Insights Chapter 142: Emergency

Chapter 142: Emergency

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Karai

Nighttime, near the center of Penang. Shen Junci was getting close to the scene of the accident. The process of driving past took only a minute, but that minute felt incredibly long. Finally, the police car stopped not far from the explosion.

As they approached, they realized that the situation before them was far more devastating than they had imagined.

Before Shen Junci was a sea of fire, with several burning spots on the ground, shattered glass flying out of the car, scattered across twisted seats, and even human limbs… The authorities had tried their best to minimize casualties, but many people were still injured. Some wounded were crying out, others were bleeding profusely, sitting dazed on the ground.

All that could be seen was red blood, yellow fire; all that could be smelled was a strong burnt odor, and the skin could feel occasional waves of heat. Fortunately, fire trucks and ambulances arrived promptly. Firefighters quickly extinguished the burning vehicles, and medical personnel began rescuing the injured.

Shen Junci got out of the car and walked through the chaotic scene, which resembled hell. Despite having faced countless horrors before, he was now afraid, afraid of death like never before. Amidst the chaos, Shen Junci feared that the next second he would see a charred corpse, he feared it might be Gu Yanchen…

“He’s not going to make it! Hurry, save him!”

“There’s another one over there!”

“Help me, save me!”

“Gu Yanchen…” Shen Junci began to call out softly, asking.

He saw an injured person groaning on the ground, he instinctively crouched down, reaching out to tighten a tourniquet. Then he helped rescue two more people. Someone came to take away the wounded, and Shen Junci recognized them as a colleague from the City Bureau. He grabbed the person and asked, “Have you seen Gu Yanchen?”

“I don’t know, I haven’t seen him. Lao Baochang was killed in the explosion, along with others.”

A SWAT officer nearby noticed Shen Junci and hesitated for a moment before saying, “Captain Gu seemed to be rescuing people in the car just now. Someone was shooting at the time, and then I didn’t see him…”

Upon hearing this, a ringing suddenly filled Shen Junci’s ears, his heart stopped for a moment, the smell of blood surged, and his hands trembled uncontrollably.

“Gu Yanchen!” He lifted his head and finally shouted that name, but soon his voice was drowned out by the various noises at the scene.

As time passed, the aftermath of the explosion gradually subsided. People around were busy rescuing, and the scene gradually became orderly. The fire on the bus gradually extinguished, revealing several corpses on top. The accompanying medical examiner went up to inspect first. Shen Junci, as a medical examiner, hesitated for a moment. He had never been so afraid of those corpses before. He stood not far away, his hands and feet cold, feeling as if he were a wandering ghost.

Liu Shurong noticed his pale face. “Medical Examiner Shen, we have enough manpower here. You stay…”

Shen Junci nodded in thanks.

In just a few minutes, more reinforcements arrived, and several ambulances carried away the wounded.

“Shen Junci.” At that moment, a familiar voice sounded behind him.

Shen Junci suddenly turned around and saw a familiar figure not far away, covered in bloodstains, with some burns on his face and body.

It was Gu Yanchen!

Before the explosion occurred, Gu Yanchen had leaped out of the bus and ran away, avoiding the blast. After surviving the ordeal, he immediately joined the rescue efforts. With many people at the scene, his ears were still affected by the explosion, and he hadn’t fully recovered yet.

Seeing Gu Yanchen in that instant, Shen Junci felt as if his heart had returned to his chest. He crossed the devastated scene and slowly approached the man.

Gu Yanchen didn’t know what he was going to do, so he looked down at him. The firelight around them reflected Shen Junci’s pale cheeks. Then Shen Junci suddenly opened his arms, walked over, and tightly embraced him. He was slightly shorter than Gu Yanchen, and his chin rested perfectly on his neck.

Gu Yanchen hugged Shen Junci back. Shen Junci lowered his head, burying it in Gu Yanchen’s shoulder. His hands grabbed Gu Yanchen’s clothes tightly, so tightly that his knuckles turned white. Gu Yanchen also tightened his arms with force. He held on so tightly, as if he wanted to merge the person in front of him into his own body.

Their chests pressed tightly against each other, and they could hear each other’s heartbeat. In this way, Shen Junci celebrated Gu Yanchen’s survival. After embracing for a moment, he released Gu Yanchen and said, “There’s still work to do. I’ll go inspect the corpses on the bus…”

Gu Yanchen patted him reassuringly, “Let’s handle the scene quickly. As long as we catch Zhen Jiaxu, everything will be over.”

Upon hearing his words, Shen Junci suddenly stopped, raised his gaze, and said softly, “No… something’s not right.”

