Chapter Thirteen Nightmare
“Lu Ming, if you don’t behave, someone will be punished—” Lu Fang held a syringe filled with an unknown liquid, about an inch long, and walked into the room behind the glass. Little Lu Ming was still unaware of what was about to happen. He just stared at the boy who was looking at him through the glass—the boy was only three years old, a year younger than him. Yesterday at noon, the boy had shared a strawberry from his lunch with him, and he had taken the opportunity to pinch the chubby cheek he had been eyeing for so long.
The boy was injected with drugs and cried incessantly, foaming at the mouth. All sound was cut off; death seemed so helpless.
"No! No!" Lu Ming cried out fiercely, pounding on the glass with all his might. But the more he cried, the more Lu Fang retaliated.
The boy stopped crying and collapsed on the spot, his face ashen.
“Lu Ming, he didn’t have to die. But your pleas for mercy and your compassion are disgusting—someone needs to atone for your sins, and he died for you,” Lu Fang told him.
Was it because he was naughty? Was it because he was crying? Or was it because he gave the injured uncle some gauze?
Death...is this what death is?
Nightmares of varying depths and endless cycles.
“Lu Ming, you can’t be so greedy. If you want this uncle to live, Aunt Chu will pay the price in his place. He’s been so good to you, do you want to make her sad?”
"No, don't!" Lu Ming answered crisply, tears welling up in his eyes, but he dared not cry anymore.
"Okay, I'll teach you." Lu Fang handed the syringe to Xiao Lu Ming. "Press here, and insert it..."
Lu Ming followed along shakily. He knew that the uncle in front of him would also lie on the spot with a pale and ashen face, just like many others before him, and would "die," but he had no choice.
"Yes, you did a great job."
You did a great job.
Absurd lies and blood-nourished vines weave together to form a cage that imprisons life. Like air, it follows you everywhere, invisibly, intertwining with the blood and flesh of this despicable body with every breath.
All that you protect and all that you love will surely meet a bad end because of you.
Just when he thought he was about to escape, reality would tell him the bloody truth.
Lu Ming suddenly wanted to tell Su Yi that his leaving was actually the best choice for both of them.
"I...I regret it," he said almost cautiously, and the woman embraced him with her withered arms. He was filled with resentment, yet utterly helpless. He was even trembling slightly, and belatedly realized that he was enveloped by a strange emotion, as complex as the feeling he had when he first witnessed the passing of a life.
So, this is fear?
Z Country
On the fourth day after his injury, Su Yi was already able to disinfect, change dressings, and bandage the gunshot wound on his left shoulder with one hand without batting an eye. His movements were fluid and seamless, far more professional than the barefoot doctors here who could barely speak properly. Just as he was beginning to have the illusion that he was "invincible," the bumpy mountain road gave him a heart attack, and he vomited for a long time after getting out of the car, clinging to a pillar. Zhang Mingcheng, who had traveled with him and claimed to be there to help him on behalf of Lu Fang, also looked somewhat pale, but his reaction wasn't as severe.
He shrugged: "There's nothing I can do. Mr. Lu's men are blocking your way everywhere, so you can only take the back roads."
Su Yi rinsed his mouth with a bottle of mineral water and asked him breathlessly, "Was the gun also fired by his men?" He was referring to the time on his first morning after arriving, when he was shot in the left room and almost suffered a penetrating wound to his left shoulder.
"The one who fired the shot was probably one of our own. We're not a united front; they wanted to give us a warning, to test our strength—but you know, this kind of thing can't be investigated, it's not a good look." Zhang Mingcheng's attitude towards Su Yi was a mixture of disdain and curiosity. He was Lu Fang's personal confidant, a seasoned veteran, and knew a bit about the inside story. He just felt that such a perfect pretty boy should be cherished and protected. Forcing someone into prostitution would require coercion and bribery, and even a tear might require someone to comfort them. Sending him into this remote mountain forest to outwit and outmaneuver a group of desperados—wasn't that a waste of talent? In every sense of the word.
Su Yi clearly didn't see through his little scheme. After a moment, he stood up and walked into the hotel: "Call over the heads of the several passages and the laboratory."
"Are you sure? They're all seasoned veterans, none of them are easy to deal with." Zhang Mingcheng was taken aback, seemingly not expecting him to have such audacity.
"Do you know why I've been doing this thankless, life-threatening work for so many years?" Su Yi asked sarcastically. "Because I have no brains! All my energy is focused on my own little corner of the world. I have a bit of self-righteous cleverness, carry a gun on my hip, and just barely survive without knowing when my life will end. That's what they call 'wise and brave.' These are the easiest people to deal with."
All you need is a high enough stance and a longer gun.
Zhang Mingcheng's expression changed instantly. Even if he was stupid, he should have understood the veiled insult.
Su Yi pulled out a handgun from the deepest part of a drawer in the room. He didn't know what model it was, but it was small and heavy. The exquisite workmanship of the casing made it clear that it was not an ordinary handgun.
With a "click," he familiarly yet awkwardly released the bolt.
For so many years, under the protection of others, I've been burying my head in the sand and thinking I'm some kind of virtuous person.
As if waking from a dream, all I could see was that desolate wasteland, devoid of sunlight. How long can evil be buried under the bright sun?
Like ants in a dream, they ultimately showed no mercy.
Suichuan
Yi Chu and Gu Bai'an met at a well-known local restaurant for couples. Under the dim lighting, they cuddled intimately but not excessively, looking no different from the other couples in the restaurant. Yi Chu forked a piece of beef and held it to Gu Bai'an's lips, while taking a sip of red wine herself.
It is a mountain, a mountain called Lingling Mountain.
However, the topic of conversation was somewhat unconventional: "The organization plans to close in within the next six to eight months. Except for major operations, you and I will temporarily sever ties with the organization to ensure our trump cards are preserved. My hope is that I can get as close as legitimately as possible to your current identity—I mean in all aspects," including "work."
“Okay.” Gu Bai’an miraculously didn’t deny him, perhaps knowing that it would be futile. “A criminal investigation professor—he’s considered an ‘expert’ here, we have to treat him with respect.”
“I will do everything in my power to cooperate with you.” Yi Chu was always just as serious when it came to work. “There are bugs in your car and room. Li Xiaodong instructed me to install them. Be careful what you say. We’ll remove them in a week.”
"Alright then." Gu Bai'an almost laughed out of exasperation at this unexpected "icing on the cake." "You really are my dear wife, always finding things for me to do."
"Stop acting, comrade, who are you?" Yi Chu rolled her eyes and pushed him away. "You scoundrel, wait until this is all over and see if you dare to act like this again!"
"Alright, I won't tease you anymore." Gu Bai'an gently pulled him back into his arms. He liked holding Yi Chu like this, so he just sat quietly without saying anything.
It's as if by holding on like this, all the missed time from the first ten years and the next three years has been made up for. And the next ten or twenty years are also within reach.
"I was wrong." Gu Bai'an suddenly kissed his forehead and said, "After this is over, I'll agree to anything you ask. If Director Yi doesn't grant me leave to be with you, I'll go and beg him with tears and a fuss."
It was like a joke made to avoid making the atmosphere too awkward, clumsy yet so gentle.
"Okay, I forgive you!" Yi Chu reached out and pinched his chest, smiling broadly as she granted him a pardon.
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