"Driver, we want to get into the city, but we can't flag down a car. Could you please help us get a ride to Yuen Long town?" Lam Po-tsai's lines were also imitating Lee Ling.
"Helping others is the duty of every upright citizen. Get on the bus!" the driver greeted him in a hearty tone.
"Brother Ling, the driver is willing to give us a ride, get in quickly!" Lin Baozai happily opened the car door and sat directly in the passenger seat.
Li Ling could only sit in the back, where there was a small private seat with a dozen or so fish baskets next to it.
The van closed the door and continued on its way.
The experienced driver inquired about Lam Po-tsai's situation: "Young man, waiting for a bus here, you must be from Tin Shui Wai. Which village are you from?"
“Uh, Wangjingwei!” Lin Baozai remembered that Brother Changwei had mentioned this village name.
"It's not a short walk from Wangjingwei. There's a bus that goes directly to that village, why didn't you take it?"
"I left late and missed it!" Lin Baozai looked back at Li Ling, his little face full of bitterness. He regretted sitting in the front seat because he didn't want to answer the driver's questions, which were too difficult.
"Missed it? What bad luck!" The driver chuckled in a low voice. There was no bus service to Wangjingwei, and even if there were, the buses wouldn't depart at four or five in the morning. He was trying to get information out of him.
"Young man, your Cantonese is more authentic than mine, a native of Hong Kong. Where are you from?"
"My hometown is Huaxian County in Guangzhou!" This was an easy question for Lin Baozai to answer.
"So you're from Guangdong, no wonder! Now that Guangdong is reforming and opening up, many Hong Kong people are going back to do business. I heard that smuggling electrical appliances is the most profitable."
Last month, a friend of mine bought a batch of Panasonic TVs. He made a few hundred yuan profit per TV, and he raked in over ten thousand yuan in one go—equivalent to three years of my net income. By the way, young man, do you have a TV at home?
“Color TVs are strictly regulated. My uncle went to great lengths to get an invoice and finally managed to get one!” Lin Baozai’s forehead was already sweating, and he kept turning around, but Li Ling remained silent.
Li Ling took out her bag and examined the things she had taken from the middle-aged man.
He opened the bag and found a small tape recorder, a camera, and several bottles and jars. Upon closer inspection, he found that the bottles contained medicines. After smelling them, Li Ling, who had experience as a special forces soldier, detected the odor of contraband in the medicines, suggesting that they might be banned drugs.
Who knows what the middle-aged man was going to do with all this stuff he brought on a smuggling trip? Li Ling didn't care.
Take out that tape recorder, turn it on, and it'll come in handy now.
The driver was still pressing Baozai for an invoice: "Get a receipt? You mean an invoice, right? Handsome boy, what are you going to Yuen Long for?"
The driver was causing frequent problems, and Baozai's heart was pounding with anxiety: "I'm going to visit relatives in Yuen Long!"
The driver pointed to the fish basket behind him: "Visiting relatives? It's not good to arrive empty-handed. Young man, look at my fish. They're plump, tender, and big. I just caught them from the sea off Liufushan. Pick whichever one you like, and I'll give it to you!"
"Give me a ride?" Lin Baozai quickly shook his head and waved his hand, "Driver, that's not appropriate!"
"What's wrong with that? Since you called me 'boss,' you must be my little brother. Just accept the gift. We're not brothers if we're being indecisive. Go pick one!" the driver said in a commanding tone.
Lin Baozai shuddered, his heart pounding with fear, and he stammered, "Big Brother... Brother!"
He suddenly blurted out in Mandarin, "I can't just ride in your car for free. I should thank you. I'll pay for your fish!"
"Buy it? Sure!" The driver was waiting for him to say that; he wanted to see how much money the young man had.
"You're smart! I'll give you a discount. Thirty yuan a fish, and you can buy as many as you want!"
“In mainland China, thirty yuan can buy a basket of fish, and they’ll be bigger than yours!” Lin Baozai muttered, but dared not refuse. He pulled a money bag wrapped in blue cloth from his pocket, slowly untied it, revealing a stack of Hong Kong dollars and RMB. He took out a few bills and handed them to the driver.
"Brother, I'll buy two from you. I'll give you sixty-six yuan for good luck!"
The driver only glanced at his cloth bag and didn't say a word.
After paying, Lin Baozai asked the driver, "Brother, I want to go pick out the fish!"
"Go ahead! Pick whatever you like!"
Lin Baozai felt like he'd been granted a pardon and was about to jump into the back seat when Li Ling stopped him: "You don't understand fish, I'll pick them out!"
"I want to choose too!" Lin Baozai muttered softly, his face extremely dejected.
Li Ling turned his back and began rummaging through the fish basket. After seven or eight minutes, he picked out two plump fish that he was happy with.
After selecting the fish, the van had already entered Yuen Long town.
After crossing just one street, the driver turned around and turned onto Ankang Road. At the intersection was a police station, and he stepped on the brakes.
"Are we in the city?" Lin Baozai saw the buildings through the car window and was eager to get out. "Brother Ling, let's get out!"
"What are you doing getting off the bus!" the driver yelled suddenly, slapping Lin Baozai hard across the chest with a 'thud!' and shoving him back into his seat. His gaze darkened as he looked up.
"Mainland kid, huh? Just escaped here? See that building on the street? That's the Yuen Long Police Station. If you don't want to get arrested, behave yourself. Hand over all the money you have, and I won't report you. Otherwise, you'll be heading to the police station!"
"..." Lin Baozai was so frightened by being threatened for no reason that he was at a loss for words.
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Chapter 75 The wicked will be punished by the wicked (Bonus chapter for 1000 recommendation votes)
“Driver, what you’re doing is extortion,” Li Ling intervened promptly, his tone calm.
"So what if it is? You're not happy? Call the police and have me arrested!" The driver ignored Li Ling, narrowing his eyes to stare at him, trying to subdue him with his own intimidation.
"Are you sure you want to blackmail my little brother?" Li Ling asked calmly, confirming the matter.
"I'm going to blackmail him! What can you do about it?!" the driver roared fiercely, his fat face contorted with rage. He was displaying his ferocity, as if to embolden himself for his criminal act.
This trick works very well on children. Lin Baozai couldn't withstand such a violent scare and tears streamed down his face.
Li Ling immediately comforted him, gently patting his head: "Baozai, this big shot is just short of money. Don't cry. Once you give him the money, everything will be fine. Quickly give him the money."
Lin Baozai was completely at a loss. Now, the only person around him who could make decisions was Li Ling. He did whatever Li Ling said and quickly handed the money bag to the driver.