Wu Guodong: "I don't know who he is, but he was brought by the divine doctor. We can't be ungrateful like this."
Chen Liben: "We respect the divine doctor and trust his character, but that doesn't mean everyone around him is trustworthy. What if the divine doctor misjudges someone and allows an ill-intentioned person to exploit the situation? That would also negatively affect the divine doctor's reputation. I believe the divine doctor is an open-minded person and wouldn't cause trouble with us over a mere apprentice. Besides, we are doing this for the divine doctor's own good. If there is an ill-intentioned person planted among them, like a bomb, how safe would that be?"
Wu Guodong was so angry his nose was practically crooked. What kind of twisted logic was this? He kept talking about acting for the sake of others, but he knew very well that I was the stubborn enemy the principal Sun mentioned. Now that I was under his nose, how could he let me go?
He just didn't want to reveal that he was Wang Dong's master, so he got rid of Wang Dong at noon and then came to deal with me.
Wu Guodong: "I don't care if he's a good person or not. You can handle this matter anywhere else, but not on my territory!"
He said this very firmly and slammed the table hard.
Chen Liben: "General, please calm down. I only heard some rumors and wanted to verify them. I have no intention of troubling the divine doctor. Since the General has spoken, I will not inquire further. General, please rest, I will take my leave now."
Wu Guodong: "Do your job properly and stop thinking about crooked schemes all day. If it's not your money, there's no point in even thinking about it!"
Chen Liben: "General, I've noted it. Please rest. I'll take my leave now."
After saying that, he saluted and turned to leave. Before leaving, he couldn't resist giving me a malicious glance.
I met his gaze squarely. As our eyes met, he shifted his gaze away and walked out. Dafeng Novel Network.
After Chen Liben had gone far, the General said, "This is a public challenge to me. It seems we need to act quickly. He won't leave us much time."
I asked, "Third Young Master, how many people do you have at your disposal?"
Wu Lao San: "I have a secret special forces unit in Chan Bang, about three hundred men. Each of them is highly skilled, with a cultivation level at least comparable to Chen Liben's top assassins. I also have twenty special forces soldiers by my side, and they are even more capable. They can handle anything, whether it flies in the sky, runs on the ground, or swims in the water. All these people are available to you at any time, brother, if you need them."
I said, "Good. Select ten fluent Chinese speakers from your personal guard to accompany me to Ruili. Then, deploy a company of one hundred special forces soldiers to be stationed near the border, ready to take my orders."
Wu Lao San: "Understood. I will lead these one hundred men. You can rest assured."
I said, "General, replace all your current guards with your people. Except for the two in the inner chambers, all the former guards are to be confined to your base for isolation. It's not that I don't trust them, but for safety reasons, they are not to have any contact with anyone until the investigation is concluded."
I suspected that Wang Dong was not the only one here. If there were any spies, then this place would still be exposed to Chen Liben's surveillance.
Wu Lao San went out to arrange the replacement of the guards, and then summoned all the special forces soldiers who followed him to come for me to inspect and select.
I first had them each say a few sentences in Chinese, then I examined their physique and build. Those who were too robust or eye-catching could not be chosen. I needed assassins, and the less conspicuous, the better.
Although Wu Lao San still dressed like a playboy, I could sense that he was indeed as General Wu described. This was merely a method of concealing himself, and I must admit, it was a very clever method that successfully confused everyone's perception and provided General Wu Guodong with a strategic advantage.
We returned to the General's room. Wu Guodong said, "The current situation is very unfavorable for the drug trade. Southeast Asian countries have formed a joint eradication force, creating a siege situation in the Golden Triangle. Many well-established output channels have been destroyed, so they desperately need a new passage. Although they know you are even stricter in cracking down on drugs, they are still taking a risk, attempting to create a secret route that is unknown to anyone."
I said, "Even the most cunning fox cannot outwit a good hunter. Although they believe their meticulously woven network is foolproof, any action taken will leave traces. It's impossible to be completely undetected!"
Wu Guodong: "Judging by Chen Liben's intentions, he will absolutely not let you go. You and the divine doctor should make preparations. Disguise the room to look like it's being lived in, then you and the divine doctor should change into the clothes of Third Young Master's guards, and have them escort you two away."
Wu Guodong is indeed formidable. He had already thought of this. Chen Liben would certainly not let me go. He had been trying to kill me in Ruili, and now I was right under his nose.
I instructed the guards to give the General his medicine on time. Then, the two of us returned to our room, tidied it up to make it look inhabited, changed into the clothes provided, locked the door, and quietly left.
We did not bid farewell to the General. As agreed, we went to the back door, where someone was waiting to receive us.
Upon reaching the back door, I mimicked a bird call. Then, two men in black emerged from behind the trees and whispered, "You can go now."
The back door was a very narrow gate, usually used by patrolling soldiers to observe the situation outside.
Outside, eight more men in black were waiting for us. These men joined us, and then stayed by my side.
After exiting through the back door, we walked along a winding path for a long time, and then slid across the river using a rope to reach the opposite bank.
On the other side of the river was a village. The village was completely dark at night. Although electricity had been installed here, it was very unstable, with power outages two out of every three days.
It was probably another power outage. The streets, shrouded in darkness, were so quiet that one could hear a pin drop.
Although this place was a major producer of poppies, food was extremely scarce. With a shortage of food, there were no leftover dishes or meals to feed dogs. Therefore, the biggest difference between this place and villages in the interior was that if you walked on the streets at night without encountering anyone, it was like walking through a ghost street – far too quiet.
It was my first time walking through their village at night, and it was even more eerie than the time I went to the deep mountains where the divine doctor lived.
Houses stood dilapidated, without lights or sounds. When a gust of wind blew, it rustled the branches of the trees, making it even more terrifying.
Fortunately, the village was not very large. After just a few steps, we entered the muddy, narrow country path again.
This area was mostly hilly, with a path trodden by people leading to the town.
We walked for about half an hour, and then arrived at a village. A man in black approached me and said, "My name is Ah Tai. I am in charge of these men. If you have any instructions in the future, just call me. There is a van of ours parked ahead. We are going to the border now."
They would first escort the two of us to the port of exit, and then find a way to join us.
I followed them to a house by the roadside. Someone went into the courtyard to drive the car, while the rest of us waited.
It was a nine-seater van. The divine doctor and I sat in the second row, while the others squeezed into the back.
The van drove for quite some time on the uneven dirt road before reaching a more level main road.