I was married off to a disabled hero in lieu of marriage; my in-laws doted on me and I aspired to gr

Zhou Zhonghai stared out the window with a dark expression, remaining silent.

Gu Quan wanted to ask, but dared not.

Xiao Wei has a chubby, smiling face and incredibly strong hands. He grabs toys and smashes them on his head, sometimes enough to make a bump.

Zhou Zhonghai laughed. That kid is soldier material.

But at this moment, the boy is facing a life-or-death situation.

I wonder how Meiyun and Qiaoqiao are doing. They must be terrified.

Wenhui is a man; he's shrewd and won't act rashly.

Wu Zhengkai, you have no guts at all. If we're going to fight, let's fight openly. What kind of person bullies a child?

Even a cornered dog will jump over a wall. Knowing he was doomed, he took Zhou Xiaowei hostage.

Xiaowei, Grandpa has never been afraid of anyone in his life, not even Wu Zhengkai, but you...

Zhou Zhonghai silently shed tears, which streamed down his cheeks.

He was truly crying, truly heartbroken. Even with a bullet lodged in his chest, Zhou Zhonghai didn't utter a single sound.

My little grandson, if anything happens to you, your grandfather won't live, and Wu Zhengkai will be buried with you...

Gu Quan was terrified, and Minister Zhou cried?

"Minister, what happened at home?"

"It's alright, Wu Zhengkai took my grandson away." Minister Zhou spoke gently for the first time.

"Ah... we should report this to the governor."

"I won't bother them. I'll handle my own family matters."

Minister Zhou sighed. He was going to kill someone, so why involve others?

Zhou Zhonghai went home first, leaving only Zhou Wenhui sitting motionless in the yard.

"Wenhui!" Zhou Zhonghai stepped forward and called out with heartache.

Zhou Wenhui raised his head, his eyes red, and cried out mournfully, "Dad, Xiaowei..."

Zhou Wenhui held Xiaowei's toy in his hand, and when he called out "Dad," tears welled up in his eyes.

Zhou Zhonghai hugged Zhou Wenhui tightly, patted him, and said, "Dad's here, everything'll be alright. Where are Mom and Qiaoqiao?"

"They're all in the hospital." Zhou Wenhui pouted, filled with immense sadness.

"Okay, okay, it's alright. Be good, you stay home and wait for news. Dad is going to the Municipal Public Security Bureau."

"Dad! The city police chief has launched a full-scale manhunt for the criminal."

"Yes, Dad knows. I'll make a call."

Zhou Zhonghai released Zhou Wenhui, strode into the house, and dialed Liu Songming's number: "Surround the residence of the municipal party secretary."

"Yes, sir."

Zhou Zhonghai walked into the yard, looked at Zhou Wenhui and said, "Wenhui, you're a man, you can't act recklessly. Qiaoqiao and Mom need you. Dad's going out for a bit."

"Dad, where are you going?"

"I'm going out for a bit, I'll be right back. Wenhui, you're a good boy, Dad is so proud of you."

"Dad, do you know who did it?"

"I don't know, I'll go find out."

After saying that, Gu Quan waved his hand and quickly went to get the car.

Wu Zhengkai lived in the small villa of the municipal party committee, where only he and Pan Delin, the Minister of Agriculture, lived.

"Secretary, haven't we gone too far? I heard that Minister Zhou is ruthless and kills without blinking an eye." Pan Delin trembled all over.

"Do you think you can escape by just sitting here and waiting to die? If they find out what happened to us, we'll all die anyway. Since we're all going to die, we might as well drag Zhou Zhonghai's grandson down with us. He won't let me get away with this, so I won't let him get away with this either. Have you ordered your men to hide that child properly?"

Wu Zhengkai was dressed in a Zhongshan suit, with deep-set eyes, high cheekbones, and a gaunt face, looking like a ghost that had walked out of hell.

"It's well hidden. Don't worry, the police will definitely not find it."

