Police officer Chen Shu.

"I'm not leaving."

Zhu Yiba's voice wasn't loud, but it was resolute. He didn't continue looking at Chen Shu; instead, he lowered his head, his thumb repeatedly retracting and pushing the blade back and forth. With each opening and closing of the blade, a thought flashed through his mind.

When the squad leader gave him the knife, he said something like: "A knife is not for killing people, but for protecting yourself and your comrades. It's so that when we go on a mission, we can come back alive."

But the squad leader who said those words did not come back alive.

"no."

Chen Shu stared at Zhu Yiba's slowly reddening eyes and advised, "Zhu Yiba, I know what you're thinking. There's no point in you staying here. Even if you want revenge, you have to find Zorroson, not throw your life away here in vain."

"Chen Da, this is fate. I have a feeling that Zorroson is down there."

"What if you're not here? What will you do then?"

"Chen Da, you don't need to say anything." Zhu Yiba stepped forward, trying to bring the lights of the search party down the mountain closer to him. "You know, I escaped once, all the way from here to Dongzhou. I thought that as long as I ran far enough, I could shake off those damn things."

Zhu Yiba opened the blade, held it up to his eyes with his thumb, and shook his head, saying, "Later I realized that I couldn't shake all of this off. Thank you, Chen Da, for bringing me back here. I feel this is destiny, and I can't run away anymore."

Chen Shu said, "Zhu Yiba, this isn't just your problem. We came here together from all over the country to crack down on telecom fraud and solve murder cases. Step by step, we'll definitely be able to solve all the problems in the end."

Zhu Yiba continued to shake his head: "It can't be solved."

The beams of light below the mountain grew denser, and the barking of dogs grew closer, but Zhu Yiba's mood became more and more relaxed. He felt strange, but also very satisfied with his current state. All the entanglement over the years was really not as good as returning here directly and standing on this land where the blood of the class monitor and Little Fatty had flowed.

Zhu Yiba looked at his deputy battalion commander and said calmly, "Chen Da, you've served in the southern border region, and you have comrades-in-arms. You should understand what I mean. If I run away again this time, I will never forgive myself for the rest of my life."

Chen Shu remained silent. He was all too familiar with Zhu Yiba's eyes. He had seen that same look in other people's eyes before.

The special agents in southern Xinjiang called this "going all out," "it's either you or me today." On the battlefield, when a person has this look in their eyes, that's when they're closest to death.

He cannot let this person die.

It wasn't because he was the commander, nor because Zhu Yiba was his team member, but because for so many years, he had watched Xiao Qiang die in his arms in the southern border region, and he had personally heard the bomb that killed Xu Mingliang on the roof of the Xinyueqiao residential area.

From that moment on, he set a strict rule for himself: as long as he was still standing, he would never allow anyone around him to fall before him.

"Zhu Yiba, use your brain more later, or you'll lose your life."

Chen Shu drew his Type 64 pistol from his waist, clicked off the safety, and chambered a round. He glanced at Zhu Yiba, and after a brief eye contact, Zhu Yiba understood and nodded, heading west down the mountain.

Chen Shu turned his head and said to Xiao Wang, "Xiao Wang, Zhu Yiba and I will distract them. You come and inspect the scene. Once we're done, we'll leave. Oh, and don't go back to the car. Just keep heading north after you get off the mountain." After a pause, Chen Shu continued, "If you can't find the way, call Chen Chuan. He'll pick you up and take you to the border."

"Chen Da, I'll go with you!" Little Wang, young and fearless, showed no fear whatsoever.

"Don't waste time! Get to work, that's an order!" Chen Shu commanded in a low voice, staring into Xiao Wang's eyes for a few seconds. After confirming that Xiao Wang would carry out the task faithfully, he darted into the woods without looking back.

boom!

Boom!

Bang bang bang!

Chen Shu hid behind a teak tree, the muzzle of the pistol he held in his right hand emitting blue smoke.

The beams of light that were originally scattered on the mountainside all froze the moment the gun went off, and then all turned toward where Chen Shu was standing. The bright beams of light swept across the hillside looking for people.

The light was unrestrained, but the soldiers suddenly stood still and stopped searching in the direction where Chen Shu and the others were, or rather, they moved at an extremely slow pace.

rustling.

Zhu Yiba emerged from the bushes to the west, his face covered in cuts and blood. He casually wiped them away and then nonchalantly wiped his blood-stained hands onto his clothes, claiming it was clean.

Zhu Yiba strode over and squatted down next to Chen Shu, panting. He looked around and asked, "Brother Chen, why were you shooting? Did someone sneak up here? Where is they?"

Chen Shu skillfully removed the magazine, took out a new one from his waist, pushed it up, and snapped the slide back into place, chambering a new round once more.

He glanced sideways at the beams of light below the mountain, frozen in place by the gunfire, a barely perceptible smile playing on his lips.

Chen Shu laughed and said, "They've split into several groups and dispersed in several directions. With so many groups, are you planning to sneak over to find that Zorro Song one by one? You'll exhaust yourself! Listen, I'll go east to distract them, and you sneak over to the west to find him. That guy's bald, so he should be easy to find."

Zhu Yiba was stunned for a moment, then realized what was happening.

Chen Shu fired that shot to lure the main force towards them and surround them!

"Chen Da, you're incredibly bold. To be honest, in all my years working on the border, this is the first time I've seen—no, the first time I've ever heard of—someone willingly revealing their whereabouts. Amazing!"

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!

While serving in Yunnan Province, Zhu Yiba had heard of Chen Shu's deeds. Now, with a clear understanding, he quickly realized that Chen Shu was trying to draw everyone's attention to him by making the gunshots, thus giving Zhu Yiba room to maneuver.

Chen Shu laughed: "Stop babbling. It's a deal, if you actually see someone, don't get carried away and rush at them yourself." As he spoke, he made a phone gesture near his ear, "Don't act when you find them, wait for me to come over."

Zhu Yiba remained silent.

Chen Shu stared into the other man's eyes and said earnestly, "I am both your battalion commander and your comrade-in-arms. Call me if anything happens, understand?"

"Hmm!" Zhu Yiba responded in a muffled voice, then crouched down and darted into the bushes to the west.

Chen Shu watched Zhu Yiba's figure disappear into the darkness, glanced back at the location where Xiao Wang was examining the body in the four police cases, and then headed east into the woods without looking back.

Once the gunshot rang out, there was no turning back.

Any troops of Ang Soling on the mountain would surround the direction from which the gunshot was fired without hesitation upon hearing it.

This was not a tragic self-sacrifice, but the most rational judgment a commander could make, and it was also in line with Chen Shu's consistent action habits, which was to concentrate the greatest danger on himself.

On a battlefield where bounties are offered between opposing forces, time is more important than bullets.

At this moment, he understood Zhu Yiba very well.

boom.

bang bang.

Bang bang bang.

Shortly afterward, another burst of gunfire rang out from the east side of the forest.

I like Policeman Chen Shu.