Chapter 1001: Human Hearts

Sun Bing sat on a sandbag, his hands gripping the side rails tightly, the veins on the backs of his hands standing out. His lips twitched several times before he could barely force out the words: "Mr. Zhou, I have heard of that leader of the Youth Party Army; this person is ruthless. If he finds out that a helicopter has been lost, he might dispatch a dozen of his fighter aircraft to surround and annihilate us—what should we do when that time comes?"

He Yuzhu leaned against the back seat, toying with a half-smoked cigarette, the corners of his mouth curling slightly: "Everyone, set your hearts at ease. I said I could lead you in a breakout, and I will certainly be able to do it. They haven't caught up yet."

Sun Bing remained silent, his gaze sweeping over the faces of the people in the vehicle, then he silently lowered his head.

He did not say a word, but the misgivings in his heart were about to overflow.

Sun Bing had been struggling and climbing in the Chamber of Commerce for many years and had seen many people who only knew how to boast; out of consideration for appearances, he did not voice any further doubts.

He Yuzhu's mind was clear; how could he not understand what he was thinking?

He leaned back against the sandbag and spoke: "Vice President Sun, to be honest, even if you don't believe me right now, you have no other choice, do you?"

Sun Bing gave two dry laughs: "Mr. Zhou, it is not that I do not trust you. It is just that I am a person who is naturally prone to worrying, and I cannot help but speculate about the worst-case scenario in everything."

He Yuzhu said: "If it were me, I would not be letting my imagination run wild right now. Think carefully; the current situation is much better than it was a day ago."

Sun Bing detected the dissatisfaction hidden in He Yuzhu's tone and smiled awkwardly: "I have been away from Huaxia for many years, so I speak bluntly and do not know how to be circuitous. I hope Mr. Zhou will be magnanimous, and I apologize to you."

"There is no need to be so polite. Since I dared to come and meet you all, I am naturally fearless. It is not that I am boasting; never mind a few helicopters, even if a few F-16s flew over, I would still not be afraid!" He Yuzhu said casually.

The people in the carriage just took it as a joke and looked at He Yuzhu one after another.

The truck bumped along for over twenty kilometers, and the air gradually filled with a salty, fishy dampness; it seemed the pier was not far off.

Just then, a roar like muffled thunder came from the horizon—buzz, buzz, buzz—the sound traveled from far to near, making everyone's eardrums numb.

Two helicopters were flying at low altitude from the direction of the pier, seemingly searching for targets along the road.

He Yuzhu abruptly snuffed out his cigarette and shouted loudly: "Turn off the vehicle lights! Everyone, get out of the car immediately and disperse to hide! Once I shoot down these two aircraft, we will continue on our way!"

Sun Bing did not say a second word; he quickly jumped out of the car, running faster than a wild hare.

"Find cover to hide, keep your distance from each other, at least one hundred meters between people, move fast!" He Yuzhu urged loudly.

Ever since this group had escaped the kidnappers' control, they had long since become birds startled by the mere twang of a bowstring. Hearing the order, they scrambled into the roadside bushes and foul-smelling ditches.

In a mere ten seconds, only He Yuzhu remained on the vehicle, along with one Stinger Missile launcher and three spare missiles.

He Yuzhu looked at the two points of light constantly closing in and stood where he was, slightly dazed. A complex feeling surged in his heart: he had traveled thousands of miles to rescue this group, yet when the moment of truth arrived, they had all fled faster than the next, and not a single person had stayed behind to help pass the missiles.

He Yuzhu sighed lightly, his emotions churning, secretly wondering if what he was doing was truly worth it.

But in an instant, he became enlightened. Heaven had bestowed upon him abilities far exceeding those of ordinary people; he could not be like the common folk of the marketplace, haggling over every ounce in everything, only helping others if they treated him well, and seeking revenge for the slightest grievance.

This kind of narrow-minded way of living was never what He Yuzhu wanted.

He dispelled the distracting thoughts in his mind and hoisted the Stinger launcher onto his shoulder.

He bent down to grab two spare missiles from his feet and released the safety catches.

His fingers operated quickly, and the first missile completed loading with a "click."

The two helicopters lowered their altitude and approached rapidly, the buzzing sound becoming increasingly deafening, and the bright beams of their searchlights sweeping back and forth.

