Chapter 86

As Chang Huazhong closed his eyes in despair, waiting for the triple-edged dagger to pierce his body, a sudden gunshot rang out! Then a deep voice shouted: “Don’t move! Police!”

Chang Huazhong, who had just surrendered to despair, opened his eyes to see a group of police officers appearing in the alley, their gun barrels aimed directly at the men before him.

The three masked men, realizing they were surrounded, exchanged glances and simultaneously clattered their daggers to the ground. The lead officer barked: “Put your hands on your heads and squat down!”

The three obeyed. The lead officer waved his left hand, and several officers rushed in from all sides to restrain the masked men. Chang Huazhong cried out urgently: “Officers! Quick! Send a doctor! My brother is injured!”

No sooner had he spoken than he noticed Ling Wei, whom he had just kicked to the ground, was gone—only a pool of blood remained. He couldn’t believe his eyes; his mind went momentarily blank. Suddenly, a blood-smeared arm wrapped around his neck from behind, gripping a sharp knife tightly—the blade, still dripping fresh blood, pressed against his carotid artery!

The surrounding police had also seen this scene. The air seemed to freeze. Then a faint voice whispered: “Chang Huazhong! Remember this! The killer is Ling Wei!”

The man controlling Chang Huazhong from behind was none other than Ling Wei, severely wounded by the masked man’s dagger. The blade had pierced Ling Wei’s right lung. As he was stabbed, he spun and slashed the attacker’s throat. Then Chang Huazhong kicked him, leaving the dagger embedded in his body—if it had been pulled out, he would have bled to death instantly.

But that embedded dagger gave him his final ounce of strength. While no one was paying attention to his fallen form, he grabbed a knife from the ground, pushed himself up against the car, and stood.

Just as Chang Huazhong was about to scream, a hot gush of blood spurted from his neck. Then came another gunshot—“buzz”—his head roared, his vision turned black, and he lost consciousness.

Ling Wei, shot in the forehead, loosened his grip. The knife fell to the ground. His body collapsed backward with a wet “puch!”—his torso slammed against the car door, and the triple-edged dagger buried in his chest burst out the other side, its gleaming triangular tip spewing blood violently along its grooves.

Lu Haoxuan turned his head. The shot had come from one of his veteran detectives, who now stood frozen in firing position. Lu Haoxuan glanced at the usually silent officer with surprise.

The 120 ambulance had arrived at the alley’s entrance, but the narrow passage was packed with police, so the vehicle stopped outside. Doctors, nurses, and stretcher-bearers rushed into the scene.

Both the Nine-Finger gang and the masked men were now under police control. The doctors rushed in, pressed a hemostatic pack against Chang Huazhong’s severed neck, and swiftly loaded him onto a stretcher. Another team lifted the masked man with his throat slit onto another ambulance.

Ling Wei, shot in the head, had long since lost all vital signs. Death had been inevitable for him. Perhaps now, for the first time, he felt he had repaid Zhang Shaojie—and owed him nothing more.

Lu Haoxuan assigned Hu Jinquan to take several officers onto the two ambulances, left two police officers behind to interview witnesses, and ordered everyone else to board vehicles and follow the ambulances to the hospital.

In the emergency room of City No. 1 People’s Hospital, two kilometers from the alley, Chang Huazhong was still barely alive, undergoing frantic resuscitation. Both the masked man and Ling Wei had lost vital signs en route.

Lu Haoxuan’s chest burned with rage. The gun case had no leads—and now this major case: two dead, one critically wounded!

Even this staunch materialist couldn’t help but curse fate: Heaven was cruel to him.

Upon hearing the news, Chang Huazhong’s elder brother and head of the Chang family, Chang Huaqiang, rushed to the hospital. Soon, the corridor outside the emergency room filled with employees of the Chang Group, arriving one after another.

Eventually, the corridor became so crowded that Chang Huaqiang and the nurses had to clear everyone out into the hallway.

Lu Haoxuan, along with Hu Jinquan and Gu Changzheng, who had arrived upon hearing the news, waited anxiously outside the emergency room. Chang Huazhong’s three subordinates had been treated for their wounds; one (Little Sparrow) was seriously injured and needed surgery, while the other two were stable.

After questioning, both said they didn’t know Ling Wei. But Huo Ya provided a key detail: Ling Wei had been watching Chang Huazhong for a long time—his appearance at Wang’s was no accident.

Could this man calling himself Ling Wei (whose identity police had yet to confirm) be the same gunman who killed Chang Huafei?

Lu Haoxuan thought. According to the special task force’s investigation, Chang Huafei, though a Chang family member, was an insignificant figure in the Chang Group with no known enemies—he was most likely mistaken for Chang Huazhong.

If so, then this killer was almost certainly the same one who murdered Chang Huafei. And the killer’s motive—

Realizing this, Lu Haoxuan decided to start with Ling Wei’s identity—he might uncover the mastermind behind him.

Meanwhile, Chang Huaqiang paced frantically outside the emergency room, terrified his younger brother might die. He had concealed the news from their father, Chang Rongda—but he knew the old man would find out soon. All he could do now was pray Chang Huazhong would survive.

Time crawled like a wheel stuck in mud. Everyone outside the emergency room waited, each with their own heartache, for news from behind that door.

Finally, the light above the door went out. The heavy isolation door slowly opened. A doctor stepped out. Chang Huaqiang, several core members of the Chang Group, Lu Haoxuan, and others rushed forward.

“Doctor! How is my brother?” Chang Huaqiang asked softly.

“Oh, Director Chang!” The doctor was Tu Xiangyang, the chief surgeon of City No. 1 Hospital, whom Chang Huaqiang had dragged from home the moment he heard the news.

Doctor Tu removed his mask: “Young Master Chang is lucky. The attacker lacked strength—the wound was shallow and didn’t fully sever his common carotid artery. Thanks to prompt treatment, he’s out of danger now.”

Chang Huaqiang exhaled deeply. He thought inwardly: “Thank heaven!”

He glanced at Lu Haoxuan beside him, coldly saying: “Captain Lu! You haven’t caught the man who shot my cousin Huafei! Now my own brother nearly died! Is this how you police protect ordinary citizens? With this kind of security in Zizhen City, are you forcing the Chang Group to invest elsewhere?”

Lu Haoxuan smiled faintly: “Director Chang, we’ve made major progress in the gun case. We’ll investigate your brother’s incident thoroughly. Rest assured—as long as we’re here, Zizhen won’t fall into chaos. Whoever dares cause trouble, we’ll arrest without mercy.”