In reality, the abandoned highway was quiet and desolate, and the wind swept through the wilderness with a distant whistle.
No gunshots were fired.
"...Jiang Ting."
Yan Xie's voice wasn't very steady, but he tried to make his voice sound calm and firm: "It doesn't matter. Whatever happened in the past remains in the past, put the gun down first."
Not far from the guardrail, half of Jiang Ting's body was hidden in the night. At some point he raised the gun with slightly trembling fingers as if he was being controlled by some demon from the depths of his soul.
At that angle, the gun was pointing right at him.
"It's true that some things have passed already," said Ajie quietly, raising a hand to wipe the blood from his cheek and smiling, "but I think these 'things' are relevant to the present, not the past."
All the previous tension was gone, and he was even acting a bit laid-back at that moment. Yan Xie glanced over the end of the road and noticed that over the hill in the distance two headlights were rapidly approaching. Soon the distinctive roar of a motorcycle could be heard!
"Han Xiaomei! Watch out", cried out Yan Xie.
In the distance, Han Xiaomei turned around, jumped up and dodged to the side as the motorcyclist swept past her!
Yan Xie stepped forward, jumped on the guardrail, landed on the ground, rolled up and reached Jiang Ting's side with lightning speed grabbing the M92 in one swift movement.
In the blink of an eye, two riders sped by. Ajie grabbed the back of a motorcycle when it passed by him and flew onto it like lightning. The other rider who was separated by a distance of more than ten meters, ducked down, picked up the metal sniper rifle case on the ground with one hand and accelerated back without returning!
"Goodbye, surnamed Yan." Ajie turned back and coldly added, "The next time we meet will be the day you die."
Yan Xie raised his hand and pulled the trigger, but the motorcycle suddenly started, brushed against the bullet with a deafening roar and just like a golden meteor raced away into the wilderness at the end of the abandoned highway.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The last three bullets chased the tailpipe smoke, and the lights disappeared into the vast darkness in the blink of an eye. Yan Xie cursed "Fuck!". He was about to chase after them when he noticed countless flashing lights over the slope in the distance, like a myriad of red demonic eyes - there were numerous cars there!
"Bam"
Yan Xie threw the empty gun on a stone with a thud.
The sharp siren of a police car drifted with the wind, and the flashing red and blue police lights finally appeared on the distant viaduct.
"Are you alright?", Yan Xie wiped the blood away, turned around to add, "First get in my car for now...Jiang Ting!"
Jiang Ting pressed his eyebrows tightly, most of his face was hidden behind his palms, although he tried his best to control himself, he was still unable to calm his trembling shoulders. Yan Xie grabbed his arms and forcibly pulled them away only to see that his face was pale, and in even the darkness he could see that the cold lips that had always been thinly and tightly pursed were even trembling.
"Don't scare me like this, Jiang Ting?" Yan Xie grabbed him and whispered, "Wake up!"
"I'm sorry." Jiang Ting tried to cover his face with his palms, but he couldn't free his wrist from Yan Xie's grip, so he could only nervously and forcefully turn his face to the other side:" ...I was just trying to..."
"It's fine, it's fine." Yan Xie gestured to Han Xiaomei to stay away from the car with his eyes, while carefully hugging Jiang Ting in his arms, "It'll pass. I'm here, ah? Be obedient?"
"I was trying to help you" Jiang Ting said hoarsely, "but I've been unable to...I-"
He paused and finally uttered the words.
"I can't pull the trigger."
Yan Xie was slightly startled, but before he could understand what it meant Han Xiaomei suddenly poked her head out of the Cherokee car with a walkie-talkie and said anxiously, "Deputy Yan!" "We just got word from the scene that the criminals' rendezvous point had been found on the roof of a residential building that was to be demolished. Suspicious object was found at the crime scene!"
"Suspicious object?"
"A short-sleeved white sweatshirt of a seven or eight year old with old bloodstains!"
Yan Xie only felt a movement in his arms and Jiang Ting pushed him away, gasping, "...what?"
His mind was a jumbled mess, seemingly filled with a million thoughts, but then going blank. Jing Ting staggered forward. After a few steps he reached out to pinch his furrowed brows one more time, but even when the nails cut deeply into his flesh, he did not feel any pain.
The last bits of consciousness were like stray threads, which he tried his best to hold onto, but he could not succeed and only plummeted into the abyss.
He himself didn't even realize he was hyperventilating, and then he slumped and went limp, losing consciousness.
"--Jiang Ting!"
Yan Xie rushed forward and caught Jiang Ting, patting him on the cheek with a sharp voice, " Wake up, Jiang Ting!"
Han Xiaomei was stunned and took two steps forward, only to see Yan Xie holding up Jiang Ting "Get in the car and drive back, now!"
