Chapter 7

Qiao Antian's tense face gradually relaxed. After witnessing Lin Zixian's comings and goings with ease, the anxiety in his heart vanished without a trace. Instead, he felt as if he were participating in some thrilling game, looking around and enjoying the scenery speeding past the car window, though it made his eyes a bit dizzy.

Just then, the phone in his pocket rang. He took it out and answered, hearing Qiao Yun's anxious voice: "Dad! How are you?"

Qiao Antian looked at Lin Zixian, who was driving, and smiled: "With Mr. Lin's protection, I'm fine."

There was a pause on the other end, then: "The exit of Minghua Villa is blocked, and the security may not be able to arrive in time to rescue us. I'm in a police car on my way. The police will be there soon... The other side is so well-prepared, I suspect there's a mole on our side. Who else knew about your trip to Minghua Villa?"

The voice was clear, and the few people in the car could faintly hear it.

Ning Lan, pale-faced, bit her lip and looked at Qiao Antian. She was the first to know about the trip to Minghua Villa and had conveyed the information to prepare there, making her the primary suspect.

Qiao Antian glanced at her and replied: "Ning Lan can be ruled out. The information must have leaked from the villa. Focus on investigating there."

There was another pause on the other end before: "I understand, Dad! Hold on, we'll definitely be there within half an hour, beep..." and the call ended.

Looking at Qiao Antian, who had put away his phone, Ning Lan said in a trembling voice: "Thank you, Mr. Qiao... It really wasn't me!"

"I know. If I didn't trust you, I wouldn't have let you be my assistant," Qiao Antian said with a confident smile.

Suddenly, the car lurched, and it rushed into a desolate mountain path, startling everyone.

On the narrow mountain road, branches and thorns scraped against the car, making a loud noise. Lin Zixian drove the car like a circus performer, bumping and swaying down to the foot of the mountain. He turned the car around in a mountain hollow and shouted to the others: "Get out of the car!" He grabbed an automatic rifle magazine from the center console and got out first.

The three, trusting him, immediately got out of the car. But to their surprise, Lin Zixian pointed at the bodyguard and said: "You stay in the car to draw their fire, give me the rifle!"

He grabbed the automatic rifle from the bodyguard and threw his pistol and a magazine to him.

"Aren't you going to join them?" the bodyguard asked in surprise, referring to the security team that was being ambushed.

"That would put them in danger, surrounded from both sides. I'll take a high position on the mountain to snipe, and you use the bulletproof car for defense, drawing them to you," Lin Zixian explained quickly.

"Got it!" the bodyguard immediately got back into the car.

Lin Zixian pointed to the hill in front of them: "Let's go up."

Qiao Antian followed him up the hill without hesitation. Ning Lan, however, was in trouble. She was still wearing high heels, and walking on the mountain path was difficult, let alone climbing. Her short skirt was tight around her thighs.

Lin Zixian had already reached halfway up the hill. Seeing her struggle, he ran back, disregarding propriety, and lifted Ning Lan onto his lap. He quickly took off her shoes, removed the heels, and put them back on her feet.

Ning Lan, grateful, stood up, but Lin Zixian then pulled up her short skirt, scaring her. Suddenly, she heard a 'rip' as the side of her short skirt was torn, revealing half of her thigh and part of her buttock.

Before she could react, Lin Zixian said, "Let's go," and pulled her up the hill. After a few steps, Ning Lan finally realized he was freeing her from the constraints of her short skirt, not trying to molest her.

Unbeknownst to her, Lin Zixian was afraid of any accidents and believed it was safer to keep them with him, rather than leaving them in the bulletproof car.

Just as they reached the top of the hill, Lin Zixian looked back and saw more than ten cars speeding up the nearby mountain road.

"Get down," Lin Zixian shouted to the two, already lying down and aiming his gun from behind the grass.

Qiao Antian and Ning Lan, not caring about the dirt, quickly lay down.

From the top of the hill, they could see everything below. The distance from the hill to the road was not far, about a hundred meters, within the effective range of an automatic rifle but beyond the range of a pistol.

As the leading car approached, Lin Zixian, calm and focused, pulled the trigger. 'Bang!' The car window shattered, and the driver was killed instantly.

The car swerved and crashed into the opposite mountain wall, scaring the following cars into almost colliding.

Taking advantage of the pause, Lin Zixian fired several more shots, each one shattering a car window and causing blood to spurt.

"Over there, their car is over there."

Someone noticed the inconspicuous mountain path and the car parked at the foot of the hill, shouting loudly.

