Chapter 59: Capturing Your Woman

"I..."
Zhang He swallowed hard, caught in a very difficult dilemma.
If he agreed, he would be putting himself in mortal danger.
And by the look of things, his fate would be far worse than the director's.
On the other hand, if he refused, it would mean he was unwilling to save the man.
In any other profession, that might be fine, but he was a military man—and a commanding officer at that. Such a refusal would never command respect or obedience from his subordinates.
Just as he was torn between the two choices, a woman suddenly stepped out from the crowd.
Judging by her uniform, she was an adjutant.
She walked up to Zhang He and whispered a few words into his ear.
Zhang He's eyes instantly lit up. He raised his head and said to Shen Xing with renewed confidence:
"I cannot agree to your demands endlessly. Besides, the old director would never allow me to do this. He would rather endure all of this himself than let anyone else fall into your clutches. If you don't believe me, ask the director if that is what he means."
Shen Xing raised an eyebrow, casting a deep, piercing glance at the woman standing behind Zhang He.
"Oh? Is that so?"
What else could the old director say? His rescue now depended entirely on Zhang He, so he could only nod reluctantly.
"Fine then. For the sake of your clever adjutant, I won't make things difficult for you. Let's get down to business. The old director really cannot hold on much longer."
Zhang He breathed a sigh of relief. "You should have been this reasonable to begin with!"
"Hah. Let me ask you this: Bai Wei is injured and needs surgery. The hospital clearly has the conditions to perform the operation immediately, yet they told her it was impossible. Were you the one pulling strings behind the scenes?"
Shen Xing asked directly.
"What are you talking about? I don't understand, and absolutely no such thing happened."
Zhang He denied it instantly.
"Yet I heard that the two of you were once lovers, and even came within a hair's breadth of walking down the aisle. However, because someone behaved improperly on the wedding day and was quite unluckily caught by the bride-to-be, it all ended in a messy fiasco. Wouldn't you hate her for bringing such utter humiliation upon you? In my view, you had every motive to exact revenge."
Bai Ying, standing among the crowd, had wanted to rush forward and expose Zhang He's lies just moments ago.
However, because Shen Xing had taken over the conversation so quickly, she missed her chance.
Hearing Shen Xing's question now, a strange feeling welled up in Bai Ying's heart.
Because asking it this way meant no one in their right mind would ever confess.
She couldn't quite fathom why Shen Xing was dragging things out in such a leisurely manner.
What if he delayed until the old director died? Then his sole bargaining chip would be gone.
Surrounded by so many guns pointed at him, wouldn't it all be over?
While she was deep in thought, Zhang He had already replied with a calm expression, continuing his denial:
"I don't know where you heard such rumors, but it was that woman herself who behaved improperly and was caught by me. It was only out of regard for our past relationship that I chose not to broadcast it widely. But how did she repay me? Not only was she ungrateful for my discretion, but she even turned things around and splashed dirty water all over me. I originally didn't want to explain any of this, but since this is your reason for doing all this, I must tell you: you've been deceived by that wicked woman! Just like I was in the beginning."
Shen Xing listened very intently, a look of sudden realization dawning on him.
Then he began to look conflicted again, seemingly unable to decide which side he should believe.
Bai Ying watched in utter astonishment, thinking to herself: *Surely you don't actually believe that bastard's lies? The other party isn't even here to confront him face-to-face, so doesn't that mean whatever he says goes?*
After a while, amid Bai Ying's anxiety, Shen Xing finally stopped pondering, looking as though he had reached a conclusion.
His gaze softened considerably as he looked at Zhang He, and he said with a smile:
"No wonder I always felt like I was being played; it turns out I was tricked. But I have one more small question. From what I've heard, that incident happened not too long ago, right? Only about two or three months ago. During this time, Officer, have you sought out any new romance?"
Zhang He replied coldly:
"Of course not. I was deeply wounded by that woman. Therefore, I have had no thoughts of starting a new relationship in the short term."
Before he could even finish his sentence, the woman standing behind him suddenly changed facial expression.
She tried to stop him, but it was already too late.
At that moment, she couldn't help shivering.
A chill rising from the depths of her soul swept through her entire body.
"An officer truly is a good man; what a pity that you met the wrong person. Very well, for the sake of your deep sentimentality, I've decided not to kill the old director. I can let him go, but you must agree to one condition. You can understand this, right? Nobody wants to die. I can release him, but I cannot allow myself to be captured by you all. Therefore, I need a new hostage. Rest assured, I will only use her to ensure my safe departure. Once I leave the military camp, I will let her return."
"Do you really think you can escape alive just by leaving the camp? You'd be better off giving up resistance right now. If you do, I guarantee I'll push for the lightest possible sentence."
Zhang He was slightly worried that Shen Xing would demand him again, so he couldn't help issuing a warning.
"That's my concern. After leaving the camp, if I die by your hands, I won't hate you at all. I would only blame my own incompetence. I'll give you three seconds to consider. Don't worry, I won't choose you; I just need an ordinary soldier."
"Then... fine. I agree. Choose someone."
Zhang He compromised.
"I want her."
Without the slightest hesitation, Shen Xing pointed directly at the woman standing behind Zhang He.
"No, anyone but her."
Zhang He was startled, but refused immediately.
"Say the word 'no' again, and I'll kill the old director right now, then detonate myself. I have a liquid explosive implanted inside me, and its power is enough to blow up everyone in this place. Ever since I came here, I've wanted to make it back alive, and now that I finally have the will to live, do not push me."
Shen Xing grew frantic, roaring like a madman.
This drastic change startled Zhang He.
He couldn't understand why the gunman, who had seemed so rational all along, had suddenly snapped.
With no other choice, he could only glance back at the woman.
His attitude was clear: he wanted her to help.
The woman sighed, finally understanding Shen Xing's true intention.
However, by now, she had no way to warn Zhang He.
Shen Xing's current mental state appeared extremely unstable, and she wasn't sure if provoking him further might actually trigger an explosion.
"Fine, I agree. I'll take the director's place."
After a moment of hesitation, the woman stepped forward.
Since Zhang He had not admitted to starting a new romance earlier, her official status could only remain that of an adjutant.
As the commanding officer, Zhang He had no grounds to insist that someone else swap places with her.
"That's much better. Get over here."
Shen Xing snorted and said.
The woman hurried over, stopping right in front of the two men.
"It seems your luck is truly not bad. You should thank this person properly, understand?"
With a cold sneer, Shen Xing kicked the old director sprawling away, then, taking advantage of the moment the woman reached out to pull the director up, he grabbed her, completing the final step of the hostage exchange.