A list of enviable best friends, including Chief Superintendent Bald Qiang.

Page 12

Ye Xiu slowly exhaled a smoke ring, revealing an expression that said, "Just as I thought."

"Not surprising at all."

“Look at his previous behavior: drunk driving, arson, and openly using a robot to commit violence in order to steal a string of candied hawthorns.”

“The concept of ‘reverence’ simply doesn’t exist in his mindset.”

"He has no basic respect for the law, for nature, or for the lives of innocent passersby."

Ye Xiu's gaze deepened, as if he were dissecting Bald Qiang's soul.

"Therefore, when the police, the 'embodiment of the rules,' stand in his way, it is entirely in line with his personality and logic that he will take action."

"In his eyes, the police are probably no different from a tree blocking the way or two bears in the way."

Ye Xiu's words silenced everyone present. They realized that they were facing a truly ruthless and unscrupulous madman.

"What Ye Shen said makes sense."

Yu Wenzhou's expression turned serious as he continued his analysis.

"But from another perspective, the act of 'assaulting a police officer' is more troublesome and deadly than all previous crimes."

"why?"

"Because of previous crimes, whether it was illegal logging or illegal possession of weapons, there is theoretically still a possibility that they were carried out in secret and covered up."

“But assaulting a police officer, especially in the presence of witnesses, is an open and direct provocation against the entire nation.”

"The political and social impact of such behavior is extremely difficult to eliminate."

"The price his close friend would have to pay and the risks he would have to take to suppress this matter would probably be many times greater than all the things he had suppressed before combined."

Yu Wenzhou's analysis went straight to the heart of the problem, giving everyone a clearer understanding of the predicament faced by that "close friend."

"Seek death."

Han Wenqing stared at the screen, squeezing out those four words through gritted teeth, revealing undisguised and extreme contempt.

"Making the same mistake again and again, without any remorse."

"This kind of person is beyond saving."

His conclusion, as always, was simple, direct, and full of unquestionable decisiveness.

"Yeah, that's why this show is getting more and more exciting."

"It remains to be seen how his influential friend will handle these increasingly troublesome messes."

Ye Xiu smiled, took another drag of his cigarette, and revealed an expression of keen interest, ready to watch the show.

On this early morning, as the first rays of warm sunlight pierced through the morning mist of Bear Ridge, Bald Qiang trudged out of his simple wooden hut.

He took a deep breath of the fresh air, a mixture of pine resin and earthy scents, and a rare smile appeared on his usually weary face: "The weather's really nice today, perfect for cutting down trees."

As usual, he began his preparations for logging. With his left hand, he lifted the deadly chainsaw, already stained with oil but still sharp; with his right, he held a dry, hard white steamed bun, his lunch for the day.

Finally, he slung his most trusted old-fashioned double-barreled shotgun diagonally across his back.

He prepared to return to the forest and resume his arduous, day-to-day work of felling trees, a constant battle of wits and courage against the two bears.

[“Buzzing.”]

Just then, a powerful and urgent engine roar, completely different from the sound of his chainsaw, broke the tranquility of the forest as it approached.

A red and white police car, its flashing lights blazing, was driving straight and without hesitation along the muddy mountain road toward his lonely little wooden cabin.

The smile on Bald Qiang's face froze instantly; he was so frightened that his face turned deathly pale, as white as a wall.

The chord of guilt in his heart was sharply plucked: "Police...police? This...this can't be here to arrest me, can it?"

"What should we do? What should we do?"

[Bald Qiang's expression changed drastically, and cold sweat poured down his bald head like raindrops.]

He glanced in alarm at the gleaming, illegal hunting rifle behind him, then at the buzzing chainsaw in his hand, also used for illegal logging.

After a moment of extremely chaotic thought, he finally made what he considered a foolproof decision.

In a flurry, he shoved the chainsaw into the large, murky water tank in the yard.

Then, he hurriedly and forcefully shoved the heavy hunting rifle under the muddy tires of his old pickup truck.

After completing what he considered a flawless concealment, he fled back to his room like a frightened bird, slamming the thin wooden door shut behind him.

The world of The Three-Body Problem

In the conference room of the Planetary Defense Council, a huge screen was displaying images of the celestial dome, and the atmosphere was solemn.

"coming."

Shi Qiang looked at the police car with its flashing lights and gave a knowing look. He stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray.

"It seems that before the sky screen was exposed, some of the crimes committed by Bald Qiang had already been noticed by the local police."

"This police car is clearly here to carry out an arrest operation."

"However, they may not yet know that what they are looking for is not just an illegal logger, but a desperate criminal with dozens of serious crimes on his hands and a large number of dangerous weapons."

Shi Qiang's tone was full of concern for the police officers in that police car.

"Yes."

Luo Ji also showed a serious expression. He pushed up his glasses and began to analyze the situation logically.

"Bald Qiang's reaction was very interesting."

