It was Fan Gang.
Even though only the dim floor lamp was on in the living room, he didn’t need to see clearly to feel the person in front of him.
It was Fan Gang.

When the back of his head hit the floor, Zou Yang felt the pain.
A brief burst of seeing stars; the severe pain and Xiao Bai’s roaring simultaneously pierced through the chaos in his head.

Zou Yang didn’t have time to get up. Lying on the floor, he kicked out directly at the blurry figure in front of him.

Fan Gang had his right arm bitten by Xiao Bai, and was using his left hand to smash something against Xiao Bai’s head over and over. Xiao Bai’s roar turned into a whimper, but it still clamped down without letting go, constantly swinging its head with force.

Zou Yang’s kick landed on Fan Gang’s leg. He stumbled a step, but the movement of his hand didn’t stop.

Fuck you!
Zou Yang gritted his teeth, pushed off the ground, and sprang up. Using the upward momentum, he slammed his elbow fiercely into his throat.

The pain from his head had already begun radiating continuously throughout his entire body, but Zou Yang still used all his strength for this elbow strike. Fan Gang was knocked backward abruptly, and Zou Yang followed up tightly by leaning forward, dropping his shoulder, and ramming into his ribs.

Fan Gang’s action of smashing Xiao Bai finally stopped.

But it was also at this moment that Zou Yang saw clearly that there was another person behind Fan Gang.
…He had an accomplice.

This person was extremely short, almost completely hidden standing behind Fan Gang. He practically popped out from under his armpit, swinging an arm at Zou Yang.
He had a knife in his hand.

Zou Yang didn’t have time to back away, so he could only bring his knee straight up, knocking it against the wrist of the hand holding the knife.

The knife dropped, but the fist was still there.

Zou Yang took a heavy punch to his stomach, instantly feeling his insides churn. Meanwhile, Fan Gang shook off Xiao Bai, and his bloody right arm smashed toward him again.

This time, Zou Yang clearly saw what he had in his hand.
Fan Gang actually had a gun.

The moment the butt of the gun smashed into Zou Yang’s temple, his vision went black.
The short accomplice circled behind him, and something thin wrapped tightly around his neck.

In the darkness, Zou Yang genuinely experienced terror.

His elbow strike and shoulder ram against Fan Gang—even though his leg couldn’t bear full weight—were delivered with all his strength. An ordinary person would find it hard to stand after taking those two hits.
But Fan Gang merely covered his throat, his face flushed red from lack of air.

And the strike he gave Zou Yang with the gun butt was meant to kill.

“We definitely can’t let Sun Lao Wu go pick him up for this,” Uncle Lu sighed as he walked back with Fan Jun. “Injured like this, Sun Lao Wu won’t hold back either; if they meet, it’ll definitely end in a beating again.”
“Mm,” Fan Jun responded.

During the video call with Sun Xulei just now, Sun Xulei only cried when he saw Fan Jun but refused to speak. They temporarily had no way of knowing what exactly happened to him.
They only knew that when he was taken to the hospital, he was unconscious and had been dumped in a pile of construction debris at a building site. He had multiple fractures across his body, and aside from the clothes he was wearing, he had nothing else. His money and phone were gone.

“I’ll go over with Little Liang and the people from the neighborhood committee,” Uncle Lu said. “This kid… I wonder if we can let him stay with us for a while after he comes back…”

Fan Jun turned his head and glanced at Uncle Lu.
Uncle Lu smiled: “I know, his dad is right there. It’s not the same situation as yours back then. I just think the kid is pitiful.”

Fan Jun sighed softly, didn’t say anything, and just reached out to pat Uncle Lu’s shoulder.

“Have you two eaten breakfast?” Uncle Lu asked as they reached the bottom of the building. “Do you want to go over to the old gym to eat? Sister Shan steamed some buns.”
“You and Sister Shan eat,” Fan Jun smiled. “We’ve already eaten. Zou Yang is probably sleeping again right now.”

“Alright then,” Uncle Lu nodded and headed toward the old gym.

Fan Jun entered the stairwell. As he pressed the elevator button, he quickly stood to one side of the elevator doors and turned his head to glance outside. No one.

He walked into the elevator, his sense of unease still mounting.
For a moment, he couldn’t tell if it was because of Sun Xulei’s situation or something else.

However, when the elevator reached the top floor and the doors opened…
Fan Jun knew what it was about.

The instant the doors opened, he smelled a faint scent of raw tobacco in the corridor.
He had never smelled this kind of scent in South Zhouping.
This kind of tobacco, where you had to buy the tobacco leaves yourself, dry them, shred them, and roll them up to smoke—he had only ever seen Fan Gang smoke it.

And standing in the darkness outside the elevator doors was a person.

In this instant, the blood in his body froze.

Zou Yang.
Zou Yang was still inside the apartment.

Fan Jun stood in the elevator, his hands trembling violently.
He couldn’t hear any sound.
There was no noise coming from his apartment. When did Fan Gang arrive, how long had he been there, what was Zou Yang’s condition right now…

He had no time to think, his hand reaching toward his pants pocket.

The dark corridor suddenly lit up.
The door to his apartment had opened, and the light from inside spilled out.

