I'm Here

Kamikawa Bridge.

At this moment, the bridge entrance and exit are surrounded by orange-yellow police tape, and several police cars with flashing lights are parked in the open space at the intersection.

Whoosh—police helicopters and television helicopters circled overhead.

The loud noise made people's eardrums hurt.

"Chief Koizumi, it's confirmed. The prisoner was indeed strapped with a homemade bomb."

"Although it is crudely made, its destructive power after explosion is equivalent to that of a Type 82 steel ball grenade."

"If it's detonated, all the hostages in the car will surely die!"

The security guard's words made many veteran police officers present feel ashamed, and they looked at Koizumi Aoyama standing on the police car.

A hint of regret appeared in his eyes.

The director was doing well, but he encountered a terrible incident right after taking office.

Nobody would believe that no one was behind this!

Koizumi Aoyama remained silent with a cold expression. There was no good solution at the moment; he could only try to keep the prisoner calm and wait for the task force to provide an action plan.

Of course, it wasn't that bunch of incompetent special task force from the Shilu Public Security Bureau.

Rather, it was his trusted confidant from Kagoshima who assisted him in dealing with Ishibashi.

The new official took office three fires.

I never expected that before I could even light my first fire, someone would set me on fire.

Before long, the task force provided a contingency plan.

First, and also the option with the highest success rate and the least risk, is to persuade them to surrender.

Secondly, there's long-range sniping.

There is no better way than this.

The organized files were delivered.

The driver who hijacked the school bus was named Liu Ye, 35 years old, a local of Shilu. He was divorced and had a daughter who suffered from leukemia, but died recently after failing to respond to treatment.

After working for many years, the agreed performance bonuses and commissions have never been paid.

The purpose of this carjacking was to kidnap the son of their company's CEO.

He used this to blackmail them into making up for the unpaid wages and performance bonuses owed to him and his colleagues.

The further he read, the more gloomy Koizumi Aoyama's face grew, and he gritted his teeth as he said:

"【Mountain Forest Express】...Damn it, those guys at Kamikawa Junior High School actually outsourced their school bus service?!"

"Where is the person in charge of Shanlin Express? Have they arrived yet?"

"They're on their way; they said there's traffic..."

"Fuck him, he has to get here within fifteen minutes, even if he has to run!!"

"yes!"

……

Among the onlookers outside the cordon.

Many of Liu Ye's colleagues rushed over to join in the fun.

Some of the older employees who had worked at the company for a long time expressed their surprise and admiration.

—Liu Ye has always been an honest and upright person, so why did he suddenly resort to kidnapping?

—He wasn't like this before; he was very approachable!

—Yes, he has a daughter the same age as him, how could he possibly do something like kidnapping?

On the bridge, people whispered among themselves.

Under the bridge, a man wearing a cardboard hood and a cape dug out his fingers and crawled step by step toward the school bus, digging into the cracks in the concrete.

In the distance, a girl in a baseball cap is lying in the grass on the shore, holding a camera.

The scene was chaotic, but it seemed like everyone had something to do.

……

"Teacher...I'm scared..."

In the back seat of the school bus, a girl with pigtails tightly hugged the female teacher next to her.

"It's okay... The sheriff is here, we'll be rescued soon," the homeroom teacher, Liu Yishan, gently comforted the trembling girl.

If Ouyang Kexin is like super soft cotton, then her younger sister Keling is like an extremely soft persimmon.

Let alone getting punched or kicked.

Just being yelled at loudly is enough to make tears stream down my face.

Liu Yishan tenderly wiped away her tears, silently praying that the sheriff would arrive soon.

In the driver's seat, Liu looked flustered, his thin T-shirt damp with sweat.

The homemade bomb at his waist was very rudimentary.

The raw materials are just some sulfur, nitrates, charcoal, and a little white sugar.

The detonation device is even more of a novice's invention; anyone with a little technical knowledge could dismantle it in a matter of minutes.

But he knew that it was this extremely simple thing that could help him regain his lost dignity, money, and personality.

