Insights Chapter 141: Explosion

Chapter 141: Explosion

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Karai

In the dark night, near a T-junction in downtown Penang. Approaching from behind was the special police car, a large SUV with a higher chassis, spacious interior, and sturdy structure, suitable for executing special missions. Half a minute ago, the black car, like a ghost, silently trailed behind the bus. The armed police driving it pressed the gas pedal, turned the steering wheel, and gradually caught up from behind, getting closer and closer to the bus.

Gu Yanchen opened a small gap in the SUV’s window, tested the wind speed with his hand, and then solemnly positioned his gun above the glass. He held his breath, aimed at the tires of the bus’s front side, and closely monitored the bus’s movements.

There were many shops near the T-junction, and people on the roadside. A loss of control or explosion of vehicles here would cause casualties. Gu Yanchen’s finger rested on the trigger, not rushing to press it but instead focusing on the bus’s direction.

Before he pulled the trigger, the bus’s tires suddenly veered, turning right. Seeing this scene, everyone in the car breathed a sigh of relief. Although they had temporarily passed the crisis, they couldn’t let their guard down. After the turn, the bus headed towards the square ahead.

The black SUV followed suit, falling behind the rear third of the bus and gradually accelerating forward.

Gu Yanchen observed that the pedestrian flow on the roadside began to decrease. He adjusted his position, controlled his breathing, and prepared to snipe.

Ye Xizhi in the back seat also aimed his gun again.

The driver tried to keep the car steady, reducing the difficulty of mobile sniping. This adjustment required great patience. Sometimes a slight displacement of the vehicle’s position or a minor bump could ruin all the preparations. Finally, their police car was almost level with the front of the bus.

The cabin was narrow. To aim, Gu Yanchen firmly pressed the gun butt against his shoulder, his expression serious as he stared at Lan Baochang inside the bus. The distance between them was close. Through the bus’s window from his direction, he could already see the figures inside. The scope magnified, clearly revealing the situation inside the bus.

“Three, two, one!” Gu Yanchen whispered softly, then pursed his lips and held his breath. He controlled his pulse, without the slightest fluctuation.

At this point, Gu Yanchen still had some compassion for Lan Baochang. Instead of aiming for the head, he targeted Lan Baochang’s shoulder with the crosshair. Lan Baochang in the bus suddenly paused for two seconds, reaching to rub his eyes, then his gaze shifted…

He also saw the black car at that moment, a look of surprise on his face. 

Now’s the time! Gu Yanchen knew the opportunity had come! Sniping seized that critical moment; opportunities were fleeting.

Gu Yanchen’s right index finger moved slightly, decisively pulling the trigger. A bullet whooshed through the air, pierced through the bus’s window in an instant, shattered the tempered glass, left a small bullet hole, and then with a “puff,” penetrated Lan Baochang’s shoulder.

Lan Baochang felt a strong push on his right shoulder, his body swayed, and then blood splattered.

Immediately after, Ye Xizhi’s bullet was fired. The second bullet pierced through another window glass, grazing his right hip. With two bullets in him, Lan Baochang could no longer maintain his balance. His body trembled, kneeling on one knee, and the knife in his hand fell to the ground.

The bus driver, Su Qinlong, freed from his restraints, reacted quickly. He turned the steering wheel, drove the bus into the nearby open square, the vehicle jolting and crossing over the road shoulder. Then he abruptly pulled the brake with his right hand, the bus screeching to a halt on the side of the square.

Su Qinlong opened the door, holding his head, and ran out. Those who reacted quickly followed suit, escaping through the door. People were momentarily stuck in the aisle of the bus, causing a brief chaos.

“Get off quickly!”

“Help!”

Several special police cars parked nearby, surrounding the bus in the center. Captain Wang waved his hand, saying, “Move!”

Several windows of the bus were blasted open, the glass shattered in front and behind the vehicle, some stormed in, while others provided support from outside the windows. Those hostages still able to move were quickly guided to retreat. The fully armed special police quickly rescued the wounded, carrying them out through the windows.

