It was late at night when they arrived in London. Although Yang Yi was under intense pressure and had to rush for a long distance, not only did he not feel tired, he was in-fact brimming with vigor.
That’s because the Dark Knights were ready to take action.
After settling Kate in the hotel room, Yang Yi rushed down to the hotel. Danny immediately stood up when he saw Yang Yi rushing down. He then seriously asked, “Is there a change in the target’s location?”
“There isn’t”
“Is everything ready?”
“Everything is ready, Captain.”
The group of people who were waiting in the restaurant burst out in response. Danny immediately turned to face Yang Yi and said, “You will come along with us and observe us diligently. Treat it as a reward for acting as bait.”
Yang Yi immediately said, “Thanks, Captain!”
Danny waved his hand and pronounced loudly, “Depart! Dui Hui! Dui Lam Hui! Dui Lam Hui Dei!”1
Yang Yi couldn’t understand what was being said. Everyone else followed suit and started yelling and imitating Danny’s accent. The group walked towards the exit while laughing.
Ah Meng pushed Yang Yi from behind and laughed, “Let’s go. Why are you standing there all dazed?”
Yang Yi thoughtlessly asked, “What did the captain just say?”
“Trash him! Trash him to death! Trash them to death! They use Cantonese whenever they get excited. You will get used to it.”
“Argh, wait for me.”
They got into a row of cars which were stationed in front of Pearl Liang Restaurant. The captain pointed at Yang Yi and said, “Ah Meng, I will pass him to you. Take care of him. Let’s go!”
Yang Yi followed Ah Meng into one of the cars. Once they were in the car, Ah Meng looked at Yang Yi angrily, “If I knew walking beside you meant I would end up taking care of you, I wouldn’t have done so.”
“I’m sorry you need to take care of me, Brother Meng. Thank you very much.”
Ah Meng waved his hand and said, “It’s fine. You don’t have to be so polite. Let me ask you a question. Are you very excited right now?”
“Excited! I’m too excited!”
Ah Meng laughed happily and asked, “Have you seen the ghost doctor in action?”
“Well, I didn’t see it. I was afraid I might not be able to handle it.”
Ah Meng sighed, “That’s a pity. You don’t usually get to see him work. I ended up vomiting for a few days the first time I saw him work. It’s very nauseating!”
“Why did you allow me to observe it back then!?”
“It’s something everyone will have to experience it. The captain actually has good intentions when subjecting us to it. He’s showing us what will happen if we end up in the enemy’s hands. Since you are mingling with us, you also got the chance to experience it. However, this kind of opportunity doesn’t come often. You might have to wait a few years for the next opportunity. You shouldn’t worry too much about it.”
“Thanks, Brother Meng.”
Ah Meng suddenly lifted two of his fingers while he was driving. Ah Jiang who was sitting beside him lit two cigarettes in his mouth and passed one of them to Ah Meng. Both of their movements were very smooth. It seemed like they had done it many times.”
After taking a puff, Ah Meng expectorated out a white smoke ring, “Don’t tell the captain. He quit smoking and is now forcing us to quit. He says it’s bad for our health. Who doesn’t know that smoking is bad? The problem is I can’t quit. Do you want one Little Yang?”
Yang Yi hastily replied, “No, thanks.”
Ah Meng shook his head, “You can always learn if you don’t know how to smoke. You can start learning now. Let me tell you this, you will be able to join the old smokers when you know how to smoke. However, it’s best for you not to touch them at all if you can’t smoke. Do you understand what I am trying to tell you?”
“I understand. Thanks for the pointer, Brother Meng.”
Ah Meng shook his head while smiling, “There is no need to be so polite. We might be sharing food from the same pot in the future. Ah Jiang, give Little Yang a stick.”
Ah Jiang passed the cigarettes and lighter to Yang Yi. “Thanks, Brother Wang,” Yang Yi said after he received both the cigarettes and the lighter.
Ah Jiang wearily said, “My name is Wang Wen Jiang.”
“Thank you for telling me your name Brother Wang.”
Wang Wen Jiang shook his head and said, “Don’t use my surname. Also, don’t call me brother. You can just call me Ah Jiang like everyone else. That’s what our own people and outsiders call me. However, its best you don’t use my name when we are on the job.”
“Sure, Ah Jiang.”
Ah Meng laughed, “My name is Ye Meng. You should just call me Ah Meng. In the future, we should call you… call you... Lil’Handsome will do.”
