Location: Wushan Mountain Pass, Hubei Province, China
POV : Sawn : Time: September 2025, 09:15 PM
The asphalt road hugged the steep cliffside, winding precariously through the peaks. A red sedan had parked diagonally, cutting off the corner of a sharp turn; on one side stood a wall of obsidian rock, and on the other lay a deep abyss, its bottom swallowed by the dark. Only the hulking silhouettes of the trailer trucks remained, standing still like steel monsters before the tunnel that pierced through the Wushan mountain range.
I looked back toward the sound of the air brakes from the trailer behind us.
Tan, Tui, Yusuf Khan, and Sisamorn walked forward with grim expressions. Ali Ram followed closely, clutching a heavy wooden plank. “If their reason isn't good enough, I’m going to crack their heads open,” he muttered, clearly irritated at the prospect of a long night of driving ahead.
“Sawn, what’s going on?” Tui asked, his voice low and sharp.
“Don’t know yet. We’re about to find out,” I replied, stepping toward the group of three men waiting by the car.
The man with the bald head carried the aura of a Hong Kong triad boss—someone who lived entirely outside the law. As the mountain wind lashed against us, carrying the damp mist from the Three Gorges Dam, the white fog began to swirl around the area.
“Hey, little brother. You guys picked up the vaccine from The Triple Monolith, didn't you?” He gave a cocky, confident smile as he stepped closer.
“Yeah!” I replied. I didn't recognize any of them.
“We’re on the same side. Give us a little cooperation, will you?” He reached out and slapped my shoulder.
“Regarding what?” I glanced at the hand that had dared to cross the line, shifting my body slightly to dodge. I smiled inwardly—
Tui arrived with a water bottle in hand, Tan right beside him. “What’s he saying, Sawn?”
Tui didn’t understand a word of Chinese. In this entire caravan, I was the only one who could speak the language fluently.
I turned to answer him. “He’s asking for cooperation, but his tone is incredibly annoying.”
Tui nodded, a slight smirk playing on his lips as he stared at the bald man. I knew that look—he was about to explode. “Cooperation my ass. You’re blocking the damn road.”
“Let me handle this,” I said, turning back to the bald man. “What’s your problem?”
“We’re going to search your trucks,” he said, his voice dropping into a demanding growl.
“Are you the police? Which agency?”
“Uh... Heh heh heh.” The bald man let out a dry, mocking laugh.
The heavy-set man with the bulging belly stepped forward. “Don’t be difficult, kid. We’re asking nicely for your cooperation. Cooperation.” His voice was thick with threat.
“You guys are pretty self-centered, aren't you? If you can't give me a valid reason, I can’t give you anything. The cargo on the back of these rigs is being waited on, and its value is immense.”
“Someone stole from us and snuck onto your trucks.”
I shook my head in disagreement. “No one can get onto our trucks. Don't talk rot. Look, I’ll give you one more chance: tell me exactly what was stolen from you.”
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The bald man raised a hand to stop the fat one. “Even if I told you, you wouldn't know what it is. Tell you what... I’ll pay you for your lost time.” He reached into his long leather shoulder bag and pulled out a thick stack of cash, thrusting it toward me.
“Tell me first... how much?” I teased with a smirk. Doing this was a blatant insult.
The fat man lunged forward. “You acting smart? My boss is talking to you nicely. Don't get cocky.”
“Oh?!” I pointed right in his face.
“Stop!” The bald man barked. “Ah Tue, keep it civil. Little brother, I’ll pay 1,000 Yuan per truck. Just a quick look-see. I won't mess with anything.”
“No. Our cargo is under a transport contract. If anything goes missing, I’m the one responsible.”
“Don’t look at us like we’re thieves,” his voice began to turn bitter.
“Tch! You cut people off and force them to stop. If you aren't thieves, you’d be the police. But you aren't the police... so you must be thieves.”
“You’re looking for trouble... don't say I wasn't polite.” The bald man looked at the fat one and jerked his head. “Search!”
“Get out of the way.” The skinny man (Ah Long) drew a handgun from his waist and aimed it directly at me.
A blur flashed past my face toward him.
Tui hurled his water bottle, striking the gun and sending it flying.
I lunged forward, jump-kicking the fat man until he tumbled back. I didn't give him a chance to breathe, raining down punches as I roared at Sisamorn... “Stomp him! Don't let them near the trucks!”
……………………………………………………………………………………………………
POV: PAI PAI
I watched the scene unfolding in front of us with bated breath. The moonlight was bright enough to see the clash clearly—the bald Wuhan Dragon boss and his two men were being swarmed by the group of truckers. What had started as an argument and shoving had turned into a full-blown brawl.
Whatever the reason was, at least it gave us a chance to breathe. It felt incredibly satisfying to see that bald guy’s gang getting thrashed, but I still didn't trust this "wolf pack" of truckers either. The one taking the worst of it was the fat guy; he tried to move toward the truck, but a dark-skinned, stout Indian man was relentlessly hammering him with a wooden plank.
Natalie’s face was deathly pale, reflecting the glow of the streetlights as she stared with wide, unblinking eyes. “We’ve jumped from the frying pan into the fire. We need to get out of this truck. These guys are scarier than those thugs.”
“I’m with you! Why stay?” I agreed completely. She was right—these guys were way more brutal.
“Oh my god! Unnie... look at that long-haired guy (Tui)! He just kicked the bald guy right in the face—blood everywhere!”
“That buff guy is stomping the fat one into the dirt!”
“They’ve got guns! The long-haired one is holding a gun to the bald guy’s head! Let's get down, now!” I looked ahead and saw the road sign along with the looming shadow of the Wushan tunnel. The mist from the dam was clinging to the treetops.
“We can call a Xiao Luobo to pick us up,” I thought of calling an Apollo GoLittle Radish
In a deserted place like this, an AI pilot felt much safer than calling a DiDi
Natalie suddenly gasped and turned back. “Wait! I forgot my backpack!”
She scrambled over the seat to the back. My heart was thundering as I looked back at the scene. The three Chinese thugs had scrambled back into their car and were speeding away.
“Unnie, we can't make it! They’re coming back!” I hurriedly scrambled over the seat, grabbed a large coat to cover us, and yanked the curtain shut, gripping Natalie’s hand to comfort her.
In that same moment, a sharp, commanding voice rang out as the trailer shuddered and swayed.
“Let’s move! Now!”
The trailer roared to life and began to move again.
We huddled under the oversized winter coat, only our eyes peeking out in the dim light behind the curtain. I locked eyes with Natalie, the strange friend who had brought all this chaos with her. This woman must have done something bigger than I could imagine, and she was dragging me right into the heart of danger.
Despite the dim light, the sheer terror in her eyes was unmistakable—but it wasn't the look of a bad person.
The driver’s excited voice rang out. “What did Brother Sawn say they were looking for? I couldn't really hear him.”
“Jetdoe! He said someone stole something from them.”
“Then why didn't you let them search the truck?”
The trailer tilted as it began to climb a steep incline. I didn't dare breathe loudly, cautiously peeling back a tiny corner of the curtain to peek outside. The headlights swirled in a spiral as we wound around the mountain; the Three Gorges Dam was fading from sight.
“What right do they have to search my truck? They have no right to violate my sovereignty.”
“What exactly were they looking for?”
“He said he was looking for a person. Look at this... how the hell could you hide a person in a cab this small?”
As soon as the words left his mouth, the curtain was ripped open.
“Aiyaya!”
We’re screwed. I’m literally peeing my pants!
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