Lashio is more than 170 kilometers away from Jiegao.
This is the capital of Shan State in the north. Due to various reasons such as history, it is the city with the largest number of Chinese in northern Myanmar, accounting for more than half of the population.
The Chinese signs I saw from time to time made Tang Songyuan feel no stranger at all.
After having lunch in Lashio at noon, the master and apprentice continued on the road. Soon they arrived at the outskirts of Lashio. Tang Songyuan saw the armed men sent by Songchai to meet them.
It was a fleet of five pickup trucks, all with white Toyota leather shells. They all looked a bit old, with obvious rust stains visible in some places.
The leader was a stocky man with dark skin, but he spoke fluent Chinese.
Seeing Ni Dehong, the man nodded with a smile, bowed slightly and said: "Master Ni, we meet again..."
Ni Dehong showed an imperceptible smile and said: "Luo Dajingang, I'll leave it to you for the rest!"
The man said: "Master Ni, just call me Luo Gang. Recently, the Song family and the Lai family have started fighting again. This journey is not peaceful. For this reason, the general sent an extra team of people to me."
"Let us ensure Master Ni's safety..."
Ni Dehong introduced Tang Songyuan to him, and after a few words of greeting, Ni Dehong drove the Mercedes-Benz G and joined the convoy to continue driving forward.
In the car, Tang Songyuan couldn't help but asked curiously: "Master, Luo Gang, what did Luo Gang say that the Song family and the Lai family are fighting? Do they often fight here?"
Ni Dehong said: "The Song family is a branch of Chinese who moved here decisively. They call themselves Malipo people, and the Song family is the largest Chinese family among them."
"The Lai family came from Longling and surrounding areas. They call themselves Longshu people. They are not fighting. They are just fighting for the gem mining in Mogok. The conflict has never stopped."
Mogok is a famous gem producing area, among which red and sapphires are particularly famous. Unburned pigeon blood red is Mogok’s most precious and valuable specialty.
But where there are people, there are rivers and lakes, and where there are interests, there are all kinds of conflicts.
Halfway through the drive, Ni Dehong suddenly stopped and offered to let Tang Songyuan drive.
Tang Songyuan groaned and said, "Master, I haven't gotten my driver's license yet..."
Ni Dehong said: "It's okay, Luo Gang will lead the way and no one will care about you. I just want to rest for a while."
Driving wasn't that difficult. Although Tang Songyuan hadn't gotten his driver's license yet, he still changed places with Ni Dehong without any fear.
Fasten your seat belt, put it in D gear and lightly step on the accelerator, and the car will start moving.
"It doesn't matter if you slow down, just follow Luo Gang and the others!"
Tang Songyuan drove steadily, Ni Dehong narrowed his eyes slightly and said: "If it doesn't work, just apply the brakes!"
After the delay of changing positions, the two of them ended up at the back of the convoy.
Fortunately, after driving three or four kilometers, Tang Songyuan gradually got better and drove more and more relaxedly. Ni Dehong also slowly closed his eyes, reclined his seat and fell asleep.
"Boom~! Boom~!"
At this moment, a huge explosion suddenly sounded in front of him. Tang Songyuan suddenly braked and stopped the car firmly on the road, looking ahead with a confused expression.
Ni Dehong also woke up from his sleep and asked, "What's wrong?"
As soon as he finished speaking, he saw that the cliff in the distance suddenly began to collapse, and a large number of rocks and soil fell down in a landslide.
Tang Songyuan didn't bother to respond to Ni Dehong's question. He shuddered, hurriedly put into reverse gear, and fell backwards.
Boom!
The collapsed area stretched for one to two hundred meters, and the entire road was plowed in the blink of an eye.
A large amount of rocks and soil were piled up on the road. Fortunately, Tang, Song and Yuan stepped back dozens of meters in time and were not affected.
But it was also separated from the escort convoy led by Luo Gang.
"what happened?"
Both the master and the disciple were a little shocked. Ni Dehong thought it was an earthquake.
Tang Songyuan said: "I don't know, but I think it may be man-made..."
He turned on his perspective vision and searched for the collapse ahead.
Boom!
This time the explosion came from behind,
Tang Songyuan turned his head and listened carefully to the movement behind him. The rumbling explosions were also mixed with crisp sounds that were louder and denser than firecrackers.
It's the sound of gunfire!
And the sound seemed to come from far and near.
"It's the sound of gunfire, master... someone is fighting!" Tang Songyuan exclaimed.
Ni Dehong's face was also a little solemn. He put his hand on the bridge and said calmly: "Don't panic, Luo Gang will rush over as soon as he discovers the problem."
Tang Songyuan nodded, thinking that this was all he could do.
But the gunshots were getting closer and closer. Suddenly, two or three cars sprang out from the corner behind, rushing towards Tang Songyuan crazily.
"Fuck!"
Tang Songyuan exclaimed, it turned out that there were more than a dozen cars following behind these cars, and a large crowd of people came over.
At the same time, someone stuck out his head in the car window, holding a gun and shooting indiscriminately at several cars that jumped out in front.
Some of the vehicles were pickup trucks similar to those of Luo Gang and others, and there were even more people shooting with guns in the vehicles.
Dang, Dang, Dang! ! !
Of course, stray bullets are inevitable in this situation. From time to time there was a crackling sound on the rear window glass, and Tang Songyuan discovered that it was actually bulletproof.
Old Man Ni has obviously modified this car himself!
But the three vehicles being pursued were not so lucky. The road ahead was blocked and the firepower from behind was heavy.
Bang~!
A car behind had a punctured tire. The car swayed on the road a few times and then fell down after a while.
The remaining two cars also had a hard time. One crashed into the guardrail in a panic, and the other was smashed into a sieve. The car also lost control and crashed into the collapsed earth and rocks.
The chasing vehicles rushed over, and dozens of men with guns came down. They fired at the three vehicles one by one. It was obvious that the people inside would not survive.
"Boss, there's another passing car here!"
One of them pointed at the Mercedes-Benz Big G and shouted.
He spoke in Chinese, and Tang Songyuan could hear him clearly through the glass.
A man wearing a red turban came over, looked at the bullet marks on the car and smiled in surprise: "Oh, it's still bulletproof. I want this car!"
As he spoke, he took out a rocket launcher, faced Tang Songyuan's position, and threatened with a ferocious face: "Boy, you'd better get down by yourself!"
"Master, can this car be protected against rockets?" Tang Songyuan asked with a sinking heart.
Ni Dehong twitched his face a few times and said, "What do you think? Get out of the car!"
With that said, Ni Dehong got out of the passenger seat, looked at the man in the red turban calmly and said, "Which family are you from? I am a guest of Somchai."
...
