Chapter 143

Chapter 143

Huang Shaohang sat up in bed, drenched in sweat after his fever broke, his shirt soaked and sticking uncomfortably to his body.

He threw off the covers, turned off the air conditioner blowing warm air, and muttered, "I'm so thirsty, I could go for an iced cola."

Yu He expressed his disapproval, "Your stomach is not in good condition, drinking something cold might not be a good idea."

Bathed in the dazzling gold and crimson light, Yu He heard Huang Shaohang say, “But every time I got sick when we were in school, Yu Ge, you would give me iced cola.”

Yu He: “...”

He wasn’t wrong about that. Yu He’s affection for iced cola was indeed unwavering.

Yu He handed an iced cola to Huang Shaohang, and simultaneously took away the completely burnt-out incense ash from the bedside.

“This incense really does help with sleep,” Yu He affirmed the efficacy of the tower incense and added, “but you’ve slept so much this afternoon, you’ll probably have trouble sleeping tonight.”

At the time of saying this, Yu He never imagined that this afternoon nap would turn out to be the most peaceful sleep he would get in the coming days.

*

Since they slept a lot in the afternoon, neither Yu He nor Huang Shaohang could sleep at night.

There was only one bed in the bedroom, so Yu He made a nest for himself on the sofa, and they watched TV series together.

At one in the morning, even the TV station started to replay previous episodes, and Yu He turned off the TV, “Shall we sleep?”

Huang Shaohang, wrapped in a blanket, turned his head to look at Yu He, resembling a little boy who invited a friend to stay over at his house for the first time, full of energy and wanting to play with everything except for going to sleep.

“Let’s play video games,” Huang Shaohang suggested. “The game we used to play together has already released its fourth installment.”

Yu He, leaning on a pillow: “There’s no gaming console here.”

Huang Shaohang responded, “I can have them send it back.”

Yu He: “...”

At this point, pretending not to know Huang Shaohang's identity seemed a bit impolite.

Yu He cleared his throat and feigned ignorance as he asked, “Who are they?”

Huang Shaohang, sitting cross-legged on the sofa, hugging his knees, observed Yu He’s expression. After a few seconds, he calmly said, “My subordinates, or perhaps... Lao Ma’s subordinates.”

Yu He was caught off guard.

Despite confidently analyzing that Huang Shaohang wouldn’t take the initiative to clear the air in the afternoon, Yu He found himself caught off guard when Huang Shaohang candidly admitted to being 'Old Ma' in the evening, without any prelude, as casually as telling Yu He what he had for dinner.

Huang Shaohang chuckled softly, “Brother Yu, you don’t seem surprised at all. Did you already know?”

Yu He took a sip of his cola, steadying himself, “So what if I did?”

Huang Shaohang did not respond directly, instead he asked, “Did Fu Yunzhen tell you? What else did he tell you?”

This time, Yu He played it smart, fearing that Huang Shaohang was testing him. He did not answer Huang Shaohang’s question, but counter-asked, “What do you think?”

Huang Shaohang kept his gaze fixed on Yu He, not showing any sign of avoidance, “He’s so smart, he must have told you what I want as well.”

Yu He was about to say something.

Suddenly, a ‘boom!’—a loud explosion rang out!

The violent blast came from outside, shaking the entire room.

Huang Shaohang reacted swiftly, leaping in front of Yu He, his palm pressed against the back of Yu He’s neck as he used his arm to wrap around Yu He’s head, securing him firmly on the sofa.

The explosion quickly subsided, car alarms from the nearby parking lot went off one after another, and noisy voices came from the courtyard. A Burmese man opened the door, exchanged a few words with Huang Shaohang.

Huang Shaohang calmly gave orders, then turned to Yu He and said, “Brother Yu, Gua Zi San’s men are here. It seems that Fu Yunzhen didn’t just tell you about my identity; he told my third brother as well. In their fight, Fu is indeed one step ahead.”

