and waiting." Fu Yuanshan pointed at Zhou Xuan and said, "He's right here!"
Director Chen was stunned. He still vaguely remembered Zhou Xuan; it was because of him that He Guangwei and Wu Jianguo had gotten into trouble last time, and because it hadn't been long, the memory was still vivid. As for Wei Haihong standing next to Zhou Xuan, he knew him even better—the worried Secretary Wei by the table was his own brother. It seemed the rumors about the Li Lei and Wei families being Zhou Xuan's backers were indeed true. But what ability did he have to resolve this crisis? (To be continued)
Volume 1: The First Signs of Growth, Chapter 267: Crisis
While Director Chen was still wondering, Fu Yuanshan called over a man and a woman. Both were members of the Dongcheng Special Police Team. The man was named Li Chengzhi, and the woman was named Fei Lin. They were both very skilled, especially Li Chengzhi, who had won first place in the city's police Sanda (Chinese kickboxing) competition. Li Chengzhi and Fei Lin were dressed in ordinary civilian clothes and were not carrying any weapons.
Fu Yuanshan pulled Director Chen aside and whispered, "Director Chen, I only need this one opportunity. I guarantee I can resolve all the crises, but the condition is that we can't launch a direct attack now. We need to negotiate. I know there are two hostages inside who are injured, one of whom is a girl who is seriously injured. We just need to make a deal with the criminals on the surface and let three people in. That will be fine. I can guarantee that nothing dangerous will happen!"
Director Chen's face darkened, and after a moment's hesitation, he asked, "Can you really guarantee that? You know the consequences if something goes wrong, don't you?"
Fu Yuanshan knew perfectly well, but he had no way out and could only go down a dark path. Zhou Shifu had made it very clear to him that all hopes were now pinned on him. Fu Yuanshan's arrangement of Li Chengzhi and Fei Lin was also based on Zhou Shifu's instructions. Zhou Xuan had said that he could only disarm the criminals, but arresting and fighting them required others. "Director Chen, I promise!" Fu Yuanshan gritted his teeth and replied, "Just give me a chance!"
The emergency response team couldn't reach a consensus because there was no way to guarantee that the perpetrator, who was strapped with explosives, wouldn't detonate them, so the plan remained uncertain.
Director Chen frowned and thought for a long time before beckoning Li Chengzhi and Fei Lin over and asking, "Are you confident?"
"Yes!" Li Chengzhi and Fei Lin did not answer. Zhou Xuan answered instead. "Director Chen, Director Fu has a secret plan for me. As long as I can get close to the three criminals, according to Director Fu's plan, I can absolutely guarantee that none of the three criminals will detonate or harm the hostages!"
Director Chen was taken aback. Zhou Xuan's words were full of confidence, which could be seen on his face. He wondered what secret plans Fu Yuanshan had up his sleeve.
Li Chengzhi and Fei Lin didn't dare to say anything. Although Fu Yuanshan had arranged for the two of them to go in, they couldn't guarantee that the murderer wouldn't detonate the explosives. However, at this critical moment, despite the danger, they still agreed to go in without hesitation. The two of them disguised themselves as medical personnel and went in to carry the injured person out.
Previously, the police had spoken with the murderer via the mall's phone. The murderer's condition was that the police must provide a car with a window tint. The second condition has not yet been proposed.
However, the three murderers were indeed unlucky. According to their plan, they would go downstairs and escape by car after the robbery, and they would have had just enough time to get away. But things didn't go as planned. One of the female sales clerks secretly pressed the alarm bell, and just at that moment, a patrol car happened to pass by downstairs. After receiving a notification from the alarm center, the patrol car immediately came upstairs.
The female saleswoman who called the police was shot and seriously injured. When the patrolling police arrived, they were forced back into a corner by the gunman's random gunfire. However, the police arrived in time and too quickly, and the gunman was surrounded. The gunman was fierce and fearless, and took more than 20 jewelry store employees hostage. One of them took off his clothes and revealed that he was covered with explosives, which stumped the police.
