Chapter 16: Hehehe

On the set, in an interrogation room.

Assistant Director Li is currently filming a scene with Li Ya and Sheng Xiang.

Li Ya, played by Zu Feng, failed in his previous mission; not only did he fail to show his face at the Tianjin Station, but he ended up exposing his backside instead.

Li Ya was furious and ordered a search for a mole, only to catch Sheng Xiang, the chief of the archives division, who was taking classified documents home.

Sheng Xiang was unlucky enough to be mistaken for a mole, though it wasn't entirely bad luck; he had been taking intelligence to sell for money, which was an act of betrayal.

Feng Enhe sat in a chair behind Assistant Director Li, watching quietly.

He had a few shots in this scene, a small part.

However, compared to working with Yao Chen, things were a bit more relaxed here, and he preferred this side of things.

"Cut!" After the final line, Assistant Director Li called for a stop: "Very good."

"Teacher Zu Feng, Old Zhang, prepare for the next shot, starting in three minutes."

Zu Feng nodded and took a sip of water; he had just delivered quite a few lines.

"Old Zhang, that was very good." Zu Feng looked at Zhang Guofeng with some surprise: "It's hard to believe you haven't been to acting school."

Zhang Guofeng was able to match his performance every time; compared to actors with formal training, Zhang Guofeng was not a bit inferior, and perhaps even slightly better.

"You flatter me, Teacher Zu." Zhang Guofeng scratched his head and smiled with a touch of simple honesty.

How could it not be good? He was acting for his life.

If he didn't act well and revealed a flaw, the result would be sitting in a prison cell!

He had even forced his accent to become Southern.

The three minutes passed in a flash.

Assistant Director Li called out: "Alright, get ready to start the next shot."

Hearing this, Zu Feng and Zhang Guofeng each took their positions, one standing behind the table, the other crouching in front of the chair.

The props team also brought over the prepared props: paper filled with writing and a fountain pen, and a briefcase for Zu Feng.

"Alright, 'Lurk', Scene 159, Take 7, action!"

The clapperboard snapped shut. Sheng Xiang, played by Zhang Guofeng, crouched in front of the chair writing a confession, while Li Ya, played by Zu Feng, quietly took a pistol and a key out of the briefcase.

Sheng Xiang finished writing and handed the confession to Li Ya.

Li Ya took it and glanced at it: "Keep this yourself; how could I dare to accept it?"

"Come, I'll see you out."

"After you go back, don't go calling me a devil, Brother Sheng."

As he spoke, Li Ya laughed heartily and, with his arm around Sheng Xiang's shoulder, led him toward the door.

Sheng Xiang was somewhat incredulous, yet carried a hint of relief at having survived a disaster.

Assistant Director Li nodded; Old Zhang was acting well.

But the moment Sheng Xiang pushed the door open, Li Ya pulled out his pistol and pulled the trigger at Sheng Xiang's back.

Bang!

Sheng Xiang fell to the ground on the spot, "dead."

Li Ya stepped forward quickly, shoved the key into the hand of Sheng Xiang's "corpse," then walked back into the room and grabbed a chair, slamming it hard against his own head.

Then, following in Sheng Xiang's footsteps, he collapsed to the ground.

Two extras rushed in from outside the door, looking in surprise at the two people lying on the floor.

"Cut! Very good." Assistant Director Li called out: "Both teachers, let's do it again to get a few more shots."

More than ten minutes later, Zhang Guofeng wrapped his filming.

Assistant Director Li gave him a red envelope; having just played a corpse, it was considered a bit unlucky.

Zu Feng and Feng Enhe offered their congratulations and expressed their amazement; for a non-professional actor to reach this level was truly not easy.

"Brother Li, I'm leaving." Zhang Guofeng waved his hand and walked out, leaving the Military Statistics building.

"I'll find you for a drink after work." Assistant Director Li waved back; he still had things to do.

Zhang Guofeng nodded and walked alone to the main gate of the building, preparing to go home and cook.

"Hello... is this 110? I'm reporting a crime... it seems like a..."

Just then, a faint voice came from afar, indistinct, and Zhang Guofeng couldn't hear it clearly.

But his heart gave a sharp tug—someone was reporting a crime?

Zhang Guofeng's body trembled slightly; he felt a vague sense that someone was secretly watching him.

He couldn't help it and subconsciously turned his head to look.

He discovered it was a young man, the same one he had encountered when Assistant Director Li brought him here, the one named Zhang Ruoyun.

He was shifting his gaze, stealing glances at him as if he were and as if he weren't.

And not far from him, that Ling Xiaosu was standing beside Zhang Ruoyun.

