On the night of August 1st, after dinner at Shen Nan's grandfather's house, Rui Xiaodan returned alone to the hotel to rest while Shen Nan stayed overnight to spend more time with her grandparents.
Rui Xiaodan surmised that Wu Chengxiang would decide to extract and transfer the embezzled funds the next afternoon, during the window when they had returned to Yan'an but before flying back to Guangzhou. Wu Chengxiang needed to ensure Shen Nan's actions were not being tracked or monitored before proceeding, and he also had to guard against potential double-crossing during the transfer. The time they would spend in Yan'an was the most vulnerable period for an attack on Xiaodan, presenting the greatest threat to her safety. Based on these considerations, Rui Xiaodan believed there would be nearly 20 hours of calm before any action commenced.
With this in mind, she relaxed and watched TV until falling asleep around 11 PM.
Rui Xiaodan had just fallen asleep when she was abruptly awakened by the ringing phone. She instinctively checked her watch as she turned on the bedside lamp—it was 12:40 AM. In such a sensitive location and at such a critical time, a phone call instantly triggered her professional instincts: something was up. She picked up the phone to hear the voice of her team leader, Zeng Hua.
"Xiaodan? It's Zeng Hua. Sorry to disturb your rest. We've just arrived from Yan'an. Huang Wenxian and I are in room 217 on the second floor. Can you come over so we can discuss our work?"
Rui Xiaodan asked, "How did you know Shen Nan wasn't staying here tonight?"
Zeng Hua replied, "The Yan'an team alerted the Qin Gu police department to monitor Shen Nan this afternoon. How could I not know? Let's discuss the details in person. Anyway, the operation was a success."
Rui Xiaodan quickly dressed, grabbed her bag, and rushed to room 217, where Huang Wenxian opened the door for her. The three sat around the coffee table.
Zeng Hua first retrieved Rui Xiaodan's handgun, handcuffs, ID card, and driver's license from his bag and returned them to her. He then picked up the gun, glanced at it, and said casually, "Looks like we won't need this. Now that you're safe, we're relieved too."
After securing her documents and weapon, Rui Xiaodan asked, "What happened? I thought the operation would start tomorrow afternoon."
Zeng Hua replied, "That's what we thought too, but it seems Wu Chengxiang analyzed the assassin's intel and acted this afternoon. Maybe he was trying to think outside the box. Wenxian, why don't you explain?"
Huang Wenxian gestured for Zeng Hua to continue, "I'm not good with words. You go ahead."
Zeng Hua said, "Here's the situation. This afternoon—"
Huang Wenxian interjected, "It's past midnight now, so it was yesterday."
Zeng Hua chuckled, "Right, yesterday. At 4:50 PM, the command center issued the order. According to their report, Wu Chengxiang was apprehended in New York by a joint US-China police operation, caught in bed. In Guangzhou, they arrested his sister, Wu Huijuan, and his agent, Dong Haishan, seizing $750,000, 4.2 million yuan in bearer bonds, 13 large-denomination CDs, and 1.5 million yuan in cash, totaling 23.7 million yuan. They also dismantled a Guangzhou gang. In Yan'an, two hitmen were captured—Hu Xiaotian and Ma Zhiqiang. Now, only Shen Nan remains at large. No shots were fired, and the operations in Guangzhou, New York, and Yan'an were all successful."
Rui Xiaodan felt a weight lift off her shoulders and sighed in relief, "That's great. I was worried something might go wrong on my end. I couldn't bear that responsibility."
Huang Wenxian laughed, "It was a clean operation. Wu Chengxiang never suspected the police were his opponents, focusing instead on preventing a double-cross. As for the two hitmen, we had them in our sights as soon as they arrived in Xi'an. They weren't very professional."
Zeng Hua said, "Those two hitmen are now in custody in Yan'an. Wenxian and I interrogated them for over three hours, and the records have been faxed to the command center. Then we rushed here overnight, while the Qin Gu officers went home to rest. The command center is sending personnel to Yan'an to escort the hitmen back by plane. We'll drive back with our weapons. That's the overall situation. Now we need to discuss our next steps regarding Shen Nan."
Rui Xiaodan said, "You're the team leader, you make the arrangements."
Zeng Hua smiled, handed a cigarette to Huang Wenxian, lit one for himself, and offered one to Rui Xiaodan, who declined. "My role as 'Summer Rain' is over, so I'm quitting smoking." She took out the remaining packs of Duke brand cigarettes from her bag and placed them on the table. "These are for you. I don't need them anymore."
Huang Wenxian picked up a pack, looked at it humorously, and said, "Why quit? Our job is unpredictable; we need cigarettes to keep us going."
Rui Xiaodan smiled, "My boyfriend doesn't like women who smoke. I don't want to be dumped over this."
Huang Wenxian laughed, "Are we afraid of him?"
Rui Xiaodan joked, "Yes."
Zeng Hua said, "He must be a big shot in the business world or a rising star in politics."
Rui Xiaodan replied, "Neither, just a wandering drifter."
Zeng Hua said, "Wenxian, listen to her romantic level!"
Huang Wenxian looked at the pack of Duke cigarettes and joked, "Yeah, look at the kind of work she does—staying in villas, flying everywhere, eating the best food. Wherever she goes, we're always trailing behind. It's all fate! But your gun is too outdated. Ask your boss to get you a better one. Comparing your gun to those gangsters' guns, it's embarrassing!"
Huang Wenxian took out two seized handguns from his bag, both German-made Walther P88 automatic pistols with a 9mm caliber, a 15-round magazine capacity, and a weight of 900 grams. In terms of capacity, weight, caliber, performance, design, and craftsmanship, they were far superior to the standard-issue Type 64 police pistol, which had several shortcomings, especially in reliability.
Rui Xiaodan admired the P88 pistols and exclaimed, "Great guns!"
Zeng Hua laughed, "Yes, but these two were meant for you."
Rui Xiaodan smiled, "I'm lucky to have your protection."
Zeng Hua said, "Our plan is to arrest Shen Nan at 8 AM, interrogate her, and fax the records to the command center. In the afternoon, we'll host a thank-you dinner for the Qin Gu officers. We'll depart for Mingchuan at 5 AM the next morning, taking the route through Linfen and Changzhi in Shanxi. The distance from Qin Gu to Mingchuan is about 900 kilometers, mostly on national and expressways. We'll reach home before dark."
Huang Wenxian added, "The Qin Gu officers wanted to host us, but we know they're from a poor county with tight budgets. Since they helped us, Zeng Hua suggested we pay for the dinner ourselves if we can't get reimbursed."
Rui Xiaodan said, "That's fine. No problem. For the arrest, I suggest we avoid alerting her relatives. It respects the elderly's feelings and Shen Nan's dignity while avoiding unnecessary trouble. So, no police cars close by, no sirens or lights. I think two people are enough. Also, who will interrogate Shen Nan? What's the focus of the interrogation? Can we tell her that Wu Chengxiang has been caught?"
Zeng Hua said, "I've checked. We can tell her about Wu Chengxiang to dispel any illusions she might have. You should handle the interrogation since you know each other. Based on Wu Huijuan's confession, Shen Nan doesn't know much. Wu Chengxiang didn't fully trust her."