Illuminating the figure in the dark.

“Son,” the figure walked toward the doorway, and a hoarse voice carried over. “Come out.”

Like a club studded with sharp nails swinging down on Fan Jun’s head, a piercing ringing in his ears penetrated his entire body.

Fan Jun walked out of the elevator.

The apartment door was open, and standing at the doorway was the nightmare he couldn’t shake off his entire life.

“You’ve grown so big,” Fan Gang said with some emotion. His backlit face was cast in darkness, making his expression unreadable.

But Fan Jun could imagine it.

It had been over ten years. When Fan Gang stood in front of him once again, that extreme terror was still as fresh as it was back then, pumped to every inch of his body along with his violently beating heart.

Suppressing his emotions amid the ringing in his ears, Fan Jun quickly looked into the apartment.

On a chair behind Fan Gang, blocked by him, sat a person. He could only see the legs, and on the right ankle, a red string threaded with a small gold coin.

“Zou Yang!” Fan Jun shouted.

He could barely hear his own voice.
But Fan Gang’s voice could still be peeled away from the chaos.

“Shh… don’t yell.” Fan Gang took two steps back into the room and waved at him.

Fan Jun saw the object he was holding in his hand.
A crude-looking gun.

He had no choices. If he turned and ran, he might be able to escape.
But he could be certain of what Zou Yang would face next.

He slowly walked into the apartment.

“Close the door,” Fan Gang said.

A short man stepped out from the corner, closed the door behind Fan Jun, searched his body, and took away his phone.

“Don’t yell, don’t run,” Fan Gang said. “Let’s catch up, father and son.”

Fan Jun didn’t make a sound.

The short man put the phone on the floor and aggressively smashed it several times with the handle of his knife.

“You fucking dare smash my son’s phone?” Fan Gang turned and glared at him.
The short man stopped his hands, shrank his neck, and squatted in place.

At this point, the situation in the room was clear at a glance.
The items near the door were a mess. It was obvious Zou Yang had fought the two of them, but he was no match for two murderous fugitives.

Zou Yang was tied to a chair near the table. His face and clothes were covered in blood. A thin iron wire was tightly wound around his neck, having already cut into his skin, with seeping blood visible. His ankles were also bound to the chair legs with iron wire.

Fan Jun stared at Zou Yang’s face, his hands shaking severely.

He had no way.
He had no way of taking down these two people before they could inflict greater harm on Zou Yang.
Despair wrapped around him, nearly suffocating him.

Zou Yang was conscious, just heavily injured. Speaking was already somewhat difficult for him.

I’m fine.
Zou Yang’s lips moved.

Amidst the high-pitched ringing in his ears, Fan Jun felt as if something was tearing his heart apart raw.

“Let him go,” Fan Jun looked at Fan Gang.

At the same time, he saw Xiao Bai lying by the window. There was a pool of blood under its head, blood on its eyes, and a thin iron wire around its neck too, the other end tied to the leg of a cabinet.
Hearing his voice, Xiao Bai whimpered very softly twice.

Fan Gang turned his head to glance at it, walked over, crouched down, and patted Xiao Bai’s head: “Don’t worry, I like dogs, I won’t kill it.”
Xiao Bai struggled and shook its head.

“Let my friend go,” Fan Jun didn’t engage with his remark. “I’ll stay to keep you company.”

Fan Gang smiled, stood up, walked to Zou Yang’s side, grabbed his hair, and pulled it back. Instantly, more fresh blood seeped from the laceration on Zou Yang’s neck.

Fan Jun’s teeth ached from clenching so hard.

“Quite loyal,” Fan Gang let go of Zou Yang and looked at him. “Is this how you talk to your father?”

Fan Jun stared at him.
This familiar tone, these familiar lines—even if he hadn’t heard them in over ten years, the moment they sounded, they could pull a person right back into the abyss of the past.

Fan Jun slowly bent his waist and knelt down in front of Fan Gang.

“Let my friend go. I’ll stay to keep you company.”

Zou Yang struggled violently, but the pain in his neck and body rendered his struggles practically useless.

Fan Jun didn’t dare turn his head to look at Zou Yang. He didn’t know what Zou Yang was feeling right now, and he didn’t dare to know. His only thought was, no matter what, he had to keep Zou Yang safe.

Fan Gang began to laugh, his voice filled with sheer satisfaction.

“Come here, son.” He handed the gun in his hand to the short man beside him.

The short man took the gun, took a step back, and pointed it at Fan Jun: “Should I tie him up?”
“Don’t tie him,” Fan Gang said.
“Tie him up,” excitement seeped through the short man’s voice.
“Don’t tie him,” Fan Gang repeated.
“He can fight,” the gun in the short man’s hand trembled with excitement. “He’ll be easier to handle if tied up.”

“I said don’t tie him!” Fan Gang roared at him. “This is my son! Do you understand?! He’s not someone you just mess around with for fun!”

After roaring, Fan Gang smiled at Fan Jun again: “Come here.”

Kneeling on the ground, Fan Jun slowly shifted forward until he was right in front of him, every inch wrapped in fear and anger.

