socalfunplaces Chapter 115 The Imposter
Chapter 115 The Imposter
Chapter 115 The Imposter
Song Zhaowen stared at Cai Ba, smoke slowly escaping from the corner of his mouth. He threw the cigarette butt on the ground, ground it with the toe of his foot, and said nothing.
Seeing that Song Zhaowen still seemed a little hesitant (pretending),
"Mr. Song, you may think I'm just an ordinary drug lord, but in this place, planting, refining, and transporting..."
Sales—it's an entire industry chain. I've been operating in the Golden Triangle for twenty years, from Myanmar to Thailand, from Laos to Vietnam, I know every route intimately. What I lack is a partner like you, someone capable and willing to take the plunge.
"Songchai is dead, his territory is vacant, and other warlords will soon take over, but the plantations deep in the mountains, those places that can't even be found on a map—those are the real treasures."
Song Zhaowen retorted, "Aren't you afraid I'll have too big an appetite and swallow you up too?"
Cai Ba paused for a moment, then burst into laughter: "Scared? Of course I'm scared. But I'm even more afraid of missing this opportunity."
He suppressed his smile and said seriously, "Mr. Song, I guess Ba has been in the Golden Triangle for twenty years and has seen more people than you have eaten rice. I can tell at a glance who is capable of success and who is capable of failure."
you----"
He looked Song Zhaowen up and down: "You're not the kind of person who'd willingly be someone's lackey. But you're not an ungrateful scoundrel either. I trust you because you have principles; at least so far, you haven't lied to me."
Song Zhaowen's lips curled up slightly, feeling smug. If he were a gangster, he wouldn't stand a chance against Tony Leung when he entered the film industry and became a Golden Horse Award winner.
But he remained expressionless: "Since you think so highly of me, I'd like to see just how deep your cards are."
"The trump card?" Cai Ba's eyes lit up. "What do you want to see?"
"Plantations," Song Zhaowen said. "You said you have the best plantations in the entire Golden Triangle. Take me to see them."
If it's really as powerful as you say, we can discuss cooperation.
Cai Ba hesitated.
The plantation was his biggest secret, and his last resort. Apart from a few trusted confidants, no one knew its exact location.
After weighing his options for a few seconds, Cai Ba gritted his teeth and said, "Fine! I'll take you!"
He turned to his men and ordered, "Prepare two sets of civilian clothes and arrange two elephants. We're going to Mang Town."
"Mang Town?" The subordinate was taken aback. "Boss, that place—"
"Stop talking nonsense and do as I say," Cai Ba interrupted him.
His subordinates dared not say more and hurriedly left.
Cai Ba turned to Song Zhaowen and said, "Mr. Song, Mangzhen is deep in the mountains and forests, there isn't even a decent road. The only way to get in is by elephant. This trip will take at least two days. Are you sure you're okay with that?"
Song Zhaowen said, "No problem, but I'd like to know, why do we have to ride elephants? Can't we use helicopters?"
"No way," Cai Ba shook his head. "The terrain there is complicated, and helicopters won't be able to find a landing spot. Besides, aerial targets are too obvious and easily spotted by government forces. Elephants are the safest option; they know the way and can avoid all checkpoints and minefields."
Song Zhaowen nodded: "When do we depart?"
"Let's set off now." Cai Ba glanced at his watch. "Let's get going before the news spreads. Once the news of Song Cai's death gets out, things won't be safe on the road."
Half an hour later, the two changed into coarse cloth clothes belonging to the locals and mounted two adult Asian elephants. The elephant driver was an old man in his fifties with a face full of wrinkles and who spoke very little.
Cai Ba, sitting on the elephant in front, turned to Song Zhaowen and said, "Old Sang has been with me for fifteen years. He can navigate the roads of Mang Town with his eyes closed. Mr. Song, you can just follow us."
Song Zhaowen nodded and mounted the second elephant.
The elephants were very docile, and under the guidance of their herdsmen, they slowly walked into the jungle.
At first, you could see scattered villages and farmland, but the further you went in, the fewer people there were. The roads gradually disappeared, replaced by muddy paths trampled by elephants.
The jungle was hot and humid, and the mosquitoes were terrifyingly numerous. Song Zhaowen wiped the sweat from his face and asked the person ahead, "How much further?"
"This is just the beginning." Cai Ba didn't even turn his head. "Mang Town is deep in the mountains, at least fifty kilometers away from here. We'll walk all day, spend the night in the forest, and arrive by noon tomorrow."
"Do you usually go in like this?"
"I don't go often," Cai Ba said. "I usually go every two or three months to check the accounts and see the harvest. I have some men keeping an eye on things there."
"So, you're just trying to find Mang Town?"
Cai Ba sneered, "He's been searching for over a decade and hasn't even caught a glimpse of it. The terrain in these mountains is too complex; without a guide, coming in is just suicide. Old Sang said that, to his knowledge, more than thirty outsiders have gotten lost here, and ended up either starving to death or being eaten by wild animals."
Song Zhaowen stopped talking and silently observed his surroundings.
But the surrounding area was all jungle, all the same, with no coordinates to refer to.
The elephant walked steadily, but not fast. Around 3 p.m., Cai Ba signaled to stop and rest.
Old Sang, the elephant driver, took out water and dry rations from his basket and gave them to the two men. Cai Ba, munching on a hard cornbread, said to Song Zhaowen, "Mr. Song, we'll have to spend the night in the woods. There are wild animals here at night, so we'll need to make a fire."
"You can arrange it." Song Zhaowen took the water bottle and took a sip.
After resting for twenty minutes, we continued on our way.
As the sun began to set, the light in the jungle grew dimmer. Old Sang, the elephant driver, picked up his pace, seemingly trying to reach somewhere before nightfall.
Finally, before the sun had completely set, they arrived at a relatively open clearing in the woods. There was a simple wooden shed in the clearing, which looked like it was prepared specifically for spending the night.
"We'll rest here tonight." Cai Ba got off the elephant and stretched his stiff legs. "Old Sang, start a fire."
Old Sang skillfully gathered dry firewood and started a campfire. The firelight dispelled the darkness and chased away the mosquitoes.
The three sat around the fire. Old Sang cooked a pot of wild vegetable soup and roasted some dried meat. The taste was so-so, but in this kind of place, having hot food was already quite good.
The three of them ate in silence, none of them wanting to speak.
After finishing his meal, Cai Ba took out a small metal box from his pocket, opened it, and found cigars inside.
"Want one?" He handed one to Song Zhaowen.
Song Zhaowen took it and chuckled, "Cai Ba, there's no stuff in the cigar, is there?"
Cai Ba shook his head: "I sell drugs, but I absolutely don't get any myself."
"That's good." Relieved, Song Zhaowen lit the campfire.
The two men smoked in silence, the only sounds being the crackling of the burning firewood and the chirping of insects in the distance.
"Mr. Song," Cai Ba suddenly spoke up, "what do you think of me?"
"Well—" Cai Ba paused for a moment to think, "Do you think I'm qualified to be your partner?"
Song Zhaowen exhaled a puff of smoke: "Why do you ask that?"
"Because I value you very much."
Cai Ba said seriously, "I've met many people in my life, some capable, some incompetent, some loyal, some treacherous—but you're different. I can't see through you."