Chapter 327 — Running Into a Thief
The Blossom Guardian · Page 1 of 2
Of course, Wei Zhao did not entirely trust the little boss's word — who knew whether the man harbored some sinister design? He did not go straight into the building the little boss had described to scout it out; what if it was a trap? Wei Zhao was not that careless.
Wei Zhao circled the building the little boss had named once, then quietly crouched by the entrance like any ordinary member of the Water Blue Gang.
After a while, a Water Blue Gang member came out of the building. Wei Zhao followed him directly, and once the man had walked a stretch of road, the sharp knife was at his throat again.
This time, however, before Wei Zhao could speak, the man beat him to it: "Brother, don't... don't kill me. I just slipped in hoping to see if I could snatch a little something for myself. How was I to know I took a wrong turn and ended up where the hostages are kept? I hadn't even made my move yet, hadn't stolen a thing. Search me if you don't believe me — I really didn't touch anything, I beg you, let me go..."
Wei Zhao was slightly taken aback, and could not help but be struck dumb. This fellow had slipped in the same way he had? And from the sound of it, he was a petty thief who had come to fish in troubled waters?
"Where did you get that cap?" Wei Zhao asked, half amused, half exasperated.
"Stole it..." The thief made no attempt to hide it. "I saw somebody leave it in a car, and the window wasn't shut, so I swiped it. I heard this is where the Water Blue Gang makes its money, so I figured I'd try my luck. Brother, this is really my first time here..."
"Oh? Then what did you see when you went in just now?" Wei Zhao asked.
"I... I didn't see anything, really, I won't breathe a word..." The thief was on the verge of tears.
"Tell the truth! What exactly did you see?" Wei Zhao demanded in exasperation. He had not expected the thief to mistake his meaning, thinking he was being told to keep his mouth shut.
"Brother, you're a sensible man, you know that's where you keep the hostages. But even though I saw it, I won't say a word, really, rest easy. This business will rot in my belly!" the thief said truthfully. "I'm no honest working man myself — there's no way I'd turn you in!"
From the thief's words, Wei Zhao knew he had misunderstood, but he did not bother to explain. It was enough now to be certain that this building really was where the hostages were held.
"You went in and nobody spotted you? There's no one of ours inside?" Wei Zhao asked.
"No... there's none of your people in there... just the hostages locked behind the iron bars." The thief still assumed Wei Zhao was merely making routine inquiries, and answered honestly. He had no time to wonder what Wei Zhao was really asking about — he was already drenched in a cold sweat from fright.
"If I just let you go like this and my superiors ask questions, I'm the one taking the risk!" Wei Zhao no longer felt like doing away with the thief; killing him would only make disposing of the body more trouble, so he might as well let the man walk away.
Still, he had to put on the proper show, lest he let the thief go too easily and rouse his suspicion.
"Brother," the thief said, fishing a wad of cash from his pocket, "this is what I made today. Take it and buy yourself some cigarettes..."
"Mm, you know how to play it smart. Get lost!" Wei Zhao took the money, stuffed it into his pocket with satisfaction, and put the knife away.
The thief fled in gratitude, not daring to look back, and hurried away from the spot. Most likely he would not dare linger; he was probably going to run straight out of the repair shop.
Having confirmed from the thief that there was no Water Blue Gang presence in the hostage building, Wei Zhao swaggered in.
The ground floor was a large hall, empty of everything. The second floor was sealed off — plainly used for storage.