During the deployment meeting before the "fishing" operation, Mei Qian suggested that Su Tang be asked to leave, wondering if her presence would affect the mission. However, Ping An felt it wouldn't matter, perhaps wanting to test his disciple's capabilities.
On the appointed day, Gao Da appeared at the abandoned ironworks, dressed in rags. Inside the factory, a black van was parked with its doors open.
Gao Da circled the van, found no one inside or out, and called Fan Bin.
"Kid, I'm here, where is everyone?" Gao Da asked.
"Don't ask questions. If you want to make money, listen to me," Fan Bin shouted into the phone. "The key is in the car. Drive it to Bodhi Temple. Call me when you get there, and I'll tell you who to pick up."
Before Gao Da could ask further, the call was disconnected.
"Bodhi Temple? What's in Bodhi Temple?" Outside the ironworks, Ping An lowered his binoculars and asked Mei Qian casually.
"Oh no, Diana was secretly transferred to a farmhouse near Bodhi Temple last night. We were planning to apprehend her there!" Mei Qian slapped his forehead and quickly asked, "What do you think? It seems Gao Da has become Diana's getaway driver. Are we still going to apprehend her?"
"My opinion is not to apprehend her. Equip Gao Da, let's see what other tricks this Diana has up her sleeve!" Ping An said. "At this critical juncture, Fan Bin's boss still wants to protect Diana, so this woman must still be useful!"
"But we also have to guard against Diana being silenced..." Mei Qian said.
"We don't have any good options. If we arrest her now, the Gao Da lead will be completely lost. If we tail her closely, Gao Da will have to take a gamble," Ping An said through gritted teeth.
"Nothing much, just made a decision that you have to break eggs to make an omelet. Gao Da is unhappy." Ping An seemed unfazed. He opened his phone and brought up the map of Bodhi Temple, saying, "There's only one road around Bodhi Temple, heading east along General Avenue and then into the city. Heading west, you get onto the national highway. No matter which way they go, it'll be easy for us to set up roadblocks and intercept them at any time."
"Don't worry, the drones are ready, and we've even brought in a helicopter," Mei Qian said. "However, the weather forecast says there'll likely be dense fog in two hours. I'm worried it might affect visibility."
"The arrow is nocked and ready to fire!" Ping An said. "Once this battle is won, the initiative will be in our hands."
Everything began to proceed according to plan in an orderly fashion.
Gao Da drove the van to the outside of Bodhi Temple, rolled down the window, and appeared casual, but was highly vigilant, observing his surroundings.
Not long after, Fan Bin's call came.
"I'm here..." Gao Da answered, but was interrupted after saying just a few words.
"Get out of the car and go to the second food stall to the left outside the temple. Pick up a lady in black," Fan Bin said nervously on the phone. "Greet her first and say I sent you. Call me again after you've picked her up."
The instructions were given swiftly, and before Gao Da could respond, the call was disconnected.
Putting down the phone, Gao Da glanced at Ping An, who was observing from a car on the periphery, then quietly got out of the car and went into the shop to pick up the person.
In the snack shop, Diana was sitting in the most conspicuous spot, with three or four pieces of luggage at her feet.
"Madam, I'm here on Master Fan's orders to pick you up." Gao Da quietly approached Diana and, without betraying any emotion, exchanged the secret code.
"Why did you take so long!" Diana glanced at Gao Da. She felt he looked familiar but couldn't recall where she had seen him. She grumbled and complained, then asked Gao Da to help her with her luggage.
With the luggage loaded, Diana was about to get into the van when Su Tang, who had been following them, suddenly burst in.
"Sister Anna?" Seeing Gao Da after a long time, Su Tang happily moved to rush towards him, but just as she was about to call out Gao Da's name, she suddenly saw Diana. Her words immediately changed.
"Ping Dan? Why is it you!" Diana's demeanor became immediately wary upon seeing Su Tang.
"Don't mention it. I ran away from home a few days ago, spent all my money, and couldn't find you." Su Tang's eyes darted, and she pretended, "I happened to see you, so I came over to say hello."
