Chapter 132 Final Wishes of the Departed
Uncle Zheng and Marco left. Uncle was a good old man and he kept sighing when he left. In contrast, Marco threw an angry gaze at Zhou Qingfeng. It seemed like he was trying to say, ‘I’ll wait for you to come and beg me one day’. However, Zhou Qingfeng despised them for being a bunch of p*ssies.
The bunch of p*ssies had left but the problem was still ahead of them.
Although they knew that Zetas were just as bad as they were, Zhou Qingfeng only had two hundred men left. Therefore, due to the numerical inferiority, it was very difficult for them to do anything at all.
Katrina had gone to investigate once before night fell. She reported, “There’s nothing special going on with Zetas at the moment, but they’ve rebuilt their barricades and recruited a large number of sentries. We won’t be able to get pass through Roosevelt Avenue as well. The streets are monitored. It seems like those bastards have become clever all of a sudden.”
“They’ve rebuilt barricades?” David Lawrence felt that that was strange and he asked, “Does that mean that they have no intention to carry out a large-scale attack at the moment?”
Butcher replied his question with laughter, “If we were the side which got crushed by a backhoe loader today, we too, would need to first think about how to settle down at night. I believe they’ll need at least one day to recover.”
“Then “We must take advantage of that. I’ll lead a team and scout their area tonight,” David Lawrence took the initiative to take the first step.
Zhou Qingfeng agreed with him. He initially planned to join David’s team, but he was soon rejected, “Victor, I think it’s better for you to recuperate from your injury first.”
Zhou Qingfeng subconsciously touched his face after hearing what David said. His face had been scarred by the sniper two days ago. Although he had stopped bleeding, he got his face scratched once again today when he drove the backhoe loader. He looked really terrible now.
“Well, what else can I do then?” asked Zhou Qingfeng.
Mox, who was sitting behind, reached out and pat Zhou Qingfeng on his shoulders, “Just go and have a good rest. You’ve done enough today.”
Zhou Qingfeng grinned after hearing what Mox said. He asked, “How’s the subway operation?”
“We still need two more days.”
“Hmmm… Two days, it’s very likely that the Zetas won’t launch an attack tomorrow. We could enter the air-raid shelter under the NYPD headquarters the day after tomorrow. We could then shift some manpower to Lena Fox’s clubhouse in advance.”
No one seemed to have any objections about this. They currently had various kinds of resources piled up in Kenney Street. All the resources were stored in hundreds of vehicles and most of them were actually necessities. Zhou Qingfeng and the others were worried at first about whether or not the supplies were sufficient for the consumption of their team. However, now, they had to worry about how to transport all of them out of Kenney Street.
Katrina took responsibility over the matter spontaneously, “All the paths towards Midtown Manhattan are blocked and it’ll take quite some time to remove those obstacles. Victor, lend me your backhoe loader. I need it to remove the obstacles along the way.”
“No problem,” Zhou Qingfeng nodded.
They were running out of time and hence, they departed immediately once they were ready. Mox continued carrying out his subway operation, David Lawrence took a few men with him for the scouting operation, while Katrina began to pack up and got ready to retreat. Family members, such as Angie and Jenny, would be the priority for transfer to Lena Fox’s clubhouse.
On the other hand, Zhou Qingfeng and Butcher had nothing to do. After they finished patrolling the lookout post, they suddenly heard someone playing violin in the midst of chaos.
“Old man, you’re not dead yet? Didn’t I ask you to leave Manhattan?” Zhou Qingfeng was shocked when he saw a man in a suit standing beside the streets. He was the violin master which they had met a few days ago. At that instant, he looked wan and sallow, and his suit was even dirty and disordered. However, the way he carried himself remained elegant and he was in a good psychological condition.
The old man slightly nodded as a greeting to Zhou Qingfeng when he saw him. He then smiled and said in a husky voice, “Yes, many people are dead. But, I’m not dead yet. I’m glad that you actually care about an old man like me.”
“However, I will not be leaving Manhattan. This is where my dream lies. I want to spend the remainder of my life with Broadway Theaters. I believe you wouldn't mind if I play my violin here. Look, everybody loves listening to my performance. I’m glad that there are people who are still willing to listen to my performance.”