“What’s wrong?” Gu Yanchen asked.

“Things don’t add up…” With Gu Yanchen found, Shen Junci’s mind calmed down, and he could finally think rationally. It was only now that Shen Junci began to piece together everything that had happened tonight in his mind.

The hijacking happened too suddenly, and the power outage caught everyone off guard. But Shen Junci could feel that what they were seeing now, just like when they killed Lin Xianglan to cover up the secret of Luming Mountain, was not the whole truth.

In their past confrontations, Shen Junci had always been the strategist for justice, while Zhen Jiaxu was the man behind the Hetu Trading Association. They had been at odds for a long time, and Shen Junci was very familiar with Zhen Jiaxu’s style of doing things. He organized his thoughts and said, “Zhen Jiaxu is a ruthless and clever man. Even if he wanted to retaliate against the City Bureau, against us, he wouldn’t do anything unnecessary… planning such a major event, it’s not worth it for him.”

What was Zhen Jiaxu planning with all of this? Murder? Just venting his anger? He was no longer the impulsive young man, but a cunning old fox. If they really wanted to kill and vent their anger, they could have had snipers rush into the City Bureau or even directly detonate explosives at the City Bureau entrance.

Why go through the trouble of hijacking the bus starting from the chemical plant, causing panic, plunging the entire city into darkness, and stirring up so much chaos? Killing these people, doing these things, besides increasing his culpability, wouldn’t bring any benefits. Unless… Zhen Jiaxu had other hidden plans.

Thinking of this, Shen Junci looked up at the night sky, where the stars were. The entire city was plunged into darkness, with only the tall Bincheng Shopping Mall having backup power, lighting up like a beacon on a dark sea. Shen Junci suddenly understood everything.

Mu Yuwei, Clear Water, these people were just pawns in Zhen Jiaxu’s hands.

He spoke up, “This is a diversionary tactic!”

“The accident was just to create chaos, to attract the attention of the police and everyone else. He’s planning to escape!” Gu Yanchen also suddenly realized.

Shen Junci continued, “The rooftop platform of the Penang Mall is a helipad.”

“Let’s hurry over!” Gu Yanchen decided decisively.

This was Zhen Jiaxu’s true purpose hidden beneath the surface. Fortunately, Shen Junci was alert enough.

Gu Yanchen didn’t have time to bandage his wounds. He called several officers who had rushed over and prepared to head to the Bincheng Shopping Mall. Then he thought of something else and cursed softly, “The arrest warrant hasn’t been issued yet!”

Shen Junci frowned. Before the power outage, the arrest warrant for Zhen Jiaxu hadn’t been approved by the prosecutor’s office. And now with communication cut off, they couldn’t even contact them. Thinking further, perhaps one of the purposes of this power outage was to delay the approval of the arrest warrant.

Nowadays, the police arrest process has long been digitized, but on this night of power outage, the lack of proper procedures became a hindrance. This old fox’s calculations really covered all the bases. They were at a loss when Yu Shen, who rushed over from the digital center on an electric scooter, arrived at the scene. He parked his vehicle on the roadside.

Before he even got off his scooter, Gu Yanchen approached him and said, “Yu Shen, you’ve come at the right time. Hurry to the prosecutor’s office and get Prosecutor Wang to sign an arrest warrant for Zhen Jiaxu!”

With no electronic procedures available, they reverted to paper and sent a real person to expedite the process. Upon receiving the order, Yu Shen sighed and mounted the electric scooter, speeding away.

Gu Yanchen grabbed his gun, and he and Shen Junci boarded a police vehicle with a team of officers, heading towards the Penang Commercial Building. It wasn’t far from here to there, so driving a bit faster would take only about five minutes.

Hopefully, they still had time.

—

At night, outside the Penang Commercial Building. Li Zhongnan finally arrived. Before the power outage, he had spoken with Shen Junci on the phone and learned from him that Huo Lei was with Zhen Jiaxu before surrendering, and she had met Ding Yueran and Mu Yuwei at the Bincheng Shopping Mall.

At that time, Li Zhongnan had a vague sense of unease, so he rushed here as quickly as possible. At the entrance of the mall, Zhen Jiaxu’s bodyguards were still there, totaling more than a dozen, standing together discussing the distant explosion.

Li Zhongnan pulled out an extendable baton from his clothes and flicked it lightly, expanding the pointed end. This item, also known as a telescopic baton, wasn’t deadly but caused extreme pain when used for striking. It was a legal self-defense weapon in China, allowed for carrying as long as one didn’t enter subways or airplanes.

