Chapter 21.2: The Two Traffickers
Earlier that day…
Hongxing Restaurant, Downtown
It was a small, community-run restaurant. The place itself wasn’t large, but because customers didn’t need ration coupons to buy meals there, business was always brisk.
Sister Fang deliberately chose a table near the entrance, where she had a clear view of the outside. Any unusual movement beyond the door would immediately catch her eye.
She was an exceptionally cautious woman.
It was a lesson the Old Lame Man—the one who had brought her into the trade—had paid for with his life.
She had originally been an ordinary farm woman, scraping a living from poor land that yielded next to nothing. No matter how hard she worked, the harvests were pitiful. She was always hungry, so hungry that her eyes seemed to glow green with starvation.
One day, an old lame beggar wandered into the village looking for food.
She gave him half a steamed bun.
In return, he told her, “Come work with me. You’ll never go hungry again.”
She thought about it for a day.
Then she left with him.
When she left, she also took two children from the village.
After selling them, she ate the first full meal of her life.
This line of work was good.
She could eat her fill, eat well, and even save a considerable amount of money.
The only downside was the danger.
The Old Lame Man’s crippled leg had come from being caught abd*cting a child and beaten by an angry mob. Later, he had been beaten to death right in front of her.
From that day onward, Sister Fang became extraordinarily cautious.
She learned how to recognize police officers, how to shake off anyone following her, and how to obtain sedatives through underworld contacts to keep children asleep…
By being meticulous every step of the way, she had been trafficking children for more than ten years without ever being caught.
She took considerable pride in that record.
Today’s haul had been a good one.
In high spirits, she brought along her lover, Zhou Dazhu, to enjoy a meal at the restaurant.
She ordered two dishes and ate leisurely, all the while calculating how many more children she would have to sell before she’d saved enough money to retire and return to her hometown.
She had already worked out the story she’d tell everyone.
She would claim that she herself had once been trafficked away, and that now, having grown older and no longer being wanted, she had finally managed to escape and come home.
Of course, returning alone wouldn’t do.
It would be best to bring a child back with her—around three years old would be ideal. A child that young wouldn’t remember anything and wouldn’t be too troublesome to care for. By the time the child grew up, they could take care of her in her old age.
Lost in her thoughts of the future, Sister Fang suddenly noticed groups of police officers hurrying past the restaurant one after another.
And they were all heading in the direction she and Zhou Dazhu had come from.
“Sis…”
Since they were engaged in a criminal business, the sight of so many police officers immediately made Zhou Dazhu uneasy. Glancing around to make sure no one was paying attention to them, he lowered his voice.
“They’re moving a lot faster than last time. You don’t think we’re in trouble, do you?”
Sister Fang shot him a sideways glance.
“What? Scared?”
Zhou Dazhu lowered his head sheepishly.
Who wouldn’t be?
“Hmph.”
Sister Fang looked down on his cowardice.
Still, he was obedient and strong enough to be useful, so she could make do with him.
“Hurry up and eat,” she said. “After we’re done, we’ll go take a look. If anything seems off, we’ll leave immediately.”
Seeing how calm Sister Fang remained, Zhou Dazhu relaxed considerably and hurriedly shoveled food into his mouth.
Sister Fang also picked up her pace. After finishing the stir-fried pork with chili peppers, she used her steamed bun to wipe every last bit of sauce from the plate, eating it all until the dish looked as though it had just been washed.
Only then did she stop.
She had known hunger too well in her life. She couldn’t bear to leave food uneaten.
After the meal, Sister Fang deliberately bought some pastries from the shop next door so they would look like a couple visiting relatives. Then she had Zhou Dazhu pedal them toward Dragon King Temple.
They were outsiders. After arriving in the city, they had rented a bicycle from their landlord under the pretense of looking for relatives, using it to roam all over the area and familiarize themselves with the roads.
After learning that Dragon King Temple hosted a market fair, they had gone out of their way to travel every route in the vicinity.
Along the way, Sister Fang deliberately had Zhou Dazhu take a different road.
By then, the market had long since dispersed, and there were few people left on the road.
After riding for a while, they soon came upon a checkpoint.
