Zhao Qiang was unaware of his opponents' strength. However, seeing their ruthless attacks, he too felt a murderous intent. He quietly turned his compressed gun to its highest power, listening to another round of gunfire sweep past the window above him. Then, Zhao Qiang pressed his hands to the ground and sprang to his feet, leaping out of the window—this was on the fifth floor! Using the momentum of the jump, Zhao Qiang's body could continue flying forward for a while. But once the momentum wore off, he would fall!
Zhao Qiang, of course, wouldn't wait until his body was falling to react. According to his plan, he would use his twisted screwdriver to create a grappling hook and throw himself onto the opposite building, then pull him over. This way, he could reach the group, grab them, and find out their motive for firing—was it the Luo family's doing, or was it Cold-Faced Fox's revenge? If it was the Luo family, then why did the police arrest them earlier? Would the Luo family even shoot their own people?
Zhao Qiang's sudden leap startled the people opposite him. They were all highly disciplined assassins, and they immediately pointed their guns at Zhao Qiang in mid-air. Zhao Qiang realized the danger; shooting at him would likely result in a head injury. So, he quickly drew his compressed pistol and fired a shot into the window of the building opposite.
A tremendous rebound force acted on Zhao Qiang's arm, shoving him backward and sending him flying back to the window. The compressed air burst from the window slammed into the opposite building's window with a deafening boom! The window and the person in front of it were blasted into a bloody mess! The building on that floor was also blasted open, leaving a gaping hole, and rooms above, below, and to the sides were all damaged, looking as if it had been hit by artillery fire. Zhao Qiang had originally intended to capture someone alive, but the other party reacted quickly, and his impatience had resulted in his immediate and fatal defeat.
Just as Zhao Qiang got up and jumped out, Liu Yiyi also stood up. She was worried about Zhao Qiang's safety and wanted to see what he was doing. However, she was always a few beats slower. By the time she saw the violent explosion across the street, Zhao Qiang's body was flying back towards the window. Liu Yiyi was knocked backward by Zhao Qiang and stumbled back two steps. Then she sat down on the ground with Zhao Qiang on her buttocks. Zhao Qiang was sitting right on her stomach. Liu Yiyi's face turned pale with pain, and she pushed Zhao Qiang away.
Zhao Qiang, of course, noticed someone behind him. However, he had nowhere to gain leverage in mid-air. After landing, he hurriedly used his hands to push himself up, but he placed them in the wrong spot, right on Liu Yiyi's chest. Zhao Qiang quickly pulled his hand back, but he was already halfway up, and this near-fall almost knocked him over again. Fortunately, he managed to steady himself with his other hand. He immediately reached down to pull Liu Yiyi…
How are you?
Sweat beaded on Liu Yiyi's forehead; her stomach ached from Zhao Qiang's pressure. "Thank goodness, you won't die. What happened?"
Zhao Qiang was also completely bewildered: "I don't know either, but the people on the other side wanted to kill us. Luckily, we're alright now."
Zhao Qiang pulled Liu Yiyi up. She noticed the large hole in the opposite window again. "Where...that's where you are?" Liu Yiyi was stopped by Zhao Qiang's shushing gesture before she could finish her sentence. Liu Yiyi immediately understood that this was Zhao Qiang's secret, and she couldn't reveal it. It was possible that no one had seen Zhao Qiang make his move, given the sudden gunshot and everyone's panicked. If she spoke carelessly now, it would cause Zhao Qiang trouble.
"They're injured, what should we do?" Liu Yiyi pointed at the police and Zhu Haicheng. Zhu Haicheng looked like a dead pig; actually, his injuries weren't serious, just from being overly frightened. Having lived a peaceful life for so long, his mental fortitude wasn't very strong, and Xu Zhimeng was the same type. Liu Yiyi was alright. She trusted Zhao Qiang. And with the Holiday Inn fire as a precedent, she performed much better than the two men.
Zhao Qiang said, "Such a big thing has happened. The ambulance will be here soon, but I think we should leave here. Otherwise, if we are taken to the police station, we won't be able to explain ourselves. Your factory still needs people to deal with this."
