Chapter 65

In the rearview mirror, the self-dumping truck was coming like a tidal wave, but Liu Hande was frantically trying to unfasten his seatbelt, which wouldn't budge at the critical moment and wouldn't come undone!

Just as the self-dumping truck was a few dozen meters away from the Fukan, the Audi A6 reappeared, roaring and pushing the self-dumping truck to the left, causing sparks to fly as the two vehicles scraped against each other. The Audi, with its powerful engine, managed to force the self-dumping truck off course. In the end, the Audi brushed past the Fukan, knocking off its left rearview mirror.

The Audi, being much lighter than the self-dumping truck, was pushed off course by Gu Changjun and crashed into the guardrail, then rolled over several times and landed dozens of meters away. The airbags deployed, and the driver's condition was unknown.

Gu Changjun reversed and continued to head towards the Fukan.

At this point, civilian vehicles had already stopped far away. The burning Touareg blocked the road, and the drivers got out, placing warning signs dozens of meters behind their cars. Some took out fire extinguishers to spray foam, but the vehicles were burning fiercely and were beyond saving.

The Passat and Santana arrived one after the other. The plainclothes detective got out of the car, looked at the raging fire, and picked up the walkie-talkie to report to the command vehicle: "01, 01, the Touareg is on fire."

"Continue to track 176," Wan Xudong ordered.

The detective hurriedly got back into the car and drove forward.

It was inconvenient to turn around on the highway, so Gu Changjun drove the self-dumping truck in reverse. Liu Hande pulled out a folding knife and cut the seatbelt, got out of the car, climbed over the guardrail, and crawled through the protective net to escape from the highway.

Gu Changjun gritted his teeth, turned the steering wheel sharply, and crashed into the guardrail. The 280-horsepower self-dumping truck broke through the guardrail and the road protection wire mesh, but its front wheels got stuck in the drainage ditch. The self-dumping truck, not being an off-road vehicle, was trapped like a dragon in a shallow pond by a mere shallow ditch.

The drive wheels of the self-dumping truck spun wildly but couldn't get out of the ditch. Gu Changjun, with a grim face, opened the door, jumped out, pulled out his gun, and chambered a round. He then tightly followed Liu Hande.

...

Let's go back to the day before, in a meeting room of the Public Security Department. The detectives attending the meeting were all personally selected by Song Jianfeng. No one from the Jinjiang City Criminal Investigation Brigade was present. The meeting was chaired by Wan Xudong from the Provincial Department's Criminal Investigation Division, and the projection screen showed a standard photo of Gu Changjun.

"According to our intelligence, Gu Changjun is still alive. The body left at the scene was his brother, Gu Changmin. Your task is to capture Gu Changjun and uncover the corrupt elements behind him," Wan Xudong said firmly.

A detective raised his hand: "Chief Wan, I suggest 24-hour surveillance on all people closely related to Gu Changjun, including his parents, ex-wife, son, lover, and former subordinates, and monitor all their phone calls."

An old detective frowned: "Gu Changjun was a police officer. He is very familiar with these investigative methods. I doubt they will be useful. He is supposed to be dead and should be hiding far away to avoid the heat. Capturing him will be very difficult." He took a sip of tea and shook his head.

"Gu Changjun has a wide network of friends. He might already be abroad, either in Myanmar, Laos, or a small country in South America. Capturing him overseas will be extremely difficult," another old detective added.

Wan Xudong smiled: "Based on my understanding of Gu Changjun, he is a vengeful and extremely arrogant person who is good at planning meticulous operations. Therefore, as long as we focus on his enemies, we can find Gu Changjun."

He picked up the remote control and pressed a button. The projection screen showed a photo of Liu Hande.

"This person is Gu Changjun's nemesis. Gu Changjun's brother was killed by him, and Gu himself was captured by him. So, Gu Changjun will definitely seek revenge. He won't go into hiding abroad until he kills Liu Hande. The saying 'a gentleman avenges a wrong after ten years' doesn't apply to Gu Changjun because he is a small-minded person."

The detectives began to discuss and quickly formulated a surveillance plan.

After the meeting, Wan Xudong left the meeting room, picked up his phone at the door, and turned it on. He saw a message from Wang Xing: "The ashes in Gu Changmin's urn are talcum powder. I suspect Gu Changjun might have faked his death."

Wan Xudong immediately called back: "Wang Xing, you're not a police officer anymore. Why are you involved in this?"

"I was hired to investigate the true culprit behind the murder of the Qing Shi Group's heir. This is my job, Chief Wan. Can you share any information?"

"No," Wan Xudong hung up.

...

Outside the highway was an endless field. Liu Hande was running for his life, with Gu Changjun, armed with a gun, chasing him relentlessly.

In the overturned Audi, Wang Xing opened the door and climbed out, checking his limbs and crotch, he sighed with relief: "That was close!" He looked back at the almost wrecked Audi and sighed: "What a car!"

In the distance, the sound of "pop, pop" could be heard, a sound only former military or police officers could recognize as the sound of a Type 77 pistol. Wang Xing cupped his hands over his eyes and saw two people chasing each other in the field. He cursed and rushed over, leaping over the guardrail and chasing after them.

Two cars arrived, and the plainclothes detectives jumped out, quickly checking the self-dumping truck, the Fukan, and the Audi. After confirming no one was injured, they also joined the chase.

