Chapter 1123: For What Purpose?
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Boom.
A few minutes later, the bomb inevitably exploded.
Hearing the roar coming from off in the distance, feeling the violent vibration of the earth, and watching the flickering lights, Xiao Hang could not help but hold Li Jing in his arms. “Jing, if I can die with the one I love the most, I have no regrets,” he said to Li Jing with relief.
A few minutes earlier, Xiao Hang had gone to the front of the passage and found that the upper part had collapsed. The only entrance to the passage was completely blocked.
At that moment, when he heard that the explosion of the bomb, he accepted his fate.
Li Jing no longer had any hope either. She buried her head in Xiao Hang’s arms. “Hang, hold me tight. I want them to find us in the future. I want them to know that we are a couple. What I regret most is that I didn’t say yes to your proposal…”
Li Jing could not help but shed tears while she spoke.
“That’s not something difficult for me.” Xiao Hang wiped his dirty hands, put his hands together, then said, “Now, I’ll ask you again. But, it’s just…”
He looked around, looking for something to replace the ring, but the ground was full of only scattered bullet casings and dead bodies.
“Oh…”
As he was looking around, Cui Lizhu was awakened by the explosion and let out a soft “Oh”.
Xiao Hang and Li Jing looked at Cui Lizhu. Their eyes were full bitterness.
Li Jing gently held Xiao Hang’s hands. “I don’t need a ring. My answer is yes!”
As she spoke, Li Jing put her cheek close to Xiao Hang’s face and was about to kiss him. Unexpectedly, someone exclaimed from near the entrance.
“Whoa, whoa…” Zhao Yu put his hands in front of his face and said loudly, “This is not suitable for me, it’s improper. I can’t stand you guys!”
Xiao Hang and Li Jing were shocked by Zhao Yu’s arrival and separated from each other immediately.
“Um… This… This…” Xiao Hang was obviously feeling awkward. As he stammered, he found that the loud sound gradually weakened. It seemed that the explosion was not as destructive as he had previously thought. The mountain didn’t collapse, nor did the cave.
“Relax, buddy.” Zhao Yu smiled at them. “At the other end of the base, there is a second passageway. After I removed the bomb, I placed it there. First of all, this way, the explosion wouldn’t affect the explosives and weapons in the base. Second, I think that the bomb blowing up inside that passage might clear a way out for us.”
“Oh…” Xiao Hang took a long breath. For a moment, he had a feeling like he was coming back from the dead.
“You… You know how to dismantle a bomb?” Li Jing asked. She appeared shocked.
“Hey? What did all the fighting do to your brain?” Zhao Yu shook his head. “If I knew how to dismantle the bomb, would I have let it explode? I mean, I took the bomb somewhere safe, okay?”
Zhao Yu was right. Li Jing’s mental response time had become really slow because of what happened to her just now.
Xiao Hang asked anxiously, “Then, there’s only one bomb?”
“Well…” Zhao Yu thought about it for a moment, then quickly replied, “I only saw one, anyway.”
Zhao Yu couldn’t tell them about his devices. If they knew that there were multiple bombs out there, Zhao Yu wouldn’t be able to explain to them what he had just done with his devices.
Xiao Hang stared and asked, in shock, “You are not sure yourself!? What if there are still other bombs? This is not going to work for us. We have to find the remaining bombs right away.”
“There is no need for that. That bomb I found was on a timer. If there were other bombs, they would have been set to the same time,” Zhao Yu explained. “They should have all exploded together. Besides, when I came back, I had a look around. I didn’t see…”
Cui Lizhu had been awake for a bit while Zhao Yu had been talking. As soon as Zhao Yu saw her, he quickly changed the subject and rushed over to her.
“Lizhu, you woke up,” he said.
Xiao Hang and Li Jing glanced at each other. It was obvious that they were still worried about the bomb.
“Boss…” Cui Lizhu was completely awake but she looked confused and couldn’t open her eyes.
“I’m here, I’m with you.” Zhao Yu patted Cui Lizhu’s face gently. He then turned to Xiao Hang and Li Jing and asked, “Just now the masked man hypnotized Cui Lizhu. I saw that he had been chanting something in Cui’s ear. Cui Lizhu also said something to him.”
“Ah? Why did he do that?” Li Jing frowned and whispered, “It doesn’t make sense. They found the military base. What else could they have wanted to know from Cui Lizhu?”
“Yes.” Xiao Hang was also very confused. “It would be about Tao Xiang, right? It’s very strange.”
Zhao Yu shook his head and said, “Yes, this is indeed strange. The masked man even scolded his men in Japanese.”
“What? Japanese?” Xiao Hang looked at Zhao Yu and asked, “Japanese agents? Is it possible that they…?”
“The point is…” Li Jing thought for a moment, then said, “Did he find the answer he wanted? He found the base. Yes, the treasure. Isn’t the treasure here?”
Zhao Yu shook his head and sighed. “We’ll never know! The Tian brothers have been missing for more than half a year. We don’t know how long they have known about this secret base. Perhaps the treasure has already been transported. Or maybe the treasure isn’t here at all.”
“I agree with the latter,” Li Jing said. “The treasure couldn’t have been transported out under our close watch. And, if they did transfer the treasure to another location, why would they care about Cui Lizhu?”
“No.” Suddenly, Zhao Yu pointed to the base in the distance. He had a complex expression on his face. “Maybe, the treasure is here, and it has not been moved,” he said.
“Ah? What do you mean?” Xiao Hang didn’t understand.
“I’ve had a strange feeling since we were ambushed. I feel like their purpose is not to steal the treasure. When I found the bomb, it further confirmed my guess,” Zhao Yu explained.
Li Jing nodded. “You mean that their purpose is to destroy the treasure and the military base.”
Xiao Hang frowned and finally realized something. “I know,” he said. “The treasure is worth a lot. They know that they can’t take the gold away with them. If they can’t take it away, they want to destroy it so that no one can get the treasure. Thank god the bomb didn’t explode.”
“But…” Zhao Yu shook his head again. “I’m not 100% sure. I just checked the surroundings and I didn’t see any gold or other valuable things. So, we can’t say that the treasure is here for sure.”
“Oh…” Cui Lizhu opened her eyes. She looked much better.
Li Jing looked at Cui Lizhu and said, “I agree. If we want to know what their real purpose is, I’m afraid we must first find out what the man asked Cui Lizhu.”