Chapter 45: Mobilization

Regardless of whether Chen Shulin was the Party Secretary, Zhu Daodong would unhesitatingly rush to help in such a situation. He ran to the telephone station, where Li Shaohua, who was in charge of answering calls, was telling the people who had rushed over about the incident.

"Chen Secretary's son was kidnapped around 9:30 this morning, right outside his house. It was just a moment; Chen Secretary's wife went inside to get something, and when she came out, Chen Secretary's son was gone. Sigh, I've seen Chen Secretary's son; he was a very cute kid, sigh..."

"Has Chen Secretary's son been found yet?" Zhu Daodong asked anxiously.

"Who has ever heard of a kidnapped child being found? Two years ago, my third uncle's in-law's neighbor's cousin was kidnapped, and they still haven't found him. The whole family quit their jobs, and their land has been left fallow. They spend the whole year looking for their son, how pitiful," Li Shaohua said, rambling on.

"Since he was kidnapped at 9:30 this morning, he should still be in the county town, and there's a chance we can find him. Everyone, go and notify the cadres who are at home to prepare to go to the county town to help Secretary Sun find him." Zhu Daodong checked the time; it was only 10:15. As long as the child was still in the county town, there was still a chance.

"Secretary Zhu, shouldn't we notify Mayor Yuan first?" Li Shaohua was unhappy that Zhu Daodong was taking charge. If something happened to Chen Secretary's family, the township cadres should help, but it wasn't up to a mere secretary to give orders.

"Of course, but this isn't an official matter. I believe Mayor Yuan will also mobilize everyone to help find Chen Wanli." Zhu Daodong nodded and saw Li Shaohua go to find Yuan Ping. He immediately ran to the nearby police station. Chen Shulin must have reported the incident, and Li Shaohua seemed to know nothing. Chen Shijie would definitely know more.

The police station had indeed received the news, a call from Chen Shulin himself. Although he was the top official in Shumu Ridge, in the county town, he was just an ordinary section-level cadre. Even with his son being kidnapped, the case would follow the usual procedures, with perhaps more manpower allocated to help him search. Therefore, Chen Shulin called the Shumu Ridge police station, the most important thing now being to seal off the roads in and out of Yuhua County. The only ones who could help him with this were the police.

When Zhu Daodong arrived, Chen Shijie and Hou Yong were discussing the matter. It wasn't easy to handle. The county bureau hadn't ordered them to assist in the investigation, and if the police station sent people to the county town to help, it might not only fail to please the county colleagues but also offend them.

The county bureau, even the urban police station, what are you people from Shumu Ridge doing here? Are you doubting our capabilities, or do you think the Shumu Ridge police station is more capable?

But if they didn't go, they would greatly offend Chen Shulin. Chen Shulin adored his son, and if the police station didn't help at all, the rift between the township government and the police station would be longer than the Great Wall.

"Director Chen, Director Hou, you must have heard about what happened to Secretary Chen's family, right?" Zhu Daodong entered Chen Shijie's office and, seeing both of them, got straight to the point.

"Secretary Chen called, Little Zhu, are you here to urge us?" Chen Shijie managed a forced smile; he was indeed troubled by this.

"That's not it. I'm also very anxious about Secretary Chen's son being kidnapped. You should have more information than me. Do you think he might still be in the county town?" Zhu Daodong asked.

"Daodong, don't be too anxious. The more anxious you are, the more chaotic things will become. The incident just happened, and we don't have first-hand information yet. But according to Director Chen's analysis, he should still be in the county town," Hou Yong said, seeing the sweat on Zhu Daodong's face, trying to reassure him.

"If that's the case, why are you still sitting here? Go to the county town!"

"Little Zhu, I'm really worried about this. Secretary Chen personally called us to send people to the county town to help find his son, but we also have a higher authority. Our duty is to protect the peace of the people in Shumu Ridge..." Chen Shijie said, troubled.

"Should I call Brother Zhao?" Zhu Daodong sneered inwardly. Chen Shijie lacked decisiveness, and under his indecision, the opportunity was slipping away.

"Wouldn't that make it even harder for me?" Chen Shijie quickly shook his head. Although Director Zhao had only met Zhu Daodong twice, it was clear that he genuinely considered him a friend. If Zhu Daodong called, Zhao Jinhai would definitely agree to send people to assist in the investigation, but the people who would be offended would still be offended.

"Daodong, Director Chen does have his difficulties, I hope you can understand," Hou Yong also felt that dragging this out wasn't a solution. Trying to avoid offending anyone might end up offending everyone.

"Alright, today is Sunday, and the police station doesn't need so many people on duty, right? The county bureau can't stop the police officers from going to the county town for a visit, can they? I suggest that Director Chen send everyone except the duty personnel in plain clothes. That way, no one can say anything. After all, you are professionals, and our township government can mobilize a hundred or so people at any time," Zhu Daodong thought for a moment. Now wasn't the time to pressure Chen Shijie; the most critical thing was to send people to the county town as soon as possible.

"That's a good idea, Little Zhu. You're a college graduate, your mind works fast." Chen Shijie thought it over and decided to leave one internal affairs officer and one duty officer behind, while sending the rest of the police officers, including himself and Hou Yong, to the county town. Of course, everyone would be in plain clothes.

Seeing that the police station was in action, he made an appointment with Hou Yong to meet at Chen Shulin's house when they arrived in the county town and wrote down Chen Shulin's address before returning to the township government.

As he approached the township government, he heard the bustling sounds from the large meeting room, with dozens of township cadres present. But he didn't hear Yuan Ping's voice. He searched the township government and found that Yuan Ping was at home watching TV, discussing the plot of a TV drama with Li Jin.

He had been at the police station for about ten minutes, and even if Li Shaohua had to crawl, he should have reached Yuan Ping's house by now. But Yuan Ping was sitting at home, not at all anxious, acting as if it had nothing to do with him. He even had the leisure to discuss the plot with Li Jin. According to Zhu Daodong, Yuan Ping rarely watched TV, and if he did, it was usually news programs. As for TV dramas, this was the first time Zhu Daodong had heard of it since coming to the township government.

This wasn't just a job; it was a matter of life and death, and there was no room for delay. But Yuan Ping's behavior was very disappointing. In work, you and Chen Shulin can scheme against each other, but now, it's a matter of a young life. Once a child is kidnapped, their whole life could be ruined. How could you treat such a serious matter as a pastime?

Zhu Daodong, full of anger, quickly went to Yuan Ping's house and knocked on the door heavily.

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