Chapter 73 - 68: Salted Fish Sticking to the Cake (Part 2)

Words : 2029 Updated : Sep 12th, 2025

Chapter 73: Chapter 68: Salted Fish Sticking to the Cake (Part 2)The sanitary conditions at the state-owned Bailong Port Hotel are incomparable to those of the Sailor Club. There are no TVs, no air conditioning, no private bathrooms; the walls, whitewashed with lime, are moldy in many places, and the floors are covered in spit stains. Even the sheets and bedding seem like they haven’t been washed or aired out in ages; they’re damp and emit an odd smell. Zhang Asheng and his wife, Shen Rulan, love cleanliness, and they tossed and turned all night, unable to sleep well. Although the ship was noisy and the hygiene was only average, the exhaustion and drowsiness overcame them, and they fell asleep as soon as they boarded. Ye Xingguo is not so picky, he slept soundly at night, couldn’t sleep during the day, bought a few newspapers, and laid on the narrow bunk reading. Zhang Junyan and Old Liu worried they might be recognized by regular passengers from Bailong Port, so they didn’t come to this cabin. Chief Zhou and Liu Guixiang had no such concerns; both of them lay on the lower bunks, and their bunks were right by the cabin door. There are several passengers in this cabin; the old man in the middle bunk opposite and the woman with a child in the lower bunk diagonally across are certainly not plainclothes officers from the Binjiang Port Police Bureau. Han Yu observed discreetly and noticed that an elder sister in the upper bunk diagonally across had her hand resting on the iron railing, humming quietly, her fingers tapping rhythmically in time with the song. Turns out she’s a radiotelegraphist from Binjiang Port radio station! Han Yu came back to his senses, quickly tapped his fingers on his knee in accordance with Director Chen’s orders, communicating with the radiotelegraphist. "Pass on information if there’s any, don’t reply if there’s not." "Understood." "It’s your first time taking a passenger ferry to East Sea, you must be curious, Chief Zhou asked you to go out and look around." "Received." Experience comes with age, lying here in the cabin, suspects might really become suspicious. Instantly, Han Yu flipped over and leaned out of bed to say to the person below, "Manager Ye, I can’t fall asleep lying here, I want to go out and take a look." Ye Xingguo was taken aback for a moment, then looked up and smiled, "Go ahead." "Will you watch my bag for me?" "Pass it here, be careful not to drop it on anyone." Han Yu handed his money-filled travel bag to Ye Xingguo, then clambered down, put on his shoes, and headed out of the cabin to start strolling aimlessly. The passenger ferry was only so big, and he was too familiar with it, really nothing worth wandering. Han Yu could only reminisce about the first time he took a passenger ferry, wandering around the same route, up and down, back and forth. He passed by Shao Lei twice, pretending not to recognize him, then returned to the cabin and excitedly said, "Manager Ye, there’s a video hall on the ship, they’re playing a movie!" "What movie are they showing?" "A film from Hong Kong, seems to be called ’Female Boss’!" The two newspapers were quickly read through. Manager Ye sat up, bored, and asked with a smile, "Do you want to watch it?" Han Yu subconsciously glanced at Chief Zhou pretending to nap beside him, and said embarrassingly, "I’d love to, but videos on the ship are more expensive than on shore." Searᴄh the Nôvel(F)ire.nёt website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "Come on, let’s go watch for a bit, I’ll buy the tickets, you don’t have to pay." "How could I possibly accept that?" "Just going to watch a movie, not doing anything else, take your bag with you." "Okay then." Time on the ship drags by so hard. How nice it is to watch a movie; not only does it help kill time, but there’s also no worry about exposing one’s identity. After watching three movies, half a day had passed. Returning to the cabin, he studied the East Sea City map for a while, the announcement informed them that the passenger ferry had entered the Huangpu River, requesting all passengers to prepare for disembarkation. Since it’s his first visit to East Sea, he must be quite curious about China’s biggest city. Han Yu once again asked Ye Xingguo to keep an eye on his bag and ran out to see the scenery along the riverbanks. Shen Rulan woke up, went to the restroom, and asked upon return to the cabin, "Manager Ye, where’s San’er?" "He finds everything odd, he’s outside gawking at the excitement." "After we finish up our business, we should take him out for a spin." "That’s exactly what I was thinking; can’t just send him back after buying him a recorder." Zhang Asheng also woke up, yawning continuously, and asked, "Old Ye, did you have lunch?" "No, we had a big breakfast and aren’t hungry." "What about Salted Fish?" "He didn’t either, too busy watching movies." Chief Zhou heard everything loud and clear, silently marveled at the benefits of being young; for example, being able to stick close in surveillance, the three suspects truly held no caution towards Little Salted Fish. Liu Guixiang, on the other hand, picked up his bag, checked the bunk to see if anything was left behind, and then walked out of the cabin. Han Yu was admiring the skyscrapers along the shore, all the while thinking about what to do after landing, when Liu Guixiang’s voice came from behind. "Don’t look back, just listen to me." "Oh." "The arrangements on shore are all set; friends from the East Sea branch will pick us up. Just follow them, no need to worry or look around wondering where we are." "Understood." "You should go back now, don’t let them come out looking for