Death Notice 2 Destiny

Chapter 52

Although half of the black-clad man's body was restrained, he continued to resist. At this moment, he launched a flying left kick at Han Hao's face. Han Hao, instead of yielding, met the kick head-on, stepping forward and pulling the man's body towards himself. When the two were almost face-to-face, the man's flying kick lost its power. Han Hao then bent his knee and slammed it into the man's groin. The black-clad man let out a groan, his body arching like a shrimp, unable to move any further.

Han Hao shook his left hand, and the man in black slowly knelt down. Han Hao then put away his pistol, gritted his teeth, and pulled out the sharp knife embedded in his ribs. He then thrust it into the man in black's heart. His series of movements were swift and decisive; when the knife was fully inserted into the man's body, the man in black's knees had barely touched the ground.

Han Hao didn't even glance at the other person, turned and left the battlefield, walking deeper into the parking lot. Because blood was seeping from the wound on his ribs, he lifted the hem of his outer garment as he walked and tied a tight knot under his ribs.

After walking for a good twenty or thirty meters, I heard a "thump" behind me, and the body of the man in black fell to the ground.

About five minutes later, the police search team arrived at the underground parking lot. Two bodies lay sprawled before them, and the lead detective immediately reported the situation to Luo Fei. Moments later, Luo Fei, Mu Jianyun, and Yin Jian arrived at the scene.

Upon seeing the clothing of the two deceased, Luo Fei knew they were Ahua's men. One had been stabbed in the heart with a sharp blade, while the other had been shot through the brain. Luo Fei examined the bullet hole in the forehead of the wounded man, determined the type of bullet, and then nodded definitively: "Han Hao did it."

"He might be hiding in this garage," Yin Jian said, scanning the surroundings warily. "After Liu Song gave the signal, our men immediately sealed off all the building's entrances and exits, including this garage. So there's no way he could have gotten out."

Luo Fei took a few steps forward, then squatted down and stared at a spot of dripping blood on the ground. Yin Jian and the others followed suit.

"He's injured!" someone whispered.

"Surround my position and expand the search in all directions. Open the trunk of every car. If you find any new bloodstains, report to me immediately!" Luo Fei stood up and gave the team the battle orders.

The group immediately dispersed, maintaining their battle formation, and began their search in pairs, providing cover for each other. Seven or eight minutes later, the search yielded an unexpected result.

"Captain Luo, there's another exit here!" A group of police officers who had reached the southeast corner suddenly shouted.

Luo Fei's heart sank, and he quickly rushed to that corner. Sure enough, there was a four-meter-wide opening in the east wall of the garage, leading in a long, winding way.

"Why wasn't this exit under control?" Luo Fei turned and questioned Yin Jian, who was following behind him, his tone somewhat stern. The battle plan to block the building's entrances and exits was orchestrated by Yin Jian.

Yin Jian looked bewildered and aggrieved: "This...this exit isn't in the building's as-built plans?"

Luo Fei frowned: "Are you sure?"

Yin Jian immediately replied, "I can guarantee that!"

Knowing that Ahua would definitely monitor the entire building beforehand, the police didn't deploy any personnel to conduct an on-site investigation, but only retrieved the building's as-built drawings. This was approved by Luo Fei, who also knew Yin Jian's work style was consistently meticulous and there shouldn't be any oversights. But there was clearly another unguarded exit here. What was going on?

However, given the current situation, the most important thing is to make emergency arrangements as quickly as possible. Luo Fei ordered the two detectives who had discovered the exit: "You two search through this passage. Be vigilant and report back immediately!"

"Understood!" The two detectives immediately took their orders and left.

Luo Fei then instructed Yin Jian, "Find out from the people inside the building what's going on with this exit!"

Yin Jian quickly found out the relevant information. It turned out that the passageway didn't exist originally; it was only later, when the Jianhe Stadium across the street was building its underground parking garage, that a passageway was built from there, effectively connecting the two parking garages. However, this passageway is not usually open to the public. Only when there are major matches at Jianhe Stadium and parking spaces are scarce, are the roadblocks removed from the passageway and the internal parking lot of Jinhai Building opened to alleviate the pressure on the stadium.

