Chapter 404 - Before Operation
[In the VIP ward of City Hospital]
A middle-aged man in a suit was seated by the hospital bed, with a bowl of bird's nest soup in his left hand and a spoon in his right. He was holding the posture of reaching out to feed someone, but the hospital bed in front of him was empty.
Yang Hongzhi, who was supposed to be lying in bed, was like a six-year-old child. He was drooling at the corner of his mouth, hopping around in the ward in a patient's gown and shouting, "I want to eat buns, I want to eat buns."
There were another three people in the room, two solemn-looking bodyguards in black and Yang Hongzhi's personal bodyguard, Ah Si.
Ah Si was on his feet, trembling in fear and drenched in a cold sweat. The person in front of him was one of the shareholders of a top-ten management company in the country, "Royal Shore," and what's more, its largest shareholder, Yang Yuanzhong. He was none other than the father of his young master, Yang Hongzhi. He was rich, powerful, and highly influential in both legal business and the underground mafia. Now that Yang Hongzhi had gone insane and turned into a fool, he was utterly devastated—he felt a suffocating depression like the heavy air before a raging storm.
Yang Yuanzhong put the spoon back into the bowl, and then gently placed the bowl on the bedside table next to the hospital bed. His cold pair of eyes glared at Ah Si with a chilling threat as he said, "You failed to protect your young master, how should you be punished?"
There was an unmistakable threat that Ah Si read between the lines, forceful and clear like the toll of a large bell, and rung with a deathly note.
THUD!
Ah Si lost the strength in his legs, dropping to the floor on his knees, as a look of abject fear emerged on his face, "Old Master, I… I…"
"You and Ah San were just two stinking beggars when you were young. When I first saw you two, you were fighting for food with dogs. It was I who brought you back, provided for you, and taught you martial arts. My request was simple, and your job was only to protect my son. But look at Hongzhi; he has been scared into a fool. Even toddlers know about basic living skills, but he is now even worse than a three-year-old. He pees on himself and doesn't even know how to find what he needs when hungry or thirsty. Is this you and Ah San's requite for my goodwill?"
Yang Yuanzhong's voice was chilling. His body exuded an imposing aura, striking fear into everyone's hearts in the room like a giant mountain, especially Ah Si, who couldn't even move.
Bathed in a clammy cold sweat, Ah Si couldn't stop shivering as he raised his head and stuttered, "Old Master, he…he is powerful, he is not a human, h-he is a monster…"
His voice was desperate, and he looked frightened.
SWOOSH~
In a howling gust of wind, Yang Yuanzhong appeared before Ah Si in an instant, then he bent over and stared right into his eyes. Yang Yuanzhong's face was wrinkled, a sign of his experience and the countless challenges he had faced in life, but his eyes were cold. His presence was formidable, and he had the martial bearing of a monster.
Ah Si gasped, and his eyes widened in absolute terror.
"Is this your only excuse?" Yang Yuanzhong said as a chilling, murderous aura emanated from his body.
"I… I…"
Ah Si's face turned pale, and his body shook uncontrollably, almost like a cow that was beaten by an electric baton on its journey to the slaughterhouse. Knowing that he was about to be killed, he was terrified and in utter despair.
"Death will be your apology."
Yang Yuanzhong snorted and slammed his palm on the top of Ah Si's skull.
BAM!
The immense power of the blow was channeled from Yang Yuanzhong's palm into Ah Si's skull, causing his brain to mash up like fruit inside a mixer. Death was instant as before he could even wail in pain, he fell to the ground with his eyes wide open and upper body stiff as a plank.
A short while later, blood bled out from his nose, ears, and mouth, and he was, undoubtedly, deader than dead.
"Ahh!"
Yang Hongzhi, who had been ambling about aimlessly, screamed in shock when he saw Ah Si collapse in a heap. He ran to a corner and curled up, trembling in fear, all the while gazing at Ah Si's lifeless body.
Yang Yuanzhong looked impassively at the two black-clad bodyguards at the door and said, "Bury his body with Ah San's. Clean this place up properly, and don't let anyone discover any trails leading back here."
"Yes, sir."
The two black-clad bodyguards heeded his orders promptly. One of them took out a black plastic bag from his pocket, while the other broke Ah Si's limbs, rolled him up like a ball, and stuffed him into the bag.
They were efficient in how quickly they carried out the work, and it was evident that they have done these many times before.
Yang Yuanzhong turned and walked over to Yang Hongzhi, who was still shivering in the corner. Yang Yuanzhong's weathered face relaxed as he looked at his son with a loving father's eyes. "Don't be afraid, Hongzhi. I will find the best doctor in the world to treat you, and as for that person who hurt you, I will never let him go. He will pay a painful price!" he said.
Yang Hongzhi seemed to recognize his father and calmed down somewhat, feeling a little safer. Then, he suddenly grabbed Yang Yuanzhong's arm and held it firmly. He laughed strangely and cried, "Hahaha, I want to eat buns, eat buns, give me buns…"
He was laughing and pleaded like a child.
Yang Yuanzhong was heartbroken. He clenched his fist in rage, then raised his head and bellowed, "You, who goes by the surname Xiao, I will definitely break you into pieces!!!"
…
…
When Xiao Luo was at the Public Security Bureau's gate, he stopped to have a look. He stared at the ten-story building before him, and just above the entrance, large characters were installed on the exterior of the building with the words: "Serving the People." The gigantic characters shone like gold characters in the sunlight, and just below these characters, the blood-red, five-starred flag of the nation fluttered proudly.
Dignity, prestige, justice!
Xiao Luo stepped into the bureau's compound, where a row of police cars was parked in an orderly fashion.
It just so happened that the police officer named Qiu Yuanjie was about to take his team members out for an operation. There were about 20 people, all of whom were armed with guns, and they were making preparations at the moment.
"So, you've come."
Seeing that Xiao Luo had come, Qiu Yuanjie greeted him out of courtesy, though he was not enthusiastic about it.
Xiao Luo nodded in response to his greetings. "Yup," he said, as he looked at his watch, "9 o'clock, right on time!"
"Captain, he's just someone from the NSA, and he looks more or less like any of us. I don't think his participation will enhance our operation in any way at all. Why did the higher-ups send him over? Is he someone with special connections who wants to leech onto us for some merit so that he can get promoted?"
The woman standing at the front of the ranks looked at Xiao Luo from head to toe and expressed her thoughts without any reservations or regard for Xiao Luo's feelings.
She was in plain clothes and had bright eyes, graceful eyebrows, and well-maintained skin—one could immediately tell that she took pains to take care of herself well.
Qiu Yuanjie coughed dry and felt compelled to reprimand her, "Luo Shuang, this is the superior's arrangement. Do not comment on it."
Luo Shuang stuck her tongue out playfully and kept silent from that point on.
Then, a booming voice came from behind Xiao Luo.
"You must be Mr. Xiao Luo. Hello, my name is Tian Zhenxing, and long have I heard about you. I hear that you are an ace with the NSA. Sending you over to battle the MLM menace is truly like using a steam-engine to crack a nut."
He was a chubby middle-aged man with an affable disposition. He enthusiastically held Xiao Luo's hand.
Luo Shuang was stunned for a moment before she complained, "See, even the chief has come out to greet him personally. If this guy isn't here because of his connections, then cut my head off and kick it around like a ball."
The other team members shared her thoughts. Even if he was a member of the NSA, what was the big deal? Their chief also served as the deputy mayor, and for him to even come out and greet him personally was a little too much to bear.
…
