Scarred Hearts — A Girls' Love Tale - Chapter 24

“This time we’re going in alone—you’ve dragged me into this risky mess too,” Yan Shaoqiu complained as he turned the steering wheel sharply.

The number of cars around them was dwindling, and they were driving faster now. Skyscrapers and crowds gradually disappeared from view—they had entered the outskirts of the city.

“Didn’t expect Shen Zhiwen to choose this place for the deal,” Yan Shaoqiu finally broke the silence, unable to hold it in any longer. “Shouldn’t he have done it somewhere on his own turf? All that prep we did was wasted.”

“He’s being overly cautious,” Yan Shuangfei replied coolly. “But it works to our advantage. It’s rare to get Shen Zhiwen to show up in person—we can’t waste this opportunity.”

The car stopped in front of a refined bamboo building. Yan Shuangfei pulled out a mask and calmly put it on.

“What, going to a masquerade now?” Yan Shaoqiu’s mouth never stopped running.

“Sometimes being mysterious makes things feel more real,” Yan Shuangfei replied lightly. “Find a good hiding spot and be ready to back me up.”

With that, and without carrying any weapons, she got out of the car, cool and composed, and walked away on her own.

As she walked up the wooden stairs to the bamboo house, each step made a loud creaking sound, but no one came out to meet her. The place was eerily quiet—no one followed her, no one checked her. But Yan Shuangfei could clearly feel multiple snipers aiming at her from different directions, tracking her every move.

She pushed open the half-closed door and stepped inside. The only sound was her own footsteps.

Inside, Shen Zhiwen was lounging on a sofa, a glass of wine in front of him, surrounded by a circle of men in suits—his bodyguards.

“Welcome,” Shen Zhiwen greeted politely as he stood up and nodded. He didn’t seem suspicious even though Yan Shuangfei wore a mask. “You didn’t bring the goods?” His eyebrows furrowed, clearly displeased.

“Would I dare walk in here with them in plain sight?” Yan Shuangfei’s voice was sharper than before, her tone higher than usual.

“Fair point,” Shen Zhiwen’s expression softened slightly. He nodded. “Let’s talk about future business, then.”

Luckily, Yan Shuangfei had done her homework. Shen Zhiwen believed her earlier lies to some extent, and now, seeing her show up in person made her seem all the more sincere.

“I’d be delighted,” Yan Shuangfei said as she sat across from him and picked up the wine that one of his men had just poured.

The conversation didn’t last long. Yan Shuangfei racked her brain, carefully using the lines she’d prepared in advance.

Then, judging that the timing was just about right, she suddenly pulled something out of her hair—a hairpin-like object—and in one swift move, slashed the throat of the bodyguard beside Shen Zhiwen. In the next second, she drove the pin straight into Shen Zhiwen’s neck, burying it completely.

All the bodyguards were stunned by the speed and boldness of her attack. For a few precious seconds, no one moved. They just stood there, watching bl00d gush from Shen Zhiwen’s neck.

Then they finally reacted and drew their guns, aiming at Yan Shuangfei. But she had already rolled behind the sofa during that brief moment of shock. The first few bullets hit Shen Zhiwen’s corpse and then the sofa. The close-range gunfire tore through the cushions, scattering white fluff into the air.

At that moment, the door burst open. A group of people stormed in, guns raised, firing at anyone in sight.

“Police!” someone shouted once they realized what was happening. The sudden arrival of law enforcement took some pressure off Yan Shuangfei. She stayed hidden, not moving. Worst-case scenario, she’d get arrested—she figured they’d have to let her go eventually.

So Yan Shuangfei waited comfortably behind the sofa as the chaos unfolded. Shen Zhiwen’s bodyguards were filled with despair. The police weren’t supposed to interfere with matters between the four major families. If Shen Zhiwen had still been alive, maybe he could’ve explained it away. But now, it was clear the masked figure had planned everything—to eliminate all of Shen Zhiwen’s trusted men.

The guards were too busy dealing with the police to chase down Yan Shuangfei, who stayed hidden in a blind spot. A few stray shots came her way, but they were easy to dodge with minor movements.

The gunfire slowly faded, and finally stopped altogether.

Yan Shuangfei cautiously peeked out—only to come face-to-face with a uniformed police officer. A female officer stood next to him.

“Here to arrest me?” Yan Shuangfei asked casually, holding out both hands. She figured it was only fair to act obedient, since she had used them to deal a heavy blow to the Shen family.

“Where are the goods?” the man asked directly, stepping forward.

“Can’t you interrogate me back at the station?” Yan Shuangfei rolled her eyes. What goods? That story was just a cover for Shen Zhiwen.

“Cut the crap. Reinforcements will be here soon. You’d better behave,” the man said coldly. He twisted her arms behind her back and glanced at the woman, who immediately went to grab the handcuffs on her belt.

Yan Shuangfei winced. The position hurt, and her back was still injured. Bending like this pulled at the wound.

“Great, just my luck,” she muttered. She’d planned to borrow someone else’s strength to strike a blow, but didn’t expect to run into undercover cops who thought she was really sitting on a stash of high-purity goods—and wanted to double-cross her.

Even so, her reactions were lightning fast. She stomped hard on the man’s foot, spun close against him, broke free from his grip, snatched his gun, flipped the safety off, and fired several shots into his chest. Then she dove back behind the sofa.

The female officer reacted quickly too. She immediately drew her gun and fired, managing to hit Yan Shuangfei’s arm just before she slipped behind cover.

Yan Shuangfei could’ve dodged it easily if not for her injured back, which made all her movements a bit slower.

“Come on out. You’re out of bullets,” the woman called.

She was right. The six-shot magazine only had a few bullets to begin with, and Yan Shuangfei had already used them all.

Yan Shuangfei tossed the empty gun aside and slowly raised her hands, standing up and turning around.

“You’re surprisingly good—for someone just working for others,” the woman said smugly.

Yan Shuangfei grinned, standing directly in the line of fire, but her gaze wandered past the woman.

“And you’re not bad either—for a little undercover cop,” she said.

Just as the words left her mouth, a gunshot rang out.

“Took you long enough,” Yan Shuangfei said with a sigh as she watched Yan Shaoqiu step over the woman’s corpse.