Chapter 176 30

Chapter 176: 30

Three days later, late at night, the weather forecast predicted wind.

At Mingzhu City International Airport, an international flight finally touched down. The plane taxied on the runway for a while before coming to a gradual stop.

Men, women, and children disembarked from the plane after a five-hour long flight, which included experiencing some turbulence, finally arriving in this foreign city.

It was already past 10 p.m., and weary travelers bustled about, collecting their luggage, passing through customs, and exiting the arrival hall.

The foreign airport was not as luxurious as one might imagine—small, chaotic, and even resembling a bus station. Many tourists showed disappointed expressions.

Drivers holding various signs were already waiting in the airport to greet arrivals, along with locals hustling for passengers.

Over a dozen variously dressed men and women were led separately onto several minibuses parked in the lot.

The driver, speaking the local language, counted the passengers. A man who understood Chinese sat in the passenger seat, motioning for everyone to sit.

The passengers, all young people, took out their phones to text their families they'd arrived safely, chatting and laughing among themselves. Some asked the drivers questions, their voices brimming with anticipation and curiosity.

"Is there a late-night meal tonight?"

"Didn’t you say room and board are included? Where are we going now?"

"When can we start working?"

The driver stayed unusually quiet, his expression tense as he started the vehicle, completely ignoring their questions.

The man in the passenger seat turned around and gave them a creepy smile, speaking in broken Chinese: "Don’t rush. There’s a big house and good food waiting for you. We’ll get you processed tonight, and soon you’ll be raking in big money."

Everyone looked at each other, each seeing "excitement" and "greed" in the others’ eyes. They egged each other on and swapped compliments, step by step moving forward on an unknown path as the vehicle drove on.

These young people, who "fantasized" about being the main characters in their own story, were the "merchandise" from Shen Xi and Cha Xin's deal.

By now, the "lambs" had walked into the lion's den.

Cha Xin was no fool and not easily deceived. Ever since Shen Xi had exploited the time difference during the maritime handover last time, messing up the original deal, Cha Xin wasn't taking any chances.

This time, Cha Xin insisted that the "goods" be inspected as soon as they landed, with the drivers and everyone on the vehicles being his people.

In other words, before the transaction, Cha Xin had to ensure the "goods" were controllable.

It took a lot of convincing for Cha Xin to persuade Shen Xi to agree to this—threatening and bribing him—before Shen Xi finally relented. However, Shen Xi demanded a bigger cut from Cha Xin, otherwise, the deal was off.

At the time, Cha Xin smashed three crystal ashtrays before gritting his teeth and agreeing.

The vehicles soon left the airport. Shortly after, the man in the passenger seat received a phone call with instructions and relayed them to the driver, who then drove as directed.

Simultaneously, several other vehicles set off, following at a distance as they drove into the night.

.

Meanwhile, inside an abandoned factory on the outskirts of Mingzhu City, the mood was seriously tense.

This was an old factory with sheds over ten meters high, each side equipped with wide doors large enough to easily accommodate trucks for loading and unloading.

The air was thick with the persistent smell of rust.

The old factory was now brightly lit by several white emergency lights, with security personnel stationed at various corners and additional lookouts posted outside.

Near the factory entrance, an SUV was parked, with four people inside.

Today, Cha Xin was driving himself, with Pan Na in the passenger seat, while Shen Xi and Ruan Cong sat in the back.

The car was quiet for a while as they waited for tonight’s shipment to arrive.

This batch that flew in consisted of twenty-four people, split up among three minibuses.

Each vehicle would take a different route; even if one were intercepted and inspected by the police, the others wouldn’t be implicated.

Shen Xi lowered his head, toying with a folding fan in his hand. Just as he had anticipated, Cha Xin, that old fox, had changed the location for the transaction and inspection at the last minute.

Fortunately, Shen Xi had taken precautions.

All the vehicles had to come from the airport. Even if the final destination was unknown, the starting point was fixed.

The targets were very conspicuous. With few cars on the road at night, it wouldn’t be difficult to follow them at a distance with patience from intersections near the airport.

The location wasn’t too far from the airport. Half an hour later, the first vehicle pulled into the warehouse next to them.

Inside the warehouse, security personnel approached and spoke with the driver and the person riding shotgun in their native tongue.

The driver didn’t open the door. The man in the passenger seat turned around and said, “Everyone, wait a moment. Others will arrive soon, and we’ll take you to the dormitory together.”

Though he tried to reassure them, the “passengers” still sensed danger, nervously glancing at the men with serious expressions outside the windows.

What kind of factory needed its security personnel to be armed?

Soon, the second vehicle arrived.

Cha Xin kept his eyes fixed ahead, tapping rhythmically on the steering wheel with his fingers. His face showed no expression, making it impossible to tell what he was thinking.

