Chapter 127

Peng Ling was inexplicably pulled out by the doctor, filled with doubts and concern. “Has his condition worsened? When can I come to see him?”
The doctor stroked his chin, thought for a moment, and shook his head. “It’s hard to say! But it will take at least three days based on the situation.”
“Oh!” Peng Ling nodded in disappointment before quickly asking anxiously, “Is he in any danger?”
“No, no, don’t worry about that!” The doctor shook his head firmly and then said, “How about this—I’ll explain the patient’s condition to you…” With that, the doctor led the reluctant Peng Ling toward the stairs.
After Peng Ling left, Xie Wendong in the room finally breathed a sigh of relief. Before he could settle down for even two minutes, Jin Yan strode in and said, “Brother Dong, Gao Huimei and her sister are already on their way to the hospital.”
“Oh! Really? I’m about to faint!” Xie Wendong covered his head, causing Jin Yan to laugh heartily. Being infatuated was indeed exhausting!
Yan Ke had disappeared—vanished mysteriously from the hospital, and no one knew where he was. The police were searching for him, as were his boss and father. But even after searching the entire hospital and city of H, nothing was found.
Some people knew he had a poor relationship with Xie Wendong, even having had fierce conflicts, and suspected Xie Wendong was behind it, but there was no evidence.
Moreover, as Yan Ke said, it was “his timely arrival” that allowed Xie Wendong to be shot only a few times. In a sense, he had saved Xie Wendong—how could the latter kidnap him?!
A month later, in the northern suburbs of city H, several cars were parked in a desolate forest. More than a dozen people stood in an open area late at night. The moonlight was dark blue, dotted with stars, with a crescent moon hanging low.
“Tomorrow will be good weather!” Xie Wendong, wrapped in a coat, leaned against a car. With Li Shuang’s support, he looked up at the sky and murmured to himself. A breeze blew by; although it was summer, there was still a slight chill. Xie Wendong coughed lightly and subconsciously pulled his coat tighter around his shoulders. Li Shuang, standing beside him, noticed this and said gently, “Brother Dong, your wounds haven’t fully healed. I think you should go back and rest.”
Xie Wendong shook his head and walked toward the group in the center of the open area.
The man in the middle was covered in wounds, with a sunken nose and swollen eyes. His clothes were stained with blood and dirt, and he sat on the ground, exhausted. Several tall, burly men stood around him, frowning fiercely as they stared at the injured man, their eyes burning with anger. These men could be considered the core members of Xie Wendong’s gang.

Kneeling on the ground was Yan Ke, who had been missing for a long time and kidnapped by San Yan and others. Judging from his numerous wounds, it was clear that San Yan and his men had “taken good care of” him recently. Xie Wendong slowly walked up to Yan Ke, looked down at him, and said word by word, “Thank you for those nine bullets. I’ll remember this!” Hearing his voice, Yan Ke raised his head and saw it was Xie Wendong. His heart turned cold. Though he didn’t know much about Xie Wendong, he was somewhat aware of his methods. He thought to himself, “My life is over today!” With narrowed eyes and a sense of resentment, Yan Ke said, “I’m a police officer. If you kill me like this, you can’t escape blame either.” “Hehe!” Xie Wendong smiled politely and said, “Who knows? Who can prove it was me? Even if someone does, who would dare to speak up? Don’t forget, my name is Xie Wendong! In my eyes, you’re just an ant—a rather bold ant, that is.” Yan Ke lowered his head with a bitter smile. Now he knew what was the most terrifying thing in the world: regret! He still wanted to seize one last chance. He rolled his eyes and forced himself to speak, “Brother Dong… It was my fault before. I hope you can give me another chance. From now on, I’ll do whatever you say. And since I’m a police officer, with me as your inside man in the police force, you can do whatever you want without worries, right?” “Mm!” Xie Wendong nodded and smiled, “That makes sense.” This “that makes sense” from Xie Wendong gave Yan Ke endless hope. He quickly added, “My father is a provincial leader. He knows many high-ranking officials, even some in the capital. If we cooperate, it will be easy for you, Brother Dong, to take control of Northeast China!” “Mm!” Xie Wendong nodded again and smiled, “That makes sense.” Yan Ke saw light ahead again and said hopefully, “So… are you going to spare me this time, Brother Dong?!” Xie Wendong sighed and said, “I never really like killing…” Yan Ke hurriedly said, “Yes, yes, I’ve always known Brother Dong is very kind.” Xie Wendong shook his head and said, “If you had said that earlier, we would have had a chance to cooperate. But it’s a bit late now.” Yan Ke panicked and said, “No… it’s not too late. What I’m saying now is sincere. Brother Dong, you can’t kill me. I…” Survival is the most important thing for anyone, especially for someone like Yan Ke who had a good life. Death had always seemed far away from him, but now that it was looming, he was on the verge of collapse.

