Urban Ace Bodyguard

"Officer, what do you want with me?" Lin Hai asked coldly, his face devoid of even a trace of a smile.

Li Changfeng stared intently at Lin Hai, his eyes flickering with complex emotions.

After a long while, as if mustering great courage, Li Changfeng spoke with difficulty, "Is it Brother Hai?"

"Heh, you've mistaken me for someone else," Lin Hai said with a laugh, but his smile felt anything but friendly, just cold.

"Is it really you? Brother Hai..." Li Changfeng's voice was slightly choked.

"Officer, if there's nothing else, I need to get going. My wife is waiting at home for dinner," Lin Hai said with a 'phony' smile.

"Brother Hai, it's me, Li, it's Li. Don't you remember me?" Li Changfeng said excitedly, his body trembling slightly as he asked with difficulty.

"Heh, Director Li, you've got the wrong person, I'm just a commoner. I wouldn't dare to acknowledge someone who achieved success by betraying his friends," Lin Hai stated indifferently, trying hard to conceal his inner fury.

The moment Li Changfeng heard Lin Hai's words, he froze, tears blurring his vision in those weathered eyes.

So, in his heart, he no longer deigned to recognize him.

He did the right thing. The things he had done back then...indeed, he did not deserve to be called his brother, much less to be acknowledged by him.

"Brother Hai, back then..."

"Shut your mouth!" Lin Hai shouted harshly, cutting off Li Changfeng's words.

His eyes cold and detached, Lin Hai looked at him sternly, took a deep breath, and tried hard to control his mind from recalling those unforgettable moments from the past, saying, "I don't know you, and you shouldn't know me. We go our separate ways, or else, don't force me."

"I'm sorry, I was wrong back then," Li Changfeng said with difficulty, his voice full of remorse.

"Heh, Director Li, don't apologize to me. I'm just a security guard; your apologies are too much for me," Lin Hai said coldly.

"Brother Hai, are you still angry with me?"

"How would I dare to be angry with you? Director Li, who battled in the front lines, am I worthy of your anger?" Lin Hai's voice was chilling to the extreme.

Li Changfeng looked at Lin Hai, and suddenly noticing the security guard uniform he wore, as well as his listless expression and his world-weary eyes, he seemed to understand something.

Yes, the man who personally trained him, a mentor as well as a brother, and the boss of the past, due to a past misfortune, was forced to leave his homeland and vanished from public sight. Years later, he reemerged, but no longer displayed the passionate blood, zealous eyes, or the peerless presence he once had.

Now, he was like a small security guard broken by life, just surviving day by day with no hope or energy.

And himself, who always used to lag behind, even saved by him numerous times, betrayed him at a critical moment, yet ironically became the revered deputy director of the Huadu Police Department, worshipped like a hero, living in much better material conditions.

Li Changfeng felt he understood why Lin Hai refused to acknowledge him.

Their worlds were no longer the same.

He was once so proud, the man who had swept through every Military District in the country, internally recognized as the Special Soldier King, like a son of heaven. Now living so wretchedly, with his strong pride, of course, he wouldn't acknowledge him.

With these thoughts, Li Changfeng took a deep breath, grabbed Lin Hai's arm with agitation, and said, "Brother Hai, I am still that Li Changfeng. In my heart, you will always be my Brother Hai."

Lin Hai turned his head away, exerting a slight force to shake off Li Changfeng's hand that was gripping his arm, and said indifferently, "I'm not your Brother Hai, don't prevent me from going home."

"Brother Hai, so many years have passed, there are only a few of us brothers left, why can't you acknowledge me? I'm Li Changfeng, the Little Li from back then!" Li Changfeng widened his eyes, unbelieving that the person he had always respected and admired in his heart, even once considered the ultimate aspiration of his life, could be so indifferent, so ruthless. To s%up^p$or-t^ our work,^ pl%ea.s+e+ rea!d- on M|$V|^L^E-_*M&P-Y!R.+

"Do you still remember those brothers from back then?" Lin Hai looked at him, his eyes revealing no hint of emotional fluctuation.

Without waiting for Li Changfeng to speak, Lin Hai continued, "Do you still remember those brothers from back then?"