“Lil’Handsome?”
“Do you want us to call you Super Handsome instead? This will be your name while we’re out at work. As for how we will normally call you, how about Little Yi? That’s not right. It sounds too much like calling you Little Aunt. We’ll just call you Little Yang.” (TN: In Chinese, the pronunciation for “aunt” is very similar to “Yi”)
Yang Yi responded with embarrassment, “Er, Lil’Handsome. I will remember it.”
Ye Meng laughed, “Lil’Handsome, you don’t have to put on airs. Your act can only charm the pretty ladies. I will take you out to have some fun one of these days. Should I introduce a few beautiful ladies to you? Your girlfriend is injured. Don’t you feel flustered after the last few days?”
It was pretty common for men’s conversation to flow in this direction. However, Yang Yi became flustered, “She is not my girlfriend.”
“She isn’t?”
“She is definitely not!”
“Then I definitely have to take you out to have a good time. Just wait for your brother to arrange it. What type of girl do you like? You don’t have to be so reserved. It’s my reward to you for capturing the hitman.”
“…”
“It can’t be. That shouldn’t be possible, right? You still don’t have any experience?”
“…”
“What have you been doing these past few years? I’m going to improve your capability. Let’s go crazy having fun and waste our time on worthless activities.”
“I… don’t have the time for this.”
“Nonsense. You just wait. I will find you a young one once we get back.”
Wang Wen Jiang immediately said, “Don’t. It’s better to find someone mature. You ok with what i say? Trust me. It’s better to find someone mature.”
Ye Meng and Wang Wen Jiang started to have a serious argument about the topic. Yang Yi couldn’t help but ask, “What are we going to do when we arrive?”
Ye Ming responded loudly, “Do? Of course, we are going to kill someone.”
“How come you guys aren’t tense?”
Wang Wen Jiang shook his head while laughing. Ye Meng replied dramatically, “Tense? What’s there to be tense about? It’s not a big deal to kill someone. My hands were shaking the first time but I no longer feel anything now. It’s no different than doing anything else.”
Wang Wen Jiang nodded his head, “It’s the same for me. I was tense the first time but nothing after that.”
Yang Yi was completely speechless. At that moment, Wang Wen Jiang emitted a murderous aura, “I’m going on a killing rampage tonight! No one can stop me. I will take revenge on behalf of Little Feng.”
Yang Yi shivered, “Little Feng, is he dead?”
“He isn’t dead. Just in critical condition. It has been many years since someone dared to provoke the Dark Knights. We will turn them into fertilizer this time around.”
Ye Meng said after he threw his cigarette filter out of the car window “Don’t throw the cigarette filters into the ashtray. Captain will scold us if he finds out.”
Yang Yi quickly returned the cigarette pack to Wang Wen Jiang after lighting a cigarette for himself. He replied while coughing, “I understand.”
Ye Meng and Wang Wen Jiang changed the topic again. Yang Yi wasn’t able to join in on the conversation because he could only blush while he listened.
Though the battle was about to begin, both Ye Meng and Wang Wen Jiang weren’t the slightest bit tense. Yang Yi was the only one wondering what might happen next. Would it turn into a fierce gunfight?
*****
The car finally stopped. Yang Yi’s heart rate immediately increased. Ye Meng and Wang Wen Jiang finally stopped discussing which location had the prettiest women and turned serious.
“You follow me later. Don’t move without instruction. Stay hidden if we end up fighting. I don’t think we will resort to using guns but it’s best to be careful. Also, don’t say anything later.”
Yang Yi swallowed and replied softly, “Sure, I understand.”
Wang Wen Jiang walked towards Danny while Ye Meng was surveying the surroundings. He then turned towards Yang Yi and said, “Follow behind me. Make sure to stay close.”
The cars were parked outside a small flat. It was located in a chaotic district. The public security was rather poor and the broken street lamps remained unrepaired. Hardly anyone was around since it was three in the morning.
Danny was shaking his head while standing at the entrance of the flat. He then raised his head to look at the flat and asked, “Is this the place?”
“It’s here. Based on the location provided by WiFi, it should be unit 3E. We’ve made sure of it.”
“Is there a back entrance?”
“No. There is only one entrance.”
Danny placed both his hands in his hair and said sternly, “It’s on the third floor. He can jump down to escape. Surround this place! Don’t let him escape.”
