Chapter 126: Business as Usual

I listened to their conversation while eating. Initially, it didn't register as anything significant, but when the words "the capital" and "machinery" came up, I couldn't help but pay closer attention. There was nothing inherently suspicious about those two terms, yet for some reason, I felt a vague sense of unease.

I feigned a casual tone and asked, "Are you guys from the capital? You sound like it. We’re from there too."

Their table was right next to ours, so they heard me clearly. These long-haul truckers were talkative; the one who had spoken first replied, "Hey, found a local! We’re hauling out of the capital. Only I’m actually from there, though; those two are just friends I brought along for the job."

After a few minutes of small talk, I asked about their destination. The name they mentioned caught me off guard: Wuming County. What’s more, it seemed Wuming wasn't the final stop—or rather, the machinery wasn't meant to stay there. According to the driver, they were to transfer the cargo once they arrived.

Guo Fan and Liu Dong are seasoned veterans with sharp instincts. One was a former reconnaissance soldier, the other a mix of police and armed police—both men of extreme caution. Upon hearing the drivers, they both glanced at me. I signaled them to keep quiet while I continued chatting with the truckers.

It soon became clear that these drivers didn't know much. They were independent contractors hired for a single job. I also learned that two other trucks had hauled similar cargo to Wuming County not long ago.

Such a coincidence was strange, especially meeting them at this highway service area. I had already briefed Guo Fan and Liu Dong on my mission—though not in exhaustive detail. I told them I had crossed a powerful figure named "Old Ghost" from the Four Gates. They had heard of him, but being professionals hired for a job, they weren't easily intimidated. As Liu Dong put it, "So what if Old Ghost is a big shot? He can't stop us from working. If he stands in the way of our paycheck, we’d take him on even if he were the King of Hell."

They knew my purpose was to find, or rather, rescue someone. Since they were now effectively my subordinates, I needed them in the loop so they could offer advice when needed; their experience far surpassed mine.

I caught Guo Fan’s eye, signaling him to check the cargo. He understood instantly, nodded, and stepped out of the restaurant.

Liu Dong and I continued eating. Guo Fan, true to his reconnaissance background, was highly efficient. He was back in less than ten minutes. Pretending to head for the restroom, he sat back down and started eating. Once the three truckers finished and left—having no idea we were also headed for Wuming County, as I’d told them we were just three friends on a road trip—Guo Fan set down his chopsticks.

"I checked," he whispered. "The cargo on all three trucks is nearly identical. Mostly machinery. I pried open a few crates; they’re definitely exploration equipment, the kind used for rock mining. One crate contained drill bits and high-spec probes. These are heavy-duty components meant to be assembled on-site. It looks like the owner is planning some serious geological exploration."

Liu Dong, having finished his meal, lit a cigarette. "That’s strange. If they were grave robbers, they’d be using Luoyang shovels or portable gear. Why use heavy machinery? That’s just asking to be noticed."

After lunch, we returned to our car. I had Liu Dong drive and told him to speed up and overtake those trucks. I wanted to reach Wuming County before them. It was a sudden plan; if we arrived early, we could scout the area before heading to Longtou Mountain. If we went to the mountain empty-handed, we’d be walking into a void.

But now, if these trucks were somehow linked to Li Ling, we had a trail to follow. We would arrive ahead of them, scout the situation, and if we hit a dead end, we could wait for those trucks to see if they led us to her.

Liu Dong drove fast, and since the three trucks were heavily loaded, we caught up and passed them before long, putting significant distance between us.

To kill the boredom on the road, I asked Guo Fan how he was so certain about the equipment. The highway scenery was monotonous, and the silence in the car was stifling.

Guo Fan paused, then told us he’d encountered such things back in his military days. Before I could press him for details, Liu Dong chimed in, "Come on, Brother Fan, tell us! I spent my life in the armed police and the local force—never saw anything interesting, just maintaining public order. You field soldiers have all the good stories."

Unable to resist Liu Dong’s prodding, Guo Fan sighed, lit a cigarette, and looked out the window as if drifting back in time.

"It was 1982," he began. "I was just a green recruit on a remote mountain in Jiangcheng, Hubei. The army was doing some infrastructure work, and we were ordered to expand a site to build a storage depot for equipment. We had a one-month deadline. That’s when I learned the basics of mining equipment. We did all the labor ourselves, though the military region sent in technicians to supervise and guide us."