At this time, the police cars on the viaduct were getting closer and closer, and the red and blue lights almost flashed in front of them. Han Xiaomei pointed out to him at a loss: "but Deputy Yan, everyone has … "
"Call the People's Hospital." Yan Xie carried Jiang Ting to the backseat of the car, forced himself to take a deep breath to calm down, and decisively said, "-No, wait. Call the private hospital, get in the car and I'll tell you which one it is."
Ma Xiang was whistling in the police car when he saw Yan Xie get into the Grand Cherokee only a few dozen meters away from them, then the car lights lit up and the car made a U-turn.
"Hey, Yan-Ge!"
Ma Xiang lowered the window, "We're in a hurry... Hello?!"
The Cherokee completely ignored his call, it didn't even wait, and just whizzed off in the opposite direction of the police cars!
".... " A row of police cars stopped in turn, everyone was left dumbfounded in the dust. A short while after that, Ma Xiang leaned out of the car window and said angrily at the headlights that were getting farther and farther away from the cars: "Are you rushing so fast to see your wife give birth to a child? You don't even have a wife! Hey!"
-
The Cherokee with flashing police car lights was galloping at full speed on the empty highway, running several red lights in a row and only leaving a black afterimage in the security surveillance.
Yan Xie's hazy pupils were reflected in the rearview mirror, he looked at the back seat - bumpy road made Jiang Ting slightly sway, and as if he was reliving some unpleasant memories in a coma, a hint of pain clearly appeared on his face.
I couldn't pull the trigger, he said.
What does it mean? Why?
What's the deal with the death of the undercover policeman "Rivet"?
The past is the past, Jiang Ting, don't sink into it - Yan Xie mused over and over again in his heart.
It doesn't matter even if you have done something wrong, if you want to pay the price, at least you won't face the future alone.
Turbulence.
Jolting.
Jiang Ting couldn't tell where he was, his body felt hot and was in pain, as if he were confined in some small, dark space.
Am I dead? He thought.
As if slowly floating upward in deep water, the soul finally caught a glimpse of the light and couldn't wait to get into it.
Wow-.
The little boy poked his head out of the river, merrily laughed, swam to the bank and climbed up. He grabbed the white T-shirt that was lying on the stone and put it on.
The midsummer evening sunset was reflected on his white profile, as if his skin was saturated with water; his wet black hair was on his cheeks. His little friend, who was not in the water, was sitting on the stone and silently staring at him for a long time before saying, "Your clothes are wet. Why won't you change into something else?"
"But I don't have other clothes."
"What if these ones get dirty?"
"I'll get a beating if I return in dirty clothes."
The little boy sat down, tilted his head at his friend who was always gloomy, he never knew what was on his mind. Then he asked with a smile, "Are you still practicing today?"
"Do you want to hear it?"
"Yes."
His friend seemed to be smiling, and with the kind of smile that spoke volumes he got up and took his hand, "Come with me."
Hot summer days, rock \\\\\\'n\\\\\\' roll
The way you play for me at your show
And all the ways I got to know
Your pretty face and electric soul
...
The golden wind, wrapped in the smell of distant cities, swept across the wilderness, and rushed into the distance. The stage was extravagant, as it always was, with the sun slanting through the high stained-glass windows that were reflecting the empty, lonely theater and its dusty seats. There was only one little boy in the front row, smiling and applauding the violinist who was performing alone.
Hot summer days, rock 'n' roll
The way you play for me at your show
And all the ways I got to know
Your pretty face and electric soul
...
The melody reverberated for a long time, and the performance never ended. As a child, he played as if the years couldn't wash away the thick pastel makeup.
"I'll always play only for you alone," the little boy heard his partner say with a childish enthusiasm.
Then their shoulders widened, their bodies lengthened, and a deep, raspy voice repeated the phrase in his ears: "I made a promise to always play just for you."
Jiang Ting raised his head, but could see nothing. He was covered with embers from the explosion, bruised and could only be described as a mess. He had been pushed into the room and handcuffed to an armchair; his eyes were blindfolded by a cloth. And even though he knew the man was walking towards him, he couldn't get a glimpse at the smiling face that was so close to him.
Will you still love me when I'm no longer young and beautiful?
Will you still love me when I got nothing but my aching soul?
Will you still love me when I'm no longer young and beautiful?
He heard the sound of a violin from his own cell.
Will you still love me when I got nothing but my aching soul?
They, who played and laughed in the past, the summer night in July, the floating dust in the afterglow and the brilliant sea of lights, gathered into a torrent that burst the floodgates, singing in the void and hovering up to heaven.
Your glory, your face, that shines like a diamond.
Will you love me as you have always loved me, until the end of time?
--When the time is over, the show is over, and the years of the white summer have passed, will you still applaud for me until the end of time?
.
The iron wheels of the hospital stretcher spun fast, the red lights of the emergency room flashed, and the nurse's anxious figure disappeared in the corridor.
