Chapter 58: Turning Against Each Other

"He Yuzhu! Stop moving! If you move again, I'll fire!" The Security Section Chief's voice came from inside. They had met a few times and been through a few things, so there was no real enmity between them.

"Don't, I know you too well. With your kind nature, you definitely won't fire." He Yuzhu took another step forward.

"Bang!"

A gunshot rang out, the bullet hitting the concrete floor by He Yuzhu's feet, kicking up a few tiny stone fragments.

"...! Damn it, you son of a bitch, you really fired?!" He Yuzhu jumped and cursed: "I was worried you guys were hungry and brought you chicken and duck meat! It's like feeding kindness to a donkey's liver and lungs—no, what is it again?"

"He Yuzhu, don't give me that nonsense. I don't want to hurt you, so go back. Either get them to agree to issue a letter of understanding so we can all have a laugh and pretend nothing happened, or we go down together!"

He Yuzhu lowered his head, held up the things in his hands slightly, and then shouted loudly: "I don't have any weapons. I don't know the specifics; their leaders have to discuss it. You guys have to eat, right? Besides, what are you afraid of with just one person? Isn't an extra hostage better?"

"I'm just a cook. Even if you want to go down together, shouldn't you eat your fill before you go? If you can't bear it, just let me out before you go down together. We're acquaintances, right? We've worked together for so long, don't you have any words for your families?" He Yuzhu seized the opportunity, his mouth running non-stop. He knew the weaknesses of human nature, and even if they fired, the chicken and duck in his hands would always be shielding his heart. It was pitch black, and from this distance, as long as he wasn't hit in the head, what was there to fear from a little injury?

Inside the factory, hearing He Yuzhu's words, there was indeed a commotion behind the Section Chief. No one wanted to die. Most of them were just scared by the Section Chief's talk of being executed, which was why they followed her in resisting to the end. Hearing He Yuzhu's words, the group looked at the Section Chief squatting by the factory door with wavering hearts.

"What do you say?" The Section Chief turned back to look at the group, the pimples on her face appearing even more prominent in the dim light.

"Section Chief, what He Yuzhu said makes sense. We can't let the brothers go on their way on empty stomachs," Chen Dazhuang said first.

Chen Erzhuang followed closely behind: "Big brother is right. Even if we go, we should leave a last will, right, Section Chief?"

"Right, right, right, they're right," the others nodded in agreement.

"Then let him in?" The Section Chief pulled the magazine, counted the bullets, and was also persuaded to waver.

To be honest, she didn't want to make such a big scene.

But what she had stolen wasn't just this bit of steel pipe; the money from selling it was hidden in a secret place. If it were here, all her hard work would be for nothing.

Furthermore, if those other matters were investigated, execution? That would be the least of it! That was why she had gritted her teeth and intimidated everyone into resisting with her.

"Section Chief, you're the boss, you make the call! If it doesn't work, we'll just fight our way out!" Zhu Laosi suggested, hunching his body.

But he received no response from the others.

Who wanted to die? If a real fight broke out, that "peanut" (bullet) would be a certainty.

Besides, Zhang Hao's shouting had also made everyone quite tempted, but they didn't know how to choose, so they could only hold on like this, delaying as long as they could!

"Fine, He Yuzhu, you can come over, but don't bring any weapons, you understand? Walk over slowly." The Section Chief's eyes rolled; she still needed to count on this group to help her bargain for favorable conditions, so she simply agreed to let He Yuzhu in.

Besides, He Yuzhu was right, what if...

Then she would have to find a way to tell her family where the money was hidden, and by the way, an extra hostage would give her more confidence.

"Alright! I'm coming over. I only have vegetables and meat, you can search me! I guarantee I have no weapons." He Yuzhu was overjoyed; it worked.

The people behind him watched He Yuzhu's back with worried faces until he entered the factory and completely disappeared from sight.

"Take him!" As soon as he entered, He Yuzhu was pinned to the ground by two people from the Security Section, and after being searched from head to toe, he was hauled back up.

"Hey, hey, hey, easy, hiss, stop groping, ouch, damn it, you old bastard." He Yuzhu cursed at the member who kept groping him while twisting his body to dodge.

"Speak, what are you hiding in your crotch? Did you hide a rolling pin?!" Dazhuang punched He Yuzhu in the stomach hard and grabbed his hair to ask.

"..." He Yuzhu bared his teeth, speechless. He gave him a look as if he were an idiot, then turned his head to look at the Security Section Chief.

"Alright, let him go. He Yuzhu, not bad, you've got guts." The Section Chief laughed and clapped her hands. The two men released He Yuzhu, and the Section Chief skillfully fished the cigarettes and lighter out of He Yuzhu's pocket and set them aside.

"It's all oil inside, don't accidentally set it off."

"Hey, alright, then how am I supposed to cook?" He Yuzhu was stunned. If he couldn't start a fire, hadn't he worked for nothing?

