Chapter 161: Luo Xing Bluffing Him

Rapid footsteps drew closer and closer. Luo Xing held her breath, watching the swaying red velvet curtain gradually come to a halt.

She was almost blending into the carriage frame, her limbs completely numb.

Through the gap, she saw those shadows walk away.

Only after a long while, when absolute silence had returned, did she extend a single finger to gently lift the hem of the curtain and peek outside.

Apart from wine bottles rolling aimlessly about, nothing else stirred.

A fierce gale blew, sending Luo Xing’s loose strands of hair flying. The main hall doors had been bolted shut, leaving her with no way back inside.

Deafening gunshots rang out from within, and Luo Xing pressed her hands over her ears.

Amidst the hurried and frantic gunfire, Luo Xing forced herself to remain completely still and silent.

Yet the gunfire drew even closer.

Leaning between the partition boards, Luo Xing listened to the approaching footsteps and slowly edged toward the side.

"Come out."

Luo Xing froze. She slowly turned her head to look.

Before she could even make out the person's face, a shadow leaped out from beside the partition, tackling the man to the ground and disarming him of the gun in his hand.

Luo Xing paused for only a single second before immediately running toward the side.

Only to be pursued even more closely by the person behind her.

A hand grabbed the corner of her clothing. "Shh."

Luo Xing turned back and was pushed by Gu Shiyan toward the lower floor.

Her eyes widened, wanting to ask Gu Shiyan why he had come out.

Clearly, however, this was no place for conversation.

The two descended in silence. Without a word, Gu Shiyan handed the small handgun he was holding to Luo Xing.

"I, I don't know how to..."

"Even bluffing will do."

So saying, Gu Shiyan unclipped his own ammunition magazine and attached it to Luo Xing's weapon. Luo Xing glanced at his attire. "Why did you change your clothes?"

"Those people are after me. With my clothes changed, it won't be as easy for them to recognize me. Don't worry."

Luo Xing met his gaze. "Liar."

"They aren't after you at all. Whose bullets are you acting as a human shield for?"

Gu Shiyan looked into Luo Xing's earnest and stubborn eyes and chuckled. "You really are getting harder and harder to fool. Knowing that I'm just here to help draw away their attention, why didn't you stay far away from me?"

"Well, alright then."

Gu Shiyan raised an eyebrow.

Luo Xing gave him a quick hug. "I'm leaving."

With that, she headed upward, tiptoeing rapidly toward the upper level without making the slightest sound.

Gu Shiyan realized that the direction she was taking led to the guest rooms—places that were indeed much easier to hide in.

He let out a sigh of relief, but feeling that something was amiss, he turned his head and saw that Luo Xing had left the gun he had just thrust into her hand right there on the floor beside his feet.

He was so exasperated he laughed. Without even a weapon to bluff with, what on earth was she planning to do?

Anticipating that Gu Shiyan wouldn't simply let her wander around outside alone, Luo Xing purposely headed toward the rooms.

Gu Shiyan quickly followed behind her, clutching the gun.

Seeing the person ahead of him walking as if her life depended on it, he quickened his pace.

Luo Xing came to a halt at a corner.

Gu Shiyan pressed his back against the wall, straining his ears to monitor the sounds around them.

He blinked at Luo Xing, silently asking why she had stopped moving.

Luo Xing looked at him and pointed toward the other side of the corner.

Then, she gave a thumbs-up.

——There were very important guests inside the rooms right there.

Gu Shiyan tilted his head.

Luo Xing curled her finger in a beckoning motion. He cautiously glanced over his shoulder before slowly pacing toward her.

"I calculated it. The professor previously led us in analyzing this cruise ship. This exact location is the steams-steady and safest part of the entire vessel. Their important guests must have been arranged to stay here long ago."

Luo Xing leaned close to his ear, whispering in a breathy voice, "As long as we have a gun and manage to take a high-ranking hostage from inside, our lives will be guaranteed."

"..." Gu Shiyan suddenly covered Luo Xing's mouth and pulled her into an adjacent corridor.

The passageway was extremely narrow, and the two of them squeezed together, concealed behind a curtain hanging over the side.

Someone spoke outside, "Boss, the cabin inspection and alarm system has been activated! We don't know who did it."

The cabin inspection and alarm system was a setup designed to monitor the operational parameters of various equipment inside the cabins in real-time. Once any parameter exceeded the normal range, it would trigger an alarm.

Luo Xing looked at Gu Shiyan, her eyes filled with questions.

Gu Shiyan nodded.

He had exchanged clothes with that researcher precisely to have him interfere with the system. After all, this was the enemy's turf; meeting force with force would only result in being smashed to pieces.

The exact spot Luo Xing had calculated happened to provide Gu Shiyan with yet another bargaining chip.

An automatic alarm would inevitably attract the police, and those men were now all scrambling to fix the system.

Consequently, the room that had just been guarded by two men was now completely unattended.

Gu Shiyan gripped the cold doorknob.

It turned.

"Who is it?" A voice demanded in German.

Upon hearing the voice, Gu Shiyan knew Luo Xing had indeed found the right place. This person was Chloe's direct superior and the true boss of the company.

Gu Shiyan opened the door. "It's me."

He stepped into view, raising his weapon to point directly at the man before him.

The boss was also armed, but having lived a life of luxury and wealth for half a lifetime, well-protected by others all along, he stared down the barrel of Gu Shiyan's gun and completely failed to remember that he ought to reach for his own weapon in defense.

"You—our interests do not conflict. I advise you to put down your gun immediately."

The man's hands were already raised to the top of his head, his eyes fixed on Gu Shiyan. "Whatever you want, I can give it to you."

"I don't want a thing. I just came to your room to dodge a few bullets."

Gu Shiyan slowly closed in on him, watching the sweat beading on the man's forehead, and smiled silently. "Aren't you going to welcome me?"

The boss wiped the sweat from his brow. With a gun pointed right at him, how could he dare not welcome him?

"Come in."

As long as they didn't take his life, anything was negotiable.

What he hadn't expected was that once Gu Shiyan entered, a woman wearing a dress would follow closely behind him.

"To still be dragging a woman along at a time like this, President Gu truly has the style your grandfather had back in the day."

Gu Shiyan made no reply; he merely looked at the empty, chilly room and curled his lips into a cold sneer. "You already know everything about Chloe's affairs, don't you? And you're still shielding her?"

Businessmen invariably placed interests above all else.

He spread his hands. "She makes money for me, so she's a good employee. Of those who have climbed to this position, how many have clean hands?"

Before they could even enjoy a brief moment of quiet, a loud explosion echoed from outside.

Chloe had managed to track them down here as well.

A bullet flew forward completely unhindered, missing its mark by a fraction and shattering the window pane beside Gu Shiyan's ear.

Glass exploded and splintered everywhere.

"Gu Shiyan, you orchestrated all of this, didn't you? You brought those people here just to deal with Gu Ming?"

Chloe sneered. "This isn't back home. Do you think you can do whatever you please just because you want to?"

Both of them held guns, yet neither raised their weapon to point at the other.

"Chloe, such a brilliant path is laid out right before you. All those actions were carried out by you, while the one sitting safely behind the scenes reaping the benefits was Gu Ming. As long as you pin all those matters onto him, and since you're abroad while he can't touch you..."