"Oh, is that so!" Diana remained wary, glancing around. Suddenly, she said, "Girl, come with me. The conditions are the same as before. I'll guarantee you'll be famous all over Asia within a year."
"Ah, is that so." Su Tang, having had no time to prepare, was unsure how to answer. Suddenly, she saw the three men in her car approaching and quietly signaled them to leave.
"Let's go, let's go!" Diana, in a hurry to leave, saw Su Tang and seemed to have found a treasure. Thinking that "that person" was interested in this girl, she was now making a great effort to take her away to "redeem her sins."
"Let's go! Head for General Avenue!" Diana, seeing her "prey" get into the car, patted the back of the driver's seat and ordered them to drive.
Gao Da cast another resentful glance at the surveillance van's location, then started the van and drove towards General Avenue.
The surveillance van and the three to four plainclothes cars following behind it, along with the cars arranged by Su Tang's associates, slowly followed towards General Avenue.
As a convoy of vehicles departed, a woman in a white trench coat emerged from Bodhi Temple. She smiled slightly, took out her phone, and dialed a number.
"Brother, I've betrayed the police and my good sisters for you this time. How will you reward me?" The voice was so familiar; it was Yang Jiao.
"Naturally, I'll give you a great gift." Ou Erjian's laughter came from the other end of the line.
"Honestly, you're too cruel. You abandon your subordinates of many years so easily. And Su Tang, what do you like about her? Don't blame me for not warning you, that girl isn't someone to be trifled with, and neither is her master. Don't get yourself into trouble again." Yang Jiao said.
"Don't worry. If you're still uneasy, I'll send you an address later. You can wait for me there and I'll arrange for you to watch a good show," Ou Erjian said and decisively hung up the phone.
General Avenue, newly opened less than a month ago, is 30 kilometers long. Surveillance cameras had not yet been installed. To the left of the road is a river, and to the right are desolate mountains with no other roads. Driving from Bodhi Temple, it takes about half an hour to reach the city. Moreover, this avenue has almost no curves, it's all straight, making for a particularly pleasant drive.
To facilitate monitoring, Mei Qian set up a checkpoint at the end of General Avenue, where it entered the city, to quickly control the situation in case of any emergency. The driver was Gao Da, one of their own, and a team of tailing cars followed behind.
After the cars hit the road, the dense fog forecasted by the meteorological department began to creep in. Mei Qian, sitting in the surveillance van, watched the van less than two kilometers ahead of them drive slowly.
"Once we get into the city, it'll be easier. With the surveillance cameras, we can control them wherever they go," Mei Qian said.
Ping An, who had been confident of success, frowned as the fog outside the window gradually thickened.
Half an hour later, the surveillance van reached the end of General Avenue.
"Why wasn't the van stopped for inspection? We still need to go through the motions!" Mei Qian said angrily.
"That's not right, Captain Mei. We didn't see the van. Several cars passed by earlier, but the cars and people didn't match. Not until you arrived." The police officer at the checkpoint said in surprise.
"What? How is that possible? We've been following Gao Da all along!" Mei Qian's hair stood on end upon hearing this.
"Not good! Mei Qian, reverse, go back!" Ping An suddenly thought of something and urged Mei Qian to turn around quickly.
The convoy of cars turned around at the checkpoint and drove back in a powerful manner. Along the way, they found nothing.
Returning to the outside of Bodhi Temple, Mei Qian got out of the car and asked the police officer left on guard.
"Did you see the van come back?"
"No. However, a few cars did come by, but we checked them, and the cars and people didn't match." the stationed officer said.
"This, this, how is this possible? Did the car and people just disappear?" Mei Qian's eyes widened.
"Quick, call Gao Da!" Ping An's mind was racing.
"I can't get through, no signal," Mei Qian said.
"What about Su Tang?" Ping An asked, holding onto a sliver of hope.
"Still can't get through! No signal!" Mei Qian was truly scared. "Brother-in-law, we haven't messed up, have we!"
"Hmph!" Ping An, standing outside Bodhi Temple, suddenly kicked over a small table with utter disregard for his image and said hysterically, "Search the entire city, search along General Avenue, check the mountains, check the river, did the car and people just fly away!"