you." Han Yu responded and, as if nothing happened, turned around and went back to the cabin. Ye Xingguo and the other two had already packed up, smiling at him and asking, "San’er, it’s rare for you to come to East Sea. Apart from buying recorders, where else do you want to go?" "I want to go to the Bund, to Nanjing Road." "Do you want to take a photo at the Bund?" "Yes." Surely he was a kid who hadn’t seen the world, only knowing these two places. Shen Rulan couldn’t help but laugh and said, "We’re busy today, we’ll take you there after we’re done with our business." Han Yu didn’t want to raise their suspicions and said without hesitation, "Sister Shen, you go about your business, don’t mind me. I have a map, and even if I can’t find the place, I can ask for directions." "You’re not coming with us, you’re going to play by yourself?" "I... I’ll go for a walk." "Where do you plan to stay at night?" "I can stay at a hotel at night, East Sea must have many hotels." "Though you’re not big, you certainly have courage, wanting to stay in a hotel alone. Stop kidding, follow us when we get on shore, and we’ll take you out after we’re done." Fearing he wouldn’t obey, Shen Rulan emphasized again, "You came with us, so we have to take responsibility for you. If you don’t come with us, I will call your sister." Han Yu had no choice but to acquiesce with a forced smile. "Alright then." Chief Zhou didn’t expect that the three suspects not only didn’t find Salted Fish to be a burden, but actually took good care of him. He shouldered his bag, walked out of the cabin with a smile at the corner of his mouth. With the melodious sound of the steam whistle, the passenger ship slowly approached the dock. People picked up their bags and orderly disembarked under the onboard police’s reminder. Han Yu finally saw Director Zhang and Old Liu but dared not greet them, not even daring to make eye contact. Just reaching the exit, a very fashionably dressed young man waved and shouted, "Sister Shen, Sister Shen, I’m here!" "Who is that, oh it’s you." "Ah Bin was originally going to ask Liu Jun, but Liu Jun’s superior needed the car, so he asked me to pick you up. Brother-in-law, haven’t seen you in a long time!" "Hello, hello, thank you for your trouble." "No bother, it’s hard to park here, I have parked across the street." ... Han Yu followed them across the street and was stunned to find that the young man had driven a brand new Santana! Shen Rulan stuffed their bags into the trunk, opened the passenger door hurriedly and said, "San’er, stop gazing, hurry up and get in the car. Xiao Xu, take us to the airport." "Sister Shen, you just got back and have to travel again?" "Not on business today, we’re going to see a few friends off." The young driver got into the driver’s seat, started the engine, and, holding the steering wheel, asked, "What time is their flight, will we make it now?" Shen Rulan lifted her arm to check her watch and smiled, "Their flight to Hong Kong is at 8:45 tonight, it’s only quarter past four now, we should make it." Han Yu’s first instinct was to signal out the car window. But recalling that Director Chen should have arrived in East Sea this morning and had the information on the few Indians about to leave the country, he would be able to find out what time the Indians’ flights were and thus dismiss the idea. The driver clearly had no idea what the three of them were up to, busy with small talk. Through their casual conversation, Han Yu finally understood why they knew so much about the shipping industry. Turns out Zhang Asheng had been a sailor for several years, Shen Rulan had worked at a ship agency, and Shen Rulan’s brother still worked there, apparently as a driver for the ship agency, just that it was unclear what Ye Xingguo had previously done. With East Sea being crowded with both cars and people, they reached the airport past five. Shen Rulan had been worried that the Indian sailors wouldn’t wait, but arriving at the airport hall and seeing a few Indian sailors standing at the agreed spot, she finally breathed a sigh of relief, handed the bag over to Han Yu with a smile, and went to greet them. All matters had been talked through the previous night at Binjiang; she chatted briefly with the few Indian sailors and then beckoned, and Zhang Asheng immediately ran over. Ye Xingguo told Han Yu to stand there and not to move and went over with his bag too. They gathered in a less crowded corner, looking as if they were dividing money. Then they headed straight to the airport’s foreign currency exchange, queuing up to exchange for US Dollar. Han Yu was too far away to see anything and could only obediently stay put, watching their luggage. After about half an hour, they came back and went to the same corner, looking as if they were doing accounts and dividing money. Meanwhile, the Director of the airport Police Station’s outpost pushed open the door and entered the resting room. Director Chen had been anxiously waiting there all afternoon and instinctively stood up, "Chief Zhou, is there any news?" "Ministry of Police has sent a message, instructing not to wait, to take initiative, and to ensure this round-tripping gang is captured all at once, to recover the loss of foreign exchange for the country." Chief Zhou handed over a handwritten radiogram, adding with a smile, "City Bureau has ordered us to assist your operation. When do you plan to arrest?" Director Chen took the radiogram, passionately saying, "We wait a little longer, wait until those six Indian suspects enter the boarding hall, and wait until the domestic suspects have moved away before arresting."

Chapter 73 - 68: Salted Fish Sticking to the Cake (Part 2)

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