Chapter Sixty-Two: Malice Arises

“Rat-tat-tat!” Just as Li Zimu was still cursing his fate, the staccato of machine-gun fire erupted outside. The bullets sliced through the air so close that Xu Si could feel his heart leap into his throat. “Good heavens! Why are there machine guns going off all of a sudden?”

“Don’t panic!” Li Zimu lowered his voice and turned to the boatman. “Brother Fan, what’s happening out there? Why did the shooting start out of nowhere?”

Brother Fan glanced up at the sea, clearly simmering with anger himself. “Damn it, we smugglers have run smack into a customs bust. We’re caught in the crossfire for nothing!”

The rattle of machine guns outside didn’t slacken in the slightest—if anything, it grew more intense.

Xu Si gripped his gun tightly. “Big bro, if they find our little toy here, we’ll be rotting in jail till we’re eighty!”

Li Zimu swallowed hard. “And with the loot from the tombs we’ve got, even if they don’t shoot us, we’ll be in for life!”

He eyed the three million in cash bagged at his side, a cold, bitter laugh escaping his lips. “No way back, and the hounds are at our heels. So this is the height of my ambition, Li Zimu? But I refuse to lie down and accept my fate!”

The colder the sea wind bit, the more ferocious Li Zimu’s expression became.

Seeing the malice twisted on Li Zimu’s face, Xu Si shuddered inwardly. “Boss, you’re not thinking of taking on customs, are you? Please don’t! One hail of bullets from them and we’ll be dead ten times over.”

Li Zimu glared at him. “What? You’re losing your nerve now?”

Xu Si shook his head desperately. “Big bro, think about it. While it’s chaos out there, we can toss the gun and the cash overboard. No evidence, and at worst we’re just charged with illegal entry.”

Li Zimu gritted his teeth, glaring from Xu Si to the bag packed with millions. But greed quickly crushed his fear. With a vicious kick, he sent Xu Si sprawling. “Coward! Tonight I’ll find out if I’m a dragon or a worm!”

Xu Si tried to reason with him, but Li Zimu shoved him aside and drew his pistol, pressing it to Brother Fan at the helm. “Brother Fan, while they’re distracted, turn this boat around and head for shore!”

Brother Fan, startled and furious at the gun in his back, spat, “Are you insane? Customs has machine guns! If you wanna die, jump overboard yourself. I still want to live!”

“Damn you!” Li Zimu smashed a fist into Fan’s face. “We’ve known each other for over ten years—don’t make me shoot you!”

Blood streaming from his nose and mouth, Brother Fan swore, “You want me to risk my life for you? Fine, five million, flat fee! Otherwise, shoot me! You can’t even drive this boat; you’ll get caught anyway!”

“Bastard!” Furious that Fan dared haggle even with a gun to his head, Li Zimu swung the pistol at one of Fan’s crew and fired at his leg. “Bang!”

“My leg!” The man went down at once, cursing. “You lunatic!”

Bloodshot eyes wild, Li Zimu snarled, “Still bargaining with me now, Brother Fan? I’ll count to three—if you don’t turn around, your man’s dead!”

Faced with Li Zimu’s threat and unable to abandon his wounded crewman, Brother Fan had no choice but to swing the boat around, cursing as he did. “Damn you, Li Zimu! I give up!”

No sooner had the boat turned than several searchlights snapped on, fixing them in their glare. “Abandon all hope of escape! Stop your boat immediately or we open fire!”

Even with the submachine guns in the distance, Brother Fan feared Li Zimu’s pistol in his back more. Luckily, he was no stranger to danger. As customs shouted their warnings, he gunned the boat even faster.

“Rat-tat-tat!” Customs wasted no time—they opened fire without hesitation.

Crouched behind cover, Xu Si pleaded, “Big bro, turning back now is a one-way ticket. Fleeing during a smuggling crackdown, everyone will think we’re working with those smugglers shooting it out with customs. Both the underworld and the cops will be after us!”

