CHAPTER 61 ♦ WHY'S HE HERE?

“You! Why aren’t you listening?! Infuriating!” Zhuo lao ye’zi said exasperatedly.

“Because your concern is largely unnecessary.” Z L T

“How is it unnecessary?! Who knows if that hot-headed lad will spill it someday to someone?!”

“Then let me die.” Z L T

“Enh? Lass do you know what you’re talking about?” Z L T

“I’m very clear. If the matter is revealed because of him, I will accept the death penalty dealt.”

“You, aye, why are you so stubborn? Won’t everything be fine if you didn’t look for him?”

“Weren’t you impressed by my abilities a few years back and wanted me to serve the country? I obeyed your commands and joined this organization; I did everything you wanted me to do, isn’t that what you desired? The agreement for me to live was that I must serve this organisation. Are we not just taking what we need for ourselves? In that case, other than the missions I need to complete issued, how I utilize the rest of my time is my own liberty. I know where the draw the line so you needn’t send people to tail me.”

“Fine! Fine! This ole gramps I won’t care, and I don’t have the ability to! Whatever happens in the future, just remember that it’s the consequence of your choice!”

When Zhuo Xiao Xuan left Zhuo lao ye’zi’s study, she met her “biao ge*” Zhuo Hong Yi, and he asked her: “Xiao Xuan, you made ye ye** angry again?”

* 表哥 = biao ge; older male cousin from the mother’s side

** 爷爷 = ye ye; paternal grandfather Z L T

“No.” He’s the one finding things to be angry about; it has nothing to do with her.

“Ye ye’s is a little stubborn, and has a poor temper. He’s old, be a little more patient with him.” Though Zhuo Hong Yi wasn’t very close to this little distant biao mei* who popped out all of a sudden, she didn’t look like someone who would start arguments over trivial matters, so how did she make ye ye so angry?

* 表妹 = biao mei; younger female cousin from the mother’s side

“Enh. I’m going first if there’s nothing else.” Z L T

Zhuo Xiao Xuan returned to her room. This was the Zhuo Mansion she was to live in after returning from the cosmetic surgery from abroad as Zhuo Xiao Xuan. Zhuo lao ye’zi had arranged a room for her, but the only  times she stayed in the room was to sleep.

She had been beyond busy in the past half month of her holiday upon returning here, so she only managed to drop by the Zhuo Mansion two to three times. She had agreed to join their Z Organisation—an organisation she didn’t even know the full name to—then, and so she’s running around completing her missions every day. On top of that, she had to be extremely careful not to get hurt during her missions, else Yin Xu Dong’s going to look at her with that pitiful and miserable gaze of his when he finds out. Though his concern had her very touched, she didn’t want him to worry.

After being busy for the past half a month, the organisation finally gave her a day off for her to rest properly. Just as she was about to cultivate her inner gong before sleeping, she received the organisation’s message indicating that their target’s moved. In other words, she was mobilised.

And so, she pulled her skin-tight dark clothing and strapped on her weapons. Following that, she pulled on a long coat, put on a short wig, speedily swiped on some of makeup on the table and turned herself into a lady with conspicuous make up, appearing as though having experienced the vicissitudes of life.

She pulled open the window to the Zhuo Mansion and jumped out, evaded all signs of life and surveillance before entering the streets. She then flagged a taxi and headed straight for the city centre.

When she reached the city centre, Zhuo Xiao Xuan walked into a small bookstore. She threw down a coin at the old man tending the store. “The weather today’s terrible. Do you have magazines here?” 

“Pick whichever you want, we have a lot.”

“Do you have the magazine ‘Start Work!’?”

“We do. Which issue do you want?” Z L T

“358.” IAAK IS HOSTED @ ZHANLAN TL

“Here.” IAAK IS HOSTED @ ZHANLAN TL

Zhuo Xiao Xuan took the magazine the old man handed over, gave it a few flips before leaving the shop.