Others began to disperse the remaining crowds on the square. Everyone was striving to minimize casualties. From the shooting to the parking to the rescue, everything happened within a few seconds. Gu Yanchen also rushed to the bus. Lan Baochang was injured and lying on the ground, the chemicals strapped to his body still intact.

Gu Yanchen saw him and reached out to pull him off the bus, but Lan Baochang’s gaze shifted behind Gu Yanchen, and he shouted, “Be careful!”

At that moment, someone sitting in the back row had already moved. This bus didn’t only have Lan Baochang participating in the hijacking; there was another person hidden from the beginning. He had boarded the bus before Lan Baochang, always sitting at the back of the bus with a mask on, pretending to be a hostage.

At this critical moment of rescue, he stood up. That person was Ah Jin, the sniper from the cleaning company. Ah Jin entered the cleaning company with Clear Water. He had been an orphan adopted by the Zhen family from a young age through the foundation. Later, he was arranged to work under Mu Yuwei.

Ah Jin had secretly inquired about his origins and only vaguely understood the information he had heard. His mother was a container who had a cesarean section and died from massive bleeding shortly after. He came into this world prematurely and became an orphan. As a result, the Zhen family took him in through the foundation and raised him.

Unlike Clear Water, Ah Jin was tall and strong but not very smart. His IQ was only 90; he couldn’t be a planner, but he was the most accurate shooter among the children. He had never interacted with normal human society and was Mu Yuwei’s best gun, but also somewhat like a dog. He was one of the few friends of Clear Water. Clear Water would laugh at him for being silly, occasionally tease him, but sometimes ask him questions, share corn with him, and tell him stories.

His life was simple: just him, a few guns. Whatever the boss told him to do, he did. If Mu Yuwei asked him to follow Clear Water, he followed Clear Water, even if Clear Water asked him to kill the Hound, he wouldn’t hesitate. He had accurately shot the Hound’s head in the abandoned steel mill before.

Before that, Mu Yuwei had him ambush the officers at the estate but instructed him not to kill anyone and make a scene. He fired bullets from the rooftop, watching them struggle. He was used to it; every time he did a task, he was the last ace in the hole for those people.

Before they set off today, Mu Yuwei hugged him, and Zhen Jiaxu also shook his hand. Zhen Jiaxu said, “If it weren’t for me saving you back then, you might have died when you were a baby. Now, it’s time for you to repay me.”

Ah Jin said, “I’ll do it.”

Mu Yuwei said, “You know, you’re always daddy’s good son. Daddy won’t mention the favor of raising you. You know I’ve always been good to you. Last time when you helped Clear Water  kill the Hound, I didn’t punish you. Today, you’re the double insurance for this mission. If Lan Baochang changes his mind, you have to cover up. Be sure to ignite those dangerous goods.”

Ah Jin looked at the two people in front of him. He was usually slow, but this time he understood. If Lan Baochang ignited the explosives as agreed, he would be a negligible sacrifice.

If Lan Baochang didn’t ignite them, he would have to trigger the explosion. The people in front didn’t consider his fate. Knowing that he was going to die, he still nodded. He wasn’t too surprised by this. He was just such a person. He had been as light as a feather since he was born. He was born with someone hoping to use his life, and that was his greatest value.

No one cared if he lived, and no one would mourn if he died.

At that moment, he envied the outside world that Clear Water talked about and the good people Clear Water met. He didn’t know if everything would have been different if he hadn’t become an orphan from a young age.

Mu Yuwei’s eyes were fierce. “And if the police send someone, kill Gu Yanchen.”

Before they left this afternoon, Ah Jin finally saw Clear Water. It had been a long time since he had seen him. The authorities were investigating rigorously, so they had to hide in different places, like rats that could only hide in caves.

Clear Water patted his shoulder and whispered, “Those people are about to be finished. If you have a chance, run away quickly.”

He heard this and shook his head gently, saying, “No chance.”

Perhaps Clear Water still had a chance, but he didn’t.

He carried the weight of several lives and caught those who would be sentenced to death. He had no way out.

