Zhang Junyi shook his head almost immediately, as though trying to dispel the very thought.
"What are you even planning?" he said, his tone edged with disbelief. "Our Dong Tian gang is nothing more than a small group of boys, just a handful of students playing at bravado. How could we possibly help you deal with someone like Master Kui?"
Li Shuying let out a soft scoff, her gaze sharp, "No one is asking your so-called gang to kill him," she replied coolly. "Just answer the question, how many members do you have?"
Zhang Junyi hesitated. His brows drew together as he weighed her intent, but under her unwavering stare, he finally relented.
"Thirteen," he said.
Li Shuying nodded thoughtfully, as though confirming a calculation already made in her mind.
"Good," she said. "If your people can assist me, I will agree to your earlier proposal. What do you say?"
At once, Zhang Junyi's eyes lit up. The memory of the abundant food supplies she had sold his father earlier flashed through his mind. He hesitated only a moment longer before nodding.
"Fine," he said. "As long as it isn't something suicidal, I can bring them."
Li Shuying inclined her head slightly, then gestured for both him and Heizi to come closer.
Her voice dropped to a whisper.
"Our objective is not open confrontation," she said. "We only need to create a narrow window...."
She spoke quietly, outlining her plan in measured detail. Each step was precise, each contingency accounted for as far as circumstances allowed.
Heizi listened intently, his expression growing increasingly serious. By the time she finished, he gave a slow nod.
"It can work," he said. "If executed cleanly."
Zhang Junyi, however, still looked uncertain.
"There are still too many gaps," he muttered. "Too many things that could go wrong."
Li Shuying turned her gaze toward him, calm and unshaken.
"Do not concern yourself with what you do not understand," she said evenly. "I know what I am doing."
He fell silent.
After a moment, Heizi spoke again, "If you intend to act, tonight is the best opportunity," he said. "The guest Master Kui is entertaining will conclude his deal today. By nightfall, he will likely depart, taking those trafficked women with him."
His tone grew firm.
"Once they are gone, your chance will disappear. If you want the cleanest opportunity… you must move tonight."
Li Shuying nodded without hesitation.
"Then tonight it is."
She looked at both of them in turn, her eyes steady.
"I trust that neither of you will go back on your word," she said. "And I will ensure you receive what you were promised."
Heizi inclined his head solemnly.
Zhang Junyi gave a short nod, though a trace of unease still lingered in his expression.
The matter settled, Li Shuying did not linger any longer.
She lifted her gaze toward the sky. The light had already begun to dim, the golden hues of late afternoon slipping quietly into dusk.
Her heart tightened. Li Jianhua was still inside that place. For a brief moment, her steps faltered. Then she turned and began walking back toward the county.
She did not yet know why her elder brother had allowed himself to be dragged into such a place, why he would endure such torment, why he would help Li Guofu earn money in such a degrading way.
But one thing was certain. What Li Guofu had done would not go unanswered. This time a simple beating would no longer suffice. After she dealt with Master Kui and dismantled his den of filth, she would settle that account as well.
The evening wind brushed past her as she walked. By the time she reached home, nearly forty minutes had passed.
The courtyard was quiet but warm with life. As soon as she stepped inside, she was met with expectant faces. Her mother, and her brothers were waiting. But when they saw that she had returned alone, concern immediately surfaced.
"Where is elder brother?" Li Jianmin asked.
Li Shuying lowered her gaze slightly, masking the storm within. "I couldn't find him," she said evenly. "So I went to Uncle Zhang's house to thank him for his help earlier, and spent entire afternoon at his place."
At the mention of Zhang Wenhao, Li Jianmin and Li Jianguo quickly explained the man's identity and position to their mother. Chen Meilan listened quietly, then nodded in understanding.
Li Shuying did not remain in the courtyard for long.
After a short while, she rose, "I am a little tired," she said softly. "The journey last night… I would like to rest."
Her mother nodded with concern, urging her to eat more before sleeping, but Li Shuying only gave a faint smile and excused herself.
She entered her room and closed the door behind her.
Even late at night when she heard her elder brother's voice echo faintly from the courtyard, Li Shuying did not move.
She lay still on her narrow wooden bed, eyes open, staring at the darkened beams of the ceiling.
Outside, she could hear the familiar voices. Her mother's relieved voice asking whether he had eaten, why he was late again.
Her brothers speaking over one another.
And then his voice, soft, controlled and almost normal as if nothing had happened.
As if he had not stood in that hall only hours ago, his back carved open, his dignity reduced to something less than human.
