Outside the main gate, hundreds of soldiers were indeed assembled, standing at the ready and staring in the direction of the entrance, likely waiting for Brother Qing and his men.
Da Kui, escorting Bo Gang out, instructed Bo Gang's subordinates to prepare a vehicle for us and drive us away.
Seeing us escorting their leader, the soldiers immediately turned all their gun muzzles towards us. We didn't feel much, but Bo Gang hurriedly shook his head and made noises, fearing the soldiers might open fire.
At this moment, an officer walked over to negotiate with us.
He said he could arrange a vehicle to send us out, but we had to leave their superior behind. Otherwise, we would have to wait for Brother Qing to arrive and fight. If we won, we could escape freely; if we lost, our lives and possessions would remain here.
Da Kui retorted, "What damn lives and possessions! Hurry up and get us a car, or your boss will die first!"
The officer said, "Soldiers are loyal to their sacred mission. I am under orders to apprehend gangsters. If I don't eliminate Ah Qing here, I won't be able to explain myself upon my return. As for General Bo Gang, he will naturally understand my intentions."
It turned out they weren't allies. This officer didn't care about Bo Gang's life at all. We were the bait to lure Brother Qing, and if they let us go, this operation plan would be declared a failure.
Da Kui, holding Bo Gang, retreated back into the room. If a fight really broke out, the few of us wouldn't stand a chance.
After entering, Da Kui remarked, "Your life as a general isn't worth much, is it? They don't seem to care about you at all."
Bo Gang lowered his head helplessly and remained silent.
The path of breaking out was blocked; we had to think of another way.
Although the officer didn't care about Bo Gang, he wouldn't make things difficult for him by charging into our room regardless of his life. For now, we at least had a safe space to stay.
However, staying here wasn't a long-term solution. If fighting broke out later, who knew what weapons would be used. Artillery shells and bullets would still be life-threatening.
We absolutely had to find a way out.
This was Bo Gang's house, and he surely would have an escape route. As long as we reasoned with him, I believed he would clearly understand his current predicament. Although he had defected to the government army, he had a history as a bandit. The government army only used him and didn't trust him that much.
I told him, "Now you must find a way for us to escape together. If a fight breaks out later, and we're stuck in this house, no one can predict the consequences. You need to think this through."
Bo Gang nodded. He probably hadn't expected things to turn out this way. He was the one who had planned to capture us, only to end up trapping himself and needing to help us escape in the end.
I removed the gag from his mouth. He took a breath and said, "There's a back door in this room. Going out through here leads to the backyard. Outside the courtyard wall, there's a small boat. We can paddle it ashore from there."
Da Kui controlled Bo Gang while Lan Ya and I went to find the door at the back.
The back door was next to the iron cage. I went over and saw it was locked with a padlock. The key was still in it.
I turned it, and the padlock opened. I opened the door and glanced around. The entire backyard seemed empty, presumably because everyone had gone to the front to set up an ambush. Da Feng Novel Network.
I whispered to Da Kui, "You guys wait by the door for a moment. I'll go scout outside."
I tentatively stepped out and walked a few paces. Finding no one, I waved to Da Kui, signaling him to come out.
Da Kui, escorting Bo Gang, walked out, with Lan Ya covering our rear.
The backyard was filled with plants, about waist-high. We bent over and moved towards the backyard door.
However, the backyard door was locked, and there was no key.
Next to the door was a small guardhouse. There must have been a dedicated person to watch it normally, but they were nowhere to be found now.
I ran into the room and searched for the key.
Inside, there was a small bed and a small table. There was nothing else in sight.
I pulled open the drawer of the small table. Inside was a set of keys, quite a few. The back door key was likely among them.
I took them out and tried them one by one. I looked for keys with letters and tried them. After trying three or four, one unlocked the door.
Outside, there was indeed a small boat, likely kept by Bo Gang as an emergency backup, but it had now become a tool for our escape.
We got onto the boat. Da Kui handed Bo Gang over to me, then picked up an oar and rowed vigorously outwards.
It was said that Da Kui had been a mercenary for the Burmese side, fighting battles against the Myanmar government army for many years. He knew how to use all sorts of weapons and had experienced all kinds of situations.
As the boat left the manor, Lan Ya held her gun, monitoring the surroundings, fearing discovery by people in the compound.
We had rowed more than halfway and still hadn't seen anyone in pursuit. The shore was getting closer, and with a little more effort, we could land.
Suddenly, two motorboats appeared on the water, kicking up waves and circling towards us from both sides. Da Kui stopped rowing and crouched on the boat with his rifle. He told us all to lie down in the boat's cabin, especially Bo Gang, making sure he didn't lift his head. Our priority now was to save his life, so we could potentially use him as a hostage to break out.
The motorboats grew closer, and we could clearly see the people on them. One was driving, and the other was holding a weapon pointed at us.
The people on the motorboats aimed their guns at us, signaling us to hand over our weapons and let them take the person.
I held my gun to Bo Gang's head, while Da Kui and Lan Ya held their guns, confronting them. The situation remained at a stalemate.
Da Kui whispered to Lan Ya, "Listen to my command. When I count to three, shoot down their gunners, then deal with the drivers."
Da Kui said, "One, two, three!"
At this moment, Bo Gang suddenly coughed. The person on the motorboat near Lan Ya suddenly accelerated, and with a swish, shot out. Lan Ya didn't have time to fire before the motorboat was hundreds of meters away.
Da Kui took care of the two people on his side. He told Lan Ya to maintain vigilance. The person who had escaped had fallen into the water. He used his oar to hook the motorboat closer, then told me to pull Bo Gang up, preparing to get him onto the boat.
Bo Gang reluctantly got up, dawdling and refusing to step out. The boat was already unstable, rocking back and forth. He tried several times but couldn't get onto it.
Just then, the motorboat that had escaped turned back and headed straight for our small boat. Da Kui said, "Hua Zi, Lan Ya, get on quickly. This is taking too long. If we delay further, none of us will be able to escape."
I let go of Bo Gang and jumped onto the motorboat. Lan Ya, holding her gun, sat in the back. Lan Ya aimed at Bo Gang, preparing to send him to his maker, but discovered the motorboat was already upon them. Lan Ya had no choice but to give up. Da Kui then increased the throttle and quickly sped away from the small boat.
The motorboat did not pursue us but went to the small boat to rescue Bo Gang.
With no pursuers behind us, Da Kui told us to hold on to each other tightly and raced towards a shore on the other side of the manor. There were dense bushes here. After the motorboat docked, the few of us ran ashore and hid among the bushes, observing our surroundings for any enemy presence.