Chapter 116
The mercenary moved quickly. Zhuang Zhuoyuan clashed with him several times, but the mercenary swiftly dodged and immediately reappeared on the other side, aiming his gun at the Flying Tigers members below. The rooftops were already at different elevations, and the mercenary's sniper rifle was further reinforced with a light-filtering grille. When the mercenary moved while crouching, Zhuang Zhuoyuan couldn't rely on the sniper's reflection to determine the enemy's position.
The battle downstairs had reached an extremely tense moment. After Zhang Jiguang joined the fray, he learned that Zhan Hantao and his men had only a handful of guns, three batons, and two rounds of ammunition left. The situation was particularly unfavorable for them; the Flying Tigers were practically being overwhelmed by the mercenaries in the armored vehicle. As the vehicle drew closer, Zhan Hantao decisively gave the order to fire the first round of ammunition, slowing the mercenaries' advance.
This tactic proved effective; the mercenaries no longer focused on firing, their attention diverted to avoiding the smoke and treating their irritated eyes. Taking advantage of this, Zhan Hantao issued a second order, instructing Yu Xueli to fire a shot, killing the criminal with the submachine gun.
The coordinated attack was brilliant, but another shot rang out immediately after the first one—an attack from the rooftop. Zhuang Zhuoyuan hadn't anticipated the enemy's position, and by the time he aimed again, they had already retreated behind the wall. He was frantic. Without any additional reflective objects to aid his aim, he couldn't track the mercenaries' movements, and the noise from the fighting downstairs made it impossible for him to pinpoint their location by the wind. The mercenaries were clearly no longer paying him any attention; his focus was entirely on the Flying Tigers downstairs. If he hit them, he'd be lucky; if not, his brothers downstairs could suppress the Flying Tigers with their heavy weapons.
All the methods flashed through his mind. Zhuang Zhuoyuan took a deep breath, finely adjusted the scope knob with his fingertips, dividing the fence wall into four sections, and began scanning each section from the left. The midday sun slanted across the light gray fence wall, leaving dappled shadows. Zhuang Zhuoyuan's gaze swept across the wall like a searchlight, not missing a single subtle change.
Acting swiftly, to prevent his second movement after firing, Zhuang Zhuoyuan fired first, trying to alert the enemy and create an opening. This unexpected moment indeed revealed a weakness; halfway through scanning the third area, a very faint black shadow suddenly flashed across the edge of the crosshairs—not a stain on the wall itself, but a shadow with a slight curve, moving along the inside of the fence. Zhuang Zhuoyuan held his breath, adjusted the scope to maximum magnification, and stared intently at that area. Then, as another gunshot rang out from downstairs, he fired simultaneously—
This time, he anticipated the enemy sniper's movements, and the bullet pierced the enemy's throat, splattering a large spray of blood. The mercenary fell to the ground.
"Ah Guang!" Zhan Hantao noticed the commotion upstairs and hurriedly called out to Zhang Jiguang. The latter understood and immediately threw the second round. Mixed with the lingering smoke from the previous attack, the criminals' vehicle was almost completely obscured. The Flying Tigers quickly raised their guns to return fire, while Xie Jiaxing and Guo Dewei, who had previously left to find another armored vehicle, arrived just in time. Amidst the chaos, they accelerated forward, delivering a fierce and sudden blow to the mercenary group.
Xie Jiaxing, wielding a baton, leaped from the roof of the police van, pinning one of the men to the ground. He then turned and delivered a powerful blow to his accomplice. The injured man, his joints broken, cried out in pain and knelt, only to be shoved back into the truck bed by Xie Jiaxing. At this point, the Colombian gang's defeat was inevitable. Seeing the situation was dire, Jin Xiuji hurriedly led her men to retreat from the other side. She hadn't expected Zhan Hantao and his group to turn the tide, but it didn't matter; she still had a trump card up her sleeve. Eliminating them was only a matter of time.
Iris didn't learn about the base attack from AK until evening. She was terrified, while AK, meanwhile, was chuckling and praising Zhuang Zhuoyuan's technical expertise to her mother. Seeing Iris's almost jumping up and down expression, AK deliberately said, "That kid Zhuoyuan, in his eagerness to track down that bastard, didn't even care about his own safety. He didn't even bother to find cover, just brazenly exposing himself like that. It's only because the other side was too overconfident and underestimated him. If it were me, I'd have fired a couple of shots first."
"Alan!" Iris exclaimed angrily.
AK continued dancing on her minefield: "Baby Shishi, Yuan is alright in the end, what are you worried about? How can I feel at ease planning a trip to the Middle East with him in the future if you're like this? Yuan's potential in shooting is absolutely beyond all of your imagination."
Iris didn't want Zhuang Zhuoyuan to receive such favor from AK; she just wanted her husband to be safe and sound. Since the project started, Zhuang Zhuoyuan had been very busy, only returning home twice in total. Even when Iris missed him, she would just send him a message at the last minute to let him know she was safe. Until tonight, she couldn't suppress her worry any longer and, for the first time ever, asked him if he was coming home.
