Two SWAT officers, already a step behind Sui Yuesheng, had been clearing obstacles for him. They hurriedly arrived, guns in hand to offer support. However, upon assessing the situation, they froze, afraid to make any move that might provoke the kidnappers and lead to harm for the hostage.

If this had taken place on the ground, the snipers would have taken out the kidnappers one by one long ago, leaving no room for them to strut around like this.

The SWAT officers were resentfully thinking along these lines.

Sui Yuesheng forced himself to take a deep breath, repeatedly telling himself to stay calm. He clenched his teeth so tightly that they ached, and the muscles in his face twitched slightly. Yet his grip on the gun remained steady, as if he were back at the shooting range, facing the familiar targets he had encountered countless times.

Moments later, he spoke, his voice surprisingly calm: “Zhao Jiayang, what exactly do you want?”

Zhao Jiayang narrowed his eyes slightly, his gaze sweeping over the people in the room before looking outside at the scene. The police had made thorough preparations, and his men outside the room had suffered heavy casualties. Now, only the mute and Gray Bear remained by his side.

Zhao Jiayang knew the situation was dire, but when he turned his gaze back to Sui Yuesheng, he remained composed. “Have your men retreat. We’ll talk alone.”

“Alone?” Sui Yuesheng slowly repeated the word.

“Alone,” Zhao Jiayang replied in a low voice. “Your men leave, and so will mine.”

The two SWAT officers and Tao Fengche all stiffened.

Tao Fengche, with a gun pressed to his forehead, didn’t dare make any large movements. He could only desperately signal to Sui Yuesheng with his eyes, urging him to refuse. Unbeknownst to Tao Fengche, urgent words from Guan Hui were also coming through Sui Yuesheng’s earpiece.

“Sui Yuesheng, I know you’re worried about Tao Fengche’s safety, and I know the situation on your end is critical, but you absolutely cannot agree to these terms. This is the kidnappers’ territory; who knows what tricks they might pull or what backup plans they have? You need to stay calm and stall for time until I can…”

Before Guan Hui could finish, Sui Yuesheng had already reached out and turned off the radio.

Silence returned to his ears. Sui Yuesheng looked at Tao Fengche, noticing the worry and anxiety in his eyes. After a moment, he gave a reassuring smile and mouthed, “Don’t be afraid.”

Tao Fengche closed his eyes, knowing that Sui Yuesheng had made up his mind—if he could take advice from others, he wouldn’t be Sui Yuesheng.

Sui Yuesheng turned to Zhao Jiayang, pursed his lips as if calculating the odds, and finally spoke: “Alright.”

“You two should retreat and assist Captain Guan,” he said to the SWAT officers beside him. “I can handle things here.”

The SWAT officers wanted to persuade him further but, knowing they couldn’t argue with this stubborn family member of the hostage, reluctantly, they withdrew, guns still aimed at Zhao Jiayang and his men, fingers on the triggers as they retreated. When they had moved ten meters away, Zhao Jiayang waved his hand.

Gray Bear moved to the back of the room, feeling around the wall before pressing something. A mechanical sound rang out, and a hidden passageway appeared. Gray Bear glanced at Zhao Jiayang before entering, disappearing from sight.

After the SWAT officers had retreated thirty meters, Zhao Jiayang took the gun from the mute man, who had been pressing it against Tao Fengche’s forehead. Zhao Jiayang then tilted his head slightly.

The mute man stood still for a while, clenched his teeth, nodded at Zhao Jiayang, and also entered the secret passage.

Now only three people remained in the room. The room grew silent. Sui Yuesheng and Zhao Jiayang stared at each other, neither speaking, as if engaged in a strange game where the first to talk would lose.

Minutes later, Tao Fengche suddenly let out a muffled sound, struggling as if trying to say something. Zhao Jiayang glanced at him, then pulled the gag from his mouth.

Tao Fengche coughed a few times, his brain slightly deprived of oxygen. Yet, he felt strangely clear-headed.

He kept his gaze fixed straight ahead on Sui Yuesheng, but his words were directed at Zhao Jiayang: “Was my father’s death related to you?”

There was little emotion in his voice, but the weight of his words was heavy. He bit down hard on the inside of his cheek, tasting blood.

Zhao Jiayang was silent for a moment before letting out a bitter laugh.

In his laughter, Tao Fengche could hear suppressed pain and anger. He felt the gun barrel at his temple shift ever so slightly, and his heart leapt into his throat. But in the next instant, the gun steadied once more.

“He was killed by his own arrogance and stubbornness. I just gave him a push.”

Tao Fengche felt a cold chill run through his body, as if his heart had frozen momentarily. His blood seemed to slow, and he could almost hear the sound of ice shards clashing within his veins.

He had never imagined that the scenario he had once dismissed as absurd and impossible was actually true.

Even before asking, he had refused to believe it.

Yet now, with Zhao Jiayang’s gun pressed to his temple, how could he still harbor such foolish hopes?

Tao Fengche loathed himself for his poor judgment and indecision, but at the same time, he felt a sense of bewilderment.

If Zhao Jiayang was indeed the traitor, the man responsible for his father’s death, then who was the “uncle” he had known?

Had the past seventeen years, that “family,” all been a lie?

“Why?” he croaked, stubbornly demanding an answer from Zhao Jiayang.

Zhao Jiayang remained silent, his smile fading until it became barely perceptible.

Everything was clear without words. Tao Fengche didn’t know what more he could say, or even if there was anything left to say.

Anger and despair washed over him. Zhao Jiayang’s scent of white tea, which had once been so comforting, now made him feel nauseous.

Tao Fengche looked away from Sui Yuesheng, staring at the concrete floor in a daze, as if he were seeing the dust on its surface or something else entirely.

Sui Yuesheng had silently watched their exchange for long enough. Finally, he couldn’t hold back any longer and coldly interjected, “Are you done talking? Zhao Jiayang, what exactly do you want?”

This time, Zhao Jiayang didn’t make any further demands or ask for a way out. He spoke slowly, deliberately, each word heavy with meaning: “I want a world where everyone can freely choose their secondary gender.”

“Zhao Jiayang, we’re way past the point of empty talk like that,” Sui Yuesheng scoffed, full of disdain. “Let’s get real. The people above have already been dealt with, and the ones left in the basement are just putting up a last-ditch fight. They won’t last much longer. The factory is surrounded by the SWAT team, and every high point is covered by snipers. You can’t escape.”

“If you let Tao Fengche go now, I can still guarantee that you’ll make it out of here alive and face trial. Captain Guan isn’t as lenient as I am. If you wait for him to lead an assault…”

Sui Yuesheng let the threat hang in the air without finishing his sentence.

His words were filled with menace, but Zhao Jiayang seemed to find them amusing. He raised an eyebrow and broke into uncontrollable laughter.

He laughed so hard that tears streamed from his eyes, yet the gun remained firmly pressed to Tao Fengche’s temple, showing no sign of weakness.

“Sui Yuesheng, do you think I’m afraid of that?” Zhao Jiayang wiped the tears from his eyes with his free hand, shaking his head. “I never planned to leave this place alive.”

Both Tao Fengche and Sui Yuesheng were shocked by the underlying meaning of those words, but Zhao Jiayang wasn’t finished.

“Xiao Che is a good kid…” he murmured slowly.

Sui Yuesheng kept a close watch on Zhao Jiayang, not missing a single movement. Just then, Zhao Jiayang’s hand holding the gun trembled ever so slightly.