Blazing Armor

The two first returned to the main hall, where Gong Yingxian discussed with her colleagues how to capture Bai Chicheng, with the minimum requirement being the survival of the hostage.rYdzctqhkexVWWnmFwGHUXvXJOETZG

However, after discussing several plans, they all felt that the success rate was too low. The multifunctional conference room was too large, and the surroundings were completely enclosed, making it impossible to hide or launch a strong attack. Capturing Bai Chicheng alive was nearly impossible, and it was also difficult to ensure Yue Xingu’s safety unless Bai Chicheng was willing to surrender.tPoPJOHsGvYYeQjwdDFtcmtgMoNpbj

A police officer said, “We can only see what conditions he has and act accordingly.”NCIyqcXZWKbrfpmNwejGYIqCVGrzQM

“This is the most troublesome part,” Gong Yingxian said solemnly. “He doesn’t mention any conditions, and he doesn’t seem anxious at all.”ghUzVsAGDVzzhNdezHoXPBAyBCOeag

“He didn’t mention them before, but he might now,” Ren Yi said.SUaEraQklTYrBaPcTQoURppNHQRBTQ

Gong Yingxian pondered for a moment. “Install a listening device for me. Let’s first deploy several plans for a strong attack. You all follow my code instructions to act.”gBYRqJLzZOkZYBmgzzBcPzKLFCGfmA

Once prepared, Gong Yingxian and Ren Yi went upstairs.RHlGSVYoWifcXlXsreHansYIYmEGFu

Gong Yingxian said with concern, “Based on your conversations inside, Bai Chicheng not only has a determination to die, but he also doesn’t plan to leave Yue Xingu alive.”cqsiSXXZnCHGyZZFfXjSUszMFcppcD

“So that’s why he allowed Yue Xingu to tell me those things?”qCjMUoXqbRFcHOhJuEOKGKMvugaDJM

“Yes, it’s as if he wants Yue Xingu to take all the blame before he dies.”GLVatDTdhwFXStYWlgwYWDyWfUWmdf

“But you’ve already seen through them.”zBMdFnhwKRQQnZSWIvAUNYdbxrfAnv

“However, if we can’t find more favorable evidence, Yue Xingu’s statements can be self-consistent, and you are the witness. He indeed worked in the group for bidding and procurement, and he had financial dealings with Wang Minde. He has both the motive and the ability to commit the crime, and his confession is reasonable. This is very troublesome. The evidence we have is enough to initiate a retrial, and we are currently preparing the materials. But if after the retrial, we only pin the blame on Yue Xingu as the ‘mastermind,’ then all our efforts will be in vain.” Gong Yingxian squinted her eyes. “The mastermind behind this is very good at using scapegoats to cover up their crimes. It was my father before, and now it’s Yue Xingu. I will never let him succeed again.”XlZvNgdVNjNFvPXxvAgDgrOHcuRATk

“Yue Xingu said he was coerced, which should be true. Purple Flame even wanted to kill Feilan; is this a warning to Yue Xingu?”HZWsCQlrEKpaKmcLUfZJgHYWnmqTRN

“If that’s the case, he succeeded. He showed Yue Xingu what he could do to Feilan. Now that Feilan is still alive, it is the biggest leverage to coerce Yue Xingu.”uxAyULEfOefwkFSXDFDprtkBszDJAc

“So Yue Xingu won’t say anything now.” Ren Yi’s expression was grave.NddDbLuRwlObVLuWAPJXJCftfRzbNT

“Unless we capture Purple Flame and let him know that no one can threaten Feilan anymore, but the premise is that he must be kept alive.”NQuNCQRTOVLgifCiebbUMwPecfCfvc

Ren Yi looked at the conference room door, which was now close at hand, and took a deep breath. “Let’s go.”pTuQeTQzknQqrUQZseEXtZOVpRRiSz

The two pushed open the door.xwtiERQKuYgmJUlsfvBeewFyPjDxdH

Inside the conference room, just as they had left it, Bai Chicheng and Yue Xingu sat in their chairs, their expressions hardly changed.OYdJppPAqcmiDNhlCRBLYErfbOoMFM

Seeing them, Bai Chicheng spoke, “Stop. First take off your coats and put down your guns.”oRFccWIGyTtLiyHfiZSNkJVQppeNUO

Gong Yingxian threw her coat and gun onto the floor.txJlaUDDyIYlxKDnIEdzSPBkVDGOlT

Only then did Bai Chicheng allow them to approach, coldly smiling. “You turned off all the surveillance in the building, but I still know your every move.”hPKLToqRqytGCWYeBPNhnuwcfjVlmU

