chapter 33 Vibration ===

Alexander returned home with a heavy heart. He saw Hannah lying on the balcony of her room, the solitary light there casting a lonely glow. Her eyes were fixed on the entrance of the Xu Family mansion. As Alexander parked his car, the light on the balcony flickered out. His heart surged with warmth at the sight. His cousin, despite grappling with the loss of her husband, still cared for him as before. Passing by Hannah's room, he considered knocking but refrained, not wanting to alarm her with the smell of blood that clung to him. On his way home, he learned that Brandon and his team had safely retreated, though many were injured. Alexander went to bed, but many others remained awake. At four in the morning, the Tianhai City Committee Office was ablaze with lights. Scott Tang, the city's Party Secretary, was in a fury, his audience silent in the meeting room, too intimidated to speak. "What are you all doing? A missile attack in Tianhai, the financial heart of Huaxia Country? This time they targeted the Blood Wolf Squad's headquarters. What's next, the city government building?" Scott's anger was palpable. He didn't see the demise of the Blood Wolf Squad or the Li Family as significant - even beneficial. But the presence of such lethal weaponry in Tianhai, including missiles, was beyond the pale of a mere gang fight. It was a terrorist attack. One official suggested, "Secretary, the attackers of the Blood Wolf Squad might be the same ones behind the recent warehouse shooting incident." When the others heard his words, there was a trace of disdain on the corners of their mouths. Isn't this nonsense? Now who doesn't know that it was done by the same group of people? And it's obvious that the other party's purpose is to completely destroy the Li family! Scott Tang gave the speaker a cold glance, suppressing the urge to lash out. He had already dismissed the man in his mind. "Any leads on the source of these weapons?" Scott asked, closing his eyes wearily. He had received information that the attackers had a significant arsenal, which emboldened them to target the Blood Wolf Squad. The priority was to identify both the attackers and the origin of these weapons to prevent further terror in Tianhai. The room fell silent, no one daring to answer. This force had emerged too suddenly, leaving them all clueless. "How about Samuel Li?" Scott asked his secretary, trying to control his temper. The secretary reported that the police force faced strong resistance when they arrived at the Blood Wolf Squad's headquarters. The criminals didn't engage directly, using suppressive fire instead. By the time the police arrived, the attackers had already retreated. Enraged, Scott smashed his cup on the ground, shouting, "Shameful!" This was the biggest disgrace during his tenure. In just ten days, two major cases occurred in Tianhai that shocked the whole country, and also caused a scandal that shocked the whole country and even the world. The criminal police captain and deputy captain died mysteriously one after another! Recent events in Tianhai, had overshadowed his previous achievements. Just then, his phone rang. Seeing the caller's name, he answered with a sense of urgency, "Daniel, do you have any news?" He was hoping for some information from Daniel Song, as he was completely bewildered and frustrated by the current chaos. "What news could I possibly have?" Daniel replied with a bitter laugh over the phone. "I've just been reprimanded by our family patriarch, and now I'm about to ask you for help." Scott Tang was momentarily stunned, then chuckled wryly, "Asking me for help? I'm just as clueless as you are! I bet my own patriarch will call to berate me soon. We're truly in the same boat..." Hearing Scott openly sharing his woes with Daniel surprised many, as only a few knew that these two had grown up together in a large courtyard, closely associating the Tang and Song families of the capital. Both families, having been allies for generations, had always supported each other - one in literature and the other in the military. "By the way, what's the situation with Brian Li? I think the recent incidents were orchestrated by a force targeting the Li Family. You should investigate the families that hold grudges against them," Daniel suggested. Scott sighed, "I initially suspected the Chen Family, but after investigation, they're not involved. As for other families, there are few who would dare confront the Li Family. Can you use your resources to help me track the source of the weapons in Tianhai? If we don't find them, I might have to report back to the capital." His biggest concern was the arsenal of heavy weapons that had caused him sleepless nights. "There's no need for you to investigate; our patriarch has just informed me that the higher-ups have already dispatched a team to Tianhai overnight. They should arrive by dawn. The Mountain Eagle Squad reported that the attackers were all experts, using elite foreign military weapons. You might not believe this, but they found a sniper's hideout on a hillside three kilometers away from the scene..." Daniel rubbed his temples in frustration. A regular sniper rifle had an effective range of only about 2,500 meters. He was aware of such long-range weapons, but had never seen one. "Three kilometers?" Scott was shocked. Although not from a military background, his long-standing interactions with Daniel had given him an understanding of what this meant. "What kind of people are these?" he wondered. He then told Daniel, "You just asked about Brian Li, right? I'll send you the photos from the scene so you can see for yourself..." Upon hearing about the photos, several people rushed out, covering their mouths. After ending the call, Scott found the photos sent from Li's villa and sent them to Daniel with a mischievous smile. Before completing the transmission, he too hurried out, covering his mouth. At the base, Daniel was eating instant noodles, having been woken up in the middle of the night and worried for hours. He felt suddenly hungry, so he had asked for some noodles. As soon as he received Scott's photos, he opened them and froze. Then, feeling his stomach churn, he rushed to open his office door and vomited on the ground, to the bewilderment of the guards. "Scott Tang, I'm not done with you! Ugh..." he couldn't even finish his sentence before vomiting again. Even as a military leader accustomed to the brutality of war, and having seen worse than the Li Family's situation, he was caught off guard while eating. "Commander, what's wrong? Hang in there, I'll call the medic..." One guard came to assist Daniel while another ran for the medic. As dawn broke, a sense of impending upheaval enveloped Tianhai City. Even ordinary people sensed that something significant was about to happen. To avoid public panic, Scott held a press conference early in the morning, announcing that the city police had joined forces with the military in a major crackdown against the Blood Wolf Squad and the Li Family, who had resisted fiercely and were all killed. Jeremy He, the deputy chief of the criminal police, was killed in action and posthumously awarded for his bravery. The previous warehouse shooting was also attributed to the Li Family. The general public was deceived, applauding the action. However, those in the know were deeply troubled, understanding that without a thorough investigation, no one would have peace. Before the press conference, a directive had already been issued. Scott was to be transferred from Tianhai, officially for his achievements in fighting crime, to become a deputy minister in a department in the capital. But everyone knew it was a demotion. A deputy minister's idle position was nothing compared to being the Party Secretary of Tianhai. The officialdom of Tianhai also underwent significant changes. Considering stability, Samuel Li was promoted to Acting Mayor of Tianhai, while the former mayor was transferred to an obscure position elsewhere. The new Party Secretary, Harrison Han, was rumored to have a deep background. Although promoted, Samuel couldn't rejoice, knowing that this move was to avoid public suspicion. If all the key officials in Tianhai were transferred, the hidden issues would become obvious. His role as Acting Mayor was temporary, and he believed he would be sidelined if the case wasn't solved quickly. Alexander Xu was somewhat satisfied with these outcomes, especially since Scott had done right by Jeremy before leaving. But he couldn't be happy about Amelia's disappearance. He had sent someone to inform her of Jeremy's sacrifice. The hospital reported that since being hit by Jeremy the day before, Amelia had disappeared and hadn't shown up for work or answered her phone. Jeremy had asked him to take care of Amelia and Hannah before dying. Without Jeremy's request, he would still have cared for his cousin and her mother. As for Amelia, while he didn't necessarily have to care for her, he wanted her to live happily, fulfilling Jeremy's last wish. His greatest worry now was that the young girl might do something drastic in her grief.