Chapter 105: Operation: Raid on the Coastal Factory

2022-05-20

In no time at all, Mary stripped away the voices from the recording, leaving only the background noise. She cranked up the volume while the rest of us leaned in, listening intently.

The background hum was eerily quiet, so much so it almost lulled us to sleep. Yet, tucked within that silence, we could pick up a low, buzzing drone.

We closed our eyes and listened carefully, but I couldn’t make heads or tails of it. I didn’t have the slightest clue what we were supposed to be hearing.

After a while, Mary spoke up. “It’s a transformer. Definitely a transformer!”

“A transformer?” I echoed, a bit puzzled.

Mary nodded. “There are a lot of big docks out east. Industrial electricity is way higher voltage than what you use at home. Home voltage couldn’t create a current this strong. This means the place must be near a coastal factory where they have all those transformers.”

As she spoke, Mary quickly pulled up an industrial land map of Dongxing City on the computer. “The coastal industries… They wouldn’t operate out of a chemical plant. Too dangerous; one mistake and you’ve got a poisoning incident. And there’s too much foot traffic on the docks, so it wouldn’t be there either. Fisheries, maybe?”

While talking, Mary started marking something on the map. “Other than a big seafood processing plant, the rest of Dongxing City’s factories are all pretty small. Since June 1st, our section of the East China Sea enters the fishing off-season for over three months, but now it’s open season again. Fishing boats are heading out to sea in droves.”

“So we’re officially back in fishing season now,” I said, studying the map. “Once those boats head out, they’re gone for a month, maybe three. Renting out a small factory during this time isn’t impossible. That means it’s likely in one of these small factories.”

Mary nodded emphatically. “That’s my guess too.”

Team Leader Shao slammed his hand on the desk. “We don’t have time to double-check if we’re right or not. We’ve thought through this as far as we can. If we still don’t hit the mark, I guess luck just isn’t on our side. Mary, alert the locals and have them investigate every seafood processing plant they can. Eliminate as many locations as possible.”

“Gu Chen, round up the rest of the team. Grab your gear; we’re heading out.”

With one sweeping gesture from Team Leader Shao, everyone sprang into action.

Gu Chen spoke up: “Do we really need this much firepower for those folks from Fang’s side?”

I nodded, replying quietly, “Honestly, we might. Those people are capable of anything, especially the one who made that call.”

Once everything was ready, Team Leader Shao—and just as expected—came over to check on me. He said, “It’s not that I don’t trust you, but rules are rules. You have a history of paranoia. If anything goes wrong, neither of us will get out unscathed. I can’t put everyone’s lives on the line.”

He looked at me with a complicated expression.

“I understand,” I said with a smile. “You’re being thoughtful about my feelings. Different roles, different perspectives.”

Team Leader Shao was relieved. “Good. Let’s get moving, everyone.”

East side.

After we got out of the car, we split up and started searching the coast for the spot.

Minute by minute, time ticked away. There were only a few minutes left on the hour, which meant Liu Yinyan was about to lose a finger. For a young person, losing a single finger might not be the end of the world, but Liu Yinyan was already a seventy-year-old man.

Another hour passed, which meant Liu Yinyan had already lost two fingers.

“Wu Meng!” Team Leader Shao’s voice called out. “Bring everyone over—we found the place.”

“You found it?” I asked.

Team Leader Shao replied, “That’s right. I sent you the location.”

It took me a good ten minutes or so to finally reach the spot.

The place was definitely out of the way, far from the industrial noise. Turns out, Team Leader Shao brought his team to the quietest area right from the start, eventually tracking down the location. From the outside, the place looked like a factory about to collapse—red bricks exposed, metal beams sticking out everywhere, practically in ruins.

We pressed against the wall outside the big entrance. Team Leader Shao whispered, “This place looks abandoned, but there are signs the gate’s been opened. Someone’s been going in and out. Plus, it’s so remote—beyond here are mountains, perfect for escape. I’m betting they’re inside.”

Gu Chen nodded and whispered too. “But we have no idea what’s going on in there. We don’t know how many people are inside, or where Liu Feier and Liu Yinyan are being held. We don’t even know if the enemy has weapons. If we charge in blind, they might hurt the hostages.”

“That’s why we have to sneak in first to scout things out,” Team Leader Shao said. “No one here is as good at that as you are. So you need to slip inside and figure out as much as you can without being noticed. We haven’t heard from them in two hours and twelve minutes. In forty-eight more minutes, Liu Yinyan will lose his third finger, so move fast.”

Given how things stood, rushing in would probably tank the whole operation. We had to know what we were walking into.

Team Leader Shao went on, “Back-up is on the way. Once we know the layout, we can get in position.”

“No problem,” Gu Chen nodded.

Mary pressed a small camera to Gu Chen’s chest. “With this camera, we’ll be able to see what you see.”

She opened up her laptop bag and handed Gu Chen seven or eight little round objects. They weren’t much bigger than marbles, just about the size of a glass bead. Made of rubber, a little lumpy and irregular—no idea what purpose the odd shape really served.

Gu Chen took the rubber balls, asking, “What are these?”

Mary patted her laptop and explained, “These are all cameras, too—just like the one on your chest. Easier to carry, and since they look like chewed-up rubber, nobody suspects a thing. If you’re not sure where people are inside, just toss one in. They land almost silently, and I’ll have the video feed here.”

“Got it!” Gu Chen nodded. “I’ll head in first and take a look.”

“Go on then,” said Team Leader Shao.

Mary rolled one of the rubber cameras through the gap beneath the factory door. As it bounced and rolled, we watched the inside on her screen. The place was big, but not a single soul in sight.

Mary whispered, “It’s empty. Be careful when you go in. Use those cameras wisely—we need eyes everywhere in there.”

Two people crouched by the wall, ready to boost.

Gu Chen climbed onto their shoulders. Moving slowly, they lifted Gu Chen up. He braced himself against the wall, stuck his head up for a quick look, and flashed us an OK sign. Then, using sheer upper body strength, he pulled himself up and with one quick kick, got inside.

His movements were smooth and silent—not a single sound.