139. Rendezvous

Yang Zaixing and Yang Hu were stunned for a moment by the question. They had carefully scouted the perimeter and were certain no one else was around, yet they had clearly been careless.

"Are you two deaf? Why aren't you answering? Why are you just standing there like statues? Did the supervisor return?" the man continued, addressing them. Seeing Yang Zaixing remain silent, he suddenly struck a different chord. "Are you planning to steal the camp's money and run away? Don't bother; abandon that hope now! We all bear the organization's mark. Unlike the supervisor, who only has a plum blossom on his arm, we have numbers beneath our blossoms, and every man's number is unique. If anyone reports you to the organization, you’ll be branded as traitors. If you’re caught, you’ll be thrown into a vat of boiling oil. I advise you to be sensible! Honestly, I’ve said so much, why is there no reaction from either of you?" As he spoke, the man walked toward them.

Yang Zaixing and Yang Hu were caught in a dilemma, unsure of their next move. Should they strike him down immediately? If they turned and were discovered as intruders, the entire mission for the night could fail. Or should they simply run? The man didn't seem to pose an immediate threat. As they hesitated, they watched him close the distance between them.

Suddenly, the sound of footsteps echoed nearby. Before the man could react, he was silenced by a muffled groan as Yuwen Chengdu appeared and slit his throat. "Big Brother, Brother Hu, are you alright?"

Yang Zaixing looked down at the man collapsing to the ground, but said nothing; the man was already lifeless, beyond the reach of words. He shook his head at Yuwen Chengdu. "We're fine. But why are you here? Where is Xiaoxuan? Isn't he with you?" Yang Zaixing looked around, seeing only Yuwen Chengdu.

"We went to the jail; there was only one guard. After Xiaoxuan took care of him, we realized there was no need to stay there. We expected heavy resistance at the front gate, so Xiaoxuan sent me to assist, but it seems I’ve made a wasted trip. You two seem to have handled things quite easily—there wasn't even a guard here. As for Xiaoxuan, he went to check the human traffickers' living quarters."

"When we arrived at the gate, there were only two people here. It feels suspicious—is this a trap?" Yang Zaixing gestured toward the shadowy corner where the two had been hiding.

"Exactly," Yuwen Chengdu agreed, looking at the empty camp. "The Nie brothers said there should be twenty or thirty men here. Are they all asleep? There’s no security at all! Is this a decoy base? Did we come to the wrong place? But we saw many children locked in the cells, so that can't be right."

"Perhaps they are all asleep. Let's wait for Uncle Tong and Uncle Yang to rendezvous with us. Something feels off, though I can't put my finger on it." According to Zhang Xuan's plans, there should have been at least one patrol unit, or at the very least, three or four men guarding the front gate—the most vital entrance. The reality was disproportionately easier than they had anticipated.

When Uncle Tong and Uncle Yang saw the front gate swing open, they exchanged a look. It was just as Zhang Xuan had said: the younger generation was truly surging ahead, and they felt their own relevance fading. The four had acted with incredible efficiency. It felt like no time had passed since they themselves had approached the gate, yet it was already open, and they could see Yang Zaixing and Yang Hu standing there. Without hesitation, they hurried toward the gate to ensure nothing had gone awry.

The brothers Nie Zheng and Nie Rong, watching from a distance, also saw the gates open and shared a look of disbelief. "Brother, look, the gate is open! It happened so fast; didn't we just part ways?"

"I see it, little brother. It hasn't even been a moment; we were just discussing our future plans!"

"Could it be that some traffickers just happened to be leaving and opened the door?" Nie Rong was still skeptical of the four men's abilities. But as he saw Yang Hu, followed by Uncle Tong and Uncle Yang running toward the gate, his jaw dropped. The reality had proven him wrong in the blink of an eye.

Nie Zheng also watched Uncle Tong and Uncle Yang run forward. While he had believed in Zhang Xuan's group, the speed of their success was staggering.

Yang Hu, standing at the entrance, waved at the approaching men. Once Uncle Tong and Uncle Yang reached them, they grabbed Yang Zaixing, Yang Hu, and Yuwen Chengdu, checking them over repeatedly. Finding no injuries—only a few specks of blood—they let out a sigh of relief.

"Where is Xiaoxuan? Why isn't he with you? Did something happen..."