After understanding the situation, Luo Fei's expression grew increasingly serious. This meant that Han Hao had likely already entered the stadium's underground parking garage through this passage. And now was the peak time for the crowds leaving the game; how easy would it be for the police to regain control of the situation in a short time!

Yin Jian followed behind Luo Fei, grinning utterly dejected. Han Hao's previous escape was due to his carelessness, and he never expected that this meticulously planned operation would fail again because of a small oversight in his deployment. Thinking of Liu Song's injury during the operation, he truly didn't know how to explain it to him.

However, Luo Fei's thinking did not stop because of this setback, and he quickly came up with a new battle plan.

"Immediately dispatch additional police officers to the stadium parking garage to review CCTV footage from all exits for the past twenty minutes. Track and investigate any car that left the garage during this time period. Additionally, issue a request for assistance through the police-community network, focusing on taxi radio stations, small hotels, pharmacies, and clinics. In addition to the previously released physical characteristics, add this: he has obvious knife wounds on his upper body!"

After hearing Luo Fei's plan, Yin Jian's gloomy mood brightened slightly. Although Han Hao had likely escaped the police's control area, he was, after all, a desperate man with a knife wound. The fact that Ahua's men had been killed meant that the temporary alliance between Han Hao and Ahua had completely collapsed. Under these circumstances, where could Han Hao possibly run to? It probably wouldn't be long before his whereabouts were re-established on the outskirts.

Inside the Cam River Stadium, the celebrations were drawing to a close as the players had already retreated to their locker rooms. After a thrilling night of victory, the fans dispersed in groups, leaving the stadium satisfied.

Meanwhile, in front of the stands, the men who had rushed out from the crowd of fans explained their identities to the plainclothes police officers. They claimed to be Ahua's men, who had been secretly protecting him from the stands. They said that seeing the situation on the field spiraling out of control, they were concerned for Ahua's safety and rushed towards the stands, only to be misunderstood by the police.

Ahua, sitting on the platform, was fully aware of the truth. He had orchestrated this elaborate scheme to create a better opportunity for Han Hao at the Jinhai Hotel to strike. However, he hadn't anticipated that the mysterious man in room 2107 was actually a police officer. When Han Hao relayed the news of the operation's failure via microphone, Ahua knew things were in grave danger.

To cover up the truth behind the murder at Longyu Building, Ahua certainly couldn't let Han Hao fall into the hands of the police. However, he never intended to help Han Hao escape from the beginning. The mission of the two men in black stationed at Jinhai Hotel was to kill Han Hao, regardless of whether the latter succeeded or not.

Judging from the timeline, those two henchmen should have met Han Hao long ago, but Ahua hadn't received any feedback. He gradually developed a bad feeling.

Perhaps I underestimated that guy. After all, he was once a highly respected figure in the police force; sending only two people was far too risky!

But what's done is done, and regret won't help. It's best to leave this troublesome place as soon as possible and go back to think about how to deal with the police questioning.

With this in mind, Ahua stood up and said to Du Mingqiang, "Let's go too."

"Why didn't Eumenides come?" Du Mingqiang shook his head and looked around, appearing somewhat disappointed.

"Perhaps he's abandoned the operation," Ahua said calmly. "But don't worry, the other things that happened today are enough for you to write a great article."

Upon hearing this, Du Mingqiang perked up: "Really? Then you must reveal some inside information to me!"

Ahua ignored him and walked towards the VIP passage behind the stage. Du Mingqiang quickly stood up and followed behind him. Bodyguards and plainclothes police officers secretly formed a protective circle around them.

The group descended through the VIP passage to the underground parking lot. It was peak time for the event to end, and the police had set up a checkpoint at the exit, so a long line of cars was waiting to leave.

Ahua immediately spotted Luo Fei in the parking lot and walked over, feigning nonchalance, asking, "Officer Luo, what's going on here?"