Li Shuying's fingers tightened imperceptibly against the bedding.
For a fleeting moment, an overwhelming urge surged within her to rush outside and grab him to demand the truth.
But she did not move.
Instead, she turned her face slightly toward the wall. Her breathing remained even, but her chest felt tight, so tight it almost hurt.
In her previous life, she had lost him too quickly. She had not even known the full extent of what he had endured before he was gone.
And now in this life he was going down the same path again.
Outside, steady footsteps approached. She heard someone pause briefly near her door and she knew it was Li Jianhua himself.
For a moment, even the air seemed to hold its breath. Then the footsteps moved on. He did not enter.
A strange mixture of relief and disappointment settled in her chest. Relief… because she did not yet trust herself to face him calmly. Disappointment… because a small part of her had hoped he would come.
As the night deepened and the village fell into silence, Li Shuying's eyes snapped open.
A flicker of killing intent passed through her eyes.
Without hesitation, she pushed aside the quilt and rose from the bed. Her movements were light, practiced, devoid of the hesitation expected of a girl her age. She slipped on her shoes, adjusted her sleeves, and quietly opened the door.
She stepped out soundlessly. Near the doorway, she paused only long enough to retrieve the electric torch her father had brought in Baicheng and with a thought, she stored it within her system space.
Then, without looking back, she slipped out into the night and headed toward the county.
At the same time, near the abandoned factory ruins on the western edge of the county, shadows gathered beneath the skeletal remains of broken walls and rusted beams.
Zhang Junyi crouched behind a collapsed section of brickwork, his figure blending into the darkness. Around him, a group of boys into their teens waited in uneasy anticipation.
They were the Dong Tian gang.
A small-time gang in name, but to these boys, it was a fragile brotherhood in a harsh world.
One of the older members, leaned closer and spoke in a low voice, "Zhuzi… are you certain that person will come?" he asked. "What if they lose their nerve at the last moment?"
Zhang Junyi shook his head, his tone firm.
"Don't worry, Hu ge," he said. "That person will definitely come. They have more reason than anyone else to want Master Kui dead."
Another boy, younger and restless, shifted impatiently.
"But who is it, Brother Zhuzi?" he asked. "You've kept it hidden this whole time. Why so mysterious?"
A faint smile tugged at Zhang Junyi's lips.
"You don't need to know," he replied lightly. "Just focus on what you've been told. Complete the task… and I promise you after tonight, things will change."
His gaze swept across the group, afterall he cannot just say the person they were waiting for is actually a teenage girl younger than them.
He just said, "There will be a way to earn money, and you'll all be able to return to school."
For a moment, the cold night seemed to warm.
The boys' eyes lit up one after another.
"Really?" one of them asked, his voice trembling with excitement. "Brother Zhuzi, you must keep your word!"
"Yes!" another chimed in eagerly. "If that happens, you'll be the greatest benefactor of my life! I'll burn incense in your name every day and..."
Before he could finish, the boy beside him smacked the back of his head.
"Are you trying to get us all in trouble?" he hissed. "Talking about feudal superstitions like that!"
The first boy froze, then quickly corrected himself in panic.
"Ah...right, right! Then… I'll treat you like my own father!"
A ripple of suppressed laughter passed through the group.
Zhang Junyi chuckled softly, shaking his head.
"There's no need for that," he said. "Just do your part well."
At the edge of the group, Hu ge watched the exchange quietly.
His expression, however, did not share their lightness.
His gaze lingered on the younger boys, their eager faces, their thin frames, their eyes filled with fragile hope.
Most of them were orphans.
Others came from impoverished rural families, driven into the county by hunger and necessity.
The Dong Tian gang had never been about power or territory.
It was simply a way for them to survive, taking odd jobs, running errands, doing whatever small tasks they could to scrape together a few coins.
And Zhang Junyi, though born into a far more privileged background had chosen to stay among them.
He shared their meals, their troubles, their laughter. To them, he was a brother.
And tonight he had brought them here for something far beyond anything they had ever done before.
Hu ge's eyes reddened slightly as he turned to Zhang Junyi, "Zhuzi," he said quietly, his voice carrying a weight of concern, "I hope what you promised them is true." He paused, glancing at the boys once more. "Because if it isn't… it will break them."
Zhang Junyi met his gaze. For a moment, the usual playfulness in his expression faded, replaced by something steadier and more resolute.
Then he smiled, "Don't worry, Hu ge," he said, "From tonight onward… the road ahead will only get brighter."