"There's bruising inside the skull and there's a constant risk of compressing the nerves, it's a very dangerous situation..."
"Only minimal consciousness can be maintained at present, and the possibility of entering a persistent vegetative state again cannot be ruled out..."
Yang Mei covered her mouth and let out a trembling cry, but it was low and short, then her knees went weak and she kneeled down. Yan Xie grabbed her arm and held her up, pulling her onto the bench without a word, as he looked up and asked: "There's always a way isn't there? The best equipment, the best medical care? He's only gone into a coma. He's still alive! Whatever it takes, the bruising in the brain can be discussed later, as long as we can stimulate consciousness back now!"
"It's indeed possible if there are newly researched machines and accompanying drugs, but the products have not been approved in China yet, and whether they're clinically effective or not is still..."
"Where's the equipment?"
The doctor was hesitant, "The news said the whole set was in Germany, but…"
"What time does the fastest international flight arrive, and what time does your equipment arrive?" Without returning, Yan Xie grabbed his phone and rushed out of the emergency room corridor.
In the darkness, the soul broke free of the catheter and ventilator and slowly floated out of the emergency room, drifting off into the hollow abyss in the distance.
Dear Lord, when I get to heaven
Please let me bring my man
When he comes tell me that you'll let him in
Father tell me if you can
...
But I have never loved you, Jiang Ting murmured as the singing voice was getting louder and louder.
The melody grew more and more tumultuous and intense, lifting the gorgeous hem of the red and gold curtains, the dust of the old days and years. It was a deafening and roaring sound that was drowning out his hoarse cries for help and shouting.
But I have never-
"You have," he heard the voice say.
The police lights flashed and the rain was pouring down in torrents, there was noise all around, and someone was shouting in the rain, "Found it! Somebody! Inform Captain Jiang!"
Under the desk lamp in the office late at night, there was a pen scratching on the paper then the sound of happy jumping and laughing came from outside the door, "Let's go Captain Jiang! ! See you tomorrow!"
The ground shook, the factory windows exploded, and fire and smoke instantly rushed up into the sky; he was running towards the flames as if he was in a trance, but countless people around him were shouting, " Don't let him in!" "Captain Jiang!" "Pull him away!"
...No more seeing you tomorrow, thought Jiang Ting. I'll never see you again.
The souls finally let go. They leapt from the vault of heaven to the abyss, clinging to the laughing demons.
In their rapid descent they were far from the heavens, leaving the human world far behind them. The horizon was filled with evil spirits and hell fire; the magnificent theatre had turned in ashes, and the violin was still playing in the sky. In that song, they went to the end of their journey together, as if they had been inseparable from the very beginning, and crashed towards the great gate of purgatory that opened with a bang.
Bang..!
Like a rest note landing on the ground, suddenly everything was still.
Explosions, burns, screams, shouts...everything crumbled like a silent mime, and the flames faded to gray, engulfing the ghosts at the bottom of the abyss in an instant.
Jiang Ting was suspended in midair like a reborn embryo, and after an unknown amount of time, he finally turned back.
A strong hand pulled him, when he looked up to the arm, newborn-like light overwhelmed the sky, reflecting a handsome face which was frowning and looking closely at him-.
The blinding light made Jiang Ting close his eyes, then he slowly opened them again.
"Awake!"
"Doctor! Doctor, he's awake!!!"
…...
Noisy and hazy footsteps, it felt like the sound was coming from behind a layer of deep water.
Jiang Ting closed his eyes, feeling like he was being manipulated by an unknown number of doctors and nurses. Some people were crying, some were calling for someone, and some were cheering and laughing.
They're happy? There was some confusion in his mind.
Finally the surroundings grew quiet, and the medical equipment emitted regular ticking sounds. Jiang Ting's thick eyelashes moved a few times, then he slowly opened his eyes, and found out that there was still a person by the hospital bed.
The face from the dream was watching him in reality, and the lights in the ward that came from behind, covered his solid and reliable figure. There was some warmth to this picture.
Yan Xie laughed, satting on the edge of the bed by his side, crossed his index fingers with both hands and showed a number: "Six days."
Jiang Ting, who was wearing a breathing mask, was still a little disoriented.
"You were in a coma for six whole days." Yan Xie said with a smile, finally moving his neck and shoulders, and casually raising his chin at the unpronounceable set of german medical equipment and medication drips that were all around the hospital bed, "The two of us are a vivid illustration of what happens when you and I are not meant to be, and I'm the one who has to pay for it-- Only today did I realize that the words of the old ancestor were indeed true and not a lie."
".... "A hint of laughter appeared in Jiang Ting's eyes.
Yan Xie looked at him, suddenly leaned over to his ear and asked teasingly, "Now we're pretty much destined for each other, huh? Captain Jiang?"
Jiang Ting opened his mouth slightly and let out a warm white breath in the breathing mask.
He said: "Yes."