Chapter Eighty-Six: The Final Step

Robert glanced at the list. It was all machinery that could be acquired without too much trouble in this era. Barely able to contain his excitement, he said, “Forgive my frankness, but none of these things are a problem. Give me two months and I can get them for you. But you should understand that even if I do obtain them, I have no way of delivering them to your mountain stronghold.”

Yang Xiaolin replied, “That’s none of your concern. You only need to bring them to Fengtian, and I’ll find a way to take possession of the goods there. As for any extra expense caused by the trouble, you need not worry about that either. The question now is whether Mr. Robert is willing to do business with me.”

If it had been anyone else, he would have hesitated at this point. But Robert did not. He was a scoundrel through and through, and for money he would do anything. With that almost fervent look in his eyes, he grabbed another bundle of British pounds and said, “To be honest, I don’t know you at all. But none of that matters. So long as there’s money to be made, I can’t think of any reason to refuse you.”

Yang Xiaolin smiled. He walked over, picked up a bundle of banknotes, and stuffed it into Robert’s arms. “This is the deposit. I think I ought to find a way to let Mr. Robert walk out of here, to escape from my grasp like a hero, rather than being bought out. That would better suit your uniqueness. You’ve always been an unusual man, haven’t you?”

Robert blinked.

Yang Xiaolin leaned close to his ear and said softly, “Better yet, you should accidentally save one or two people on the way out. That would make everything perfect.”

Robert nodded hurriedly. “You’ve said it exactly right!”

That night, after ten o’clock, the Qing soldiers and the foreigners outside were all guarding lazily. The smooth progress of the negotiations had made everything seem calm and uneventful. As in the previous few days, nothing was expected to happen at this hour. Most of the reporters had already gone home, and the few who still remained on site were sitting aside, chatting and laughing easily. Only if money went in could people come out; only if people came out could there be news to report. No money had gone in today, so there was bound to be no news.

From the room outside the alley entrance, voices of argument could be heard from time to time. The foreign dignitaries were discussing how to eliminate Yang the Ghost, that beast. He had made them lose all face. The ministers were still in his hands, and they had to be careful not to act rashly. But once the ministers were safe, the foreigners would absolutely not allow Yang Xiaolin to return to Wheel Mountain in peace.

On the one hand, they were paying to ransom the hostages; on the other, they were speculating about what means Yang Xiaolin would ultimately use to extricate himself, so they could devise a targeted plan to bring Yang the Ghost to justice. Their greatest advantage was that they had ample manpower and resources at their disposal. So whenever they thought of a possibility, they could immediately begin making arrangements, even if that possibility might never occur.

Just as the British officer was thinking about setting up another line of defense in the Jehol area, a sudden burst of gunfire rang out inside the Zhao family compound. He was truly startled and sprang to his feet. “What happened? Are they killing people again?”

Zai Feng’s expression also changed. One had to know that there were not many hostages left inside now. If the bandits really were killing people, it might be another minister dying. Moreover, the gunfire was continuous and deafening. Could those men really be going on a killing spree?

The death of one minister from the Austro-Hungarian Empire had already caused enough trouble. The Austro-Hungarian Empire had remained silent only because the other foreigners were still hoping the Qing court would secure the safe return of their ministers through negotiations. Once this matter was over, the Austro-Hungarian Empire would surely pressure the Qing government. Neither the court nor the officials had any countermeasure for this, and even the Empress Dowager had no idea how to soothe Austro-Hungarian anger. If another man died, or if matters grew worse, then things might truly become irretrievable.

Before they could even discuss it, several of them immediately shoved open the door and ran out in a line, rushing to the gate of the Zhao compound and ordering their own men to stand ready. Before anyone could react, a figure suddenly dropped from the top of the wall and crashed heavily to the ground with a thud. Then a second figure leaped up onto the wall. A row of bullets struck beside him from within. He let out a muffled grunt, paused only briefly, and still managed to tumble over the wall.

The man who had come out first was already scrambling to his feet. “I am Minister Jasri of Spain! Hurry and save me!”

Only then did the British officer react. With a wave of his hand he shouted, “Protect the minister! Hurry!”

A squad of British soldiers dashed forward at once, forming a human wall in front of Jasri. The man behind him also ran up, though his steps were unsteady, as if he had been wounded.

A bandit suddenly appeared on top of the wall. He raised his rifle and fired another shot at the man behind, but missed.

The reason the British Empire could dominate the world in this era was not without cause. Seeing that the man was in danger, the British officer did not hesitate to draw his pistol and fire at the bandit on the wall. At the same time, several soldiers rushed forward. Two of them supported Robert and quickly withdrew toward their own side. Every movement was executed with excellent coordination, revealing fine military discipline.

