Chapter 684

The sound of bullets continuously striking the water echoed out, and apart from that, there were also "plop" sounds of people leaping into the water.

Hearing these sounds, Ning Chen knew those behind had also jumped into the water to pursue him.

It was truly just as he had thought before; adhering to the attitude of wanting to see the living person or the dead body, they truly would not let a single person go.

Since that was the case, their speed of escape had to increase significantly; Ning Chen kicked his legs harder, increased his swimming speed, and tried to catch up with the people ahead.

But after swimming for a long time, one had to surface for air; Ning Chen timed it, suddenly grabbed Master Li's clothes with both hands, and forcefully lifted him upward.

Ning Chen himself also stuck his head out at the same moment; Master Li and Ning Chen cooperated seamlessly, taking a deep breath at the exact moment their heads broke the surface, then immediately bent down again to increase their swimming speed.

Those behind had not undergone professional training; Cangbei had little water, and most were not good swimmers, so the distance between them and Ning Chen's group grew wider; even if they wanted to pursue, most were willing but unable.

Jia Yi watched his own people falling further behind; his expression shifted from rage to coldness. He had long known his subordinates were unreliable, so he sneered, held the walkie-talkie, and said, "If you haven't killed them, all of you must atone with your lives!"

This was the most severe punishment; no one wanted to die, whether the pursuers or the pursued.

For a moment, more bullets were fired into the water, causing considerable ripples, but the river water was not very clear; from a distance, it was impossible to see the movements of the people ahead.

Chu Muyu was still at the very front, but he did not only care about his own escape; while swimming, he looked back at the girl who was now somewhat out of breath, saw she was gradually struggling to swim, so he turned back and grabbed her hand.

The girl was stunned, realized Ning Chen wanted to help her swim, pressed her lips hard underwater, and nodded at Chu Muyu; Chu Muyu made no response.

570 Out of breath, voluntarily staying behind

Chu Muyu stuck his entire head out of the water and gasped for breath; at this moment, his strength was not yet completely exhausted, so carrying someone while swimming was not difficult.

So Chu Muyu held the girl's hand; the longer they swam underwater, the harder it became to breathe, and the frequency of surfacing for air increased.

Naturally, the pursuers saw this; they waited for the moment Chu Muyu surfaced to breathe, preparing to seize the opportunity to attack right there.

After all, they all understood Jia Yi's orders; as the main person in charge of the project, if only one of them had to die, it had to be Chu Muyu.

Because Chu Muyu knew too much internal information, letting such a person live was no different than creating trouble for oneself; Jia Yi could even allow Ning Chen to take others out of Cangbei, but Chu Muyu had to stay behind.

It was just a pity that Ning Chen's only target was Chu Muyu.

As for the others, although they were just being taken along, within the limits of his ability, Ning Chen would not let them come to harm.

On Ning Chen's side, he was also carrying someone; when he looked back, he could see those behind were getting closer and closer, holding guns aimed at him.

While swimming, Ning Chen had been dodging left and right with Master Li; he had rich experience in dodging bullets, but others might not; Ning Chen could only do his best to protect Master Li's safety, and besides that, he had to carry Chu Muyu.

Thinking of this, Ning Chen swam forward a few more steps, but those behind had already captured the frequency of Chu Muyu surfacing to breathe and were preparing to fire.

"Bang—!"

With one shot, the bullet did not hit Ning Chen or Chu Muyu; it landed exactly in a small area just ahead of Ning Chen.

It was not that the people behind made a judgment error; rather, Chu Muyu this time did not expose his head; precisely when they were preparing to fire, Chu Muyu plunged his head into the water, did not surface to breathe, and his figure was invisible.

The situation was truly too tricky; those behind did not think they could defeat Ning Chen, so they could only try their best to capture Chu Muyu's figure.

But in the end, it was still like drawing water with a bamboo basket—a complete failure.

Not only did they lose Chu Muyu, but they didn't even hit Ning Chen who was right there; Ning Chen had already sensed the position of those behind; even if they wanted to try the same trick again, it would depend on a battle of wits between both sides.

564. Life and Death on a Thin Line (4)

Ning Chen never lost in this aspect; seeing the splash of water in front of him, without the slightest hesitation, he grabbed Master Li by the side and yanked him down, pulling him into the water.

