When the sound of a bullet being chambered rang out, everyone present involuntarily slowed their movements.
All eyes turned to Li Hao, who was sitting inside the car.
"A-Hao! Don't do anything rash! Let's talk things over!"
Qi Tongwei turned to look at Li Hao, wearing an anxious expression and offering well-meaning advice.
Seeing that Li Hao still hadn't lowered the hand holding the gun, Qi Tongwei glanced back out the window at Hou Liangping.
"Even if I insist on getting on the expressway today, what can they do about it? Hou Liangping, don't forget, I am the head of the Handong Province Public Security Department! Right now we are carrying out a mission, and you are blocking the road—that is obstruction of official business! If you dare to block us again, don't blame me for being rude!"
Qi Tongwei decided to fight fire with fire, throwing Hou Liangping's own words right back at him.
Since Hou Liangping could disgust them like this, they could certainly disgust him right back. What was wrong with that?
Fight magic with magic!
However, Qi Tongwei thought too wishfully; he still underestimated Hou Liangping's double standards and shamelessness.
"What mission? How come I didn't receive any notice? Since I didn't know about it, it doesn't exist! Now someone is pointing a gun at me! Pointing at a state cadre! And you, a Chief of the Public Security Department, are just standing by indifferently! Can you still say there is no collusion? None of you are leaving! As for that A-Hao, or whatever your name is, if you've got the guts, shoot! I don't believe you..."
Hou Liangping kept babbling on and on. In his view, Li Hao would never actually dare to shoot!
Unfortunately, Li Hao was not the ordinary person Hou Liangping imagined him to be!
He wasn't going to pamper or indulge him in the slightest!
So, before Hou Liangping even finished speaking, Li Hao made his move!
"Bang!"
As Li Hao's left index finger pulled the trigger, a deafening gunshot echoed across the scene!
...
After the gunshot, there was a brief silence of a few seconds.
Then, Hou Liangping's subordinates hurriedly rushed toward him.
Because they saw that, following the gunshot, Hou Liangping had collapsed limply to the ground!
Director Hou... had been shot and killed!?
This was setting the stage for a massive disaster!
Not far away, Lu Yike, who had been reporting the situation to her superiors, was startled by the gunshot.
Her finger trembled, accidentally hitting the red hang-up button.
She then hurriedly ran toward Hou Liangping's direction.
Surrounding Hou Liangping, the group let out a sigh of relief when they saw no trace of bullet wounds on him.
"Director, are you alright?"
Seeing Hou Liangping's terror-stricken and pale face, Lu Yike asked anxiously.
"I... I'm fine."
Hou Liangping squeezed three words out through his teeth with great difficulty.
He was genuinely frightened now!
He hadn't expected Li Hao to actually shoot at him!
Was this guy a lunatic?
Didn't he know his background and identity?
And that Qi Tongwei! He had only nudged Li Hao's muzzle upward instead of stopping him from firing!
Damned bastard!
"Sorry, A-Hao. This is domestic territory after all, not abroad."
Inside the car, Qi Tongwei looked at Li Hao apologetically.
"This Hou Liangping isn't some criminal; he's a bureau director. Gunning down a cadre has far too severe consequences! Furthermore, he has the Zhong family behind him!"
Qi Tongwei urged earnestly, hoping Li Hao would forgive his previous attempt to intervene.
From his perspective, he felt he had said nothing wrong.
Although he knew Li Hao grew up in a red-clothed elite family, he wasn't entirely sure which one.
After all, Zhong Zhengguo of the Zhong family was a sub-national leader; presumably, ordinary aristocratic families wouldn't want to provoke unnecessary conflicts with them.
"Hmph! Talk about dumb luck!"
Inside the car, Li Hao glanced sideways at Hou Liangping, who looked like a dead dog outside the window, sneered, and put the Desert Eagle back into his pocket.
"The Zhong family? Zhong Zhengguo? He can't reach that far to meddle with me! I could snuff out a dog of the Zhong family, and see if he dares to let out even a single fart!"
Li Hao shook his head, speaking with absolute ease.
In his eyes, Hou Liangping was nothing more than a dog. Kill him if he needed to be killed—so what?
So what if he was a bureau director?
Anyone obstructing the mission he was currently carrying out deserved to die a hundred times over, and Hou Liangping was no exception!
"You're something else! Let's go, to Yantai!"
Hearing this, Qi Tongwei could only offer a bitter smile and gave an order to the driver, while silently wondering in his heart:
Just which elite family did this guy Li Hao belong to?
He didn't even hold the Zhong family in any regard!
As the engine roared to life, the vehicle carrying Li Hao and the others vanished once more from the sight of Hou Liangping and his subordinates.
"Just who on earth is that guy?"
Watching Li Hao and his group drive away, that same thought popped up in the minds of all Hou Liangping's subordinates.
Because the car windows had been rolled down earlier, they had heard every word Li Hao said.
In those words, he hadn't placed the Zhong family in his eyes at all—and naturally, he hadn't treated Hou Liangping like a human being either.
With that thought, the subordinates looked at Hou Liangping with a hint of pity.
He had arrived full of high spirits to capture Qi Tongwei, but what was the result?
Not a single hair of their target was captured, and instead, he had been treated like a dog and nearly scared out of his wits by gunfire.
"What a fine Qi Tongwei! What a fine A-Hao!"
By now, Hou Liangping seemed to have regained a sliver of his wits, and boundless fury reignited in his chest.
Every single word of the humiliation Li Hao had inflicted upon him was etched firmly in his mind!
He wanted to see for himself whether Li Hao truly had the backing to treat the Zhong family with such contempt, just as he claimed!
And if he didn't! He would surely drag Li Hao down to hell!
Most certainly!
"Hurry up and take the Director to the hospital! Check if there are any internal injuries!"
Seeing that Hou Liangping was still somewhat dazed, Lu Yike quickly instructed the colleagues beside her.
Several people helped Hou Liangping into a car and drove rapidly toward the hospital.
As for Lu Yike, she drove straight toward the Municipal Procuratorate.
She needed to report what had just happened in person!
...
Half an hour later.
Municipal Procuratorate.
Office.
"What? You're saying someone actually pointed a gun and fired at Director Hou?"
Upon hearing Lu Yike's report, Ji Changming abruptly stood up from his chair with a heavy thud.
"You people are truly reckless! Acting on your own authority! Couldn't you have given me a heads-up before suspecting Qi Tongwei?"
Feeling a headache coming on, Ji Changming pinched the bridge of his nose.
"I understand the whole story now. Little Lu, go back for now; I will handle the aftermath."
With that, Ji Changming waved his hand dismissively.
It was one thing that Lu Yike usually ignored him, but whenever she came to him with an issue, it immediately turned into a thorny, major crisis!
He was utterly speechless!
Seeing Ji Changming say this, Lu Yike nodded and stood up to leave.
"Utter nonsense! Thank goodness nothing fatal happened! Otherwise, this situation would be completely beyond salvage!"
As soon as Lu Yike walked out the door, Ji Changming couldn't help letting out an angry curse.
The moment he heard Hou Liangping had been shot at, his heart had skipped a beat and turned cold!
If anything happened to Hou Liangping, Ji Changming would inevitably be implicated, since the Anti-Corruption Bureau operated under the leadership of the Procuratorate.
After venting his anger with a curse, Ji Changming walked straight downstairs and headed toward the Provincial Government offices.
This matter was beyond what he could resolve alone; it was best to discuss how to handle it with the leadership upstairs!