Z Organisation didn’t have an  fixed base, or rather, she didn’t know if there was a fixed base or not. Every time she had a mission, she would head over to this little bookstore to get the mission details. The conversation they had previously was the password to prevent the enemy from faking their identity and seizing their information. The issue number of the magazine changed all the time. If you didn’t give the correct issue number, you won’t be able to collect the mission information.

Zhuo Xiao Xuan walked into an alley, flipped open magazine and started reading the hidden information. After which, she produced a lighter, turning to leave after burning the entire magazine.

*

Zhuo Xiao Xuan lied in the snow by the roads of the suburbs, churning her inner gong to keep herself warm. She looked at her watch; they should be reaching soon. The sudden glare of headlights dashing the darkness of the road deserted—be it from its location or being cordoned off somewhere—suddenly swerved into sight.

They’re here! IAAK IS HOSTED @ ZHANLAN TL

She quickly raised her assault rifle and aimed it at the driver of the vehicle in the middle that was flanked by the vehicles by the sides. Just as she was waiting for the vehicle to enter the shooting range, a gunshot that wasn’t hers sounded. One of the cars that was shot veered from its original route, swerving into circles on the road that was thinly layered with ice. After which, the uniform arrangement of vehicles delved into chaos. The vehicle she was aiming at skewed off her aim.

Through her scope, she saw another fleet of vehicles following behind this fleet. The fleet tailing behind was evidently pursuing and attacking the fleet in front of them; the people riding the vehicles had their heads popped out of the car windows and guns shooting sweeping bullets at the fleet of vehicles in front.

Looks like her target today had other pursuers. She could utilise the chaos to finish off her mission, then cap the crime on their pursuers.

The fleet of vehicles drove around messily so their pursuers had no way of aiming properly. She leapt onto a tree by the road to wait for the fleet to drive by. When the all the vehicles had passed, she used her qing gong to jump onto the top of the last vehicle. She landed extremely lightly so the people in the vehicle didn’t notice the new addition.

The vehicle drove forward at a high speed. Zhuo Xiao Xuan tightly gripped the edges of the vehicles and slowly shifted herself. She stuck her head down to the windows. Her empty hand pulled out a gun, and she shot the two passengers in the back seat. After which, she retracted her body and gave a roll, several bullet holes littering the location where she’d lied on previously. Aiming her gun at the shotgun seat, she shot at the place several times continuously.

Zhuo Xiao Xuan held the handle of the gun and used it to slam open the windows to the driver’s seat. She lied on the top of the car and leaned her head against the window, her gun aiming straight at the driver’s forehead. She gave him a few hits with the nozzle to tell him not to move, for she could very easily send him to death’s doors as she’d done so for his fellow brothers.

The man raised one of his hands, his other hand gripping the steering wheel, telling her that he won’t move.

A hand gripping the edge of the window, she agilely slipped into the backseat of the car, her inhumane movements smooth as a mudfish.

Zhuo Xiao Xuan slithered in with a single move. When she sat on the corpse on the backseat, her handgun was resting against the driver’s seat, its nozzle pressed against his forehead. She tipped the black cap that shielded her entire face save for her eyes, saying icily: “You’re seeking death huh.”

The man slowly retracted his hand that was stretching towards the gun that belonged to his dead comrade lying in the shotgun seat, laughing to cover his actions: “Hehe, misunderstanding, misunderstanding. You shouldn’t kill me, if you do, you won’t have anyone to drive the car.”

Zhuo Xiao Xuan snorted coldly. Shifting her nozzle, she sent a shot straight at the man’s hand. The shot pierced his hand, leaving in its wake a bloody hole. The man howled from agony. Following that, his other hand slid from the steering wheel, and the vehicle they were in started swerving around terribly.

Zhuo Xio Xuan’s gun was once again against his forehead. “I’ll finish you off now if you don’t drive properly.”

The man inhaled sharply. He held in his anguish and affixed his other intact hand on the steering wheel.

