If one had to find a suitable word to describe the sensation of a bullet piercing through the head, most people would probably choose the word ‘painful’.
It was just that the vast majority of those with experiences of the like probably never had the opportunity to use this word. After all, the dead could not revive, nor were there any ghosts in this world.
Except for Ying Wan.
If he had to choose a phrase to describe this, it would be ‘really f*cking painful’.
Such shoddy lead bullets were only circulated in the black market. They were completely different from the carbide-tipped steel bullets that the police were equipped with. Whether it was the firing range or accuracy, they all fell short. In contrast, its destructive capabilities were magnified quite a bit.
When that person had shooting practice at the police academy, he was frighteningly accurate. Every shot fired would hit bulls-eye. Yet, he missed this time.
Actually, Ying Wan knew what Yu Baiqing was thinking at that time.
This silly gege of his couldn’t bring himself to shoot. On the other side of the betting table lay a bandit who had descended into a crazed frenzy, and this bandit’s bargaining chip was a few thousand lives.
Yu Baiqing could not and dared not place this bet.
A few seconds ago.
The bandit’s voice rang out, “Ten, nine, eight–”
When Ying Wan was shot, his consciousness didn’t immediately leave his body. An intense feeling of weightlessness enveloped his body, after which he lost all support and collapsed backwards.
But the expected all-encompassing darkness didn’t appear.
The instant before he landed on the ground, a callus-covered hand roughly took hold of Ying Wan’s neck and basically hauled him back to his original position.
“Stand still,” He heard the bandit say. “Don’t play any tricks in front of this laozi!”
“…”
Ying Wan was in a bit of a daze as he was shoved into a standing position.
He had just been shot with a real, honest-to-god, bullet. Shouldn’t he be irrevocably dead??
Just then, a series of sounds indicating the loading of a gun came from not too far away, disrupting Ying Wan’s train of thought.
A familiar shriek came from the police squadron ten meters away. “–Captain Yu!”
The moist wind from the reservoir brushed against Ying Wan’s cheeks, causing him to squint slightly.
Light shot through empty space, putting an end to the endless, eternal darkness. Just like curtains slowly rising on a darkened stage. Ying Wan lifted his eyes, gazing at the expanse of flickering police lights covering the vacant plot of land in the distance.
He could see.
The special forces were just opposite them. Only a few large banyan trees stood between them and the bandit seizing him. Police cordons had been set up around the empty plot of land. Officers in bulletproof vests and shields in their hands knelt in formation at the very front. Above them, faint silhouettes were moving in front of the windows on the highest floor of the factory. Several fully-armed snipers were swiftly shuttling through the building in search of suitable sniping points.
The entire place was crawling with police officers armed to their teeth, but he recognized his ge in one glance.
His handsome face radiated a ferocious energy. The man’s lips were pursed tightly, his icy face devoid of expression.
Ying Wan had never seen this face before. It should clearly feel foreign to him, yet there was an inexplicable sense of familiarity about it, as if this was what his ge should look like.
Two negotiation experts donned in black vests left the cordoned area and returned to the police squadron. One of them shook their head at Yu Baiqing. There was a somber expression on their face.
“Laozi has already killed so many cops, only death awaits me if I go with you today,” The bandit’s voice echoed in Ying Wan’s ears. The bandit raised his jaw, yelling aggressively at Yu Baiqing, “Make a choice, Captain Yu.”
Ying Wan: …
He’d heard the exact same words from the bandit just a few minutes ago.
Ying Wan subconsciously touched his cheeks. His face was clean. There wasn’t a trace of blood.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
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At that time, Yu Baiqing had personally thrown him into jail. He was sentenced to death, but after being in prison for less than half a year, he escaped. While on the run, he took the lives of many innocent people while carjacking.
This sort of plot was both melodramatic and stereotypical, but had actually happened to him.
Old White claimed to have set up timed explosives in the three most busy districts in the heart of the city. His conditions were very simple. If he died, the remote control’s detonation button would be released, setting off the explosives. If the police did not provide him a helicopter for him to flee the country before the countdown ended, the hostage would be the one to die.