Liu Hande was in excellent physical condition, having trained in the highlands with a five-kilometer fully equipped run and a five-kilometer cross-country run. Gu Changjun, a middle-aged man weakened by alcohol and women, couldn't keep up. He was running so hard that his lungs felt like they were on fire, and a sweet, metallic taste rose in his throat, forcing him to stop and catch his breath.

Gu Changjun had fired two shots, but at a distance of fifty meters, the Type 77 pistol was ineffective and only sped up Liu Hande's escape.

Wang Xing caught up from behind, the grass rustling. Gu Changjun became alert and shouted, "Who's there!"

No one answered.

Gu Changjun fired a shot, the bullet flying into the tall, withered grass.

Suddenly, there was a strange sound, and someone seemed to be crouching and running through the grass. Gu Changjun fired several more shots, but his gun clicked empty.

Wang Xing stood up from the grass, sneering, "Gu Changjun, you're finished."

"It's you, huh?" Gu Changjun reached into his pocket with his left hand, pulled out a magazine, and loaded it into the gun. He flicked the slide, chambering a round.

"Damn!" Wang Xing dove into the grass.

The moment Gu Changjun raised his gun, Liu Hande pounced from behind, pinning him to the ground and grabbing his gun hand. Gu Changjun struggled fiercely, his face turning red, veins bulging on his neck, and the gun slowly moving towards Liu Hande.

"Bang!" The gun went off, the bullet grazing Liu Hande's ear, making his head buzz. His grip loosened, and Gu Changjun, in a desperate move, kicked Liu Hande away, quickly kneeling and aiming the gun at him.

Suddenly, two thin wires hit Gu Changjun, causing him to tremble uncontrollably and curl into a ball, losing consciousness.

Wang Xing walked over with a strange yellow and black plastic gun, kicked the Type 77 pistol out of Gu Changjun's hand, and turned to Liu Hande, "You okay?"

Liu Hande got up, his clothes drenched in cold sweat.

In the distance, the sound of rapid footsteps could be heard as detectives arrived, securing the area and handcuffing Gu Changjun.

"What's that thing?" Liu Hande asked Wang Xing.

"A Taser," Wang Xing made a gesture of blowing smoke from the barrel and put the plastic gun back into his polymer holster.

Wan Xudong arrived, out of breath, saw the situation was under control, turned off the safety on his gun, and ordered, "Take him away."

Gu Changjun was taken away, and both Wang Xing and Liu Hande asked Wan Xudong, "What's going on?"

"Gu Changjun faked his death. We lured him out and finally brought him to justice," Wan Xudong said lightly. Capturing Gu Changjun would solve many problems and expose the corrupt elements within the police department, a significant achievement.

"You knew he would come after my family, didn't you?" Liu Hande asked angrily.

"We didn't have that information," Wan Xudong tried to defend himself.

Liu Hande snorted and walked back slowly. On the highway, highway patrol, fire department, and road rescue personnel had already arrived. The highway was rerouted, and traffic was not affected.

The Touareg was still burning, black smoke billowing, and the driver inside was charred to the bone. Detectives were taking photos, and traffic police were discussing the design flaws of the Touareg, noting that the high-pressure fuel line in front of the engine could break and form a high-temperature fuel-air mixture, which, when combined with the hot turbocharged engine, could easily cause an explosion.

Gu Changjun was taken into a Ford Transit and driven north, following Song Jianfeng's instructions to prevent information leaks.

"You can take the traffic police's car. I'll call you if I need to ask you questions," Wan Xudong waved to Wang Xing and Liu Hande.

The Fukan was out of fuel and had to be towed away by the road rescue team. The overturned Audi also needed a crane to be righted and towed away. Liu Hande checked the Audi, finding no major damage to the wheels, engine, or chassis, and called to Wang Xing, "Let's right it."

Wang Xing understood and called over a group of police officers. Together, they righted the Audi.

Liu Hande got into the car, started the engine, which ran normally, and went back to the Fukan to get his things. He said to Wang Xing, "I'll borrow your car."

Wang Xing threw him the remote key, "Fix it if you crash it."

Liu Hande floored the gas, and the battered Audi, with scratches and a broken headlight, sped away.

Two hours later, the staff at the Jiangbei toll station on the highway were surprised to see the heavily damaged Audi pass through the toll booth. The driver, with a deployed airbag in the cabin, paid the toll calmly.

Liu Hande, eager to get home, drove to the city hospital's emergency department. His stepfather was smoking by a flower bed at the entrance. Seeing him, he quickly threw away the cigarette and stood up.

"Where is she?" Liu Hande rushed in, and his stepfather followed, "In the second observation room. She's been bandaged and is fine."

Liu Hande pushed open the door to the ward. His mother was lying in bed, receiving an IV, and was conscious, with a bandage on her head.

"Mom," Liu Hande walked over and pulled a chair to sit down.

"I told you not to tell Xiao Dong. I was afraid he would worry," his mother scolded her stepfather.

"Since you're here, let's not talk about that," his stepfather explained, "It was a burglar who followed your mom in and tried to rob her. She fought with him and was stabbed twice."

"Mom, you should have given him the money," Liu Hande said.

"That's impossible. We saved that money to buy you a house and get married. I had to protect it with my life," his mother reached out and touched his head.

Liu Hande felt a lump in his throat, moved by his mother's love. She had risked her life to save money for his future.