Chapter 91
In the time between one heartbeat and the next*, the two cars were racing side by side . Jian Yao had also stopped firing . She clearly saw Luo Lang in the driver’s seat, face pale, chest bleeding, his right hand holding a gun, but without any intention of firing at her . Fang Qing’s body was somewhere in the car . Luo Lang’s eyes stopped at her face, full of grief .
*T/N 电光火石 (dian guang huo shi) – literally, lightning and flint . This saying appears to be of Buddhist origin, and speaks of the ephemeral nature of humans, how quickly we pass or fade away (like lightning, or the spark from a flint) .
Luo Lang also saw everything clearly in a flash . In the car beside him, An Yan was grimly determined, Jian Yao was staring blankly, and Bo Jinyan was sitting as still and as quiet as a mountain . A great wave of sorrow suddenly burst forth in his heart . He made a snap decision, turned the steering wheel fiercely and rammed into their car!
——
Jian Yao was only unconscious for a little while before rousing . She looked up and saw that Luo Lang’s car had come to rest across this remote road . The bonnet was crumpled, and Fang Qing was still unconscious . On their end, An Yan had probably reacted with speed at the very last second and wrenched the steering wheel inwards . Thus, their car had ended up on the road shoulder . The car was pretty badly damaged . An Yan was slumped against the steering wheel, his head covered in blood . Jian Yao quickly reached out to check if he was breathing, and also roughly took stock of his injuries . She let out a sigh of relief .
Amidst the smoke and dust, Bo Jinyan leaned against the back seat . His face bore traces of the bloody impact of the collision, and he had fainted . Jian Yao carefully examined his injuries and was relieved to discover that none of them was severe . She forced herself to keep calm and think carefully . The first priority was to call for backup and rescue . Also, Luo Lang had been shot and injured, he would not be able to run far .
She got out of the car .
Twilight had already descended, and the surrounding mountains and fields had begun to look misty . She looked around in all directions, and spotted a figure on a distant hillside, weaving in and out of the trees . It had to be Luo Lang!
Her criminal investigator’s instinct overrode careful thought . She immediately grabbed her cell phone and reported their position to the command centre . Then, she grasped her gun and chased rapidly after him .
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Luo Lang was almost at the end of his rope .
The gunshot wound given to him by the criminal investigator was severe, and an entire day of fleeing had cost him much of his physical strength . He was currently sustained by his willpower alone . Stumbling and staggering, he could only see trees everywhere, and a sky higher than the hill . He had only one thought in his mind: even if he were to die, he could not die in front of Jian Yao .
He should have guessed that the heavens would not allow his wish to be fulfilled . He had just climbed the peak of the hill, and a precipice was right under his feet, when he heard a chilly voice behind him commanding him, “Stand still, don’t move . ”
He had heard that voice thousands of times before . In the twinkling of an eye, his heart seemed to have frozen . In the twinkling of an eye, he sensed that the end had come . Unexpectedly, he smiled slightly and turned around .
Jian Yao pointed the gun at him .
She saw that his entire shirt was stained with blood and her emotions bubbled forth and were reflected in her eyes .
“How could it be you?” she asked . “Blockhead?”
Luo Lang trembled slightly as he nodded and said, “Yes, it’s me . 20 years ago, it was I who gave your father the fatal slash across his neck . ”
Jian Yao could not speak .
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Luo Lang’s eyes were tearing up .
Jian Yao’s voice was hoarse as she asked, “Why do you , , , want to do this?”
He smiled bitterly . “I can’t control myself . ”
Jian Yao felt as if her heart was being battered in a gale . Then, she suddenly remembered the 12 corpses in the cave and the bitter tears shed by the victim’s family members when they received the news . Her heart instantly calmed down, and her gaze also became calm . Grasping her gun, she approached him slowly .
Everything happened in a flash .
In that split second when she was close enough, Luo Lang abruptly shot out his hand to attack her wrist . She was caught off guard and tried to dodge out of the way, but Luo Lang’s movements were too quick . She had no clear idea how he did it, especially since he was still at a distance from her, but her hand was firmly in his grasp . The only thing she could do was pull the trigger of her gun .