"His first thought was not to surrender or to think about how to defend himself, but to instinctively hide his tools of crime—a chainsaw and a shotgun."

"This shows that, subconsciously, he believed that as long as he hid this 'evidence,' he would still have the possibility of making excuses and escaping."

"This kind of thinking is typical of habitual offenders who have long been on the fringes of the law."

"This also foreshadows the fierce and frantic resistance he will mount to escape the unbearable consequences when the police finally find him and catch him red-handed."

Luo Ji's analysis sent a chill down the spines of everyone present.

Gunfight.

"A fierce gunfight is very likely to break out next."

Ding Yi, who had been silent all along, finally spoke, revealing an expression that mixed with worry and a hint of mad scientist-like excitement.

"On one side are the police, who represent national order but may underestimate the danger of their targets."

"On the other side is a madman with the mind of a genius inventor, who has homemade weapons and illegal arms, and has been driven to the brink of despair."

"This confrontation, in a sense, is also a head-on collision between 'order' and 'chaos'."

"Although the police have an absolute advantage in terms of the balance of power."

"But... in Bald Qiang's little wooden house, which is full of unknowns, anything can happen."

Ding Yi's words made everyone tense.

"I hope the police win."

Cheng Xin looked at the screen with a worried expression and said softly.

"I hope that no more innocent people will be harmed because of Bald Qiang's madness."

"Justice must be served."

Her words represented the sentiments of everyone present. They watched the screen silently, awaiting the impending final showdown between good and evil.

15. Check documents

He pressed his face against the door, peering nervously through the narrow crack.

He saw a tall policeman in a solemn uniform get out of the car and slowly approach his door.

His voice trembled, his teeth chattering: "Oh my god, they really came to get me. What do I do, what do I do?"

["Knock, knock, knock." The police officer knocked on the door with steady force: "Hello, is anyone home? Hello, please open the door, is anyone home?"]

[Bald Qiang trembled with fright. Leaning against the door, he stammered in a barely audible, distorted voice, "No...nobody's here."]

Upon hearing his crystal-clear, fear-filled answer, the policeman outside the door paused for a moment, then promptly replied, "Okay."

[The words were finished.]

He then turned around, started walking, and prepared to leave.

But after taking only a few steps, he suddenly realized what was happening.

He frowned slightly, a look of exasperation and amusement mixed with amusement at being tricked appearing on his face: "How dare you fool me!?"

"Open the door! Open the door now!"

This time, he used all his strength, pounding heavily and angrily on the fragile wooden door.

The loud knocking startled Bald Qiang so much that he almost collapsed to the ground. He asked fearfully, "What...what do you want from me?"

The officer outside the door replied in an unquestionable, authoritative tone, "Checking identification."

"Checking my ID?"

Hearing this, Bald Qiang's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, eased slightly. After hesitating for a few seconds, he finally opened the door, his fingers trembling.

The world of The Three-Body Problem

"Fuck me..."

"I...I must have seen wrong, right?"

"Checking ID?"

"They're just checking ID?"

Shi Qiang spoke in a tone as if he had seen a ghost, pointing at the screen with an expression of absurdity and bewilderment on his face.

"With such a big fuss, with police cars and flashing lights, I thought it was a special police team carrying out the highest level of armed arrest."

"So...they just came to check the household registration book?"

"What about the crimes that were previously exposed on the screen?"

"What about the nearly 100-year total service period, and the final suspended death sentence?"

"And those rockets."

"Could it all be fake? Or are we seeing things?"

Shi Qiang's mind was in unprecedented chaos. The dramatic scene before him created a strong contradiction with the previous cold-blooded verdict, one that he could not comprehend.

"incredible."

Even the usually calm Luo Ji showed an extremely shocked expression at this moment. He adjusted his glasses, and his eyes behind the lenses flashed with the light of rapidly working thoughts.

“No, Officer Shi, every single crime displayed in front of the canopy is supported by solid evidence and clear judgments. Logically, there is no possibility that it is ‘fake’.”

"Then, the only explanation is..."

Luo Ji's voice carried a hint of disbelief and awe, even to himself.

“Those crimes were truly and completely erased from the cognitive level of this policeman and even the entire system he belonged to.”

"In the file system that the police can access, Bald Qiang may really just be an ordinary lumberjack with no prior criminal record."

“His best friend… really did it.”

This conclusion plunged the entire conference room into a deathly silence. The fact that one person's power could truly supersede the entire nation's judicial apparatus sent a chill down their spines more deeply than any threat from an alien civilization.

"But...this isn't right."

Shi Qiang quickly discovered a new point of contention, and he looked puzzled.

"Since everything has been suppressed, what about the 'Bald Qiang attacks the police' story mentioned in the headline?"

"It can't be that after checking the policeman's ID, Bald Qiang thought his attitude was bad and went up to beat him up, can it?"

Even he himself found this conjecture absurd.

"This shows that conflict is inevitable."

Luo Ji's eyes became incredibly deep.