“Were the two guests in room 1206 kidnapped by you? Where are they?”cTSAfugIEEQcGZiFKRuzCpEZqFTUqo

“You have no ability to find them. Do you expect me to tell you?” Bai Chicheng said. “See, I told you, you would definitely come back to find me.”GPQlkgZCQpHtZVorSdoIDwzcOkSZQv

“Now that we are back, what do you want to do next?” Ren Yi glared at him.GJGVuYIXsZoqYBUHhjvNjOVazUonNS

“Next, the rules are going to change.” Bai Chicheng pointed at Gong Yingxian. “This time, you stay. I have something to say to you alone.” He then pointed at Ren Yi. “You go out.”uzGlcpAWygDlJDzFKricJypUCvyaXf

Ren Yi glanced at Gong Yingxian, and after receiving her affirmative look, he retreated out.lgUklQHQHmMrCRKyqfMuBXbqcwCwpj

What kind of trick is Bai Chicheng trying to play again? Ren Yi’s heart felt heavy, and he found it hard to breathe, unsure if it was due to his injuries or pure worry.KEhbPaZFuaXVzFzxqirtzLdEmanASn

In any case, Gong Yingxian should be able to handle Bai Chicheng better than he could.DFngEbiaDhglNxhAjHQTSSZrZtLojI

Ren Yi pressed his face against the door, hoping to hear what was happening inside, but all he could hear was a faint buzzing sound; he couldn’t make out a single word. He anxiously paced back and forth outside the door.IiaSJiuPKBAIGqaMjJvmfKROrZdoti

About twenty minutes later, a piercing scream suddenly echoed from the conference room!USLPASSCILuCEuPHHNUWOOZOUYpCef

Ren Yi jumped in fright, adrenaline surging. He turned and charged into the conference room, slamming the door open. The first thing he saw was a person engulfed in flames running and rolling around the room, screaming incessantly—it was Yue Xingu!lmWbUwLDeWXRqjbndFTZMGbMpxZscU

In terror, Ren Yi searched for Gong Yingxian but saw her leaving through another door of the conference room.sVpaQBHrHnnCMpGmZQXgeMxOHoAsjR

“Yingxian!”rmrCsKBLOcWYdXIRPsmsHDVUqiXHVm

Gong Yingxian turned back to glance at him, giving him a look.RtbpTLTLHxPivjCMZHrvSMMRzGYltQ

It was a gaze that Ren Yi would never forget, mixed with struggle, pain, sharpness, coldness, and determination. He had never seen such a look in anyone’s eyes before, and he didn’t understand what it represented.zlRnNKeKLkyDOpvqrxelaGhGsZxpJz

Ren Yi was at his wits’ end. He wanted to chase after her, but seeing the person rolling on the ground in flames, he gritted his teeth. After a moment of struggle, he had already taken off his coat and lunged at Yue Xingu, wrapping the coat around her upper body and head, quickly patting it down, trying to smother the flames. But the strong smell of alcohol in the air told him that the fire wouldn’t be so easily extinguished.CPWhhrucNwjYLJfLmxUPJZXWCiibbK

He sprang up from the ground and dashed out of the conference room. Out of habit as a firefighter, he instinctively looked for fire extinguishing devices wherever he went. He quickly found a fire extinguisher and ran back into the conference room, spraying it at Yue Xingu.hXZflWnpllSHhPYyaonALolEUIRRVJ

By the time he finished one canister, Yue Xingu was already lying on the ground, motionless.cQbSgOYBPAjXgeRpsRJJMmAkoQmhYU

Ren Yi tossed aside the fire extinguisher, trembling as he lifted his coat to see Yue Xingu, whose face was burned beyond recognition. He knelt beside her, calling for help while checking her pulse and heartbeat.RmpInxJynnTqqxDxZiqRCPcUyYgKvJ

The ambulance had long been waiting downstairs at the hotel, and within two minutes, the paramedics rushed up. But Ren Yi knew it was too late.eeooQPVifIWjLdnlMIktftEMptkRoV

Yue Xingu was dead.OQAYxggwQdVVVppJTvIftuDdZRijKk

Burned alive right before his eyes.gOdndHVFTNxRenVyywomhXwwgIoKFO

Even if a person had committed numerous wrongs and deserved to die, witnessing such a scene made it hard for anyone not to feel a sense of empathy, especially since this person was not entirely unrelated to him. He couldn’t describe the anger and shock he felt at that moment.vFYmNrWWIICkMWztpTaICkRPZYgLZW