The three killers also set a time limit: if what they wanted wasn't prepared within half an hour, they would start shooting the hostages!
There were less than five minutes left before the time limit set by the thugs. Director Chen was sweating profusely with anxiety, and Wei Haihe and several other leaders were even more anxious, like ants on a hot pan.
Director Chen had no time to think things through. He immediately turned to the group of leaders, coughed, and said, "Secretary Wei, Deputy Secretary Tang, I have a plan... no, no, it's not me, it's Fu Yuanshan, the director of the Dongcheng Branch!"
Wei Haihe was taken aback, and immediately stared at Director Chen, asking, "What plan? Just say it, there's no time!"
Director Chen stopped wasting time and said directly, "Fu Yuanshan has arranged three people: one to negotiate and two disguised as medical staff. They are absolutely guaranteed to resolve the crisis!"
Wei Haihe frowned and looked sullen. After thinking for a moment, he beckoned Fu Yuanshan forward and said in a deep voice, "Fu Yuanshan, don't give me any empty promises. Tell me, how confident are you?"
Fu Yuanshan glanced at Zhou Xuan, who nodded firmly. Fu Yuanshan was relieved. He was sure Zhou Xuan wouldn't harm him in this situation. He immediately replied, "Secretary Wei, as long as I can guarantee that the murderer hasn't detonated the explosives before they go inside and face the murderer, I can assure you the crisis will be resolved!"
There's no other way to deal with the current situation. We can't guarantee that the killer's last struggle before death will detonate the explosives, which is why we don't dare to let the SWAT team storm the site.
From a neurological perspective, when a person or animal is shot, there is a delayed reaction in the nerves. They may react subconsciously, or they may die directly without reacting. But who can say for sure? No one dares to make that guarantee. If it really happens, no one can bear the consequences!
Wei Haihe took a deep breath and then said in a deep voice, "Alright, Fu Yuanshan, let me tell you this first: if something goes wrong, you know your responsibility, but if you really resolve all the crises as you say, I will give you a big credit!"
Since they had agreed, they didn't hesitate any longer. Zhou Xuan, Li Chengzhi, and Fei Lin quickly got ready. Li Chengzhi and Fei Lin found the medical toolbox and stretcher that had not yet been prepared.
Zhou Xuan was empty-handed, and none of the three carried any weapons. Zhou Xuan then called the two men together and also called Fu Yuanshan over, whispering, "After we go in, I'll pretend to negotiate with them. Listen to my commands. When I say 'make a move,' you immediately make your move and try to subdue the three murderers. There's one thing you need to remember."
Zhou Xuan then carefully instructed, "When I tell you to take action, it means the three murderers' weapons are no longer usable. Don't worry about that, I have a plan, and don't be afraid!"
Li Chengzhi and Fei Lin didn't know Zhou Xuan, but Fu Yuanshan was their superior. They were skeptical of Zhou Xuan's words, but they absolutely trusted Fu Yuanshan's.
Fu Yuanshan replied without hesitation, "You will be fine if you do everything Xiao Zhou says. I have arranged everything, and there will be no mistakes!"
Meanwhile, Wei Haihe immediately ordered his communications personnel to contact the assailant inside, requesting that one person be sent in for face-to-face negotiations, and two medical personnel be sent in to carry the injured out. The assailant hesitated for a moment before agreeing, but said fiercely, "Whoever comes in..."
"If they have weapons or other intentions, shoot the hostages and detonate the explosives immediately!" Everything had been agreed upon. Originally, according to Director Chen's plan, Zhou Xuan, Li Chengzhi, and the other two people going in should wear bulletproof vests, but Zhou Xuan objected, saying, "Wearing bulletproof vests is not good, because once we go in, the murderers will definitely make us take off our clothes for a search to see if we have any weapons. If they find that we are wearing bulletproof vests, they will suspect that we are all police officers. Besides, if they find that we are wearing bulletproof vests, they will make another move. What we need is an opportunity, a chance for the three murderers to be face to face with us within ten meters!"