The Counterattack of a Loner

  The rain poured down, the wind howled, sand and rocks flew through the air, trees by the side of the road danced wildly in the wind, the signboard of a small supermarket by the side of the road was blown off and crashed to the ground with a loud bang, every household closed their doors and windows and gathered their clothes, the usually bustling street quickly became empty and desolate.

  Liu Handong and Xiao Fan rushed to Building 108, pushed open the iron gate and went in. The mahjong table in the yard had been moved into a first-floor room, where the game was still going on without interruption. On the second floor, Zhang Dajie had gone out to pick up her child, and the house was locked. Zhu Xiaoqiang surprisingly wasn't playing DOT A, and there was no one else in the room either. The third floor's Xiao Li and Xiao Hong hadn't finished work yet, and the fourth floor was empty with no one around.

  The two of them went up the stairs, leaving a trail of wet footprints behind. The large iron gate was pushed open again, and Ma Guoqing walked in with a stumbling gait. His stomach began to ache violently once more, and beads of sweat as big as beans dripped down. It was his unyielding determination that allowed the old policeman to climb up onto the stage step by step.

  Autumn has arrived, and the torrential rain is still raging on. The sound of raindrops hitting the roof of the Hanlanda car is dull and muffled. The four people inside, including Gu Changjun, nodded silently, without saying a word.

  Four burly men got out of the Highlander, trampling through the puddles towards No. 108. Behind them, the Accord's four doors opened wide and another four big men got out, slamming the doors shut, carrying long fishing rods in their hands.

  Gu Changjun brought over eight men, all of whom were notorious tough guys on the road, had killed people and seen blood, were old-timers who had been in and out of the palace twice or thrice, worked efficiently without leaving any traces, and were absolutely top-notch experts.

  What was originally a simple matter has been blown out of proportion, and now the higher-ups have issued an ultimatum: if it's not completed today, Gu Changjun will face disaster.

  He lit a cigarette, lowering the car window by a small gap, and the rainwater immediately poured in. This rain came very timely, washing away all traces. Looking at the surveillance camera on the utility pole again, Gu Changjun sneered, these things are just deceiving leaders, malfunctioning from time to time, and bad weather is even more hopeless.

  Fourth floor, Liu Handong took off his wet shirt and heard a calm voice behind him: "Police! Put your hands up, turn around slowly, don't move."

  Liu Handong slowly turned around and saw a middle-aged uncle with white temples on both sides of his head, holding a gun at his waist with one hand, aiming at himself. This was the standard posture for police officers to hold guns in the 1980s, which could effectively prevent the opponent from snatching the gun, and the shooting was also relatively stable.

  "Is it Liu Handong?" the middle-aged uncle asked.

  Liu Handong nodded.

  He tossed over a pair of handcuffs and said coldly, "Put them on yourself, don't play any tricks."

  Liu Handong picked up the handcuffs and put them on his left and right wrists.

  "Tie it up tightly." The old policeman was stern beyond measure.

  Liu Handong clicked the handcuffs two more teeth inward.

  Xiao Fan brought the clothes in from the balcony and was shocked stiff by what she saw.

  "Don't be afraid, I'm a policeman." The old policeman's tone was much gentler, and he ordered Liu Handong: "You go ahead and walk downstairs."

  The rain was very heavy, pouring down like a deluge. In such weather conditions, it would be difficult to take the criminal to the police station. Ma Guoqing just wanted to take him downstairs and let the landlord call the police.

  Liu Handong walked slowly in front, closely followed by Xiao Fan, and finally Ma Guoqing with a gun.

  When I went down to the second floor, I saw a group of people coming up from below, the stairs were narrow and could only accommodate one person at a time. The man in front was dressed in sportswear, holding a black handgun.

  They suddenly encountered each other and were stunned. In the flash of lightning, Liu Handong sprang up and kicked the person below with both feet. The sinister man was caught off guard and was kicked over, his gun firing a shot that coincided with a thunderclap, masking the sound. The bullet hit the concrete roof slab, ricocheting several times before landing on the gunman's head, instantly splattering blood everywhere, and he fell to the ground without getting up again.

