Chapter 110: An Escape Bound by Fate

2022-05-20

Just like that, Liu Yinyan was dead. No one spoke; a heavy silence settled over us.

It felt empty, utterly blank.

“What are you doing!” Gu Chen’s voice rang out, desperate. “Wu Meng, are you alright?”

Since Gu Chen was locked by the railing next to the ground floor, he had no idea what was happening upstairs. With no way to know for sure, he hesitated.

Only when I heard Gu Chen shouting did I snap back to my senses. “I’m fine!”

I fixed my gaze on Wu Zui. “What are you really after?”

Wu Zui scratched his head, puzzled. “Didn’t you hear him just now? He said he’d take responsibility for what happened thirty-five years ago. An eye for an eye, a life for a life, that’s a rule everyone understands, right? Isn’t that what you always say, that justice catches up eventually? Looks like you got what you wanted.”

I shouted, “Get lost! Since when did you decide how things end for us? You think you know what justice means? Fine, just wait—I’ll catch you myself! I’ll kill you with my own hands. For Liu Yinyan, and for the woman who died so tragically a year and a half ago!”

Wu Zui pressed his palms together, all his fingers fidgeting, almost like a young girl’s nervous gesture. “Alright, I’ll be waiting. But it’s not happening today.”

“Let’s play a little game.” With that, Wu Zui spun around and kicked Liu Feier hard enough to knock her over.

The upstairs railing had seen better days—lots of places were already broken. Liu Feier slammed against it and snapped several bars. For a second, both she and the chair she was tied to teetered on just one bar, swaying over the edge, ready to fall at any second.

I lunged, grabbing desperately for the leg of her chair, but the railing gave way anyway. Liu Feier toppled over the edge, chair and all. The shop’s second floor had to be over five meters high, and with her hands and feet bound, a fall like that could mean the end.

Without thinking, I lunged forward, catching the rope tying Liu Feier as my other hand gripped the horizontal railing above. But she weighed almost ninety pounds—one hand wouldn’t hold for long. If I let go of the railing to get a better grip, I’d be joining her on the way down.

Wu Zui grinned, straightening his mask before saying, “Wu Meng, we’ll meet again soon. I’m leaving now.”

With that, he and the others walked into a nearby room, disappearing from sight.

I could feel my right arm tightening up, fatigue and pain threatening to break my hold.

They disappeared into the room. No time to think. I shouted, scrounged around, and kicked a metal plate down toward Gu Chen’s feet.

“Hurry! I can’t hold much longer!” I yelled.

Gu Chen swept the plate neatly beneath him, pinning it with his feet. Like a gymnast, he locked his legs tight, lifting them upward, straight as boards, until they stretched overhead.

With one smooth motion, Gu Chen flipped upright and dashed up the stairs.

By then, I’d lost all feeling in my right hand. My entire arm was numb, stabbing pain like needles, my grip trembling, Liu Feier on the verge of slipping free.

Liu Feier stared up at me, fear all over her face. She barely dared to breathe, afraid any movement would be the last straw that broke my grip. But even with all my effort, single-handedly lifting ninety pounds just wasn’t possible for someone like me.

My hand gave way, and I lost my grip. Just then, another hand shot out—Gu Chen was finally there.

He shouted, his arms tensing with muscle as he hauled Liu Feier back up.

“They went into that room and haven’t made a sound since!” My right hand was useless, so I pointed with my left.

Something was up with that room. With so many people inside, it should’ve been noisy. There had to be a hidden exit—no way to know if the perimeter was secure.

Gu Chen reached the door, kicked it open, and peered inside. As I untied Liu Feier, I called, “What’s the situation?”

Gu Chen called back, “There’s a steel rod leading underground. Looks like they dug a tunnel in advance and planned their escape. I’m going down to check, you call in backup!”

“Be careful!” I warned.

“Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing.” Then Gu Chen slipped away, down the tunnel.

I grabbed Liu Feier and ran for the exit.

Just north of this factory, a string of mountains stretched on. If they escaped to the hills, finding them would get a lot harder. Gu Chen was probably right—we could block every exit aboveground, but if there’s a tunnel no one knew about, we’d have no hope of sealing it. No wonder they dared fight their way out. They had it all planned.

“We’re on your side!” I shouted while yanking open the factory’s heavy iron gates.

The sight of me emerging safely let everyone breathe a sigh of relief.

“Where’s Gu Chen? Where’s Liu Yinyan?” Team Leader Shao asked. “We held back, didn’t dare act rashly. There are no windows up there, so we couldn’t see a thing.”

“There’s a tunnel in the shop floor. Gu Chen went after them underground. Liu Yinyan is dead. Call an ambulance and get Liu Feier out of here. Now, set up a blockade on the north side. With how the factory is laid out, that’s the only way they could escape.”

“Move! Now!” Team Leader Shao grabbed his comms. “Everyone to every exit on the north side! They might scatter. Watch for the following—one man, twenty to twenty-five, wearing a black mask. One teenage boy, hat, backpack. One man with a scar on his face. One old man in black clothes. One man in a flashy suit. Two female half-breeds. Go!”

Then he turned to Mary, “Mary, stay with Liu Feier and get her to the hospital. Notify her family. Guan Zengbin, take your team into the factory and see to Liu Yinyan’s body. Xiao Liu, take your squad and follow the tunnel.”

“Understood.”

“Let’s go. Get in.” Team Leader Shao motioned to me.

We got in the car and sped toward the northern roadblock.

Noticing my right hand limp at my side, Team Leader Shao asked, “What happened—did you hurt your arm?”

“It’s probably fine,” I said, “just needs some rest.” I added, “How come you all didn’t react to what was happening back there?”

“As soon as you got inside, all the cameras cut out. We had nothing to go on—couldn’t see a thing upstairs, so we had to wait for news.”

I figured Shao was thinking big picture. Rushing in blindly would’ve done nothing, and if it wasn’t us fighting in there, there was no point risking it.

Team Leader Shao took a deep breath. “At least you and Gu Chen are okay. I’ll report Liu Yinyan’s death, but honestly, with who he was, we’re all going to get dragged into this. You’ll probably all get sent to a small town somewhere.”

I nodded. Truthfully, it didn’t matter to me—solving cases is solving cases, no matter where. Leaving Dongxing City didn’t bother me, but I wondered how Gu Chen, Guan Zengbin, and Xiao Liu would feel. Big cities had better opportunities, after all.

“By the way,” I said, “the masked guy told me his name is Wu Zui. Not sure if that’s real. He also said he was the killer in the 7.25 case a year and a half ago.”

“What?” Team Leader Shao was stunned. “He said that himself?”

I nodded, meeting his eyes. “He did it—the woman who died so horribly, and those mysterious notes.”

“So that case wasn’t about Zhao Mingkun after all?” Shao rubbed his head. “Only Zhao Mingkun should’ve known about those notes. Maybe there’s something between them?”

All of a sudden, both Shao and I lurched forward in our seats.

The driver slammed on the brakes.

“What happened?” Shao demanded, annoyed.

“Look—look up ahead!” The driver pointed forward.

We looked out. Every car ahead was stopped; the drivers were all out of their vehicles. Even pedestrians had crowded into the road, making traffic a complete standstill. We couldn’t move, cars behind us jammed up as far as we could see.

Seeing this, Team Leader Shao pounded the seat in frustration. “Out! Search on foot!”

Too cunning. They really were just too cunning.