Ning Chen would not fall for the same trick; the curly-haired man, the man with glasses, and the other woman were at the very front, while Chu Muyu and the girl fell behind, yet were still ahead of Ning Chen and Master Li.

Even if Ning Chen had great stamina, his speed would slow down after carrying someone; and since he was carrying Master Li, and Master Li was not young, his legs were not as convenient as the other young people's; holding his breath, he fell behind Ning Chen; even though Ning Chen was pulling him, Master Li still had some difficulty swimming.

Ning Chen sighed in his heart, but looking at the distance between the two sides, he understood that those behind probably could not catch up with him for a while; if they continued to pursue, this would be a war of attrition of stamina.

They had been swimming in the water for nearly five minutes; the five scientists spent their days in the laboratory and naturally did not exercise often, so their speed was not very fast, but they had still put a large gap between themselves and those behind.

It was just not enough to swim to the opposite bank.

The plane overhead had already stopped at the opposite bank; a few kilometers past the opposite bank was the border line; beyond the border line, Ning Chen's people would be there to receive him.

But if they could not swim to the opposite bank of the river, everything was off the table.

This river was narrow but long; it did not look like a great river, but rather like a stream, only deeper; the opposite bank made Ning Chen and the others able to see it but unable to reach it.

Jia Yi had already issued an absolute death order; if the task was not completed, his subordinates must atone with their lives; no one dared to slacken, and they even increased their speed.

When Master Li swam halfway, he also seemed to realize he was a burden to Ning Chen; he was old, and his stamina was not as good as in his youth, so he grabbed Ning Chen's hand and, while Ning Chen was lifting him to breathe, quickly said, "Stop carrying me; I cannot swim that far."

Ning Chen said nothing; his expression didn't even change; after hearing these words, he yanked Master Li down again and continued swimming toward the opposite bank.

Master Li felt somewhat puzzled in his heart; he didn't know if Ning Chen had actually heard his words; if he had heard them, he surely wouldn't continue carrying him; he was a burden; leaving Ning Chen sooner might allow Ning Chen to save others.

But Ning Chen's attitude made Master Li somewhat unable to understand; Ning Chen continued carrying Master Li underwater, and even increased his speed; Master Li could only think Ning Chen hadn't heard his words clearly and waited to tell him again after sticking his head out of the water next time.

But when he stuck his head out next time, before Master Li could open his mouth, Ning Chen spoke first: "Don't think about it; as long as I have one breath left, I will take you all out."

Master Li only had time to take a breath before being pulled back into the water by Ning Chen again.

His mood became complex in an instant; the moment he sank into the water, he was unprepared and choked on a mouthful; looking at Ning Chen's back, he felt somewhat moved in his heart.

Ning Chen was neither a relative nor a friend to him; there was only a relationship of mutual interest; although they were of the same nationality, it was not necessary to risk his life to protect him; who knew Ning Chen truly had such thoughts.

But Master Li knew the limits of his own body; he had only swum halfway and was already somewhat tired; he had used up most of his strength; he feared he would drown here before reaching the opposite bank.

Master Li was not afraid of death; he only worried that staying here would become a burden to Ning Chen.

So, while there was still a little time, every time Ning Chen brought him to the surface, Master Li had to speak.

"Don't worry about me; I am old and cannot swim!"

"I can't hold on much longer; throw me here and you go on by yourselves."

"I know I am a burden; forget it, Ning Chen; you don't need to pay me the money either."

"If we swim a few more times, it will really be—"

This time, Ning Chen finally did not pretend to be dead; he did not push Master Li back underwater the instant he finished speaking; instead, he turned his head and, timing it carefully, said to Master Li seriously: "You took this job because of me; in terms of both emotion and reason, I will not abandon you; you have done me a kindness, and I naturally must repay it."

After all, there was no one Ning Chen knew in Cangbei; Ning Chen searched for a long time to find a driver willing to take the job; this was already owing Master Li a favor; abandoning a benefactor now, even if Ning Chen had to resort to such a desperate measure, would leave him with a guilty conscience.

Master Li dared not drag Ning Chen's leg; he knew that although his legs were inconvenient, Ning Chen was unwilling to give up on him; if Ning Chen were injured later due to his lack of cooperation, he naturally would also have a guilty conscience.

