Handong: Sha Li wants political achievements? I'll shut down the entire province.

The news that Tian Guofu had been placed under investigation overnight swept through the officialdom of Jingzhou like a cold wind.

The overt threats have been swept away, but the lurking trouble beneath the surface is still stirring.

In a grove of wild trees three kilometers outside Lingxiao Manor on the outskirts of Beijing.

The rain stopped, and a bone-chilling cold permeated the air.

Six men dressed in all-black combat uniforms were crouching in the bushes, calibrating night vision goggles.

The leader was called "Vulture," and he was once a renowned top mercenary on the Syrian battlefield.

"Twenty million US dollars, just to fleece a nouveau riche from China."

The vulture spat on the ground and touched the silenced Glock pistol in its hand.

"This money is easier to make than robbing a bank."

The blond foreigner next to me grinned, revealing two rows of yellow teeth.

"Boss, I heard there are five hundred security guards in this manor."

"Just a bunch of retired guard dogs, they've never seen blood, what are they?"

The vulture made a tactical hand gesture, its eyes filled with disdain.

"Three minutes to sneak in, five minutes to slit the throat, ten minutes to escape. Get to work!"

Under the cover of night, six dark figures, like several nimble geckos, silently crept to the high-voltage wire mesh at the outermost edge of the manor.

They took out specially made insulated pliers, made two quick cuts, and filed in.

"Tch, this rich man's security system is as easy to get into as a woman with her pants down."

The vulture sneered, stepping on the soft grass and sneaking into a sea of ​​roses that was half a person tall.

They had no idea that their feet had just touched the ground.

Six glaring red dots flashed on the huge holographic radar screen at the Lingxiao Security Center.

Inside the central control room, the AI ​​thermal imaging defense network designed by Qin Wushuang emitted a faint buzzing sound.

"Mr. Shen, some bugs have gotten in."

Xiao Chen, the assistant, pointed at the screen, his fingers flying across the keyboard.

"We went through the rose maze in the southwest corner. There were six of us, and we were carrying firearms."

Shen Pojun, wearing a tactical vest and holding a cup of black coffee, stood expressionless.

"According to the highest level of contingency plan, deploy the drones, machine gunners in position..."

"Po Jun, don't make any big moves yet."

The door to the control room was pushed open, and the old butler, Afu, slowly walked in with his hands behind his back.

He glanced at the big screen, a long-lost bloodthirsty glint flashing in his cloudy old eyes.

"Those top-grade black roses that the young master planted himself can't withstand being riddled with bullets."

Afu placed the tray he was carrying on the table and slowly unbuttoned his tuxedo.

"These few ignorant bugs, let this old bone of mine stretch my muscles."

Shen Pojun was taken aback, then straightened his back and nodded respectfully.

"Uncle Fu, be careful, they have shoji."

Afu took off his suit jacket and casually unbuttoned three buttons on his shirt.

His emaciated chest was crisscrossed with more than a dozen hideous knife scars and bullet holes.

This top soldier, who was feared in the Golden Triangle of Southeast Asia back then, grinned.

"Kyoko? They'd have to be alive to pull the trigger."

In the rose maze, the fragrance of flowers mingled with the earthy smell of soil.

The vulture, gun in hand, led the way, groping its way forward.

The night vision goggles revealed a chilling, eerie green light; not a single ghost could be seen.

"Boss, something's not right."

The blond foreigner behind him spoke in a trembling voice, pointing the gun barrel to the side.

"The third brother was just behind me a moment ago, how come he's suddenly gone silent?"

The vulture suddenly turned its head, its pupils shrinking sharply.

The team that originally consisted of six people is now down to five!

There was a deathly silence on the communication channel; not even a scream could be heard.

"Back to back! There's an ambush!"

Vulture shuddered, his tactical vest instantly soaked with cold sweat.

No sooner had he finished speaking than a withered hand suddenly emerged from the rose bushes on the left.

It was as fast as lightning.

There was a crisp "snap" sound.

The mercenary on the far right was dragged into the flower bushes, gun and all.

One arm was bent backwards into a bizarre V-shape, with bone fragments piercing through the camouflage uniform.