Zhang Guofeng turned and walked away; something was wrong. He couldn't be sure if the other party knew his identity.

But regardless, he had to leave this place as quickly as possible!

"Ji Shiguang!" Suddenly, Ling Xiaosu let out a fierce shout.

Zhang Guofeng felt his scalp go numb, and a sense of panic surged from his heart to his brain like a tsunami.

That was his real name!

Immediately, without any hesitation, he bolted and began to run wildly.

He ran frantically toward the exit of the set, regardless of anything else.

He knew very well how heavy his crimes were: hijacking a policeman's family, seizing a service weapon, and causing grievous bodily harm to personnel.

His two main accomplices had already been shot dead.

Even if he wasn't the principal offender, as an accomplice, a life sentence or twenty to thirty years in prison was more than enough.

Escape!

Escape quickly!

But at this moment, Qi Hui blocked his path of escape, standing right in front of him.

Qi Hui sneered: "Fugitive Ji Shiguang, you still want to run?"

Ji Shiguang's expression changed slightly; his eyes swept across the surroundings, and a look of tension immediately appeared.

Behind him, Zhang Ruoyun and Ling Xiaosu were running over, intending to surround him.

Immediately, anger rose in Ji Shiguang's heart, and malice grew from his audacity.

He lunged suddenly at Qi Hui, throwing a punch directly at Qi Hui's face.

At one meter seventy, he wasn't tall, but he weighed one hundred fifty or sixty jin.

Someone short and stocky like this hits incredibly hard.

Even if Qi Hui had been working out recently, he might not necessarily be able to withstand it.

However... having known he was a fugitive, how could Qi Hui not be prepared?

With a lift of his hand, he braced a Zhongzheng rifle in front of him, and his left hand reached to his waist, drawing a long bayonet.

Click—the sound of the latch echoed as the gleaming bayonet was fixed in place.

Qi Hui took a stance, ready to strike.

This was a prop for acting, not a real gun, and the bayonet wasn't a real blade.

But the wood and steel were real.

The bayonet was also steel, just not sharpened.

There was a War of Resistance drama that filmed a scene of falling rocks hitting the Japanese invaders.

The rocks were made of foam, and the bayonets were made of metal.

The result was that the "rocks" were pierced by the bayonets and hung on the tips of the blades.

Holding the rifle and bayonet, Qi Hui gave a sinister laugh: "Hehehe... Ji Shiguang, you can't escape now!"

Zhang Ruoyun, who had just arrived beside Qi Hui, shuddered:

"Brother, we're the good guys, don't laugh so evilly."

"Get out of my way!" Desperate to escape, Ji Shiguang had lost his reason and charged straight toward Qi Hui.

He had to fight his way out.

"You're courting death!" Qi Hui sneered and thrust the rifle forward violently.

The gleaming bayonet stabbed straight toward his head.

Facing the bayonet aimed directly at his eyes and face, Ji Shiguang was terrified; he subconsciously tilted his head, and his desperate charge was instantly interrupted.

Qi Hui took the opportunity to step forward, closing the distance, and lifted the rifle butt sharply, slamming it into Ji Shiguang's chin from bottom to top.

Bang!

With a muffled thud, Ji Shiguang's head snapped back, his eyes dazed, his teeth biting into his lip, and blood seeped from his mouth.

His stocky body staggered, unable to stand steady.

The chin is a place where the human vagus nerve is concentrated; it was lucky he hadn't passed out from that blow alone.

Qi Hui shifted his body, raised the rifle butt again, and smashed it hard into the back of his right knee.

Immediately, the dazed Ji Shiguang lost his balance and fell to the ground.

He gritted his teeth, trying to get up, preparing to endure his injuries and keep running.

He didn't want to go to jail!

Seeing that he was still struggling, Qi Hui unceremoniously struck his back again with the butt of his rifle.

Bang!

Ji Shiguang was smashed back down onto the ground.

However, what shocked Qi Hui was that Ji Shiguang still had the strength to struggle to get up.

He really was a sturdy fatty; thick-skinned!

"You can't get away!" Ling Xiaosu shouted, leaping over to pin Ji Shiguang down by his back while simultaneously locking his arms tightly around his neck.

Just like Ling Xiaosu, Zhang Ruoyun leaped over and pinned himself onto Ji Shiguang's back.

The two men pressed down on Ji Shiguang with all their might.

Qi Hui held a bayonet against his forehead: "If you dare to move again, I'll cripple you right now!"

Looking at the bright, icy-cold bayonet in front of him, Ji Shiguang, covered in sweat, swallowed hard and finally let his head hang down powerlessly.