Ah Yao waved his hand to get everyone's attention and pointed at them, “Two persons to a team. Surround the building. The two of you will guard the entrance.”
Eight people spread out to surround the building. Danny put his hand on his lower back and pulled out his P7 handgun.
“Follow me! We’re going to kill him!”
Yang Yi clearly saw that Danny was very excited after he exclaimed that they were going to kill someone. Besides Yang Yi, it seemed like everyone else wasn’t nervous at all.
Ye Meng winked at Yang Yi indicating for him to follow behind him. After adding Yang Yi to the six remaining people in the group, the seven of them entered the flat quickly but quietly.
There wasn’t any lookout on watch. The group proceeded smoothly to the third floor unimpeded. Besides Yang Yi, everyone in the group had pulled out a gun Except for Danny, everyone else had a cold weapon as well.
Ye Meng was holding a blade while Wang Wen Jiang had a sai. (TN: For those of you who doesn’t know what a Sai is, it looks like a mini pitchfork.)
As for Ah Yao, in his hands was a half meter long machete.
Yang Yi didn’t expect Ah Yao who usually used a scalpel would use a machete in a fight. It wasn’t the kind of knife used to cut watermelon or intimidate people but rather a knife where the edge was sharp enough to split a bone into two parts with a single strike.
Danny quickly arrived at unit E3 and checked out the door plate. He raised his handgun and shook his head as a signal.
Wang Wen Jiang and Ah Yao immediately moved towards the right side of the doorway. The captain took a step back and two others named Jia An and Da Bing replaced the captain on the left side of the doorway. Once in position, they signaled that they were ready to launch the assault.
Ye Meng, on the other hand, pulled Yang Yi a step back in retreat and signaled for him to keep quiet. With his hands holding a gun and a blade, he also readied himself for the assault.
Danny nodded and Wang Wen Jiang immediately moved in front of the door. Just when he was about to kick the door, a voice was heard coming from within the flat unit.
“The door is not locked. There is no need for you to force it open. I have been waiting for quite some time now. Friends who are outside, please come in.”
Yang Yi was shocked and he saw Danny’s expression changed. A moment later, Danny gave a sigh of relief and laughed, “Sure, I will come in!”
It was late at night when they arrived in London. Although Yang Yi was under intense pressure and had to rush for a long distance, not only did he not feel tired, he was in-fact brimming with vigor.
That’s because the Dark Knights were ready to take action.
After settling Kate in the hotel room, Yang Yi rushed down to the hotel. Danny immediately stood up when he saw Yang Yi rushing down. He then seriously asked, “Is there a change in the target’s location?”
“There isn’t”
“Is everything ready?”
“Everything is ready, Captain.”
The group of people who were waiting in the restaurant burst out in response. Danny immediately turned to face Yang Yi and said, “You will come along with us and observe us diligently. Treat it as a reward for acting as bait.”
Yang Yi immediately said, “Thanks, Captain!”
Danny waved his hand and pronounced loudly, “Depart! Dui Hui! Dui Lam Hui! Dui Lam Hui Dei!”1
Yang Yi couldn’t understand what was being said. Everyone else followed suit and started yelling and imitating Danny’s accent. The group walked towards the exit while laughing.
Ah Meng pushed Yang Yi from behind and laughed, “Let’s go. Why are you standing there all dazed?”
Yang Yi thoughtlessly asked, “What did the captain just say?”
“Trash him! Trash him to death! Trash them to death! They use Cantonese whenever they get excited. You will get used to it.”
“Argh, wait for me.”
They got into a row of cars which were stationed in front of Pearl Liang Restaurant. The captain pointed at Yang Yi and said, “Ah Meng, I will pass him to you. Take care of him. Let’s go!”
Yang Yi followed Ah Meng into one of the cars. Once they were in the car, Ah Meng looked at Yang Yi angrily, “If I knew walking beside you meant I would end up taking care of you, I wouldn’t have done so.”
“I’m sorry you need to take care of me, Brother Meng. Thank you very much.”
Ah Meng waved his hand and said, “It’s fine. You don’t have to be so polite. Let me ask you a question. Are you very excited right now?”
“Excited! I’m too excited!”
Ah Meng laughed happily and asked, “Have you seen the ghost doctor in action?”
“Well, I didn’t see it. I was afraid I might not be able to handle it.”