Liu Yiyi thought about it and realized it made sense. She wasn't a doctor, and there was nothing she could do to help the injured police officers. All she could do was pray for them, hoping that they would never mess with Zhao Qiang again, or they would suffer a bad end. This was proof, even though they weren't actually injured by Zhao Qiang.
Zhao Qiang grabbed Zhu Haicheng, and Liu Yiyi pinched Xu Zhimeng's philtrum hard, finally waking him up. There was no time to say anything more; Liu Yiyi pulled Xu Zhimeng and followed Zhao Qiang into the elevator, calmly leaving the Great Wall Hotel amidst the chaos. Less than ten minutes after they left the hotel, police cars roared in. If they had been trapped inside, they probably wouldn't have been able to leave for a day or two after the investigation was completed.
Zhu Haicheng was dragged out of the restaurant by Zhao Qiang, who then hailed a taxi for him, shoved him inside, and left him there. Zhao Qiang could have easily given him another beating, but remembering Xu Xiaoya's warning not to cause trouble, and the fact that he had already slain several people, Zhao Qiang held back. This was the provincial capital, not Donghai City. Besides, he couldn't contact Yang Shiqi, who always cleaned up his messes, so Zhao Qiang decided to be cautious.
Zhu Haicheng woke up while being dragged along the road. He was pale and sweating profusely, and had no idea what had happened. When the taxi driver asked him in a panic where he was going, he finally managed to say, "To...to the hospital. I...I got stabbed in the arm by a steel bar." Zhu Haicheng was a smart man. If he had said it was a gunshot wound, the driver probably wouldn't have dared to pick him up. Even if he had, the driver might have just pulled out the car keys and run away when they got to the police station.
Meanwhile, the three of them found Liu Yiyi's Mercedes in the parking lot. Because she was flustered, Liu Yiyi couldn't even find her car keys. Xu Zhimeng sat down on the cement ground and vomited. His face was covered in blood and the smell was overwhelming. It would be strange if he could stand it. Liu Yiyi didn't even bother to look for her keys and held onto the car while panting heavily.
Zhao Qiang wasn't particularly bothered; he was just pondering the relationship between the police who arrested him and the assassin, and why they were fighting each other. It seemed the only way to find out was to find the person who hit him or the police officers themselves. So Zhao Qiang decided to send Liu Yiyi and the other person away first, then return to handle his business; he couldn't get anything done with them around.
Liu Yiyi finally found the car keys. Xu Zhimeng was the first to rush into the car and grab a pack of tissues to frantically wipe the blood from his face. He would vomit a few times after wiping, and even if he could wipe the blood off his face, the deep smell of blood wouldn't go away. So he kept vomiting, and eventually he got used to it.
Liu Yiyi was flustered, short of breath, and her face flushed. She had almost died inexplicably at the Great Wall Hotel. Now that she was out of danger and her mood had calmed down a bit, she asked Zhao Qiang, "What exactly happened?"
After vomiting a mouthful of bile, Xu Zhimeng looked up weakly and said, "Yeah. What happened? I've never seen such a bloody scene in my life. Human blood sprayed all over my face! Can anyone tell me what the hell happened?!"
Zhao Qiang knew this matter was inevitably related to him, but admitting it would be foolish; otherwise, he'd be tormented by Xu Zhimeng, possibly even forced to compensate him for his financial losses and be kicked out of the provincial capital. Therefore, Zhao Qiang decided to shift the blame entirely onto Zhu Haicheng. After all, he'd been so despicable as to want Liu Yiyi to spend the night with him, and Zhao Qiang, too, had been too afraid to speak up.
I don't know, but Zhu Haicheng was the first to be injured. He had just come out of the private room when someone across the street started shooting.
Volume 2 [254] Biting Back
Er Erming recalled, "It seems Huan really did cry." He angrily exclaimed, "That Zhu Biaozi, I don't know how many people he's offended. We've been dragged down by him. Luckily we ran fast, otherwise, with such a commotion, we'd definitely be locked up by the police and the news would be blocked. I'm calling him. We've been implicated because of him, he needs to give us an explanation."
