Undercover
As a mid-level figure with some status in a criminal gang, the claim that drug lords like those you see on TV don’t do drugs, and that eighty percent of it is crap, is mostly bullsh*t. When the stuff is swinging in front of your eyes every day, getting hooked after just one touch is common—few can resist its temptation.
Pei Jinhong is no exception.
Not only does she use, but she can also “appraise.”
What’s “appraise”? To put it simply, it’s “screening.”
Just like there are luxury goods and there are street stall items, in the drug world, the jargon for quality is “purity.”
The higher the purity, the more expensive it is, and the more intense the high. However, it also increases the risk of addiction and fatality.
Before she arrived, she obviously made preparations. There were needle marks on Lin Yan’s arm, but she had done it herself.
She didn’t become an undercover agent and dedicate her whole life just for fun.
Lin Yan smirked, her smile slightly seductive. “What’s the meaning of this? If you want to kill me, just go ahead. With so many of you, do you think I can resist? No need to bring up ‘Drunken Dream’ to mess with me. I’ve f*cking tried it before.”
When she mentioned ‘Drunken Dreams’, she could sense Wang Qiang next to her visibly relieved, but he still didn’t speak. This guy is highly suspicious and won’t fully believe her until he sees her inject it herself.
Lin Yan broke out in a cold sweat for herself but didn’t show the slightest on her face.
The man opposite her had a fake smile: “How can you say it’s just for fun? This is a fine new product we’ve developed, to calm Miss Pei’s nerves.”
Lin Yan’s eyebrows rose, and she smiled gracefully.
“To calm my nerves or to send me down the road, huh?”
As her words fell, she leaned closer into Wang Qiang’s arms, with eyes sultry as silk.
“Brother Wang, look at this—95% purity product, how can I stand it?”
She intended to sow discord, but she accidentally committed a big taboo.
As soon as she spoke, Lin Yan realized something was wrong and wished she could bite off her own tongue!
She had overlooked the instinctive reaction of a drug addict when confronted with drugs: their eyes should gleam with desire, they’d be frenziedly swallowing saliva, and in severe cases, they might even yawn and shed tears, showing signs of aggression and restlessness. Especially someone like her, who had been on the run for days and nights without a hit, should be even more intensely craving.
At a time like this, who cares about the purity? Just take the hit and be done with it!
The camouflage-clad man laughed and shoved the syringe into her hand.
“Miss Pei, talking won’t help, just go ahead.”
Lin Yan was forced to look up as Wang Qiang pointed a gun at her head.
“Jinhong, don’t disappoint me.”
(Originally translated on littlepandatranslations.com, let's go!)
The glint of moisture in Lin Yan’s eyes didn’t seem fake—anyone in such a situation would be doing well not to wet their pants.
Yet, no matter how tense she was, not a trace of cowardice showed on her face.
Lin Yan curled her lips into a tragically beautiful smile.
“I would have never imagined, Brother Wang, that one day you would be pointing a gun at me.”
Wang Qiang’s throat moved slightly, watching her skillfully pick up the syringe and roll up her sleeve.
On that fair, jade-like arm, the numerous needle marks were clearly visible.
Lin Yan pushed the excess air out of the syringe, aimed at her own greenish vein, and slightly closed her eyes. To others, she seemed to be in ecstasy, but only she knew the struggle within.
“Think it through, once ‘playing dead’ succeeds, from now on, you are not Lin Yan, but ‘Pei Jinhong.’ Apart from me, no one will know your true identity. As a broker and drug trafficker moving between China and Myanmar, the police will not hesitate to shoot you on sight, and if your identity is exposed, you will also face the inhuman torture of the drug dealers.”
“What I also need to warn you, is that even if you are an undercover police officer, once you get involved with drugs, you will be dismissed from the public security forces. Hence, there are countless cases of families being destroyed and lives being lost.”
The advice of the man before leaving echoed in her mind again.
Lin Yan was frantically swallowing saliva. Others thought she was insanely excited, but only she knew whom she was thinking of.
When she received the top-secret mission, she actually didn’t hesitate much to accept it, and it wasn’t because of any grand principles or patriotic sentiments.
She simply said: “If I die, Song Yuhang will be safe, right?”
The person sitting by the bed remained silent.
Yet, she lying on the hospital bed laughed.
“The Song family is pretty nice. Her mom’s cooking is delicious, I’ve never had an elder make me Laba porridge before, and I really liked it.”
“Xiaowei is a very lovely child, especially affectionate. She would give me candy to eat, just like this.”
