48 Hours a Day - Chapter 42

Chapter 42: Tokyo Drift XII

Zhang Heng knew that Takeda Tetsuya was hiding something. Why else would he had given up when he was so close to gaining the Drift King title? Why was he divorced? Why swear that he would never touch another steering wheel? And why contact his daughter again after so many years?

The gambling addiction excuse might have fooled Ameko, his unworldly daughter. Still, having spent so many sleepless nights with the seafood trader, Zhang Heng somehow knew that this seemingly weak-willed man was stronger than anyone else deep inside. Even though he betted on horses, it was purely recreational.

Every time he placed bets, he would always stop, no matter if he won or lost. A real gambling addict would not have been so reasonable.

Indeed, not everyone who left their mark on the world stage lived the rest of their lives aimlessly.

Talent and hard work are indispensable to distinguish yourself from the masses of gifted people. There was no way someone with no self-control would be able to become a top racing driver.

Even so, Zhang Heng never asked Takeda Tetsuya to tell his story, not because he did not care, but because he was worried he might not be influential enough to meddle with this matter.

At that time, his driving skills were just average; he was still absorbing knowledge like a sponge, still unable to complete Takeda Tetsuya’s hellish drifting practices. Then, Zhang Heng came up with a simple idea to play the single-player game Formula Drag.

He relied on his exceedingly long time in the game—avoiding from triggering the plot, and then burying himself in practice—finally brushing his driving skills up to level two and complete the modification of the L300.

In fact, he had already made plans to talk to Takeda Tetsuya even if tonight didn’t happen. Although they did not identify themselves as master and apprentice, they were, in fact, master and apprentice. The seafood store owner was too proud, always saying one thing but meant another.

Zhang Heng found it suspicious that this guy would have so many orders, not to mention each location always more remote than the one before.

He secretly opened a foam box once and found out that the box labeled ‘lobsters’ was actually filled with pebbles.

So, it turned out the supposed increase in orders was Takeda Tetsuya’s way of increasing pressure in accordance with Zhang Heng’s improvement.

… Hopefully, it was not too late.

With the bow slung on his arm, Zhang Heng ran to the front of the shop and spotted Ameko, who was supposed to be asleep at this hour. What was she doing here?

She had taken a taxi here, arriving only minutes before Zhang Heng. Before the car even came to a stop, she had already jumped down the vehicle. Dropping to the ground wearily, she watched the fire devour her father’s shop.

Zhang Heng was about to approach her when two tattooed men wearing black gloves and shades jumped down a dark blue Toyota Voxy parked nearby and dragged Ameko from the floor into the car!

The girl screamed and struggled. When the concerned taxi driver saw this, he got down his vehicle to help the poor girl but found a muzzle pointed at his head instead.

The taxi diver’s bravery evaporated immediately; he ran back to his car and fled as far and as fast as he could.

The person who had come down the Toyota Voxy did not have to worry about the driver calling the police because he only needed two minutes to take his target away.

Unfortunately, things did not always turn out the way we wanted them to, and in a split second, something pierced the dark skies!

The person holding the gun heard a swishing sound before a sudden stabbing pain shot up his right arm, forcing him to release the weapon!

An arrow that came out of nowhere had pierced his palm.

His staggered partner was about to release Ameko and run for his life, but Zhang Heng, who had taken shelter behind the bus did not give him a chance! Zhang Heng narrowed his eyes and released the taut bowstring! The second arrow hit the guy in the calf.

But their other partner in the Toyota Voxy, who was able to pinpoint Zhang Heng’s location from the first two arrows, acted quickly, blocking Zhang Heng with the car.

At that very moment, Zhang Heng knew that he needed to seize the opportunity! He pulled his hoodie over and then jumped out from behind the advertisement board, shooting continuously at the window of the car. To avoid the enemy’s shots, he quickly searched for a safe route back to the car.

Doing this, however, put a distance between him and the Toyota Voxy. By the time he was half-turned, the two injured men had already knocked Ameko unconscious and were struggling to drag her up the car.

Zhang Heng’s last arrow flew into the car past the driver’s seat before finally planting itself on the dashboard. The driver froze for a second, and the door was quickly shut!

The Voxy made a move, racing towards the main road.

Zhang Heng was strangely calm. He moved in this direction to not only get on the other side of the Voxy but to also get near to the L300 he had parked by the road.

When he saw the kidnappers making a run for it, he put his bow and arrows away and jumped into his delivery van! He had left the door unlocked and keys in the ignition in case of unexpected events.

It was this attention to detail that saved him precious time.

Before he fired up the L300, he looked up at the rearview mirror and saw that the Voxy had disappeared.

Most people would have given up a situation like this, but not Zhang Heng. For the past nine months, he had been delivering goods all over the city for the harsh store owner – he now knew the area like the back of his hand. It was as vivid as a 3D map that was right inside his head.

He knew precisely that about 300meters in the direction that the Voxy was headed to was a fork. Two seconds later, he heard the sound of tires screeching through his open window. He knew exactly which direction they were headed to.

So, without wasting any time, he started the van, turned his car around, and in less than 4 seconds, accelerated to 100km/h! He arrived at the intersection in a literal blink of an eye. Without slowing down, he did a lift-off oversteer! The L300’s tail drew a stunning arc that completely mismatched its boxy body, changing its direction. Zhang Heng then stepped on the gas all the way to the floor!

The motor transplanted from a racecar let out a low growl.

It took Zhang Heng only 45 seconds to reach the second intersection, but there was still no sign of the Voxy. Zhang Heng changed direction again without a second thought.

This was the most challenging part. Being a minute and a half behind the Voxy, he had to rely on his judgment for the first part of the chase. One wrong turn and he would lose Ameko completely.

But Zhang Heng did not have any other choice. He had to trust himself, trust the old friend chugging beneath him! Ahead of him was a 3 km long, straight road. Unless the Voxy was unbelievably fast, there was no reason he couldn’t spot its taillamp. So, Zhang Heng decided to switch directions. He did a second drift; then, from the corner of his eyes, he caught a glance of the Voxy, which was making another turn.

Got you!

This time, Zhang Heng did not continue to pursue the minivan. He took the L300 500 meters forward before abruptly turning towards a closed coffee shop. The quick turn resulted in him breaking through the glass door, toppling over two tables, before charging out the back door and barraging directly into a shopping mall!