EM 56. Escape

Gunfire broke out suddenly. Bullets struck the truck, throwing off bright sparks. The Xingtian team broke for cover and started shooting. There weren’t many pursuers from the base yet, and with their marksmanship, a few short bursts were enough to take down several. But the remaining three opponents quickly found cover as well, making the situation more difficult.

Wei Xiaoyan drove the truck straight toward them, while two jeeps approached from the other side. Xiao Mingxuan took one look and gave the order. “Suppressive fire. The rest of you, get in.”

Boss Kang glanced behind him and called out, “Wrap it up. Use his clothes. Move. Get in the truck.”

The freshly severed head was still dripping blood, quickly soaking the fabric until it bloomed red. The men across the way saw it clearly. Their grief and fury exploded. One of them broke cover, screaming as he charged. Two of them shot at random, while the third ran to his fallen comrade and grabbed a grenade launcher.

The Xingtian team shot. The first two were taken down with clean headshots. The third man grabbed the launcher and fired the instant he got hold of it. The grenade shot out as he fell, smoke pouring from the barrel.

Song Feng had been guiding Boss Kang toward the truck when he caught sight of the movement out of the corner of his eye. He immediately pulled his boss down and threw them both backward. The rest of the team dove for cover as well. The grenade shot straight through the back window of the jeep and exploded, lifting the entire vehicle slightly off the ground. A wave of heat blasted outward with the deafening noise, scattering metal in all directions.

Song Feng felt the scalding heat of shrapnel skim across his back before it slammed into the side of the warehouse with a heavy clang. He looked up and saw it was a dislodged car door. The flames still clinging to it quickly caught on the nearby equipment, sending up a thick column of smoke that stung the eyes and burned the lungs.

Everyone got to their feet. Song Feng stared at the burning wreck in front of them and gave up all hope. “Looks like the truck’s our only option now.”

Boss Kang ordered one of his men to take the last remaining jeep and lead the way. Several members of the Xingtian team climbed into the jeep, while the others boarded the truck. The back of the truck had a metal frame propped up with canvas to form a rounded canopy, along with a metal door that could be sealed shut from the outside.

They loaded up quickly, then hauled their less-than-athletic boss up after them. The two vehicles sped through the broken fence Fu Shanming had smashed open earlier and headed off together. The truck was packed with weapons, taking up nearly all the space. No one could stand upright, so they crouched down among the cargo.

Bai Xuyao reached over and pulled the rear door shut. “This thing isn’t in terrible shape. At least it has a door. Might stop a few bullets if it comes to that.”

Boss Kang tossed the blood-soaked head aside and replied, “We’re hauling weapons. Of course it has to be sealed tight.”

Song Feng and Xiao Mingxuan bent down and made their way deeper into the truck, lifting the rear crates to clear a path. Bai Xuyao and Boss Kang came over to help. Before long, they had opened up enough space for someone to stand. Song Feng tapped his foot on one of the wooden crates. “You said the bullets are at the bottom. Which one is it?”

Boss Kang studied the stack. “We always load them in this area. We should be close. Move this crate and check underneath.”

Song Feng nodded and lifted it with Xiao Mingxuan. They set it aside and pried open the crate beneath it. Inside was ammunition in various calibers. As they shifted things around, Song Feng scanned the weapon types and picked out a submachine gun. He had already chosen one earlier and now loaded it, ready for whatever came next.

Bai Xuyao had been squeezed toward the edge. He shifted his weight and felt something soft beneath his foot. Looking down, he realized with horror that it was the severed head. He scrambled away and slid over to Song Feng, peering out through the half-open back door. “Bro, we’re stuck all the way in the back. We can’t even jump out. What if they fire a grenade at us?”

Song Feng flipped off the safety on the gun. “Then we’re dead. But we can’t close the other door either. If we do, we won’t be able to return fire. That means they’ll catch up to us and trap us inside. Standing at the door gives you a chance to jump, but I guarantee if you land and try to get up, they’ll already have you surrounded. Same result.”

Bai Xuyao nodded obediently and sat down, rummaging through the crates in search of a better gun.

