Let's Pull Off a Heist (Seeking Follow-up Reads)

Fang Shuwen lightened his footsteps, trailing far behind the young man.

Ever since acquiring the Snake Form Talent, even without conscious effort, he felt his steps were naturally quiet; now, with deliberate control, he moved with almost no sound at all.

As long as one didn't turn around to look, it was impossible to detect that someone was following.

The young man walked quickly, specifically choosing to weave through secluded alleys, twisting and turning as he pushed deeper inside.

Before long, he emerged from another alleyway.

At this moment, the young man pushed out a cart.

There were two sacks on the cart, and by the looks of them, it seemed people had been stuffed inside.

Is this kid planning to leave the city?

Fang Shuwen followed at a distance, maintaining a gap of about twenty paces.

People occasionally passed through the alleys, but no one spared a second glance.

In this day and age, a man pushing a flatbed cart was nothing out of the ordinary.

No one wanted to meddle in others' business, and no one dared to.

Nobody wanted to invite trouble.

After walking for about half an hour, the houses grew increasingly sparse.

The bluestone path turned into a gravel road, and weeds and shrubbery began to appear along the roadside.

Fang Shuwen recognized this; it was the direction toward the western outskirts of Xikou.

The western outskirts bordered the lower reaches of the Clear Water River, where the riverbed took a turn, forming a small river bend.

A few fishing families used to live there, but later, it was said that water ghosts haunted the river.

The Public Security Bureau came several times but failed to uncover any results.

With no other choice, the fishing families had to move away.

The river bend was left with a few dilapidated wooden huts and some crooked, leaning pier pilings.

Why bring people here?

Fang Shuwen hunched over, poking his head out from the bushes on the slope.

Sure enough, a flatbed cart was parked at the river bend, with two filthy sacks resting on it.

Two other men stood beside the cart.

One was thin and tall, wearing a grey cloth short-sleeved jacket with the cuffs rolled up to his elbows, revealing two lean arms covered in blue tattoos.

The other was short and stocky, shirtless, with thick black chest hair poking out from his collar and a short blade tucked into his waistband.

"Heh, Li Tong, you really are something, aren't you? Isn't this your girlfriend? How could you bear to sell her too?"

The thin, tall man leaned in, opened one of the sacks, stroked the face of the schoolgirl inside, and grinned.

"She's still a virgin, right? You know the rules! If she isn't, the price gets discounted."

When asked this by the thin, tall man, a flicker of discomfort crossed Li Tong's face, but he suppressed it quickly.

He turned his head away and laughed, "Hey, she wanted me to marry her but wouldn't let me sleep with her. Too much trouble, so I brought her to you to save myself the headache, right?"

"Heh?"

The thin, tall man withdrew his hand, wiped it on his trouser leg, and pulled an oil-paper parcel from his chest, weighing it in his hand.

"Old rules, fifty for the two of them. Count it clearly."

Li Tong took the oil-paper parcel and tore open a corner; the luster of silver dollars shimmered in the twilight.

He counted carefully, and the amount was correct.

Silver dollars were the universal currency issued by the Great Xin Yan Kingdom a couple of years ago, containing enough silver content.

However, he didn't leave, looking at the other man with a face full of smiles:

"Brother Hu, can you add a little more?"

"This is my girlfriend, she's a top student at the Public Middle School, and she's still a virgin."

The thin, tall man addressed as Brother Hu heard this, his expression darkening as he asked coldly:

"Hmph, girlfriend? Out of all the people you've brought here, which one wasn't your girlfriend! Don't give me that crap, tell me what you're talking about!"

"More money! Just give me another ten!" Li Tong chuckled.

At these words, the smile on Brother Hu's face slowly faded, and he narrowed his eyes, sizing up Li Tong.

"More money?"

"Li Tong, have you misunderstood something?"

Li Tong's smile froze on his face. He felt a fierce, murderous aura rushing toward him, his Adam's apple bobbing as he instinctively took half a step back.

"Brother Hu... Brother Hu, I was just talking, please don't be angry. This girl is truly a fine piece of goods. If you resell her in Shenghai, you could at least double your profit, if not triple it..."

"Triple it?"

Brother Hu suddenly laughed, revealing two rows of yellowed teeth.

He stepped forward and reached out to pat Li Tong's face.

The force was neither light nor heavy, but each strike made a crisp slapping sound, forcing Li Tong's head to tilt to the side.

"Even if it triples, that's my money. Does it have anything to do with you? We agreed on the price: twenty-five per head. It was a mutual agreement, so why are you trying to hike the price on me now?"

Li Tong's face stung from the slaps, but he dared not dodge, forcing a smile onto his face.

"Brother Hu, I was wrong, I was wrong, okay? Let's just stick to the original..."

"Too late."

Brother Hu withdrew his hand and pulled a dagger from his waist, spinning it skillfully in his hand.

"What I hate most is someone whose greed knows no bounds. There are brothels in Shenghai too; you have a decent look, you should fetch a good price there as well!"

Li Tong's lips trembled, and he wanted to say something more, but his legs began to shake uncontrollably.

Catching a glimpse of the short, stocky man beside him resting a hand on his sword hilt, he swallowed all his words.

He quickly cowered and begged for mercy:

"Brother Hu, please don't mind me, I misspoke. I have another good piece of goods—my new girlfriend, Cuicui. She is a top student in the Elite Class at the Public Middle School."

"She's beautiful and not even seventeen yet. If you let me go this time, I'll bring her to you."

His voice was trembling, and the smile he squeezed out looked worse than crying.

"An Elite Class student? Fine, that's more like it. Get lost."

Li Tong felt as if he had been granted a pardon. He turned and ran, his shoe soles clattering against the gravel road.

The kid was likely terrified; he almost tripped over a tree root after only a few steps, but he didn't look back, scrambling away until he disappeared at the end of the path.

Fang Shuwen lay hidden behind the bushes, watching the entire scene from start to finish.

His Snake Form Talent made his breathing extremely shallow and light, allowing him to blend almost perfectly with the surrounding vegetation.

He could even feel every hair on his body trembling slightly as the evening breeze brushed against his cheeks.

It seemed this talent not only enhanced the power of his martial arts but also altered his five senses and his body.

Cuicui's boyfriend is actually a human trafficker!

Tsk tsk, I thought she had just taken a liking to a hoodlum, but it turns out to be a total scam!

To save his own skin, he's actually planning to sell her out.

That Li Tong had a handsome face; although he dressed ordinarily, he was clearly a veteran player in the dating scene.

That was why a naive girl like Cuicui, who hadn't seen much of the world, was so easily deceived.

And now, she had been played.

There are only two people left. Judging by their appearance, they should have quite a bit of money on them.

Fang Shuwen's gaze swept back and forth between Brother Hu and the short, stocky man, the scales in his heart wavering, unable to settle.

Judging by their demeanor, they should have practiced martial arts, though he couldn't determine their exact cultivation level due to the distance.

But they were certainly not Bright Force masters.

At most, they had reached the level of three bone cracks.

As long as they didn't have guns, he might be able to take them both down!

Should he leave?

Or should he stay?

Fang Shuwen's right hand unconsciously gripped a blade of grass.

His eyes fell on the bulging money pouch at Brother Hu's waist.

That was where Brother Hu had stuffed the oil-paper parcel that Li Tong had just returned.

It was a large, bulging package; there had to be at least a hundred silver dollars in there.

If he succeeded, it would greatly alleviate his current financial straits.

Damn it! I'll do it.