071 Biding Time

As a hardened criminal who commanded dozens of henchmen and enslaved over two hundred civilians, Boss Tian was surprisingly adept at staying hidden. While he knew nothing of multi-spectral remote sensing technology, he understood the importance of concealing his heat signature and mitigating the impact of human activity to avoid aerial detection. Moreover, he chose a location that was easy to defend and difficult to attack, ensuring he wouldn’t be overrun by hordes of zombies. He didn’t need to worry about self-sufficiency, as the captured civilians were more than enough to sustain his band of convicts.

Finding a location that met these criteria within dozens of kilometers of the reservoir was not difficult; in fact, one could easily find dozens of such spots. When it came to concealing their tracks, hiding in any factory or high-rise building—using asbestos roofing or layers of reinforced concrete as cover—made them nearly impossible to track. As for defense, the Zero-Eight Squad might have needed to rely on terrain, but for Boss Tian and his dozens of burly men, plus the captured laborers, they could build a fortress on flat ground if they were willing to sacrifice a few lives and had enough materials.

Furthermore, following nearly seventy years of development after the founding of the country, the area around the Tanghe Reservoir was relatively densely populated. One couldn't walk two or three hundred meters without encountering a residence, sometimes even private villas built by farmers. With the recent surge in the zombie population obscuring human trails, and the fact that the criminals had retreated under the cover of lingering fog—which disrupted satellite and drone tracking—Boss Tian felt completely secure. He was not wrong; Yang Xiaohua and Dai Jian spent the better part of the morning frowning, staring at their laptops and cross-referencing data, yet unable to pinpoint his exact location.

No one expected the breakthrough to come from Granny Hao. It wasn't that she possessed technical expertise; rather, seeing the pair furrowing their brows and sighing, she approached out of genuine concern. Yang Xiaohua responded politely, never expecting Granny Hao to smile and say, "Chairman Mao taught us that revolutionary war is a war of the masses. Girl, I don't understand the signals you're talking about, but I do know that the masses need water and food to live. Now that the tap water is cut off, dozens of people eating, drinking, and relieving themselves need a place that provides shelter and isn't foul-smelling—otherwise, the stench would kill them. Why else would we have moved to live by the water? You should look for places with a source of fresh water."

Those words awakened the dreamers.

It was a point that professional criminal investigators would have realized immediately, but for the two technicians stuck all morning, it served as a reminder that life experience is sometimes truly invaluable.

By eliminating suspicious locations that were not adjacent to rivers or natural water sources, and then removing areas that were too remote or difficult to access, the situation became clear. Dai Jian immediately dispatched a newly rigged military drone to scout, and they promptly identified Boss Tian’s hideout.

It was a township enterprise by the river, less than ten kilometers in a straight line from the northwest corner of the reservoir, located upstream on a tributary. From there, it was easy to launch boats downstream into the reservoir’s main water area, and another dozen kilometers or so would bring them to the riverbank of the Peninsula Outpost.

The location was confirmed, but how to deal with these hardened criminals became a dilemma.

The simplest method would be an air-to-ground strike—a loud bang and the problem would be solved. However, drone reconnaissance showed that these criminals had abducted at least two hundred civilians, including men, women, and young children. As a group backed by the government, the Zero-Eight Squad could not simply abandon them; they had to find a way to rescue the hostages while neutralizing the criminals.

Consequently, Wang Chen didn't get a chance to spend the afternoon with Sheng Qingru. Instead, he gathered the squad members, including Chen Chong and Granny Hao—who had earned everyone's trust after the morning's battle and were now privy to the squad's internal affairs—to brainstorm a solution.

After much discussion, the "213 Youth" proposed a fairly comprehensive plan: use drones to monitor the criminals' movement patterns, simultaneously jam their radio communications, and cut off their reinforcements. The goal was to neutralize any criminals who left the factory area while securing the civilians within a single day, then launch a surprise raid on the factory at dusk to eliminate the remaining criminals and rescue the hostages.

It sounded operational—a special forces-style infiltration, easy!

Easy? Easy your head! Ren Wanrong didn't want to discourage the presumptuous youth too harshly, so he asked a few calm questions: If radio communications were jammed, what would happen if the enemy opened fire during the rescue? What if it triggered an explosion? If they raided the factory, what if Boss Tian used the remaining civilians as human shields?

The 213 Youth lowered his head and fell silent.

In truth, there were many other criticisms Ren Wanrong didn't voice, which everyone else present also understood. Special forces tactics? Don't make me laugh. Wang Chen looked impressive fighting zombies, but that was thanks to a short-lived constitution fueled by stimulants! Moreover, zombies lacked brains, helmets, and tactical coordination, allowing themselves to be slaughtered while distracted by gunfire. Someone like the veteran officer Zhang Fu could have done just as well, perhaps even better and with less effort. Aside from that, if they picked apart every member of the Zero-Eight Squad, aside from Ren Wanrong—who had some special forces-grade marksmanship despite losing his left hand—who among them was capable of such a raid? They would be lucky not to fall into a pit and cripple themselves before the attack even began!

They were facing hardened criminals who had blood on their hands—criminals who were the "elite" of their domain. In a one-on-one "hell cage" match, aside from Wang Chen and Pablo, the rest of the team would be lucky to survive based on pure chance. Relying on equipment to repel two attacks had intimidated Boss Tian, but that didn't mean these superficially capable but essentially average officers had the ability to launch a counter-attack and achieve a decisive victory. The best-case scenario would be a pyrrhic victory, using an armored vehicle to break into the camp and scatter the criminals—and that assumed the vehicle wasn't destroyed by some unconventional trap. If the criminals planted enough IEDs on the path, the vehicle might survive, but the occupants would be incapacitated. Once the battle turned sour and the Zero-Eight Squad's facade was broken, the outcome would be unpredictable.

Fully realizing that both the Zero-Eight Squad and Boss Tian were like two wolves terrified of each other, Wang Chen had to suppress the tempting idea of a risky rescue to expand their outpost and make winter survival easier. They settled for strict drone surveillance of Boss Tian’s activities, while focusing on gathering supplies and accelerating the construction of defensive fortifications at the Peninsula Outpost to withstand any future attacks. As for the rescue plan, after thorough deliberation, they developed a feasible strategy, but decided to postpone it until conditions were more favorable.