Chapter 67 Heroic Symphony
Yan Shuang followed the music, passed through an archway, and entered a side hall.
Here, there is none of the hustle and bustle and extravagance of the main hall, but rather a gathering of people who truly control resources and power, conversing in hushed tones in twos and threes, occasionally raising their glasses, and even their laughter is restrained to just the right degree.
She leaned against the shadows in the corner, her eyes half-closed.
Suddenly, a slight commotion came from the direction of the antique display case.
"What are you doing?" an elderly man with silver hair scolded in a low voice.
Yan Shuang looked up and saw a young man in a custom-made suit quickly withdrawing his hand.
“I’m sorry, sir, you’ve misunderstood.” The young man smiled, his voice polite. “I was just admiring it.”
The old man squinted and grabbed the other man's wrist: "Then how come my watch is in your pocket?"
A moment of silence.
Yan Shuang noticed that the man had a companion behind him, who was also dressed smartly and was moving towards the door without making a sound.
She instinctively stood up straight. At first glance, the two men looked like the sons of a certain conglomerate, but the panic and ruthlessness in their eyes could not be faked.
"Let go." The man who was being held suddenly turned cold.
The old man raised his voice: "Security! There's a thief here..."
Before he finished speaking, the man suddenly pulled a black pistol from the inside pocket of his suit.
"I said, let go," he said, emphasizing each word, as he pressed the gun against the old man's temple.
The music stopped abruptly. Seeing that things were going badly, the man's companion rushed forward, grabbed the nearest young woman, and pulled out a folding knife, holding it to her neck.
The woman's face turned deathly pale instantly, her lips trembling but unable to utter a word.
The side hall instantly descended into chaos, the once luxurious world turned upside down, and guests dressed in haute couture attire fled in terror.
Someone knocked over a wine glass, someone knocked over a decorative vase, and screams rose and fell.
"Quiet!" the armed robber shouted sternly. "Anyone who moves will be shot dead!"
The side hall fell into a deathly silence, broken only by a few suppressed screams.
Yan Shuang felt as if her heart was about to jump out of her chest.
"Just throw us your valuables, no tricks, we only want money."
The guests stood frozen in place, their eyes darting between the robbers and the exit.
Yan Shuang noticed that the gunman's finger was trembling slightly on the trigger; he was a novice, and therefore more dangerous.
"Hurry up!" The robber made a move to fire his gun.
Several women screamed in surprise, and some collapsed to the ground.
"Throw all the valuables into this bag! Quick!" Another robber tossed out a black backpack.
The guests looked at each other, and under the threat of the gun, slowly began to remove their watches, necklaces, and rings.
The woman's condition worsened; the robber's arm around her neck made it difficult for her to breathe, and her face turned from white to blue.
If we don't do something now, and this girl is taken away by the kidnappers, her fate will likely be...
Yan Shuang forced herself to take deep breaths.
Her third-degree black belt is enough to handle most dangerous situations, but she hasn't been in real combat for a long time and has never faced a gun before. Fighting an armed thug is a completely different matter.
"Hurry up! Don't try anything funny!" the armed robber shouted impatiently, pointing his gun at a slow-moving elderly man.
Yan Shuang quickly assessed the scene: two robbers, one armed with a gun and the other with a knife; about thirty guests, most of them panicked; the exit was blocked, and security had not yet arrived; the hostages were in critical condition...
"We'll release her once we're safely away." The knife-wielding robber dragged the woman backward, clearly preparing to leave.
Once the robbers leave with the hostage, the woman's chances of survival are slim.
She has to make a decision: now or miss the opportunity forever.
As the knife-wielding robber walked past a decorative crystal chandelier with his back to her, Yan Shuang's eyes sharpened. Now was the time!
She grabbed the champagne bottle from the table and hurled it with all her might at the chandelier's hanging chain.
The crystals collided with a piercing cracking sound, and countless fragments fell.
"What's going on?!" The armed robber turned around in panic, the dark muzzle of his gun sweeping back and forth.
She moved stealthily, using the chaos of the crowd as cover to approach the robber.
Five meters, four meters, three meters... She could hear the sound of her blood rushing through her veins, if only she could be there before he pulled the trigger.
"Don't move!" The robber suddenly turned his gun on her.
Yan Shuang froze. The gun was pointed directly at her forehead, and she saw the robber's finger on the trigger tighten slightly.
Just as death was about to materialize, a tall, slender figure completely blocked her view.