But he understood very clearly in his heart that there was absolutely no possibility of escaping under such circumstances. Since death was imminent, why not drag his enemy down with him as well?
Everything he did was deliberately targeted at Yu Baiqing.
If everything was really being repeated, then the bandit would be revealing his bargaining chip next.
At this point, Ying Wan blinked slowly, sluggishly. He looked at his ge once more.
Which was also to say that the gun held in Old White’s hands would very soon shoot a bullet through his head again.
Surely not… yet another time??
Once was all right; he never feared pain since young. Before he was picked up by Yu Baiqing, limping through the alleys and streets was a common thing.
Being blind was better than the current situation. He dared not look at his ge’s face. All that would do was make him panic and his heart ache.
Sure enough–
“Make a choice, Captain Yu,” Old Bai waved the remote control in his hands. “The moment my grip relaxes, the explosives will detonate. If you don’t agree to my conditions, he will die.”
“I’ll give you ten seconds,” The chapped corners of the bandit’s mouth drew back in laughter. “Ten, nine, eight–”
The countdown rang in Ying Wan’s ears once more. He didn’t attempt to struggle. He looked up and fixed his gaze on a pair of bloodshot eyes not too far away. This was his first time seriously looking at his ge.
There were traces of water that had yet to dry on Yu Baiqing’s face. The liquid had slid down his tall nose bridge, his cheeks and then under his clothes. The distance between them was not small; he couldn’t see if that was his ge’s sweat or tears.
In the midst of the countdown, Old White gripped the trigger firmly as he pressed the gun against Ying Wan’s temple again.
From the moment Ying Wan’s eyes were blinded to the point of his death, only darkness had lain in front of him.
Now that Old White was pointing a gun at him for the second time, his mind suddenly cleared.
Perhaps this was a chance bestowed on him by the heavens, because he had not been in time to say a proper farewell to his ge.
He wanted to tell Yu Baiqing that he was already a full thirty years of age, so what was he doing crying? He shouldn’t be crying.
Before he could say anything, Yu Baiqing spoke first.
“…I’m sorry, Little Wan.”
He saw Yu Baiqing look directly at him and mouth–
A muffled gunshot burst in his ears. The thick, fishy smell of blood instantly permeated the air.
Wet, red liquid stained Ying Wan’s face. He stood rooted to the ground blankly, dumbstruck.
–
For a split second, everyone quietened. Time seemed to have come to a halt.
The next second, the hand that had perpetually been gripping Ying Wan slowly let go. Behind him, a sturdy figure crashed to the ground with a loud bang, spraying mud all over.
“…”
“Wa–wa–”
Cries from birds at the dam neighboring the reservoir reverberated through the air. Finally, everyone returned to their senses.
An anxiety-filled bellow came from a middle-aged man among the police squadron. “Get me the command center now!”
The originally orderly scene was suddenly thrown into chaos. The sound of voices rising and falling through walkie-talkies filled the empty air above the reservoir.
Several special forces’ officers grabbed their equipment and readied themselves to go in with the forensic investigator to move the body. That was when they realized the source of the killing, Captain Yu of the Criminal Investigation Team, had already gone under the police cordon and was striding towards the cordoned-off area.
Half his body splattered by the bandit’s blood, Ying Wan’s mind was empty. He stood rigidly like a block of wood. By the time he keenly sensed that someone was noiselessly approaching him from behind, the person had already stepped forward and silently released his binds.
Yu Baiqing said coldly, “Cover your ears if you’re scared.”
Ying Wan had heard this statement from Yu Baiqing countless times since young.
When he was young and had just run away from his aunt’s house, he spent every day engaging in battles of wit and strength with the fierce stray dogs at the traffic crossings. Because he couldn’t see, he was never scared to tears by the ferocious sight of the vicious dogs. Conversely, the sound of dogs barking often frightened him till he would cower in a corner of an alley, shivering.