He Yuzhu's pupils contracted slightly, his thumb pressed lightly against the launch button, and he silently calculated the distance in his heart.

One thousand meters, eight hundred meters, six hundred meters...

The distance was sufficient.

Whoosh—!

The Stinger Missile dragged a scorching white tail flame as it rushed out of the launcher, heading straight for the first helicopter.

The warhead bit precisely into the bottom of the fuselage, and with a loud "Boom—," it exploded! That helicopter seemed to have its belly pierced by a sharp blade; the fuselage vibrated violently, the fuel tank burst instantly, and an orange-red fireball suddenly expanded in the night sky, lighting up half the night with its glow.

The burning wreckage splashed in all directions, and the fuselage slammed heavily into the red earth, kicking up another huge wave of fire.

The second helicopter reacted extremely quickly; the pilot yanked the control stick, the nose suddenly lifted, the propellers emitted a shrill scream, and the aircraft climbed almost vertically.

But He Yuzhu's movements were faster; in less than three seconds, he had reloaded the second missile.

He hoisted the launcher onto his shoulder again, the crosshairs in the sight locking onto the middle of the helicopter that had just swept over his head, and he pulled the trigger without hesitation.

Whoosh—

The second Stinger dragged its tail flame straight into the night sky, crashing precisely into the helicopter's cockpit.

"Boom—!"

Another deafening explosion shook the wilderness; the helicopter disintegrated in mid-air, the broken fuselage wrapped in a fireball and crashed to the ground less than fifty meters from He Yuzhu, with sand, gravel, and metal fragments flying everywhere.

After firing the missiles, He Yuzhu immediately ran at full speed while carrying the launcher.

Behind him, fireballs continued to roll and rise, countless fragments whistling past his head, ears, and shoulders; some pieces of metal pierced the truck's exterior and embedded themselves in tree trunks, vibrating with a hum.

Suddenly, a piece of iron the size of a thumb flew in at an angle; He Yuzhu had no time to dodge, and his left shoulder suddenly went numb, as if it had been fiercely pierced by a red-hot iron rod.

His center of gravity tilted, and he fell heavily to the ground.

A sharp pain spread from his shoulder.

He tore open his clothes and pulled out the piece of iron embedded in his flesh.

The intense pain caused a layer of fine, cold sweat to break out on his forehead, and the corners of his mouth twitched uncontrollably, yet he never let out a cry of pain.

He immediately took a bottle of Concentrated Spirit Spring Water from his space and drank it; a wave of warmth quickly flowed through his entire body, and the stinging pain of the wound soon subsided.

The echoes of the explosion reverberated in the sea breeze, and in the distance, two masses of fire crackled and burned, illuminating the entire stretch of red earth.

Sun Bing was the first to crawl out of the dried-up ditch by the road, rushing quickly to He Yuzhu's side; his lips trembled repeatedly, and he was too excited to speak for a moment.

Following closely behind, figures emerged one after another from the bushes, drainage ditches, and behind large trees. Everyone's faces were filled with both shock and joy, their gazes converging on He Yuzhu in unison.

The short, stout middle-aged man stepped forward, panting heavily, his tone full of awe: "Mr. Zhou... you are truly the most formidable person I have ever met in my life! In just a short moment, you shot down two helicopters directly!"

Having said this, he shook his head incessantly, seemingly still unable to calm the shock in his heart.

Sun Bing took two steps forward and bowed deeply to He Yuzhu: "Mr. Zhou, I am truly sorry. To be frank, I previously held prejudices in my heart and even felt that your words were somewhat exaggerated. Now, looking back, it was my own short-sightedness, like a frog at the bottom of a well; I hope you will not take it to heart."

He Yuzhu suddenly threw his head back and laughed loudly; only after a long while did he restrain his laughter, his gaze slowly sweeping over the crowd: "I remind you all, the dangers ahead are ten times more difficult than tonight. Do you still have the confidence to follow me in a breakout?"

The whistling sea breeze blew against their faces, making everyone's clothes flap loudly.

Everyone looked at each other and nodded heavily in unison.

The short, stout middle-aged man took a step forward, his voice resonant and powerful: "Mr. Zhou, it was my own cowardice earlier; I apologize to you! From now on, I will stay by your side and act as your assistant; whatever you command, I will do. What do you think?"

He Yuzhu nodded slightly: "Very good! This is the mettle that someone who has served in the military ought to have!"