I See Murders Before They Happen

Chapter 226: Chapter 224: Eye Injury

Zhang Bai fled quickly.

Zhuang Yanzheng chased him all the way to a side door on the third floor of the inpatient building, grabbing his clothes just before he could get out.

Zhang Bai spun around to counterattack. He slammed his elbow down on the arm Zhuang Yanzheng was using to hold him, while simultaneously stabbing at Zhuang Yanzheng with a dagger in his other hand.

Zhuang Yanzheng dodged to the side. Zhang Bai seized the opportunity to break free and turned to run again.

Outside the side door of the inpatient building was a staircase.

Next to the stairs, there was also scaffolding. Down on the first floor, workers were preparing to climb it.

Zhuang Yanzheng blocked the fleeing Zhang Bai and shouted at the construction workers, "Police business! Get out of here now!"

He was worried that if Zhang Bai ran down, he would take the two of them as hostages.

Hearing the shout, the two men downstairs immediately ran off.

As Zhuang Yanzheng and Zhang Bai fought in the narrow space on the stairwell, a car suddenly pulled up downstairs.

Two men got out of the car and ran up the stairs.

The one-on-one fight became a one-on-three.

Fighting their way from the third floor down to the second, Zhuang Yanzheng managed to cuff one of the men to the second-floor staircase.

Seeing that one of his men had been cuffed, Zhang Bai dodged aside, shoved his other accomplice forward, and jumped directly from the second floor.

Zhuang Yanzheng swiftly took down the man in front of him and immediately jumped from the second floor as well, in pursuit of Zhang Bai.

Zhang Bai reached the car, intending to drive away and escape.

But as Zhang Bai reached for the door handle, Zhuang Yanzheng pressed the lock button on the key fob, locking the car. He had just taken the keys from the man he’d taken down.

Even though he heard the click of the locks, Zhang Bai tried the handle in disbelief. When it wouldn’t open, he kicked the door in frustration.

Zhuang Yanzheng ran up and landed a heavy punch.

Blood instantly appeared at the corner of Zhang Bai’s mouth. Enduring the pain, he struck back, and Zhuang Yanzheng took a hit as well.

He turned his head and spat out a mouthful of blood, then threw a kick. Zhang Bai dodged to the side, and the kick slammed into the car door, denting it inwards.

The fight moved from beside the car to the scaffolding.

Zhang Bai, holding the dagger in a reverse grip, swung it wildly, striking the scaffolding with a sharp clang. Zhuang Yanzheng lunged forward, using the metal poles to trap Zhang Bai’s arm, quickly dislocating it before driving his knee into his abdomen.

The dagger fell from Zhang Bai’s hand. Zhuang Yanzheng grabbed his arm, twisted it behind his back, and slammed him against the scaffolding.

Just as he reached back for his handcuffs, Zhang Bai’s other hand suddenly threw something backward.

Zhuang Yanzheng immediately shut his eyes, but it was too late.

An instantaneous, searing pain made it impossible to open his eyes. "Fuck!"

It was chili powder, choking and blinding.

Zhuang Yanzheng swore, fighting through the intense pain and discomfort to try and cuff him, but Zhang Bai had already broken free.

Suddenly unable to see a thing, he could only rely on sound to locate his target.

But Zhang Bai’s goal was to escape.

He had lost his ability to attack and his ability to pursue; now, he could only defend.

But... after breaking free, Zhang Bai stood and watched him for two seconds. Then, he smirked and violently shook the scaffolding.

The workers had just been preparing for construction, and there were panes of glass resting on the three-story-high scaffolding.

He shook it violently, causing the scaffolding to tip over. The heavy panes of glass on top began to slide off.

Zhuang Yanzheng first heard Zhang Bai’s movement. Just as he lunged forward to grab him, he heard the sound of the scaffolding toppling.

He instinctively judged which way Zhang Bai would dodge and tried to follow him in the same direction.

But Zhang Bai had pulled out a steel pipe from the side. Under the cover of the sound of shattering glass, he swung the pipe with all his might, striking Zhuang Yanzheng squarely on the leg.

Zhuang Yanzheng dropped to one knee.

The scaffolding came crashing down on him.

Blinded, Zhuang Yanzheng had no idea which way to dodge. He reacted instantly, deciding to gamble on a forward roll—he’d just have to pick a direction and accept his fate if it didn’t work.