She held a thin piece of candy paper in her palm, but the candy had already melted in her pocket.
Lin Yan clenched her fist tightly, a faint smile appearing on her lips.
“And there’s Ji Jingxing. She likes Song Yuhang. I wished I could tear her apart, but I never expected that she would come back to save me.”
They were such a wonderful family, but because of her, they got tangled up in conflicts and nearly lost their lives.
She once thought she only loved herself, but seeing them in danger, seeing Song Yuhang in tears, it turns out it still hurts her heart.
Lin Yan quietly sighed in her heart, “I’ll go, the person I wanted to protect died fourteen years ago, and fourteen years later, I won’t let such a tragedy happen again.”
Song Yuhang once said, “I will always be true to my ideals and to you.”
So what she didn’t get time to say out loud was—
I’m willing to risk my life for you, just to keep you safe.
Harboring such thoughts, Lin Yan bit her lower lip slightly, a flash of determination in her eyes as she pressed the needle into her skin.
But before she could inject anything, several gunshots rang out from outside, startling the birds into flight from the woods.
Everyone turned around abruptly. One of the men stumbled in through the door, wounded.
“Brother Wang, we gotta get out of here, the cops have us surrounded!”
The syringe Lin Yan was holding dropped to the ground from the shock.
The camouflage man looked at her face, then at the box on the ground, gritting his teeth. “Quick, move it, retreat!”
Before he could finish his sentence, a tear gas canister came crashing through the window.
Lin Yan was choked, coughing and tears streaming down her face, thinking, “F*ck, they really think I’m a drug dealer and want to take me down.”
In the midst of confusion, chaos erupted in the room. The sound of bullets being loaded could be heard, and someone shouted angrily, “How did the cops arrive so quickly? There’s an undercover agent, kill her!”
Through the haze of smoke, Lin Yan, with red eyes, saw Zhao Tiezhu aiming a gun at her, while Wang Qiang stood on the same line as her. She had a sudden realization and lunged at him, tightly gripping his wrist, and shot herself in the arm.
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“Brother Wang, let’s go, he’s going to kill you!”
A mist of blood burst in front of her eyes, and Lin Yan was sure of her grip and aim. It was just a graze, but she collapsed softly into his arms.
Wang Qiang cried out in anguish, hurriedly supporting her: “Jinhong!”
Lin Yan weakly lifted her hand and pointed at him: “He… he’s the undercover… otherwise… why else would he shoot at you… the cops… arrived so quickly…”
Zhao Tiezhu couldn’t defend himself, stumbling back a step: “No, it’s not me… Brother Wang.”
A hint of ruthlessness flashed in Wang Qiang’s eyes as Liu Zhi nodded, and a gunshot blasted through his forehead.
Lin Yan closed her eyes in contentment.
You wanted me dead, but I’ll send you on your way first.
And that camouflage man, he needed to be taken care of too.
In a daze, she was helped up by someone. Wang Qiang held her shoulder, and together with Liu Zhi, they fought their way out, leaving a trail of blood.
“Let’s go!”
Three people were dashing through the jungle, running for their lives.
Lin Yan was clutching her arm, gasping for air: “Brother Wang, Brother Wang, I can’t go on… You guys go ahead.”
The blood dripping from her fingers pitter-pattered on the ground.
Before Wang Qiang could speak, Liu Zhi anxiously said: “Sis, what are you talking about? Is Brother Wang that sort of person? If we go, we all go together. There’s a car at the fork up ahead that I’ve put there. We’ll take the car and be safe in no time.”
Damn, faced with the ‘good guy’ label from his brother, Wang Qiang felt somewhat uncomfortable, plus Pei Jinhong had just saved his life. To repay kindness with ingratitude in front of his men, how could he live with himself after that?
So he could only grit his teeth and say: “Liu Zhi is right, no delays, if we go, we go together!”
He was also exhausted from the escape, his beer belly heaving as he ran out of breath. He pointed to her and said: “Liu Zhi, you carry her.”
Liu Zhi responded and tucked his gun into his waistband, then squatted down in front of her: “Come on, sis.”
Lin Yan climbed onto his back nimbly and hugged his neck, whispering in his ear: “Liu Zhi, thank you.”
Her softness pressed against his back, her breath by his ear carrying a fragrance.
The young man, full of youthful vigor, suddenly blushed, stammering, “No, it’s nothing.”
Lin Yan’s fingernail gently grazed his earlobe: “You’re a good man. I’ll remember the kindness you’ve shown to your sister-in-law.”