Sitting on the sofa, Yu He remained indifferent to the turmoil outside, and seriously said to Huang Shaohang, “Xiao Hang, I don’t understand. What good does it do to keep me here in Burma?”

Huang Shaohang sighed, smiled helplessly, and went inside to get a bulletproof vest and a handgun.

“Brother Yu, there’s no time for these matters now; let's talk about them once we're safe.” Huang Shaohang sat down on the sofa and started putting the bulletproof vest on Yu He, “The gang conflicts in Burma can be lethal. Even if you want to scold or hit me, you have to wait until we get out of here.”

Yu He looked down at Huang Shaohang, “You’ve changed a lot.”

The hand that Huang Shaohang was using to fasten the bulletproof vest suddenly stiffened, “I’ve grown up; it's normal to be different from when I was a child.”

The more chaotic the environment outside became, the calmer Yu He felt inside. He had figured out a lot of things in just this short afternoon.

Yu He spoke again, “You’ve lost weight, haven’t you?”

Huang Shaohang retracted his fingertips as if the Velcro of the bulletproof vest was burning hot. He didn’t speak but simply raised his eyes to look at Yu He.

In that second, the tumult outside seemed to fade away, leaving only Huang Shaohang looking up at Yu He, his eyes twinkling like stars.

Huang Shaohang's gaze was fixed on the stitching pattern of the couch as he moved his lips, "Brother Yu, you've changed a lot too. I deceived you like this, yet you can still talk to me calmly. Back in high school, you would have definitely sent me to the hospital... But after what I did, can you still forgive me?"

"Xiao Hang, my forgiveness doesn’t mean much. If you want it, I can forgive you right now," Yu He spoke, his voice gentle yet cold. "But that's as far as I can go for you. If you want anything else... I can't and won't be able to give it. My heart belongs to someone else now."

Huang Shaohang chose to ignore the part he didn't want to hear, stubbornly pretending not to have heard Yu He's words. With two handguns by his side, he loaded them and passed one to Yu He, casually changing the subject, "Now is not the time for this."

Yu He: "???"

Huang Shaohang holstered the gun in the holster on the back of Yu He’s vest, “Take it for self-defense.”

Gunshots began to sound outside, and smoke and flames could be seen not far away.

The air was filled with the smell of saltpeter and gasoline.

People were bustling around in the courtyard, their faces tense. Amidst the chaotic sounds, it was impossible to discern the extent of the situation. Under the protection of his subordinates, Huang Shaohang retreated to the back door with Yu He.

Yu He felt dizzy and disoriented, as if he was in a dream. This was his first experience in such a heart-stopping situation.

In this state of extreme bewilderment, Yu He's body entered a sort of miraculous 'autopilot mode,' where his subconscious took over control, making optimal decisions based on the situation without conscious thought.

The group, under cover of darkness, ran towards the back door at the northern side of the courtyard.

Yu He followed Huang Shaohang through the courtyard. Due to his severe night blindness, he couldn’t see the path clearly, inadvertently slowing down and gradually falling behind the group.

The people responsible for covering them had already opened the back door.

Just as they were a few dozen meters from the courtyard wall, an unexpected event occurred!

A person suddenly appeared around the corner of the cloister.

This person was extremely agile, moving so fast they were almost a blur, appearing like a ghost in the crowd, grabbing Yu He’s arm, and dragging him into the cloister.

Instinctively, Yu He attempted to elbow the person behind him. However, the person reacted unbelievably quickly, somehow dissolving Yu He’s attack and even managing to cover his mouth.

"It's me."

Even with just these two short words, Yu He was able to recognize the voice.

It was Captain Xiao!

In just two or three seconds, Huang Shaohang had already sensed something was amiss. He turned towards the corridor, his flashlight casting a bright beam, clearly revealing the figures of Captain Xiao and Yu He.