"Han Hao has appeared, and he killed two of your men," Luo Fei said coldly. "We are searching for his trail."

"Han Hao?!" Ahua's face showed surprise, inwardly cursing his subordinates' incompetence. However, he also breathed a sigh of relief: if the police hadn't caught Han Hao by now, given his abilities, he would definitely have escaped the surveillance area by now. Although he was the mastermind behind the Longyu Building murder case, Meng Fangliang was the one who killed Lin Henggan, and Han Hao was the one who killed Meng Fangliang. As long as the police couldn't find a lead on Han Hao, they would have no evidence to indict him.

"We will definitely catch him." Luo Fei stared intently at Ahua, as if he were deliberately saying this to him.

"I suggest you just shoot him dead, so he doesn't escape after you catch him," Ahua retorted subtly, then smiled slightly. "Alright, Officer Luo, I won't keep you from your work. My team won today, I'm going to find a place to celebrate properly."

After saying this, Ahua turned and walked towards his car. The plainclothes officer in charge of protecting him approached Luo Fei and asked, "Captain Luo, should we continue following him?"

"Yes!" Luo Fei answered without hesitation. Now that both sides had revealed their cards, there was no need for him to hide anything anymore, so he added, "But it's not about protecting him—no one wants to kill him. Your task now is to keep an eye on him, because he's connected to the case from the day before yesterday. As long as we find Han Hao, the next target for arrest will definitely be this guy."

The plainclothes officer nodded, then pointed to Du Mingqiang standing not far away: "What about that person?"

Luo Fei frowned, sensing something was amiss. Ahua's "death sentence notice" was forged, but Du Mingqiang's was genuinely from Eumenides' hand. Now that Liu Song had just been injured, if they didn't settle this guy properly and Eumenides took advantage of the chaos, it would be adding insult to injury for the police.

"Let's leave him here with me for now," Luo Fei said after a moment's thought. This is currently the area with the highest concentration of police forces, making it the relatively safest area.

Du Mingqiang had no objection to Luo Fei's arrangement; for him, wherever there was excitement, that's where he went. Seeing the police's tense atmosphere in the parking lot, he finally couldn't help but ask, "Officer Luo, has another case occurred here? Is Eumenides here?"

Luo Fei didn't have time to pay him any attention; he gave a wink to the plainclothes officer beside him. The officer understood and ordered his men to bring out police vehicles to follow closely behind Ahua.

Ahua had already reached his car. He used to drive for Deng Hua. Now that Deng Hua was dead, his habit of driving himself hadn't changed. His men naturally didn't dare to sit in the car he was driving, and they all scattered to find the vehicle they had come from.

Ahua took out his keys, opened the car door, and then crouched down and climbed into the driver's seat. As he inserted the key into the lock and was about to start the engine, he suddenly realized something was wrong: the rearview mirror and the side mirrors on both sides of the car were at an abnormal angle, clearly not in the position they were in when he left the car.

Ahua realized the vehicle had been tampered with and couldn't help but think, "Oh no!" Just then, the driver's seat, which had been upright, suddenly tilted backward, catching Ahua off guard and causing him to fall down as well. By the time he realized what was happening and tried to get up, it was too late. A strong arm wrapped around his neck, while the cold barrel of a gun pressed against his head.

Ahua caught a glimpse of the attacker in the rearview mirror. He was startled at first, but quickly regained his composure and said with a hint of sarcasm, "Captain Han. I didn't expect you to still be here. I thought you had already run away."

The man lying in ambush in Ahua's car was Han Hao. His finger was on the trigger of his pistol, and he said with a cold smile, "I'm injured. Even if I run away, it's useless. I might as well stay and settle things with you—tell them all to back off. If anyone gets within five meters of this car, I'll shoot!"

Han Hao's second half of his sentence was directed at the people outside the car. Ahua's unusual behavior after getting into the car had already attracted the attention of the plainclothes and black-clad men, who were now curiously gathering around the car. Because Han Hao had adjusted the angles of the rearview and side mirrors beforehand, he could see the situation in all directions outside the car while hiding in the back seat, but the people outside could not see him.