Li Zhongnan was wearing a windbreaker today, walking with an air of authority, holding the baton in his hand. After all, he used to be the head of the serious crime unit and had seen big scenes. When he was on duty, he had used this baton to fight five against one, taking down several armed thugs. Now, facing those bodyguards without changing his expression, he stepped forward, walking straight towards the main entrance of the building.

The dozen or so bodyguards were momentarily stunned by him. Intercepting him, they asked, “The mall is closed today. Who are you? What are you doing here?”

Li Zhongnan glanced at the group, outnumbered and hostile. Instead of directly resorting to violence, he opted for diplomacy first, politely saying, “I’m here to see Zhen Jiaxu and Mu Yuwei.”

A bodyguard blocked his way, saying, “We haven’t heard Mr. Zhen mention any visitors today. No one is allowed in here today!”

“I have important matters to discuss. Either you let me go up, or I’ll knock you all down and go up by myself.” Li Zhongnan waved the baton in his hand, beckoning. “If you want to fight, come over. I’ll accompany you.”

His calm demeanor gave off a hint of a hidden martial arts master. Although the bodyguards didn’t step aside, no one stepped forward either.

Someone sneered, “Big talk. Who do you think you are, Ip Man? If you have the guts…”

Before he could finish his sentence, Li Zhongnan struck like lightning. With a snap, the baton directly hit the man’s neck, silencing his words. Before the bodyguard could counterattack, the second strike came, sweeping horizontally, directly hitting his ribs, the most painful spot to be hit. The bodyguard curled up in pain. Li Zhongnan’s third strike hit his back with a bang, sounding very painful.

The small bodyguard screamed continuously, unable to fight back. After a few strikes, Li Zhongnan held back. The bodyguard’s body was covered in red marks. If he had used more force, there would have been cuts and bruises.

Li Zhongnan kicked the bodyguard lightly, still speaking politely, “I’m in a hurry. I’m not joking with you.”

He didn’t expect him to be a martial artist. Another bodyguard signaled the others, “Even if he can fight, there’s only one of him. Let’s all go together…”

“What benefit do you get from stopping me? Promotion? Raise?” Li Zhongnan interrupted him, taking a step forward. The bodyguards started to back off.

Li Zhongnan continued, “Zhen Jiaxu is in big trouble. Why do you still care about this? He’s the one behind tonight’s explosion. The police are on their way here. If you don’t want to be arrested, clear the way from here!” The bodyguards looked at each other, puzzled.

The leading one still wanted to argue, “Boss Zhen asked us to stay put. We’ve been paid, so we have to finish this job. You usually follow Boss Zhen as bodyguards, you know what he’s up to, right? Now that he’s wanted by the police, you don’t even know where your next month’s salary is coming from. If you want to show loyalty, you better pick the right time, or else going to jail won’t be a joke.”

The bodyguards who usually followed Zhen Jiaxu naturally knew that Mr. Zhen had been involved in shady businesses in the past. They had heard some rumors recently, such as the arrests of Han Qingyi and Sheng Qiancheng, and they were aware of the investigation into the Brothers Security Company. Moreover, this afternoon, Huo Lei went to the City Bureau, which seemed suspicious. It seemed like the company was really close to collapsing and being investigated.

Now, hearing Li Zhongnan’s words, they were a bit shaken. Why should laborers be so emotionally invested?

Li Zhongnan utilized all the persuasion skills he had honed in convincing criminals in the past. He tapped the baton in his hand and said, “I won’t make things difficult for you. Just pretend you didn’t see me, let me go up, and you’ll save yourselves some trouble.”

Li’s team’s principle was to use words instead of hands whenever possible, and it was best to achieve victory without fighting. Persuade with reason, empathize with others. He was extremely anxious inside, burning with impatience, but he didn’t let the opponents see it.

This sounded like a profitable deal.

The bodyguards whispered among themselves and felt that they might not win in a real fight. Not only would they get beaten for nothing, but it would also waste time. So, they obediently stepped aside.

Li Zhongnan breathed a sigh of relief. If they really fought, it would take at least a dozen minutes to resolve the situation with so many people, and both sides would definitely suffer. He was afraid he wouldn’t make it in time to save anyone. Now, the problem was solved in three minutes, saving energy as well.

“Thank you.” Li Zhongnan politely thanked the bodyguards and asked, “Which floor is Zhen Jiaxu on?”

One of the bodyguards said, “27th floor. Don’t say we let you in, just say you sneaked in yourself.”

