Yang Jian did not take Ma Yuan's confusion to heart; it was merely a matter of delivering a gift and having a meal.
Ma Yuan found the situation a bit unusual, so the next morning at work, he approached Fang Hai.
"Brother Hai, it's Brother Cheng's child's first birthday. Should we also send a gift?"
"Let's give two hundred yuan. It's already been agreed that all the brothers who follow Brother Cheng will give two hundred."
"Brother Hai, I remember Brother Cheng's child was born in October. Why is it their first birthday now?"
"I don't know either. Brother Cheng told me his wife wanted to return to her hometown, so they're having a banquet here in advance."
Fang Hai's explanation seemed plausible, but Ma Yuan still felt something was off.
After much thought, Ma Yuan mentioned it to Jun Jun, who also found it strange and had some suspicions.
June 8th.
Just as it turned eleven, Yang Jian greeted Afeng and others before setting off alone by car. The drive from Prince Hotel to Xintai Entertainment City would take half an hour without traffic.
Forty minutes later, Yang Jian arrived at Prince Hotel. After parking his car at the hotel's entrance, he saw Ma Yuan waving at him.
"Xiao Yuan, you're quite early."
Yang Jian walked towards him with a smile, holding the red envelope containing two thousand yuan.
"Brother Yang, why are you here alone?"
Ma Yuan looked behind him, seeing no other vehicles, and asked curiously.
"Can you bring people to a wedding banquet?"
"No, I just think it's not safe for you to come out alone."
"What's unsafe when everyone here is from the Xichuan Gang?"
As they chatted, they walked to the hotel entrance and saw Fang Zhicheng greeting guests at the door, while Fang Hai handed out cigarettes to the guests.
"Brother Cheng, congratulations, congratulations. There was some traffic on the way, so I'm not too late, am I?"
Yang Jian smiled and handed over the red envelope.
Fang Zhicheng's smile was a little stiff. "Thank you, Xiao Yang. You're not late at all; the guests haven't all arrived yet."
Fang Hai came over and offered him a cigarette. Yang Jian took it and prepared to go inside.
After only a few steps, Fang Zhicheng caught up from behind and walked into the hall alongside him.
"Xiao Yang, show your face in the banquet hall and then find an excuse to leave immediately. It's dangerous inside. I'll explain later. Be careful on your way back too."
Fang Zhicheng's eyes were fixed ahead, but his mouth spoke rapidly, reminding Yang Jian. This was his only way to not offend either side, allowing Yang Jian to appear at the banquet while also warning him to be prepared. Whether Yang Jian could escape the pursuit depended on his luck.
Yang Jian froze, then recalled Ma Yuan's doubts. It turned out this was a Hongmen Banquet, a trap set specifically for him.
The banquet hall had forty to fifty tables, with more than half of them occupied, estimating around three hundred people, all young men.
"Mr. Yang, this way please."
Upon entering the banquet hall, Fang Zhicheng made a guiding gesture and kept giving Yang Jian meaningful glances.
Yang Jian knew he couldn't go any further. He took out his phone and pretended to make a call.
"Hello, Brother Zheng. I'm drinking at Prince Hotel. Do you have any instructions?"
Yang Jian spoke loudly as he walked towards the exit.
"What did you say? Afeng had a car accident? Then I'll be back immediately."
As he spoke, Yang Jian had already retreated to the entrance of the banquet hall. He saw four or five people standing in the middle, staring in his direction. He knew he had escaped the first hurdle.
If he had taken a few more steps forward, he might have been attacked by dozens or even hundreds of people and been chopped into pieces.
"Brother Cheng, one of my brothers had a serious car accident. I have to rush over immediately. I'm sorry, but I can't stay for the banquet."
"It's alright, it's alright. Saving lives is important. Go quickly. I'll invite you for a drink separately later."
"Okay, goodbye."
Without hesitation, Yang Jian turned and left. However, he didn't appear too panicked, just quickened his pace. He would be safe once he got into his car.
"Brother Yang, are you leaving? Not staying for a drink?"
Fang Hai, who was handing out cigarettes at the door, didn't understand the situation and offered him another cigarette.
"I have something urgent to attend to. I won't be drinking."
Yang Jian took the cigarette and quickly exited the hotel. He could already feel someone chasing him from behind.
Fortunately, there was no one intercepting him in the parking lot. He jogged to his bulletproof car, opened the door, and looked around. He saw more than a dozen people coming out of the hotel, looking in his direction, and someone shouting into a walkie-talkie.
It wasn't safe here yet. Yang Jian got into the driver's seat, quickly started the car, reversed, shifted gears, and stepped on the accelerator. The bulletproof car drove out of the hotel parking lot.
At the same time, a black commercial van started up in a corner of the parking lot and followed the bulletproof car at a distance of about fifty meters.
After leaving the parking lot, Yang Jian breathed a sigh of relief. It had been too dangerous. Fang Zhicheng must have been coerced into organizing this assassination attempt, but he couldn't bear to see Yang Jian ambushed, so he had given him a last-minute warning.
Just as Yang Jian was congratulating himself on escaping death, a loud bang came from behind him. His car flew up, tumbled twice in the air, and then crashed heavily into the central reservation of the road, with its four wheels spinning upwards.
It turned out that a heavy-duty truck, without a trailer, had hit the bulletproof car, which had just entered the main road, at a speed of about 100 kilometers per hour, sending it flying.
The truck was severely damaged and continued for another forty to fifty meters before stopping. The driver seemed to be injured and slumped over the steering wheel, not getting out.
Yang Jian, inside the bulletproof car, was unharmed. The moment the car was hit, airbags deployed from multiple directions, enveloping him.
The Volvo vehicles were known for their safety, and this was a bulletproof car. Despite the violent impact, the car body was not significantly damaged, and most importantly, the safety of the occupants was effectively protected.
Although unharmed, Yang Jian couldn't get out. He was upside down inside the car, trapped by the airbags and unable to move. He needed external rescue.
This sudden accident blocked traffic. Many people got out of their cars to help the injured, while others called the police for an ambulance.
Suddenly, a white sedan sped to the side of the green belt where the bulletproof car had landed. A man wearing a black baseball cap and a mask got out, pulled out a Type 54 pistol, and fired repeatedly at the bulletproof car's driver's side window.
"Bang, bang, bang."
Three consecutive shots. The bullets failed to penetrate the glass. The man was somewhat taken aback; he had not expected it to be a bulletproof car.
Without time to reconsider, the man decided to empty his magazine. He knew the power of the Type 54 pistol; two consecutive shots at close range to the same spot could penetrate bulletproof glass.
"Bang."
The fourth shot rang out. The bulletproof glass had already developed large cracks. One more shot would kill the person inside.
Yang Jian watched helplessly from inside as the gunman fired at him with impunity. As the glass shattered, he felt death approaching for the first time.