Chapter 637: Funerael
The thunderstorm raged on for two whole hours before it eased, leaving the entire city of Dongjing inundated.
Cabinet minister Os.h.i.+ma Jun deployed a thousand Self-Defence Force soldiers into the prison. They were all wearing gas masks and were equipped with chemical dispensers that would neutralize the toxic gas. It was a covert operation carried out under the cloak of darkness. There was an urgent need to remove all evidence that very night.
Anpei was still in the presidential suite dancing with a few maikos. He drank and sang, joked around, and was having the time of his life.
BOOM! Suddenly, the door burst open.
“Who’s there?”
Anpei and the maikos accompanying him jolted in shock. They instantly swung round and Anpei almost wet himself when he saw the terrifying figure of that enigmatic murderer, Xiao Han, standing at the entrance.
“How refined you are, Anpei s.h.i.+nzo.”
Xiao Han’s lips curled up in a smirk as he strode over.
“Xiao Han? You… How did you get in here?”
Anpei’s head went into a spin. How could this be possible? He painstakingly set up his trap and turned the entire prison into a cage. Using a potent toxic gas that was strong enough to kill off this beast, the last thing he expected was to see this man standing right in front of him. At that moment, he knew that he had lost the game.
Just who was this man, and how could he have survived the toxic CoCl2 gas?
Anbei’s confidence was shaken, and for a moment he faltered. He immediately called for his men, “Guards, guards!”
“Save your breath, I’ve already knocked them all out,” Xiao Luo responded to Anbei’s panicked screams as he sauntered casually toward him.
Anpei was the prime minister of his country, yet all he could do was to break out in a cold sweat when Xiao Luo advanced toward him. He was consumed in fear as he found himself in the unusual situation of not being in control. He was just like a man who had stumbled into the path of a fearsome tiger, and so frightened was he could not move and almost wet himself.
How quickly the tables turned!
Anpei was well aware of how apt this phrase was.
He took two careful steps back and said, “You… What do you want?”
“There’s no need to be nervous. You’re not involved with the genetic engineering base, so I won’t kill you. But you forced me to come here by laying a trap for me and trying to kill me with toxic gas. Why don’t we do this? I’ll just break one of your arms,” Xiao Luo said, coming across like he was seeking his victim’s opinion on what form of punishment would be most acceptable.
Break one of my arms?
Anpei’s eyes bulged in disbelief, and there was a flash of anger in his eyes. “You d*mn idiot, you do this and I guarantee you’ll never leave this country!” he retorted.
BAM!
Xiao Luo’s response came in the form of a kick.
Xiao Luo s.h.i.+fted his weight in Anpei’s direction and stomped his right foot on the man’s chest, sending him flying back like a loose kite on a cut string. The maikos cowered in fear and the room was filled with their frantic shrieks.
Anpei lay sprawled on the matted floor, and the pain in his chest was beyond description.
Xiao Luo stepped over to the p.r.o.ne figure of Anpei and stared down at him. “You can curse at me all you want, but it won’t do you any good!”
As soon as he said that, he lifted a foot and stepped on Anpei’s left arm.
CRACK!
“ARGHH!”
Anpei wailed in pain and anguish, following the gruesome sound of cracking bones as Xiao Luo smashed Anpei’s left arm, snapping it in two. The broken bone pierced through flesh and skin, causing blood to flow profusely from the wound.
At the sight of Anpei’s horrific wounds, the maikos were paralyzed with fear and trembled uncontrollably. When Xiao Luo glanced over to them, they hurriedly kneeled on the floor, pleading for their lives.
“Please… Please let us go,” one of the maikos pleaded as tears streamed from the corners of her eyes.
“This has nothing to do with you,” Xiao Luo responded, then turned and left the room.
There was no one else left there except the terrified maikos and Anpei, who had pa.s.sed out from the pain.
…
…
Xiao Luo had initially thought he could return home after rescuing the Lady Poison, Fu Yiren. However, the death of Xie Wenchang and his family left an indelible mark, and the nursery rhyme Xie Wenchang’s wife sang right before they died never ceased to linger in his ears. It was ironic that a nursery rhyme filled with notes of joy and happiness had become so haunting and bleak.
Xiao Luo would not rest until he eliminated everybody involved in the genetic engineering project, so his next stop was Mei Nation.
Xiao Luo chatted with Su Li over the phone as he walked down the street in a drizzle. He had spoken with her on WeChat almost every night. Perhaps it was his act of tyranny that day that had melted this ice mountain of a woman, but their relations.h.i.+p had very obviously blossomed. When they chatted, Xiao Luo would even call her his wife, and she never once objected.
Sometimes, Su Li would even take the initiative and update him on what she was doing by posting him some pictures of herself.
They were typical selfies of her having breakfast, having her afternoon tea, bringing Su Xiaobei out to have fun, or at work.
Xiao Luo felt like he was courting again. Undoubtedly their relations.h.i.+p had taken a turn for the better and was now much more than a contract. When he suggested to Su Li earlier in the day that they should tear up the marriage contract, she had given him a coy reply. That depends on how well you do, she wrote. And afterward, she even tagged on an emoji she loved using a lot—the one with the arrogant face.
As for his criminal charges and the news of his exploits circulating in the Ri Nation media, none of it reached his homeland. Perhaps the NSA had censored it, so Su Li had no idea what Xiao Luo was doing in Ri Nation. Of course, he hoped that she would never find out.
After chatting with Su Li, Xiao Luo immediately called Ji Siying.
“Mr. Xiao Luo!”
Ji Siying’s warm, gentle voice filtered over the phone.
“Siying, I need you to help me apply for a pa.s.sport. I need to go to Mei Nation,” Xiao Luo instructed.
Ji Siying was a little puzzled. “You’re going to Mei Nation?” she asked.
“Yes, I am. The genetic engineering facility in Ri nation is linked to Mei Nation, so I’ll be going over there to deal with the people involved,” Xiao Luo replied. Everyone had to own up to their own mistakes, and he would hold anyone related to the genetic engineering experiments accountable. None of them would escape.
“I see.”
Ji Siying responded and nodded, knowing only too well that Xiao Luo would not relent once he had made up his mind. “Stay safe.”
“Mm,” Xiao Luo responded, then hung up.
…
…
Right before he left, Xiao Luo went to Takahara Kei’s funeral.
It was drizzling on an early misty morning, and the memorial park was serene.
There were many people present at Takahara Kei’s funeral, and they were all dressed in black. They had a white flower pinned to the lapels of their jackets and held black umbrellas. They were a.s.sociates, business partners, close friends, and relatives.
From afar, Xiao Luo could see Takahara Keika placing a bouquet of white flowers on top of the coffin before falling into the embrace of an aged lady, sobbing pitifully. The lady could not stop her tears from flowing either.
Xiao Luo was not too sure why he came here—perhaps he just wanted to have a look. Takahara Kei was the only target he did not want to take out. Perhaps, if the man had not committed suicide, Xiao Luo might have let him off the hook.
But one thing had formed in his mind.
Respect!
Xiao Luo’s expression of respect came from the bottom of his heart.
He was a man willing to put aside his pride and plead for time, for the sake of his daughter. This act of selflessness deserved the highest respect. Xiao Luo had had no intention of causing trouble for Takahara Kei after he left that day, and what he had said to the man had been nothing more than harsh words in the heat of the moment.