“They were after Nianzhi?! That can’t be right. If she was their target, why didn’t they take her hostage?” Zhao Liangze was dubious. However, he could not dismiss the possibility right off the bat, either. The existence of the heavy weapons – weapons that could only have been smuggled in from overseas – complicated things.
“The kidnappers are just pawns in the game. The real mastermind behind the scenes wants to be sure Nianzhi isn’t someone important. This whole incident was just them testing the waters,” said Huo Shaoheng, his voice cool and dispassionate. “As for why she wasn’t taken hostage – my guess is, they’re afraid of getting busted. Someone may trace the evidence back to them, so they decided not to risk a direct attack on Nianzhi, not this time.”
Fan Jian and Zhao Liangze both shut up at this.
If Huo Shaoheng was right, then they had to stay inside the car no matter what…
…
The lights from the car sped along the road beside Little Mirror Lake, farther and farther, before disappearing into the darkness.
It was now completely dark.
The rain continued to pour relentlessly.
Gu Nianzhi watched as the military vehicle in front of her suddenly picked up speed. It sped away, faster and faster. There was no way for her to catch up now.
She had been running at full speed; she gradually slowed down.
She bent over, hands on her knees, gasping wildly for breath. The insides of her nose stung, and her eyes were wet. Water dripped from her face: was it rain water? Her sweat? Her tears? She could not tell.
“Nianzhi, what’s wrong? Why are you running after that car?” Mei Xiawen had also come to a stop beside her. He put an arm around her shoulder and gently helped her up.
Gu Nianzhi gazed at the road in front of her. There was nothing there but darkness; the lights of the Humvee had long since disappeared. The darkness was so complete she could not even be sure she had actually seen the car.
“Nothing. Just wanted to see what that sniper looks like. His skills were out of this world.” Gu Nianzhi quelled the indescribable feelings that had welled up within her. She pressed her lips together, and turned to follow Mei Xiawen back the way they came.
Upon arriving at the straw hut, she turned to look across Little Mirror Lake.
Little Mirror Lake was a vast, misty expanse in the rainy night. Over in the distance, Mingyue Court looked tiny, like a toy house in a fairy tale.
There was a distance of two kilometers between this side of the lake and Mingyue Court – and Uncle Huo had killed the enemy on the other side of the lake with a single shot from an anti-materiel sniper rifle!
Gu Nianzhi’s heart swelled with vicarious pride at the thought.
She looked up at Mei Xiawen and said, “Don’t you want to know who that incredible sniper was?”
“I didn’t think you were the type to have a hero fetish,” said Mei Xiawen, teasingly. “What, do I have to practice my shooting now?”
“Haha, you should, if you have the time!” Gu Nianzhi was in high spirits; she waved her fist jovially in the air. Her long, wet hair clung to her back like seaweed. Her small, exquisite face, barely the size of an open palm, appeared to glow like a pearl in the rainy night.
Mei Xiawen had to look away. “Let’s get back to campus.”
“Okay.”
Mei Xiawen took her hand in his and the two returned to the straw hut together. After a roll call to make sure everyone was present, they returned to Qingfeng Garden with their classmates to gather their things, before getting on the bus that would take them back to their college campus.
…
The girl chasing after the car had finally disappeared from view.
Huo Shaoheng tore his eyes away from the rearview mirror. He did not speak again as they made their way back to the military base from Dufeng Mountain Resort Villa.
Once they had arrived at the military base, he reminded both Zhao Liangze and Yin Shixiong: “Send a report to Liu Qiangyuan’s superiors informing them of his actions today. Also, get the records for C City’s Customs department and check the data for all outsized shipping containers imported into the city in the past year. You know what to do. Don’t let your guard down.”
Those C City gangsters had somehow gotten their hands on heavy weapons that were only available overseas, on the military munitions black market. Something was definitely going on behind the scenes.
“Yes, sir!”
Zhao Liangze and Yin Shixiong saluted him in unison.
Huo Shaoheng nodded at them, before turning to Fan Jian to say, “I’m going to the capital. Make the arrangements, now – I’m leaving tonight.”
