Chapter 358 - 358: Worry
“They’ve split up into two groups. They fight and are dressed differently,” Meng Yu said to Guan Lei in a low voice.
Since Guan Lei had uncovered who he was, Meng Yu felt he might as well take stock of the situation and figure out how to get them all to safety.
“Two groups? What do you mean by that?” Guan Lei did not understand.
It was understandable that Guan Lei was not aware of the whole picture. Having fought both groups to get where he was, Meng Yu knew the difference and noticed it when he entered the room.
“There are two teams of assassins. One is here for you, and the other for me. I don’t know if the same individual contracted them or whether multiple parties are at work. Director Li has gone to alert the guards stationed on the island by your grandfather, Guan Yi,” Meng Yu explained, trying to keep things brief.
Some things never changed. Meng Yu i s habit of calling his grandfather by name was one of those.
Guan Lei ripped a piece of cloth and used a part to bandage his leg. He threw what was left to Meng Yu. “You’d better stop the bleeding, or someone might think I let you die from blood loss,” Guan Lei admonished.
Meng Yu was momentarily stunned, but he shook himself out of his fugue and wound the cloth around his wound.
While Meng Yu nursed his wounds, Guan Lei mulled over what he had learned thus far. He did not understand what was happening. His thoughts were interrupted by a silver flash that darted through the space between him and Meng Yu.
Meng Yu leaped into action, dealing with their assailants while Guan Lei watched on worriedly. His leg injury made it hard for him to help.
They resisted the onslaught of blows as best they could, hanging on to the hope that help was on the way.
Li Zhe furiously searched the pitch-black training ground, looking for some sign that the guards were around. A chill gripped his heart as unease turned into despair. He crumpled onto the ground with a thud.
He had only found a single guard on duty. “Where are the Guan familys guards? Where have they al]. gone? Shouldn’t you all be training at this hour?”
“It’s Old Chief Guan’s birthday today,” the guard answered carefully. “When Old Madam Guan left, she gave the other officers on duty a day off.”
Old Madam Guan? Ye Long?
Li Zhe found himself struggling to breathe. The sense of unease he had felt was not crippling.
Guan Lei probably was not their main target; it was Meng Yu.
Someone had orchestrated things to prevent Guan Lei from calling for reinforcements for them.
The Old Madam… Ye Long! She was trying to kill Meng Yu!
Li Zhe hurried back the way he came. He could not bear losing Meng Yu; it was too much. He wanted to scream, but his voice was trapped in his throat. All he could hear was the blood rushing to his brain, and his heavy breaths as his lungs fought for oxygen.
Please wait for me! Ah Yu! You must wait for me!
Such was the silent scream that burdened his heart.
Far away in Beijing…
Shen Xi could not remain idle. She had tried calling Guan Lei several times, but he never answered.
The only thing she could do to ease her worry was to convince herself that Guan Lei was busy with something. Yet, the more she repeated those words, the more worried she grew.
Desperate times called for desperate measures. Shen Xi called Zheng Huai.
When the line connected, Shen Xi, without sparing a second for platitudes, launched into her inquiry, “Cousin, do you know anyone on the island? Could you help me check on Guan Lei’s situation? I haven’t heard from him all night. I got his uncle’s phone number from my teacher, but I couldn’t reach him either.”
Zheng Huai covered his shock and suspicion well. “Xixi, don’t panic. I’ll get in
touch with someone I know.”
Zheng Huai hung up and called Guan Yi. “Grandpa Guan, something might have happened to Guan Lei.”
Guan Yi immediately phoned his wife but found that the call would not connect – the signal had been cut. He ordered his people to restore the connection posthaste.
With an order, all the guards on the island gathered.
A flash of light glinted in the dark, leaving a bloody line across Guan Lei’s arm. His blood-soaked hands were slippery, and the knife he wielded in self-defense slid out of his clutches.
“Watch out!” Meng Yu shouted.
Under the moon’s pale light, Meng Yu saw a shape make a stabbing motion toward Guan Lei’s vulnerable back Gritting his teeth, Meng Yu fought through his pain and used the last of his strength to cover the distance between him and Guan Lei, using his body to shield his young charge. The blade bit into his shoulder. All was silent.
Guan Lei looked up, disbelief and incomprehension warring in his mind. “Meng Yu?” he mumbled.
It was this harrowing scene that Li Zhe met upon his return, which nearly caused his eyes to pop out of their sockets. He picked up a fallen knife and charged like a madman toward the individual who had stabbed Meng Yu, his blade flashing in wild arcs.
The assassin was caught unprepared and was forced to release his hold on the dagger planted in Meng Yu l s shoulder or risk being turned into a fillet..