Clear Water frowned, pulled him and said, “Why are you still like this, always saying such big truths.”

Finally, Clear Water’s eyes flickered, and he hugged him. He whispered in his ear, “Big guy, don’t die. If you die, I’ll be a little sad.”

He was very happy to hear this. It turned out that even someone like him would be mourned if he died. Before six o’clock today, Ah Jin entered the chemical plant with forged documents, waited in advance at the bus parking spot, and sat in the back row as soon as he got on the bus. He silently watched everything happening on the bus, like a fierce beast lurking in the dark night.

Just now, when the bus changed lanes, Ah Jin was somewhat caught off guard, followed by Lan Baochang being shot, and the special police seizing the bus. He realized that even if he ignited those dangerous goods, he might not be able to complete the mission, so he should at least kill Gu Yanchen. He knew Gu Yanchen, having seen the man’s profile from Clear Water.

Mu Yuwei had always treated Gu Yanchen as a formidable opponent. He had also been curious all along whether his marksmanship was better, or if Gu Yanchen’s was superior.

At this moment, he moved through the crowd and aimed at Gu Yanchen, raising his gun and pulling the trigger… Before Gu Yanchen could steady himself, he heard Lan Baochang shout, “Watch out!”

He realized there were other criminals in the car.

Bus hijacking, this was a project he had studied and simulated countless times. Just this year, he had won the exercise in the armed police drill. If he were to play the role of the bandit, he would also place nails in the back row, with a double assurance.

Almost instinctively, Gu Yanchen pulled out his backup handgun from behind, dodging his body and taking cover beside the seat.

As Gu Yanchen turned around, he saw Ah Jin aiming his gun, releasing the safety, aiming, and pulling the trigger.

Everything flowed seamlessly, completed in an instant. Two gunshots rang out almost simultaneously, merging into one. The outcome was decided.

Ah Jin’s body trembled as he looked down incredulously at his right chest, where there was a bloody bullet hole. Blood spread, soaking his clothes. He slowly slumped onto the back seat.

Gu Yanchen’s bullet hit his body, while the bullet he fired hit Lan Baochang beside him. He lost; even with his proud marksmanship, he couldn’t match Gu Yanchen. Gu Yanchen was about to check Lan Baochang’s condition when Lan Baochang pushed him away, “Go! It’s going to explode!”

The bullet Ah Jin fired just hit the explosive in front of his chest. When it met the air, it would ignite within seconds, triggering a chain explosion.

In the past half a minute, several people had escaped from the car, and the wounded were rescued by the armed police. The remaining police officers got out of the car and ran forward at the fastest speed to find cover. Gu Yanchen also jumped out of the car.

A severely injured Ah Jin sat in the back seat, trying hard to lift his neck and look ahead. He understood that his time was running out. A few seconds later, flames rose, engulfing Lan Baochang into a fireball. The fire spread rapidly, and in just a short time, smoke billowed inside the carriage.

For a moment, the sight was obscured, making it impossible to discern the direction. Ah Jin closed his eyes. In just an instant, the fire spread, and the entire carriage was engulfed in flames. Then came a huge explosion, triggering a detonation.

Boom!!!

After the explosion, people’s eardrums were almost shattered. Those who couldn’t run far enough were pushed by the shockwave, falling forward. The heavy body of the car was lifted half a meter into the air by the explosion, all remaining glass shattered, and glass shards with flames flew in the air like bullets. Then the body of the car plummeted like a heavy hammer striking the ground, emitting a loud noise. The bricks and stones in the square shattered, creating a deep hole tens of centimeters deep.

In the darkness of the night, the roaring flames from the bus soared tens of meters high. The red and yellow flames crackled in the wind. It illuminated the night sky of Penang city center.

At the moment of the explosion, Shen Junci was sitting in the car, their police car had just passed the intersection. Shen Junci’s right eyelid suddenly twitched, and in that instant, he heard a loud explosion not far away. He suddenly sat upright, widened his eyes, and watched as flames rose ahead, the flames instantly soaring into the sky, illuminating the night.