Ah Meng sighed, “That’s a pity. You don’t usually get to see him work. I ended up vomiting for a few days the first time I saw him work. It’s very nauseating!”
“Why did you allow me to observe it back then!?”
“It’s something everyone will have to experience it. The captain actually has good intentions when subjecting us to it. He’s showing us what will happen if we end up in the enemy’s hands. Since you are mingling with us, you also got the chance to experience it. However, this kind of opportunity doesn’t come often. You might have to wait a few years for the next opportunity. You shouldn’t worry too much about it.”
“Thanks, Brother Meng.”
Ah Meng suddenly lifted two of his fingers while he was driving. Ah Jiang who was sitting beside him lit two cigarettes in his mouth and passed one of them to Ah Meng. Both of their movements were very smooth. It seemed like they had done it many times.”
After taking a puff, Ah Meng expectorated out a white smoke ring, “Don’t tell the captain. He quit smoking and is now forcing us to quit. He says it’s bad for our health. Who doesn’t know that smoking is bad? The problem is I can’t quit. Do you want one Little Yang?”
Yang Yi hastily replied, “No, thanks.”
Ah Meng shook his head, “You can always learn if you don’t know how to smoke. You can start learning now. Let me tell you this, you will be able to join the old smokers when you know how to smoke. However, it’s best for you not to touch them at all if you can’t smoke. Do you understand what I am trying to tell you?”
“I understand. Thanks for the pointer, Brother Meng.”
Ah Meng shook his head while smiling, “There is no need to be so polite. We might be sharing food from the same pot in the future. Ah Jiang, give Little Yang a stick.”
Ah Jiang passed the cigarettes and lighter to Yang Yi. “Thanks, Brother Wang,” Yang Yi said after he received both the cigarettes and the lighter.
Ah Jiang wearily said, “My name is Wang Wen Jiang.”
“Thank you for telling me your name Brother Wang.”
Wang Wen Jiang shook his head and said, “Don’t use my surname. Also, don’t call me brother. You can just call me Ah Jiang like everyone else. That’s what our own people and outsiders call me. However, its best you don’t use my name when we are on the job.”
“Sure, Ah Jiang.”
Ah Meng laughed, “My name is Ye Meng. You should just call me Ah Meng. In the future, we should call you… call you... Lil’Handsome will do.”
“Lil’Handsome?”
“Do you want us to call you Super Handsome instead? This will be your name while we’re out at work. As for how we will normally call you, how about Little Yi? That’s not right. It sounds too much like calling you Little Aunt. We’ll just call you Little Yang.” (TN: In Chinese, the pronunciation for “aunt” is very similar to “Yi”)
Yang Yi responded with embarrassment, “Er, Lil’Handsome. I will remember it.”
Ye Meng laughed, “Lil’Handsome, you don’t have to put on airs. Your act can only charm the pretty ladies. I will take you out to have some fun one of these days. Should I introduce a few beautiful ladies to you? Your girlfriend is injured. Don’t you feel flustered after the last few days?”
It was pretty common for men’s conversation to flow in this direction. However, Yang Yi became flustered, “She is not my girlfriend.”
“She isn’t?”
“She is definitely not!”
“Then I definitely have to take you out to have a good time. Just wait for your brother to arrange it. What type of girl do you like? You don’t have to be so reserved. It’s my reward to you for capturing the hitman.”
“…”
“It can’t be. That shouldn’t be possible, right? You still don’t have any experience?”
“…”
“What have you been doing these past few years? I’m going to improve your capability. Let’s go crazy having fun and waste our time on worthless activities.”
“I… don’t have the time for this.”
“Nonsense. You just wait. I will find you a young one once we get back.”
Wang Wen Jiang immediately said, “Don’t. It’s better to find someone mature. You ok with what i say? Trust me. It’s better to find someone mature.”
Ye Meng and Wang Wen Jiang started to have a serious argument about the topic. Yang Yi couldn’t help but ask, “What are we going to do when we arrive?”
Ye Ming responded loudly, “Do? Of course, we are going to kill someone.”
“How come you guys aren’t tense?”
Wang Wen Jiang shook his head while laughing. Ye Meng replied dramatically, “Tense? What’s there to be tense about? It’s not a big deal to kill someone. My hands were shaking the first time but I no longer feel anything now. It’s no different than doing anything else.”
Wang Wen Jiang nodded his head, “It’s the same for me. I was tense the first time but nothing after that.”
