Chapter 16: It Has Been a Long Time Since I’ve Met Someone So Innocent
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Gu Changqing fired a shot straight into Jin Manfu’s knee. Jin Manfu groaned in pain, clutching his knee, his forehead drenched in cold sweat.
He was tough, though. He refused to cry out, but his lips quivered uncontrollably.
Jin Manfu’s gaze swept over She Qing, who lay lifeless on the floor—his trusted right-hand man, just so easily dispatched. No one had expected this young officer to erupt so suddenly, and his first move was lethal.
It was as improbable as a rabbit devouring a man—simply unbelievable.
Jin Manfu looked up at Gu Changqing, his eyes bloodshot, murder burning in his stare.
“Come on, all of you, get over here! Otherwise, I’ll blow your boss’s brains out!” Gu Changqing lounged with one leg crossed, his gun aimed at Jin Manfu, and tossed the command toward the six men standing at the door.
His leg twitched restlessly.
“Put your hands where I can see them! If not, I’ll get upset—and when I’m upset, someone’s bound to suffer!” Gu Changqing grinned.
Seeing their hesitation, Gu Changqing turned to Jin Manfu: “Your men don’t care much about whether you live or die, do they?”
“What’s the use of such subordinates? If I were you, after tonight I’d get rid of them all!”
Jin Manfu glared at Gu Changqing, teeth clenched, refusing to answer.
Only then did the six men shuffle over, standing behind Jin Manfu.
“And those hiding outside—get in here!” Gu Changqing barked.
“I’ll count to three! Three!”
Bang!
Gu Changqing shot one of Jin Manfu’s men behind him.
“What are you trying to do? Have you considered the consequences?” Jin Manfu asked through gritted teeth.
Gu Changqing sneered, ignoring him.
“Not coming out, huh?”
“There’s no one outside, we’re all here!” One of Jin Manfu’s men, seeing the gun pointed at him, blanched.
“I don’t believe you.”
Bang!
Another of Jin Manfu’s men fell dead.
Outside, silence reigned.
“Really none?” Gu Changqing scratched his head, scanning the group—those he’d seen earlier were indeed all present, including the one at the main entrance.
“You’re making me look like a fool! As if I’m being unreasonable!” Gu Changqing took a deep breath, feeling this was a serious issue.
A slap in the face.
Bang bang bang bang!
Gu Changqing emptied his magazine into the remaining men.
As the last bullet clicked empty, Jin Manfu—his eyes locked on Gu Changqing, red with fury—suddenly flipped a tea table weighing well over a hundred pounds, sending it crashing toward Gu Changqing.
Jin Manfu followed up, murderous glare, charging forward like a tiger unleashed.
The ferocity of his attack was overwhelming—the sound of a tiger’s roar seemed to echo, as if a real beast was upon Gu Changqing.
He looked fat, but that was merely the aftereffect of an illness. Beneath the fat was pure muscle. Though not as nimble as in his youth, he was now far more formidable.
Gu Changqing watched the tea table careening toward him, feeling his blood surge like rivers and waves, a thunderous roar filling the room. Even the air around him seemed to grow hotter.
Jin Manfu heard that surge of rivers and paused, wondering what it was—but he had no time for further thought, focusing entirely on the tea table, ready to counter whatever Gu Changqing did. If he could get close, he’d tear the man in half.
Jin Manfu’s face twisted with rage. He had absolute confidence in his own strength—years spent hiding his true abilities, did others really think he was incapable?
Boom!
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The tea table exploded into countless fragments, as a foot kicked through its remains.
Jin Manfu was shocked, but it was too late to dodge. His hands, like tiger claws, lunged for Gu Changqing’s foot.
With his only functional leg, Jin Manfu couldn’t move much, his body leaning backward. Yet as his hands touched the leg, he realized something was terribly wrong—the strength was immense, like a steel pillar crashing down, impossible to hold.
His hands could tear lambs apart, but here, they bounced off the leg. With a ripping sound, Gu Changqing’s pants tore beneath Jin Manfu’s grasp, revealing a muscular leg that whistled past Jin Manfu’s nose.
Jin Manfu felt a wild gust against his face, stunned—this was no leg, it was a cannon shell!
Gu Changqing’s first kick missed, but he spun, and his leg swung down like a battle axe toward the floor.
Jin Manfu rolled away desperately.
Boom!
The floor tiles shattered beneath the blow, fragments flying out like shrapnel.
“Wait!” Jin Manfu was terrified—was this even human? How could anyone be so fierce? A monster!
“Wait for your mother!” Gu Changqing cursed, his foot slamming down, immediately launching his left leg in a swift kick.
This time Jin Manfu couldn’t dodge—he raised his arms to block.
Bang!
Jin Manfu felt as if struck by a car, sent flying over ten meters, crashing into the wall. His backbone cracked audibly, and he dropped to the floor like a broken sack.