Bright red flames engulfed and swept everything around, as if it were doomsday. Shen Junci looked ahead in disbelief.

The other policemen in the car were also shocked by this scene, “Did it explode?!”

“Are there still people on the bus?”

Shen Junci felt like his heart was being squeezed by an invisible hand, his soft organ beating irregularly in his chest. His face turned pale, and he covered his chest with his left hand.

Gu Yanchen… Shen Junci repeated silently in his mind, his palms sweaty, his body trembling slightly. He opened his mouth and bit down on the knuckle of his right index finger, trying to regulate his breathing, attempting to steady his heartbeat.

Please, don’t let anything happen…

At the moment of the explosion, even inside the Penang Commercial Building, one could feel the violent tremors, and the tempered glass rattled. Zhen Jiaxu frowned and glanced at his watch. The time was about ten minutes earlier than he had estimated. Zhen Jiaxu walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, frowning as he looked in the direction where the flames were rising, which was not their designated location.

What he thought was a foolproof plan had gone wrong.

Mu Yuwei also noticed this and turned to ask, “Clear Water, what’s going on?!”

This plan was made by him and Zhen Jiaxu together, so why did it go wrong at this moment?

The premature explosion caught them off guard. If something else happened during this time…

Clear Water chuckled lightly, not surprised by the outcome. He closed his laptop and placed it aside, no longer hiding the fact that he had tampered with it. He looked up and said, “Fools, how can planning murder be calculated like an equation?”

Zhen Jiaxu asked, “What do you mean by that?”

Clear Water sneered, “This plan was doomed to fail from the beginning. Why do you expect someone who saved the city to help you commit murder?”

Zhen Jiaxu still couldn’t understand, “Impossible, we’ve gone through the plan, there are no loopholes, we’ve made so many preparations…”

The smile on Clear Water’s face grew thicker, “You can’t see this because you don’t have something called a conscience.”

Zhen Jiaxu was at a loss. He was desperate and crazy, wanting to attack the City Bureau and drag innocent people into his funeral. In such a situation, without making a crazy plan, he couldn’t meet his demands.

Faced with this situation, Clear Water decided to make a different plan. He had never been able to control his own life, and this time he wanted to make a choice. But how easy was it to tamper with something under the noses of Mu Yuwei and Zhen Jiaxu, two clever people?

So he chose Lan Baochang as the executor of this plan. Zhen Jiaxu and Mu Yuwei were utterly ruthless, they saw Lan Baochang’s wickedness and resentment, but they failed to see his inner goodness. If he wasn’t a good person, why would Lan Baochang have gone to shut that valve in the first place?

The leader who lied about the accident, the indifferent colleagues, the keyboard warriors instigating online—countless people had forced him into becoming a devil.

From the beginning, Clear Water was gambling. He bet that Lan Baochang still had a shred of conscience. He pressed the key points of the plan onto human nature. He made sure Lan Baochang retaliated as soon as he got on the bus, venting his grievances; he caused a city-wide blackout, preventing early detection of changes in the situation; he made sure the bus passed by Lan Baochang’s school and old house; he psychologically suggested to Lan Baochang to choose to turn right.

At first glance, the plan seemed flawless, but it concealed mysteries within. Details permeated it. When the goodness in Lan Baochang’s heart was awakened, he couldn’t bring himself to harm so many innocents. By then, everything Zhen Jiaxu hoped for naturally wouldn’t happen, and he wouldn’t get what he wanted.

Every calculation was meticulous, every step was deliberate, even human nature was taken into consideration. This was the top-level planning. Zhen Jiaxu was cautious, he adjusted the plan and sent Ah Jin as the final insurance. But it was all in vain, as it only cost another life.

Zhen Jiaxu understood everything. From start to finish, he had been manipulated by this “perfect plan,” by this most brilliant strategist. He was thoroughly enraged. Zhen Jiaxu pointed at Clear Water uncontrollably, then turned to Mu Yuwei, “You’ve made a mess of things, kill him for me!”