On the bottom deck of a fishing boat, on a large communal bed, a dozen or so people were lying down or sitting. Yan Zheng and his friend Lao Gui were also lying on the communal bed with their eyes closed, resting.
These people paid a lot of money to hire a human trafficker to smuggle themselves to the island nation to make money.
Old Gui was also kicked out of the army, and his experience was really similar to Yan Zheng's, except that his mother was a stepmother.
With a stepmother comes a stepfather. When Lao Gui met a girl he liked and wanted to start a family, the money he sent home was halved.
His stepmother wrote a letter accusing him of being an ungrateful wretch who had forgotten his mother after getting a wife, which frightened the girl so much that she broke off all contact with him.
In a fit of anger, Lao Gui stopped sending money home. He wasn't a designated soldier and didn't need to support his half-brother.
This action put him in the category of being disrespectful to his parents, and his own father made his youngest son pick up a pen and report him again.
If a stepmother reports you, you can pretend not to see it, but if your own father reports you, things get serious, and the leaders start an investigation.
I discovered that he hadn't sent money home for three months. You're not married yet, so there's no question of separating the household. He really is an ingrate.
The team was going to issue a public reprimand to him, but Lao Gui didn't argue. He simply took off his uniform and chose to retire from the army.
Instead of returning to his hometown, he went to the capital to find work, where he happened to run into Yan Zheng on the street.
The two already had a good relationship, and now they felt even more in the same boat. When Lao Gui said he wanted to go to Japan to make money but didn't have the money to pay the smugglers, Yan Zheng took out the money.
So Lao Gui quickly contacted the smuggler, and luckily there was a ship that could sail out to international waters that month, the date being the day after Yan Ge returned home.
Although Lao Gui had no money, he still had some connections in the capital. Yan Zheng withdrew all his savings, exchanged ten thousand yuan for dollars, kept a few coins, and sewed the rest into the inside of his underwear.
Old Gui was experienced and bought enough food and water for two people to eat and drink for a week, packing it into two large backpacks. Even after they got ashore, they would still need to eat and drink.
On the third day, the hatch at the bottom of the fishing boat was opened, and the smuggler whispered, "We've arrived. Hurry up and get ashore. Once ashore, head west. If you go the wrong way and get caught, we won't take responsibility."
Yan Zheng and Lao Gui were the first to rush forward. At such a moment, time is life, and controlling the time means controlling the escape route.
The smuggler glanced at their agile figures and nodded to himself; these two should be able to successfully smuggle themselves across the border.
Once all twelve men were on board, the smuggler immediately ordered the boat to set sail. Their mission was complete, and no more rowing was needed.
Yan Zheng and Lao Gui were using a compass to determine their direction when they suddenly heard the sound of a fishing boat engine starting up. They knew something was wrong and immediately took off running, fleeing westward at top speed.
The people behind them belatedly followed the two, but how could they possibly outrun two people who had trained for years? In the blink of an eye, they disappeared from sight.
I ran ten kilometers with conviction, and when I saw a light, I quietly ran towards it.
A man's voice came from inside: "Congratulations on your successful smuggling. Want a job? Want a place to live? Give me money, and you'll get it."
"How much?" Old Ghost stood up. Now that they'd been discovered, there was no need to hide anymore. The two of them pushed open the door and went inside.
The room wasn't big. There was a color television on a table, but it was dark inside. Yan Zheng knew they had been caught on camera.
Old Ghost looked at the man who spoke. He wasn't old, just over thirty, but you could tell from his eyes that this man was a ruthless character.
"Ten thousand RMB per person. I know you don't have much money, most of it went to the smugglers, so you can owe me for now, but there will be interest."
"How is the interest calculated?" Yan Zheng asked.
"For the first three months, it's 5,000 per month, and then it's 10,000 per month. If you convert it to Japanese currency, 5,000 is 91,000, and with the principal, it's 273,000."
"Where can I make more money?" Old Ghost asked.
The man clapped his hands: "No wonder you were able to smuggle yourself in. Brains are very important. You two are very capable. Go work at the casino."
Old Ghost and Yan Zheng exchanged a glance and nodded at the same time. Here, they couldn't speak the language, had no friends, and could only rely on these vampires.
The two were put into a car, and the driver was someone else. No matter how Lao Gui tried to probe, he remained silent, leading Yan Zheng to suspect that he was mute.
The man led Yan Zheng and Lao Gui to a basement. As soon as they entered, they felt the air was foul and the smell was extremely unpleasant.
They were led to a room, and the first thing the speaker said was, "This is where you will live. Wait here, someone will take you to work tomorrow."
Yan Zheng let out a breath. So he wasn't mute after all. Damn it, he's just a vampire, what's with the act of being so aloof?
There were already four people in the room, and judging from their haggard appearance, it was clear they were having a hard time.
Old Gui traded a box of cookies for information. It turned out that these people came from various places, with the most from Fujian, numbering three.
There was another one from Chengdu, but he had been there the longest. He also worked at the casino, but he didn't earn much money each month.
But from his relaxed tone, Lao Gui knew that he was probably close to leaving.
Looking at his sallow fingers, Old Ghost secretly took out two packs of cigarettes and asked him for guidance.
The man glanced at Old Ghost, smiled, and whispered something in Old Ghost's ear. Old Ghost smiled back.
The job at the casino isn't difficult; it's just about keeping the casino clean with a miniature broom and rag.
The casino is huge, requiring them to constantly travel back and forth, which many people would find exhausting. But for Yan Zheng and his team, these expenses are nothing.
People from island nations like to eat snacks when they gamble, and those snack wrappers must be disposed of promptly.
Yan Ge and Lao Gui soon grasped the key to understanding that person had given them, but they didn't make a move. They had only been there for two days and needed to remain in hiding.
The cameras installed all over the casino are not only aimed at the gamblers, but also at them.
The first month ended, and as expected, the two couldn't pay back the money. The man laughed, saying that it would usually take most people at least four months to pay it off.
What they take is the money earned from those four months of hard work. Once you've paid off the debt, whether you stay or leave is none of their business, but of course you'll have to pay rent.
Yan Zheng and Lao Gui weren't worried about money. Yan Zheng had about 10,000 yuan on him, and the two of them had earned about 300,000 Japanese yen this month.
If the two of them work hard, they can pay off their debts in the third month. This way, they won't stand out and will be able to do whatever they want in the fourth month.
However, Lao Gui will not leave, because these people are very powerful. They can not only help them find jobs, but also sell fake passports and visas.
However, these identity verification items were very expensive, and they planned to save up enough money to buy fake identities before leaving.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
