Was smashed by himself and sent to Xi’an? Xiong Hei reacted strongly. His fists, heavy and formidable, were like sledgehammers. Over the years, many people had faced his wrath.
“The one from last night?”
How coincidental was this? Xiong Hei was both surprised and somewhat elated. If he hadn’t smashed it, he would have smashed it, and if he had smashed it, it would be the Crazy Knife?
In the headphones, Lin Xirou’s voice was firm: “Impossible.”
Xiong Hei raised the gun’s muzzle, threateningly. “Believe it or not, I’ll make sure you get a taste of this.”
Jiang Baichuan, whose initial agony had subsided, lay still as if remaining motionless might suspend the pain. His voice, weak and intermittent, finally whispered, “It’s true. The Crazy Knife usually works with the Rabid Dog. Last night, they were together. The blind man is Xing Shen, and the other is Nie Er…”
His voice faded to silence.
Xiong Hei, rubbing his chin with his foot, reported to Lin Xirou, “The old man has no willpower and fainted from the pain.”
Lin Xirou was silent, considering the situation.
Xiong Hei continued, “Sister Lin, maybe what he said is true. People say that no family stays rich for more than three generations. This so-called Thorn Army might have been powerful in ancient times, but now… What kind of rabid dog? I almost ran them over last night…”
He regretted not taking action against both the Rabid Dog and Crazy Knife in one go. Yan Tuo’s interference had thwarted a potential double kill.
Lin Xirou pondered, “It’s just a bit too coincidental.”
However, these so-called descendants of the Thorn Army were not particularly intimidating at the moment.
Xiong Hei, still incredulous, said, “It’s no coincidence. I can’t believe the blind man is a Rabid Dog. Is the dog family all there is? Can’t we find anyone with all their limbs intact?”
Lin Xirou, unfazed, replied, “If you don’t understand, don’t shout. Each sense is part of how people experience the world. If one sense is impaired, the other four senses become sharper. It’s not unusual for a Rabid Dog to be blind—but if you were there, he would have sensed you.”
Xiong Hei was momentarily stunned. After a pause, he asked, “Sister Lin, what should we do with these people? There are seven or eight of them. Is it too much to handle all at once? Although I’ve done many things as a traitor, handling seven or eight at once feels overwhelming.”
Lin Xirou instructed, “Take them all to the farm, separate them, and question each one. We need to get information from Jiang Baichuan. Clean up the place, retrieve their belongings, especially their mobile phones. Also, leave two of them behind to see if anyone comes looking.”
After hanging up the phone, Xiong Hei felt a sense of accomplishment. Despite the challenges, he was ready to face whatever came next with renewed energy.
He looked around, feeling something was missing. The next moment, he remembered: “What about the blind man?” Hadn’t he been caught yet? What kind of rubbish is this!
Yan Tuo was jolted awake in the middle of the night by the sounds of commotion outside. The door opened and closed repeatedly, footsteps came and went, and someone screamed in pain. A black-clad figure was shouting commands, “What’s with the noise? Isn’t there a doctor? Lu Xian, call again and sew his mouth up!”
He quickly put on his coat and went outside.
The scene outside was chaotic. Xiong Hei was making a racket, his hands on his hips, scolding at the far end of the operating room. Lu Xian, who had clearly just woken up, was hurriedly changing into a surgical gown. Through the crowd, Yan Tuo could see the person on the operating table was Bear Head Black, with blood-soaked gauze covering his waist.
Xiong Hei continued his tirade, “Go to the temple and pray more, bad luck seems to be following you! A blind man managed to gun you down!”
The operating room doors quickly shut.
Yan Tuo approached with a smile, “Brother Xiong, what blind man?”
Seeing Yan Tuo, Xiong Hei greeted him warmly, “Oh, you’re back? Where have you been?”
He settled into a large sofa and shouted to the others, “It’s bedtime! Go to sleep already, you’re giving me a headache!”
The others moved to the opposite side, where the large dormitory was. Lu Xian, being a professional, handled the medical equipment with efficiency and left quickly to avoid any obstruction.
Yan Tuo chose a single sofa nearby and, pulling his jacket collar up, prepared to explain his injuries: “Well, here’s the thing, I…”
Xiong Hei called over to the slowest of the group, “Go get a few cans of beer. Are there any cold dishes in the fridge? Get two plates.”
Yan Tuo lowered his hand.