As he spoke, Xu Zhimeng actually took out his phone and called Zhu Haicheng, while Liu Yiyi started the car. Zhao Qiang helped her close the car door and said, "You guys go first. I lost something and I'm going back to look for it. We can contact each other by phone if anything happens."
Liu Yiyi was very worried: "What is that? Don't take it. It's dangerous here, let's leave immediately."
Zhao Qiang said, "It's very important. You guys go back to the branch factory right away. I'll be fine."
Liu Yiyi knew Zhao Qiang was no ordinary person, and seeing his insistence, she stopped forcing him to leave with her. At this moment, Xu Zhimeng waited for Zhu Haicheng to answer his phone while urging, "If he won't leave, then so be it. Let's leave quickly. Didn't you hear the sirens? If we don't leave now, it will be too late."
Liu Yiyi gritted her teeth, stepped on the gas, and left the parking lot. Zhao Qiang casually checked his body in the rearview mirror of a car and found nothing amiss. He then quietly used the car as cover to sneak back into the Great Wall Hotel.
Xu Zhimeng's call finally went through. Zhu Haicheng's voice was still trembling. He ultimately didn't dare go to the hospital, but instead went to a friend's clinic. Since the bullet had pierced his arm and flown away, surgery wasn't necessary. A simple bandage to stop the bleeding would suffice.
Xu Zhimeng's voice was filled with deep resentment. How could he not hate Zhu Haicheng after almost losing his life? "President Zhu, who did you offend? To make the other side go to such lengths to kill you! You've ruined us!"
Zhu Haicheng hadn't actually started thinking about who the other person was or what they wanted, but Xu Zhimeng's reminder brought it to his senses. He said, "How the hell would I know? Nobody's been threatening to kill me lately. When you're in the martial world, you're bound to get hurt."
Xu Zhimeng said, "You still have the mind to make jokes? Tell me, what are we going to do about today's matter?"
Zhu Haicheng was quite clever. He immediately realized that Xu Zhimeng wanted to take advantage of the situation and smooth over the entanglement between him and Liu Yiyi. Zhu Haicheng was no ordinary person to have developed Haicheng Trade to this extent. Although he was afraid of death, he was not so foolish as to let Xu Zhimeng lead him by the nose when he knew that he would not die for the time being. He could even turn the tables on Xu Zhimeng.
"Heh heh, Assistant Xu, you've gone too far. What are we going to do? None of you were injured, but I was shot. You invited me to dinner. Only you knew I'd be at the Great Wall Hotel beforehand. Now I suspect you've colluded with assassins to kill me! You just want to cover up that three million in compensation, right? Let me tell you, Xu, no way! Tell your girl to go to the Haitian Hotel tonight, take off her clothes, and wait for me. Otherwise, we'll see each other in court tomorrow! You think you're the only ones who would hire assassins? I'm not made of clay! We'll see what happens!"
*Snap*, the phone was hung up. Xu Zhimeng was stunned; this wasn't the outcome he wanted! Zhu Haicheng had misunderstood him. Now he thought he was the mastermind behind the shooting! It seemed Zhu Haicheng was planning revenge, and things were completely out of control, spiraling into an irreversible situation! This phone call had backfired.
Liu Yiyi listened to the entire phone call while driving, and her expression changed drastically. This had backfired; Zhao Qiang wasn't around. With no one to consult, Liu Yiyi panicked and almost forgot how to drive. She swerved erratically the whole way, thankfully it was afternoon and there were few cars on the road, otherwise she would have crashed into several vehicles. She was also fortunate that the traffic police had received orders and were stationed along the Great Wall Hotel route; otherwise, the Mercedes would have been stopped by the police long ago.
After tossing his phone aside, Xu Zhimeng finally spoke after a long pause: "Yiyi, it seems this matter is irreconcilable. We should compensate Zhu Haicheng; that's the only way. Give him three million, then find a middleman to mediate. Maybe there's still a chance to settle things. Otherwise, with Zhu Haicheng's reckless personality, he might really find someone to harm us. We're all legitimate businessmen; we don't have any influence in the underworld. If we continue playing this game, we'll be the ones who suffer losses and pay more money. It's not worth it."
