Chapter 791: Unclear Motives
Zhang Mazi was helped to stand up by Hou Liangping and walked towards the basement exit with unsteady steps.
Just as he was about to step out of the basement, Zhang Mazi seemed to be suddenly injected with a crazy force, and a trace of determination and ruthlessness flashed in his eyes. He turned around suddenly, strangled Hou Liangping's neck with all his strength, and locked him tightly in his arms. His other hand took out a gleaming dagger from his waist and pressed it against Hou Liangping's neck.
"Don't come over here!" Zhang Mazi roared at the top of his lungs, his voice filled with a desperate madness, "Do you think I will surrender so easily? The worst that can happen is we will both die together!" The veins on his arms were bulging from the force, and Hou Liangping's face turned red and he had difficulty breathing, but he was still struggling hard, trying to break free from Zhang Mazi's shackles.
Qi Tongwei's pupils suddenly shrank when he saw this, and a strong anger and worry surged in his heart. "Zhang Mazi, are you crazy? Let him go!" He shouted as he slowly approached, raised his hands slightly, and made a soothing gesture, trying to calm Zhang Mazi's emotions.
Zhang Mazi was unmoved. He held Hou Liangping hostage and retreated step by step, kicking the debris under his feet everywhere. "Don't come over here, or I'll kill him!" His voice was trembling with despair. At this moment, he had completely fallen into a state of madness, with only one thought in his mind - escape.
Hou Liangping tried his best to hit Zhang Mazi's abdomen with his elbow. Zhang Mazi felt pain and loosened his grip a little. Hou Liangping took the opportunity to break free from his control and turned to confront him. Zhang Mazi waved a dagger and rushed towards Hou Liangping. Hou Liangping dodged flexibly and Zhang Mazi missed. His body rushed forward due to inertia and almost fell.
Qi Tongwei seized the opportunity and rushed forward, trying to catch Zhang Mazi. Zhang Mazi noticed the movement behind him, turned around quickly, and swung his dagger wildly. Qi Tongwei had to stop and look for the next opportunity to attack.
In the narrow corridor, the three of them were caught in a fierce melee. Zhang Mazi attacked desperately like a trapped beast, knocking over tables and chairs, and debris on the wall fell one after another. Hou Liangping, with his agility, dodged Zhang Mazi's attacks again and again, while looking for opportunities to counterattack. Qi Tongwei waited for an opportunity to move, trying to restrain Zhang Mazi from the side.
Suddenly, Zhang Mazi kicked over a table, and it flew towards Qi Tongwei. Qi Tongwei dodged to the side, and the table hit the wall and broke into pieces in an instant. Taking advantage of this gap, Zhang Mazi rushed towards Hou Liangping again. Hou Liangping squatted down to avoid Zhang Mazi's dagger, then stood up suddenly and hit Zhang Mazi's chest with his shoulder. Zhang Mazi was knocked back repeatedly, and his back hit the wall heavily.
"Zhang Mazi, wake up!" Qi Tongwei shouted loudly, "You have no way to escape, stop struggling in vain!" Zhang Mazi leaned against the wall, gasping for breath, his eyes revealing a hint of confusion and hesitation.
Hou Liangping also took the opportunity to persuade him: "Put down your weapons and accept the sanctions of the law. This is your only way out. Continuing to resist will only make your crime more serious!" Zhang Mazi's hands trembled slightly, the dagger shook in his hand, and his eyes were full of struggle and pain.
At this moment, the sound of sirens came from outside the basement, getting closer and closer. Zhang Mazi heard the sirens and a look of despair appeared on his face. He knew that he had no chance of escaping.
Qi Tongwei and Hou Liangping stared at Zhang Mazi, ready to deal with his next attack at any time. Zhang Mazi slowly put down the dagger in his hand, slid down the wall, and sat on the ground. He held his head with both hands and whimpered in pain.
"I lost... I completely lost..." Zhang Mazi muttered to himself, his voice full of regret and despair. Qi Tongwei and Hou Liangping looked at each other, walked forward, and pulled Zhang Mazi up from the ground.
Zhang Mazi was put into the police car, silent all the way, staring at the street scene flashing by outside the window with empty eyes, as if his soul had been pulled out. After arriving at the police station, he was locked up in the interrogation room. Facing the police interrogation, he weakly confessed his crimes, and every word seemed to be squeezed out of his rotten soul.
Soon, Zhang Mazi's case entered the judicial process. In court, the victims testified one after another, tearfully telling of the pain and disaster Zhang Mazi's crimes had brought to them: some lost their fortunes and their families were separated because of underground casinos; some were in desperate situations because of the high-interest exploitation of underground banks, and some were even forced to take a dead end. Zhang Mazi sat in the dock, listening to these accusations, occasionally a trace of guilt flashed through his eyes, but more of it was numbness and unwillingness. In the end, he was sentenced to a heavy sentence according to law.
The days in prison were like a stagnant pool of water, dull and depressing. The small cell, the rough food, the strict schedule, all of them were wearing down Zhang Mazi's will. At first, he would recall his life in the dead of night, those painful childhood experiences, the decadent life trajectory, he also regretted it, but this regret did not last long. In prison, Zhang Mazi accepted reform on the surface, participated in labor on time, and learned legal knowledge, but deep in his heart he was planning a revenge plan after being released from prison.
He began to deliberately make friends with some "troublemakers" in prison, and gradually established his own "prestige" in the prison circle with his "experience" in the underworld. He used his own "means" to obtain news from other prisoners, especially about Qi Tongwei and Hou Liangping. He learned that Qi Tongwei and Hou Liangping were commended and rewarded for their successful fight against evil forces, and their lives were still full of sunshine, while he could only spend a long time in this dark prison, which made the fire of hatred in his heart burn more and more.
Zhang Mazi kept exercising in prison. Every day during the exercise time, he would run and do push-ups in the prison yard. He secretly vowed that when he was released from prison, he would make Qi Tongwei and Hou Liangping pay for their actions. He also conceived various criminal plans in his mind, how to evade the police, how to form a new force, and he seemed to be trapped in a paranoid fantasy, thinking that as long as he was strong enough, he could control everything again.
At the same time, Qi Tongwei and Hou Liangping did not relax their vigilance because of Zhang Mazi's imprisonment. They knew that people like Zhang Mazi would not give up resistance easily. They continued to pay attention to the dynamics in the prison and also paid attention to the potential movements of evil forces in society.