He found it strange that Xiong Hei, who had just gone on an errand, seemed so pleased despite his subordinates’ injuries.
Ignoring his own business for the moment, Yan Tuo asked, “Brother Xiong, how did things go today?”
Xiong Hei’s eyebrows danced with satisfaction, “Of course.”
Leaning in, he added, “Yan Tuo, this trip was to help you get your revenge completely.”
He made a gesture on the platform, “A pot, get it off.”
Yan Tuo’s heart sank; he looked puzzled, “Who?”
Xiong Hei frowned, “Are you lacking in heart, or what? That guy.”
Yan Tuo pulled his coat tighter around himself and sunk deeper into the sofa, “Come on, you just dealt with a few small fries. Not to mention, it was the pot.”
Xiong Hei, feeling triumphant and with achievements in hand, was in no mood to argue, “I told you, their leader, the old man named Jiang, I personally broke half of his foot.”
Yan Tuo sighed, “The pot, including men, women, and children?”
Xiong Hei waved dismissively, “I haven’t seen any women. Are you thinking of that finch tea? No, not this time. What can a woman do?”
Yan Tuo smiled, “What does Aunt Lin think about this?”
Xiong Hei was momentarily speechless.
As beer and cold dishes arrived, Xiong Hei broke a pair of disposable chopsticks and started eating.
Yan Tuo observed him and wondered why both Aunt Lin and Xiong Hei could eat and drink like ordinary people. What’s with this “omnivorous” behavior?
Just then, Xiong Hei looked up, “What happened to you earlier?”
Yan Tuo, unable to use his pre-written script, found the current editing task challenging. He leaned over, opened a can of beer, and pulled the tab, “Well…”
He suddenly recalled Nie Jiuluo, who had spoken nonsense effortlessly. Yan Tuo had never seen anyone lie so naturally and convincingly.
He tried to fabricate a story, “I went east, planning to call a taxi, but in the countryside, the driver didn’t take orders…”
Xiong Hei, munching away, nodded in agreement, “Yes, in the city, you can easily find a cab, but not in the countryside. Go ahead, eat.”
Yan Tuo continued, “I walked all the way, trying to get a ride, but then two people appeared and ambushed me. I managed to escape and called for help, but they chased me, and I had to hide in a corner to call you.”
Xiong Hei paused, “Was one of them a tooth man?”
“I thought it might be, but it was an ambush. I panicked a bit, and because I wasn’t prepared, I ended up in trouble. I eventually managed to escape and hide, but they caught up with me and destroyed my phone. I could have dodged them if I had been more careful—please check with them.”
Xiong Hei nodded thoughtfully, understanding the difficulty of the situation.
Xiong Hei’s mouth was half-open in surprise; he hadn’t anticipated that his own business was involved. Yes, he had made a series of phone calls…
“I don’t have clairvoyance. How was I supposed to know you were in that situation?”
Yan Tuo, showing concern, placed a hand on Xiong Hei’s shoulder. “It’s okay, Brother Xiong. Everyone’s part of this, even if I’m the one behind…” He lifted the lower edge of his coat to reveal a thin scratch on his right lower abdomen, not deep but resembling a knife wound. “Fortunately, it’s just a superficial cut, nothing serious. They didn’t really fight back, just the crowd made it tough. I managed to knock them down and escape. At that time, I thought they might be Banya’s people, and I wanted to follow them secretly. If I could find their hideout, it would be a bonus.”
He tilted his head and took a few sips of wine.
Xiong Hei said, “You should have told me sooner…”
Yan Tuo set down the beer can and wiped his mouth. “The phone was dropped, and those guys picked it up.”
Xiong Hei suddenly understood: no wonder the last call had connected but had no sound, and then the phone had been turned off completely.
Xiong Hei asked, “And it wasn’t someone with a tooth, right?”
Yan Tuo replied, “They weren’t like the gangsters who beat people with sticks for money. It was more complicated. Four of them attacked me, and I took them all out. My phone got wrecked, but I managed to fix it.”
He pulled out the phone from his coat, showing its large, ugly shell.
Xiong Hei was amazed and pointed to the still-closed operating room door. “When he’s better, you two should go worship together. What kind of luck is this? You all keep running into these situations!”
Yan Tuo smiled wryly. “Don’t mention it. If Aunt Lin asks, just say something happened to me and that my phone broke again. Keep it vague and don’t go into details. I’d rather not seem useless.”
