Chapter 974: We Will Not Betray You

Captain Sun pondered for a moment, then lowered his voice and spoke: "I do have an idea, though it's quite unrefined. Does everyone want to hear it?"

Upon hearing this, Bureau Chief Zhang said anxiously: "If you have one, say it! Old Zhang, the situation is already critical, why are you still being coy? Hurry up and speak!"

Captain Sun said earnestly: "Actually, not far from Hong Kong, there is a small island. That place is very small, and it has an old runway from the Second World War. It seems there is no M Country Garrison there, and there aren't many indigenous people on the island, all of whom are concentrated on the south side where there is a beach. The north side is the old M Country airport, which has long been abandoned and is surrounded by dense coconut groves, making it rarely visited. Pirates once occupied this place. We, we," he looked at He Yuzhu, and after He Yuzhu nodded, he continued: "Why don't we blow up this cargo ship, then quietly sneak ashore on Factory Director He's small boat? It would be seamless, and no one should notice. We can hide on the island for ten days or half a month until the heat dies down—I reckon the M Country people can't keep guarding that shipping lane forever; they'll surely withdraw after half a month. By then, we can find an opportunity to hijack a passing cargo ship, blend into the fleet, and follow them out. Who would be able to recognize us then?"

After hearing this, He Yuzhu's eyes lit up, and he immediately stated: "This method is excellent. Are you waiting for me to ask how to deal with those sailors? I don't think we can let them go."

Director Li, however, frowned and asked hesitantly: "That wouldn't be good, would it?"

Bureau Chief Zhang gave a cold snort and said: "Director Li, I won't hide it from you, they really aren't good people. Earlier, two of them were acting suspiciously, trying to secretly send out a signal—if we hadn't discovered it in time, we would have been exposed long ago. Keeping that bunch around is a hidden danger."

He Yuzhu calculated for a moment and said: "There is a small compartment in the cargo hold of the cargo ship, and there are quite a few High-explosive Explosives piled up inside. I plan to install a timer device, and when the time comes, let those sailors drive the ship themselves. When they are close to the checkpoint, I will detonate the Explosives."

Bureau Chief Zhang slapped his thigh: "I agree! I dare to bet my head that as soon as that bunch reaches the checkpoint, they will surely sell us out completely. I saw through their eyes long ago; not one of them is reliable."

He Yuzhu sneered: "Since they aren't good birds either, we don't need to have any psychological burden. Besides, what kind of good people could crew members who hang out with the Yamaguchi-gumi be?"

He paused as he spoke and added: "But there is one thing I must say in advance—my patrol boat is small and cannot seat so many people. Later, we will unload a small tugboat from the cargo ship and tow it behind the boat."

Director Li, however, frowned and hesitated for a long time before speaking: "But I still feel that killing all those sailors is not advisable..."

He Yuzhu laughed, "If you have a heart of a Bodhisattva, then I will change the method. I will secretly install a device in the cockpit. When the time comes, no matter how far we go, even if we go hundreds of kilometers away, we can still hear the conversations of the people over there. You can listen to how they chat yourself, and then make a decision after listening, how about it?"

Director Li nodded: "Good, this idea is good. I will wait to hear what kind of faces they really have."

He Yuzhu did as he said, first destroying all the communication equipment on the cargo ship that could contact the outside world, leaving only a small transmitter to monitor the crew's conversations.

Afterward, he called the delegation members to board his patrol boat one by one. After they were settled, he turned and walked to the few crew members, speaking with a calm expression: "I am sparing you this once; you can sail back yourselves. But I will say the ugly words first—don't run into the M Military, and don't give us away. Keep your mouths shut; it's better for everyone."

The leader of the small group immediately put his hands together, bowed deeply, and said with a sincere face: "Boss, don't worry. I will take this matter to the grave; even if it rots in my stomach, I will never utter a word."

He Yuzhu stared at him for two seconds, the corners of his mouth twitched slightly, and he smiled: "I hope you can keep your promise."

The leader nodded quickly: "We believe in Buddhism and never tell lies. Boss, don't worry, we will never betray you."

He Yuzhu nodded and added unhurriedly: "I also have to leave myself a way out—I have destroyed all the radio and navigation systems. You can only rely on the electrical system to maintain basic operation and use your experience to sail the ship back. Whether you can reach the shore alive depends on your own skills."

A flash of ruthlessness quickly crossed the leader's eyes, but his face immediately piled up with smiles again, and he bowed again: "Boss, I understand, I understand. We don't blame you; it's not easy for anyone..."

He Yuzhu was too lazy to talk nonsense with him anymore and cupped his hands: "Then let us part ways here and go our separate paths. I hope you won't break your word."

Several crew members smiled and bowed to him, saying "Take care" and "See you again," with such enthusiasm that one who didn't know better would have thought they were seeing off their own brothers.

He Yuzhu turned, jumped onto the patrol boat, started the engine, and drove straight south with the delegation members.

After the large cargo ship shrank into a black dot on the horizon and completely disappeared, he slammed the rudder and turned north.

He knew clearly in his heart—in case that bunch ran into an M Country Warship halfway, they would nine times out of ten sell him out completely. He had to buy enough time to put a great distance between them.

Sure enough, not long after, the small receiver he had placed in the cockpit made a sound, and the discussions of that bunch drifted out intermittently.

The leader's cursing voice was the clearest: "These Huaxia people are really a bunch of bastards, even worse than those grandsons from the Yamaguchi-gumi! When we run into the M Country people, I will definitely spill everything they did!"

Another loud voice echoed, sounding as rough as a broken gong.

There was one person who said in a soft voice: "We... have already promised them, it's better not to do this... otherwise the Buddha will punish us..."

The leader immediately scolded him: "Feili, you don't know a damn thing! These people have no good intentions at all! You talk about keeping your word with them? Did they keep their word with us? We were sailing perfectly fine, why did they hijack us? They killed all those people from the Yamaguchi-gumi; if we go back alive, will those Japanese spare us? They will definitely chop us up to feed the fish! We must tell the M Country people and let them testify for us..."

"That's right! Ramón is right, we must report! This can also be considered a gesture of loyalty to the Japanese!"

A burst of noisy agreement came from the receiver, everyone talking at once, most of them standing on Ramón's side.

He Yuzhu sat in the patrol boat, listening to the filthy language coming out of the receiver word for word. The smile lines on his face slowly faded, and the last bit of warmth in his eyes turned cold.

He turned his head to look at Director Li and said directly: "You heard it, right? This bunch of people, they simply cannot be trusted."

Director Li nodded heavily, his face ashen, and did not say another word.