Sanyan hated people like him the most. Before Yan Ke could finish speaking, he stepped forward and kicked him in the face, forcing back the words he tried to say for mercy into his stomach. Sanyan watched Yan Ke fall to the ground and laughed harshly a few times, then said to Xie Wendong, “Brother Dong, what’s there to talk about with such a guy? Let me shoot him.” Xie Wendong nodded and said, “Brother Zhang, you decide!” After saying that, he glanced at Yan Ke once more before walking toward the car. Yan Ke knew that if Xie Wendong left, these people would never give him a chance to live. Ignoring the pain in his body, he instinctively grabbed the hem of Xie Wendong’s pants as he was about to leave, screaming loudly, “Brother Dong, don’t kill me, don’t kill me…” These people already hated him to the bone, and none of them showed any sympathy. Especially Li Shuang, who stepped on Yan Ke’s head, his fat face twitching as he sneered, “If I had known it would end like this, why would I have done it in the first place? Your mistakes can’t be forgiven.” Li Shuang applied more pressure, burying Yan Ke’s entire face in the dirt. Xie Wendong watched Yan Ke convulse uncontrollably due to lack of air and felt pity instead. His near-death experience this time made him deeply realize the horror of death. Xie Wendong sighed and said, “End his suffering quickly!” Then, accompanied by Li Shuang and Dong Xinlei, he got into the car and drove away from the area. With Xie Wendong gone, Yan Ke looked around at the people, especially Sanyan’s snake-like eyes, and felt utterly desperate. Gao Qiang laughed and pulled out the pistol at his waist, walking toward Yan Ke. He reached behind him, grabbed his collar, and lifted him up by force, forcing him to kneel on the ground. Gao Qiang pressed the gun against Yan Ke’s back of the head and said to Sanyan, “Brother Sanyan, I’m going to do it. Just looking at people like him is annoying.” Sanyan nodded and muttered, “Damn, it feels like giving this dog too easy a death!” Gao Qiang agreed, “Yeah, exactly!” Seeing that the two top figures of the Wendong Gang were also unwilling, Chen Baicheng, standing behind Sanyan, rolled his eyes and said to Sanyan, “How about we do it this way… hehe.”

Chen Baicheng is now a popular figure under Sanyan, especially after the battle against Lei Jun. Sanyan believes he is brave and resourceful, a talented individual he values highly. With his cunning nature and ability to cater to Sanyan’s preferences, Chen quickly became one of the key figures under Wen Donghui despite being a newcomer. After joining Wen Donghui, he gained a deeper understanding of its strength and also realized the scarcity of talent. The destruction of the Tigers Gang and their joint takeover of City H wasn’t by chance. To establish himself and advance further, he needed a powerful ally. Xie Wendong was the obvious choice, but everyone around him was equally formidable. Chen felt he couldn’t showcase his talents beside Xie, who was also incredibly smart—playing tricks on him left him uncertain. His attention naturally turned to Sanyan, the second-in-command of Wen Donghui and the most powerful leader of Longtang.

Sanyan indeed valued Chen and gave him real power, but he never imagined that Chen would become the key figure affecting his life and the origin of future chaos in Wen Donghui’s northeast region.

To get to the point, after hearing Chen’s words, Sanyan became intrigued and asked, “Baicheng, what do you have in mind?”

Chen smiled and said, “I wonder if Brother Sanyan has heard of an old local punishment used by bandits in the northeast before liberation to deal with enemies?”

“Oh?” Both Sanyan and Gao Qiang looked puzzled and asked together, “A local punishment? What is that?”

Chen flattered them, “Brother Sanyan, Brother Gao, don’t worry. Hand Yan Ke to me, and I guarantee you’ll get a great show!”

After saying that, Chen ordered his subordinates, “Dig a pit deep enough for one person. We’re going to take good care of this ‘Eagle’ from the city police!” The men agreed and pulled out their machetes to dig. Fortunately, it had rained recently, making the soil loose, so they managed to dig a small pit deep enough in no time under Chen’s direction.

When the pit was almost ready, Chen ordered his men to drag Yan Ke over. Only then did Yan Ke regain his senses and realize he wouldn’t survive the day. Giving up on resistance, he shouted loudly, “What are you doing? If you’re going to kill me, do it quickly! What kind of trick are you playing?”

Chen sneered, “You’ll find out soon!” He then ordered his men, “Throw him into the pit! And make sure he stays standing—no lying down.”

Following his orders, the guys dragged Yan Ke into the pit and began filling it with soil. In no time, only Yan Ke’s head remained above ground, his entire body buried in the dirt. Yan Ke felt his head swelling, even becoming increasingly blurred. His body was buried underground, and the pressure from the surrounding soil kept building up on him. Blood from his body rushed to his head under this pressure; it would be strange if his head didn’t swell! In less than half a minute, Yan Ke’s face turned completely red, and the veins on his forehead bulged significantly. With his last remaining strength, he shouted hoarsely, “Damn you, what the hell do you want?” “Hmph!” Chen Baicheng sneered. “You’ll find out soon enough!” He took a knife from one of his men and turned to Sanyan, saying, “Brother Sanyan, Brother Qiang, the good show is about to begin!” With a fake smile, Chen Baicheng stepped closer to Yan Ke and slowly held the knife tip in front of him.