  The two people walking in the front fell down, and immediately after were Xiaofei and another gunman below. The man raised his handgun, and Xiaofei froze, not moving a muscle.

  Ma Guoqing was quick and swift, he pushed the small sail to one side with one hand, raised his gun and fired. The two of them opened fire almost simultaneously, and at close range it was almost impossible to miss. Ma Guoqing stood tall, the bullets from his 54 pistol hit the opponent's head squarely, but the opponent's bullets also shot into his abdomen, a police undershirt that had been worn for over a decade was suddenly stained red with blood.

  Right behind him was the third gunman, holding a sawed-off shotgun with its stock and barrel shortened, its black muzzle aimed at Ma Guoqing. At the critical moment, Liu Handong, who was lying on the stairs, picked up a gun and fired all six bullets in the magazine at the gunman at the fastest speed, splashing blood everywhere. The killers who were advancing in a line behind him heard the intense gunfire and immediately retreated in disarray.

  Liu Handong picked up the shotgun, when Ma Guoqiang suddenly shouted: "Put down the gun!"

  The 54 pistol aimed at Liu Handong, Ma Guoqiang's hand kept dripping blood, which was the blood from his wound.

  Liu Handong suddenly took aim at Ma Guoqiang, the two men were only a few feet apart, the black muzzle of the gun aimed at each other, their fingers on the trigger, with just a slight movement, both would be seriously injured.

  The killers are on the move again, creeping towards the staircase entrance.

  On the first floor, several mahjong-playing aunts were scared and lay on the ground, using chairs to block the door. The landlady held the phone and kept pressing 110, but the telephone line was blown off by the strong wind, and there was no sound in the receiver.

  "Put down your gun!" Ma Guoqing and Liu Handong shouted at each other, neither of them willing to put down their weapons first.

  A spark can set off a prairie fire.

  "No! Brother is a good person!" Xiaofei suddenly spoke up and rushed over to block Liu Handong.

  At this moment, the killer's head popped out from downstairs, Liu Handong and Ma Guoqing simultaneously turned their gun barrels, bullets flew out, bricks and stones shattered, and ears buzzed with a loud ringing sound.

  On Tiehua Street, Wang Xing slammed on the brakes and stopped. He heard familiar gunfire amidst the thunderclap - there were Type 54s, shotgun blasts, and even automatic rifle fire. A fierce gun battle was unfolding nearby!

  He hastily got off the car, patted his body, didn't bring any weapons, looked around, and picked up a heavy brick.

  Liu Handong was calm and composed, this wasn't his first real-life baptism of fire. Years ago on the high plateau, he and his comrades had faced off against ruthless separatist militants, enduring trials by blood and fire.

  The killer below was very powerful, using military weapons, dense bullets filled the corridor, staring at the enemy who was about to attack, Liu Handong shouted cover me, Ma Guoqiang raised his gun and fired several shots, Liu Handong single-handedly held a shotgun and quickly went upstairs, jumping from the second floor and opening fire in mid-air, the shotgun blast covered, one of the killers with an automatic rifle was shot dead on the spot.

  Liu Handong grasped the shotgun with one hand, cocked it with a flick, and fired another shot from the ground, driving the killers out of the yard. The five bullets in the shotgun were spent, he rolled over, picked up the assault rifle.

  Just picked up the gun, saw a killer coming down from upstairs, holding a gun to shoot Ma Guoqing. Liu Handong was wearing handcuffs and it was inconvenient to hold the gun, so he raised the gun in an awkward manner to shoot. Ma Guoqing was shocked, thinking that Liu Handong wanted to shoot himself, just as he was about to move, he was strangled from behind by the killer, with the muzzle pressed against his head.

  "Drop your gun!" the assassin threatened.

  Liu Handong didn't hesitate at all, pulled the trigger, and a bullet spun out of the barrel, hitting the killer right between the eyebrows.

  The 7.62mm rifle bullet's massive kinetic energy blew open the killer's skull, sending him flying backward, with red and white splattering a wall.

  Ma Guoqing broke out in a cold sweat, and he trembled as he took the handcuff key from his pocket and threw it away.

  Liu Handong picked up the key and quickly opened the handcuffs, his hands skillfully holding this Myanmar-made imitation of an 81 rifle, hiding behind the concrete shadow wall, with standard tactical movements.