Everyone was busy retreating from the streets. However, except for the sentries, almost everyone paid attention to the old man who played the violin. They would slow down as they walked past the old man and they would listen quietly to his performance for a little while.
It would already be quite a luxury to hear some music in the chaotic world, let alone a performance from the world-renowned violin master. However, Zhou Qingfeng had forgotten what his name was.
“Alright then, old man. You may stay here and head to Midtown Manhattan with us later. I believe that we’re now extremely rich with resources and we’ll be able to offer you shelter.” Zhou Qingfeng left the moment he finished talking.
The old man then played ‘Ode to Joy’. When the music played, everyone began to smile, hastened their steps, and their working efficiency increased. Zhou Qingfeng however, asked Butcher curiously, “How did the old man manage to survive the past few days? He’d be dead ages go if no one was there to help him.”
“It was actually Mox who ordered someone to send him some food,” said Butcher.
Zhou Qingfeng felt even more curious, “I never knew that Mox actually likes listening to the violin, though.
“No, Mox does not have any particular interests in music. However, Katrina loves the violin, that’s why he loves it too.” Butcher shrugged as he explained to Zhou Qingfeng that the whole thing was as simple as that.
It was indeed a sad story. Mox was truly pitiful.
Zhou Qingfeng turned his head around and threw a glance at the violinist. He thought to himself, Perhaps, it’s actually a good thing to keep the old man with us. He then patted Butcher’s shoulder and said, “Alright, you’ll take the graveyard shift tonight then. I’ll go have a good sleep.”
As Zhou Qingfeng turned around, a bullet was fired from a distance. A sentry got shot and he fell from the building which was five to six-stories high.
“Ambush, ambush! Sniper!” Zhou Qingfeng and Butcher yelled at the same time when they saw the scene. Everyone in the neighborhood instantly panicked and they instinctively found themselves a spot to hide.
However, the bullets kept firing in their direction, and as a consequence, the sentries got eliminated one after another. It seemed like their enemies were using snipers that had been mounted with silencers. Zhou Qingfeng made a rough prediction and yelled at Butcher, “The snipers are located in the building right across us.”
At that instant, Butcher did not dare to lift his head. He could only hide in the corner. He peeked at the direction where the bullets were coming from and cursed, “We’ve deployed at least five to six sentries on the top of that building. I’m afraid that they’re all dead now.
Mother f*cker!
Zhou Qingfeng could only change directions and try to approach them from the flanks. He had a feeling that the sniper was the guy who almost took his life two days ago.
However, as soon as he turned around, Zhou Qingfeng saw the old man who was standing on the street and playing the violin. The old man was completely frazzled and he did not know what to do nor where to hide.
“Old man, come over my side.” Zhou Qingfeng waved and yelled at him. The old man then took his violin and walked sluggishly towards Zhou Qingfeng.
"Come on, hurry up!" Zhou Qingfeng realized that time had suddenly turned static. The speed at which the old man ran was not as fast as a normal person’s. Zhou Qingfeng even wanted to reach out to pull him over.
However, when the old man finally came close to him, although Zhou Qingfeng did indeed reach out to pull the corner of his shirt, a bullet had penetrated through the old man’s chest, causing him to plunge and fall to the ground.
Zhou Qingfeng tried his best to pull the old man to his side but the old man was still holding his violin firmly. The old man spat some blood and asked, “Sir, please tell me. Am I going to die soon?”
The old man’s chest was soaked with blood and it seemed like there was no way he could be saved anymore.
Zhou Qingfeng suddenly felt depressed; He replied the old man with a deep tone, “Yes, sir. You’ll be dying soon.”
“I’ll be dying in Manhattan?”
“Yes, you’ll be dying in Manhattan.”
The dying old man felt gratified instead. He lifted his violin and explained, “Sir, I’m going to leave this world soon. This world is not suitable for an old man like me to survive. But…… could you please make sure to bury me with my violin? It would be best if you could bury me in front of Broadway theaters.”
Zhou Qingfeng instantly burst into tears.