Chapter 133: Serves Him Right

By the time Song Changfeng and Aofeng arrived in the neighboring county where Zhu Qiang had last been seen, it was already well into the second half of the night. Bureau Chief Fu had been extremely supportive, dispatching both the local Criminal Police and Traffic Police Squads to conduct thorough inspections at every intersection, leaving no suspicious detail unchecked.

But that still wasn’t enough. Zhu Qiang could pop out of the mountains from any random spot at any time and make a run for it. Earlier, Xiao Wang and Xiao Chen had been chasing him desperately, while Zhu Qiang just kept his head down and ran blindly. In the pitch-black night, it was just as much a hindrance for the officers as it was for him. In his panic, he had taken a small village path and fled into the mountains. The hills were thick with trees, and if he found a place to crouch and stay silent, it would be hard to find him even in daylight, let alone at night.

To make matters worse, the terrain was uneven and the forest dense. They had tried deploying a thermal imaging drone, but it got caught in the branches not long after takeoff, forcing them to abandon the attempt. The longer this dragged on, the more unpredictable things became. If Zhu Qiang really managed to escape and, in desperation, harmed innocent civilians, they would be held responsible.

When it came to tracking someone down, who could beat a police dog? Someone quickly remembered that Song Changfeng and Aofeng were currently visiting their county and immediately made a call requesting backup.

As soon as Song Changfeng received the call, he joined the local officers and rushed to the village where Zhu Qiang had disappeared. Presented with a piece of Zhu Qiang’s clothing, heavy with his scent, Aofeng sniffed it over and over with great focus. Once he was sure he had memorized the smell, he gave a low bark to signal that he was ready.

The group headed to the spot where Zhu Qiang had last been seen. Nose to the ground, Aofeng began tracking the scent. It wasn’t hard to follow—Zhu Qiang had been running hard, and his scent was strong. If that smell could be visualized, it would be a glowing, bold arrow pointing the way.

Excited, Aofeng picked up speed. He had excellent night vision, so the mountain at night was no different from daytime to him. But this made things tough for Song Changfeng. No matter how skilled he was, he still had ordinary human eyes. Outside, he could rely on the moonlight, but once they entered the forest, the canopy blocked it out completely. He had to pull out a small flashlight to see, and the other officers did the same. They kept stumbling over roots and uneven ground, which seriously slowed them down.

Every time Aofeng found a new direction, he had to sit and wait for the humans to catch up. He wagged his tail furiously, anxious and frustrated, wishing he could just tell them to hurry up.

After yet another pause, Aofeng couldn’t take it anymore. He decided to go find Zhu Qiang on his own!

Song Changfeng watched as Aofeng bounced excitedly in front of them, then turned and dashed into the dense forest without looking back. Unlike earlier, he didn’t pause every few steps to wait. It was clear he had made up his mind to go solo.

“Why did he run off on his own?!”

“Yeah, without him leading the way, how are we supposed to find anyone?”

“Comrade Changfeng, is there any way to call him back?”

Everyone stared in confusion, whispering anxiously. Thankfully, they had the sense to keep their voices down—startling Zhu Qiang now would only make things harder.

Song Changfeng could only shake his head helplessly. What could he do? Aofeng had clearly made up his mind. He was a dog with a strong will. The only way to bring him back now would be to issue a strict command, but Song Changfeng had no intention of doing that. If Aofeng wanted to act alone, so be it. He remembered the cat abuse case, when Aofeng had “escaped” several times to lead a group of kittens on their own missions. He trusted that even if Aofeng didn’t catch the suspect, he wouldn’t mess things up.

The others were skeptical about Song Changfeng’s decision, but regardless of their opinions, all they could do now was wait.

With no one holding him back, Aofeng raced ahead, following the scent trail at full speed. After about half an hour, he noticed the suspect’s scent growing stronger—it seemed Zhu Qiang had only recently passed through.

Aofeng thought, This guy’s got some stamina. Even with my night vision and full sprint, it took me half an hour to get this close. He estimated the distance from here to the village entrance to be over thirty kilometers. A human’s average walking speed was about five kilometers per hour, and Zhu Qiang had been on the run for six or seven hours. In theory, he should have covered that distance by now.

But that was just theory. This was mountain terrain, and it was nighttime, with poor visibility. Plus, under extreme stress, the human body burns energy much faster. Clearly, Zhu Qiang’s survival instinct had kicked in hard, pushing him to ignore exhaustion and tap into strength he didn’t know he had.

Closer… even closer. Aofeng perked up his ears, straining to catch the soft sound of breathing carried on the night breeze. He stepped forward cautiously, his padded paws utterly silent…

Zhu Qiang leaned against a large tree, gasping for breath. If he hadn’t been alert tonight, he might have been caught. Ever since that body was discovered, he’d had a bad feeling, though he still clung to a bit of luck.

But the moment he realized there were more people in the courtyard than before, that sliver of hope vanished. His only thought was to run. Run for his life, no questions asked. He pushed himself to the limit, sprinting forward with the police hot on his heels. If it weren’t for his familiarity with the terrain, he would’ve been in a holding cell by now.

The forest at night was terrifying. He hadn’t felt it while fleeing, but now that he had stopped, he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was watching him.

What was it? Zhu Qiang hid behind the tree and cautiously peeked over his shoulder, only to lock eyes with a pair of glowing green eyes in the dark.

“Ahhhhhhh!”

A wolf! Zhu Qiang screamed and stumbled backward, scrambling away in a panic, shrieking the whole time.

