Chapter 94

The armored command vehicle slowly pulled up in front of the Security Command Headquarters gate. Lin Yu adjusted his uniform and, accompanied by Shiteyin, stepped down from the vehicle.

In the morning light, his figure stood tall like a pine, a faint smile playing on his lips.

"Lin... Director Lin!" the gate guard captain stammered, "This is a vital area of the Security Command Headquarters, please..."

Before he could finish, Shiteyin's icy gaze made him retreat half a step. More than ten soldiers of the guard company raised their rifles, trying to block Lin Yu's path.

Shiteyin's mouth curled slightly, and he gestured to the guard company soldiers behind him.

"Click!" the uniform sound of bolt actions rang out.

Twenty soldiers of the 7th Division's guard company rushed forward in unison, moving with machine-like precision. The rifle butts slammed hard into the abdomen and knees of those blocking the way, swiftly and cleanly. After a few muffled groans, the blocking soldiers all knelt on the ground, clutching their wounds and moaning.

"This..." the guard company captain's face turned pale as he watched his subordinates easily subdued, unable to utter a word.

Lin Yu didn't even glance at the fallen soldiers, striding into the headquarters. Along the way, the Security Army soldiers lowered their heads and stepped aside, none daring to meet the young man's eyes.

Shiteyin followed behind Lin Yu, his eyes like knives, scanning every suspicious corner. The guard company soldiers held their submachine guns, falling in step in perfect formation, the sound of their leather boots striking the ground shaking everyone's spirits.

In the corridor, a few officers who tried to intercept had just taken a step when guard company soldiers pressed rifle butts against their chests. Those officers, usually arrogant, now wilted like frost-bitten eggplants, able only to watch helplessly as Lin Yu's party passed by.

Some clenched their fists, some gritted their teeth, but no one dared act rashly. The annihilation of the 9th Division the previous night was like a heavy hammer, shattering all their arrogance. The Security Command Headquarters now resembled a toothless tiger, able only to watch as the hunter roamed freely through its own territory.

Lin Yu's footsteps echoed in the corridor, each step as if treading on these officers' dignity. Meanwhile, Shiteyin and the guard company ensured that no one could impede this young man's advance...

"Director Lin, your gracious presence is an honor we failed to welcome properly!" Yang Chengdong, accompanied by Zheng Shenguo and Sun Desheng, hurried forward to greet him, wearing a modest smile as if he had completely forgotten the tragedy just hours earlier.

Qin Chang'an followed behind, suppressing his inner turmoil. He clearly remembered the bullet hole in his father's chest, that cold corpse still lying in the mortuary. Yet now he had to force a smile toward this young man who was very likely the murderer.

"General Yang, you're too courteous," Lin Yu said with a slight nod, his gaze sweeping over everyone present, "I heard Commander Qin has passed away, so I came specially to pay my respects."

Those words were like a dagger plunged into everyone's heart. Yet no one dared show the slightest displeasure, not even a hint of hostility in their eyes. The destruction of the 9th Division weighed on them like a mountain, leaving them breathless.

"Director Lin, you are thoughtful," Yang Chengdong said with a forced smile, his voice betraying a barely perceptible tremor, "but it is not yet convenient to announce this news to the outside..."

"No problem," Lin Yu said lightly, cutting him off, "I was close friends with Commander Qin; I know all about his affairs."

His words carried deep meaning, tightening the hearts of those present. Zheng Shenguo and Sun Desheng exchanged a glance, each seeing profound helplessness in the other's eyes.

"Then please, Director Lin, step into the reception room," Yang Chengdong said, nodding repeatedly, his smile barely holding on, "we have some things we ought to discuss properly."

The party walked toward the reception room. Along the way, Yang Chengdong kept finding topics for small talk, as if he were merely entertaining an ordinary mourner. Yet his back was soaked in cold sweat, each step taken with utmost caution.

Qin Chang'an walked last, watching Lin Yu's back, his heart in turmoil. In just a few months, this young man had swept away all obstacles with thunderous methods. Yet now, these once high-and-mighty Security Command Headquarters officials could only fawn over him like servants.

Shiteyin remained vigilantly behind Lin Yu, his icy gaze occasionally sweeping over the surrounding Security Army officers.

Lin Yu sprawled on the reception room sofa, slowly drawing a silver cigarette case from his pocket, taking out a cigarette and lighting it with deliberate calm. He inhaled deeply, looking at the ashen-faced Qin Chang'an before him, the corner of his mouth curling into a mocking smile.

"Young Commander," Lin Yu exhaled a smoke ring, "you once said that without the Security Army's help, I could not deal with the foreign devils."

He paused, his gaze playful as he looked at Qin Chang'an: "How is it now? Are the corpses of the 9th Division still piled outside the city? Those armored units you prided yourself on probably can't even be reassembled from spare parts."

Qin Chang'an clenched his fists tightly. In just one night, the elite division that the Japanese Empire prided itself on was shattered to pieces. Those steel beasts were blasted into fragments, and the elite soldiers lay dead across the fields.

And their Security Command Headquarters' thirty thousand troops, without firing a single shot, simply watched this one-sided slaughter unfold.

"You..." Qin Chang'an's voice trembled, "just who are you?"

"The Security Army?" Lin Yu snorted, his eyes full of contempt, "just a bunch of rotten sweet potatoes and stinking duck eggs."

He rose, paced to the window, and swept his gaze over the Security Command Headquarters courtyard outside: "Usually, in Shen City, they throw their weight around and bully the populace, acting all high and mighty. But before the Great Powers, hum..."

Lin Yu turned, his eyes mocking: "A pack of obedient lackeys! When the foreigners were killing and burning in the concession, where were you? When the French and British ran rampant on the docks, where were you again?"

These words were like a sharp dagger thrust straight into everyone's heart. Yang Chengdong's face turned ashen, Zheng Shenguo clenched his teeth, and even Qin Chang'an gripped his fists so hard his nails dug into his palms.

"You only know how to swagger in front of your own people," Lin Yu said slowly, stubbing out his cigarette in the ashtray, "the thirty-thousand-strong Security Army may strut through Shen City, but before the Great Powers they dare not even break wind."

The atmosphere in the reception room grew heavy, almost congealing. Everyone could feel the contempt and disdain in Lin Yu's words, yet no one dared to rebut. For they knew it was the truth.

"To be frank," Lin Yu said, settling back onto the sofa, his gaze teasing as it swept over everyone present, "I came today just to watch you make fools of yourselves."

He crossed his legs, lounging lazily: "I want to see what expressions you, the so-called titans of Shen City's military circles, will wear upon learning that the vaunted 9th Division, the Japanese Empire's elite ace, was wiped out by me with ease."

Lin Yu's voice was not loud, but each word struck like a dagger into everyone's hearts: "Looking at it now, it is indeed quite splendid."

No one spoke; the air filled with a suffocating oppression. These figures who usually called the wind and summoned the rain in Shen City now stood as if stripped naked and displayed, even the last shred of their dignity crushed into the ground.

And the instigator, Lin Yu, remained as nonchalant as ever, as if he were watching a laughable farce...