After he and Yu Baiqing started relying on each other for survival, no matter whether it was the noisy roads or torrential crowds, Yu Baiqing would always crouch and pat him on the head. He would tell Ying Wan to cover his ears if he was scared. If he couldn’t hear anything, he wouldn’t be afraid.
They had not seen each other for a few years, but his ge still remembered it.
Ying Wan had just covered his ears with both hands when he saw Yu Baiqing raise the gun in his hands and aim it accurately at Old White, who had been shot in the head by the sniper and was now bereft of life.
He had never seen his ge emanate such an icy, dangerous aura.
Yu Baiqing’s hand trembled slightly in the air. Intense hatred swirled in his eyes as he stared at the corpse.
“Ge,” Ying Wan suddenly spoke. “He’s already dead.”
He had just uttered these words when he realized that Yu Baiqing didn’t seem to know that he could see now.
Because the moment Yu Baiqing lifted the gun, he hadn’t asked Ying Wan to shut his eyes, but instead cover his ears.
Hearing Ying Wan’s words, a fleeting trace of confusion flickered in Yu Baiqing’s eyes. As if suddenly awakening from an overly-frightened state, he put down his gun, inserting the handgun back into the gun holder at his waist.
Sensing that Yu Baiqing’s gaze had shifted onto himself, Ying Wan gulped. In the end, he followed what he usually did and blinked blankly at the empty space in front of him. He didn’t respond to Yu Baiqing’s gaze.
He didn’t know how to explain to his ge that he had not only been reborn, but had also inexplicably regained his sight.
Yu Baiqing didn’t seem to have discovered anything unusual. He stretched out a hand, as if wanting to wipe off the bloodstains on Ying Wan’s face. But midway, he slowly put down his fingers. In the end, he didn’t do anything.
Footsteps approached. Ying Wan saw his ge’s superior, Gao Jun, walking over hurriedly with a group of police officers. “Yu Baiqing, how’s the hostage situation?”
“There was a last-minute evacuation of five commercial districts. The city center’s nearly as chaotic as a pot of congee. The higher-ups are insisting on an answer from us,” Gao Jun’s face was covered in cold sweat. “Fortunately, your mind was quick and you saw in time that this bastard was deceiving us.”
“How did you know it was fake? What if it was real?” A police officer at the side couldn’t help asking. “How many deaths would that be?”
“Real my ass! Look closely at that toy in this shameful thing’s hands!” Gao Jun leveled a ruthless glare at the police officer. “A few black vinyl tapes wrapped around a wooden stump! If not for everyone panicking because of the bombings he orchestrated in the past, how could we have been so easily deceived by that toy?”
Yu Baiqing remained silent. Just two weeks ago, he had also been fooled left, right, center by this blighted toy that the deranged Old White had used.
He would never forget how Old White had stood over Ying Wan’s corpse that day, laughing maniacally as he tossed them that laughable wooden stump.
Before anyone had reacted, Old White had shoved his gun into his mouth and pressed the trigger without an ounce of hesitation.
In what felt like a dream, he’d suddenly been given a second chance and returned to that nightmare of a day.
Before he could rationally accept everything, his hand had already instinctively pressed a button on the walkie-talkie. He sent Gao Jun a secret signal:
[Take note–remote control–fake]
[Hostage–extreme danger]
[Shoot to kill–immediate–requesting for authorization]
Fortunately, he’d reacted in a timely manner. Gao Jun had authorized it, and during this moment of life and death, he’d ordered a sniper to headshot Old White.
“Chief Gao…why couldn’t it have been delayed for a while longer?”
The police officer standing at the side asked weakly, breaking Yu Baiqing’s train of thought. “He died just like that. How are we going to investigate in the future?”
“That’s why your ability to navigate crucial moments isn’t good enough yet. Under such circumstances, we might lose the hostage if we’re even a second too late!” Gao Jun responded in fury. “Remember well – as a police officer, the safety of hostages must always be the topmost priority no matter what.”