"Li Changfeng, oh, Li Changfeng, over all these years, every moment of every day, I have never forgotten those brothers. In that final battle, twenty brothers followed me, counting myself that makes twenty-one, and in the end, only four of us came back alive, just four survived!" Lin Hai said up to this point, his jaw clenched tightly, veins bulging on his forehead.

Li Changfeng didn't expect Lin Hai to suddenly become emotional. Thinking about his words, remembering how he had shied away from that final decision, he shamefully lowered his head.

"Before Stone died, I still remember what he told me, asking me not to blame you, to let go of the hatred!" Lin Hai gritted his teeth, enunciating each word, struggling to control his emotions.

"Do you know? The dead brothers didn't want me to seek revenge! They didn't want me to blame you, even in their dying moments, they didn't want me to blame you!" Lin Hai clenched his teeth, his eyes turning red, speaking in short breaths.

"I killed the corrupt official who framed us, I killed those human traffickers, I killed the mercenaries they hired, and I avenged her, but I lost seventeen brothers!" Lin Hai closed his eyes, clenched his teeth, and punched the wall.

With a bang, the sturdy wall cracked under the force of his fist.

"Brother Hai, I'm sorry..." Li Changfeng buried his head deeply, his face full of shame.

He had faltered back then, and when higher-ups inquired about the incident, his explanation ultimately led to Lin Hai having to leave the military and hide away abroad.

"You're not worthy to say sorry to me; remembering you didn't kick me when I was down, I'll let you off this time. Don't call me Brother Hai again. I'm afraid I won't be able to control myself and might kill you," said Lin Hai, his eyes bloodshot. He couldn't afford to reminisce about the past, as the bloody memories would vividly resurface, the words and expressions of each dying brother would flood his mind, sometimes driving him to the brink of insanity.

Then, Lin Hai shook his head in self-mockery: "Actually, I don't blame you. It's human nature to falter in battle, I just hate myself. I thought I was strong enough to conquer everywhere, but in the end, it led to the tragic deaths of seventeen brothers. Do you remember Hei? Although he survived, he was left with only one arm and half of his body, and it was all because of my impulsiveness."

"Alright, I should leave now. Li Changfeng, take care of yourself. For the sake of the past, I forgive you, but I will never forgive myself. Goodbye!" Lin Hai finished speaking, threw away the cigarette butt in his hand, and silently walked towards the outside.

"Brother Hai, about what happened back then..." Li Changfeng thought of some insider information he knew, but considering his and his family's lives were in the hands of that terrifying organization, he hesitated whether to tell Lin Hai.

......

Stepping out of the police station, he stretched in the sunlight, Lin Hai found a Bentley sports car already waiting in front of him, and it was none other than Su Wanjing.

"Wow, what a great treatment I'm getting, a beautiful car and a beautiful lady right out of the police station. I wonder if there will be more enticing treatments to come?" Lin Hai joked.

Su Wanjing laughed at Lin Hai, then suddenly noticed his slightly red eyes, and asked with surprise, "Have you been crying?"

Lin Hai was taken aback, then laughed it off, "Cry? Why would I cry? I just got something in my eye."

"I don't believe you!" Su Wanjing pursed her lips, puzzled as to why Lin Hai would go to the police station and suddenly cry. Such a grown man doesn't seem like the type to be a crybaby.

"Heh, I just saw an old comrade-in-arms and got a bit emotional by accident. I wrongfully accused him back then, and didn't expect that he has been feeling guilty for so many years, sigh…" With a long sigh, Lin Hai shook his head, knowing that he was even more emotional than Li Changfeng just moments before. What happened in the past wasn't Li Changfeng's fault since he had parents to take care of and it was Lin Hai himself who had knocked him unconscious.

But over the years, Lin Hai deliberately kept his distance from Li Changfeng, not staying in touch, afraid that his involvement would burden Li Changfeng's normal life.

Even just now, Lin Hai deeply desired to reconcile with this brother from the past, but when he thought of Li Changfeng's hard-earned position as the deputy director of the police station, close association with Lin Hai, a person with a special criminal record, would undoubtedly affect his future.

In the end, with deep guilt for his dead brothers and the camaraderie for Li Changfeng, Lin Hai chose to deliberately maintain a cold distance.