Johnny silently watched Ding Qing for a few seconds, his gaze lingering on his abdominal wound and pale face for a moment, then he slowly spoke, his voice steady and calm:
"Ding Qing, you are seriously injured now and have difficulty moving. They only know you are hurt, but no one knows exactly how severe your injuries are."
Ding Qing:?
Ding Qing looked up at Johnny, his eyes questioning.
Johnny continued, "They are frantically searching for you in the open, wanting to take your life while you are weakened. Others within the Goldmoon Group are also watching, waiting to see which way the wind blows. At a time like this, the more you hide, the more intense their search will become, and the internal suspicion and chaos will continue."
"So?"
Ding Qing seemed to grasp something.
"So," Johnny's tone was unruffled as he stated an objective fact, "it's better to proactively give them a result. The result they most want to see, the one that will most make them drop their guard and, at the same time, throw them into disarray."
Ding Qing's pupils contracted slightly: "You mean...?"
"Find a scapegoat similar to you in build."
Johnny's voice lowered slightly, but every word was crystal clear, "Dress him in your clothes, inflict sufficiently severe trauma, especially damage that can obscure facial features—stab wounds, impact injuries, anything. Dump him on a suitable'stage,' like a chaotic black clinic, and have doctors perform a realistic rescue scene."
"Then," Johnny looked into Ding Qing's eyes, "let the news leak out. Let everyone know that Ding Qing has been found, critically injured and on the verge of death, being rescued somewhere, his life hanging by a thread, and then by the police..."
The room instantly fell silent, leaving only Ding Qing's somewhat heavy breathing and Ajin's nervous gulping.
This plan... was too daring, too crazy, and too vicious!
Ding Qing's mind raced, quickly deducing the chain reactions this plan could trigger:
For the police, their primary goal was to capture or kill him, and at this point, all their deployments targeting him would instantly be disrupted. Jiang Chenghao would be plunged into doubt and verification, his energy dispersed.
As for Lee Joong-ku, he would be ecstatic but also extremely suspicious.
He would use every means to verify the truth, but this process itself would consume a large amount of his resources and energy, and he might even expose flaws due to his eagerness to confirm.
Within the Di Ri Faction, new power struggles would also arise due to the impending 'revenge.'
Within the Goldmoon Group, a huge power vacuum and uncertainty would arise!
All ambitious individuals would jump out to contend for interests and status; they would first engage in internal strife, mutually depleting their strength.
For himself, he would completely shift from the open to the shadows.
He could recuperate in peace, calmly observing all his enemies surface and tear at each other.
He could secretly consolidate loyal forces, waiting for the optimal moment to clean up the mess with an absolute advantage.
Of course, there were risks: the choice of the double, the arrangement of the scene, the control of information—any mistake in any link could lead to utter ruin.
But rather than being passively beaten in the open, it was better to proactively create a greater chaos and snatch chestnuts from the fire!
Ding Qing's eyes, from shock and deep thought, gradually transformed into a dangerously excited gleam. He slammed the armrest of his chair, inadvertently pulling at his wound, causing him to gasp, but a nearly maniacal smile appeared on his face:
"Good! What a brilliant plan of'shedding the cicada's shell' and'sitting on the mountain to watch the tigers fight'! Mr. Zhang, not only are you a good shot, but your mind is also vicious enough! I like it!"
He looked at his trusted subordinate, Ajin, his tone becoming extremely serious and resolute: "Ajin, did you hear what Mr. Zhang said? This matter, I'm entrusting it to you! Find absolutely reliable people, and in the shortest time possible, find a'suitable' double. Make this act convincing! It needs to be realistic! Make everyone believe that I, Ding Qing... am dying!"
"Understood, Big Brother! I guarantee it will be flawless!"
Ajin nodded heavily, his eyes also gleaming with excitement and tension.
The plan was thus set.
A 'fake death' drama, poised to thoroughly stir up the Korean underworld and police situation, officially began.
And Johnny, once again, proved his value as a top-tier dangerous individual with his strategy that surpassed mere martial prowess.
Inside the room, a flicker of surprise, then deep thought, crossed Ding Qing's face, which was slightly pale from blood loss and pain.
He looked at Johnny, this assassin who always brought'surprises,' not only terrifyingly skilled but also so meticulous and... sinister in his thinking.
"Fake death..."
Ding Qing murmured these two words, the ambiguous light in his eyes flickering rapidly.
This was indeed an extremely bold and vicious strategy. It was a fact that he was severely injured, but exactly how severe his injuries were, the outside world did not know.
This itself provided room for manipulation.
"Find a double... severely injured... face disfigured..."
Ding Qing muttered to himself, quickly envisioning in his mind what kind of violent chain reaction would occur once the news of 'Ding Qing on the verge of death' spread?
The dark world had its own channels and rules. Finding a'suitable' double and staging a realistic 'accidental severe injury and rescue' act was not difficult for a behemoth like the Goldmoon Group.
The next afternoon, an explosive piece of news swept through Yeosu and even the entire Korean underworld and high-ranking police officials with astonishing speed!
"He's been found! Ding Qing has been found!"
"At a private black clinic in Seongbuk! Multiple stab wounds and a gunshot wound! He's being rescued, heard he's not going to make it!"
"Who did it? The Di Ri Faction? Or the police?"
"Don't know! The scene is a mess!"
Various versions of rumors spread rapidly.
The first to arrive at the'scene' were several plainclothes detectives under Jiang Chenghao. When they rushed into the makeshift clinic, filled with the smell of disinfectant and blood, they saw an extremely realistic scene of chaos:
A man covered in blood, his face swollen with multiple severe abrasions and bruises, lay on the operating table, various tubes inserted into his body, and the life monitor emitting a piercing alarm.
Several doctors and nurses were frantically performing 'resuscitation'—electrocution, blood transfusion, chest compressions... their movements exaggerated and flustered, their white coats splattered with blood.
Bloody gauze, torn clothing, and even a deformed bullet casing were scattered on the floor.
One detective tried to approach for a closer look but was immediately pushed away by an agitated doctor: "Get out! All of you, get out! The patient needs resuscitation! Do you want him to die?!"
Through the gaps between people, the detective could barely make out the 'patient's' facial contours and build, which were indeed remarkably similar to Ding Qing's, especially the distinctive tattoos and buzz cut hairstyle.
They quickly took a few blurry photos and a short video, sending them back to the police station.
Jiang Chenghao looked at the critically ill, unrecognizably 'Ding Qing' on the screen, his brow furrowed, his fingers unconsciously tapping the table.
Did they succeed?
Did Lee Joong-ku's men finally get him?
Or... was this all an act?
He instinctively suspected, but the chaos at the scene, the severity of the injuries, and the witnesses' descriptions of the 'patient' being attacked by unknown individuals and then dumped at the clinic's entrance all seemed plausible.
Most crucially, the 'Ding Qing's' vital signs monitoring data showed he was indeed in an extremely dangerous state.
"Closely monitor that clinic! Confirm the identity of the person inside! We need him alive or dead!"
Jiang Chenghao gave the order, but his doubts had not dissipated; he needed the most direct evidence.
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