Fu Yanzhi's Death

While everyone was still chatting happily, a sudden commotion came from outside the door.

Everyone grew alert. Fu Yanzhi struggled to get up, but Bo Qing pressed him down. "Big brother, don't move. I'll go take a look."

Bo Qing and Wen Shiming cautiously approached the door. Judging by the voices, it was Fatty and Baldy's group.

As soon as he finished speaking, the iron door opened. Bo Qing and Wen Shiming ran back to Fu Yanzhi, who shielded his brothers behind him and reassured them, "Don't worry. Big brother's here."

Baldy and Skinny came in. Skinny looked at Fu Yanzhi with disdain. "Kid, you're pretty hard to kill. You were hurt so badly yesterday, yet you didn't die.

Fu Yanzhi stared sharply at Skinny. Behind him, Wen Shiming wanted to charge forward and kill the skinny monkey. Sensing his brother's feelings, Fu Yanzhi reached over and took his hand. In a voice only the few of them could hear, he said, "Calm down."

Then he smiled at Skinny. "If I died, how would you make money? Fatty isn't here today. Could it be he's been caught? Your master's been caught, so why haven't you dogs run off yet? What, are you going to take us as your new masters?"

The veins on Skinny's temple throbbed after he heard that. His face flushed like a piece of red-hot coal, and two balls of fire seemed to burn in his eyes as he glared at Fu Yanzhi. "What a sharp-tongued brat."

Baldy wasted no words. He clamped a hand around Fu Yanzhi's neck, his knuckles turning white with the force, and pinned him against the wall. A low, angry shout squeezed out of his throat: "You little bastard, you're looking for death, aren't you? I'll grant your wish!"

As Baldy's grip tightened and Fu Yanzhi struggled to breathe, Feng Yunxiao charged at Baldy, wrapped himself around the right arm strangling his big brother, and bit down. Fu Yanzhi seized the chance to kick Baldy hard between the legs.

Baldy let go of Fu Yanzhi in pain, and Feng Yunxiao, still clinging to his arm, was flung away.

Wen Shiming and Bo Qing reacted as well, charging forward and grappling with Baldy and Skinny. Kong Fanxing and Kong Fanyue clung to Skinny's legs, refusing to let go as they bit him, while Wen Shiming punched at Skinny's face.

Over by Baldy, Li Huanhuan attacked him with both fists and feet, shouting as he struck, "I'll beat you to death! Beat you to death!"

Bo Qing held Baldy firmly in check. After Fu Yanzhi recovered somewhat, he stepped forward to help Wen Shiming attack Baldy, while Feng Yunxiao climbed to his feet and went after Skinny.

Baldy pulled an extendable baton from his pocket and swung it at Fu Yanzhi. With every movement Fu Yanzhi made, the wound on his back felt like a thorn that had taken root. Sharp pain shot up his spine, making him suppress a gasp as his movements instantly froze.

The baton came down before Fu Yanzhi could dodge, and he could only block it with his right arm. After it struck him, he seized one end with his left hand. Wen Shiming seized the chance to punch Baldy hard in the face. "How dare you hit my big brother! I'll beat you to death!"

Li Huanhuan kicked Baldy right between the legs. Baldy had been occupied with Fu Yanzhi and Wen Shiming and hadn't paid attention to the little one, allowing him to land a sneak attack. The intense pain from his groin put Baldy at a disadvantage.

At the other end, the twins were biting Skinny's legs and refusing to let go, hampering his movements, while Feng Yunxiao interfered from the side.

Bo Qing and Skinny were also holding each other in check. Seeing no other way, Skinny resorted to his knife. He suddenly exerted himself and flung Bo Qing aside.

Bo Qing was only a twelve-year-old child and still shorter than an adult, so he was flung away. Skinny pulled a folding knife from inside his clothes and grabbed Kong Fanxing. Holding him in place with his left hand, he pressed the knife in his right hand to Kong Fanxing's neck and shouted, "Nobody move! Stop fighting, or I'll kill him!"

Seeing his younger brother taken hostage, Kong Fanyue burst into tears and begged Skinny, "Don't kill my little brother. I'm begging you!"

Kong Fanxing was terrified and could only cry out, "Brother, I'm scared! Save me!"

When the boys fighting Baldy saw Kong Fanxing taken hostage, they all stopped. Fu Yanzhi looked at Skinny. "Don't hurt him. We'll stop fighting."