Upon hearing that there was a car ahead, Wang Qiang was invigorated and had already run quite a distance away.
Liu Zhi quickly lifted his foot to follow, feeling a vague and inexplicable resentment in his heart.
“As it should be.”
In the midst of a life-and-death escape, branches hit them in the face and on the head, making Lin Yan incredibly disheveled. Several times she could feel bullets whizzing past her scalp as the police dogs relentlessly barked and chased after them.
Not knowing how long they had run, just when she felt on the verge of passing out, she was finally put into a car.
At this moment, Lin Yan’s weakness wasn’t feigned. Her face was deathly pale, and with a tilt of her head, she slumped against the seat and completely passed out.
No matter how much Liu Zhi called “sister-in-law” “sister-in-law” in her ear, there was no response.
“Officer Song, this is your seat. Here’s the key to the storage locker; please keep it safe.”
The comrade in charge of welcoming her brought her to a shabby desk and pulled out a backless wooden stool for her to sit on, then gave her a slightly embarrassed smile.
“The grassroots police stations aren’t as grand as the city bureau, you see. Oh, right, Captain Song…no, I mean Officer Song, there’s no canteen here. We only have one hour for lunch break. If you want to eat, turn right when you go out—there’s a snack street with plenty of options, or you could also order takeout. Just don’t go hungry.”
No wonder the office was empty; everyone must have gone to lunch.
Song Yuhang scanned the office—it wasn’t very big, maybe around ten square meters, with two desks facing each other, enough space for four people to sit. Aside from the empty desk in front of her, the other seats were occupied.
She placed her bag on her stool: “No worries, is there hot water? I’ll just make some instant noodles.”
“Yes, yes, there’s a kettle, but you’ll have to heat the water yourself. The water room is at the end of the hallway.”
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The junior officer said, handing her a rusty kettle.
Song Yuhang took the kettle and walked towards the door: “I’m fine, you go on with your work. There isn’t much time; don’t let me keep you from your meal.”
The junior officer wanted to leave, but as she was a senior from the city bureau, he was still unsure about how to read her mood.
Song Yuhang smiled, “I can’t eat at ease with you around.”
With that, the junior officer acknowledged her words and ran off gleefully, thinking to himself: ‘On normal days, when would I ever get to see such a high-ranking official? And to think this big shot is actually so approachable.’
Once he left, Song Yuhang fetched some water, came back, and started eating her instant noodles while looking through the documents on the desk. Just like that, she began her grassroots-level police patrol work.
“How long do you plan to waste your life away like this?” The old man, leaning on his cane, sat opposite him, watching the man across pour himself another glass of red wine and crack a wry smile.
“Wasting away? No, no, I’m just enjoying life, that’s all.”
Despite his words, he had been in this do-nothing state for a while now.
The elder snorted coldly, tapping his cane on the ground.
“Lin Yan is dead, and now is the best time for you to take over the Lin family business. It’s also time to move the last batch of goods, isn’t it?”
Mentioning Lin Yan, the man holding the wine glass zoned out for a moment, his smile turning bitter.
“What’s the rush? That old b*stard is currently keeping a tight watch on the factories below; no opportunity has presented itself yet.”
“I don’t think it’s a matter of no opportunity, it seems more like you don’t want to find one.” Kuba extended a cigar to him, lighting it up for him.
The old man took a few puffs, his expression enigmatic amid the swirling smoke.
“Don’t tell me you still want to play the part of the Lin family’s young master.”
Lin Ge clenched his teeth tighter.
He continued, “Don’t forget who the real culprit is. All of this is what you deserve.”
With a wave of his hand, the old man had Kuba hand over a box. Inside were blue vials arranged in rows, their contents so deep in color they seemed almost purple.
“It’s called ‘Drunken Dream’ No. 15, a new formula. It’s 50% purity makes it addictive yet unlikely to cause adverse reactions. Take it to him as a gift from me, a sort of meeting present.”
As the old man spoke, a lingering smile played on his lips, as if he was lost in memories.
Lin Ge stared at the vial, slowly finishing the liquor in his glass.
The old man put out his cigarette in the ashtray and stood up: “I’ve given you the sample. In half a month, I want to see your lab mass-producing it. Repackage it as some sort of functional beverage gimmick—there should be many buyers.”
The old man patted his shoulder: “Can’t be without women and broke, right? My people will pick up the goods at the usual spot. Waiting for your good news.”
With that, he left, shakily supported by Kuba.
LP: I just want people like these to disappear from earth (ง ◉ _ ◉)ง