Chapter 66: Locusts Passing Through

The burglary at his home had actually been reported to the police by Fan Chunmei.

It was normal that the people outside were unaware of this; after all, the police substation was obligated to protect the informant's identity.

Those two fellows could only be considered profoundly unlucky.

They had scouted the location in advance, witnessing with their own eyes everyone leaving this courtyard while the main gate was locked from the outside. Only then did they run around to the alley on the north side, taking advantage of the empty street to climb over the wall into Courtyard Number Twenty.

The reason they were unlucky was that precisely when they ran toward the northern alley, Fan Chunmei returned.

Under normal circumstances, she should have been at work today. However, feeling slightly unwell upon waking up in the morning, she had dropped her son off at the nursery, gone to her workplace to ask for leave, and come straight back.

Just as she stepped inside, those two wretches were in the rear alley preparing to scale the wall.

When she returned to her room and had just lain down to rest, she heard a commotion outside. Judging by the sound, it was an adult male. Curious as to which member of the household had not gone to work, she got up and peered out the window.

The sight gave her a tremendous fright: two men were in the process of pushing open Li Yancheng's door and stepping inside.

Under normal circumstances, residents in the courtyard did not use padlocks on their doors when leaving for work; they simply pulled them shut.

Fan Chunmei recognized both of the men, as they were residents of their own Courtyard Number Thirty-One—the Qian brothers, Qian Ruishan and Qian Ruixiang.

Filled with bewilderment, she watched the pair walk into the main house. She had no idea what they intended to do, why they were entering someone else's home while the owner was absent, and moreover, why they seemed to have come in from the back rather than the front entrance.

Just as her mind was aflutter with questions, she heard clattering and crashing sounds emanating from the main house. Were they vandalizing the place?

This terrified Fan Chunmei even more, prompting her to quickly retreat behind the curtains and peer anxiously toward the main house.

After about twenty minutes, she saw the two brothers bolt out from the house.

Although she had no clue what their objective was, the mere thought that she was currently the only person in the entire courtyard sent a shudder of terror through her. She was terrified the brothers might run over to her quarters next, leaving her with nowhere to hide.

Yet, upon emerging from the main house, the Qian brothers did not head toward any other rooms. Instead, they ran straight along the exterior wall of the main house toward the back.

What was at the back?

There was nothing at the back; the space between the main house and the rear wall was barely wide enough for a single person to squeeze through.

She dared not move, remaining hidden behind the curtains until a full half-hour passed without a sound. Only then did she pick up a kitchen knife and, mustering her courage, step out of her room.

To give credit where it was due, she possessed remarkable nerve. Clutching the knife, she tiptoed to the doorway of the main house and took a peek. The interior was tossed into utter chaos with items strewn all over the floor, making her heart pound wildly.

Still holding the knife, she cautiously walked around to the back and found no one there, though the surface of the back wall bore numerous footprints. That was how she realized they had broken in and slipped away through this route.

A neighbor's home had been burglarized, and she had witnessed it with her own eyes. Without a moment's hesitation, Fan Chunmei returned the kitchen knife to her room, rushed outside, locked the front gate, and jogged all the way to the Meishan Police Substation to report the crime.

The public security environment within the jurisdiction of the Meishan Police Substation was quite favorable, and the deputy station chief who led the team over upon receiving a burglary report remained somewhat skeptical.

Upon arriving at the scene and inspecting it themselves, however, they realized the report was entirely accurate. The deputy station chief hurriedly instructed his men to investigate the scene, dispatched someone to recall the homeowner, and sent several officers to apprehend the suspects described by Fan Chunmei.

When Li Yancheng returned, Duan Zhenghui, who had been sent to fetch him, had just arrived.

The curious neighbors had been blocked outside the second gate. Inside the inner courtyard, apart from the public security officers, Auntie Zhang from the neighborhood committee was also present.

The on-site investigation was basically concluded. Footprints and fingerprints had been successfully extracted from the rear wall and the interior of the house respectively. Once they were compared with the Qian brothers, who had already been captured and brought to the station, everything would become crystal clear.

"Yancheng, you're back. Come over quickly and see what's missing from your house."

Seeing the primary resident walk in, Lei Wandong, the deputy chief of the Meishan Police Substation, waved him over.

"Chief Lei, I heard people outside say that the Qian brothers, Ruishan and Ruixiang, robbed my house?"

Propping his bicycle against the second gate, Li Yancheng walked up to the deputy station chief and asked before heading inside.

"We can't be certain just yet; they are currently only suspects."

Deputy Chief Lei glanced toward the second gate, which was tightly packed with curious onlookers, and lowered his voice. "The informant is Comrade Fan Chunmei. She is still at the station, and I have given strict orders to keep her identity confidential.

She stated that she personally witnessed the Qian brothers enter your home. We have already brought those two to the station, and we found numerous footprints and fingerprints in your house. Whether it was indeed them depends on the comparison results shortly.

Yancheng, the place has been thoroughly rummaged through. Go inside and check what has been stolen so we can make a formal record."

"Understood."

Upon learning that Fan Chunmei was the one who had reported the crime, Li Yancheng felt a fleeting surprise as to why she happened to be home today, but he kept his thoughts to himself, simply nodding and walking toward the house.

Two security team members were inside the room, and they greeted Li Yancheng as he entered.

In truth, Deputy Chief Lei's description had been understated; the place inside wasn't merely rummaged through—it was absolute devastation.

Upon stepping inside and witnessing the interior, the corner of Li Yancheng's eye twitched uncontrollably. He felt as though his home had been thoroughly ravaged by invading soldiers.

Even the sacks of rice and flour kept in the cabinet beneath the pantry cupboard had been emptied out, spilling grain all over the floor. It was impossible to fathom what anyone could possibly hide inside a sack of grain, yet a clear, complete footprint had been left squarely atop the mound of spilled flour.

"Xiao Mao, Xiao Liu, the two of you help Yancheng tidy things up."

Deputy Chief Lei had followed him inside and issued instructions immediately upon entering.

"Yes, sir."

The study and bedroom were in an even more chaotic state. Not only had the clothes been pulled out of the wardrobes and thrown all over the floor, but several wooden panels of the cabinets had been smashed. The bedding from the bed had been tossed onto the floor, and the bedboards had even been pried up.

As for the study, every single drawer of the desk had been pulled out, dumping their contents onto the floor, while the books on the bookshelves had been subjected to a horrifying mess.

"Yancheng, I have a feeling this doesn't look like a standard burglary. It looks much more like someone was specifically searching for something."

Standing in the doorway of the study without stepping inside, Deputy Chief Lei leaned against the doorframe and spoke abruptly as he watched Li Yancheng begin to clean up.

Li Yancheng paused his movements, nodded without raising his head, and replied, "You're right, Chief Lei. They really were here looking for something."

"Oh? You knew they were searching for something?"

Deputy Chief Lei instantly perked up.

When he first arrived and inspected the scene, he had felt something was amiss. If it were a regular theft, would they have bothered to dump out sacks of flour? Would they have swept every single book off the shelves onto the floor?

He had suspected it was a combination of deliberate vandalism and a targeted search.

"I can't say for sure if my guess is correct, but I believe today's incident is likely connected to what happened a while ago."