Seeing what appeared to be an ordinary married couple on a bicycle with nothing suspicious loaded onto it, the traffic officer conducting inspections relaxed a little. He simply raised a hand to signal them to stop.
“Comrade, please stop for a routine inspection.”
Zhou Dazhu brought the bicycle to a halt.
Zhou Dazhu spoke with an obvious out-of-town accent, which would immediately arouse suspicion if he opened his mouth. Well-practiced in playing the timid fool, he kept his head lowered and said nothing.
Instead, Sister Fang craned her neck and, in fluent local dialect that was almost indistinguishable from that of a native, asked curiously,
“Comrade, what’s going on? Why are you checking people at the roadside?”
“What else? Those damned child traffickers!” the traffic officer said with obvious irritation. “They kidnapped three children! If I get my hands on those bastards, I’ll shoot them myself. Thanks to them, I haven’t even had a chance to eat lunch!”
Hearing that, the corners of Sister Fang’s mouth curled upward ever so slightly, so subtly that no one could notice.
A surge of satisfaction welled up inside her at having fooled the police.
Talk is cheap.
She, the trafficker they were looking for, was standing right in front of him, and he hadn’t recognized her at all.
Useless fools, she thought. They can put on a big show, but they’ll never catch me.
Her guard lowered, and she was just about to leave when she suddenly spotted a man in an olive-green uniform riding toward the checkpoint.
Breathing heavily, he stopped his bicycle, pulled a sheet of paper from his shoulder bag, and handed it to the traffic officer.
“Comrade, these are portraits of the three missing children. If you come across anyone traveling with children, compare them against these.”
The instant those words were spoken, Zhou Dazhu’s hands trembled on the handlebars.
A storm of shock erupted in Sister Fang’s heart.
She stole a glance at the paper.
The portraits were astonishingly accurate—identical to the three children they had abd*cted.
Her expression immediately darkened.
How could something like this exist?!
This was bad.
Very bad.
She had been carrying the children around in public. It was impossible that no one had seen them. If the police used these portraits to search, it wouldn’t take long before they traced the children back to the place they were staying.
The police here are no pushovers. We can’t stay any longer.
We have to get out. Immediately.
Having made up her mind, Sister Fang patted her pocket, then suddenly cried out,
“Oh no! I forgot my money pouch! Why didn’t you remind me?”
She smacked Zhou Dazhu on the back in annoyance and urged,
“What are you waiting for? Hurry back and get it!”
“Oh… right… right.”
Only then did Zhou Dazhu snap out of his daze.
He quickly turned the bicycle around and pedaled back the way they had come as fast as he could.
As soon as they returned to their lodging, Sister Fang immediately began packing.
“Damn it. Tough luck. Those three little brats had actually been photographed.”
She picked out a pair of gray trousers with conspicuous patches and changed into them. Then she selected an outfit Zhou Dazhu had never worn before. As she folded their other clothes together and tied them into a bundle, she said,
“I don’t know who drew those portraits, but even the traffic cops at the checkpoints have copies. There must be plenty of them. They might come searching around here sooner or later. Our identities won’t stand up to scrutiny. Get changed—we’re leaving immediately.”
Still breathing heavily from the ride back, Zhou Dazhu looked worried. Pointing beneath the bed, he asked,
“What about the three goods?”
The “goods” were the three children they had just abd*cted.
At the question, Sister Fang paused and fell silent.
The portraits she’d just seen flashed through her mind again.
She knew perfectly well that if they wanted to get away as quickly as possible, they shouldn’t take the merchandise with them.
But the thought made her heart ache as though someone were carving flesh from her body.
They had already spent quite a bit of money lingering here. They couldn’t just leave empty-handed.
That would be too great a loss.
After gritting her teeth, Sister Fang made her decision.
“We’re taking them.”
“I saw the police still concentrating their search around Dragon King Temple. They shouldn’t make it here that quickly. Pack up the merchandise, and we’ll head straight to the train station to buy tickets and get out.”
“All right.”
Without wasting any time, Zhou Dazhu moved the luggage aside and dragged the three unconscious children out from beneath the bed.
Their arms had been twisted behind their backs and tied together. Their feet were bound as well, and strips of cloth had been stuffed into their mouths.
They no longer looked like children at all.
They looked like cargo.
“Wait. Don’t pack them up yet.”