Li Zhongnan ran into the building. This floor belonged to Zhen Jiaxu’s property. The entire building had been cleared by him tonight. Li Zhongnan entered the elevator and pressed the button. The elevator shot up, and in just a few seconds, it stopped at the 27th floor. With thousands of square meters on each floor of the building, Li Zhongnan got off the elevator and started searching for the room when he heard several gunshots…

Five minutes ago, at the Penang Building, 27th-floor banquet hall, Mu Yuwei pulled out his gun and pointed it at Ding Yueran’s head. He didn’t rush to shoot but turned to Zhen Jiaxu, saying, “Zhen Bro, give me some private space. I’ll take care of family matters.”

Zhen Jiaxu said, “Don’t be soft-hearted.”

Mu Yuwei replied, “I won’t, it’s just that this kid was raised by me after all, he’s my beloved son. Even if it’s just a dog, after feeding it for so many years, there would be some attachment. I have something to say to him, let me have a chat with him, and give him a proper send-off.”

Zhen Jiaxu glanced at the time, then at Ding Yueran, who showed no sign of resistance. Being older, he wasn’t prepared to witness such a bloody scene. Mu Yuwei’s words suited his intentions.

Zhen Jiaxu turned and said, “The helicopter is coming soon. I’ll wait for you upstairs. After you kill him, come over quickly.”

His booked helicopter was still ten minutes away, and the failure of the explosion plan had disrupted their entire plan. Zhen Jiaxu left the room, leaving only Mu Yuwei and Ding Yueran behind.

Mu Yuwei tightened his grip on the gun. He still hadn’t taken off the safety catch. Faced with everything that had happened tonight, Mu Yuwei felt both angry and regretful. “Ding Yueran, you had a good hand, but you ruined it like this?! I was going to hand over the company, all the money, to you. I’ve cherished you for so long…”

Ding Yueran suddenly raised his head and threw the laptop beside him at Mu Yuwei. Before Mu Yuwei could finish speaking or express more sentiments, he was hit directly in the face by the laptop. Ding Yueran held his head and said, “Boss Mu, some people die from talking too much.”

Mu Yuwei, infuriated by the blow, pulled the trigger of his gun, ready to kill him on the spot! Ding Yueran seized the opportunity and threw the laptop, not expecting to overpower Mu Yuwei, who held a gun, with his bare hands.

Ding Yueran hid behind the sofa, “Stop dreaming. There’s no room left for you beside Zhen Jiaxu. He took the chance to slip away.”

Mu Yuwei retorted, “At this point, you still want to sow discord?!”

He showed no mercy, immediately starting to shoot, two shots echoing as the bullets followed Ding Yueran’s movements.

Ding Yueran swiftly slipped away, “The city power will be restored in a few minutes at most, and the police are also on their way. Believe it or not, if you kill me, you’ll be next.”

Ding Yueran ran past the window. Mu Yuwei’s bullets were limited, and his marksmanship wasn’t good. In a hand-to-hand fight, there might still be a chance.

Mu Yuwei followed him, shooting several times at the tempered glass, leaving a row of bullet holes in the shattered glass window. With a small magazine, eight bullets were fired. Mu Yuwei lowered his head, seemingly reloading.

Ding Yueran paused, pondering how to snatch the gun away. Before he could get close, Mu Yuwei suddenly turned and charged toward him. Ding Yueran was completely unprepared. He felt the icy blade pierce into his abdomen like a dagger, and the next moment, he felt excruciating pain.

Mu Yuwei exerted force, smiling, “You brat, you might be smarter than me in brains, but when it comes to fighting, your daddy is still your daddy. Why do you think I didn’t just shoot you dead earlier? Do you really think I couldn’t bear to kill you?”

As Mu Yuwei spoke, he continued to exert force, driving the knife deeper until it reached the hilt. His gaze was ferocious, like a vicious wolf. “For scum like you, I think killing you outright is letting you off too easily! After what you’ve done, not chopping you into pieces would hardly ease my anger.”

Ding Yueran groaned, blood flowing down his clothes, cold sweat breaking out on his forehead, rendering him unable to speak for a moment due to the pain. He understood now. Mu Yuwei, with his background as a hired thug, had a penchant for torture. The leak was intentional, as was the flaw. He wasn’t reloading; he had seized the opportunity to grab the knife while lowering his head.

He knew Mu Yuwei too well. This was Mu Yuwei’s habit of catching prey, giving them hope before extinguishing it bit by bit until they were desperate for survival but unable to seek death. Kill the spirit by killing the person. Ding Yueran spat out blood, momentarily regaining his senses. He looked at Mu Yuwei, a cold smile playing on his lips.

Mu Yuwei stirred the knife in his hand, “Facing death, why are you smiling?”

Ding Yueran’s hands pressed down on Mu Yuwei’s hand, which held the knife, “Then let’s see who dies first!”