The hooligan from the People's Mediation Committee molesting Fu Xinran was touching Wang Zhuo's inverse scale, just as Wang Zhuo smashing the pyramid scheme den and even taking surveillance footage and seizing the ledger had touched the bottom line of the local interest groups.

At this juncture, it was no longer a matter of high-ranking provincial or municipal leaders calling Qian Qingfeng to demand Wang Zhuo's safety be maintained; rather, it was Qian Qingfeng hoping Wang Zhuo wouldn't be safe, demanding Wang Zhuo not be safe, ordering his subordinates to make Wang Zhuo unsafe!

What Wang Zhuo currently held in his hands was not just the official positions of Qian Qingfeng and the others, but potentially their entire family fortune, their very lives! Qian Qingfeng and the rest genuinely did not want to move against Wang Zhuo, but Wang Zhuo had gone too far, too overtly; they truly could not tolerate it any longer. Even if it meant facing reprimand from provincial or municipal leaders afterward, even if it cost them their careers, they were resolved to deal with Wang Zhuo first, consequences be damned!

Had Wang Zhuo gone too far? In the eyes of Qian Qingfeng and his cohort, the answer was obvious. We personally went to ensure your safety, yet you not only refused our goodwill, but now you are deliberately standing in direct opposition. Isn't that simply courting death?

But from Wang Zhuo's perspective, it was an entirely different story. Your Tianlu County is riddled with pyramid scheme dens, more numerous than retail shops—how many ignorant and innocent people have you swindled? As leaders, what exactly are you employed to do? Why should I, of all people, show any courtesy to a bunch of corrupt officials like you?

Their mindsets were diametrically opposed, so their actions became a direct collision course. After smashing the pyramid scheme den, Wang Zhuo took the first-hand evidence and set off on the road. Meanwhile, under the subtle direction of acting county magistrate Qian Qingfeng, Public Security Bureau Chief Li Donglei dispatched "unidentified" armed criminals to intercept Wang Zhuo on the necessary route out of Tianlu County with lethal force!

"Alright, stop crying now."

"That kind of person isn't worth a tear from you."

The commercial van sped along. In the vehicle, Wang Zhuo sat on the last row next to Fu Xinran, trying to comfort the tear-streaked girl.

Lu Weimin sat in the co-pilot seat, and Siyuan was also in the front row of the van, deliberately keeping a distance from the pair to give them some relative quiet and privacy.

After a long while, Fu Xinran finally managed to stop crying. Wiping her face with a tissue, she spoke with deep grievance, "I don't want to cry either, but the tears just won't stop flowing."

Seeing her distinct dark eyes swollen from crying, Wang Zhuo felt a surge of pity, cursed Ji Guang again inwardly, and said with a faint smile, "It's better that you broke up. This incident helped you see his true colors. If he never trusted you, that distrust would have erupted sooner or later even if you got married. This way, it’s better a short pain than a long one."

Fu Xinran nodded slightly, then sighed again. After this period, she had also come to understand; today's events, while accidental, contained an element of inevitability. Ji Guang was clearly not a broad-minded person, and this conflict had exposed the pettiness hidden deep within his heart. His prejudice, suspicion, and arrogance were all magnified and displayed. A broken mirror is hard to mend—Fu Xinran had now seen past Ji Guang's facade; even if he returned immediately, kneeling and begging her, she would never accept him again.

"I truly was blind," she said with a bitter laugh, licking her lips, which were salty from tears. "He's not nearly as excellent as I used to think. Why was I so foolish before?"

"Who hasn't done foolish things?" Wang Zhuo chuckled. "When I was little, I used to pee in the dirt and play with mud. I didn't think it was silly then, but looking back now, it was really foolish." Fu Xinran finally managed a watery smile. "That's a different matter; I'm an adult." Wang Zhuo smiled and shook his head, pointing to the area of his brain. "The more adult you are, the more rigid you become here, the less receptive. Sometimes, you're not as smart as you were in childhood."

His words prompted a period of silent contemplation from Fu Xinran. Recalling the shared moments of their childhood, she remained silent for a long time before finally letting out a wistful sigh.

"Boss, can I borrow your phone for a moment?" she suddenly blurted out.

"What for?" Wang Zhuo asked casually as he handed the phone over.

Fu Xinran took the phone, quickly found a song in the player, pressed play, tapped Si Yuan on the back, and handed the phone to her. "Help me connect this to the car's amplifier, okay?" "Do you remember the dreams of youth, like a flower that never withers?" "Accompanying me through the wind and rain, witnessing the impermanence of the world, seeing the ravages of time." "The price paid for love—those things are forever unforgettable." "All the sincere, heartfelt words, though he is no longer in my heart." A song composed and written by Jonathan Lee, sung by Sylvia Chang, The Price of Love, sounded leisurely inside the car. From that moment on, there was no longer him in the girl's heart.

"Perhaps I might occasionally still think of him," occasionally I can't help but remember him, just treat him like an old friend who still causes me heartache and concern..."

