Chapter 355: Chapter 355: Confrontation with the Police
"Hands up, or I'll forced to open fire."
Lianzheng warned as all of his men raised their guns and aimed them right at the guard, not giving them a chance to draw out their guns.
"Where the hell did you get your guns from?" One of the guards nervously asked as the rest of them raised their hands.
The crowds at the back have the same question as they have never seen this many people with guns, not to mention in the hands of civilians out of all people.
"A comrade. Now, everyone gets on the floor and remains still. Any movement and you'll be shot."
As soon as Lianzheng reached his hand over to press the button, the glass door swung wide open.
Immediately, his men rushed inside and started tying and unarming the guards one by one.
But Lianzheng's attention wasn't on the guard anymore. Instead, it was on the people who were standing behind them.
"If you want to join us, you can continue... Or else, turn back and go downstairs."
The crowd quickly began to disperse, returning all the way to the staircase. But some remained, with one even walking towards Lianzheng's men.
"I want to join. I'm sick of living like this," a woman said as she stood right before the entrance.
"Great. Cheng Zui, hand her a gun."
All of the men looked a little surprised, including his brother and Cheng Zui, as they didn't expect to give a gun to a stranger.
But Cheng Zui followed the order and handed one of the guard's guns over to her, shocking the crowd at the back.
Within seconds, tens to hundreds of people started walking towards Lianzheng, showing interest in joining.
"I can only give you guys melee weapons. I can't give you all guns," Lianzheng warned.
The warning worked, as only thirty people remained to join, which he happily accepted as he distributed his men's melee weapons to them.
"Everyone ready?" Lianzheng asked out loud one last time as they stood in the hallway.
With a loud yes, he began marching down with all of his men and new followers until he encountered more guards.
This time, the guards were all ready, with their guns already pulled out, aiming directly at the rebel.
Many of the guards wore police uniforms, as opposed to the guards earlier who only wore security guard uniforms.
"Stay back! Final warning! We will fire you if you walk one more step! Drop your guns now!" one of the police officers warned, his badge looking drastically different from that of his peers.
But Lianzheng and his men remained still, not moving forward or backward as the situation became a standoff.
Soon, more police officers started appearing from the back, from twenty to almost seventy people in total.
But only twenty of them in the front were armed with guns, with the rest only holding their police batons waiting on the back.
"Commissioner 2nd class, you must have worked hard for that position... You're the police chief?" Lianzheng suddenly said out loud.
The police with different badges looked a little surprised by Lianzheng's recognition, but it didn't change the situation at hand.
"You could say that... But why are you all here for? How did you all get past the other police officers?"
"They're back in their checkpoint. They are safe. We only tied them up because they didn't let us go. " Lianzheng explained.
"Go where?" The police chief curiously asked.
"To go ask Liu Peng to step down."
All of the police officers were caught off guard by Lianzheng's sincere answer. It made no sense to them for Lianzheng to rebel like this.
"Why? What are you so unhappy about him?"
"He is not fit for a leader——"
"Liu Peng has given everyone food as much as he can. It's not his fault there's not enough food to go around." The police officer interrupted.
"It's not just about the food. He failed as a leader when he protected his son from the crime that should have had him arrested.
He forbids people from going out, even when they have no other choice, forcing them to starve down here.
Why are you protecting someone who has clearly failed the people he is meant to serve? Aren't you supposed to be with the people?"
Several of the police officers started to look a little shaken as all Lianzheng had said were things that they had witnessed themselves.
More importantly, all the people who stood behind Lianzheng were now fully supportive of him, as they all had experienced firsthand all the things he had described.
But the police chief looked determined, pointing his gun directly at Lianzheng.
"It's just a petty crime. It's not that big of a deal... Besides, there are much worse station leaders that are much more corrupt.
Liu Peng is the best one out of the bunch... Drop your gun and turn back before it's too late."
"So the standard is any criminal can be let go as long as it is not that big of a deal? You tell me, a police's job is not catching criminals?
Why do you catch others who commit the same petty crimes? Are they not the same as Liu Peng's son?"
The silence from the police chief made Lianzheng even more aggressive as he continued with his attacks.
"Let me ask you one question. The police's job is to protect and serve. Which people have you protected?
Do you serve the people, or do you serve Liu Peng? Can you answer that one single question for me?"
The dead silence from the entire police force made the standoff cool down a little, but Lianzheng didn't stop there as he delivered the final blow.
"How much did he pay you to be on his side——"
"He never paid me. Don't try to put words in my mouth. Put your guns down before we open fire."
Seeing the police chief try to change the topic, Lianzheng knew he had hit a weak point. But he didn't press on with the topic. Instead, he asked something else.
"Have you thought of how we got the guns?"
All of the police, including the police chief, froze as they realized they were dealing with an armed rebellion that had more guns than them.
Still, none of them took a step back, as they didn't want to be labeled as a coward.
"How did you get your gun?" The police chief asked, letting the topic change.
"The army from the outside. Within a week, they will be here and restore order to this entire metro line——"
"Bullshit, my friends told me the army collapsed in Beijing already." One of the police officers yelled out loud.
"You answer your own question. That's in Bejing, not over here in Guangdong." Lianzheng argued.
"I... You're right. I didn't think of that."
As the police turned silent, the police chief struggled to make a decision. He knew he was at a crossroads that would determine his men's fate.
"What did the army ask you guys to do? Why did they give you the guns?"
The police chief asked in a much calmer, cooperative tone this time, as he started to show a willingness to switch sides.
"They asked us to remove the corrupt government here and bring the power back to the people... Mr.Police Chief, do you really think a bunch of riot police and the security guard can fight off a modern army?
Do you really want to be on the wrong side of history? Don't you want to bring criminals to justice and no longer need to obey a bunch of corrupt officials?
Needing to follow them despite having power yourself? We don't have to shred blood over this."
As the police officers looked at each other, unsure of what to do next, the police chief finally made a decision.
"What will I get if I let you pass through?"
"You'll be the police chief and be able to punish criminals just like usual... And you'll be able to keep everything you have."
After a short silence, the police officer spoke up again.
"Fine, I'll accept the Deal... But please don't kill Liu Peng and his son. Their crime doesn't fit a death sentence."
Lianzheng nodded in agreement as he didn't plan to kill them in the first place, as shown by zero blood dropped on the guards.
"I already said I'm here to ask him to step down. Not to kill him or anything... But if he has some other ideas, then I might be forced to..."
"He won't. I know Liu Peng's character."
As the police chief ordered the police to the side, all of Lianzheng's men, as well as the new people, were overjoyed and extremely impressed by how he handled the situation.
"Bro, when did you learn to negotiate like that?" Tingliao quietly asked on the side.
"I just felt the pressure building up and just knew I needed to do something," Lianzheng replied.