"Haha, you guys go, clear a spot in the corner for Master He and use our stove." The Section Chief clapped her hands, and after giving the order, she pulled He Yuzhu down to sit.

"Sigh, isn't it just some steel pipes? Why go to such lengths?" He Yuzhu sat down, smacked his lips, and tried to persuade her earnestly.

"Heh, let's not talk about that. How are things being discussed outside?" The Section Chief naturally wouldn't confess herself, instead asking about the situation outside, and the others pricked up their ears.

"Not great. To be honest, if it weren't for me coming, they would have called for reinforcements to storm the place." He Yuzhu sighed deliberately, artificially creating an atmosphere that made them panic.

"Oh, so there's still room to talk." The Section Chief nodded faintly, then asked: "I'm asking you, you must know since you're outside, don't lie to me. Tell me, who tipped them off about us?"

"Xu Damao, did you offend him?" He Yuzhu replied without blinking, without the slightest hesitation, a look of confusion appearing on his face.

"Achoo!" Xu Damao, who was washing diapers at home, sneezed. He looked back at his wife and child and revealed a motherly smile.

"Xu Damao?!" The Section Chief was stunned. How could it be Xu Damao? She had no enmity with Xu Damao, and Xu Damao was such a shrewd person, why would he tip them off about this trivial matter of hers?

But looking at He Yuzhu's face, it didn't look like he was lying...

"Damn it, Section Chief, let's fight them! Let's rush out and kill that son of a bitch Xu Damao!" Zhu Laosi was suddenly furious and stood up, cursing.

"Laosi! Calm down!" The Section Chief scolded, then asked: "He Yuzhu, tell me, is there really any room for leniency in this matter?"

He Yuzhu deliberately pondered for a while before saying: "Difficult!" Seeing the faces of the crowd turn ugly, he changed his tone: "But not necessarily. The pressure outside is also very high. It's dark now, and news can't get out. The brighter it gets, the more pressure they'll be under, and the more likely they are to compromise. But everyone probably won't escape three years, after all, stealing steel pipes is one thing, but resisting arrest..."

The Section Chief kept her eyes fixed on He Yuzhu, and seeing that He Yuzhu didn't show any other expressions, she felt a little more at ease and nodded in agreement.

It seemed that the outside world didn't know about the other things she had done, and Second Brother Guo, who had been caught, didn't know about those things either. She was very likely to cover this up. Three years wasn't unacceptable; the only variable was Zhu Laosi, her trusted aide.

Zhu Laosi had participated in the whole process. He was a loner, crude, hot-tempered, impatient, simple-minded, and loyal to her. He was a good hand at charging into battle, but when it came to keeping secrets...

The brothers Dazhuang and Erzhuang had families, so it was easier to talk to them. Explain the severity, and they naturally wouldn't talk nonsense.

As for the others, it didn't matter. They just followed her to sell some steel pipes at night, eat and drink, and split a few coins.

Thinking of this, the Section Chief smiled and gave a wink, urging: "Hurry up, let Master He cook us a good meal. Once we're full and it's dawn, we'll go out and surrender! You guys keep an eye on Master He. Laosi, Dazhuang, Erzhuang, you guys give me your guns and come with me."

"Hey, what's up?" Zhu Laosi scratched his head and handed over his gun without suspicion. Dazhuang and Erzhuang looked at each other before handing over their guns and following the Section Chief toward the back of the factory.

"Laosi, Dazhuang, Erzhuang, you are the brothers I value most. We've fallen today, but it's fine. Fortunately, they don't know about us selling intelligence to Taiwan, or the long-term theft and replacement of materials at night," the Section Chief said quietly after walking to a clean corner and checking the surroundings.

"Hehe, Section Chief, I knew I'd make a fortune following you." Zhu Laosi gave a silly smile.

Dazhuang and Erzhuang's smiles were a bit forced, but fortunately, it was dark in the corner, so it couldn't be seen.

"To be honest, it doesn't look like there's no room for leniency today, but it's impossible to be innocent. We can strive for leniency, but there's one point: those other things cannot be exposed. You understand?"

Watching the three nod, the Section Chief continued: "Also, I can't go in. One of you has to take the fall for me. You stole the steel pipes behind my back and held me hostage. As long as I'm fine, everyone will be fine. I can operate from the outside, understand?"

Zhu Laosi scratched his head, and after reacting, he stared at Dazhuang and Erzhuang and said: "Did you hear the Section Chief? Which one of you is going to take the fall?"

Dazhuang and Erzhuang were stunned and looked at each other, but for a moment, they didn't know how to speak.

This crime was easy to admit, just a matter of a sentence, but what if the main culprit got the "peanut"?

For a moment, everyone looked at each other in dismay.

"Cough, cough, well, how about you take the fall for this, Laosi? You're a loner anyway." The Section Chief looked at the two brothers and could only cough as he made the suggestion.

