Chapter 1595: Trafficking

Shortly after, Lory and Zhao Li Xin boarded the small fishing boat along with three other families. The vessel was old, its wood worn smooth by years of salt and sun, the air thick with the sour scent of fish and brine, but no one complained. No one dared. Escape had a way of dulling such discomforts.

The boatman and his two assistants moved with practiced ease, unfurling the sails before starting the engine to life. A moment later, they hear roared beneath their feet, and the boat lurched forward, cutting through the dark blue waters.

Lory stepped onto the deck and pulled out her phone. The screen flickered, searching... and searching, but no signal came. She frowned and checked the connection again. Then, as if realizing something, her expression sharpened.

Someone was jamming the signal.

Lory glanced toward the man steering the boat. Without changing her expression, she slipped the phone back into her pocket and cast Zhao Li Xin a quiet, meaningful glance. They exchange tacit understanding, and they both turn quiet, pretending nothing is wrong.

Lory had expected this, but she was surprised it happened so soon—as if they didn’t care whether she grew suspicious. Perhaps they were confident there was nothing she could do once they were out here. Still, Lory couldn’t help but wonder what they wanted. Robbery, extortion... or something far worse. Whatever it was, she doubted it would be anything good.

Her attention drifted, settling on the little girl seated on a narrow bench beside her parents. The child looked small against the vast stretch of sea, her hands folded neatly in her lap. Catching her gaze, Lory offered a light wink and a faint smile.

The little girl’s round eyes blinked innocently, then she smiled back.

A soft breath left Lory as she turned toward the horizon. The sky had begun to bleed into shades of red and amber, the clouds catching fire as the sun dipped lower. Evening was coming. She checked the time, then leaned lightly against the railing, her posture relaxed, though her mind remained alert.

Later on, the hours passed, and the light began to fade. According to the boatman, it would take two days before they met with a larger vessel, one that would carry them safely across the border. At least, that was what he claimed.

The little girl’s parents seemed to take comfort in those words. Relief softened their tense expressions as they guided their daughter back into the cramped cabin, murmuring gently when she began to look unwell.

Lory examined the little girl’s face. Then she noticed how pale the little girl’s face was. The little girl looked tired and weak, as if a strong wind would take her away. Lory couldn’t confirm the little girl’s condition, but it was enough for her to understand why the couple dared to take the risk to leave this country. Obviously, it has something to do with the little girl’s condition.

As the day grew late, the family and Lory returned to their respective cabins. Though it was meant to be a bedroom, the space was barely larger than a storage closet, no more than twenty square feet. Cramped and airless, it felt less like a place to rest and more like a closet than a place to rest.

Zhao Li Xin paused at the doorway, his gaze sweeping the interior before a faint frown tugged at his lips. "So... how are we supposed to sleep?" he asked. Then, as if arriving at a perfectly reasonable conclusion, he added, "My suggestion is simple, I lie on the bottom, you lie on top. You know... like usual." His tone was calm, but the teasing in his eyes was apparent.

Lory shot him a sidelong glare. "Don’t even think about it, mister. This place has no soundproofing—and there’s a little girl on this boat."

"Fortunately," Zhao Li Xin replied smoothly, spreading his arms with quiet pride, "you have an array master with you. Once I set up a formation, no one will hear a thing."

"Ha-ha" Lory rolled her eyes. Without another word, she climbed onto the narrow bed, only to immediately grab a pillow and toss it at him.

Zhao Li Xin caught it easily, but the moment his fingers sank into the fabric, his expression shifted to one of distaste.

"...This thing is filthy."

His gaze drifted around the cramped room, his displeasure deepening. "Actually, this entire place is filthy."

Lory froze; a realization struck her like a thunderbolt. Slowly, she drew her knees up and wrapped her arms around them, as if afraid to touch anything. "Please tell me that’s not what I think it is..."

Zhao Li Xin gave a faint sniff. His expression darkened. "I’m afraid it is."

He remembered Fargo used to tell stories about what sailors and fishermen did to cope with the long months at sea, and how people profited by using small boats filled with women offering their services. Fargo called it the floating brothels.

He told them how this practice became illegal because it was a source of many sexually transmitted infections, but people still practiced it secretly because the money was good and the demand was always there.

