Chapter 30: The acting school
I never thought I would need to carry a gun on a mission. I’m used to carrying a yellow bag, so I put the gun in the holster and smiled at myself in the mirror.
Qiangzi laughed behind me, a bit foolishly, while Zhao Hong said with a twitching face, “Chen Chengyi, you were a fool once.”
“Oh, I’m sorry, you only realized it now. I’ve always been a fool.” Wearing a jacket in the summer is not a pleasant thing, but there’s no way around it. A group of men with guns can’t walk down the street in broad daylight, can they? A jacket is a disguise.
Because of the sense of security that weapons bring to men, I felt that I was walking with my head held high, and I joked about Zhao Hong’s “late realization.”
Zhao Hong was speechless, just like he was when he taught us how to use a gun this afternoon. I guess it’s a strange thing for an agent to teach a group of Taoists how to use a gun, just like a Taoist teaching a group of agents to meditate.
Laohui drove a Jinbei van that he had temporarily acquired in the afternoon, as if he were driving a Ferrari. It was already past midnight, and Laohui complained about the lack of funds, saying that he could only get a Jinbei van, while playing 鈥榙rifting鈥� on the road in the suburbs, where the road conditions were not very good.
“If I weren’t a Taoist priest and didn’t want to pass on my skills, I’d be a racing driver.” As he spoke, Lao Hui casually scratched his crotch, saying that this was the essence of a decadent uncle.
Of course, no one applauded for his dream of becoming a racing driver, because everyone was too distracted by his drifting. But there is no absolute in this world, and Lao Hui’s words still had some response, just like the sound of vomiting after Hui Gen’er’s fainting, which always accompanied Lao Hui’s words.
The warehouse is on the outskirts of the city, which is a bit strange, but it also shows how far away it is.
Xiaobei got out of the car in a pose that he thought was very “boyish,” shy and confused, but what he said was: “Renting such a remote warehouse shows that this company’s business is not to be seen by others. In fact, this should be the company’s inner darkness, right?”
Yuan Yi’s brother was serious and added in the car, “According to the data, there are more than ten companies that rent warehouses here.”
“Well, that means there are many companies with dark hearts.” Xiao Bei smiled shyly and labeled all the dozen companies as having dark hearts.
Qiangzi looked at the sky in confusion and said, “What exactly is the company like? Animals or people? How can a company be dark at heart?”
Over there, Huigen was squatting by the side of the field, vomiting and saying, “Uncle, please… please don’t drive next time.”
Zhao Hong’s figure appeared and disappeared, presumably going to scout the terrain.
Gao Ning and I were the quietest, but Gao Ning whispered to me with a hint of skepticism, “Chengyi, do you think this group of people… no, do you think we are reliable?”
I scratched my head, indicating that I was actually very unsure.
It was summer, and the layers of green gauze screens provided us with a lot of cover. After Zhao Hong returned, he told us the general terrain of the warehouse, as well as the route he had analyzed and the plan to climb over the wall from that place…
Is this the professional quality of an agent? After 20 minutes of reconnaissance, he was able to come up with such a detailed plan. I was very impressed with Zhao Hong.
But Lao Hui stood up and stretched, then turned and left. The flip-flops on his feet made a characteristic “clack, clack” sound on the ground, which made us very confused.
Xiao Bei said with a shy expression that was unbearable for the employer: “What does Brother Hui mean? He already has a plan, so it’s a little bit more troublesome to go in this way.”
Zhao Hong was questioned and couldn’t help but have a vein on his forehead jump. Lao Hui was already leaning against the car and said, “It’s obvious that you haven’t participated in many missions. If you can lie down, don’t sit, and if you can sit, don’t stand… If you have the strength to go in with all the trouble, it’s better to save your strength to save your life. Do you know that there are always loopholes in the system and that human nature is always flawed? It’s a kind of wisdom to see a gap and plug it.
Zhao Hong was unconvinced and stood up and said, “You talk so highly, but I don’t like to hear nonsense. Just tell me what you can do.”