Ren Yi felt the world spinning, staggering back two steps until his lower back hit the table, supporting his body.gjIOVALkYpYpTvKdPOUiNYqGSZubxn

“Captain Ren.” Shi Xiaoqian grabbed his hand. “Let me take care of your injury.”MazkIYhEQEGwnJDpqbTvbqeVPNfQWU

Ren Yi looked down, realizing he hadn’t even noticed that his own hand had been burned.hblpWQPzTnScNulQYLmFOtPsySmjcJ

“Are you okay? Weren’t you still in the hospital? You need to come with me to the ambulance right now.”NfCuOmKctnxnJDGRGBeLaZAIdHxXdk

“…No, Yingxian.” Ren Yi came to his senses and turned to run.eHmgzMaKvNZFzFYKIpnGIqZUoCUGRf

“Captain Ren—”VHDWZzwiLysUUXFRUVZGWmlSJWDULb

As soon as Ren Yi ran out of the conference room, he collided with several police officers.lxfTRcAsSJQAetuqcjDNhWPWTZLkqM

“Where’s Dr. Gong?”LWdkjuXqcmCoMoJYXQdFdbibYCezhh

Both sides asked the same question in unison, then froze.EgjjUWxRBVIFCyxOnKcRFuinTuEwfq

Ren Yi was completely bewildered. He didn’t know what had happened. Gong Yingxian should have gone to capture Bai Yan, but Bai Yan was alone, and the entire hotel was sealed off by the police. Where could he run? If he couldn’t escape, he should have been caught by now, but these officers hadn’t seen Bai Yan, nor had they seen Gong Yingxian.dmrrwUnJCbONUYnMhirzWdmWquOgNA

Soon, a voice came over the police radio: “Bai Yan has taken Dr. Gong hostage. They just drove away from the hotel.”UkELCorPBEJhDTKIXzpktpxqAZSlfg

Ren Yi froze on the spot.qSnkRSvnOukniWGPcXtUOpCdbgVVVP

No, Gong Yingxian was not taken hostage at least when she left the conference room, and with Yue Xingu dead, what could Bai Yan use to threaten Gong Yingxian?jgSXUoCVgFCBdSDUjnRJhEqSkdfzuc

Ren Yi felt that the events that had transpired in just a few dozen minutes had exceeded his capacity to comprehend. He was completely lost. Suddenly remembering he still had his phone, he quickly dialed Gong Yingxian’s number, but as expected, it was already turned off.UXavItuceVXIiInNoOciazMWZjYyIR

“Captain Ren, what exactly happened just now?” a police officer pressed.lDxBpjSYBufpVzTYrhPBTPOAoSLysf

“I… I don’t know. Bai Chicheng wanted to talk to Dr. Gong alone, so I went out, and then I heard a scream from inside. I went in and saw Yue Xingu burning, and Dr. Gong went to capture Bai Yan. I… I put out the fire, and then…” Ren Yi forced himself to extract the correct logic from his chaotic mind, briefly summarizing what had just happened, but he was already in a state of confusion.iMFByBqrHonRNVajGiARxWcCJiaguH

The police officer looked at him, who seemed on the verge of collapse. “Captain Ren, I’ll take you back to the hospital first. We will continue to track Dr. Gong, and we will notify you immediately if we have any news.”HDnLHyzdkXdyGBSkZjSdjwSexaIiGO

“I won’t go back. I need to know his whereabouts immediately. Can you locate his phone? What car is he driving? Have you caught up with him?” Ren Yi urged. “By the way, he has a listening device on him. What did they say? Hurry and listen.”snEfYzGBQnsvLwBdBrPcWgpPEmvCyz

“Captain Ren,” the police officer said firmly, “we are doing everything you can think of. We need your cooperation, but your current physical condition is not suitable for staying here any longer.”MotdEqcOxEJnVuqbWziXtAXNSZPGRB

“Show me the surveillance footage, let me listen to the recordings. Does Captain Qiu know? I need to call her.” Ren Yi pulled out his phone to make a call.RFXiCJxAypmzdFYCyxbcCqGlzzZIHZ

Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his neck.IcFHmHpThcPOcLvOtrBFkBFZSDyjjE

He turned around to see Shi Xiaoqian holding a syringe, looking at him with concern.ZgKHpoEOOVRoIdBNVXQGzBdfWQKhwC

His vision went black, and he fainted.HemsptLwNWmUilurXfTuSFYBKDQYSo

Gong Yingxian, you absolutely cannot be in trouble…NvyPJCLsElIXaYlngnoHiZeMXvRPae