“Wait for your mother, scratching me like that!” Gu Changqing cursed again, noticing blood marks on his leg. He’d just changed into these pants; they were branded, cost over eight hundred apiece.
His shoe was ruined too—the kick had blown it apart.
Gu Changqing felt bitter about his losses, grabbed Jin Manfu’s head, and smashed it against the wall. Jin Manfu’s face was utterly ruined, his nose shattered.
Gu Changqing held Jin Manfu’s head and grinned wickedly:
“It’s been ages since I met someone so naïve. Did you really think I wouldn’t kill you?”
Blood gushed from Jin Manfu’s mouth.
Gu Changqing slapped him hard.
“Ready to talk now?”
Jin Manfu opened his eyes, his mouth twisted in a mocking smile: “You won’t let me go…”
He understood now—Gu Changqing would never spare him. Whether he cooperated or not, he’d die. He’d lived half a lifetime; this much was clear, and he’d long been prepared. He’d enjoyed everything he could—he had no regrets.
Gu Changqing seized his fingers and bent one backward.
Crack.
Jin Manfu groaned in pain.
“The way you die matters…” Gu Changqing grinned.
He grabbed another finger and snapped it back.
“You have ten fingers, ten toes. I’ll break them one by one. If you can endure without talking, I’ll admit you’re a real man.”
Gu Changqing spoke as he worked, breaking Jin Manfu’s fingers one after another.
“If you’re a real man, I’ll make sure to treat you well—break your bones bit by bit, grind them to dust. What do you think?”
“I promise I’ll keep you alive. You have plenty of bones; I can smash them for a long time!”
“I’ll talk…” Jin Manfu, sweating profusely, looked at Gu Changqing as if he were a demon.
Pain he could bear, but endless torture—no one wanted to endure that.
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“Once I’ve told you, give me a swift death.”
“If you’d been this sensible earlier, none of this would have happened!” Gu Changqing dragged Jin Manfu and threw him in front of the sofa.
He picked up Jin Manfu’s wine bottle and took a swig—sweet and tangy, like plum wine. Not bad.
“There’s a wooden box in Old Dao’s safe—do you know what it is?” Gu Changqing asked directly.
A flash of realization crossed Jin Manfu’s eyes; his face grew bitter.
“I don’t know…”
Gu Changqing stomped on Jin Manfu’s hand: “Maybe think harder?”
“Let me explain…” Jin Manfu was drenched in sweat. “Someone contacted me, asking me to transport something.”
“They kept their face hidden, never revealed their identity, but were generous and bold!”
“I sensed trouble, didn’t want to get involved, but couldn’t afford to offend them. So I handed the job to Old Dao.”
“Old Dao couldn’t provoke someone like you. What you’re asking about must be that…”
“I don’t know what it is, but I know it’s big trouble! So I never asked! Even after Old Dao got into trouble, I only heard that the item in the safe was taken by the Security Bureau. I didn’t dig further.”
Gu Changqing studied Jin Manfu—he wasn’t without intelligence.
“Generous? How generous?”
“Five million, just to retrieve and safeguard one item until they came for it!” Jin Manfu was sweating buckets.
“That’s quite generous! When will this person come for it? How do you recognize them?”
“I don’t know, I never saw their face… but they’ll come soon…”
“Damn, you know nothing. What use are you?” Gu Changqing stomped on Jin Manfu’s ankle.
This time Jin Manfu groaned in agony: “I’ve told you everything I know—give me a quick death, don’t torture me!”
He actually withheld one thing—the person had inspired a deep fear in him, which was why he hadn’t dared refuse.
He would wait below, for this person. The other’s fate wouldn’t be any better than his own.
“Where’s your money? The safe? How do you open it?” Gu Changqing pondered; since Jin Manfu knew nothing more, further questioning was pointless.
But he’d come this far—he wouldn’t leave empty-handed.
A moment later, Gu Changqing snapped Jin Manfu’s neck with a stomp, then grabbed a cloth to wipe the mouth of the wine bottle and the armrest.
He wasn’t worried about leaving fingerprints—he had another set belonging to Gu Quan’an.
But best not to leave any trace.
…
Afterward, Gu Changqing wandered through the villa, opening a room and pausing in surprise. Inside lay a woman.
She looked young, pleasantly attractive, with fair skin and delicate features.
Her eyes were closed; it was unclear whether she was unconscious from drugs or faking.
Gu Changqing had his own way to tell. He walked over and slapped her.
Her face swelled, but she showed no reaction, like a corpse.
“Looks like she really is unconscious.”
Gu Changqing wasn’t a bad man; she seemed drugged, so he left her alone.
He casually felt the lamp—good texture, probably real.
He then staggered off to Jin Manfu’s room.
Opening the safe, he found plenty of cash, property deeds, gold jewelry, and stock certificates.
He also found a pistol, a rifle, and several boxes of ammunition.
Gu Changqing packed everything into his car.
At least he didn’t leave empty-handed.