"Don't come any closer! Han Hao is in the car! He has a gun, he's holding me hostage!" Ahua rolled down the driver's side window and shouted, "Everyone, get back five meters away!"

Those who were already close to the car stopped abruptly, while Luo Fei and the others in the distance quickly arrived. The crowd formed a circle around the car, all of them astonished by this sudden turn of events.

"Very good." Han Hao said in a sinister tone, "If you had been this sensible earlier, you wouldn't be in this predicament now."

But then Luo Fei shouted from outside the car, "Han Hao! Please put down your weapon immediately, raise your hands, and get out of the car. This is your only way out! You are also a policeman, you should know that no matter how many hostages you take, the police will not compromise with you."

Luo Fei's words were frank and stern, making Han Hao shift his body uncomfortably. The wound under his ribs was pulled, causing him to hiss softly in pain.

"You're badly injured." Ahua chuckled dryly. "Looks like my men aren't all pushovers after all."

"You dare betray me?!" Han Hao said bitterly. "Anyone who betrays me will pay the price!"

Ahua scoffed, "There's no question of betrayal between us, is there? You should understand the consequences of a failed plan. Besides, you shot and killed General Deng. I had every reason to kill you. The fact that you're still alive is simply because I failed in my mission!"

Han Hao paused slightly, then agreed with Ahua's statement. He continued, "Since that's the case, don't blame me for being ruthless. My reasons for killing you are equally valid." As he spoke, he tightened his grip on the gun, the cold barrel of the weapon pressing down on Ahua's mind with the chilling aura of death.

Ahua remained calm: "The fact that you didn't shoot me dead means you still want to negotiate. In that case, just state your terms."

"Negotiation?" Han Hao sneered. "You seriously underestimate me. I haven't fired yet because you haven't fully experienced the pain of death. I'll give you some time to remember your family, to recall the beautiful things in your life. Only when you feel reluctant to leave will I send you on your way!"

Hearing such cold, chilling words, Ahua was taken aback: "This is your purpose? You gave up your chance to escape, were surrounded by the police, just to make me suffer the agony of dying?"

"Yes," Han Hao said through gritted teeth, "this is what happens when you offend me."

Ahua gave a bitter smile: "Then we're really different. I've killed people too, but that was just a means to solve problems. My purpose in killing was never to cause the other person pain."

"This is my style. You may not be used to it, but you have to bear it!" Han Hao sneered again, seemingly already savoring a taste of the thrill of revenge.

Ahua sighed softly, then fell silent, lost in thought.

Seeing that Han Hao didn't respond to his calls, Luo Fei, who was outside the car, began to arrange for the evacuation of unrelated civilians and simultaneously deployed police forces to surround the area. At this point, Han Hao was trapped, with absolutely no chance of escape.

Du Mingqiang was also watching the situation closely from outside the cordon. He had an excited expression on his face, as if he could already see his press release becoming the focus of online attention once again.

The atmosphere remained tense for a moment. Han Hao knew he couldn't wait too long; if the SWAT team's snipers arrived, no matter how well he hid inside the small car, it would be useless.

"Your fond memories should come to an end," he said to Ahua, his fingers tightening around the gun.

"And what about your memories?" Ahua suddenly replied casually, "Don't you ever think about them?"

Han Hao was slightly taken aback: "What do you mean?"

"Your wife and son, it seems you've forgotten them. But I haven't forgotten them; I've been taking care of them for you these past few days." Ahua's tone was very calm, as if he were having a casual chat with the other person.

Han Hao's heart churned violently. He tightened his grip on his wrist, as if he wanted to shove the gun barrel into the other man's head, and growled, "Damn it, are you trying to mess with me?!"

Ahua didn't argue with Han Hao, but continued, "Dongdong is a very smart kid. It's just a pity he's too young to protect himself. So these past few days I've specially assigned a few brothers to secretly look after him." At this point, Ahua's tone hardened slightly, "But if I die, and there's no one to watch over him, it's hard to say whether the brothers will still be able to protect your young master so diligently."