Pan Na, however, was losing her composure. Chewing on her meticulously manicured nails, she turned anxiously to Ruan Cong and said, “Check on the whereabouts of the remaining people.”

Ruan Cong looked at Cha Xin, but Cha Xin remained in the same posture, as if he hadn’t heard Pan Na at all.

“Hurry up!” Pan Na also looked at Cha Xin. She was adept at reading people and understood Cha Xin’s mind well. The calmer he appeared on the surface, the more anxious he was inside. So she pushed Ruan Cong.

Seeing the situation, Ruan Cong made a call and quickly replied, “Everything’s normal. They’ll be here soon.”

Finally, the third vehicle arrived late and drove into the factory.

Seeing all the vehicles inside the warehouse, Cha Xin finally seemed to relax a little, his stiff shoulders loosening. He instructed Ruan Cong, “Have them inspect the goods carefully.”

All the large doors except the one near the SUV were closed.

The drivers finally opened the doors of the three buses and quickly got out, as if unwilling to stay a moment longer.

After receiving their payment, they hurried away.

Armed security personnel boarded the vehicles and shouted at the confused men and women inside, “Get off! Leave your luggage! Hand over your phones!”

The people on the buses were roughly pulled off one by one, and their phones were confiscated. One man hesitated to surrender his phone, prompting a burly guard to snatch it and slap him hard on the back of the head. When the man looked back defiantly, a gun muzzle was pressed against his forehead.

No one dared to protest after that.

The security guards had this down to a routine, following a well-established procedure.

Step one: cut off communication. Step two: confiscate all belongings. Step three: frisk them and check for any physical issues.

Afterward, the people would be separated and transferred to other vehicles.

Their hands would be tied, and their mouths gagged shut.

Soon, everyone was herded out of the vehicles and ordered to squat in an open area inside the warehouse.

Specialized personnel would evaluate them and send them to different places based on their traits.

Those who were trafficked had no choice but to obey. Once bound, they were completely powerless, with nowhere to turn for help.

They seemed to realize only then what was about to happen. Some trembled in fear, some began to plead, and others sobbed quietly.

All they received in response were furious yells: "Shut up!"

"Stay down and don’t move!"

"Don’t cause trouble if you want to live!"

Shen Xi leaned against the rear window of the SUV, appearing lazy and detached, as though the day’s dealings were none of his concern.

But in a corner no one could see, his fingers clenched tightly around the folding fan in his hand.

Then, he closed his eyes, concealing his compassion and rage. The time hadn’t yet come for him to show his emotions.

He had to endure.

In the past, similar events had likely occurred countless times.

Strength, power, beauty, money, intelligence, rule of law—at this moment, in this place, all of it meant nothing.

The power of an individual was too insignificant; resistance was futile. In the face of brutality, only the law of the jungle prevailed, and living people were reduced to defenseless prey.

That was why so many people disappeared without a trace from the world, separated from their families, descending into an endless hell.

Unlike Shen Xi’s apparent indifference, the others were clearly excited.

Ruan Cong had been coordinating with outside contacts via phone.

Although Pan Na sat in the passenger seat throughout the journey, she had been watching Shen Xi’s every move. Even now, she still felt there was something suspicious about him.

But seeing the "goods" finally arrive, Pan Na eased up a bit, shifting her attention from Shen Xi to evaluating the merchandise of this batch.

She looked out the window and commented, "Two of the women seem quite good-looking. Tell them I want those for my establishment."

Cha Xin was also observing. Seeing that the quality matched what Shen Xi had promised, he finally showed a hint of satisfaction. Hearing Pan Na’s words, he nodded and said, "The quality of this batch is indeed good. They’re all young and have nice figures. They should command a high price."

Hearing this, Shen Xi finally broke from his detached act. He opened his eyes and smiled at them, saying, "It seems today’s goods have satisfied both bosses. Pleasure doing business. This is just the first transaction. If Boss Cha is pleased, I can prepare more next time."

However, there would be no next time. Today, everything—and everyone—would come to an end.

Outside the warehouse, the police had already set up their operation. The approach of suspicious vehicles quickly caught the attention of hidden sentries.

Kusa, who was responsible for inspecting the goods, suddenly received a call. He looked down, answered it, and his expression changed drastically.

At the same time, Pan Na’s phone also rang. She only glanced at it before turning around in a panic and exclaiming, "Something's happened at the bar!"

At this, the people inside the car moved simultaneously.

With the drama having reached this point, all pretense and concealment were meaningless. The moment of truth had finally arrived.

Almost as soon as they noticed the anomaly, Rong Qing raised his hand and tapped the car window on his side with his fan—their pre-arranged signal to act.