# Chapter 85: Premium Goods
Seeing Xiao Liu slowly disappear into the distant street, I immediately became furious and quickly replied to Zhang Huanan: "Are you trying to get yourself killed? Don't contact me on your own."
What I didn't expect was that after receiving the text message, Zhang Huanan on the other end of the line made no move at all.
I could only pull out the cigarette I had hidden earlier from my pocket and light another one.
As time ticked by second by second, my mood grew increasingly restless. Staking out a person who would never show up was simply a waste of my time.
Just as I was about to finish the cigarette in my hand, I suddenly heard the car door move. I thought it was Xiao Liu coming back, but the person directly sat down in the back seat.
"Officer Li, long time no see."
A voice I hadn't heard in a long time sounded behind me, making my whole body tremble.
Zhang Huanan.
"Are you fucking crazy? Do you know what kind of car this is?"
Zhang Huanan took the cigarette butt from my hand and took a deep drag.
"What kind of car? Anyway, it doesn't have police car markings."
I saw his careless expression in the rearview mirror and felt even angrier. "Aren't you afraid I'll drive you straight to the police station right now?"
"Oh? Old Li, we're in the same boat, you know." Zhang Huanan grinned mockingly at me. "Seven years ago when you arrested me, I gave you a hundred thousand yuan to treat Xuanxuan's illness. You need to be grateful and repay that kindness."
"I've fucking repaid your kindness long ago." I gritted my teeth, my heart full of conflict. I should never have gotten involved with this scumbag in the first place. "I told you to keep a low profile, but you just kept getting into more cases... I should still personally send you to the police station."
"Is this how you talk to your daughter's lifesaver?" Zhang Huanan tossed the finished cigarette butt out the window. "Xuanxuan is in elementary school now, right? I remember... Class 6, Grade 4?"
"You..." Hearing Xuanxuan's name come out of this scumbag's mouth, I instantly became furious. "If you dare lay a finger on Xuanxuan, I swear I'll tear you apart limb from limb."
"We're mutual." Zhang Huanan chuckled. "You help me escape pursuit, and I won't touch her."
In my heart, I knew that once I got on this pirate ship, I would never be able to get off.
Seven years ago, when I personally arrested Zhang Huanan, he suddenly offered me a hundred thousand yuan to buy his own life.
Although I had always hated evil like an enemy, my daughter Xuanxuan had contracted a very rare disease. The doctor said it was called Crigler-Najjar syndrome. He told me how rare this disease was and explained many ways to deal with it, but I couldn't understand a single word.
All I knew was that Xuanxuan needed a liver transplant. I needed money.
Zhang Huanan's hundred thousand yuan did save Xuanxuan's life.
But from that day on, I became entangled with this scumbag.
If I didn't help him escape police pursuit time and time again, he would threaten to expose what happened back then.
Zhang Huanan didn't have "extremely strong counter-surveillance awareness"—he just had my help.
I couldn't let anything happen to Xuanxuan. She was the child of my late comrade and had called me Dad for ten years. Of course, she was my daughter.
"Zhang Huanan, I have my limits." I looked at the scumbag in the rearview mirror and spoke. "If you don't want to get caught, you'd better behave yourself these years. Otherwise, I'll make you regret it."
"Damn it..." Zhang Huanan's expression suddenly turned cold, and he cursed viciously. "Li Shangwu, you're negotiating with me now? If I get caught, my brothers on the street will definitely not let Xuanxuan off."
After hearing this, my heart clenched tightly.
"What do you mean?"
"It means you just obediently be my dog and don't get any funny ideas." Zhang Huanan kicked the front seat with his foot. "Otherwise, I'll not only ruin your reputation but also destroy your family."
I looked at him in the rearview mirror, a thought flashing through my mind.
If Zhang Huanan got caught, things would become very troublesome. Ruining my own reputation wasn't important—after all, the mistake was mine and I should bear the consequences.
But what about Xuanxuan?
So Zhang Huanan couldn't be caught.
He had to die.
I was tired of providing help to a scammer every day, tired of living against my conscience in constant fear.
Now that Xuanxuan's illness was cured, it was time for me to pay my debts.
If Zhang Huanan's life was spared, only more people would be harmed by him in this world.
If I could do it all over again, I would choose to send him to prison back then instead of carrying this burden of guilt for so many years.
But I didn't know if I had done that... would Xuanxuan forgive me?
"Zhang Huanan, have you eaten?" I asked calmly.
"Eaten?" He was slightly startled, seemingly not understanding my meaning.
"After being staked out for so many days, let me take you out for a good meal. Forget what I just said, don't take it to heart."
"Now that sounds like something a human would say." Zhang Huanan lay back in the back seat and stretched lazily. "You guys have been staking me out for three days straight, and I've been fucking eating plain noodles every day."
I nodded, started the car, put it in gear, and pulled away.
Now I needed to find a secluded place where Zhang Huanan's body wouldn't be discovered for as long as possible. Even though I would definitely be caught, I had to arrange things for Xuanxuan before that.
I drove slowly while releasing the safety on my pistol at my waist.
Zhang Huanan was lying back in the back seat with his eyes half-closed, resting.
Seeing this, I slowly drove the car into a side alley.
But before the car had even come to a complete stop, Zhang Huanan behind me suddenly struck. He reached over with a stiff wire and instantly looped it around my neck.
I immediately sensed something was wrong—this bastard wanted to kill me too.
"Zhang Huanan... you're asking for death..." I gritted my teeth, constantly pulling at the wire around my neck, trying to turn around, but my legs were wedged against the steering wheel.
"You're quite the schemer, Officer Li..." Zhang Huanan said as he tightened his grip. "You should have been staking me out with two people, right? But you drove me out to eat alone... Isn't that too suspicious? Won't the other guy contact the team when he finds you missing?"
In just ten seconds, I felt like everything was going black.
Zhang Huanan was really trying to kill me. I knew that once I died, Xuanxuan's situation would be extremely dangerous.
Thinking this, I immediately pulled out my pistol from my waist, turned it backward, and fired three shots wildly. I didn't even know if I had hit anything.
In the enclosed car, the deafening sound of the gunshots made my ears ring.
"Fuck, I give you money to spend, and you actually try to kill me?!" Zhang Huanan roared in anger, increasing the strength of his grip.
This choke was too tight. I felt like my blood vessels were about to burst.
In that critical moment, I immediately pressed the button on the seat. If I could recline the seat at this moment, there might still be a chance to escape.
But I forgot.
This premium car would recline the seat in the most comfortable, slowest rhythm possible.
Maybe to protect a person's lower back, or maybe to let someone get a good sleep when they're tired.
In this slow rhythm, everything went black before my eyes.
You get what you pay for. Premium has its reasons.
My lower back really didn't hurt.