The car was moving extremely fast. Li Lang didn't even have time to react before a deafening bang echoed in his ears. The vehicle violently shook, tires screeching against the asphalt, until it slid over ten meters before coming to a halt.
Li Lang, dazed by the impact, quickly turned his attention to He Ziyu once he recovered. He Ziyu had slammed his head against the car door window. The glass shattered, and blood trickled from a gash on his forehead.
"Ziyu, are you okay? Damn it, driving so carefully and running into a moron!" Li Lang cursed, then turned to Gu Xingdong and the other two. "Guys, are you alright?"
Gu Xingdong released Chen Lishu and Rui Rui, whom he had shielded. A sharp pain in his back made his eyebrows knit together, but he gritted his teeth and said, "We're fine."
At the moment of the collision, he only had time to shield the two with his body, leaving no room for any other reaction.
Gu Xingdong looked at Chen Lishu and Rui Rui. "Are you two okay?"
Chen Lishu rubbed her elbow, which had hit the back of the seat. "I'm not badly hurt."
"Mom, my, my foot is stuck, I can't move it," Rui Rui whimpered softly.
The violent impact had severely deformed one side of the car. Gu Xingdong and Chen Lishu tried to check, but the limited space meant that any slight movement caused the child unbearable pain.
Chen Lishu's forehead beaded with sweat from anxiety. "No, we need to get out and lift the seat first."
However, the rear door was damaged and wouldn't open.
"Get out from the front," He Ziyu said, raising a hand to wipe the blood that had already trickled to the corner of his eye, then struggling to push open his door.
Gu Xingdong maneuvered from the back seat to the passenger seat. Only when his back was turned did Chen Lishu see that his plain shirt was almost completely soaked in blood. She gasped.
"Xingdong, your back..."
"It's nothing, just a scratch, no big deal," Gu Xingdong replied, jumping out of the car.
"What happened?" The collision quickly attracted a crowd.
"I saw it all! The jeep was driving fine, and that minivan suddenly rushed out from the side road. It was going too fast, and they crashed," someone in the crowd explained.
"Look, people are getting out of the cars. Probably not too serious..."
All eyes turned to Gu Xingdong and the others emerging from the jeep.
The three used tools from the car and, after much effort, finally pried open the deformed rear door.
"Slowly," Gu Xingdong said, helping Chen Lishu out. Just as he was about to check on Rui Rui, a startled cry came from the crowd.
"The minivan driver moved! He's not dead! What is he doing?"
They all turned. Dozens of meters away, from the minivan with a severely crumpled front end, Gao Mingyuan slowly raised his head. His face was covered in blood, and his eyes were fixed on He Ziyu. A strange smile played on his lips.
He was an illegitimate child who didn't even know who his father was, and he had endured scorn from relatives and neighbors since childhood, growing up with his mother.
Later, when that weak woman died of illness, he thought his life would continue aimlessly. But then he met her.
He had never seen a girl with such bright, determined eyes, someone who refused to bow to fate and was resolute in achieving whatever she set her mind to.
Together, they made a bold decision: to flee to Hong Kong.
"They say it's a paradise there. Once we get there, we can live the lives we want."
At that time, the girl had a very common name, Zhu Zhaodi.
Yet, some people could attain the good life they had fought tooth and nail for, with such ease.
Looking at the group not far ahead, Gao Mingyuan struggled with the gearshift, and the minivan slowly reversed.
He Ziyu understood the message in Gao Mingyuan's eyes and quickly looked back, putting all his strength into pulling the deformed car seat that was trapping Rui Rui's ankle.
"Rui Rui, bear with it, I'll get you out," he said. He had missed one chance to save him; this time, he would protect him, even at the cost of his life.
However, the car seat was severely deformed, and no matter how hard he tried, it wouldn't budge.
More and more people realized the minivan driver's intention. The crowd began to retreat uneasily, and some of the fainter-hearted even cried out.
Gu Xingdong looked at He Ziyu, who was struggling with all his might, and then at Rui Rui, who was bravely enduring the pain without crying. It was impossible to rescue Rui Rui in a short time. If they abandoned the child and fled to safety, they would surely be crushed into pulp by the madman Gao Mingyuan.
As the minivan retreated a certain distance and was about to accelerate, someone in the crowd shouted, "Danger, get away! The car is going to crash!"
"Mom..." Rui Rui, affected by everyone's distress, looked at Chen Lishu with a trembling voice.
"Rui Rui, don't be afraid, Mom is here. Mom will always be with you," Chen Lishu said, holding Rui Rui's small hand, her gaze steady and her voice gentle, trying to comfort the child.
Fearing they might harm Rui Rui, they were hesitant to force the seat, and with all their strength, they managed to loosen it slightly.
Time was running out. Sweat began to form on their foreheads, but they didn't dare to wipe it away.
Gu Xingdong glanced again in Gao Mingyuan's direction, then bent down, picked up the pry bar used to open the door, and ran quickly towards the minivan.
"Xingdong!" Chen Lishu managed to cry out, only to see Gu Xingdong first throw the pry bar, accurately shattering the windshield in front of Gao Mingyuan's driver's seat. As Gao Mingyuan instinctively released the steering wheel to dodge, Gu Xingdong then leaped into the car himself.
All his actions were completed in an instant.
The surrounding onlookers were stunned into silence.
Gu Xingdong grabbed Gao Mingyuan by the neck with one hand and forcefully pulled the handbrake with the other.
The car finally stopped less than a meter away from the jeep.
Everyone present slowly exhaled the breath they had been holding.
Gu Xingdong looked at Gao Mingyuan in his hands, his expression colder than ever. He kicked him, the car door burst open, and Gao Mingyuan rolled onto the ground with a thud.
"Heh, cough cough!" He forced a smile. A sharp pain shot through his chest, his throat burned, and he spat out a large mouthful of blood.
Gu Xingdong leaped out of the car and looked down at him. Gao Mingyuan flinched instinctively at his stern face.
"You've got some nerve. No wonder I couldn't find you anywhere in the provincial capital. So you fled to the capital city."
As Gu Xingdong spoke, he raised his leg and stepped on Gao Mingyuan's bleeding left leg wound.
Gao Mingyuan grunted, almost passing out.
"You have truly resilient lives, surviving a crash like that."
"But you will regret having lived too long," He Ziyu said, walking up from behind. His gaze towards Gao Mingyuan was devoid of any warmth.