Lao Hui smiled and took out a pack of cigarettes from his jacket pocket. We looked at it under the streetlight and saw that it was a very ordinary pack of Hongta Mountain cigarettes. Then he said to us, “The solution is this.”
Yuan Yi nodded and said, “The solution is indeed it. Get in the car.”
In fact, I haven’t been on any missions for the country, and Gao Ning is the same. After the Battle of the Deserted Village, he said that he had traveled and practiced in seclusion, and he had only gone on a few missions. As for Zhao Hong, Hui Gen, and Qiangzi, they should be complete rookies.
In contrast, Lao Hui and Xiao Bei were the real old pros. Before he was injured, Yuan Yi often went on missions. He said it was the way, so naturally I followed in his footsteps and got on the bus.
It turned out that a pack of Hongtashan cigarettes was much more effective and less laborious than the way Zhao Hong had designed for us to cross the green gauze screen鈥攃limb the wall鈥攄o a thief version of wandering around the warehouse鈥攁nd finally reach our destination.
When Lao Hui threw a pack of cigarettes to the doorman with an impatient look, a knowing look, and a familiar look, the doorman let us in without any problems, but with one condition: no cars.
After all, without the car as a means of transportation, it is obvious what people can take from the warehouse. Besides, if we take a car here, we are not afraid that you will steal something and then climb over the wall to get out. The gatekeeper is still wise.
Lao Hui took out a cigarette and lit it, then threw the car keys to the doorman, saying, “It’s fine. Help us keep an eye on the car. If the warehouse count doesn’t match the company statistics, we don’t have to come to the warehouse in the middle of the night to check. This company, a few small bucks, drives people like this. If I get angry, I’ll quit.”
The old man chuckled and waved us in, and we all showed the same expression of resentment at the company for driving us.
Who says men don’t have acting talent? Judging from this performance, I don’t think the Oscar statuette is something I need to look up to.
But as soon as we entered the warehouse, the old man stopped us again: “Hey, hey, hey, wait a minute.”
My back tensed. Had he discovered something? I was still a green actor, and the moment I was called, I couldn’t help but clench my fist in my pocket. I felt a sense of guilt towards the old guard, and the urge to knock him out and take action first.
Zhao Hong was even worse than me, having already taken a step forward.
At this moment, Lao Hui stretched lazily, and Xiaobei shyly stood in front of us to block us. Lao Hui’s lazy voice came: “Old man, is there anything else? We want to finish counting quickly and go to bed. It’s not easy to run back and forth. If we have to get a pass, we won’t be able to sleep tonight.
This made me admire him greatly, and I thought to myself that this was truly an acting master!
The old man smiled and said, “There’s nothing much to it. It’s dark, so I’ll give you a flashlight. After all, there are so many warehouses, and they all look the same, so I’m afraid you’ll get lost.”
“Thank you, sir.” The old man took the flashlight. In fact, we had a flashlight, but it was not good to refuse it.
“Which company’s warehouse are you going to?” the old man asked casually, probably wanting to know which company was so harsh as to make its employees count inventory in the middle of the night.
Maybe there will be something really wrong, and he needs a reason to say.
“Company A,” Lao Hui casually replied.
“What? You… you guys are really brave.” The old man took a step back, his face was terrified, and he said it almost subconsciously.
Otherwise, Lao Hui would have fallen to his knees on the spot.
But the old man’s appearance made us all feel a little off at the same time, and naturally we associated it with the matter we were investigating. I could hardly contain myself and asked, “Old man, I usually stay in the office and don’t come to the warehouse very often. What do you mean by that?”
The old man’s face kept changing. I glanced at the corner of my eye and saw that Lao Hui had quietly given me a thumbs-up, meaning that he was praising me for being an actor. But I couldn’t help but look at the old doorman.
The old man hesitated for a long time before finally saying, “I can’t say for sure, but that place is not too quiet. At night, the security guards don’t dare to patrol that area, but these things are all hearsay, and it’s hard to say for sure.”
After that, the old man went back to the guard room, but we both paused for a moment. Who didn’t know that the old man might not have told the truth.