Baldy walked over to Skinny and kicked Fu Yanzhi to the ground, then followed up with several more kicks.

Bo Qing and Wen Shiming wanted to fight back, but Skinny moved the knife a little closer to Kong Fanxing's neck. Their fingertips went cold, and cold sweat trickled down the backs of their necks.

Feng Yunxiao stared fixedly at Skinny, every muscle in his body stretched taut as a bowstring. He didn't even dare blink.

Fu Yanzhi lay on the ground, trembling uncontrollably. He wrapped his arms tightly around his head to protect it and bit his lower lip, enduring the waves of pain. After Baldy had beaten him for a while, much of his anger subsided.

Once Baldy grew tired of hitting him, he walked over to Bo Qing and Wen Shiming and kicked each of them. Wen Shiming wanted to fight back, but Bo Qing stopped him. Just then, Baldy's phone rang, and he answered it impatiently. Whatever the person on the other end said, Baldy's expression instantly turned ugly.

After hanging up, he shot Fu Yanzhi and the others a vicious glare and said to Skinny, "Boss says someone's coming to look at the goods in two days. He wants us to keep an eye on these little bastards."

Skinny put away the knife and threw Kong Fanxing to the ground. "Don't even think about escaping again. Next time, you won't get off with just a beating. I'll kill you."

With that, he walked out. Once Baldy and Skinny were gone, everyone hurried over to Fu Yanzhi. His face was pale and his forehead covered in cold sweat. After everything he had been put through, the wounds on his back and body hurt so badly he nearly fainted, but he still forced himself to reassure them. "I'm fine. I can hold on."

Wen Shiming's eyes reddened as he held Fu Yanzhi's hand. "Big brother, we can't just sit here waiting to die. We have to find a way out."

Fu Yanzhi nodded and forced himself to think of a plan through the pain.

Just then, Bo Qing, who had been silent all this time, suddenly spoke up. "Big brother, look what I got."

Everyone's eyes lit up, as though they had seen hope. In Bo Qing's hand was the key to the iron door.

Wen Shiming looked at his second brother, who seemed like a god to him now. "Second brother, how did you get the key?" "I stole it from Skinny's pocket when I was fighting him."

The little ones gathered around Bo Qing. "Second brother, you're amazing!"

Fu Yanzhi endured the pain of his injuries and said, "Once they let their guard down and fall asleep tonight, we'll make our move and escape. Second brother, third brother, one of you take Xiaoxiao and the other take Huanhuan. I'll take the twins. It's settled."

Bo Qing said, "No, big brother, I should take Xingxing and Yueyue. You take Xiaoxiao. You're the most badly hurt right now, and you can't take care of two little brothers."

"Yeah, second brother's right. Big brother, you should take Xiaoxiao. Fourth brother's smart and can save you a lot of trouble."

Huanhuan looked at his third brother and asked, "Aren't fifth brother, sixth brother, and I smart, third brother?" Wen Shiming tapped Li Huanhuan on the head. "You're the smartest little pig."

Huanhuan was delighted to hear he was the smartest, but when he heard "little pig," his smile vanished. He ran to Fu Yanzhi and said, "Big brother, third brother's bullying me! He said I'm a pig, but I'm not! I don't want to go with him anymore. I want to go with second brother."

Wen Shiming said disdainfully, "Well, I don't want to take you anyway. I'll take good little Xingxing and Yueyue."

Fu Yanzhi stroked Huanhuan's head and reassured him, "Huanhuan isn't a little pig. He's a smart child. All my brothers are smart children." Hearing that, Huanhuan hugged Fu Yanzhi and said, "Big brother's the smartest big brother too."

Just then, the iron door opened, and Baldy came in and threw a few steamed buns onto the floor. "Hurry up and eat. If you starve to death, you won't fetch a price the day after tomorrow." With that, Baldy closed the door and left.

Wen Shiming stepped forward and picked up the buns, frowning. "Big brother, how can we eat them when they're this dirty?"

Fu Yanzhi forced himself up and took the buns. "It's fine. We can rinse them off with water. We need to fill our stomachs now so we'll have the strength to escape tonight."

After rinsing the buns clean, he tore them into small pieces and handed them out. Everyone was reluctant, but they knew this was no time to be picky, so they silently ate.