Sister Fang stopped him.
She took a small medicine bottle from her handbag along with a handkerchief. Estimating the dosage based on the elapsed time and the dr*g’s effects, she poured a little of the liquid onto the cloth and pressed it over each child’s nose and mouth in turn.
“Now they won’t wake up until tomorrow.”
Stepping back, she gave her instructions.
“I’ll carry the good-looking one on my back. Put the two skinnier ones into the sack. Stuff plenty of straw around them, then cover them with a couple of pieces of clothing. Pack them carefully.”
After a brief pause, she added coldly,
“Just don’t let them suffocate.”
“Got it.”
Zhou Dazhu acknowledged her instructions and quickly packed the three children separately before changing into a different set of clothes.
The outfit was a worker’s uniform. The elbows were patched, the fabric was faded from countless washings, and traces of dirt still clung to it. Once he put it on, he looked no different from an ordinary laborer.
After taking out their forged letters of introduction, Sister Fang slung the bundle over her shoulder, picked up the sack, and urged,
“Let’s go.”
As she stepped out the door, she turned back for one last look, resentment filling her heart.
How could the police have moved so fast?
The pair didn’t dare linger. They hurried to the nearby bus stop.
While they were waiting, another traffic officer sped past on a motorcycle. Riding behind him was a man holding a thick stack of papers.
Sister Fang’s heart skipped a beat.
Damn… Good thing we left when we did!
With motorcycles, distributing a portrait would only take minutes.
In another two or three hours, the police would probably be searching their lodging.
And at this rate…
The train station might already have the portraits by now.
Sister Fang took a deep breath.
It’s fine.
The children are hidden inside the sacks now. They can’t be seen, so no one will pay any attention to us.
Not only can we get away—we’ll take the merchandise with us as well.
The bus arrived.
The two bought tickets and rode it to the train station without exchanging a single word.
The sun was sinking in the west, stretching the shadows of the trees and the people across the ground. Even so, the station remained crowded, with a constant stream of travelers coming and going.
There was one noticeable difference from before.
Two police officers now stood at the station entrance.
Each held a portrait in hand, their sharp eyes fixed on every passenger entering the station while carrying a child.
Sister Fang carefully observed them for a while. After confirming that they weren’t inspecting anyone’s luggage, she finally walked forward.
That makes sense, she thought.
There were far too many travelers here, and most of them were carrying bags or bundles. It would be impossible to unpack every single one. Doing so would waste an enormous amount of time, and some passengers might even miss their trains.
She cautiously walked past the officers.
When she was certain she hadn’t attracted their attention, the knot in her chest finally loosened.
Her confidence began to return.
Several police officers were stationed inside the waiting hall as well, each holding a portrait. Many of the waiting passengers were quietly discussing the case.
But Sister Fang was no longer afraid.
Pointing to an open spot near the crowd, she said to Zhou Dazhu,
“Wait here. I’ll go buy the tickets.”
With that, she calmly walked to the back of the ticket line as though nothing were amiss.
She had already figured it out.
The police were only using the portraits to look for the missing children. There was no way they could connect the search to her.
All she had to do now was buy the tickets, board the train, and they’d be gone.
The line in front of her grew shorter and shorter.
Her heartbeat quickened.
The thrill of escaping from a tightening police dragnet filled her with excitement.
What a bunch of idiots.
Another customer bought their ticket.
Now it was her turn.
Inside Ticket Window No. 1, the ticket clerk was writing something with her head lowered. Without looking up, she asked casually,
“How many tickets? And where to?”
Sister Fang swallowed.
“Two tickets. To Lin County.”
A woman’s voice.
The ticket clerk’s head snapped up immediately.
Half an hour earlier, the station management had gathered all the ticket clerks and assigned them a special task: watch for a female child trafficker. Each of them had even been given a portrait.
She had been working all day and was already exhausted, but the moment she heard about the assignment, all her fatigue vanished.
This was a chance to catch a child trafficker!
Her eyes repeatedly swept over the woman standing before her.
Then they suddenly narrowed.
This woman…
She looked remarkably similar to the trafficker in the portrait.
The clerk hurriedly compared her face against the portrait hidden beneath the counter.
There was no mistake.
It was her.