The man in the suit immediately got out of the car from the other side. Seeing the car at the foot of the hill, he shouted: "Everyone, charge out, spread out, and catch him."

Following the boss's order, over thirty thugs charged out, shouting. The man in the suit, however, stayed behind the car, pulling a close associate and shaking his head, signaling him not to take the risk.

Lin Zixian fired several more shots, hitting five people in a row, emptying his magazine.

"Stay down," Lin Zixian instructed, quickly rolling to the other side to reload.

"Up there on the hill."

Someone noticed the gunfire from the hilltop. Many others saw it and started firing wildly, the pistol shots being mostly wasted, while the rifle bullets hit the hill, making a 'chirping' sound. Ning Lan, lying on the hill, cried in fear.

She never imagined she would experience a firefight and never thought being a CEO's assistant could be so dangerous.

Taking advantage of the chaos, the gunfire from the other side stopped, and the thugs charged. However...

"Bang... Bang... Bang... Bang... Bang... Bang!"

Lin Zixian fired from the other side of the hill, six shots, six hits, each one a headshot, scaring the group into lying down.

Ning Lan didn't dare to look up, but Qiao Antian couldn't help but glance. Seeing six people fall with six shots, he turned back and gave Lin Zixian a thumbs-up: "Great shooting!"

"A bunch of troublemakers, not worth much, just killing for fun," Lin Zixian laughed, putting down his gun and lighting a cigarette.

Qiao Antian was speechless. At a time like this, he still had the leisure to smoke, not knowing that smoke could reveal his position.

Sure enough, the thugs lying down saw the smoke and started firing wildly. The bullets hit the dirt, but none could harm Lin Zixian, who only raised his hand to shield his eyes from the falling dirt, continuing to smoke.

After the gunfire subsided, the thugs charged again. The bodyguard in the bulletproof car, seeing the enemies enter range, stood behind the door and fired, hitting almost every shot, showing good marksmanship.

This immediately drew the fire toward him.

Hearing the gunfire, Lin Zixian's attention shifted. He spat out the cigarette, grabbed the automatic rifle, and kneeled, firing a burst. With the brass casings flying, over a dozen thugs fell.

Lin Zixian quickly lay down again, crawling back to the hilltop, and fired several more shots next to Ning Lan. The spent casings fell in front of her, scaring her into closing her eyes and silently crying.

With the attack from above and below, many thugs were killed, and the rest were afraid, lying down and not daring to move.

Just then, the man in the suit's phone rang. As soon as he answered, a voice said anxiously: "Brother Li, did you succeed? The police are here, we're retreating."

"Got it!" the man in the suit hung up and shouted: "Retreat, quickly, the police are here."

The thugs, who had been eager to run, now had no reason to stay. They immediately fled.

Lin Zixian took the opportunity to kneel and fired several more shots, hitting several more. Unfortunately, he soon ran out of bullets, and the bodyguard's pistol was not effective at that distance. They could only watch as the remaining thugs escaped in their cars.

The three stood up on the hilltop, and Qiao Yun's call came again, asking where they were. Qiao Antian, seeing the abandoned cars on the road, smiled and said: "Where there are a few cars on the road," and hung up.

The bodyguard ran up to the hilltop, relieved to see Qiao Antian was safe. He looked at Lin Zixian in amazement: "Mr. Lin, you're amazing. You could be a coach at our security company."

Lin Zixian smiled but said nothing. For him, this was a minor incident. Seeing the sky was getting dark, he handed the gun to the bodyguard: "Wipe off my fingerprints. This has nothing to do with me. Please help me cover it up."

He lit a cigarette and walked down the hill. Qiao Antian called out: "Mr. Lin, where are you going?"

Lin Zixian, halfway down the hill, didn't turn back, waving with a cigarette in his mouth: "My identity isn't good for dealing with the police. I don't want any trouble... Mr. Qiao, don't worry. I'll keep my promise and be at work on time tomorrow."

The three were speechless, watching him walk to the road, get into one of the thugs' abandoned cars, and drive away.

Ning Lan, feeling a chill on her exposed buttock, grabbed the torn part of her skirt, looking at the disappearing car with a complex expression. Her tears were still on her face, but a thought flashed through her mind: He's a man like the wind, unpredictable.

Qiao Antian, moved by the scene, suddenly remembered a poem by Li Bai: "Ten steps, one kill; a thousand miles, no trace. After the deed, he leaves, hiding his name and identity..."

Soon, a fleet of police cars arrived, and armed police jumped out of green trucks, securing the area. Qiao Yun, getting out of a police car, saw the three standing on the hilltop at dusk and ran over...