Liu Yiyi said, "I only have a little over 600,000 yuan in cash right now, which is what the head office was going to use to buy raw materials. You know, all my funds this year have been invested in the branch factory, but not only have we not had any income in the past few months, but our working capital has also been tied up. Where am I going to borrow 3 million yuan? Even if I sell the car, it will only increase the amount by a little over 200,000 yuan, which is still less than a third of the total."
Xu Zhimeng said, "I still have more than 400,000 yuan in savings, which I can use for emergencies."
Liu Yiyi flatly refused: "No, I can't put your money in here." When it came to money, Liu Yiyi became much calmer, probably due to her strong-willed nature.
Xu Zhimeng said, "What do you mean 'yours' and 'mine'? You're my girlfriend. How can I not care if something happens to your factory?"
Liu Yiyi said, "You know my personality. I never accept money from others, not even my boyfriend."
Although Xu Zhimeng was somewhat displeased by Liu Yiyi's words, he was secretly pleased that the 400,000 yuan he had worked so hard to earn wouldn't go down the drain. He wasn't a bank printing money. This money was accumulated year after year, hard-earned and precious. Even for the woman he loved, he still felt a pang of heartache.
Unable to come up with a solution or raise any money, they remained silent on the way back. It was only a few minutes' walk, and they quickly returned to the factory office building. Because Xu Zhimeng's clothes were covered in serum, he rushed into the office bathroom to shower and change without wasting a minute.
Liu Yiyi immediately turned on the TV to see if there was any local news, especially regarding the shooting at the Great Wall Hotel. However, after searching all the channels, she couldn't find any reports on it. Feeling a bit shaken, Liu Yiyi said to Xu Zhimeng in the bathroom, "This kind of crime that disrupts public order will definitely be investigated. Everyone present will probably be under surveillance. Luckily we left quickly, otherwise we wouldn't be free for the next few days."
While taking a shower, Xu Zhimeng shouted, "I think it's better to stay inside. That way, Zhu Haicheng can't do anything to us. Escaping would be even more dangerous. What if that bastard Zhu Haicheng really sends someone to deal with us? He's capable of anything."
Liu Yiyi was extremely worried. "What should we do?"
Xu Zhimeng said, "Why don't you ask our group's CEO to put in a good word for you? If we're lucky, we might be able to lend you three million. There's no time to lose. Change your clothes, and we'll be there right away."
Liu Yiyi had no other choice but to say, "Okay, wait for me."
After Liu Yiyi changed her clothes, Xu Zhimeng also came out after taking a shower. Liu Yiyi took off her business attire, revealing her perfect figure for the first time. It was a leopard-print top and a pure black bottom dress, with a cute bow tied at the chest. The bow paired with the leopard print design gave it a wild beauty. The leopard print design not only highlighted the wearer's personality, but the soft material also evoked feelings of closeness and caress. Because of Liu Yiyi's full and rounded breasts, the dress was made even more alluring. Xu Zhimeng was instantly petrified; although he didn't drool, he was practically drooling.
Xu Zhimeng was a bit slow because he had washed his hair five times, and he was still wearing a bathrobe. When he saw Liu Yiyi's outfit, his lower body suddenly stiffened, and the bathrobe couldn't even cover his large tent. So Xu Zhimeng simply threw off the bathrobe and appeared naked in front of Liu Yiyi. He even proudly flaunted his assets.
Liu Yiyi was startled and covered her mouth with both hands, then realized what she was doing and covered her eyes instead: "You, you should put on your clothes right away."
Xu Zhimeng stepped forward and hugged Liu Yiyi, his hand instinctively reaching for the back zipper of her dress. "Yiyi, I love you. We've known each other for a long time, and so much has happened today. I can't take it anymore. Please promise me, I promise I'll make you happy. Just give me some comfort. I can't fall asleep without thinking about you every night. Can you bear to see me in so much pain?"
Liu Yiyi jerked away like a startled bird: "No, please don't do this. I'm not in the mood to think about these things right now, please. Let's talk about love and affection later when things have settled down, okay?"
