Chapter 26: Heaven Destroys Those Who Do Not Look Out for Themselves

Chapter 26: If One Does Not Look Out for Oneself, Heaven and Earth Shall Destroy Them

"Huh? Tian Hu? He is currently at the Municipal People's Court awaiting sentencing." Pan Long was stunned for a moment, wondering why anyone would bother hiding such a thing. One could easily find the news in the media; was there really a need to be so dramatic about it?

Luo Lan felt defeated by her own stupidity. She felt as though the entire situation had been orchestrated by fate just to mock her. It was like a magic trick finally being exposed; when she realized the principle behind it was impossibly simple, she felt a wave of deep regret and self-deprecation.

Because she had been so worried about wasting time, she had foolishly squandered two hours, taken a massive detour, only to find herself back at the starting point.

One must face a court verdict before being sent to prison—this was something even a high school student like Li Mengli could have figured out. Yet, Luo Lan, despite having lived a hundred lifetimes, had insisted on overcomplicating everything.

However, a second thought struck her: coming to see Pan Long was not entirely a waste of time. She did not remove the combat knife from Pan Long’s neck but continued to ask, "Do you have any armaments here? Firearms, ammunition, cannons, detonators, anything of the sort?"

"Oh, for heaven’s sake! What do you take this place for? I’m just a small-time hotel owner; where would I get firearms and ammunition?" Feeling the pressure against his neck, Pan Long realized this girl was no simple character. It seemed she had come specifically for that batch of weapons from last time.

"Don’t give me that glib talk. I’m telling you, Pan Long, I really am your grandmother!"

"Yes, yes, you’re my great-grandmother, alright?" Pan Long glanced at Lao San, wondering where on earth this kid had dragged such a vicious character from. But judging by Lao San’s bewildered expression, it didn't seem to be his scheme; he wouldn't have the guts for it.

"Do you remember what Grandma said to you on her deathbed?" Luo Lan lowered her head and whispered into Pan Long’s ear, "If my hypothesis is correct, this might not be a final farewell. If we were to meet again one day, I would likely find you in a younger body. I don’t think you would be afraid, because by then, you would have grown up."

Pan Long’s eyes widened. He felt as if he had been transported back twenty years to that cramped room, standing before his grandmother’s bedside. Although he was young then, if anyone else had said these things to him, he would never have believed it—except for the grandmother who had raised him single-handedly. This woman with a face full of wrinkles had given him so much and taught him so much. In Pan Long’s heart, his feelings for his grandmother had long since transcended mere family affection, evolving into something akin to the worship of a deity...

Without the lessons and cultivation provided by Liu Er, the fourteen-year-old Pan Long would never have been able to survive on his own in the years that followed.

He took a deep breath. Beyond feeling that all of this was miraculous, he harbored no doubts and believed Luo Lan’s words completely.

"Grandma, I thought I would never be able to wait for you again." After Pan Long finished this sentence, his already gray hair seemed to turn even whiter.

Lao San, leaning against the wall, slumped onto the floor. Sweat poured down his bald head like rain, making his scalp seem even shinier.

"I don’t have time to reminisce with you right now." Luo Lan nimbly tucked the combat knife back into her boot. She found the weapon surprisingly easy to handle; it was no exaggeration to say it felt like an extension of her own body. But to save Tian Hu, she needed something with more deterrent power. "What is the most powerful weaponry you can produce here immediately?"

In truth, the reason Luo Lan asked Pan Long for weapons was to avoid harming innocents; only a powerful deterrent would make the guards behave. If she were to rescue Tian Hu with just this knife, the guards would surely not be left alive.

"I have a decent-sized private arsenal in Russia; a fresh batch of goods just arrived there recently. But as for here..." Pan Long’s eyes darted around, and his hand reached under the table with practiced subtlety. "Grandma, may I ask, what do you need them for?"

"To save someone."

"Save who? Is it Tian Hu? You asked where he was just now."

"Correct! I don’t care what laws he broke; he is useful to me now. It will be much more troublesome to save him once he’s in prison. I need to get him out in the shortest possible time..." Before she could finish, Luo Lan suddenly lunged forward, grabbed the hand Pan Long was pulling out from under the table, and twisted it hard. She snatched the pistol before it could hit the floor and pressed the muzzle against Pan Long’s head.

"You’ve got nerve, Pan Long. Daring to pull a fast one on Grandma?"

Before the words had faded, Lao San, sitting by the wall, watched as Pan Long suddenly collapsed to his knees, kowtowing and begging for mercy.

Lao San slapped his own bald head, regretting that he hadn't left the moment he had the chance. Now that he had seen something he shouldn't have, his life was likely forfeit.

"Grandma, you once taught me: if one does not look out for oneself, heaven and earth shall destroy them!" Pan Long crawled over to grab her ankles, pleading with reddened eyes, "Tian Hu really cannot be saved. I was the one who committed the murder. If there is any complication that draws higher-level attention, my previous criminal record might be exposed, and then it won’t just be a matter of five years! Grandma, could you really bear to watch your own grandson spend his life in prison? No! Perhaps... they might even kill me!"

Luo Lan finally understood everything. Tian Hu had been acting as a scapegoat for this good-for-nothing wretch.

She was silent for a moment before letting out a sigh. She placed the pistol on the coffee table, bent down, and stroked Pan Long’s head. "Silly child, you were raised by my own hands; how could I bear to harm you? Don’t worry, from now on, Grandma will look after you and keep you safe."

Pan Long looked up, delighted as if he had found salvation. "Having Grandma’s word is enough!"

He scrambled up from the floor and said, trembling, "Lao San, go get that bundle of detonators for Grandma!"

Luo Lan nodded in satisfaction. In her heart, she had already marked Pan Long as a disposable pawn—she would keep him for now, as he might come in handy later.

The pistol remained on the table, but Pan Long dared not make another move. He knew his grandmother’s methods too well. Reaching for the gun under the table had been a test to see if she was as formidable in this younger body as she had been before. It seemed the answer was a definitive yes.

"If one does not look out for oneself, heaven and earth shall destroy them." Pan Long repeated the phrase in his mind; of all his grandmother’s teachings, this was the one he understood most deeply. He knew his grandmother would not save him, just as she had stood idly by on the bank when he fell into the river all those years ago.

Back then, when he had climbed out, choking on water, and asked her why she hadn't saved him, she had said only one sentence, teaching him the truth of "If one does not look out for oneself, heaven and earth shall destroy them."

That sentence was: "I didn't want to get my shoes wet."