  Ma Guoqiang held his gun at the ready, guarding against another killer attack from the rooftop.

  Eight killers, five were shot dead instantly, only three remained, and they had no power to launch an attack. However, they refused to fail like this, each hiding behind a utility pole and a car, aiming their guns at the gate. No one noticed Wang Xing coming from behind with a brick in his hand.

  One brick went down, and the killer hiding behind the car had his occipital bone flattened, and he fell softly to the ground. Wang Xing took over a simulated Type 54 from his hand, opened the chamber, confirmed it was live ammunition, and aimed at the killer behind the utility pole in front of him.

  The killer was just pulling out a hand grenade from his waist when he was shot in the head by Wang Xing, and before he could pull out the safety pin. The police officer's marksmanship was not to be underestimated, two consecutive shots, absolutely fatal.

  Only one person was left, and he was surrounded by enemies. He fired two shots crazily, turned around and ran, but didn't make it more than a dozen steps before being hit in the leg and fell headfirst into the muddy water.

  On the empty street, there was no longer a shadow of the CR-V, only one black Accord with no one in it.

  Wang Xingzang shouted loudly from behind the car: "People in the yard, report your identities." Then he took out his mobile phone and dialed the number of the Criminal Police Brigade.

  On the stairs, Ma Guoqing was on his last breath. Xiao Fan, under Liu Handong's instructions, helped the police uncle press against the wound. Suddenly, a mobile phone rang, it was Ma Guoqing's phone.

  Liu Handong took it over and answered it.

  "Dad, why haven't you come back for dinner yet? You're working overtime without even saying a word. Mom and I have been waiting for you for half a day." It was a coquettish female voice.

  "Your dad has been shot, on Tiehua Street." Liu Handong said, at this time someone outside the courtyard shouted, asking the people inside to report their identities, it seemed that the police reinforcements had arrived.

  "Some police officers are injured, quickly call an ambulance." Liu Handong shouted.

  The phone had not yet hung up, Ma Ling's hand holding the receiver fell to the ground. In the kitchen, her mother who was heating up food asked: "Ling'er, is your dad coming back for dinner? If he isn't, we'll eat first."

  Ma Ling's eyes were filled with tears and she sobbed uncontrollably.

  One hour later, on Tiehua Street, police sirens were blaring everywhere. Dozens of police cars had stopped at the scene. The criminal police brigade, special police detachment, armed police corps, and local police station all arrived. There were also traffic police, forensic doctors, and an ambulance from the hospital, which blocked the street completely. A crowd of onlookers stood outside the police cordon in the rain to watch the commotion, witnessing a black plastic bag containing a body being loaded into the ambulance.

  The rain continued to fall, washing away the bloodstains on the ground and flowing into the sewers. The investigators, wearing gloves, were picking up shell casings everywhere. This was the largest gun-related case in Jiang City since its founding, with six people dead and another hit by a brick and still unconscious.

  A large number of firearms were used in the case, with over 100 rounds of ammunition fired, including handguns, rifles, and shotguns. Even a hand grenade was found. In the command vehicle at the scene, the leaders' heads had grown two sizes larger.

  The first to sound the alarm was private investigator Wang Xing, who called his colleagues at the criminal police brigade and said that a shooting had occurred here, with a policeman injured, urgently needing support and an ambulance. However, after the police arrived, they did not find any injured colleagues, nor could they find Wang Xing's whereabouts. When they tried to call him again, no one answered.

  There were no eyewitnesses to the case. Even the residents of house No. 108 did not see what happened. As soon as they heard the gunshot, they were frightened and fell to the ground, without seeing anyone.

  "We must find them even if we have to dig three feet underground." On-site commander, Deputy Director Hao of the Municipal Bureau in charge of criminal investigation, gave a military order and immediately instructed his subordinates "Get me connected with the Provincial Hall, I want to report to Director Song."

  Suddenly, the mobile phone rang, and Vice Director Hao took out his mobile phone, waved his hand, and directed the car to quiet down instantly.

  "Mayor Jin, hello, I was just about to report to you..." Hao Guanghui waved his hand and dismissed the crowd.