Threat

Flames filled the entire screen, and an explosion came over the walkie-talkie. Eyes bloodshot, Luo Ningsang swung a fist at Yuan Qingshan, but Yuanxiao stopped him.

Only then did Yuan Qingshan leisurely finish what he had been saying. "It was the fountain on the first floor."

"But there's one at the entrance too. If anyone takes a single step back, I'll set it off."

The microphone carried his voice loud and clear to the group at the entrance.

Yuan Qingshan had pulled up the image of the towering flames from earlier and placed it in the center of the screen to conceal Xu Shenzheng and the others and mislead the people watching. With a movement of his finger, the live entrance surveillance appeared before them.

Xu Shenzheng's somewhat frustrated voice came over the walkie-talkie. "Boss, I'm fine."

Having been used by a criminal to threaten his boss, Xu Shenzheng was in a foul mood.

His grip tightened on the walkie-talkie, his fingertips turning slightly white without his noticing. Even so, he signaled the squad to stop and await orders where they were.

Luo Ningsang stared at him for a long while, then instinctively reached for his waist. Only when his hand found nothing did he remember that he had given his gun to Shen Yu. He pressed his lips tightly together, stubbornly refusing to move.

Yuan Qingshan was in no hurry. He played with the earring in his hand, tossing it up again and again and catching it in his palm. But his gaze did not follow it. Instead, he kept his head tilted back and his eyelids half lowered, looking down at Luo Ningsang.

Everyone present understood what he meant.

Should they gamble on the bomb being fake, or let him leave?

Luo Ningsang also knew that since the man had dared to show up here so brazenly, he must have planned his escape. As things stood, nobody dying seemed like a very good outcome...

Just then.

Shen Yu, standing behind him, tugged at the hem of his clothes and took his hand. Shen Yu's soft, warm hand gripped his broad, thick palm with its thin calluses, and he could not resist giving it a squeeze.

Then Luo Ningsang noticed that Shen Yu was writing, slowly tracing each stroke.

Let him go. I have a way.

Luo Ningsang lowered his head. A fluffy blue-haired head was pressed against his arm, and from this angle, he could even see Shen Yu's eyelashes trembling slightly through the strands of hair.

His Adam's apple bobbed.

So cute.

Shen Yu wrote intently, completely unaware that everyone in the room was looking at him. But after he had been writing for a while, Luo Ningsang still had not reacted, so he looked up at him in confusion.

Only then did Luo Ningsang come back to his senses. "All right," he answered in a low voice.

He led Shen Yu slowly back through the door. "I'll take my people out of the Jinglan Imperial Residence. I'll give you five minutes."

Time to escape.

Yuan Qingshan was annoyed for no apparent reason. For the first time, he ignored Luo Ningsang. Instead, he looked at Shen Yu, who stood quietly and obediently beside Luo Ningsang, being incredibly well-behaved. His golden eyes blinked as he said something whose meaning was unclear. "Wait for me."

Luo Ningsang thought Yuan Qingshan was provoking him again and ignored him. Shen Yu saw it but could not be bothered to respond. The two left without looking back.

Yuanxiao watched Shen Yu retreat through the door and felt like following him, but he would be shot dead, wouldn't he? He had seen Shen Yu return the gun to Luo Ningsang.

It was fine. They couldn't possibly stay together all the time.

Besides, if he really succeeded in pursuing Shen Yu, shouldn't he also call Luo Ningsang... brother?

He was not the only one who had that thought. Ever since Jiang Qianyu heard Shen Yu call Luo Ningsang "brother," he had done his best to make a good impression in front of him. He did not know the two were unrelated by blood and thought they were biological brothers, but he could not get a word in at a time like this. He decided to ask his own second brother for advice when he got back. His brother worked in the entertainment industry, so he must be very experienced in matters of the heart!

Downstairs, Xu Shenzheng stood waiting, growing anxious. He longed to pull out his gun and shoot the surveillance camera to pieces, then rush inside and shoot the mastermind as well, bringing Luo Ningsang and Shen Yu out safely.

There was no one left on the first floor.

The empty banquet hall was in disarray. Tables and chairs lay overturned on the floor, and the delicate snacks and desserts had been spilled, mixing with drinks and soaking a large patch of the burgundy carpet. In the very center was a pool of half-congealed dark red blood. The fountain had been blown apart, and broken stones blocked its water outlet. The place was a complete mess.

At the stairwell some distance away, however, a figure still stood motionless.

His dark green suit was somewhat rumpled, his brooch crooked, and bits of stone that had sprayed onto his black hair still clung to it. He leaned against the wall with his eyes closed, opening them only when he heard footsteps. He looked up expectantly.

"What are you doing here?" they both asked.

Luo Ningsang smacked the person in front of him on the head. Even when he heard him cry out in pain, he was still displeased. "Why didn't you leave with the rescue team?"

Lu Xianchang covered the back of his head with one hand. Looking a little dejected, he quickly scanned the group, looking first at Shen Yu. After making sure he was all right, his gaze passed over Lu Changfeng and paused for a few seconds. Then he said softly, "...I was worried about you."

Seeing him like that, Luo Ningsang found himself unable to say anything harsh. "Follow us," he said gruffly.

The group joined Xu Shenzheng, who had been at a standstill at the entrance, and withdrew from the Jinglan Imperial Residence.

A breeze stirred the hems of their clothes.

The area outside had already been surrounded by multiple rings of police tape, but with such a commotion at the Jinglan Imperial Residence, right in the city center, how could it not draw enormous attention? Sirens kept sounding.

Smoke was still rising from the upper floors of the Jinglan Imperial Residence. The unusual sight drew many curious onlookers, who raised their phones to film it, while the paparazzi and reporters who had gotten wind of the news and staked out the place set up their long-lens cameras.

The moment Luo Ningsang had smashed the glass from a crane and charged into the Jinglan Imperial Residence had been caught in full on camera. Although the footage showed him only from the side and behind, it still shot up the trending searches.

#Superman at the Jinglan Imperial Residence#

#Brave police officer breaks window to save people#

#Explosion at the Lu Family's recognition banquet#

Each was followed by a "viral" tag.

But as quickly as the news appeared, it was suppressed even faster.

For ordinary people, it might have been an amusing story, but for those inside the Jinglan Imperial Residence, it was a scandal. The Lu Family in particular had effectively been slapped in the face under a spotlight.

So the people who had been rescued all applied pressure to suppress the news, doing the Lu Family a favor in the process. Then, under the officers' arrangements, they gave statements in a nearby shop that had been temporarily requisitioned. After all, there was no room at the Police Bureau for so many people, not to mention that every one of them was an important figure. After saying a few words, they would fall silent and tell the officers to speak to their lawyers.

He Wen, the only person injured in the incident, had already been loaded into an ambulance and was on his way to emergency treatment with its siren wailing. He was lucky to be alive. Despite so many people each stabbing him once, none had managed to hit a vital spot; he had simply passed out from excessive blood loss.

When Lin Xinluo saw the group come out, her tense expression eased, and she smiled without realizing it. She stepped forward and ruffled Shen Yu's hair. "You weren't scared, were you?"

Shen Yu shook his head.

Just as he was about to say something, he felt something cold on his face and reached up to touch it.

A torrent of large raindrops came crashing down immediately afterward, catching everyone off guard. In an instant, everyone outside was soaked to the skin.

It was raining.

Very hard.