He stood in front of her, blocking her view so completely that she couldn't even see a glint of the gun barrel.
Before anyone could even gasp in surprise, the hand with its distinct knuckles had already precisely gripped the robber's wrist holding the gun and pushed it upwards.
"Bang!"
Bullets whizzed past the ceiling, and shards of glass fell in a shower, but he remained standing motionless, simply shielding Yan Shuang behind him.
Yan Shuang was stunned.
She slowly raised her head and saw who it was.
He didn't even lose his breathing; with a flick of his wrist, he disarmed the robber.
Yan Shuang's eyes suddenly reddened.
She has always been a loner, used to facing everything alone. When she is sick, she grits her teeth and endures it. When she encounters difficulties, she deals with them on her own. Even when she just faced a robber, her first reaction was to solve the problem herself.
The man in front of her could have safely stood behind the thugs and waited for an opportunity, but he chose to stand in front of her without hesitation, completely exposing himself to the gun.
He shielded her completely behind him, just to ensure that no stray bullets could possibly harm her.
Yan Shuang saw his thin lips pressed into a straight line, but he glanced back at her in the gap while subduing the thug.
It was as if confirming her safety was a thousand times more important than suppressing the thugs.
Yan Shuang took a deep breath, quickly composed herself, and turned her gaze to another robber.
The man was pulling the girl backward, the blade pressed against her neck, his expression ferocious.
Yan Shuang's eyes sharpened, and she was about to rush over when Shang Qiuzhu grabbed her wrist first.
"I'll handle this." He turned to shield her behind him before approaching the robber.
Yan Shuang was startled and looked up at him.
Seeing this, the surrounding guests also gathered around. Some grabbed chairs, some picked up bottles, and even several ladies gritted their teeth and stepped forward to block the robbers' escape route.
"Let her go!" someone shouted angrily.
This group of usually elegant and noble upper-class elites stood up at this moment without prior arrangement.
"Hold him down!"
As if by some unspoken chain reaction, the men in suits rushed forward. Some grabbed the robber's arms, some used their bodies to subdue him, and even a gray-haired banker picked up a silver knife from the table, held it to the robber's neck, and said coldly, "Don't move."
Meanwhile, several socialites and wealthy women were also busy. They quickly helped the girl who had been pushed to her feet, some offering her a shawl, others whispering words of comfort.
Most surprisingly, the pianist who was playing the piano in the corner paused briefly before returning to the keys.
The melodious tune flowed again, a stirring "Heroic Symphony".
The music, like a tidal wave, swept through the entire side hall, as if providing accompaniment for this sudden "upper-class revolution."
Someone chuckled softly, and then more people laughed. The tense atmosphere was inexplicably tinged with a touch of romantic absurdity at that moment.
Yan Shuang stared blankly at all of this, her heart still pounding.
She raised her head and looked at Shangqiu Zhu.
His hand was still in a protective stance in front of her, with a slight scratch on it.
Yan Shuang subconsciously reached out to touch him, but just as they were about to make contact, he suddenly turned her palm over, their fingers intertwined. Shang Qiuzhu used this position to pull her closer to him, and his usually restrained lips now spread wide open in a smile.
She had never seen him smile like that before, and involuntarily, the corners of her mouth turned up as she smiled in his arms, her eyes welling up with tears again.
As the piano music entered its cadenza, the guests, who had survived the ordeal, spontaneously formed a human wall around the two individuals.
The rescued girl, her eyes red-rimmed, squeezed to the front row, bowed deeply to them, and said in a choked voice, "Thank you, Mr. Shang and... Mrs. Shang..."
Yan Shuang's cheeks flushed instantly. She opened her mouth to explain, but was drowned out by the chorus of agreement.
"As expected of Madam Shang, I'm so grateful to you just now!"
"Mr. Shang is so lucky to have married such a brave wife."
"You two are a match made in heaven."
A deep vibration came from Shangqiu Zhu's chest, and his laughter became even more joyful.
She looked up in embarrassment and annoyance, only to meet his smiling eyes.
Yan Shuang nudged him, and Shang Qiuzhu tightened his grip on her arm as he realized she was trying to slip away.
"Please forgive her, everyone, this girl is shy."
Yan Shuang's ear tips instantly turned bright red, and she couldn't say a word.
Amidst the laughter and noise filling the room, Shangqiu Zhu pulled her even closer into his arms and lowered his head to kiss the top of Yan Shuang's head.
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