When Minister Jasri reached the safe area, the Spaniards were truly overjoyed. The embassy staff hurried over to support him, handing him tea and water. The reporters also crowded in. This was far too shocking! Jasri was the first minister to come out of the Zhao compound, and astonishingly, he had done so at a moment no one had expected, by a method no one had expected. What a headline! The front page tomorrow morning was guaranteed!

Camera flashes kept going off. Reporters, unconcerned that Jasri was still shaken, all hoped to get the story first-hand.

“Minister Jasri, did you escape from the hands of those bandits?”

“Minister Jasri, can you tell us what is happening inside right now?”

“Your Excellency, did those bandits subject you to any inhuman treatment?”

Jasri still seemed as if he were dreaming. Just now he had only wanted to go to the latrine, only to discover that Robert was preparing to flee. Robert had fashioned a simple ladder from two wooden planks and told him that as long as they could get close to the wall, they could use it to climb up and over.

At the time, Jasri thought Robert had gone mad. But then the bandits charged at them, and Robert bolted. Jasri did not want to run, but the bandits seemed to have decided that he and Robert were accomplices and opened fire on him, so he had no choice but to run.

Perhaps it was God’s blessing, for they actually made it to the wall. There, Robert set up the ladder and even boosted Jasri up onto the wall first. And just like that, he was out!

Everything had happened too suddenly, too intensely, so intense that Jasri could scarcely believe he had actually come out. He even felt that perhaps he was only dreaming. His hands were still trembling, and he did not answer the reporters directly.

After a long moment, when he finally came back to himself, Jasri seemed to remember something all at once. “Robert! Robert, where are you?”

Robert was sitting in a chair, and he too was still shaken. Before he ran out, Yang Xiaolin had told him that, in order to make the whole thing look convincing, they would create a little trouble for him. But Robert had never imagined that this trouble would be bullets.

A bullet had gone through his arm. At the time it had not seemed to hurt much, but now he could feel that he could not even lift the whole arm. Though he had also come out from inside, there were hardly any reporters in front of Robert.

Only when Jasri cried out excitedly and pushed through the crowd to his side did he rush over and give Robert an enthusiastic embrace. “My dear Robert, thank you for rescuing me from those bandits and sparing me humiliation.”

All the flashing lights turned at once onto Robert’s face, and the reporters eagerly captured every expression he made.

Jasri may have touched Robert’s arm, because Robert cried out at once, “Watch it, damn you! Can’t you see I’m injured?”

Jasri did not mind Robert’s rudeness in the slightest. His face was full of excitement as he said, “Mr. Robert, I truly never imagined you were such a brave man! I apologize for my former discourtesy toward you. I even called you a thug before. Mr. Robert, will you forgive me?”

Just as Robert was about to forcefully shove him away, the British officer grabbed him and pulled him back. “All right, gentlemen and ladies, Minister Jasri and Mr. Robert need rest now! Would you all step aside, please? We will hold a reception shortly, and then you may learn everything you want to know!”

Robert said to the officer, “Let go of me and let me punch that old bastard a few times! Damn it, I was planning to get out on my own, and he had to go and catch me! You know he’s slow as a snail. If not for him, those bandits would never have found me, and I wouldn’t be injured!”

If Robert had claimed he had cleverly devised a way to rescue Jasri himself, the officer would never have believed it. But the way he behaved now dispelled all of the officer’s doubts. This was exactly the conduct of a rogue.

The officer dragged him toward the back. “Shut up, boy! You did well this time. You’ve helped restore some of the British Empire’s dignity. But from now on, keep that filthy mouth of yours shut. Especially your swearing. Starting now, you’re not allowed to contact anyone. Someone will teach you how to become a gentleman!”

And so Robert was temporarily isolated. As the officer had said, the British Empire would turn him into a hero. In an incident that had left every nation feeling utterly humiliated, a hero was something precious indeed.

A British soldier beside the officer clearly understood as well. “Captain, is this kid about to get lucky?”

The officer watched Robert’s retreating back. “I think so.”

Then he immediately thought of an even more urgent matter. “Go find that Qing prince at once! We must negotiate with the bandits inside immediately and make sure they do not harm any other hostages!”

Yang Xiaolin had no intention of killing anyone else inside the Zhao family compound. Robert was gone, and he now had someone spending money for him. It was only a matter of time before the final ransom payment arrived. Now it was time to think about the last step: how to get away safely after collecting the ransom.

Inside the room, there was only one dim oil lamp. On a square table sat nothing but stacks of banknotes. Anyone who saw that money would surely have their pulse quicken. One had to know that in this era, millionaires carried real status in every country, and the money on that table was certainly worth far more than a million.

Yang Xiaolin pushed all the money before Nirel. “Nirel, I’m very glad our cooperation has been pleasant. This share is for your brothers. Honestly, I’ve kept my word.”