“Then let’s handle him first,” the short man pointed the gun at Zou Yang again. “The police are definitely coming soon, we’re out of time. Dead anyway, we all have to die.”

“Let him go,” Fan Jun had shifted on his knees until he was in front of Fan Gang. His throat felt like it was lined with blades; every word hurt. “Dad.”

Fan Gang didn’t speak, just looked down at him.

Fan Jun couldn’t see his face, but he knew that at this moment, he definitely wore a loving smile, just like the one that had appeared countless times in his nightmares.

The next second, Fan Gang picked up Fan Jun’s extendable baton—from wherever he had found it on the table—and swung it directly onto Fan Jun’s head.

Agonizing pain accompanied by a screeching sound.
Fan Jun collapsed onto the floor, tasting the metallic tang of blood in his mouth.

“Where’s your mom?” Fan Gang swung the baton again, this time hitting his arm.

“Dead.” Fan Jun raised his arm, blocking another swing aimed at his head. The pain shooting from his forearm signaled that it was likely fractured.

“How did she die?” Fan Gang jumped up and delivered a kick straight to his stomach.

Fan Jun curled into a ball, slowly rolling over to protect his abdomen: “Hanged herself.”

“How tragic, she wanted to trade her life for yours. That woman was utterly stupid,” Fan Gang said, landing another kick on his left ear. “How tragic. I heard your left ear went deaf?”

“Yes.” Fan Jun slowly tensed his body, enduring the pain, using his peripheral vision to locate the short man’s position.

“Why did you run?” Fan Gang crouched down, getting close to his right ear.

Fan Jun didn’t answer, panting heavily.

“Why did you run!” Fan Gang suddenly roared, the baton in his hand smashing onto his body, over and over again. “Why did you run! Why did you run! I told you I’d kill you when I got back! Why did you run!”

Fan Jun turned his head away in silence, and suddenly grabbed the baton coming down for the umpteenth time. The webbing between his thumb and index finger was instantly torn by the massive impact.

“I don’t want to die.”

Fan Gang stopped talking. He violently yanked the baton free and walked toward Zou Yang.

“Don’t touch him!” Fan Jun’s voice was roared almost straight from his chest.

He abruptly leaped up, lunging forward to lock his arms around Fan Gang’s legs.
The short man rushed over, continuously smashing the butt of the gun against the back of his head.

Fan Gang ignored him, dragging him forward another step, raising his hand to smash the baton wildly against Zou Yang’s chest and stomach.

Zou Yang jerked his body into an arch, drops of blood from his neck falling continuously onto his clothes.

“You don’t want to die? I’m telling you, no one in this room is getting out alive today. Only corpses are leaving,” Fan Gang said, handing the baton to the short man and taking back the gun. “Your old man has lived long enough. Taking you with me is my final wish.”

Fan Jun made no more sounds.

“I originally wanted to deal with Old Lu first,” Fan Gang wiped the gun, grabbed a steamed dumpling from the table, and popped it into his mouth. “Can’t believe he abducted my son…”

The short man took the baton, twirling it in his hand over and over.

Supporting himself on the ground, Fan Jun tilted his head, staring at the baton.

As the short man twirled it for the fourth time, Fan Jun suddenly leaped up and grabbed the baton.

At the same moment he yanked the baton from the short man’s hand, he smashed it into the short man’s throat. The short man couldn’t make a single sound; he clutched his neck, his eyes wide.

Before he could make another move, Fan Jun jumped up, grabbed his arm, and violently swung him toward Fan Gang.

When Fan Gang turned his head, the short man crashed right into his chest.
The hand holding the gun was pressed tight against the short man’s front. Fan Jun quickly abandoned the plan to snatch the gun, delivering several more heavy blows to the short man’s head.

He used every ounce of his body’s strength for these strikes.

The short man slumped weakly while hugging Fan Gang. Fan Gang struggled to pull his arm free from the short man’s embrace, but Fan Jun flipped the nearby table and smashed it down on him viciously.

Immediately following that, he heard a muffled bang.

Fan Gang fired the gun.
Through the short man’s body, in Fan Jun’s direction.

Fan Jun didn’t know where the bullet hit or if it hit him at all. He felt nothing; he couldn’t hear clearly or see clearly, his vision nothing but blood-red.

He rushed to Zou Yang’s side, reached out to grab the iron wire bound tightly around his wrists, and yanked violently.
The iron wire cut into his fingers, and into Zou Yang’s wrists as well.

He didn’t hesitate, yanking hard again, and the iron wire was pulled open.

When he turned his head, Fan Gang had thrown off the short man and stood up, the gun in his hand pointing at Zou Yang.

“Go to hell.” Fan Jun charged right at the gun.

At the same moment the gunshot rang out, he tackled Fan Gang in a bear hug and violently crashed toward the window.

The glass let out a massive shattering sound. Fan Jun clamped down on Fan Gang’s arms with a death grip, pinning him as they tumbled out the window.

The sudden feeling of weightlessness as their bodies suspended in the air made him recall an amusement park amidst the chaos.

In his ears, he could even hear that cheerful whistle Zou Yang made when the roller coaster took off.