Zhuo Xiao Xuan opened the car door by her side with a hand and pushed out one of the corpse. She closed the door, pushed opened another door to throw out the other corpse; her gun was kept level against his forehead all these while.

“Who are you? And who are you pursuing?” 

The man was immediately stunned. Are you kidding me, don’t tell me you had no idea what was going on and only dashed up to join the bustle, and then conveniently finished off a few of us while you’re at it! I’mma vommit blood if that really was the case!

“I’m from a certain underworld organisation. The person being pursued is the head of one of the underworld organisation; an underworld organisation against another, you know.” The man replied vaguely, before asking warily: “You, who are you? You can’t possibly be from another underworld organisation as well, can you?’ If she claimed she didn’t mix with herself with the underworld business, even his dead comrade slanted across the shotgun seat would implode from incredulity seeing how merciless her actions were!

“Oh, I’m just passing by. And cut it with the nonsense, tail him tightly. If you dare lose him, humph!”

The man almost wanted to faceplant the steering wheel. The shit! Passing by, why the world were you passing by such a desolate suburb?! And how did you pass by till you mugged one of the speeding vehicles?! And what’s with the face-shielding head-shielding bandit-like attire and the gun you’re carrying, and the fact that you just killed my comrades?! This matter had him learning a very huge lesson—he really shouldn’t provoke the people that were just passing by.

The vehicle ahead suddenly screeched to a stop. Zhuo Xiao Xuan was perhaps the only person who knew why they stopped. Z Organisation had dumped the entire section of road ahead with nails to forcefully stop the cars. The must ensure that they could finish their target before he escaped.

“What’s wrong? What’s wrong?” The man looked at the vehicles that had stopped ahead anxiously.

The sound of tyres bursting upon being pierced by nails told him the answer. The same moment he stomped on the brakes, Zhuo Xiao Xuan’s gun raised and fired straight at his forehead. With that, he blacked out, slanting across the driver’s seat.

The two vehicles fleets stopped. The fleet in front believed that it was the ambush the fleet behind them had planted. The fleet behind on the other hand thought that it was the fleet in front that had poured the road with nails. Both parties didn’t know it was the trap a third party had set up, and so, they took cover with their own vehicles as they opened fire at each other.

Zhuo Xiao Xuan opened the car door quietly, squatted silently by the side of the car and searched for her target as she looked through the piercing headlights of the vehicles. Z L T

Found him! That old man however was thickly encircled by his people; the only way for her to be able to kill him was to near him. However, the two parties were firing at each other at the moment; she would definitely be shot if she were to try to evade the bullets.

Zhuo Xiao Xuan popped her head out to survey the surroundings. She turned her head back to check on her target’s situation before weaving through and flipping past a few vehicles, dropping into a half-crouch by the side of a small vehicle. Straightening her hand, she shot and killed a man dressed in black blocking her target’s side. The death of one of her target’s people exposed the weakest joints of their protection.

Zhuo Xiao Xuan’s index finger continued pressing down on the trigger; the bullets zipped out in the route she’d expected. As it did, she waited for these two bullets to hit her target’s head… Z L T

The scene that followed however was beyond her expectation. One of the men dressed in black by his side smashed the first flying bullet down with the handle of his gun. Following that, he raised his hand to thwack the second bullet away.

Zhuo Xiao Xuan frowned. Who was he? The first time she was shot when she was on a mission with Wolf, Jackal and Leopard, she almost lost her life after being unable to catch the bullet flying her way. Though her inner gong wasn’t completed recovered then, the fact that this guy was able to accomplish such a feat was no trivial matter. He didn’t catch it with his bare hands, but the fact that he was able to intercept the two powerful bullets within such a short period of time told her he was no simple figure!

She won’t be able to complete her mission tonight easily with such a person protecting the old man. She stared him, her gaze burning. As though feeling her gaze on him, he turned in her direction. 

When Zhuo Xiao Xuan saw his face illuminated by the lights, her heart skipped a beat. It’s him! Why’s he here?! Z L T