"Waaah—"

The mercenary was about to shout when his mouth was stuffed shut with a lump of mud.

Then came the dull thud of his kneecap cracking, and he slumped down like a lump of mud.

"Fire! Fire!"

The vulture went mad with fear and started firing wildly at the flower bushes with its silenced pistol.

With muffled thuds, dirt flew everywhere, and flower petals were scattered all over the ground.

"Are you looking for death?"

A slow, deliberate, aged voice suddenly drifted down from directly above the vulture's head.

The vulture suddenly raised its head.

An old face covered in wrinkles appeared in the night vision goggles.

Ah Fu hung upside down on a tree branch like a giant bat, a kind but cold smile on his lips.

He suddenly reached out with both hands and precisely grabbed the shoulders of the two mercenaries.

With fingers like steel hooks, he ruthlessly ripped them off!

"Crack!"

The two top assassins' arms dislocated instantly, and the guns in their hands slammed into their feet.

Before they could react...

Afu's thin, long legs swung in mid-air in a semi-circle, his heels slamming heavily onto the backs of the two men's heads.

The two burly men, each over 1.9 meters tall, rolled their eyes and collapsed to the ground.

The remaining blond foreigner was terrified and turned to run away.

Afu pushed off the tree trunk with his toes and shot out like an arrow.

He grabbed the foreigner by the hair and slammed his knee upwards.

With a snap, the foreigner's jaw shattered into pieces, and his mouthful of teeth mixed with blood gushed out.

"Is that all you've got? You dare to come begging at Master Yan's place?"

Afu dusted off his hands and turned to look at the vulture lying on the ground.

From start to finish, in less than three minutes, five of the six top assassins on the dark web were crippled.

Not a single shot was fired.

Vulture's hand holding the gun trembled as if he were having a Parkinson's attack, and a hot, wet, fishy smell emanated from his crotch.

"No...don't kill me! It's the Zhao family..."

Before he could finish speaking, Afu stepped on his wrist, the one holding the gun.

With a powerful crushing blow from the military boot, the vulture's wrist bone was shattered.

The intense pain made him open his mouth wide, but a scream hadn't even escaped his throat yet.

Ah Fu delivered a swift chop to his carotid artery, plunging the man's world into darkness.

Half an hour later, in the study on the third floor of the main building.

A dim floor lamp casts its light on the rosewood desk.

Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 (Fate Symphony) was playing on the record player.

The stirring notes echoed in the spacious room.

Yan Qingfeng closed his eyes, leaned back in the top-grain leather chair imported from Italy, and tapped his fingers on the armrests.

The heavy oak door was gently pushed open.

Ah Fu dressed himself neatly again, even smoothing out the slightest wrinkle on his tuxedo.

He walked to the table and bowed slightly.

"Young master, I apologize for disturbing your music."

Yan Qingfeng's fingers continued to tap out the rhythm, his eyes still closed.

"Is it cleaned up?"

Afu nodded, his tone carrying a hint of disdain.

"The Zhao family hired six mercenaries for twenty million US dollars, and all of their hands and feet were dismembered."

"Like six dead dogs, they're all now thrown into an iron cage in the basement."

"You didn't damage the black roses I planted, did you?" Yan Qingfeng finally opened his eyes, a chilling glint flashing in his deep gaze.

"Uncle Fu, you can rest assured, not even a single petal was knocked off." Afu smiled.

Yan Qingfeng sat up straight, picked up the whiskey on the table, and the ice ball in the glass bumped against the glass.

He gave a cold laugh, a laugh that revealed an absolute brutality that sent chills down your spine.

These people don't seem to be satisfied with the subtle economic measures.

Once the bottom line is tested, it will draw blood.

Yan Qingfeng downed the whiskey in one gulp, then slammed the glass heavily onto the table.

"These filthy rats, do they really think they can hide overseas and I can't skin them alive?"

Yan Qingfeng glanced coldly at the deep night outside the window, then tapped his knuckles on the table, producing a chilling thud.

"Since they insist on courting death, let's drag out those six dead dogs and tell Shen Pojun that we're going to feed the fish at Guangming Lake tonight."