When he exhausted all his resources only to find that he was still short 100,000 yen, he could only watch helplessly as his daughter died on the operating table.

There's no turning back now.

Liu glanced at the students in the back row, gritted his teeth, and spoke again:

"I...I'll ask one more time...which of you...which of you is Wang Guanghui's child?"

"If you just tell me... I'll... I'll let the others go!"

Not long ago, a rumor circulated in the company that Wang Guanghui's son planned to experience ordinary life and take the school bus to and from school.

And she was riding in the school bus he was driving.

At that time, Liu never thought of hijacking the school bus; he only hoped that the courier company would pay him the performance bonuses and other unpaid wages owed to him.

No more, no less, Wang Guanghui owed him exactly 100,000 yen.

However, even though he submitted the materials to the company again and again.

But all I received was a cold, impersonal message—wait for further notice.

He ran into Wang Guanghui's office, knelt down and kowtowed to beg, but was brutally beaten by the security guards.

When they returned to the hospital, they discovered that their daughter had already passed away.

On the verge of madness, he resorted to this desperate measure: hijacking a car to threaten Wang Guanghui into compensating him for all the money he owed his employees.

As for himself... he didn't want anything anymore, only wanting to do one last thing for his friends who had shared joys and sorrows for more than ten years before he died.

"Speak up! Which of you is Wang Guanghui's son?!" Liu shouted anxiously, his eyes reddening, when no one spoke.

Wang Guanghui, the dog, is very cautious. He has not yet revealed his son's real name or appearance. We only know from rumors that his son is on the school bus.

As a result, Liu had no choice but to threaten the lives of everyone on the school bus.

Suddenly, the sound of a loudspeaker came from outside.

"Suspect Liu Ye! Please calm down. We have already notified Wang Guanghui, the general manager of Shanlin Express, to come here. We will definitely meet your request no matter what. Please wait patiently! Don't make a big mistake!" The security guard kept repeating this to attract Liu Ye's attention.

Koizumi Aoyama squinted and waved his hand.

Adjutant Wang Zhi nodded and issued orders via walkie-talkie:

"Sniper, prepare."

"Report, all preparations complete!"

Negotiation is only one aspect; we must be prepared for both possibilities in everything we do.

Liu nervously looked out of the car, searching for Wang Guanghui's figure, his forehead covered in cold sweat.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Jiang Ling left the area under the bridge and crouched down to approach the school bus.

His outer underwear was dark gray – Hide mode activated!

His stealth form granted him ninja-like stealth abilities. Without making a sound, he slipped into the car through the open window and hid under the back seat.

Liu Yishan instinctively looked down, almost screaming in fright.

Fortunately, Jiang Ling made a shushing gesture in time.

The scream that was stuck in her throat was swallowed back down by Liu Yishan.

Is he...is he from the Public Security Bureau?

Jiang Ling held up her phone, and the message read: "Don't be afraid, I'm here to rescue you. Don't make a sound!"

Liu Yishan nodded gently and hugged Ouyang Keling tightly.

Ouyang Keling also noticed the cardboard box masked man under the chair and nervously gripped the teacher's hand.

"Please..." Liu Yishan mouthed.

Suddenly, Liu strode over, his eyes filled with intense anger.

"Hiss, we've been discovered?" Jiang Ling's heart tightened, and she immediately curled up into the deeper shadows.

However, part of the hood is still inevitably exposed.

Although the angle wasn't good, there was no other way but to wait until he entered the time-stopping range and knock him unconscious with one blow...

Just as Jiang Ling was secretly gathering his strength, a pair of shapely calves covered in stockings came together and blocked his face. The oppressive feeling made him subconsciously take a deep breath.

The warm breath tickled her calves, making them feel wet and itchy, and the pretty female teacher couldn't help but let out a soft moan.

Jiang Ling: ……

Liu Ye glared fiercely at everyone, his panic and guilt growing stronger.

Bang—he slammed the back window shut.