Chapter 24: Always Finish the Job with a Follow-up Shot (Seeking Collections and Recommendation Tickets)

Tangquan Road.

The night was deep, and only a few scattered pedestrians passed by on the road.

The two killers were somewhat restless, constantly checking the photo of Hong Zhiyou to confirm their target.

"This kid isn't going to show up, is he? It's already been three minutes," the driver asked with a frown.

"Hong Zhiyou has been trying to curry favor with me; he's just delivering a calendar and some soup, there's no reason for him not to come."

Lu Qiaoshan wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and explained.

"However, he is a rather particular person.

"There are many young ladies at the bathhouse, so Hong Zhiyou will inevitably spend time grooming himself.

"The two of you, just wait a while longer."

After a pause, he gave a self-deceiving, bitter smile.

"Ten minutes.

"If he doesn't show up, I'll finish you off first, and then find another opportunity to kill him later," Mazi glanced at his watch and said viciously.

Alas!

Lu Qiaoshan let out a mournful cry in his heart.

He shouldn't have gotten involved in the Zhang family's scheme.

He was a Lieutenant Colonel and department head, his son was in the Ministry of Military Affairs, and he had Zheng Jiemin as his backer; as long as he worked steadily to earn merit in Jinhai, he would sooner or later be promoted to Colonel or even take a key position at headquarters.

A bright future.

One wrong step leads to eternal regret.

He had been too greedy.

He swore that if he could survive this time, he would immediately sever his ties with the Zhang family.

But would Heaven grant him such a chance?

Ring-a-ling.

A burst of bicycle bell sounds broke the dull silence.

Lu Qiaoshan and Mazi both tightened their heartstrings and looked toward the rear window.

The streetlights were dim.

A man wearing a long gown and a round-collared hat, whose face could not be clearly seen, was riding a bicycle and rushing over from the east.

He was moving in a hurry.

At a glance, he looked like someone rushing home to hold his children.

They had already seen several such people pass by.

The vigilant Mazi even specifically got out of the car to grab one, confirming it wasn't Hong Zhiyou.

Mazi glanced twice and shook his head in boredom.

Hong Zhiyou was a notorious playboy, and since he was going to a bathhouse appointment, he would surely be dressed in a suit and leather shoes.

Besides, walking—how could he arrive so quickly?

Lu Qiaoshan, however, had a sharp glint hidden in his eyes.

As a veteran intelligence agent.

He quickly read the exciting information.

This was a bicycle from the station.

It was new; the oil-paper film on the bottom bracket hadn't even been torn off yet.

It was Hong Zhiyou.

This kid had actually come alone.

He didn't know if he was here to watch a show or to save him.

Under the gaze of Mazi and the driver, the bicycle passed by the car quite naturally.

"Brother, why don't we pull up to the intersection?

"This position is a bit deep, and I'm afraid that when he arrives, he'll head straight for the bathhouse; that place is crowded and messy, making it hard to strike," Lu Qiaoshan said in a low voice.

"Fine!"

The driver's attention shifted, and he prepared to shift gears.

Suddenly, the person on the bicycle ahead slammed on the brakes, turned around, drew a gun, and fired.

Bang! Bang!

The car window shattered.

The driver was hit by several bullets, his body swayed, and he slumped over the steering wheel.

The massive impact.

The car horn began to wail wildly.

"Damn it!"

Mazi realized he had been played.

Almost in the blink of an eye, Lu Qiaoshan exerted force to seize the wrist holding the gun, and the two began to wrestle inside the car.

Bang! Bang!

During the struggle, Mazi's gun fired into the roof of the car.

"Secretary Hong!"

The pampered Lu Qiaoshan saw he was about to lose control of Mazi.

Fortunately, Hong Zhiyou arrived just in time.

Because the two were pressed so close together.

Hong Zhiyou couldn't easily fire his gun, so he drew his personal short blade and stabbed Mazi right in the neck.

Warm blood splattered onto Lu Qiaoshan's face.

"Wuu, you group of sons of bi..." Mazi's face was twisted with bulging veins, and he was still struggling fiercely.

Hong Zhiyou stabbed down directly, pinning his entire wrist to the soft seat.

Then, with a twist, he first snatched away the service pistol.

"Secretary Hong, what's the situation?"

Ma Kui, having caught the scent, rode his bicycle over at full speed.

Seeing that Mazi still had a breath left, he rushed forward to intervene.

The attire of these two clearly marked them as members of the Cao Gang.

Why would Lu Qiaoshan be with people from the Cao Gang?

