Arson

After regaining their composure, all the officers realized one thing: Xu Mo had gone easy on Old Deng during their earlier sparring session.

And he had gone very easy.

Based on the skills Xu Mo had just displayed while taking down those thugs, he could easily take on three Old Dengs.

The techniques Xu Mo used to subdue the thugs were none other than the grappling techniques Old Deng had just taught him!

He had only watched Old Deng demonstrate them once, yet he had already mastered the essence of the grappling techniques. This level of talent was undeniably terrifying.

As a result, the officers now looked at Xu Mo as if he were some kind of monster.

Not only were the officers from the Qinghe Bay Police Branch looking at Xu Mo with strange expressions, but even Han Fei and Chen Ke were staring at him in astonishment.

They were colleagues who worked closely with Xu Mo every day.

They could confirm that, prior to this, Xu Mo had no knowledge of grappling techniques.

For someone who had never learned grappling techniques to watch a demonstration once and then immediately master and effectively use them in combat was simply unbelievable!

No wonder Xu Mo seemed to excel at everything he tried. With talent like his, there was nothing he couldn’t learn!

By now, the officers finally understood how Xu Mo had managed to master so many skills. It was purely a gift from heaven—his natural talent was simply extraordinary.

With such incredible talent, it seemed perfectly reasonable for him to excel at anything he set his mind to.

At this moment, Han Fei felt a sense of relief. He was glad he had managed to persuade Xu Mo to join the police force, steering him onto the right path and ensuring his skills were used for good rather than evil. Otherwise, the consequences would have been unimaginable, and the police would have had a major headache on their hands.

While lost in thought, Han Fei suddenly noticed Director Gao eyeing Xu Mo with a look of intense interest.

Was he thinking of poaching Xu Mo? No way! Realizing this, Han Fei quickly found an excuse to leave with the others.

He glanced at his watch and then at the thugs who had been subdued and were now squatting with their hands on their heads near the restaurant entrance.

"Director Gao, if you have work to attend to, please go ahead. Don’t worry about us. Our designated driver will be here soon, and it’s getting late. We won’t take up any more of your time."

With that, Director Gao had no choice but to agree.

"Alright then. I’ll have my team take these troublemakers back for processing."

Before leaving, Director Gao glanced at Xu Mo a few more times, looking as if he had something to say but ultimately holding back. No one knew what was going through his mind.

Under Director Gao’s direction, the officers from the Qinghe Bay Police Branch bid farewell to Han Fei and his team and took the thugs back to the station.

Not long after they left, the designated driver Han Fei had called arrived.

...

The next day, Xu Mo arrived at the police station as usual.

As soon as he arrived, he was hit with some bad news.

Late last night, a fire had broken out at a music store located at 388 West River Road. The officers on duty had received the emergency call.

After the firefighters extinguished the blaze, the officers discovered traces of gasoline at the scene, leading them to suspect that this was no ordinary fire—it was likely arson.

Moreover, a couple who ran the music store had been inside when the fire started. Both suffered severe burns and were rushed to the hospital overnight. Fortunately, they were now out of critical condition.

Upon learning this, Han Fei quickly gathered the officers for a meeting and briefed them on the situation.

"The presence of gasoline at the scene strongly suggests this was intentional arson, and the perpetrator likely had a grudge against the couple."

"The officers on duty last night have already photographed the scene and collected some basic information about the couple. They’ve also compiled a list of potential suspects..."

"Zhang Chunjuan, the owner of another music store on West River Road. The two stores are competitors, and the newly opened store had been stealing her business. As a result, Zhang Chunjuan had repeatedly reported the other store to the authorities for failing to meet fire safety regulations, hoping to have it shut down. She had also spread rumors and slandered the store, leading to numerous public arguments between the two parties."

"Li Sheng, a customer of the music store. He had sent his child there for piano lessons, but his child was bullied by other students. After finding out, Li Sheng frequently visited the store to demand answers, cause trouble, and demand compensation. Although the store owners compensated him, Li Sheng remained dissatisfied and later threatened to burn the store down."

"The remaining suspects are residents from the neighborhood behind the music store. They claimed the store was a major nuisance and had repeatedly asked the authorities to address the issue, but to no avail. Eventually, they banded together to confront the store owners, and during the altercation, several residents were accidentally injured. The incident had even escalated to the police station, but the conflict remained unresolved..."

After summarizing the current findings, Han Fei noticed that Xu Mo was deep in thought, his brow furrowed. Curious, he asked, "Captain Xu, what are your thoughts?"

"We should start with the surveillance footage. Next door to the music store, at 387 West River Road, there’s a private museum with a comprehensive surveillance system. Checking the footage might give us some clues," Xu Mo suggested.

"A private museum? Is there one?" Han Fei glanced at the materials compiled by the officers on duty, but there was no mention of a private museum next to the music store.

"Have you been there before?" Han Fei assumed Xu Mo knew about the private museum because he had visited the area.

I haven’t been there, but that private museum is mine. Of course, I know where my properties are... Xu Mo didn’t tell Han Fei that he owned the private museum, simply nodding instead. "Yes."

Han Fei thought for a moment, then said, "Let’s go check it out. We can conduct a field investigation while also gathering information from the surrounding area."

...

387 West River Road.

Several police cars pulled up in front of the building.

The officers stepped out of the vehicles.

Unlike official museums, private museums are much smaller in scale and aren’t as particular about their location. They can be set up in any busy commercial area with enough space.

Of course, while private museums can’t compare to official ones in terms of size, they still stand out as massive establishments on commercial streets.

The private museum in front of them was significantly larger than any other storefront on the street, and its decor was far more impressive, exuding an air of opulence just from the entrance.

The officers weren’t surprised.

Anyone who could afford to open a private museum was clearly well-off.

Buying the largest storefront on the street and spending generously on decor was to be expected. Even though it was a private museum, it was still a museum, and maintaining a certain level of prestige was important.

"Who owns this private museum? Look at how flashy it is... Must be nice to have so much money you don’t know what to do with it. Couldn’t fit all your collections at home, so you had to open a private museum to show off? Disgusting!" Wang Dachuan sneered as soon as he got out of the police car.

As soon as the words left his mouth, he felt a sudden chill run down his spine...