Yang Yi was completely speechless. At that moment, Wang Wen Jiang emitted a murderous aura, “I’m going on a killing rampage tonight! No one can stop me. I will take revenge on behalf of Little Feng.”
Yang Yi shivered, “Little Feng, is he dead?”
“He isn’t dead. Just in critical condition. It has been many years since someone dared to provoke the Dark Knights. We will turn them into fertilizer this time around.”
Ye Meng said after he threw his cigarette filter out of the car window “Don’t throw the cigarette filters into the ashtray. Captain will scold us if he finds out.”
Yang Yi quickly returned the cigarette pack to Wang Wen Jiang after lighting a cigarette for himself. He replied while coughing, “I understand.”
Ye Meng and Wang Wen Jiang changed the topic again. Yang Yi wasn’t able to join in on the conversation because he could only blush while he listened.
Though the battle was about to begin, both Ye Meng and Wang Wen Jiang weren’t the slightest bit tense. Yang Yi was the only one wondering what might happen next. Would it turn into a fierce gunfight?
*****
The car finally stopped. Yang Yi’s heart rate immediately increased. Ye Meng and Wang Wen Jiang finally stopped discussing which location had the prettiest women and turned serious.
“You follow me later. Don’t move without instruction. Stay hidden if we end up fighting. I don’t think we will resort to using guns but it’s best to be careful. Also, don’t say anything later.”
Yang Yi swallowed and replied softly, “Sure, I understand.”
Wang Wen Jiang walked towards Danny while Ye Meng was surveying the surroundings. He then turned towards Yang Yi and said, “Follow behind me. Make sure to stay close.”
The cars were parked outside a small flat. It was located in a chaotic district. The public security was rather poor and the broken street lamps remained unrepaired. Hardly anyone was around since it was three in the morning.
Danny was shaking his head while standing at the entrance of the flat. He then raised his head to look at the flat and asked, “Is this the place?”
“It’s here. Based on the location provided by WiFi, it should be unit 3E. We’ve made sure of it.”
“Is there a back entrance?”
“No. There is only one entrance.”
Danny placed both his hands in his hair and said sternly, “It’s on the third floor. He can jump down to escape. Surround this place! Don’t let him escape.”
Ah Yao waved his hand to get everyone's attention and pointed at them, “Two persons to a team. Surround the building. The two of you will guard the entrance.”
Eight people spread out to surround the building. Danny put his hand on his lower back and pulled out his P7 handgun.
“Follow me! We’re going to kill him!”
Yang Yi clearly saw that Danny was very excited after he exclaimed that they were going to kill someone. Besides Yang Yi, it seemed like everyone else wasn’t nervous at all.
Ye Meng winked at Yang Yi indicating for him to follow behind him. After adding Yang Yi to the six remaining people in the group, the seven of them entered the flat quickly but quietly.
There wasn’t any lookout on watch. The group proceeded smoothly to the third floor unimpeded. Besides Yang Yi, everyone in the group had pulled out a gun Except for Danny, everyone else had a cold weapon as well.
Ye Meng was holding a blade while Wang Wen Jiang had a sai. (TN: For those of you who doesn’t know what a Sai is, it looks like a mini pitchfork.)
As for Ah Yao, in his hands was a half meter long machete.
Yang Yi didn’t expect Ah Yao who usually used a scalpel would use a machete in a fight. It wasn’t the kind of knife used to cut watermelon or intimidate people but rather a knife where the edge was sharp enough to split a bone into two parts with a single strike.
Danny quickly arrived at unit E3 and checked out the door plate. He raised his handgun and shook his head as a signal.
Wang Wen Jiang and Ah Yao immediately moved towards the right side of the doorway. The captain took a step back and two others named Jia An and Da Bing replaced the captain on the left side of the doorway. Once in position, they signaled that they were ready to launch the assault.
Ye Meng, on the other hand, pulled Yang Yi a step back in retreat and signaled for him to keep quiet. With his hands holding a gun and a blade, he also readied himself for the assault.
Danny nodded and Wang Wen Jiang immediately moved in front of the door. Just when he was about to kick the door, a voice was heard coming from within the flat unit.
“The door is not locked. There is no need for you to force it open. I have been waiting for quite some time now. Friends who are outside, please come in.”
Yang Yi was shocked and he saw Danny’s expression changed. A moment later, Danny gave a sigh of relief and laughed, “Sure, I will come in!”
