Chapter 61: The End |
Xu Geng’s head throbbed painfully as if it were being split apart. From the moment he regained consciousness, the pain had been unrelenting. He felt a strange sensation—he was hanging upside down.
He couldn’t tell how long he had been unconscious. His last memory was of someone charging toward him before everything went black.
Slowly, he opened his eyes.
His blurry vision took in the sight of a forest, but something seemed off—his view was inverted.
“Well, well, you’re awake.”
A voice nearby caught Xu Geng’s attention. He squinted to see a stocky man holding a flashlight, its beam directed toward him. The man set the flashlight on a nearby rock to act as a makeshift light source.
Under the dim light, Xu Geng finally got a clear look at the man’s face. His half-closed eyes suddenly shot wide open, and his expression turned to shock.
“Liu Changqing?!”
“You know me?”
Frowning, Liu Changqing scrutinized Xu Geng’s face. He was certain he had no memory of this person.
Xu Geng’s mind was in turmoil. Twisting his head as best as he could, he surveyed his surroundings—a forest of unknown location. His ankles were tightly bound, leaving him hanging upside down, while his hands were tied behind his back. He was completely immobilized.
Watching Xu Geng’s futile struggles, Liu Changqing picked up a small bowl from a nearby rock and began stirring its contents with a brush.
“The knot’s tight. Stop wasting your energy.”
“What are you trying to do?”
“The nerve of you to ask.”
Liu Changqing’s voice was calm, yet chilling. He stopped stirring and fixed his gaze on Xu Geng’s face.
“Why did you attack Zhou Shiyan with an iron rod?”
“What does it have to do with you?!”
Xu Geng’s voice was grating, like the screech of sharp nails on glass.
Liu Changqing frowned. He couldn’t understand how Xu Geng hadn’t yet grasped his precarious situation.
“You sure talk tough.”
He tapped the edge of the bowl with the brush, then leaned in and smeared its sticky contents across Xu Geng’s face.
“What are you doing?! What is this stuff?!”
“Something nice. Ever had honey?”
Ignoring further protests, Liu Changqing continued spreading the honey until Xu Geng’s face was evenly coated.
“What are you trying to do?!”
Panic set in as Xu Geng desperately squirmed, trying to free himself. His struggles only made him sway back and forth like a piece of dried meat hanging in the wind.
Placing the bowl aside, Liu Changqing crouched slightly to meet Xu Geng’s eyes.
“My son came home safe and sound. What’s wrong with your brain that you thought it was a good idea to mess with him?”
Xu Geng froze. His thoughts flashed back to the chubby kid who had resisted him. That boy… was Liu Changqing’s son?
“I… I didn’t know he was your son…”
“…”
Liu Changqing didn’t bother replying. Instead, he stepped back and delivered a powerful punch to Xu Geng’s stomach.
Pain exploded in Xu Geng’s abdomen, twisting his face into an expression of agony. Because he was upside down, saliva dripped down his face.
“Who taught you this? Watching too many movies? Swinging an iron rod at random people?”
He followed up with another punch.
“And stalking people?”
Grabbing a fistful of Xu Geng’s greasy hair, Liu Changqing yanked his head up slightly.
“I’m not letting you off easy.”
With that, he sliced through the rope holding Xu Geng’s ankles. The man fell to the ground with a thud, his head slamming painfully into the dirt.
Liu Changqing stood still, watching as Xu Geng squirmed and flailed on the ground like a fish out of water, bound hand and foot.
The honey smeared on his face had begun attracting swarms of mosquitoes and other insects, biting him relentlessly.
Liu Changqing eventually left.
Before departing, he cut the ropes binding Xu Geng’s hands and feet. By then, Xu Geng’s face was swollen and raw from rubbing against the ground, trying to alleviate the unbearable itching. Dirt had mixed with the honey, leaving his face completely unrecognizable.
Only after Liu Changqing was gone did Xu Geng scramble to his feet, furiously clawing at his face in an attempt to scrape off the honey. However, the more he rubbed, the worse it spread.
Unable to stand it any longer, Xu Geng fled.
He had no idea how Liu Changqing had brought him to this forest, but seeing him again had been a shock.
During a previous encounter with Zhou Shiyan, the dim lighting had prevented Xu Geng from recognizing Liu Changqing’s face. But now, there was no mistaking him.
Xu Geng had known of Liu Changqing from a past incident.
Liu Changqing once owned a factory. During his tumultuous divorce with Li Wanran, Xu Geng and others had been hired by Ye Rong to infiltrate the factory, bribe key personnel, and orchestrate chaos during inspections. Sabotaging equipment and production had resulted in a flood of defective products, ultimately forcing the factory to shut down.
When Xu Geng recognized Liu Changqing, he assumed the man was seeking revenge for those events. But that wasn’t the case—it was simply because Xu Geng had attacked Liu Changqing’s son.
The realization filled Xu Geng with rage. He resented Liu Changqing and harbored an equal grudge against Zhou Quan, the cowardly gambler.
It was Zhou Quan who claimed he had taken out an accidental death insurance policy for his daughter, Zhou Shiyan, which led Xu Geng to plot her murder and stage it as an accident for the payout.
But now, with Liu Changqing on high alert, any attempt to harm Zhou Shiyan would be futile. Xu Geng’s efforts had been for nothing, leaving him seething with frustration.
After a grueling journey, Xu Geng arrived at Zhou Quan’s dilapidated home on the city’s outskirts. The area was littered with garbage.
With a powerful kick, he smashed through the flimsy metal door, startling Zhou Quan, who was lying on his bed.
Badly beaten the previous day, Zhou Quan had skipped his gambling sessions to recover. Drowsy from his nap, the loud crash jolted him awake. He grabbed his threadbare blanket in panic.
“It’s you?!”
In the dim light, Zhou Quan saw Xu Geng’s dirt-covered face and filthy clothes. Before he could say more, Xu Geng charged at him, fists flying.
What began as resistance devolved into pleas for mercy. Zhou Quan’s cries grew weaker and weaker as Xu Geng’s assault continued, his rage boiling over.
Suddenly, bright lights flooded the room, accompanied by the wailing of police sirens.
Xu Geng froze mid-strike, panic etched on his face. Scanning the room, he realized there was no way out. At the door stood two police cars, their occupants waiting.
“That’s him! He’s the one who attacked my son!”
Liu Changqing stood outside, his expression filled with grief and anger.
“My son is only fifteen! What did he ever do to deserve being attacked with an iron rod by this lunatic?! This guy is insane!”
Liu Changqing lunged forward, but officers held him back.
Another officer entered the house and quickly assessed the scene.
“There’s someone inside with serious injuries. Call an ambulance immediately.”
Xu Geng stared blankly at Liu Changqing, his face drained of all emotion. He seemed utterly soulless.