Registan was a desert region, mostly sand and scattered dunes. The road was rough and jarring. Dust rose in the air behind them as Song Feng looked back. Through the thin haze, he saw a cloud of sand rising in the distance. Vehicles were approaching fast. He narrowed his eyes. “They’re here.”

Everyone quickly took their positions and waited in silence. As the pursuers drew closer, they could make out a convoy from the base, though the exact number of vehicles was still unclear. Two of them were small trucks, each mounted with a heavy-caliber machine gun. The formation was aggressive and well-armed.

Everyone fell silent for a second.

Bai Xuyao slowly turned his head. “Boss, didn’t you say they wouldn’t have enough manpower to chase us?”

Boss Kang adjusted his glasses. “That wasn’t supposed to happen. How could it turn out like this?”

Song Feng thought for a moment. “Who cut the head off? Was the body hidden afterward?”

Boss Kang replied, “No. There wasn’t time for that.”

“We wrapped the head in fabric torn from his clothes. I remember the warehouse caught fire,” Song Feng said slowly. “Which means the body might have gone up in flames too.”

Everyone imagined the scene in silence. The men from the base would have reached the warehouse to find their leader decapitated, his clothes torn, his body scorched and still smoldering.

Bai Xuyao suddenly lunged to the front, pounding on the back of the cab’s glass with both fists. “They’re gaining on us! Senior, hit the gas! Step on it, come on! You’re supposed to be the best driver! Don’t let them catch us!”

Wei Xiaoyan shouted back, “Quit your damn yelling! I’m already flooring it!”

“Then step on it already!” Bai Xuyao kept pounding the glass. “If we don’t speed up, they’re going to catch us. Once they catch up, we’re done for. Absolutely done for! No one’s getting out of this. We’re all going to die. All of us—”

“Shut the fuck up!” Wei Xiaoyan shouted from the driver’s seat. “Stop jinxing it. The truck’s too damn heavy. We can’t outrun them unless we dump some of the cargo!”

Bai Xuyao and Song Feng immediately rushed forward to start pushing crates, but Boss Kang was faster. He grabbed both of their shoulders and pushed them down hard. “Calm down. Listen to me. Everybody needs to stay focused.”

Song Feng snapped. “Focused? Are you serious? We’re about to get wiped out, you goddamn crook of a boss.”

Bai Xuyao shouted too. “Exactly! You’re the one who ordered the hit. You’re the one who wanted the head. Now you want to keep all the weapons too? You’re the worst boss in the world!”

“I never said you couldn’t throw anything out,” Boss Kang said patiently. “All I’m asking is that you start with the cheap stuff. Just the cheap stuff.”

The two of them shook him off. “Then you do it.”

Boss Kang understood the situation and knew which crates carried his company’s markings. He quickly tossed a few of them out. The convoy behind them was getting closer, gradually fanning out. One of the machine guns on the trucks opened fire. He was forced to duck behind the metal door, pushing his glasses up as he muttered, “Both of those machine guns were sold by my company.”

Bai Xuyao gave him a side glance. “Boss, if you say one more word, I’m going to throw you out myself.”

Boss Kang didn’t reply. He tossed out a few more crates, then peeked out again and quickly assessed the situation. “They probably don’t have that many people. It’s just the firepower that’s heavy. Those machine guns are old models. Their range is limited.”

They weren’t close enough yet for the heavy guns to reach full effect. But once they were, the truck would never survive. Xiao Mingxuan and Song Feng exchanged a glance. Song Feng understood immediately and spoke up. “I saw a few sniper rifles earlier. Old models, but fully usable. I kept them nearby just in case. Should be in one of those crates over there.”

Xiao Mingxuan moved at once and opened the crate.

Bai Xuyao heard everything clearly and started banging on the glass again. “Duan Qing, break the window and climb in.”

Duan Qing didn’t wait for him to say it twice. He smashed the window hard. The space was tight, so he told the others to back up. After clearing some room, he fired a few rounds into the truck’s side, then grabbed a tool from the cab and sawed through the steel plating. He climbed through into the cargo bed.