"Hahaha, let's see how anxious Zhou Zhonghai is. That son of a bitch, he agrees to be lenient, then turns around and complains to the central government. Does he think I'm afraid of him? My dad's a general..."

Before he could finish speaking, the rumble of military vehicles outside startled him. Wu Zhengkai, puzzled, asked, "What's going on?"

"Armed forces soldiers, secretary, they, they..." Pan Delin shouted in terror, pointing to the window.

"Who the hell dares to surround the Party Secretary's house?"

The door was kicked open, and Zhou Zhonghai stormed in, gun in hand: "I dare!"

Wu Zhengkai turned pale with fright, grabbed Pan Delin to block him, and stammered, "You, you dare to trespass on the municipal party secretary's house? Are you out of your mind?"

Zhou Zhonghai pointed the gun at Wu Zhengkai and walked towards him step by step, his indifference chilling to the bone.

"What are you doing? My dad's a general. If you dare to fire, you're dead too..."

Wu Zhengkai was shaking like a leaf.

"Yes, Wu Zhengkai, I've come here to die today. Where is my grandson?"

"What grandson? What did you say?"

"Don't you dare play dumb with me. If my grandson gets hurt in the slightest, you, Wu Zhengkai, are dead."

"I...I have no idea what you're talking about!"

"Wu Zhengkai, I've died once, so what's wrong with dying again? You're different. You're still young. What a pity if you die. What will you tell your father? Will you tell him that you kidnapped the grandson of the division commander and were shot dead by the commander? You've disgraced him, and you've completely disgraced your father."

Zhou Zhonghai's voice was deafening. Wu Zhengkai didn't know what to do. This devil was really reckless. How dare he use the armed forces? How dare he point a gun at me?

Isn't he just a washed-up division commander? He's nowhere near as good as my dad.

The atmosphere inside was tense, and it wasn't much better outside.

The city party secretary's home was surrounded by armed police. The city public security bureau couldn't even look for the children anymore and mobilized all its police force to protect the city party secretary.

The armed forces department and the public security bureau were locked in a standoff, both armed with guns. The public security bureau had pistols, while the armed forces department had rifles. The public security bureau dared not make any rash moves.

Liu Songming and the bureau chief stood face to face.

"Minister Liu, the municipal party secretary lives inside. You can't do this," the police chief earnestly advised.

"This matter has nothing to do with you. Just standing here is enough to fulfill your responsibility of protecting the Party Secretary. Meddling in too much will not be good for you."

"This is our duty, and we don't want to be at odds with the Armed Forces Department."

"I understand. We're all on our own side. I won't make things difficult for you, and you shouldn't make things difficult for me either."

"This is so annoying!" The police chief pulled out a pack of cigarettes, lit one, paused, looked at Liu Songming, and asked, "Want one?"

"Hmm, shall I have one?"

The armed forces department's unauthorized deployment violated military discipline; perhaps they won't be able to smoke a cigarette anymore.

Keep smoking, every cigarette you smoke is one less you can smoke.

The Minister of Armed Forces and the Director of Public Security were squatting in a corner smoking, while their subordinates on both sides remained locked in a standoff with guns drawn.

"What exactly happened?" the bureau chief asked cautiously.

"Wu Zhengkai kidnapped Minister Zhou's grandson."

"What?"

The bureau chief suddenly stood up, then slowly squatted down again: "Did you find out where the child is?"

"No, we're in talks."

"I've heard Minister Zhou has a violent temper. Will Secretary Wu be in danger?"

"I don't know, Minister Zhou brought a gun in."

"What?"

The bureau chief stood up again, then slowly squatted down. It was like gods fighting; mortals were powerless to stop it. He only wished he wouldn't hear any gunshots.

The two men smoked a cigarette in silence, then lit another. The sun was shining brightly and the spring breeze was warm, but the bureau chief felt a bone-chilling cold all over his body.