Fan Jian saluted him, “Yes, sir!” and hurried off to secure a private plane from the relevant department. Huo Shaoheng, for his part, returned to his residence to pack a few things.
When Fan Jian and Huo Shaoheng had gone, Yin Shixiong asked Zhao Liangze, his voice full of curiosity: “What’s wrong? Why the sudden rush to the capital?”
Zhao Liangze shook his head and rolled his eyes at Yin Shixiong. “He’s the commander. He doesn’t have to report his every move to you.”
“No, I’m not expecting a report from him, but we’re his personal secretaries – we can’t very well be absolutely clueless about what our boss is doing, can we?” Yin Shixiong retorted as he rolled his eyes back at Zhao Liangze. “By the way, you said Nianzhi chased your car?”
“Yeah.” Zhao Liangze turned on his computer, and began updating his files while looking up the records for shipping containers brought into C City over the last year.
The heavy weapons used by the group of gangsters had been manufactured outside of the country, and could only have been smuggled into the Empire through shipping containers processed at Customs. There was simply no other way.
Yin Shixiong seated himself on the sofa before him. He turned on his tablet PC, and began typing a message to Deputy Commissioner Liu’s superior. He asked as he typed, “…So did you all get out of the car?”
“Nope, Mr. Huo didn’t allow it.” Zhao Liangze peeled his eyes away from his computer and looked around before beckoning Yin Shixiong over with a crook of his finger.
Yin Shixiong went over to him and asked quietly, “What is it?”
“A friendly reminder: you may want to think about what to tell Nianzhi if she asks about today… remember, she cannot know we were there.”
“‘Course I won’t tell her!” Yin Shixiong immediately promised. But he could not help himself; he had to vent his frustrations: “Mr. Huo hasn’t seen Nianzhi for more than two months now. Do you have any idea what a pain it is for me to have to keep coming up with excuses for him? And Nianzhi’s becoming such a smooth talker these days. She’s going to out-talk me, soon enough.”
Zhao Liangze made a funny face. “Our dear Brother Xiong can’t hold his ground against Nianzhi in a debate? Oh yes, I feel soooo sorry for you, hahahaha…”
Yin Shixiong could not stand Zhao Liangze teasing him like this. He ducked his head, angrily shut the cover on his tablet PC, and walked out of Zhao Liangze’s office to return to his own office.
…
It was Sunday, late in the night. The 20 senior law students from C University’s Class One – the students who had not been held hostage by the gangsters – were finally back on campus, safe and sound. They had been escorted back to their college by the police.
Four of their classmates, in addition to all the students from Class Two, had been knocked out by the food provided by the gangsters; these students were still at the hospital, unconscious and on intravenous therapy.
The Class One students had just arrived at their campus when they were swamped by frenzied reporters. Every media outlet in C City had sent reporters to the university to interview the students.
News of the kidnapping and killings in Dufeng Mountain Resort Villa had spread, but the police had been tight-lipped, providing no official comment aside from “Investigations are still ongoing.”
The reporters who had not been able to get first-hand information immediately turned their attentions to the students who had just returned to school after their terrifying ordeal.
The students were hounded by reporters as soon as they got off the bus.
Several reporters were now chasing Gu Nianzhi and Mei Xiawen’s little group, their cameras rolling.
“Excuse me, you there, did you see the kidnappers?”
“Hey you, we heard that the kidnappers were armed with heavy weapons. Is that true?”
“Did any of you take videos? The power supply and the internet connection in the villa had been disrupted – why is that? Someone must be trying to cover up the truth. Is it the police, or the military?”
Gu Nianzhi had not wanted to have anything to do with these unsolicited reporters from the media, but changed her mind when she heard what the last reporter had said. She could not stand it anymore.
She turned to face the male reporter, who immediately thrust a recording pen in her face. Her voice was cool and dispassionate. “Which media outlet sent you?”
“I’m from OOXX self-media, thank you for accepting my interview!” The male reporter was beside himself with joy. “So, do you have the inside scoop?”