At Warehouse Number Eight, the night air felt heavier than elsewhere. Heizi stood in the shadows near the outer wall, his back resting lightly against the cold bricks. His eyes, usually sharp and indifferent, now flickered with unrest.
What had he done?
At the time, agreeing to Li Shuying's plan had seemed almost natural, driven by desperation, by the suffocating weight of year spent in the Hei Long gang, by the tantalizing promise of one hundred yuan.
One hundred yuan.
To others, it might be a sum to consider carefully. To him, it was freedom. With such money, he could finally take his family away from this cursed place… beyond the borders, to Hong Kong, where rumors spoke of opportunity and a fresh beginning.
And yet the closer the hour drew, the more his resolve wavered. He barely knew Li Shuying. A girl he had met only today. A stranger, bound to him by nothing more than Zhang Junyi's acquaintance. And yet, on that fragile thread, he had chosen to stake his life. He exhaled slowly, steadying his breath.
There was no turning back now. Tonight, either he would step out of the mire… or be buried within it forever.
He straightened, forcing the unease down, and cast a glance toward the warehouse entrance.
Originally, his duty had been at the courtyard gate. But following Li Shuying's instructions, he had persuaded another guard to switch positions. Now, he stood exactly where he needed to be.
It did not take long before he noticed movement. A faint shadow, gliding along the distant edge of darkness.
His eyes sharpened, she had come. Suppressing any outward reaction, Heizi glanced casually around. Not far from the warehouse entrance, four guards stood in cluster, talking idly, their vigilance dulled by routine.
Feigning nonchalance, he began to walk toward the rear side of the warehouse, his steps unhurried, as though merely making a routine round.
From the opposite direction, Li Shuying moved like a whisper through the night.
The moonlight barely touched the ground, leaving most of the area cloaked in shadow. Even so, she quickly noticed the number of guards stationed near Warehouse Eight.
Her brows drew together slightly.
Too many.
This was not where the transaction was supposed to take place. The deal is at Warehouse Three… so why is this place guarded like a fortress?
She suppressed the question for now and adjusted her path, circling toward the back of the structure.
But even there two guards stood watch. Li Shuying clicked her tongue inwardly, irritation flashing through her mind.
Even the rear is covered…
Just as she was considering her next move, a familiar silhouette emerged from the shadows.
Heizi approached the two guards with an easy, practiced demeanor, "When are those southern comrades arriving to collect the goods?" he asked casually, his tone relaxed.
One of the guards stretched lazily before replying, "Should be any moment now. It's already near midnight. They still have to cross the mountains before dawn, so they won't linger."
The other added, "Keep your eyes open. Tonight isn't like other nights."
Heizi nodded, as if in agreement. Then, as though recalling something important, he lowered his voice slightly and leaned closer.
"Speaking of which," he said, "didn't something happen near the east perimeter last time? I heard one of the patrol teams reported movement near the outer slope. Master was quite displeased about it."
The two guards exchanged glances, "Yes… I heard about that," one muttered.
Heizi clicked his tongue lightly, "With tonight's deal being so important," he continued, "if anything goes wrong again, who do you think will bear the blame? Not the higher-ups, that's for sure." He let the implication hang in the air before adding, almost as an afterthought, "I just came from the front. Things are crowded there already. But the east side? Barely anyone is watching it closely."
The second guard frowned, "That's true…"
Heizi straightened, shrugging slightly, "Of course, I'm just saying. If something slips through there again, none of us small guards will be spared. You know how it is when the storm comes, it's always the grass that gets crushed."
The first guard let out a low curse under his breath, "Damn it… you're right." After a brief hesitation, he turned to his companion, "Let's go check the east perimeter. Better to be safe than sorry."
The other nodded, "Mm. No need to take chances tonight." he than turned to Heizi and said, "you keep an eye here, we will send soemone from the front to assist you."
Heizi nodded and than ithout another word, the two guards moved off.
From her position, Li Shuying watched the exchange unfold, her eyes narrowing slightly in approval.
Efficient.
Heizi exhaled quietly and cast a subtle glance toward the shadows where he knew she was hiding.
Li Shuying stepped out from the shadows. The faint moonlight brushed against her face, revealing calm features that seemed entirely at odds with the storm beneath.
"Brother Heizi," she said quietly, her voice steady, "that was quite efficient of you."
Heizi turned toward her, his expression tightening for a brief moment before he nodded, "I thought…" he paused, then exhaled lightly, "…I thought you might not come."
Li Shuying's gaze did not waver, "How could I not come?" she replied, her voice low, yet carrying an unmistakable weight.
I have debts to settle, she thought silently, from the past life… and from this one.