Just then, Su Miaoyi sprinted over, grabbed Zhuang Yanzheng, and threw his entire body out of the way.

The scaffolding collapsed. All the glass came down with it, and the sound of pane after pane shattering filled the air.

Zhuang Yanzheng hit the ground, feeling the tremors as the immense weight crashed down, and the dust that billowed up.

Having used so much force, Su Miaoyi lost her balance and rolled once on the ground.

She quickly got to her feet and first checked on Zhuang Yanzheng. The area around his eyes was completely red and swollen, but all his limbs were intact, and he didn’t seem to have any other injuries.

"I’m fine," Zhuang Yanzheng said quickly.

Su Miaoyi casually grabbed a steel pipe and took off after Zhang Bai.

Ahead was an open-air parking lot.

Zhang Bai had taken a few hits and his arm was dislocated. He was already running as fast as he could, but Su Miaoyi was too fast.

She threw the steel pipe, and it struck Zhang Bai squarely in the back.

Zhang Bai went down, face-first.

As he scrambled to his feet, trying to run again, Su Miaoyi caught up and kicked him.

He spun around, swinging a fist at her. Su Miaoyi ducked, punched him in the stomach, then straightened up and kicked him in the same spot.

Zhang Bai suddenly roared and charged forward again, fists clenched.

Su Miaoyi blocked and countered with an elbow strike. After a brief exchange, she landed a chop to his temple.

A wave of dizziness hit Zhang Bai, and Su Miaoyi kicked the back of his knee.

Zhang Bai fell to his knees. Su Miaoyi punched him in the face, and he collapsed to the ground.

Su Miaoyi caught her breath, took out her handcuffs, and cuffed his hands behind his back.

Zhang Bai lay on the ground, shouting ceaselessly.

He struggled and yelled at the same time.

Su Miaoyi raised a hand and slapped him.

He kept yelling, so she slapped him again. Her hands and clothes were covered in dried blood and dirt.

It was the blood of the injured officer.

Zhang Bai continued to scream.

Su Miaoyi tore a strip from his shirt and gagged him with it.

She shoved the cloth strip into his mouth so forcefully that Zhang Bai began to dry heave.

But at least he had stopped yelling.

She hauled him to his feet.

As she led him back, he continued to struggle relentlessly.

He was utterly defiant.

Su Miaoyi kicked him a couple more times.

Zhang Bai spat out the cloth strip. "I’m going to report you!"

Su Miaoyi shot him a look, not wanting to waste words on him. She picked up the dirt-covered strip of cloth, stuffed it back into his mouth, and dragged him along by force.

Fortunately, their colleagues from the station arrived.

Su Miaoyi handed him over to them and went to check on Zhuang Yanzheng.

The other two on the staircase had also been apprehended.

There were officers around Zhuang Yanzheng as well. The pain and numbness from the blow to his leg were starting to fade, but his eyes were still squeezed shut.

He was flushing his eyes with water while asking the person next to him about the situation upstairs in the inpatient building.

"Hospital security and our people are outside Kang Hong’s room. The injured officer is already in the operating room." Their backup had arrived quickly. "We caught three people upstairs."

"While you were chasing Zhang Bai, another three men came for Kang Hong. They’ve all been caught," Su Miaoyi said.

"No civilians were injured," the officer next to him reported.

"Understood." Zhuang Yanzheng flushed his eyes with more water, but it wasn’t helping. He still couldn’t open them.

Su Miaoyi took a look. They were even redder than when she had seen them before.

Even the skin around them was red.

"Still can’t open them?" Su Miaoyi asked, looking at him.

Zhuang Yanzheng cursed. "That son of a bitch. I don’t know where he got that chili powder, but he threw all of it in my eyes."

"Let’s go to the outpatient clinic," Su Miaoyi said, pulling him along. "Hurry up, let’s get them checked out."

Zhuang Yanzheng couldn’t see a thing, so he had no choice but to let her lead him.

"Stairs," Su Miaoyi said as she guided him into the inpatient building, planning to cut through to the clinic.

Zhuang Yanzheng lifted his foot but still stumbled.

Su Miaoyi steadied him.

"If I go blind from this, I guess I’ll really have no choice but to go home and inherit the family fortune."

"Shut up, Captain Zhuang." Su Miaoyi was too worried to be in the mood for his jokes.

Zhuang Yanzheng shut up...