Chapter 7: Guessed the Beginning but Not the Ending

“Alright, have them lean against the pillars.” The woman raised her pistol and ordered coldly:

“You two, go to the other side of the pillar, turn around, and squat down with your hands on your heads.”

The two men who hadn’t been shot said nothing and obediently followed the woman’s instructions—they turned around, squatted down, and clamped their hands tightly over their heads.

These two men were clearly terrified by the earlier gunfire and dared not think of resisting anymore.

The two men leaning against the pillars, however, showed remarkable defiance.

One of them had been shot in the abdomen, yet he gritted his teeth and forced out:

“Little bitch, you hit hard—real spicy! I misjudged you.”

The other one also growled through clenched teeth:

“Stop aiming—just shoot. Come on, aim for the head, kill me quick!”

The woman remained unmoved, keeping her pistol trained on them.

The man shot in the abdomen suddenly fell silent, his mouth wide open, his eyes fixed straight on the woman’s back.

The woman instantly sensed his anomaly and grew wary.

Worried they might be setting a trap, she didn’t turn around directly—instead, she slid swiftly one step left and twisted her body, scanning the spot she’d just left with her peripheral vision.

No one?

In the instant she hesitated, she suddenly felt her right wrist—holding the gun—snatched with force, followed by searing pain.

Then her entire arm went numb; her grip loosened and the pistol slipped from her hand.

The woman spun around in terror.

She couldn’t believe what she was seeing, couldn’t fathom how someone could have closed the distance so swiftly.

But when she saw who had attacked her, her shock deepened—it was a massive, mountain-like fatty!

Even though she’d just feinted, this fatty had seemingly read her mind and slipped in perfectly.

What kind of reaction speed could achieve that?

Before she could even finish the thought, the fatty’s other hand shot out and landed precisely on her neck.

The woman tried to struggle, but felt a sharp press at the back of her neck—her body instantly went limp, and she lost consciousness.

Yu Dazhang picked up the pistol from the ground and exhaled deeply.

From the woman’s stunned expression, Yu Dazhang knew she had no idea what had gone wrong.

“I anticipated your anticipation.”

Though the woman couldn’t hear him, Yu Dazhang whispered it anyway.

Things had been going smoothly—half my body was out and she hadn’t noticed.

But it all went wrong because of that guy shot across the way—why couldn’t you just pretend you didn’t see me?

You had to look like you’d never seen anything like this before.

Just thinking about it made Yu Dazhang shudder—if he hadn’t reacted fast, he might’ve been shot too.

He glanced at the unconscious woman on the ground and decided there was no need to cuff her.

The main team would arrive soon; she wouldn’t wake up before then.

He walked over to the other side and patted the two men crouching on the floor:

“Get up—you’re safe now.”

They lowered their hands from behind their heads and turned to look at Yu Dazhang, faces full of confusion:

“Bro, who are you?”

Due to the nature of criminal investigations, the team rarely wore uniforms on missions—Yu Dazhang was still dressed in the casual clothes he’d worn at the matchmaking corner.

“Who else could save you?” He didn’t bother explaining and turned to check the other two men’s wounds.

“Hold on—I’m checking the wounds.”

Yu Dazhang pulled up the man’s shirt over the gunshot wound and leaned in to look.

He didn’t notice that the wounded man’s eyes were locked onto Yu Dazhang’s waist—where the pistol was holstered!

Confirmed that Yu Dazhang’s attention was fully on his wound, he slowly raised his hand, reaching for the gun…

“Aaaagh!! Pain! Fuck, it hurts, it hurts, it hurts!” Yu Dazhang jumped back, yanking his hand away:

“What’s wrong with you? Why are you yelling?”

“You just look—why are you poking? Why’s your hand so fucking rude?!”

The man lowered his hand again and clutched his abdomen tightly.

Subjective will couldn’t overcome reflex—sweat poured from his forehead from the pain.

“Sorry, I didn’t realize it’d hurt this much—is it serious?” Yu Dazhang looked at him with genuine concern, clearly anxious.

“What do you think?! Can’t you see blood’s spraying everywhere?!”

Yu Dazhang leaned in again:

“Let me take another look.”

“Get away from me! Now!” The man flinched like a startled cat and slapped Yu Dazhang’s hand away.

“Fine, then just hold it yourself.”

Please... collect... 6...9...books...!

Yu Dazhang stood up helplessly, about to check the other man’s wound, when he suddenly heard running footsteps below.

The main team’s here!

“I’m Yu Dazhang—come up, the situation is under control!”

If he hadn’t called out, the team below wouldn’t have dared to rush up—they’d come because they heard gunshots.

Yu Dazhang announced his name to reassure them.

Sure enough, a head quickly popped up at the stairwell—it was Lu Zhongxin.

He looked like a mole, popping up and immediately ducking back down.

Quite cautious… Yu Dazhang almost laughed.

“Master, don’t worry—everything’s under my control!”

No sooner had he spoken than Lu Zhongxin popped his head up again—this time he didn’t retreat, but swiftly scanned the room.

“Safe—go!” He barked lowly and sprinted up the stairs, heading straight for the unconscious woman.

Reaching her side, Lu Zhongxin knelt down and placed his fingers on her carotid artery, preparing to focus his senses—when a voice interrupted him:

“Don’t bother—she’s just been knocked out by me.”

Lu Zhongxin froze instantly, as if time had stopped.

As if realizing something, he turned his head, locking his gaze on Yu Dazhang’s position.

“Why did you knock her out?”

Lu Zhongxin spoke as calmly as he could, trying not to sound too agitated.

“To rescue the hostage.” Yu Dazhang answered calmly.

Seeing Yu Dazhang’s utterly unshaken expression, Lu Zhongxin knew he wasn’t lying.

“So…” Lu Zhongxin pointed at the woman on the ground:

“She’s not the hostage?”

The words “Of course” were already on Yu Dazhang’s lips—but he swallowed them back.

What was the situation? A kidnapping scene!

Who was Lu Zhongxin? A rigid, almost stubborn veteran detective.

In this setting, with this man—would he joke around or play mind games?

He was trying, as gently as possible, to tell Yu Dazhang one fact: You fucked up—this woman is the hostage!

Lu Zhongxin did this because:

First, he feared alerting the real kidnappers near Yu Dazhang.

Second, he feared other officers arriving later would learn Yu Dazhang had mistaken the target.

This mistake had to be hidden if possible!

Yu Dazhang quickly realized it—he yanked his pistol from his waist and pointed it at the four real kidnappers:

“Don’t move!”

“Look who’s moving,” one of the crouching men said, face green:

“Who the hell are you even with?!”

(End of Chapter)