Peng
Luo Lang’s body shook slightly . Jian Yao’s eyes widened .
However, Luo Lang’s speed and skill had not been affected . WIth a swift move, he easily disarmed her, then aimed a karate chop at the back of her neck . Jian Yao fell to the ground . Luo Lang held on to his newly injured right shoulder; he had no clue how much blood he had left to shed . He looked down to see her, unconscious, at his feet, and his tears overflowed . These were tears of suffering and absolution; he had told himself earlier that he could not die in front of her .
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He cast away the gun, turned, and continued walking towards the cliff .
Twilight lingered in the sky, and the land was dark .
His footsteps wavered, and he felt as if he was walking in a world full of blood and slaughter . He stumbled along, not knowing when he would simply drop to the ground .
The sky would soon be dark .
It was the cold and unyielding processing of his hindbrain that roused him from his dream-like state . He turned his head and saw Bo Jinyan’s grave, stern visage . Just a few hours ago, he had aimed his gun at this blind man’s forehead . After he had determined that Bo Jinyan was not aware of anything, he had turned and left . However, a few hours later, this blind man had captured him and was pointing a gun directly at him . Moreover, behind Bo Jinyan was Jian Yao, who had recovered from her faint and caught up with them . She was only two or three steps away, and was looking at them with her lustrous black eyes, like the darkness that resides behind everyone . And, perhaps it was Jian Yao who had directed the blind man in this direction . They always worked together flawlessly*, they were born to be together, and no one could insert himself between them . Or, perhaps he had already lost all awareness, such that a blind person man could steal up behind him, find him, even take aim at him, without him realising .
*T/N 天衣无缝 (tian yi wu feng) – literally, seamless heavenly clothes . Fig . flawless .
In the end, he had still been caught by the two of them .
——
Luo Lang’s life started that day when he was 16 years old, and also ended that same day .
A youth from a lonely, small town, with superior family circumstances, but uncared for, would generally have a rebellious, undisciplined heart . To add to that, at that time, the ‘Young and Dangerous’* movie was hotly popular all over China* . Everywhere in the small town, gangs like ‘Axe Gang’, ‘Knife Gang’ had been established . . . What’s the point if boys don’t become part of the jianghu for a few days?
*T/N 大江南北 (da jiang nan bei) – literally, north and south of the Yangtze river
*T/N 古惑仔 (gu huo zai) – the Young and Dangerous movie series (Hong Kong) focuses on the young members of triads . See here for more information .
Luo Lang joined the Axe Gang .
His father was away for business the whole year round, and his mother’s chief pursuit every day was to play mahjong . When she was happy, she would toss him ten dollars so he could buy a bowl of noodles to eat . Sometimes, Luo Lang ate noodles for all three meals and played games with the remaining money . No one cooked for him .
At that time, his academic grades were abysmal . Luo Lang had never thought about the future, the only ‘future’ that came to his mind was to continue in the Axe Gang . He thought, if he could rise through the ranks to become a hotshot one day, then his life would not have been in vain .
However, even at a young age, his obstinate character and strong personality had already manifested . If he saw someone bullying a younger gang member, he would quickly take action; if he saw a gang member stealing or swindling someone, he would frown, and distance himself . Thus, he gained the approval of a few of the gang leaders . These big shots who had never even been to school thought that this ‘blockhead’ had the makings of a great general .
That night, everyone had been drunk, and, somehow, they began to be riled up . Somehow, they started talking about the county’s most famous god-level detective, Jian Yi . At first, they spoke of him with dread, describing his amazing and mysterious abilities . “Did you know? At the crime scene, Jian Yi walked one round, and knew who the killer was! Hei San* from the Knife Gang was caught by him in this way, and sentenced to death for robbery and murder!”
*T/N 黑三 (hei san) – literally, black third/ three . Possibly referring this person being the 3rd in command in the gang .