Chapter 67: I Am an Undercover Agent
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Tang Ailian controlled the spirit water and wrote on watermark paper. Using spirit water as ink, it was probably the most expensive ink in the world.
This writing was so difficult. With each stroke, she had to exert all her efforts, maintaining her concentration amidst the vibrations of sound waves, light waves, and the movement of the wind. The mental energy required was immense.
Finally, the words were written. There was only one drop of water left. Tang Ailian used all her strength to control that drop, allowing it to fall onto the parched lips of the young man.
Finally, it was done. Now, it depended on whether the young man would cooperate.
The young man lying on the bed suddenly felt his lips moistened, and his consciousness became clearer. A strong desire welled up within him, wanting more water. He got up and walked to the table to get some water.
But the water jug on the table was empty. He didn't get any water, but he noticed a blue paper on his desk.
"Strange, didn't I put the watermark paper on the pile of notebooks next to it before going to bed? How did it end up in the middle of the table? Wait, there are words on this paper, and they seem freshly written!"
"Who's there? Who entered my room?"
The young man nervously looked around.
Tang Ailian was anxious, quickly checking the words; otherwise, the water would dry up, and the message would be lost.
Finally, the young man lowered his head to read the watermark paper, and it said:
"In the abandoned house next to your house, there are over a dozen children kidnapped by human traffickers. Please report it immediately. A reward of one thousand yuan is offered."
"Remember, report it urgently! It's a matter of utmost urgency!"
The young man thought he might be hallucinating due to his fever, but the promise of a thousand yuan was too tempting. With that money, he could improve his and his grandmother's life, and his grandmother wouldn't have to collect scraps to support his education.
His heart raced, and he succumbed to temptation.
But what if it wasn't true? Reporting a false case would be a serious offense. He unconsciously flipped the paper over and saw two large characters written on it: "Hurry, hurry, hurry, please!"
This time, he was startled and jumped up immediately, rushing out without even closing the door.
The young man didn't bother locking the door; there was nothing worth stealing in his house anyway. Even if something was stolen, it wouldn't matter with the prospect of a thousand yuan.
He almost ran to the police station, shouting, "I want to report a case! I want to report a case!"
At the Red Lotus Commune Police Station, the thin and elderly staff, Old Ma, was quite annoyed. The police station only had two staff members, and on a busy day like this, Xiao Yang had surprisingly taken a leave.
"You want to report a crime?" Old Ma raised an eyebrow.
The young man, panting heavily, said, "Yes, I want to report a crime. There are human traffickers who have kidnapped over a dozen children—"
Old Ma interrupted him, "Name?"
The young man said urgently, "Huang Yanan. There are human traffickers—"
Old Ma interrupted again, "Gender?"
This time, Huang Yanan was irritated, "Can't you see?"
Old Ma insisted on following the procedure, "Gender?"
Huang Yanan reluctantly replied, "Male."
Old Ma asked, "Age?"
Huang Yanan replied, "Fourteen."
Old Ma inquired, "Address?"
Huang Yanan answered, "Red Lotus Commune, East Street, No. 25."
Old Ma continued, "What's the reason for reporting the case?"
Huang Yanan said, "Human traffickers have kidnapped over a dozen children and locked them up in a house behind my home. You need to rescue them quickly." He handed over the paper he had received. "Someone left this note on my desk to report the crime."
Old Ma took the blue paper and examined it closely, then slapped it back onto the table. "Young man, do you know the consequences of deceiving a police officer?"
Huang Yanan widened his eyes, "What are you talking about?"
Old Ma stared into his eyes and observed his expression. "Filing a false report could get you detained for fifteen days."
The young man said firmly, "No, I didn't file a false report. It's clearly written here: 'In the abandoned house next to my home, there are over a dozen children kidnapped by human traffickers, please report it urgently, with a reward of one thousand yuan.'"
Old Ma pushed the paper toward him. "Take a look for yourself."
The young man stared at the paper, which now appeared blank, with nothing written on it. He was dumbfounded.
Oh no, this was water-writing paper. You could write with water, but once it dried, the writing disappeared. It was meant for practicing writing repeatedly.
He felt embarrassed. "There were definitely words on it just now."
Old Ma saw the young man sweating profusely and felt a twinge of sympathy. "Seems like you have a fever. Maybe you were hallucinating. I won't hold you accountable for interfering with official duties. You can go home."
"But there really were kidnappers," the young man insisted, believing that there were indeed over a dozen children locked in that house.
Old Ma, however, pushed him out. "Stop causing trouble. You're just a kid, and you came here to play with the police. Do you realize that you've filed a false report? Get out of here, and count yourself lucky that you're not facing charges for obstructing official duties."
About half an hour later, the phone in the police station rang. Old Ma answered, "What? A human trafficking gang might be operating in Red Lotus Commune? Mobilize the residents? Monitor the roads? Alright, I'll arrange it immediately, aiming to intercept the human traffickers in Red Lotus Commune!"
It turned out that there was indeed a human trafficking gang in Red Lotus Commune. The report made by the young man was true!
But wait, the report from the young man! He had scolded him away, and now he realized that the human traffickers had already arrived in Red Lotus Commune!
He had driven the boy who reported the case away.
Old Ma was about to chase after him when he remembered something and returned to the phone. He dialed and said, "County Bureau? This is the Red Lotus Commune Police Station. Yes, I've understood it now. What I want to report is that we just received information that human traffickers have been detected in Red Lotus Commune. They're already here. Yes, we'll ensure the task is completed!"
Old Ma hung up the phone, feeling excited. He had already almost completed the mission that had just been assigned by his superiors.
The higher-ups would be arriving soon, but before they did, he needed to find that young man. Thankfully, he had registered the boy's information.
Old Ma didn't rush to respond to the call because the human traffickers were a gang, and he couldn't risk alerting them. He was waiting.
Meanwhile, Tang Ailian in the abandoned house was getting anxious. She had seen the young man go to report the case, so why hadn't anyone arrived yet?
Oh right, there were only about a dozen children here. The young man had mentioned that the human traffickers would send them away at night.
Tang Ailian felt frustrated with herself for forgetting. If she acted now, she could only rescue these few children. She needed to wait until they all gathered at night to strike and capture all the traffickers, rescuing all the children.
So, Old Ma didn't want to raise suspicion and risk blowing the operation. He waited patiently.
(End of this chapter)
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