Ma Kui realized there was more to this.

The Cao Gang docks were constantly causing trouble and harboring red agents.

These two might be important leads.

"Move aside!"

Ma Kui, possessing immense strength, shoved Hong Zhiyou away.

"Quick, drive him to the hospital!" He took off his clothes, wrapped them roughly around Mazi's neck, and roared.

Lu Qiaoshan, standing to the side, turned pale, his eyes filled with panic.

If Mazi fell into Ma Kui's hands and confessed, his own cooperation with Zhang Shaobai to assassinate Hong Zhiyou would definitely be exposed.

According to the family rules, he would certainly die.

He looked at Hong Zhiyou in despair.

"Send your mother!"

Hong Zhiyou understood, drew his gun, and pressed it against Mazi's head.

Pop!

Clean and efficient.

A bullet to the head.

"You!" Ma Kui's eyes went round, his cheeks tensed with anger.

"Old Ma, sorry about that," Hong Zhiyou said, hooking his finger through the trigger guard and shrugging with a smile.

"Why didn't you leave a live witness?"

Ma Kui was furious, his heart filled with rage, and he asked coldly.

"If you had read the last report, you would know I really hate people from the Cao Gang.

"Finishing them off is my habit."

Hong Zhiyou said with a relaxed smile.

He knew that Ma Kui was Ma Kui, regardless of his personal life.

As long as it involved the interests of the Party and State or the capture of red agents, even his own father wouldn't be spared.

"Brother, good move.

"I underestimated you."

Ma Kui pointed at Hong Zhiyou, then turned his head to glare sharply at Lu Qiaoshan:

"Department Head Lu, your face looks so pale, are you alright?"

"If you had a gun pointed at your head, you'd be nervous too," Lu Qiaoshan said, pulling out a silk handkerchief to wipe the blood from his face.

"Who are they?"

"Why were they in your car?"

Ma Kui asked repeatedly.

"We are of the same rank; I can choose not to answer your questions," Lu Qiaoshan sneered.

"Fine, see you in the Station Master's office tomorrow."

Knowing he wouldn't get any answers, Ma Kui called for patrol police to take away the corpses of the two assassins.

"Whew!"

Once Ma Kui left, Lu Qiaoshan, having survived the ordeal, hunched over and took a few deep, relieved breaths.

"Department Chief Lu, let me take you back," Hong Zhiyou said.

"No need.

"I'm not going anywhere; I'll sleep at the station with you tonight," Lu Qiaoshan gave a sly smile.

Upon arriving at the station, Lu Qiaoshan washed up and came to Hong Zhiyou's office.

Without a word, he first bowed ninety degrees to Hong Zhiyou.

"Brother, you returned kindness for resentment; I, Lu, will remember this. From now on, you and I are family."

Lu Qiaoshan pressed his right hand to his chest, expressing his sincere gratitude.

He knew why Hong Zhiyou had fired the extra shots.

It was purely for his own sake.

If this person had fallen into Ma Kui's hands, he would have been doomed beyond redemption.

"Old Lu, you're being too polite.

"If you hadn't tipped me off, I might have been gone too," Hong Zhiyou said.

"Brother, you, you... I won't say anything else; we are like blood brothers." Lu Qiaoshan knew Hong Zhiyou was giving him a way out and was even more grateful.

"Old Lu, after this battle, we aren't outsiders anymore, so I'll be blunt.

"I'm only interested in money and women, and I just want to have as many friends as possible.

"The Station Master currently values me, and if I have Department Chief Lu's support, I can really make a name for myself in Jinmen.

"At the very least, you won't be wiretapping me or sending people to tail me every day, right?"

Hong Zhiyou dropped a hint to Lu Qiaoshan while joking.

"I wouldn't, absolutely not.

"Monitoring you before was just internal protocol."

Lu Qiaoshan stood up, stepped onto the desk, removed a bug from the light fixture, and held it up to show Hong Zhiyou:

"Is that sincere enough?"

"Enough, Department Chief Lu is a stand-up guy."

"What 'Department Chief'? Call me brother."

"Alright, brother."

"Brother, Ma Kui once served as Mao Renfeng's deputy guard officer. Even though we silenced them today, it will be quite troublesome if he investigates.

"It's all that damn Red agent's fault; why did they have to go to the pier of all places?

"Ma Kui hates Red agents the most. If he suspects anything, it'll be a fight to the death.

"By the way, if the Station Master asks tomorrow, you know how to answer, right?"

Lu Qiaoshan looked at him expectantly.

(End of chapter)