This was like a bucket of cold water poured over Xu Zhimeng's head. You can imagine how deep his resentment ran. He glared fiercely at Liu Yiyi's full, firm breasts, his eyes practically wanting to pierce through her cleavage. Finally, he sighed helplessly. Having a girlfriend like this was too exhausting; she didn't even offer any consolation prize. Luckily, he had the patience. Otherwise, it would have ended long ago.
Xu Zhimeng finally put on his clothes, and said somewhat irritably, "Let's go, there's still a lot of work to do. I hope our boss can help us sort this out, otherwise we're both doomed. You're not going to make me a virgin before I die, are you?"
Liu Yiyi knew she had wronged Xu Zhimeng. So she lowered her head and remained silent. At this moment, it was absolutely impossible for her to give herself to Xu Zhimeng. She wasn't in the mood. Women are very particular about this, just like Xu Xiaoya.
Xu Zhimeng and Liu Yiyi went to find someone to mediate, while Zhao Qiang had already successfully arrived at the hospital in the ambulance. While the doctors and nurses were busy with another group of people, Zhao Qiang slipped into the ward. One policeman was seriously injured and was still in the emergency room. Another person had also been shot in the back, but his injuries were not serious. So Zhao Qiang planned to find him and ask him what was going on.
"Who...who are you looking for?" The policeman was terrified when he saw Zhao Qiang enter with his head down and remain silent. His family hadn't received any news yet, and the hospital was in chaos. He knew that the shooting hadn't only injured the two policemen.
Zhao Qiang looked up and laughed, "Don't you recognize me? You've only turned around for a moment and you're already turning your back on me?"
"Zhao... Zhao Qiang?" the policeman called out.
Zhao Qiang gestured for silence. He said, "Don't disturb the others. I'm just here to ask a few questions. I'll leave after I answer them. It won't affect your recovery."
The policeman was injured and there was no one else around. If he dared to be stubborn, he would only be asking for trouble. So he honestly said, "Ask away. I will definitely tell you if I know the answer."
Volume 2 [255] Gathering Information
The police officer was still considering how to phrase his answer when Zhao Qiang added, "If your answer doesn't satisfy me, you'll be punished. I wouldn't mind throwing you out the window."
The police seemed to be wary of Zhao Qiang, so they didn't dare to hesitate. "I'll talk, I'll talk, it was Young Master Liu who told us to do it."
Zhao Qiang said, "I don't know Young Master Hu. Introduce me to him."
The police officer immediately said, "The son of Director Liu of the Provincial Public Security Bureau is the one who hit you."
Zhao Qiang plopped down on the policeman's hospital bed. "He's so arrogant. Not only did he deliberately bump into me, but he also wanted to arrest me and slowly teach me a lesson?"
The police officer said, "I don't know either, I just heard that it was at the request of a friend."
Zhao Qiang pressed further: "Is it the Luo family? The Luo family of Haifeng Group. And what about those assassins who fired the shots? Are they related to you?"
The police officer immediately said, "It's definitely not the Luo family from Haifeng Group. Our young master Liu doesn't give a damn about them. We know absolutely nothing about the assassins. If we did, which bastard would dare to hang around the Great Wall Hotel? I would rather die than try to curry favor with young master Liu."
Zhao Qiang said, "Not the Luo family? Then who is it? I have no enemies in the provincial capital, and this is my first time here."
The policeman said, "I'm just a cop who came out to help out to curry favor with Young Master Liu. I really don't know anything about the background. Why don't you ask Young Master Liu yourself? Oh, right, I think I heard him mention something about a 'Yang transvestite,' but that's all I know."
Zhao Qiang's head buzzed. Yang the Transvestite? Could this be Yang Shiqi? Someone surnamed Yang with such a transvestite-like appearance—he's practically the only one who looks neither male nor female. But Yang Shiqi and he had been cooperating perfectly well. Why would she send someone to punish him? Had she always been disloyal to him?
Zhao Qiang immediately called Yang Shiqi's cell phone, but it was still switched off. Zhao Qiang was furious and almost smashed the phone. He kicked the hospital bed hard, nearly sending the policeman on the bed flying!