"Eeh—!"

With a startled cry, Lory sprang off the bed as if it had burned her, launching herself straight toward Zhao Li Xin.

Zhao Li Xin caught her swiftly while Lory wrapped her arms around his head, "You want to go into the spatial ring?" he asked, one brow lifting slightly.

"I do..." Lory groaned, clearly tempted. "That was my first thought, too, but we can’t leave. I have a feeling those people are going to do something tonight..."

She slumped slightly, still clinging to him, her voice dropping into a frustrated whine. "C-can we at least cover this place with something?"

Zhao Li Xin let out a quiet sigh. Then he opened his palm, and in an instant, a pile of clean white cloth appeared. "...Let’s start there," he said flatly.

"Hnggg..." Lory groans in reluctance.

Midnight settled over the sea like a shroud. The boat rocked in a slow, uneasy rhythm, its wooden frame groaning with each swell, as if it, too, regretted its life choices. Moonlight slipped through torn clouds, casting pale, shifting shadows across the cabin walls. Inside, the air felt colder, heavier, thick with a silence that pressed against the skin.

One by one, everyone sank into a deep, unguarded slumber.

Then, from the air vents, a thin wisp of smoke slipped in, quiet as a guilty thought. At first, it was barely visible, just a faint curl in the dark... then it spread with suspicious enthusiasm, unfurling in slow, ghostlike tendrils.

It crept along the ceiling, drifted downward, and politely invaded every corner of the cabin. Pale and insidious, it curled around sleeping bodies, slipping into lungs with each steady breath, efficient, thorough... and silent.

No one stirred. No one noticed. One by one, they slipped further into unconsciousness, completely unaware they were being professionally sabotaged.

Creak—

The cabin door opened, slow and cautious. A man peeked inside. After confirming everyone was deeply asleep, he pushed the door wider.

"It’s good here. What about there?"

"It’s... um..." The second man hesitated.

The boatman frowned. "What’s wrong?" He strode to the next cabin and stopped. The entire room was covered in white cloth from top to bottom. Walls, bed, even the floor, everything draped like an overly enthusiastic ghost convention. Only the ceiling remained untouched.

He stared for a second, wondering what kind of crazy kinks they do here... after that, he clicked his tongue, dismissing it just as quickly.

"...Take them all."

A few moments later, Lory blinked, but saw nothing—only pitch-black darkness pressing in from all sides. She lifted her head from the hard surface beneath her, senses still sluggish.

"Li Xin... where are you?"

"Under you," Zhao Li Xin’s voice came calmly.

Lory froze, then realization hit. Turns out she was lying on top of him. Her brows knit in disbelief. "How do you even manage that?"

"By sheer determination, of course..." he replied, unmistakable pride in his tone.

For a second, Lory didn’t know whether to be impressed or concerned that he could still maneuver things in his favor, while pretending to be unconscious. Lory sighed then shifted slightly, trying to get her bearings, patting lightly to find where his head was—

"Wife," Zhao Li Xin’s voice cut in, low and warning, "stop moving around and rubbing against me. We’re not alone."

Lory went still before rebuking him, "...Can you not make it sound strange?" she muttered under her breath.

She summoned a flashlight from her ring and flicked it on. The sudden beam cut through the darkness and straight into Zhao Li Xin’s face.

He squinted sharply. "Don’t point that at me."

"Oh—sorry!" Lory quickly angled the light away and pushed herself up, finally off him.

Zhao Li Xin rose unhurriedly, while Lory swept the beam across the darkness and stilled. Steel walls hemmed them in on all sides. A container. Bodies lay strewn across the floor, some slumped against one another, others collapsed where they had fallen.

Lory’s expression tightened. She dropped to her knees beside the nearest figure, fingers pressing to a wrist. She feel a faint pulse, meaning they all

alive, just knocked out by drugs.

Relief came, but it disappeared as quickly as he remembered the small family that shared the same boat with him and Zhao Li Xin. He immediately searched for the family, shining his flashlight to examine their faces one by one, wondering where that family, that cute little girl, was.

"Li Xin, help me to check for that family," Lory said urgently.ℯ𝓵.