"Commander, you must give the order quickly, or he will escape," Qi Yong whispered to Lu Ziqing.
Lu Ziqing was right at the entrance of the school, his back almost an entire row of armed soldiers; but without his command, no one dared to make a move.
When Duan Shen saw Lu Ziqing arrive on the scene, he spoke to Song Lili as if it were just casual chat,
"Commander Lu arrived too quickly. It looks like you’ll have to accompany me in death."
"Duan Shen, release this female student and surrender yourself. When the time comes in military court, I will plead for you, letting you die with some dignity!" Lu Ziqing spoke with a gravely voice.
Duan Shen suddenly laughed, and after finishing, he called out to Lu Ziqing,
"Brother! Don’t you know me by now? I’d rather be riddled with your bullets like a hornet’s nest than surrender. Besides, with such a young beauty to accompany me, dying is quite worth it!"
"Duan Shen, you’re under my watch; you don’t still think you could escape, do you?"
"Before you arrived, I was confident I could get away, but once you did, I stopped thinking about escaping."
Duan Shen spoke leisurely,
"After all, between the life of this little beauty and national stability, military reputation, Brother would undoubtedly choose the latter without hesitation. Brother is famously impartial and would never lose the bigger picture over something small."
Duan Shen’s words left Song Lili somewhat at a loss.
If Lu Ziqing really did as Duan Shen said, disregarding her safety to bring Duan Shen to justice at this very moment...
Her life would indeed just serve as a funeral companion for Duan Shen.
But even if Lu Ziqing did so, Song Lili had nothing to complain about...
In the face of national interest, social stability, and military reputation, her personal gains and losses, her life, simply did not matter.
Her life meant nothing in front of Lu Ziqing, nothing in front of Wen Nian, nothing in the eyes of all those in power, those above her.
There was no difference between them... not really...
While Duan Shen and Lu Ziqing talked, Duan Shen didn’t stop moving; he kept walking step by step towards the exit.
Lu Ziqing glared at Duan Shen, eyes almost bleeding with intensity!
The hand holding the dagger, the veins popping, never relaxed for a moment.
"Commander, if the order isn’t given now, it will really be too late..." Qi Yong urged.
He wasn’t indifferent to Song Lili’s life and death; he simply trusted the snipers from their unit more, believing they could take out Duan Shen while saving the hostage.
Lu Ziqing raised his hand to silence Qi Yong.
Qi Yong pressed his lips tightly. What kind of officer Lu Ziqing was, Qi Yong understood better than Duan Shen. He agreed wholeheartedly with what Duan Shen had just said.
The hostage’s life was indeed important, but it was more important to bring such an utterly wicked criminal to justice.
The military had secretly dispatched countless teams to capture Duan Shen, all to no avail. Having finally waited for Duan Shen to show himself,
Considering what Duan Shen had done today, if he were allowed to slip through their fingers now, there was no telling how many innocents would suffer in the future.
Wasn’t their Commander Lu, who at a young age had risen to such a high position, known for his decisive action, his steadfast resolve?
The Xilin insurgency had already alarmed the President, and the higher-ups had put considerable pressure on the Xilin Military Region; if Lu Ziqing let emotions affect his judgment and released Duan Shen now...
The medals that Xilin soldiers had earned with their blood would probably become worthless!
Ordering a sniper strike would be the wisest decision at this moment.
As for whether Duan Shen would be hit with one hundred percent certainty, whether he might sever Song Lili’s carotid artery with the force of being hit, that would be up to the sniper to decide.
Yet, Lu Ziqing’s order did not come.
Everyone held their breath, fixated. The snipers struggled internally with whether to act without orders.
As Duan Shen neared Lu Ziqing, he subtly increased the pressure on his hand just a bit, and blood immediately began to flow from Song Lili’s neck!
"Fall back! Make way!"