“Check his bullets,” Yu Baiqing abruptly cut in. “He snatched the prison guard’s gun, but the bullets he used are not police-issued ones. We must immediately continue our investigation.”
After Ying Wan’s death, this was the clue that had eventually led him to Yuan Shan’s hideout in the country.
“You were able to see so much in such a short span of time?” Gao Jun glanced at him doubtfully. He spread out his hands. “I will arrange for the investigation, you don’t have to bother about that. Get back to the bureau now and write a report detailing everything that happened here for the higher ups. We can discuss the rest later.”
He was expecting Captain Yu to be very critical of this arrangement, but immediately after he finished this statement, Yu Baiqing left with the people from forensics with a face full of indifference, seemingly in complete acceptance of such a conclusion.
Ying Wan kept feeling like there was something off about his ge today, but he couldn’t pinpoint exactly what it was.
“Mr Ying,” Police cars left the reservoir in succession. A high-ranking supervisor responsible for staying on-site led a hospital nurse to Ying Wan. “Stay the night at the hospital today for observation. When your mental state is better, we’ll need you to make a trip to the bureau in two days’ time so we can take your statement.”
An emergency evacuation of the city center during busy hours, coupled with the fact that a police officer’s relative had been kidnapped. This case had stirred up too much of a fuss. The higher-ups had no choice but to attach importance to it.
Watching the ambulance drive off with the rescued hostage, the high-ranking inspector who had been dispatched by the command center fished out a cigarette from his pocket. He asked his colleague beside him, “When this young man surnamed Ying was kidnapped, your Captain Yu almost went crazy. So when he was rescued, why did Yu Baiqing just run off and leave him here?”
“They haven’t met for a few years and aren’t close. They don’t seem to be on very good terms,” The police officer answered. “Captain Yu is such an upright person, but his brother often appears and disappears unpredictably. Nobody knows what he does. His eyes might not be good, but that doesn’t stop him from fooling around with shady people.”
The high-ranking inspector slowly puffed out a ring of smoke.
He looked at the outline of the criminal’s corpse drawn on the ground in chalk. There was a thoughtful expression on his face.
–
Seated in the ambulance sent by the hospital, Ying Wan leaned against the bed as he obediently waited for the nurse to draw his blood and measure his blood pressure. He didn’t say anything throughout the entire process.
There was still a distance to go before reaching the hospital in the city center. His phone started vibrating in his pocket.
Because he usually couldn’t see, his phone had not only been set up in the mode suitable for blind people, but would also recite the caller’s mobile number particularly loudly.
“One, three, nine, two, zero, seven, seven, four. More Money than Sense is calling–”
Ying Wan glanced from the corner of his eyes at the plainclothes policeman accompanying him. The policeman didn’t seem to have any intention of listening in or making him put his phone on speaker. Ying Wan pressed the button to accept the call.
A middle-aged man’s voice sounded on the other end, “…You were kidnapped?”
Hearing his voice, Ying Wan hung up without a single sound.
“None of your freaking business.” Once again extending his arm to the nurse, he muttered, “Son of a b*tch.”
His phone very quickly started vibrating again. It was another number this time. This time, Ying Wan simply diverted the call to his voicemail. What the eye didn’t see, the heart can’t grieve over.
[Tell Grayback to activate plan B.]
After inputting this string of words into his phone and pressing the send button, he immediately deleted his message log, set his phone to silent mode, and then switched off his phone. This entire sequence of actions was done as smoothly as flowing water.
He lay back down on the bed, both arms pillowing his head. He closed his eyes. The words Yu Baiqing uttered before the gunshot inexplicably surfaced in Ying Wan’s mind. Yu Baiqing had said ‘Little Wan, I’m sorry’.
…What did he say after that?
Ying Wan’s eyes suddenly opened. Something exploded in his mind. A buzzing sound filled his head.
So both are reborn 👀🤔?
So little wan is involved in shady stuff huh.. Wonder what happened in the few years they didn’t meet