Li Zimu snapped, “Shut up! If it wasn’t for old times, I’d have shot you already!”

The smuggling boat tore through the water at breakneck speed. It had been modified for just this—maximum acceleration, at the cost of safety.

“Faster!” Li Zimu barked, seeing the customs speedboats gaining on them.

“I’m trying, damn it! If you’re so great, come drive it yourself! Any faster and we won’t be able to stop when we hit shore!”

After a heart-pounding chase, the boat finally hit land. Li Zimu knocked Brother Fan to the ground with an elbow. “Some guarantee of safety you gave us tonight, you jinx!”

He kicked Fan again, then hoisted the bag of cash to his shoulder. But leaping ashore in his haste, he twisted his leg, toppling into the water with his gun flying from his grasp.

Hearing Li Zimu’s muffled cry, Xu Si rushed over, gun drawn. “Big bro, were you hit?”

“No, you idiot! I twisted my ankle jumping off!” Looking up, he saw Xu Si approaching with pistol raised and was instantly alarmed. “You—what are you doing with that gun? Planning to kill me?”

Xu Si hesitated, glancing from Li Zimu’s frightened face to the bag of cash on his back, only then realizing what Li Zimu suspected. “Big bro, what do you take me for?”

He tucked away his gun, sprang to Li Zimu’s side, and helped him up. “Let me carry you, boss!”

Li Zimu was touched despite himself. “If Xu Si had just shot me and taken the money, he’d be rich now…”

“You can hardly carry me—you’re skin and bones. Just help me walk. That path over there leads into the woods; hardly anyone knows about it.”

Xu Si nodded, supporting Li Zimu as they hurried toward the shadowy forest trail.

But customs were closing in from behind.

“Damn, this money’s soaked and weighs a ton!” Li Zimu realized after only a few steps that the bag was impossibly heavy—deadly baggage when every second counted.

Xu Si asked, “What do we do? We risked our lives for those three million!”

A thousand regrets flooded Li Zimu’s mind. “Damn it, I should have listened to you!”

But there’s no medicine for regret.

Looking at his twisted leg, he suddenly flung the bag aside. “If I can throw away this money today, I can make it back someday!”

If only he’d thought so from the start.

Xu Si couldn’t help but admire him. “You’re right, boss. If we survive this, fortune will surely follow.”

Xu Si was still trying to flatter him, but Li Zimu was too angry to care. “Enough talk. Let’s go!”

Together, limping and stumbling, they disappeared into the forest path under cover of night.

“All units, maintain close surveillance of the forest. I want their whereabouts the moment they emerge,” Officer Li said, setting down his headset and drawing a deep breath. “Huiyan, make me some ginseng tea. Xiao Yang, send an urgent bulletin to the radio station.”

Soon, the city was buzzing with news: “Major cultural relics smuggling case cracked, a trove of priceless artifacts seized, thirteen suspects in custody, two at large—police in pursuit.” The news even included the backs of Li Zimu and Xu Si.

“What now, big bro?” In the dense woods, Xu Si, panting, handed his phone to Li Zimu. “Look at the news—they’re putting out a wanted notice on us.”

Li Zimu was full of dread. “The money’s gone, and we’re stuck here. Lord Wei’s men will be hunting for us, and the police will think we were with the smugglers who shot it out at sea. We’re facing death from both sides.”

They fell into silence. The road to fortune had turned into a path to the underworld; anyone would be silent in such a moment.

Suddenly, Li Zimu remembered something. “Si, didn’t He Wentian say you could come to him if you ever needed help? He said he could handle anything, on either side of the law!”

“He Wentian? Yes—yes, that’s right!” Xu Si frantically searched his wallet for He Wentian’s card, but couldn’t find it.

“Damn, where is it? I—”

Xu Si cursed, “How could I lose something so important?!”

Just then, a black card fell from his pocket—a business card from Ye Dong.

The two men seized it as if it were a lifeline, clutching it tightly, knowing that their only hope now might rest with He Wentian.