The threat in the other person's words was blatant, and the target was Han Hao's weakest point. Han Hao felt a sharp pain in his chest, as if a heavy punch had struck his tender heart. An irresistible feeling of weakness instantly washed over his body, shattering his previous composure. After a long while, he took a deep breath, swallowed the bitterness, and asked in a hoarse voice, "You... what do you want?"

Ahua sighed softly, "I've said before that I don't like hurting others. So, emotionally speaking, I absolutely don't want to hurt your son. But sometimes, I have to take certain measures to get things done, and this is the case here: I've arranged everything; it's up to you to choose."

A deathly palpable look crossed Han Hao's face. He had always been arrogant, fiercely competitive, and extremely hot-tempered, the kind of person who couldn't stand the slightest loss. However, recently he had suffered a series of setbacks, first being framed by Eumenides, and then repeatedly defeated by Luo Fei, his resentment reaching its peak. Today, being betrayed by Ahua while in dire straits finally ignited his burning rage, which was why he was determined to seek revenge. He knew, in truth, that his relationship with Ahua was one of mutual exploitation; there was no question of betrayal. His fiery emotions had simply reached a point where they needed to be vented, hence his relentless pursuit of Ahua. But he never imagined that Ahua had also outmaneuvered him so thoroughly. After all this, he had only suffered a crushing defeat, without even the chance for a decisive battle with his opponent!

Thinking of this, his anger and hatred transformed into a chilling desolation that seeped into his very being, and two tears involuntarily slid down his cheeks. After grieving alone for a moment, he seemed to have made up his mind. He turned and wiped his tears on the back of the seat, then rolled down the back window and shouted loudly outside, "Where are the police? I want to negotiate with you!"

Luo Fei stepped forward: "I'm here. Tell me what you're thinking."

But Han Hao refused: "No, I'll only negotiate with Yin Jian. Let him get in the car."

Luo Fei frowned, unable to fathom the other party's intentions. At that moment, Yin Jian stepped in front of him, pleading, "Captain Luo, let me go!"

Luo Fei hesitated for a moment, but was ultimately swayed by the fervent desire for battle in his assistant's eyes. "Go," he said, patting the young man on the shoulder and lowering his voice, "Take your gun. I'm authorizing you to take any emergency measures."

Yin Jian was slightly taken aback. He understood perfectly what the word "any" meant. Because of his previous mistakes, he had always hoped for an opportunity to prove himself again. But after all, he and Han Hao had a mentor-student relationship that lasted for many years, and now that things had suddenly come to this, he couldn't help but feel a little lost.

However, having already accepted the mission, he had no other choice, both legally and morally. Yin Jian quickly came to his senses and solemnly replied, "Yes!" before turning and walking towards the car in the center of the circle.

Upon reaching the car, they could see the scene inside: the driver's seat was reclined, and Ahua was lying on his back; Han Hao was half-reclining in the back seat, his left arm tightly around Ahua's neck, while his right hand held a gun to Ahua's forehead. Seeing Yin Jian, Han Hao gestured towards the passenger seat and said, "Get in."

Yin Jian walked around to the passenger side, opened the door, and sat down inside. His right hand, seemingly casually resting on his waist, was actually secretly gripping the handle of a pistol.

His little movement didn't escape Han Hao's notice. The latter snorted and said coldly, "Just pull out your gun openly. What's the point of hiding it?"

Yin Jian bit his lip, pulled out his gun, and aimed it at Han Hao's head: "Captain Han, I'm sorry. You'd better put down your gun and come out with me now, so I don't have to make things difficult for you."

Han Hao glared sternly at Yin Jian: "You were carrying out your mission, what's there to apologize for?! I'm the one who should apologize to you!"

Yin Jian was stunned, not expecting the other party to say such a thing.

"I must have caused you a lot of trouble last time I escaped from the police station. I'm giving you one more chance today—go ahead and shoot!"