Aofeng was startled too, spinning in place. He had been trying to sneak up and subdue the suspect, but Zhu Qiang had suddenly turned around and screamed so loudly it nearly deafened him.

Zhu Qiang was terrified. That wolf kept chasing him, never letting up. It even felt like the wolf was toying with him. It could’ve easily tackled him with a single pounce, but instead kept just the right distance, close enough to scare him but not enough to catch him. The more Zhu Qiang ran, the angrier he got. Suddenly, he stopped, pulled out a folding knife hidden in his pocket, and spun around, brandishing it.

“Come on, you beast! Come at me!” Zhu Qiang shouted hoarsely, his hand trembling as he gripped the knife. “I’m not afraid of you! Come on!”

Aofeng let out a cold snort. Not afraid? Then why are you shaking? Fine, let’s do this! He lunged forward, then veered to the side just before reaching Zhu Qiang, causing the knife to swing through empty air. Then he darted around to the back, pounced with his front paws, and kicked off with his hind legs. Dozens of pounds of weight slammed into Zhu Qiang, sending him face-first into the dirt.

Zhu Qiang struggled to roll over and get up, but a paw stomped him back down. Then a furry paw swung in and slapped him hard across the face. Before he could even yell, several more slaps landed in quick succession, the sharp “smack smack smack” sounds leaving him dazed and disoriented.

What the hell is with this wolf? It doesn’t bite, just slaps? Do you have any idea how much emotional trauma these slaps are causing me?! Zhu Qiang was on the verge of a breakdown, but he still tried to find a way to escape. Unfortunately, the wolf was too clever. No matter what he did, it pinned him back down and rained more slaps on his head.

Did this wolf get scolded at home and come out here to vent? That was Zhu Qiang’s last thought before he passed out.

Aofeng stepped on him a couple more times, then let out a satisfied sigh when he confirmed Zhu Qiang was unconscious. Excessive force was definitely wrong, but he was just a poor, innocent little dog. What did he know? Besides, this man had destroyed someone’s happy family for his own selfish reasons. Whatever he got, he deserved.

But now there was a problem. Zhu Qiang was out cold. How was he supposed to bring him back? Aofeng tried biting the collar of Zhu Qiang’s shirt and dragging him, but after just a few meters, he got snagged. The terrain was too uneven. Dragging him back wasn’t going to work.

Should he run back and alert the others to come get him? The thought crossed his mind, but he quickly dismissed it. Zhu Qiang was unconscious, not dead. If he woke up and escaped while Aofeng was gone, they’d have to start the whole chase over again.

Wait here until Song Changfeng and the others arrived? Aofeng shook his head. Who knew how long that would take? There were still people stationed outside. The sooner they caught this guy, the sooner everyone could rest.

This won’t work, that won’t work… What now? Aofeng paced back and forth, then suddenly had a great idea. He bit off Zhu Qiang’s shirt and pants, leaving him in just his boxers, then found several vines and tied him securely to a tree. He even used a belt to bind Zhu Qiang’s hands behind his back. No way he was getting out of that.

Once everything was done, Aofeng wiped his mouth several times with his front paw, then spat a few times. Good idea, sure, but it was murder on the mouth. Tying knots with dog paws just wasn’t practical.

Feeling a bit regretful, Aofeng turned and ran back the way he came.

“Did you hear that? Sounds like he’s back!” someone called out excitedly. They had been waiting here for nearly two hours. A few had wanted to go search on their own, but Song Changfeng had stopped them.

“Woof woof woof!” Aofeng dashed up to Song Changfeng and barked loudly a few times. Then he spun in place, his whole body brimming with joy.

Song Changfeng shot to his feet. “You actually caught him?”

“Woof woof woof!” Aofeng lifted his chin proudly. Of course he did!

“Quick, take us there!” Song Changfeng called out to the others, then turned and followed Aofeng without looking back, heading deeper into the woods.

“Did I hear that right? Did he say ‘found him’ or ‘caught him’?” Those trailing behind exchanged puzzled looks, their small eyes full of big confusion.

“Must’ve misspoken, right? No matter how good a police dog is, it can’t actually catch a suspect, can it? Oh no, what if Aofeng mauled the guy? Hurry up, if he dies, we’re all getting written up!”

The group rushed to catch up, moving much faster than before. It was already past four in the morning, and the sky was beginning to lighten, making the path easier to see.

By the time they reached Zhu Qiang’s location, dawn had fully broken. What they saw left them stunned: under a tree, a man with a pig-like face was tied up. His bare upper body and legs were covered in red welts, clearly the result of bites from the forest’s mosquitoes and venomous ants.

He really was caught? Not only caught, but stripped and tied to a tree? The way they looked at Aofeng began to shift. Was the Police Dog trained at the Anyang Police Dog Training Base really this incredible?

Aofeng sat upright with a serious expression, pretending not to notice their suspicious stares. He was just an ordinary good boy, totally clueless.

Zhu Qiang had already regained consciousness. Because he was tied up, he couldn’t scratch himself, so he squirmed and twisted, trying to rub against the tree. But the more he rubbed, the itchier it got, and the itchier it got, the more he wanted to rub. The vicious cycle had him in tears. When he saw the police arrive, it was like seeing salvation, and he cried out for help.

The moment he was untied, he frantically scratched himself all over, leaving bloody marks across his body. Combined with his swollen, bruised face, he looked so pitiful that the officers present actually felt a strange twinge of sympathy. But then they remembered the crimes he’d committed, and how everyone had been forced to stay up all night on duty because of his escape. That sympathy instantly turned into a unanimous, “Serves you right!”