Zhu Laosi turned his head back to look at the Section Chief in disbelief; his mouth moved, but no words came out. He was the most loyal one, after all, and he was naturally afraid of eating a lead bullet.

"What? None of you are willing? Then let's stop playing and just wait to die together!" The Section Chief was furious, then took a few deep breaths before putting on a forced, reluctant smile.

"Whoever goes, I'll give them an extra ten percent of my share!"

"Twenty percent!"

"Thirty percent! Don't push your luck, thirty percent is enough to buy both of your lives!" Finally, looking at the three unmoved men, the Section Chief revealed his true colors, baring his teeth and cursing in a low voice.

"But, I'm the only one left in my family. If I go in, my family line will truly end. I haven't even left an heir..." Zhu Laosi lowered his head; for a moment, he couldn't accept it.

Dazhuang and Erzhuang tacitly took a small step back without saying a word, but their attitude was clear.

"Don't just stand there in silence, what about you two? One of you has to step up, right?" The Section Chief pulled out a pistol, glaring with eyes full of threats.

"Section Chief, even if we agree now, aren't you afraid we'll go back on our word once we're inside?" Finally, Dazhuang stepped forward, blocking his younger brother with a bitter look on his face.

"That's right, Section Chief, if the four of us don't say anything, who would know?" Erzhuang quietly poked his head out to say, and Zhu Laosi hurriedly nodded repeatedly.

"Sigh! Do you really think I'm being selfish? You're wrong. If I don't fall, if I don't go in, everyone is fine. If I go in, those who kick us while we're down will eventually drag everything out. When that happens, we'll all die. Can you understand that?"

"Ah? Do you understand? The person who comes out to confess is the one dying for everyone! Do you get it now?!"

The Section Chief was becoming somewhat hysterical, but fortunately, some reason remained, and he did not shout loudly.

"This..." The three men lowered their heads again and said nothing; clearly, no one wanted to take the lead.

A gang united by interests will inevitably be separated by interests — a quote from Genshin Rebirth Mortal.

Just like that, no one spoke again, and they remained in a stalemate as time ticked away bit by bit.

"Section Chief, the food is almost ready, there's only one chicken left, shall we eat?" A voice came from the doorway, breaking the silence among them.

The Section Chief's expression shifted in the darkness, then he suddenly beamed with a chuckle. The atmosphere relaxed, and Dazhuang, Erzhuang, and Zhu Laosi all breathed a sigh of relief at the same time.

"Hey, maybe I really was overthinking it. Since no one wants to take the lead, then I'll just..."

Before he could finish, Zhu Laosi laughed and interrupted: "Exactly, exactly, the Section Chief must have been overthinking it. When the time comes, we'll all go in together, no one will say a word, and we'll stick together inside; no one will be able to bully us!"

"Right, Fourth Brother is right, hehe."

"Then let's go eat? I'm hungry." Dazhuang and Erzhuang also chimed in with agreement.

"Good, haha, let's go. Do you know what's most important in the underworld?" The Section Chief continued to laugh.

The three men turned to follow him toward the door, and Erzhuang replied: "That goes without saying, it's definitely loyalty!"

Dazhuang and Zhu Laosi nodded in strong agreement.

The Section Chief followed behind, laughing heartily.

"Laosi, what are you doing, Laosi?!" The words had barely left his mouth, and before the others could react, there was a gunshot. Zhu Laosi clutched his chest and fell to the ground, looking confused.

Dazhuang and Erzhuang turned their heads, bodies stiff, unable to process what had happened.

"In the underworld, the most important thing is to have no loyalty and to betray your brothers! Laosi, don't blame your brother; hope for a better life in the next one. Dazhuang, Erzhuang, what are you standing there for? All those things were done by Zhu Laosi; he even held us hostage and forced us to resist to the end. Do you understand?" Looking at Zhu Laosi on the ground, the Section Chief gave a cold laugh, then urgently instructed the wary Dazhuang and Erzhuang.

Dazhuang and Erzhuang looked at the smoking muzzle and nodded repeatedly, not daring to move a muscle, terrified that the next bullet would hit them.

"Good, then each of you give him a stab, and that settles it!" The Section Chief didn't trust them that easily; instead, he pulled a cold, gleaming dagger from behind his back and tossed it in front of the two men, sneering.

The people in the distance were also startled by the gunshot and stood up one after another, constantly peering over, but they dared not come closer.

He Yuzhu, who was holding a ladle and tasting the soup, was also shaken violently. He stared with wide eyes, grimacing as he burned his mouth, and looked in terror toward the direction of the gunshot. Someone had been guarding him the whole time, and he had had no chance to deploy the sleeping pills he had prepared.

Outside, Factory Director Yang and Zhang Hao also shuddered, and Ma Hua even burst into tears...