Night fell, and their surroundings gradually grew quiet. Through the crack in the door, Fu Yanzhi and the others saw Baldy and Skinny both snoring like thunder. Fu Yanzhi gave a small gesture, and everyone carefully opened the iron door and filed out. Crouching low, they felt their way forward through the dim corridor.

When they heard a noise, they hurried to hide in a corner, hardly daring to breathe. After finding no one there, they cautiously came out. Passing through an area littered with beer bottles and food scraps, they finally saw the exit.

When the warehouse door was pushed open, a cold wind blew in. Feeling cold, Skinny tried to pull a blanket over himself without opening his eyes, but his hand knocked over a liquor bottle beside him. It rolled rapidly and struck the concrete floor with a loud clang, its base shattering. Shards of glass bounced everywhere with a light clatter.

Hearing the bottle, Fu Yanzhi and the others raced outside. "Split up and run according to the plan. Remember to call the police as soon as you get away."

The noise jolted Baldy and Skinny awake. Realizing at once that someone had escaped, they shouted and gave chase. When they saw the boys split into three groups, Baldy decided to catch Bo Qing, while Skinny went after Fu Yanzhi.

Fu Yanzhi ran desperately forward with Feng Yunxiao, Skinny in hot pursuit. Fu Yanzhi could hear the footsteps behind them drawing closer and closer. He was wounded, and every step sent needle-like pain through his body.

He couldn't run anymore. At this rate, they could only be caught, so Fu Yanzhi decided to act as a decoy and let Feng Yunxiao get away.

Seeing the tangled grass nearby, Fu Yanzhi said to Feng Yunxiao, "Xiaoxiao, if I keep running with you, we definitely won't get away. Hide behind the grass now. Once I've drawn Skinny away, run in third brother's direction."

When Feng Yunxiao heard that, he said, "No, big brother, let's run together."

Fu Yanzhi immediately hid Feng Yunxiao in the grass. "Listen, Xiaoxiao. Go find your third brother after I draw Skinny away."

With that, Fu Yanzhi ran back without waiting for Feng Yunxiao to refuse.

When Fu Yanzhi saw Skinny nearly upon them, he ran to the left. Seeing him turn left, Skinny followed to catch him.

When Feng Yunxiao saw that his big brother had lured Skinny away, he ran to the right, his heart full of worry for his big brother and tears streaming from his eyes. I'll come back and save you, big brother. You have to stay alive.

Once Fu Yanzhi felt Feng Yunxiao should have gotten far enough away, he said, "You have to live, little brother. This is the last thing I can do for you."

The wound on his back hurt so much. It was like a red-hot branding iron pressed against him, making his whole body stiffen. Cold sweat broke out uncontrollably, sliding down his cheeks and splashing onto his hand, icy cold.

Skinny soon caught up. Seeing Fu Yanzhi alone, he asked, "Where's that little bastard?"

Fu Yanzhi mocked him. "Don't even think about finding him. He's already far away. I imagine the police will be here soon, and when they arrive, it'll be your time to die."

Looking at Fu Yanzhi's mocking face, Skinny pulled the folding knife from his pocket and stabbed at him. "If I die, I'm taking you with me."

Fu Yanzhi tried to dodge, but the wound on his back made his body stiffen, rooting him to the spot. The knife plunged straight toward his heart. The cold blade pierced his chest without warning, a sharp chill that was replaced in an instant by a tearing agony.

He could even feel his internal organs convulsing as the blade twisted. All the strength drained from his body, and the agony flooded his consciousness like a tide. Warm blood ran down the knife's handle, soaking the clothes over his chest.

Fu Yanzhi opened his mouth to speak, but only bloody froth spilled from the corner of his lips. His body went limp and fell.

When Skinny saw Fu Yanzhi lying on the ground, he waved his hands wildly, his eyes glazed, and mumbled disjointed words. "I didn't want to kill you. Why didn't you dodge? Why? You were the one looking for death." Then he staggered away.

As his consciousness blurred, cold became the only thing he could feel. The pain of the wound gradually faded, replaced by a chill that seeped into his bones, as though countless icy needles were pricking his skin. He wanted to pull the cloth beside him around himself, but his hand was too heavy to lift. In the end, the cold swallowed every sensation.

So this is what dying feels like? It's so cold. Did my little brother feel this cold before he died too? It's all my fault for not protecting him. But now I can go apologize to him. With that thought, Fu Yanzhi slowly closed his eyes.