Taboo Mage - Chapter 47 - Encounter with Human Traffickers
After hearing what I had said, Yang Shuo’s face showed a range of expressions, her eyes wide as she stared at me, taking a long time to recover.
I was quite satisfied with this effect. I stood up, my gaze quickly sweeping over the money on the table before I smiled and said goodbye to Yang Shuo.
The meal had left me feeling very unsettled, and I felt that I needed some good rest to digest the experience.
Yang Shuo followed me from the private room all the way to the restaurant’s entrance, persistently asking why I couldn’t do it, wondering if it was because the money wasn’t enough, offering to pay more.
Suddenly, I felt uncomfortable. When had I become someone in their eyes who would do anything if the price was right?
The lessons from past incidents were enough; I couldn’t joke with my life anymore.
After firmly rejecting Yang Shuo, I took a taxi back to my shop. To my surprise, she was relentless and followed me all the way home.
Lin Huan was surprised when he saw Yang Shuo, then his eyes signaled to me to explain what was happening.
Sitting on the couch, I watched as Yang Shuo continuously pulled out cash from her bag, neatly arranging it in front of me, now double the amount than before.
“Boss Gu, I really need your help!” Yang Shuo sat beside me, shaking my arm with her right hand.
I frowned. If bribery didn’t work, was she now resorting to seduction?
Lin Huan, sitting next to me, stared at the large pile of money on the coffee table, his Eyeballs almost popping out, nudging his chin towards me.
I told Yang Shuo that it wasn’t that I didn’t want to help her, but because I had made too many life amulets in the past, my body had suffered greatly, and now I could no longer deal with life amulets.
Yang Shuo was visibly baffled by my excuse. Now I was even using my impending death to refuse her; if she still persisted and ignored my words, then I would have even more reasons to refute her.
Perhaps my flawless lie convinced Yang Shuo. She sat back on the couch, withdrew her hand, gave me a resigned look, apologized for the intrusion, and then left with the money.
After Yang Shuo disappeared through the doorway, Lin Huan, who had been holding back for over an hour, flushed red and pointed at me, exclaiming, “So much money! All that money right in front of you, and you had the heart to refuse?”
“What else?” I raised an eyebrow, looking at Lin Huan.
He stared at me incredulously. “According to your usual style, shouldn’t you have just nodded and promised to make the client feel at home?”
In response, I picked up a cushion nearby and threw it at Lin Huan.
Somehow, word had gotten out that since my departure from Chan Guang Monastery, I had been approached repeatedly over several days by people willing to pay for life amulets.
These individuals were undoubtedly either officials or businessmen, seeking to craft life amulets either to cause their rivals’ downfall or to pave their own path to success.
I met with everyone, yet I turned them all away. After watching a few such encounters, Lin Huan had figured out my pattern.
Eventually, he started handling similar types of clients himself, sparing me the need to do so, and I enjoyed a few days of relative peace.
One morning, I had plans to go fishing with Chen Li. Boss Chen’s business was thriving, and he had opened a fishing resort for fun. Since I had nothing better to do, I was roped into joining him.
Lin Huan got everything ready and called me downstairs. As I was dressing and heading to the door, suddenly a little boy came crashing into my arms.
I caught him, noting he looked unfamiliar, probably not a local child, and was about to ask where his parents were when the boy clung to my waist and started wailing loudly.
Lin Huan glanced at me with a mocking look, and I could guess the mischief he was thinking.
“Uncle1, I’m scared! I’m so scared!”
The boy clung to my waist, crying his heart out. I tried pushing him away a few times without success, so I let him hold on. Seeing how pitifully he cried, I knelt down to ask what was wrong.
Just as the boy was about to speak, wiping his tears, a middle-aged woman suddenly rushed over and grabbed the boy by the arm, insisting they go home.
The child cried even louder.
I often see such scenes on TV, and they usually involve traffickers. Lin Huan and I exchanged a glance, and tacitly moved the child behind us for protection.
Lin Huan confronted the woman, blocking her path, while I took the opportunity to dial 1102.
“What are you pulling at? Can’t you see the child is crying so miserably?”
The middle-aged woman, hands on her hips, loudly accused Lin Huan and me of meddling. Lin Huan, young and righteous, was slandered by a scammer, and he scoffed back at her.
Suddenly, the bystanders gathered around, pointing and saying how bold the trafficker was to try to steal a child in broad daylight.
The world has gone bad, the moral fiber has decayed…
Seeing herself surrounded, the woman sat down on the ground and started wailing loudly, pulling at her own hair and accusing us of bullying her.
With so many witnesses around, her continued tantrums posed no threat to me.
Lin Huan, arms crossed, argued back and forth with the woman, and they actually started quarreling.
They were in the heat of their argument when a piercing alarm sounded through the alley. I quickly pulled Lin Huan back, signaling that the police had arrived and it was time to be quiet.
As soon as the police appeared, the crowd swarmed them, eagerly explaining how they had caught the trafficker red-handed.
The police, indifferent, pushed through the crowd, pulled the woman up, and asked where the child was.
I brought out the child, who was still clinging to me, and the woman seeing this, continued her noisy protest, while the child in my arms cried even harder, making the scene somewhat uncontrollable.
An hour later, I sat in the interrogation room at the police station, recounting the incident. The officer opposite me scribbled notes rapidly, his expression unreadable.
Suddenly, the door was pushed open, and another officer walked in; the two whispered for a while. The officer taking notes then looked up at me strangely, tossed his pen aside, and smiled at me.
“Don’t look at me like that; it gives me the creeps,” I said, realizing something might be up, and smiled back.
“Stop joking around,” the officer said with a smirk, “we’ve just verified the family records, and that child is indeed her own.”
I was stunned. What? Her own child?
Footnote:
- Uncle(叔叔):In Chinese culture, it’s common for children to address unfamiliar adults as “叔叔” (shūshu) or “阿姨” (āyí), which translates to “uncle” or “auntie.” This way of addressing is a form of showing respect and establishing a sense of familiarity or comfort, even if they are not actually related.
- 110(110):In China, 110 is the emergency telephone number for the police, similar to 911 in the United States. You can call 110 when you need urgent assistance from the police.