When love quietly departs, what remains is melancholy. Time will erase everything; this relationship will eventually fade into oblivion.

The van had already left the boundary of Tianlu County. After another ten kilometers on the provincial road, they would enter the neighboring county.

Wang Zhuo felt waves of weariness washing over him. He had recklessly overdrawn his special abilities during the frenzied confrontation earlier, and the consequences were now manifesting.

But he dared not close his eyes even for a brief rest, let alone doze off, because they were still too close to Tianlu County. Until they achieved complete safety, new situations could erupt at any moment. Based on his understanding of the darkness in society, he had every reason to believe that certain individuals in Tianlu County possessed the courage and determination to kill him before looking back. As safety loomed near, this was precisely the moment he could least afford to relax his guard.

"Are we almost there?" Lu Weimin, sitting in the co-pilot seat, kept watch on the situation behind the vehicle. He was just as alert as Wang Zhuo, though he didn't display the same carefree composure.

"Soon, just over a kilometer more," the driver said, focusing his gaze ahead. A distance of just over a kilometer was quite close; those with good eyesight could already make out vague shapes.

"Ahead, are those two cars?" he asked hesitantly while driving smoothly.

"There are two cars, stopped on the side of the road," Lu Weimin confirmed, peering intently, and nodded.

"They must be here to pick us up!" the driver exclaimed happily.

Just as he was about to shift gears and accelerate, he suddenly heard Wang Zhuo shout, "Wait! Slow down and stop immediately!" The vehicle screeched, leaving four dark skid marks on the asphalt, stopping abruptly on the roadside. Siyuan, who had been sitting cross-legged in the middle row, nearly tumbled over. If Wang Zhuo hadn't reached out in time to steady her, she would have surely sustained scrapes.

Lu Weimin quickly asked, "What's wrong, Wang Zhuo? Those two cars aren't here to meet us?"

"They aren't!" Wang Zhuo narrowed his eyes, fixing his gaze on the two vans ahead, and sneered. "Those cars belong to the Tianlu people. They couldn't bother us in the county, so they're waiting for us here."

Everyone understood immediately. They avoided confrontation in a crowded place, yet they chose this remote spot to block the way—it was clearly malicious intent!

At that moment, Wang Zhuo's gaze had already pierced through the two vans, focusing instead on three hunting rifles. These three rifles were loaded and ready, the 'gunners' holding them sporting vicious expressions. It looked like they were serious this time!

The driver asked with difficulty, "What do we do now? We're still over a kilometer from the designated spot on the map—and those two cars are completely blocking the road." "Charge through!" Siyuan excitedly waved her small fists.

Lu Weimin shook his head with a wry smile. "The road is too narrow; we can't ram through."

Hearing that a high-speed road chase was off the table, Siyuan was slightly disappointed and looked to Wang Zhuo, waiting for him to decide.

"How about we fight our way out?" Lu Weimin asked grimly, flexing his fists.

"No need," Wang Zhuo suddenly relaxed his brow, pointed towards the sky ahead, and smiled. "Look, what is that?"

"There's nothing there," the driver shaded his eyes and looked out, frowning and shaking his head.

Lu Weimin also stared intently, even wiping the windshield, then suddenly let out an "Ah."

Tap-tap, he knocked twice on the glass, then let out a startled cry. "A helicopter?!"

"A helicopter?!" Siyuan quickly leaned forward, and even Fu Xinran in the back row couldn't sit still; she stood up, moved to the second row, and leaned her hands on the back of the seat to look ahead.

"Damn, it really is a helicopter! I thought it was just a fly clinging to the glass just now!" the driver exclaimed, both exasperated and amused. "Little Lu, your eyesight is better. When you tapped the glass, did you think it was a fly too?" Lu Weimin chuckled and nodded. "Wang Zhuo has the best eyesight; we both needed the hint and still took ages to find it. He spotted it instantly." Wang Zhuo smiled and shook his head. "I knew a plane was coming—I was better prepared than you guys." "That's true," the driver nodded repeatedly, laughing. "Is this helicopter coming for us?"

Wang Zhuo hummed in affirmation, simultaneously extending his sight, using his clairvoyance to zoom in infinitely on the helicopter, immediately grasping its full appearance.

"Is that a Z-9?" Lu Weimin asked, staring intently but uncertainly.

"Yes, a Z-9, the training model," Wang Zhuo replied while counting the remaining seats inside the aircraft—one, two, three, four... only four? It turned out that besides the main and co-pilot, there were four soldiers in uniform sitting in the cabin. This Z-9 model helicopter had two rows of passenger seating, four seats per row. Since four seats were taken by the soldiers, only four seats remained for Wang Zhuo and his group.

As the helicopter drew closer and grew larger, the noise from its rotors becoming distinctly audible, Siyuan stared fixedly at the sky and murmured, "I've never ridden in a helicopter in my whole life..." Wang Zhuo nodded. "Me neither..." Fu Xinran chimed in, "Me neither." "Who hasn't?" the driver asked, torn between laughter and tears. Lu Weimin shrugged with a wry smile. "None of us have."