Determination was something that could only be born out of thin air if one was not forced into a corner.
The gunshot the night before by the masthead had made these children realize that the situation was out of control.
In the past, no matter what they did, the masthead would at most hang them up and beat them up or starve them for a day or two. After all, they were children sent to work by the orphanage or poor families, so the masthead did not dare to be too harsh on them.
However, the masthead had shot one of the children yesterday, and the bullet had entered the child's thigh. The masthead did not send the child to the hospital. Instead, he found a piece of wire and removed the bullet from the child's thigh.
The bleeding had stopped, but since the second half of the night, the child had started to have a fever. The fever had lasted for the whole day, and he had not recovered yet. Instead, it was getting worse.
The children in the dormitory thought that they had to send him to the hospital, but they did not have the money. Even with the money that they had saved up, they did not have more than 500 yuan. It was definitely not enough to see a doctor.
A few of the oldest children in the dormitory finally had a murderous intent when faced with such a situation.
"He seems to have gotten into trouble …" One of the children behind the masthead whispered to his companion. These children might not be as naive as adults who had just entered society. In fact, they were more mature and cunning than those who had just entered society.
Judging from the masthead's panicked expression and the fact that he did not enter the dormitory with a whip to seek pleasure from controlling the children, he must have gotten into trouble. It seemed like he was going to abscond with his family.
Initially, these children had planned to have a good talk with him when he broke into the dormitory. If he was willing to pay for their companion's treatment, then everything would go back to normal.
However, if he was not willing, then tonight would be the night he went to see God.
However, they did not expect such an accident to happen.
Another child replied softly, "That's good. We'll make our move when we're a little further away."
After that, the few of them stopped talking and followed closely behind the informant. The informant did not realize, nor did he expect, that these children, who he could beat, scold, and humiliate, would actually follow behind him at this time, and even develop killing intent.
The surrounding environment was starting to become more deserted. There were fewer and fewer buildings. They had already left Saibin City's urban area. Outside was an endless wilderness, intercity, and intercontinental roads.
Every day, long-distance buses to other cities would pass by these roads, and they would always meet some kind-hearted people. The headman was not worried that he would be alone in the wilderness.
At this moment, the killing intent in the children's eyes could no longer be contained. They quickly lowered their bodies and rushed toward the leader.
The sound of footsteps coming from behind immediately alerted the already extremely sensitive reporter. He turned around and saw nothing but darkness and a vague shadow. He was so scared that his whole body quivered.
While loudly threatening the owner of the footsteps behind him, he ran quickly. However, he was carrying so many things on him. Plus, he was old and had lived too many "pampered" days. His physical strength could not be compared to these children who lived outside all day.
Seeing that the silent shadows were getting closer and closer, the leader took out his pistol and pulled the trigger at one of the shadows.
The sound of a bang was heard, and a flash of light flashed in the dark night. The fear on the leader's face was a sharp contrast to the coldness on the children's faces.
A few sparks flew on the ground, and the bullet did not hit its target. This kind of modified signal gun had many shortcomings. Even if it was fired at close range, its accuracy was very poor.
The leader pulled the trigger again, but this time, the pistol failed to fire. This was the second shortcoming of the modified signal gun. The hammer and the roller magazine were not synchronized. Sometimes, it would need to be manually adjusted for the hammer to hit the primer accurately.
The fact that the bullet did not fire made the leader's expression even scarier in the dark. He fired again, but it still did not fire. Instantly, he threw the pistol away and ran forward madly. The shadows behind him chased even faster.
One or two minutes later, one of the shadows got close to the leader. He pushed hard on the leader's back, and the leader, who was already at his center of gravity, staggered a few steps forward. He fell to the ground and rolled twice before coming to a stop.
The black figures chased after him silently. Without saying a word, they raised their kitchen knives or sharpened steel bars and stabbed at the masthead's body. They didn't know how many times they stabbed until the masthead became motionless. Only then did they stop.
Perhaps it was because they had calmed down after killing someone, the children's bodies started to tremble and sweat profusely. After they rested for a while, they picked up the leader's belongings and took them all away.
After waiting for another five minutes, Lynch walked out of the small forest on the other side of the road. He walked up to the reporter and squatted down. He used his gloved hand to check the reporter's pulse. After confirming that the reporter was dead, he left.
He did not follow the children. He just felt that it was interesting. Perhaps this was the so-called reincarnation?
Turning back to look at the leader's body on the road, Lynch returned to the small forest, pushed out his bicycle, and rode slowly toward the city.
When the sun rose, there would be people passing by and they would find the leader's body lying on the road.
Perhaps these people would call the police, but more likely, they would pretend that they did not see anything and walk away from the body.
If they called the police, they would be questioned by the police and become a suspect. They might even be restricted from leaving Saibin City. This was not a good thing for many people who had to travel from city to city.
All the remaining evidence would be destroyed by the indifference of the passersby. Even the police would not know that such a person had died on the road outside the city.
After returning home, Lynch took a shower. He calmly thought about what to do next: develop, strengthen, and take the first step.
As a matter of fact, the business between Lynch and Mr. Fox had not only shocked Michael, who was the head of the investigation team of the tax bureau. Other finance companies in Saibin City had more or less heard about it as well.
That was how transparent the business was. It was difficult to hide too much information. When people found out or heard from somewhere that Mr. Fox had deposited a large amount of cash in the bank, they started to pay attention to it.
After a few days of observation and learning, some people had figured out how Mr. Fox deposited the money in the bank.
To be honest, there was nothing praiseworthy about it. It was not a technical method, and Lynch did not consider using underhanded means to stop these people.
He saw himself not as a gambler, not as an executioner, not as a scoundrel. He was just a businessman. Sometimes he might not follow the law, but more often than not, he was a defender of laws and rules.
Business was business, and others could do whatever they wanted.
Lynch climbed up the fire escape from the back of the pub and pushed open the half-closed window. He went back to his room, tidied himself up, and lay on his bed. Another full day!