Ah Yu's eyes instantly turned cold. He stuffed his leather shoes into his pocket and moved up the stairs in the shadows. The third floor was a relatively intact control room. Through the broken observation window, he saw two men in black jackets leaning against the control panel smoking. One of them was playing with a switchblade in his hand, while the other stood guard by the iron door, from which suppressed sobs could be faintly heard.
Zhong Hua is inside!
Ah Yu took a deep breath, his mind racing. The two kidnappers were both much stronger than him; he had no chance in a direct confrontation. He needed to create chaos. His gaze swept around, and he saw several empty metal barrels piled up at the corner of the stairs. That's it!
He quietly retreated downstairs, picked up an iron bucket, and smashed it against the wall on the other side of the factory with all his might! "Bang—" The loud noise echoed in the empty factory, like a thunderclap.
"What's that sound?!" came the panicked shouts of the kidnappers from the control room.
"Damn it, could it be the police? I'll go check!" One of the kidnappers cursed as he opened the door, grabbed a switchblade, and rushed out.
Chance!
Ah Yu darted out of the shadows like a cheetah, slamming her shoulder into the other kidnapper's stomach before he could react! Caught off guard, the kidnapper staggered backward, his head slamming heavily against the control panel, seeing stars. Ah Yu gave him no chance to catch his breath, raising her knee to strike his jaw while simultaneously pressing a military knife against his throat with her right hand: "Keys! Open the door!"
The kidnapper grimaced in pain, a flicker of fear in his eyes, but he stubbornly refused to speak. Ah Yu's eyes sharpened, and with a slight pressure, she cut the skin on his neck, drawing blood: "I'll say it again, the key!"
"It's...in my pocket..." The kidnapper finally chickened out, his voice trembling.
Ah Yu fumbled for her key with her left hand, her eyes fixed on the kidnapper. Just then, the kidnapper who had gone to check on the commotion returned. Seeing his companion subdued, he roared and pounced, brandishing his switchblade!
(III) Bloody Struggle and Shattered Trust
A flash of cold light, and the switchblade whistled as it hurtled toward Ah Yu's face. Ah Yu jerked backward, the blade grazing his nose, leaving a burning sting. He released his grip on the kidnapper, rolled to the ground, and dodged the second blow.
"Damn it, you dare to ambush me!" The knife-wielding kidnapper pressed closer, the blade gleaming dangerously in the flashlight beam. "Today I'll let you taste what it's like to be stabbed!"
Ah Yu's back pressed against the cold wall, with nowhere to retreat. He took a deep breath, his gaze sweeping over the iron pipe on the ground—a rusty section of pipe, about half a meter long, that had fallen from the broken pipe. Just as the kidnapper swung his knife again, Ah Yu suddenly bent down, grabbed the iron pipe, and swung it horizontally!
"Bang!" The iron pipe slammed heavily onto the kidnapper's wrist, and the switchblade clattered to the ground. The kidnapper screamed, clutching his wrist and staggering backward. Ah Yu pressed her advantage, the iron pipe whistling as it hurtled towards his chest. The kidnapper frantically tried to block with his arm, but the impact caused his blood to surge, and he staggered, crashing into the control panel.
Just then, the kidnapper, who had been subdued, suddenly got up from the ground, grabbed a wrench, and smashed it towards Ah Yu's head! Ah Yu heard the whoosh of the wind behind him, jerked to the side, and the wrench grazed his shoulder and hit the wall, sending sparks flying. He turned and kicked the kidnapper in the stomach, sending him flying backward and knocking over a bunch of instruments.
The two kidnappers exchanged a glance, a flicker of fear in their eyes. They hadn't expected this seemingly refined man to be such a formidable fighter. The knife-wielding kidnapper picked up his switchblade from the ground, his eyes gleaming menacingly at Ah Yu: "Kid, you've got some skills, huh? But do you think you can rescue her? Boss Gu has already laid a trap!"
"Enough with the nonsense!" Ah Yu gripped the iron pipe, her chest heaving violently. The old wound on her arm was aggravated, sending sharp pains through her. "Get out of the way!"
"So what if you don't let me?" the kidnapper grinned maliciously and pounced again.
This time, Ah Yu didn't fight head-on. He observed the kidnapper's movements, nimbly dodging while simultaneously banging the surrounding equipment with his iron pipe, creating a piercing noise. The factory was already dimly lit, and with the oil drums he had deliberately overturned, the floor became incredibly slippery. The knife-wielding kidnapper, caught off guard, slipped and fell to the ground. Ah Yu seized the opportunity, pounced on him, pinned his wrist down with the iron pipe, and disarmed him of the switchblade.
Seeing this, the other kidnapper turned to run. Ah Yu picked up the switchblade from the ground, flicked her wrist, and the blade spun out, landing precisely on the floor near the kidnapper's feet! The kidnapper was terrified and collapsed to the ground.
Having dealt with the kidnappers, Ah Yu immediately rushed to the iron gate and unlocked it with her key. The scene inside made her pupils shrink—Zhong Hua was firmly tied to a chair, a clear handprint on his face, blood still trickling from the corner of his mouth, but his eyes were unusually resolute. Seeing Ah Yu, a flicker of surprise crossed her eyes, then she shook her head anxiously: "Ah Yu, run! This is a trap! Gu Yanting said he planted a tracking device on you—"
Before the words were even finished, a piercing siren suddenly blared outside the factory! Alternating red and blue lights shone through the broken windows, turning the entire control room into a scene resembling hell.
"Hahahaha! Here we come!" The subdued kidnapper suddenly burst into laughter. "Boss Gu was right, you really did come! Now you're caught red-handed, let's see how you escape!"
Ah Yu's heart sank. A tracking device? He suddenly remembered that Lin Wanqing seemed to have slipped something into his pocket before he left home earlier today. Could it be...? No, impossible! How could Lin Wanqing betray him?
“Ah Yu, listen to me,” Zhong Hua cried out, struggling, “Gu Yanting used my mother as leverage to get Lin Wanqing to put a tracking device on you! He said he would let us go as long as you were caught!”
Ah Yu was struck dumb, staring blankly at Zhong Hua. Lin Wanqing… the younger sister he had always protected, the family member who had stood by him when he was framed, was actually…
Just as he was feeling a surge of emotion, the factory gate was suddenly kicked open, and a group of heavily armed police officers rushed in, all pointing their guns at him: "Don't move! Put down your weapons!"
Ah Yu stared at the dark muzzle of the gun, then at Zhong Hua's anxious eyes, and then at Lin Wanqing's possible betrayal. He felt a wave of dizziness wash over him. The iron pipe in his hand clattered to the ground, making a hollow echo.
The rain had stopped sometime earlier, and a sliver of moonlight pierced through the clouds, illuminating the chaotic scene inside the factory and Ah Yu's pale face. He was pinned to the ground by the police, cold handcuffs locking his wrists, locking away the last vestige of warmth in his heart. In the distance, the sirens of ambulances seemed to drift in, along with… Lin Wanqing's heart-wrenching cries.
But all of that seemed so far away now. All that remained in his mind were Zhong Hua's words: "Gu Yanting used my mother as leverage to force Lin Wanqing to put a tracking device on you..."
The fragments of trust, like the glass of this abandoned factory, shattered into irreparable dust in his heart. And this thrilling rescue, in such an ironic way, ultimately pushed him into an even deeper abyss.
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