"Spare me, spare me!" The policeman thought Zhao Qiang was going to beat him up. "We didn't intend to do anything to you. Young Master Liu said he would just lock you up and told us not to provoke you, otherwise we would be in big trouble. We didn't arrest you in the end, so please spare me."
Hearing this, Zhao Qiang suddenly understood Yang Shiqi's purpose. He couldn't help but laugh out loud, but in the end, he angrily punched the iron bed, breaking one of the bed legs! This transvestite Yang Shiqi wanted to show off in front of him! Show off how capable he was, so that when he was locked up and had nowhere to call for help, he would suddenly appear, making him grateful to her, and making him work even harder to please her in the future! Making him manufacture more advanced equipment for her!
Zhang Lingfeng's phone being switched off was likely due to coercion by Yang Shiqi. Hu Qian being out of service was probably because Yang Shiqi blocked the signal. However, Yang Shiqi never imagined things would unfold in such an unpredictable direction; his scheme failed and instead delayed important matters, as the person who truly wanted Zhao Qiang dead appeared in the provincial capital.
Since the police had no connection to the Luo family, nor to the Cold-Faced Fox, Zhao Qiang quietly left the hospital. As for Young Master Liu? There was no need to even ask. He would simply wait until he returned to Donghai City to settle accounts with Yang Shiqi.
What should he do next? Zhao Qiang was at a loss. If someone provided intelligence, he could directly find the assassins' hideout, but this wasn't Donghai City. He knew nothing about the local situation, so how could he know who the assassins who had been blasted to smithereens were, whether they had any accomplices, or whether Cold-Faced Fox was among them? And was Cold-Faced Fox targeting Wang Meng or himself? If it was targeting him, what was the reason? In short, too many questions remained unresolved.
Zhao Qiang hailed a taxi at random. He tossed a hundred-yuan bill to the driver and said in a pretentious manner, "Where's the most exciting place in the provincial capital? I want the most thrilling, wildest, and most crowded place."
The taxi driver smiled as he took the large bill: "Of course it's black wine, and we'll have girls and pinks for you."
Zhao Qiang said, "Take me there."
The taxi driver arrived and even opened the car door for Zhao Qiang with great enthusiasm. He also greeted the doorman who was standing at the door to welcome customers. It was unclear whether he was genuinely so enthusiastic or if he would get a commission if Zhao Qiang made a purchase after the greeting.
This black wine bar doesn't look particularly impressive from the outside. From the ground, it's just a three-story building with a large area, but there's no fancy decoration. However, the high-end cars in the parking lot suggest that it must be something special inside. Zhao Qiang thought that finding information here might be worthwhile, so he followed the doorman into the lobby.
A young woman in her early twenties, wearing a revealing cheongsam, immediately came out from behind the door and swayed her hips as she took Zhao Qiang from the doorman. "Sir, what would you like to play?"
Zhao Qiang didn't understand, so he could only ask, "What's there to do here?" As he spoke, he casually handed over two large bills. Zhao Qiang knew that his clothes were not high-class, so he could only let the money do the talking. Sure enough, after taking the money, the girl in the cheongsam smiled much more happily.
"Sir, we have a bar, brothel, sauna, casino, cinema, and guest rooms. What kind of service do you require?"
Zhao Qiang leaned closer to the girl and said, "Actually, I wanted to ask someone about something, but I didn't know who to contact."
The woman in the cheongsam smiled and said, "Sir, please follow me."
Zhao Qiang followed the woman in the cheongsam, and before long they entered a mahjong parlor. Zhao Qiang was somewhat bewildered. Did this have anything to do with asking for something? Was the woman in the cheongsam taking his money and not going to do anything?
"Sir, if you just listen carefully here, I guarantee you will get what you want to know this afternoon."
So that's what happened. Zhao Qiang smiled and slipped another banknote to the woman in the cheongsam. Seeing Zhao Qiang's generosity, the woman assumed he was a spoiled brat who had stolen money from home to show off, so she tossed him two more banknotes, gave him a flirtatious look, and said, "Sir, if you need any service, you can contact me anytime. This is my phone number. I can be there anytime, day or night."