Chapter 176: The Real Assassin

(1)

In April, the small city had already begun to turn stiflingly hot.

Even though it was already evening, the heat still steamed up from the ground—especially under the sunlight, it could make one forget that summer was still far from truly arriving.

In the New District of the small city, inside a restaurant with exquisite decor, a guest dressed in ordinary casual clothes suddenly clutched his throat and collapsed to the floor, white foam uncontrollably bubbling from his mouth.

After a brief silence, the restaurant plunged into chaos.

Other diners still eating began to gag.

The sweating lobby manager rushed out, pointing at a bewildered waiter and shouted, “Quick, hurry and call 120!!”

Amidst the chaos, a nimble figure gently pushed open the kitchen window and slipped through with agility.

Disguised as someone else, Lu Qiao Jingye walked unhurriedly toward the exit of the alley, casually tossing a bag labeled “Fa Yin Ham” into a nearby trash bin.

The foreigner, with absolutely no resistance to toxins, died on the spot just as Lu Qiao Jingye had expected after eating ham with dangerously excessive Sudan Red.

Even if they were sent to the hospital now, there was no way to save them.

Such a deadly item in this magical land could at most be considered a Food Safety Issue.

It reminded Lu Qiao Jingye of those missions in India—over there, people ate things that tasted like excrement, yet it would leave nothing in the stomach, while here, the food looked perfectly normal but could kill without a trace.

For an Assassin, the “food” here was more useful.

(2)

The slanting rays of the setting sun spilled across Yu Minghui’s face as she sliced cabbage thinly on the cutting board.

In the living room, the television was broadcasting a special news report.

“A food poisoning incident occurred at Tai Tian Restaurant in the city’s New District. The victim is a tourist from Thailand and is being rushed to the hospital for emergency treatment. Tai Tian Restaurant has been urgently shut down. We bring up the topic of Food Safety Issues time and again, but many businesses only do superficial work on this issue.”

“It’s still safer to eat at home,” Yu Minghui muttered softly, adjusting the hairnet on her head.

She couldn’t help glancing out the window.

“Xiao Jing should be getting out of school about now, right?”

(3)

“Damn it, how did the Assassin we sent end up dead again?”

“This time, it seems to have been an accident.”

“Accident? For an Assassin, there’s no such thing as accidental death! Someone’s on to us!”

“Maybe it’s just a problem with the local food. If you say we’ve been compromised, that would mean a breach in our Intelligence Network. That’s absolutely impossible, Liu-san.”

“Yes, our Intelligence Network is infallible. It’s directly controlled with government funding, all employees strictly pay into five insurances and one housing fund, the monthly salary is far higher than the local standard, there’s monthly training, and those who perform well can even obtain our country’s Permanent Residence Certificate…”

“It’s absolutely unmatched by the International Assassin Organization’s messy Intelligence Network.”

“—They spread themselves too thin.”

“Could it have been done by the International Assassin Organization?”

“No way. Those people could never obtain information from our Intelligence Network.”

“Send two more people, make sure the mission is completed. Be even more discreet this time. Damn it, the higher-ups have issued a death order—absolutely no survivors.”

“Why are the higher-ups so interested in a minor girl? She doesn’t have any special background.”

“The higher-ups have their own reasons. We’re just their knives, don’t ask too much! If you know too much… the next person sunk to the bottom of Tokyo Bay will be you.”

“I’m just a little curious, Liu-san.”

“Not even a little is allowed.”

٠٠٠]

٠٠)

(4)

On the outskirts of the small city, in a deserted village, inside a shabby, inconspicuous wooden hut.

A complex device, cobbled together from off-the-shelf parts, was running, emitting a low-frequency hum.

Lu Qiao Jingye had been holding down this button for a full ten minutes.

But only chaotic static came from within.

He was never short on patience.

Or rather, a Real Assassin was always patient enough.

“Bzzt… zzzzt… Lu Qiao Jingye, can you hear me?”

“I can hear you.”

“There was a problem here, but it’s been handled.”

“I’ve eliminated the Assassin who attempted to kill the target. At present, I don’t know which organization they came from.”

“Good. Lu Qiao Jingye, the client is still very patient, but he told you, if you can’t kidnap the target, you can first collect some of the target’s hair and saliva, then find a way to send it to the following address. The Intelligence Network there is a mess; for now, I can’t provide you with assistance.”

“I’ll handle it myself.”

٠٠٠]

“Good. Before kidnapping the target, make sure the target survives.”

“Confirmed. New additional terms.” Lu Qiao Jingye nodded. “No extra charge this time.”