Inspector Zhuang didn't reply immediately. AK was still chattering on: "Actually, I was prepared to help too. It's our own kid, we can't just stand by and do nothing. I had already planned to have someone send a drone over to use the camera lens to help A-Yuan see the opponent clearly. Even if the drone is shot down by the opponent, that fleeting image will be enough for A-Yuan to catch. I didn't expect his observation skills to be so strong. He even caught such a small shadow. Jennie, I really admire you as a son-in-law. Iris, I have to praise your eye for talent again."
Iris was almost in tears.
AK couldn't stand the little girl's appearance any longer and gave in, pulling out his car keys to surrender: "Okay, okay, I'll take you to sneak a peek at your husband, and we'll come right back, alright?"
"Alan!" Jennie interrupted.
AK smiled and said, "Don't worry, sister-in-law, they're still searching for Wayne's whereabouts. We won't encounter any gunfights. If it gets too late, I'll take Iris to the airport and pick up Ah Hua as well."
"My older sister is already on her way?" Iris was just learning the news.
AK nodded, pulled her along, and said, "After she got her leave application, William told me about it. I was in a rush to check on A-Yuan's situation and didn't have time to tell you. This is good news, isn't it?"
Iris sniffed and nodded. AK was practically coaxing her like a child, holding her hand and gesturing: "Look, one good news after another, a whole series of good things are bound to follow. What are you worried about? Besides, with us here, even if we have to fight against the King of Hell, we'll get you back."
"Pah! Pah! Pah!" Iris became superstitious, avoiding such ominous words. She didn't want Zhuang Zhuoyuan to be in danger, nor did she want AK and the others to risk their lives to help him. They were all extremely important people in her life.
AK patted Iris on the back of the head with satisfaction. He had seen through her thoughts so easily, and his heart felt a surge of warmth. The car lights flashed twice, and AK helped Iris into the car, then sat down beside her. Looking into her eyes, he said with emotion, "Iris, do you know, your aunt and I both think that the most beautiful thing about you is your eyes. Your eyes can speak, so we love you as much as you love us."
Iris burst into laughter through her tears, taking the opportunity to accuse, "You didn't hold back at all when you bullied me." She knew they would all leave her one day, but at least while they were still together, she didn't want to talk about separation, not at all.
The car stopped across the street for a while. AK pointed to a window where Zhuang Zhuoyuan was. Through the window, she could see the lights reflected inside, but no one was in sight, and there was no movement. Strangely, just staring at it silently helped her calm down. As her emotions faded and reason returned, Iris realized this wasn't telepathy; it was purely psychological. She suddenly worried that AK might slap his forehead, looking annoyed, and tell her he'd pointed to the wrong window.
He used to do that all the time. Luckily, he didn't this time.
Iris's phone beeped; it was Zhuang Zhuoyuan's reply. He let her know he was safe and apologized. Still unable to go home, Iris couldn't help feeling disappointed.
At that moment, AK suddenly spoke up: "They're here."
He nudged Iris, making her look up from the screen. Zhuang Zhuoyuan appeared at the stairwell with another young face. Iris glanced at AK instinctively, and after seeing him nod, she quickly got out of the car and ran over.
Just like their first reunion in Hong Kong, Iris appeared before him as suddenly as she had. Zhuang Zhuoyuan was stunned once more. The guilt in his heart had not completely dissipated, and a surge of surprise and entanglement welled up again: "Wife..."
Before he could even speak, he was pulled into a tight embrace: "Baby, I was so worried about you."
The young man who was following them was quite tactful; he waved and went off to buy lunchboxes for the whole group. Zhuang Zhuoyuan kissed Iris's forehead, soothing her unease: "BB, you know everything."
Iris said, feeling wronged, "AK's description was very scary."
“He’s teasing you.” Zhuang Zhuoyuan walked past her, his gaze fixed on the car parked not far away. AK caught his gaze, rolled down her window, and waved to him.
Zhuang Zhuoyuan nodded slightly. Iris felt his movement, wiped away her tears, and quickly pulled away from his embrace. "Go to work. I'm going home with AK. We'll pick up my sister later; she should arrive around midnight."
"Don't you need to hug me a little longer?" Zhuang Zhuoyuan stroked her hair. She had suddenly attacked him, and he was the only one who could win. With reluctance, he kissed her lips one last time and touched her face, saying, "I know. Don't be afraid. Be a good girl and wait for me at home. Things here will be over in a day or two."
"So fast?"
"That's about it."
Once Jin Xiuji's identity is confirmed, the subsequent work will be much easier. Start with her adoptive mother-in-law and trace her recent whereabouts. Then clarify the past conflicts between Zhong Wei'en, her, Su Hong, and An Tianming. The rest will be clear and easy to deduce. Besides Zhong Wei'en, the other person Jin Xiuji seeks revenge against is undoubtedly Zhan Hantao.
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