The trafficker had actually come to the train station!
Remembering the instructions her supervisor had repeatedly emphasized, the ticket clerk suppressed her excitement and said in an even voice,
“May I see your letter of introduction, please?”
For some reason, Sister Fang felt that something wasn’t quite right.
She couldn’t put her finger on it.
After hesitating for a moment, she still handed the forged letter of introduction through the ticket window.
The instant it crossed the counter, the ticket clerk grabbed hold of her wrist.
At the top of her lungs, she screamed,
“Child trafficker! The trafficker from the portrait is here! Police! Hurry over and arrest her!”
Sister Fang felt as though she’d been struck by lightning.
No… How did they recognize me?!
“What trafficker? I’m not one! You’ve got the wrong person! Let go of me!”
She desperately tried to yank her hand free.
She wanted to run.
Run as far away as possible.
But the ticket clerk had an iron grip on her wrist, refusing to let go no matter how hard she struggled.
The instant they heard the shout, the police officers stationed in the waiting hall rushed over and pinned her to the floor.
Even with her face pressed against the cold ground, Sister Fang still couldn’t understand how she’d been identified.
But there was one thing she understood with perfect clarity.
It was over.
She was truly finished.
…
The ticket clerk’s shout echoed through the waiting hall, instantly drawing the attention of countless passengers.
One traveler who had noticed Sister Fang earlier immediately exclaimed,
“A child trafficker? There was a man with her just now. Is he her accomplice?”
Another passenger asked in surprise,
“There’s another trafficker? Where?”
The moment Zhou Dazhu saw Sister Fang being arrested, his mind went completely blank.
Only one thought remained.
Run.
He spun around, abandoned the luggage, and sprinted toward the station entrance, completely forgetting that two police officers were standing guard outside.
Ironically, if he hadn’t run, the passengers might have taken a while to spot him.
The moment he bolted, however, everyone noticed.
“That man’s running for the exit! Catch him!”
A passenger shouted as he gave chase.
Others immediately followed.
Anyone who ran at a time like this had to be guilty.
They couldn’t let him get away.
But before any of the passengers could lay a hand on him, a plainclothes police officer who had been waiting in the crowd sprang into action. With a swift takedown, he wrestled Zhou Dazhu to the ground and pinned him there.
A passenger who had been sitting near Zhou Dazhu looked at the burlap sack he had abandoned and immediately sensed something was wrong.
He hurried over and untied it.
The moment he loosened the opening, he froze.
Who packs a sack full of straw when traveling?
He pulled away the two pieces of clothing covering the top.
In the next instant, his eyes flew wide open.
“My God!”
“They stuffed a child inside the sack!”
“Quick! Hurry and untie the other two!”
“My God—there’s another one in this sack!”
“Isn’t this one of the children from the portrait? Good heavens! They’d already brought them all the way here. If they’d boarded the train, we’d never have gotten them back!”
…
As cries of shock rang out, every passenger who witnessed the scene flew into a rage.
Who didn’t have children of their own?
To see three little kids bound hand and foot, stuffed into burlap sacks—not only had they suffered who knew how much, they might not even have survived.
This despicable pair deserved to die!
“Damn it—they really are child traffickers!”
“Beat him to death!”
The first passenger who had chased after Zhou Dazhu heard the commotion. Even though the police had already subdued the trafficker, he didn’t stop. Clenching his fist, he drove a punch straight into Zhou Dazhu.
The passengers who arrived behind him immediately joined in, kicking him without hesitation.
Voices erupted from every direction.
“Beat the traffickers to death!”
“Kill them!”
“The people in the back, stop pushing!”
“Let me get in there and kick him a couple of times too!”
…
In an instant, the crowd’s fury boiled over.
People surrounded the trafficker in a tight circle, raining down punch after punch on him.
A railway police officer arrived and stood just outside the crowd.
He made no attempt to stop them.
Instead, he casually pulled a cigarette from his pocket, tucked it between his lips, struck a match, and lit it.
After taking a slow drag, he finally raised his voice and called out,
“Easy now, everyone. Don’t hit them too hard.”
He paused, then added matter-of-factly,
“Just don’t beat the traffickers to death. They’ve probably sold other children too, and we still need to interrogate them.”
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