“Don’t worry, the client isn’t fussing. He knows it’s not easy to kidnap a living person from that country. However, you might be able to transit through Burma. There’s no Intelligence Network of ours there, but we have partners. I’ll send you the details through other channels.”

“Alright.”

The call was cut.

Lu Qiao Jingye nodded slightly, packed away the mess, carefully erased all traces of his presence, and disappeared into the weed-choked, mossy ruins of the abandoned village.

(5)

“Today, the teacher needs a few helpers for some heavy lifting.” Ye Wen stood at the podium, hands on the desk, her face wearing a cheerful smile. “Any students willing to help? There’ll be snacks and fruit to eat!”

“Teacher Ye is so nice, even gives rewards for helping.” An Jing stuffed today’s test papers into her schoolbag and tilted her head toward Zhu Ying. “Xiao Ying, should we help?”

“Mm—but I have to go home early tonight. Relatives are coming, and we’ll be eating early.”

“Oh, then let’s just head home.” An Jing stretched with a big yawn, then looked a bit worriedly at Sun Wei. “I wonder if A-Wei today…”

[IP] Chapter 52: The Real Assassin

“Hmm, how about we call him a cab home?”

“That’s a good idea… but, who knows if the class monitor’s boyfriend from Class Four will come. Zhou Chao sure made it sound dramatic…”

“I’ll stay to help!!”

Just as the two of them were muttering, Sun Wei, usually the first to rush out after school, shot up his hand. “Teacher Ye!”

“Oh? Sun Wei, all right, you’re in. Who else wants to stay? We need two more.”

“Me.” Fang Qiang spoke up hurriedly, apparently understanding Sun Wei’s intention.

“Count me in too.” Zhou Chao nodded.

“Good, three is enough. The rest, clean up if it’s your turn or head home. No lingering.” Ye Wen waved them over with a bright smile. “You three, come to the office with me~”

“Ah, they want to buy time. That way, when school’s out, those thugs might give up and leave.”

“Seems so. When we go out, let’s check for them. If there are any thugs, we’ll text to warn them. Tell them to be careful—maybe the wait will be long.” Zhu Ying suggested.

“Sure… but I’m still a bit worried.”

“But Xiao Jing, you probably couldn’t help even if you stayed, right?”

“At least I could call the police…”

“They’d do it themselves, surely. Who gets chased and doesn’t call the cops?”

“For boys… not necessarily.” An Jing scratched her head, grabbed her bag, and strode ahead to pat Sun Wei’s back. “A-Wei, Xiao Ying and I will go first and check outside. Be careful after school, don’t try to be a hero.”

“Thanks…” Sun Wei thanked her sincerely for once. “An Jing, you’ll always be my bro.”

“Don’t say weird stuff…”

“Don’t worry, if we can’t win, we’ll run.” Zhou Chao grinned.

“Yeah, don’t treat us like fools. No one’s going to play the hero.” Fang Qiang nodded.

Ye Wen, already walking with the ordinary-looking young man, turned back and called, “You three, how long are you going to stand there?”

“Coming, teacher!” “Coming, coming!”

“Bro, don’t forget to look out for me.” Sun Wei was the most nervous, not even in the mood for jokes.

“I’ll text you…”

…••

(6)

An Jing and Zhu Ying had just walked out of the school gates when they saw a police car flashing its lights.

The police seemed not to be inside, but the car window was open, and a stack of files could be seen inside.

“The thugs were all caught by the police?” An Jing was puzzled. “Did they get in a fight with someone else first?”

“Probably not? If so, Sun Wei’s safe.”

“Yeah… but looking at this, those thugs probably wouldn’t dare come out either.” An Jing suddenly stopped. “Ah, they’re coming out of the restaurant.”

“What’s going on?” Zhu Ying looked curious too.

“The police are just accompanying them, but there are also people in different uniforms.”

“The kitchen was so filthy even rats ran out. Close the place and clean up right now!” a man in a different uniform yelled angrily, “It’s you lot, not taking Food Safety Issues seriously, killing foreigners with your food! This is an international incident, a total disgrace!”

“Looks like something else happened…”

“Did someone die again? Food poisoning?” Zhu Ying tilted her little face, pressing her head to An Jing’s temple.

“Probably. Looks like there’s going to be a strict investigation.”

“So, police are everywhere today, huh?”

“Maybe.”

“That means Sun Wei’s safe,” Zhu Ying let out a sigh of relief for An Jing’s friend. “Xiao Jing, you can go home at ease too.”

“Yeah, at least he’s safe for today. Maybe there’ll be strict checks for a few days. After a while, people will forget and they won’t bother A-Wei anymore.” An Jing’s lips curled up. “That kid’s pretty lucky.”

“That’s for sure~”