He paused, placing the bottom of the beer can on the countertop, and clinked glasses with Xiong Hei. “Congratulations, Brother Xiong, on your major breakthrough. By the way, you mentioned breaking half of Jiang’s foot. Did the gun get damaged too? That should be Lu Xian’s concern, right?”
Xiong Hei sneered, “Deal with it? He deserves it! It’s nothing to worry about.”
—
Nie Jiuluo was sleeping soundly, her phone turned off and muted. In the middle of the night, she was jolted awake by the flickering light of her phone screen. Groggy, she thought she was dreaming.
Checking her phone, she saw missed calls from an unknown number, more than twenty times. Just as she wondered about it, the screen flashed again.
Hesitating, she answered the call, “Hello?”
A man with a strong accent responded, “You Boshe, wait a minute.”
Confused, Nie Jiuluo replied, “Huh?”
Then, Xing Shen’s voice came through clearly, “A Luo?”
—
At about 2 a.m., forty-five minutes later, Nie Jiuluo hurried to her destination in a taxi, braving the dwindling snowfall.
The location was a private plate factory at the urban-rural intersection. Normally, manufacturers wouldn’t be operating at this hour, but private workshops were more flexible. With a large order to complete by the end of the year, the machines were still running in the middle of the night.
Nie Jiuluo walked through the chaotic yard and into the noisy, basic factory, where the strong scent of wood mingled with the dust of shavings. The night workers eyed her curiously, but one of them pointed the way inside.
As she moved deeper into the factory, something suddenly stood up beside a pile of discarded plates, calling out to her, “A Luo.”
Startled, Nie Jiuluo initially thought it was just a piece of wood, but upon closer inspection, her heart sank. It was Xing Shen, his face pale, lips purple, and only a single slipper on his foot. He was wrapped in a filthy blanket that obscured its color.
Nie Jiuluo approached him, asking, “What happened?”
Amid the roar of the machines, Xing Shen recounted his ordeal. After he had landed, he noticed the light was on and instinctively ran into the darkness, casting a quick glance back to see Jiang Baichuan being dragged into a window.
“Anyway, I couldn’t save him. I could only escape.”
He ran as fast as he could, feeling like a wild cat skirting close to the ground. Soon, someone with a flashlight was closing in on him. Despite the shots fired—one in the dark and the other from an unsteady hand—Xing Shen evaded them.
As he fled outside the village towards the road, he heard the sound of an approaching car. He quickly threw himself onto the ground, spotting one of his pursuers and shooting him. The man fell, and the other two, startled, also fell to the ground. Xing Shen seized the opportunity to rush towards the road. Although he initially aimed to stop the car, he was fortunate to find a pickup truck with lowered rear panels. Using all his strength, he clambered onto the truck, with the grasshopper following suit.
The driver, thinking someone was merely pickpocketing, sped up instead of stopping. By the time the pursuers caught up, the road was empty, and the truck had reached the plate factory.
Nie Jiuluo glanced around anxiously, “Where is the grasshopper?”
Xing Shen reassured her, “Don’t worry. I let it go and hide outside the factory to avoid causing any commotion.”
He continued, “I fled in a hurry and didn’t bring anything. Fortunately, I remembered your phone number. I borrowed a phone from one of the workers and asked him to keep dialing. I also borrowed this blanket from him—he’s the one who showed you the way. If you can, please transfer one or two hundred to him as a thank you.”
Nie Jiuluo nodded, “And what about Uncle Jiang? How is he?”
Xing Shen shook his head, “I don’t know. He might be captured or, more likely, killed.”
Nie Jiuluo pulled out her phone. Xing Shen anticipated her action, “If you want to send a message to Uncle Jiang, I’d advise against it. His phone might not be in his possession.”
Nie Jiuluo replied, “I have it under control.”
She typed a message and sent it. The message read: “Year-end discount: 1,008 for a single time, 5,000 for a night. When will the boss return?” The message was read but not responded to.
Nie Jiuluo stared at the screen for a moment and said, “The phone is indeed with someone else.”
After a brief pause, she asked, “What’s the address? I need to check the situation.”
Xing Shen cautioned her, “There are many people on the other side and they have guns.”
Nie Jiuluo was resolute, “I have my measures.”
She thanked the worker who had helped Xing Shen with the phone and returned carrying a square bucket in each hand.
Xing Shen asked, “What’s that?”
Nie Jiuluo replied, “Gasoline.”