Xiao Mingxuan tossed one of the rifles to him. Both of them were calm and steady by nature, experienced in sniping. They quickly adjusted their weapons, loaded the bullets, used the crates as cover and took aim. The men manning the mounted guns were exposed and made ideal targets.

Xiao Mingxuan gauged the distance and estimated it to be around eight hundred meters. He kept his voice low as he spoke. “I’ll take the one on the left. You take the right.”

Duan Qing nodded and locked onto his mark. The truck was jolting badly, but both held steady. They aimed at a fixed point and began to shoot. Blood burst from the heads of the two gunners almost at the same time. Their bodies fell backward from the trucks.

Both snipers immediately shifted focus to the drivers. A few shots later, one of the truck’s windshields bloomed red. The vehicle veered off course, hit an embankment, and tipped over with a loud crash, sending up a massive cloud of dust.

The remaining vehicles slowed down sharply. One wave of danger was temporarily behind them. Boss Kang peeked out and muttered, “If I knew this would happen, I wouldn’t have thrown out the guns.”

Song Feng looked completely innocent. “We just came up with that on the spot.”

Boss Kang didn’t seem to mind. The truck was moving faster now, and most of the weapons were still intact. He bent down and made his way back. “Have they retreated?”

“No,” Xiao Mingxuan replied, watching through the scope. “They’ve stopped.”

Boss Kang gave a soft reply. “Their camp leader’s dead. Morale must be breaking down. And with outside forces attacking, going back won’t help them now.”

Bai Xuyao asked, “Will they give up?”

“It depends on how loyal they are,” Boss Kang replied. “They have two options now. One is to return and surrender, try joining another group, though I can’t say whether they’ll survive that. The other is to wait for the retreating forces from the base to regroup and chase us down for revenge. Either way, we can’t afford to relax. The only thing that matters now is getting out of Registan.”

Song Feng leaned against the rear window frame, watching the road ahead. “Where are we going?”

“To the Helmand River,” Boss Kang said. “We’ll follow the river from there. Most of Registan is desert. The people here live near water. We can resupply along the way.”

No one objected. The two vehicles sped away, leaving the convoy far behind. An hour later, they finally reached a stretch of open road. Just as everyone was beginning to relax, Wei Xiaoyan let out a sharp click from the driver’s seat. A moment later, the truck began to slow and pulled to the side of the road. The jeep ahead quickly circled back, and several people jumped out.

“What happened?”

Wei Xiaoyan sighed. “Bad news. We’re out of fuel.”

Everyone looked at one another before slowly climbing down. Song Feng stared into the distance. Their pursuers probably didn’t know which way they had gone, but if they kept moving in the same direction, they would eventually reach this highway. Even with snipers on their side, it would be pointless. If the convoy got close enough to surround the truck, they would all be finished.

He turned and asked with a pure expression, “Boss, do you have any spare fuel? How do you usually get back after delivering weapons?”

Boss Kang looked up at the sky. One of his men replied helplessly, “Usually we trade for a jeep and drive that back.”

Song Feng blinked. “Boss, if you were planning to steal everything, how could you not bring extra fuel?”

Boss Kang looked at them and said, “You want the truth?”

Everyone nodded.

He answered honestly. “I didn’t expect you to be this competent. I wasn’t planning to take the shipment at first.”

Everyone immediately stared at him with utter contempt.

Boss Kang remained calm. “The truck’s already out anyway. Only the jeep still runs, and it won’t carry everyone. How much fuel is left in it?”

His subordinate checked and came back with a bitter smile. “Not much.”

“Pour it into the truck. Everyone get back in. We’ll keep moving while we can.”

Everyone nodded and moved quickly. Song Feng stood silently by the roadside, watching the horizon.

Bai Xuyao walked over. “Bro, what’s wrong?”

“I was just thinking,” Song Feng said with a faint smile. “Do you think the reason they stopped chasing us so easily was because they were too shaken by the snipers… or—”

He paused and finished slowly. “Or because they already knew the truck was almost out of gas?”