Seeing Yu He held captive in someone's arms, a momentary blank expression flashed across Huang Shaohang’s face.

This was his private residence, layers upon layers of personnel safeguarded the courtyard impermeably. Even with explosives, one couldn’t get through the first gate, so how did this person get in?

Whose man is this?

In an instant, more than ten gun barrels were neatly aimed at Captain Xiao.

Huang Shaohang asked in Burmese, "Who are you?"

Captain Xiao lifted his gun slightly, casually rotating his wrist, pressing the muzzle against Yu He’s temple.

Yu He: “......”

Captain Xiao said, "I need to take this person with me."

Huang Shaohang took a deep breath, “Just who are you with?”

Captain Xiao took two steps back, "Well, that's not important. In any case, I can't give this person back to you alive. Either I take him away, or I leave you with a corpse. The choice is yours."

Seeing Huang Shaohang still hesitating, Captain Xiao flicked the hand holding the gun, stylishly unlocking the safety.

What time is it, and you're still trying to be cool!

Yu He was speechless for a moment.

And why are you pressing the gun against the top of my head?

Huang Shaohang gritted his teeth and said, “You wouldn’t dare to kill him. You are with Fu Yunzhen.”

Captain Xiao pressed the gun forward a bit more, “You can try me.”

It was the first time a gun was pressed against Yu He’s head. He found it very novel, and he wasn’t sure if it was because he was slow to react or if he trusted Captain Xiao too much, but he didn’t feel scared. Instead, it was Huang Shaohang on the other side who seemed more anxious.

"Is the order Fu Yunzhen gave you really to kill him if you can’t save him?" Huang Shaohang’s face was stern as he spoke harshly, “As the leader of a top global mercenary group, is this how you carry out your missions?”

Captain Xiao remained indifferent, "Usually not, but my mission is almost due. I’m in a hurry. If I really can’t save the hostage within the given time, I might as well kill him and put the blame on you. This way, if the mission isn’t completed, it wouldn’t be my fault. The target is dead, game over. The success rate of our mercenary group is still one hundred percent, very perfect.”

Yu He couldn’t help but say, “I would prefer a mission completion method with a lower death rate.”

Captain Xiao chuckled, "Well, that depends on whether your... junior brother here is willing."

Yu He looked towards Huang Shaohang, "Shaohang?"

Huang Shaohang was trembling violently, staring straight at Yu He, "Brother Yu, I never intended to hurt you, nor have I ever harmed Fu Yunzhen."

Yu He said, "I know. As the chess game has played out until now, you are the one who has been hurt the most."

Huang Shaohang's eyes suddenly reddened, "What exactly should I do to make you stay in Northern Myanmar and be with me?"

In the darkness, Yu He's vision had severely deteriorated. He couldn't see Huang Shaohang's red eyes, but just from his tone, Yu He could tell that Huang Shaohang was truly upset.

Yu He himself did not know how to answer.

No matter what Huang Shaohang did, it was impossible for him to stay here.

As the stalemate between the two sides continued, the sound of gunfire from a distance got closer, and cursing could be heard just around the corner.

A man from Northern Myanmar ran over from the front yard, whispering a few words into Huang Shaohang's ear.

Huang Shaohang's expression turned even uglier.

Captain Xiao clicked his tongue, seemingly finding the situation troublesome, and seemingly running out of patience.

"My apologies."

Captain Xiao pressed down with his right hand, positioning the muzzle on Yu He's shoulder, and resolutely pulled the trigger.

A burst of blood exploded from Yu He's shoulder in an instant.

Yu He let out a muffled grunt, turning his head back in shock to look at Captain Xiao.

Captain Xiao, unaware that Yu He could not see, slightly raised his eyebrows to signal Yu He to stay calm. Then he unlocked the safety again and pressed the muzzle to Yu He's temple.

His expression was cold and ruthless, like a reborn Asura, "Young Master Huang, have you made your decision?"