So Master Li could only hold his breath and follow Ning Chen's steps, swimming hard toward the destination; although the process was somewhat arduous, this time with the support of willpower, some of the strength that had been largely consumed returned.

Ning Chen noticed Master Li behind him moving faster, felt a sigh of relief in his heart, and while keeping an eye on the pursuers behind, adjusted his speed accordingly.

Meanwhile, Jia Yi suddenly received a phone call.

It was a call from a stranger; the caller's identity was unknown, yet for some reason, it managed to reach Jia Yi's private mobile phone.

Jia Yi looked at the number, hesitated for a moment, then answered with a furrowed brow and a gloomy face: "Who is it?"

"It's me! Send someone to pick me up..."

Jia Yi's brow furrowed even tighter; he recognized the voice—it was Jia Da.

Thinking of Jia Da, Jia Yi's expression softened slightly.

Jia Da was a distant relative; although called a distant relative, Jia Da possessed a silver tongue, and whenever the two conversed, Jia Da could always coax Jia Yi into a good mood.

No one dislikes hearing praise; although over the years various people had flattered Jia Yi, few flattered him in a way that brought genuine joy like Jia Da did, so Jia Yi paid extra attention to Jia Da.

Jia Da's performance surprised Jia Yi greatly; Jia Da was a very smart person with business talent and a silver tongue, and coincidentally, Jia Da had asked him for ways to make money. Jia Yi thought for a moment and realized he still had several factories under his command lacking personnel management.

And Jia Da was a suitable candidate; Jia Yi immediately hesitated not at all, sent Jia Da into one of his factories, and raised Jia Da's initial position very high.

Jia Da indeed possessed management talent; he managed the entire factory from top to bottom flawlessly, and after saving a little money, started his own factory. Clearly, Jia Da had a conscience; every year after starting the factory, he sent Jia Yi a considerable sum of Qian Cai.

Jia Yi sat still and received money; the key was that the person was like a loyal dog, so Jia Yi trusted Jia Da more and more. Although they were distant relatives, their relationship was better than that of some close kin.

Thinking of this, Jia Yi asked: "What is the matter? You haven't usually come to me asking for people before, have you...?"

On Jia Da's end, the voice was very quiet, yet his tone carried a slight tremor: "I was held hostage by someone and just escaped from his grasp... Come save me; I really don't want to stay on the streets."

Hearing Jia Da's explanation, Jia Yi suddenly thought of a person; his lips trembled twice, and he spoke a name: "The person you mentioned, is it Ning Chen?"

Jia Da paused for a moment: "What? You know him?"

Hearing this, Jia Yi realized the truth; he immediately let out a cold sneer: "That guy really won't leave me alone! To be honest, my men are currently pursuing him; if nothing unexpected happens, within half an hour, Ning Chen will sink to the bottom of the water and become a cold corpse."

Hearing this, Jia Da felt something was wrong no matter how he listened: "You are pursuing Ning Chen? Can he really die at your hands?"

Upon hearing these words, Jia Yi's expression turned ugly.

"What do you mean by that? Are you saying my men can't beat Ning Chen?" Jia Yi leaned closer to the phone, his tone suddenly turning vicious: "Even if Ning Chen is talented, he is burdened with so many dead weights; what, do you look down on me?"

Jia Da was startled; he certainly did not mean that, but having lain in the hotel bathroom for so long, his head was dizzy, and he spoke without Gu Ji.

He quickly corrected himself: "I didn't mean that; if Ning Chen hadn't kept me in the bathroom for two days and two nights, I wouldn't have lost my wits. I naturally know your strength; don't overthink it."

Hearing this, Jia Yi's expression improved slightly; thinking of Jia Da's recent repayments, Jia Yi did not keep pressing Jia Da: "I know you are not that kind of person. Forget it; I can't spare time right now. You wait a bit longer."

Having finished speaking, Jia Yi wanted to hang up the phone.

Jia Da grew anxious and quickly said before Jia Yi could hang up: "Don't! If I stay here any longer, I'll starve to death..."

Jia Yi's eyes showed a hint of impatience, but his gaze remained fixed tightly on the screen; he was observing Ning Chen's movements at that moment.

But on Ning Chen's side, there was still no change; the people behind continued to pursue the person ahead, yet they simply could not catch up.

Jia Yi felt somewhat unwilling to look away from the screen, yet he could not ignore Jia Da.