Chapter 63 Night Raid on the Warehouse
The entire banquet hall was deathly silent.
The guests dared not breathe, each one wishing they could shrink into a quail and minimize their presence.
All that remained was Lin Zihang, who was still clutching his dislocated arm, making suppressed groans from the excruciating pain.
The female secretary next to Zheng Kai was so frightened that her face turned pale. Her proudly large breasts no longer moved at all, and she wished she could shrink into a ball.
Zheng Kai slowly raised his hand and wiped the wine stains off his face with the back of his hand.
He didn't get angry or roar, but his eyes behind his glasses were so dark they seemed to drip water as he stared intently at Su Wantang.
Lu Jingyan stepped forward, his tall figure silently protecting Su Wantang behind him. His sharp eyes, like two drawn swords, pierced straight at Zheng Kai.
The atmosphere was tense, ready to erupt at any moment.
"Mr. Zheng, my wife is being unreasonable and offended our distinguished guest. I apologize on her behalf."
Lu Jingyan's voice was not loud, but it carried the unique imposing presence of a soldier.
He said he was sorry, but his demeanor showed no remorse whatsoever. It was clearly his final ultimatum.
Zheng Kai's eye twitched slightly.
He glanced at Lin Zihang, who was half-dead on the ground, and then at Lu Jingyan, who was exuding an aura of power.
Finally, my gaze returned to Su Wantang's breathtakingly beautiful face.
He suddenly smiled.
"Commander Lu is joking."
He took the handkerchief from the female secretary's trembling hand and slowly wiped his face.
"It's just a misunderstanding. Young people are hot-tempered, it's nothing serious."
He adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses and simply admitted defeat.
Du Kangnian immediately called security guards, who dragged Lin Zihang, who was still wailing, out like a dead dog.
The farce ended abruptly, with a promising start but a disappointing finish.
The guests looked at the perfect couple with no longer any contempt in their eyes, only deep apprehension.
This descendant of the Bai family is not someone to be trifled with.
Her man is even more dangerous!
The banquet was not over yet, and the guests gathered in twos and threes, whispering about the shocking reversal that had just happened.
Lu Jingyan took Su Wantang's hand and led her to a secluded corner.
“Zheng Kai has been alerted by your actions and will definitely move away immediately.” Lu Jingyan’s voice was low and urgent.
"So?" Su Wantang raised an eyebrow, letting his warm, large hand envelop her small hand.
"I have to go now."
Lu Jingyan looked at her intently.
"We must check the airport and warehouse again tonight. He's tied up here with you, which is when he's least on guard."
This is their only time difference.
Su Wantang understood.
She tiptoed closer to his ear, her warm breath brushing against his earlobe: "Then you go, I'll stay here and help you make the atmosphere even more lively."
She took the Jeep keys out of her handbag, placed them in his palm, and gently hooked her fingertips into his hand.
Lu Jingyan's Adam's apple bobbed. He took her small hand in his own, squeezed it, then lowered the brim of his hat, turned and disappeared into the shadows, leaving the banquet hall silently.
The night wind howled.
The jeep sped along the deserted road like a black cheetah, heading straight for the abandoned military airfield on the outskirts of Shanghai.
Lu Jingyan parked the car some distance away and slipped inside like a cat.
The airport was empty except for the whooshing sound of the wind blowing through the dilapidated hangar. Everything was exactly the same as when he last scouted the place; there was nothing unusual.
Lu Jingyan was not disappointed; this was exactly what he had expected.
He left the airport and squatted down on the only dirt road leading to it.
He turned on his military flashlight, the beam sweeping across the ground.
His eyes narrowed quickly.
There were several very fresh tire tracks on the muddy ground.
The tire tracks were deep, and the tire treads were clearly visible; they were left by a heavy-duty truck, the Jiefang brand. Judging from the degree to which the mud was compressed, the truck was loaded with heavy loads, and there was more than one.
Most importantly, these tire tracks indicate that the vehicle was leaving the airport and heading towards the port!
Zheng Kai is being transferred!
Lu Jingyan's heart sank. He immediately returned to the jeep, floored the accelerator, and sped off towards the Shiliupu Wharf.
When he returned to the vicinity of Warehouse No. 7, his heart sank completely.
The warehouse, which was heavily guarded during the day with sentries every three or five steps, was now wide open, dark inside, without a soul in sight.
The place is deserted.
The other party's reaction speed exceeded his expectations.
Lu Jingyan clenched his fist, a flash of frustration crossing his eyes. It was still too late.
Undeterred, he slipped into the warehouse.
The warehouse had indeed been emptied out, leaving only sawdust, broken hemp rope, and some torn oil paper. The air still carried the salty smell of engine oil and seawater.
Zheng Kai was very cautious and cleaned up all traces before leaving.
Just give up like this?
This word does not exist in Lu Jingyan's dictionary.
He turned off his flashlight, let his eyes adjust to the darkness, and, relying on the intuition and experience honed by soldiers in countless extreme missions, began a thorough search.
They inspected the floor and walls inch by inch.
With bent knuckles, he rhythmically tapped the cement floor.
"Thump, thump, thump..."
A dull, solid sound echoed in the empty warehouse.
Lu Jingyan's movements were slow, but extremely focused, leaving no corner unchecked.
When he reached a corner at the far end of the warehouse, the knocking suddenly changed.
"Knock, knock, knock..."
The sound was no longer muffled, but carried a hollow echo.
The bottom is empty!
Lu Jingyan's spirits lifted, and he immediately squatted down, carefully using the tip of his military dagger to pry open the gaps in the floor tiles.
With a soft sound, he pried up a floor tile completely.
Beneath the floor tiles was a small, hidden compartment made of cement.
Lu Jingyan was overjoyed and reached inside.
Empty.
There was nothing in the hidden compartment, not even a speck of dust.
Hopes were dashed once again.
Lu Jingyan frowned. Could it be that the other party had even thought of this?
Unwilling to give up, he carefully felt around the bottom and sides of the hidden compartment with his fingers.
Just as his fingertips were about to withdraw, he suddenly touched a cold, angular metal object in the innermost corner of the hidden compartment.
It was tiny, cleverly wedged in a crack in the cement; it would have been impossible to find without this thorough, meticulous examination.
Lu Jingyan's heart stirred, and he carefully pulled it out with the tip of the dagger, holding it between his fingers.
Using the faint moonlight filtering through the broken window, he spread out his palms.
In the palm of his hand lay a finely crafted rhombus-shaped iron dart.
The iron dart was entirely black, cold to the touch, and quite heavy. Its edges were polished to an extremely sharp point, gleaming with a chilling light.
This is no ordinary concealed weapon.
Lu Jingyan turned the iron dart over and saw a simple, ancient seal script character carved in relief in the center of the dart.
--flood.
He immediately recalled the warning Su Wantang had learned from her mother's last letter about her stepmother Liu Liyun's possible connection to the Hong Kong "Hung Society".
This reminds me of Lin Zihang, who claimed to be from "Hongda Trading" on Hong Kong Island.
It also reminded me of the photo among my mother's belongings that pointed to "Du Kang Nian" (the year of Du Kang).
At this moment, seemingly unrelated clues were completely connected by this small diamond-shaped iron dart!
Lu Jingyan's pupils suddenly contracted!
He gripped the iron dart tightly, the cold metal digging painfully into his palm.
He finally understood.
They are not dealing with simple smugglers and corrupt officials.
Behind Lu Wenbo and Zheng Kai stands a vast, tightly-knit, and ruthless cross-border underground organization.
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