The next day.
Hua Muying brought the five boys over. This time, he abandoned his usual stern demeanor and repeatedly emphasized, "When you follow your new boss, remember two words: obedience, obedience, and more obedience!"
"Brother Hua, that sounds like eight words."
"One more word, and I’ll sell you to the brothels!"
"You must obey, understand?!"
Xiao Hu and the others quickly nodded.
They might not be good at much, but when it came to obedience, they had always excelled. After all, those who didn’t obey usually ended up missing a hand or a foot—or both.
After getting out of the car, they followed Hua Muying to the staircase at the west end of the snack street. Hua Muying took a deep breath before leading them upstairs.
Though their hearts pounded with fear, Xiao Hu and the others obediently trailed behind.
When they reached the second floor and saw four or five tough-looking young men in black jackets smoking by the door, they immediately lowered their heads in fright.
The terror only intensified when they stepped into the office and found an entire group of black-clad men staring at them in unison. Xiao Hu and his friends couldn’t stop their bodies from trembling.
They had imagined many scenarios about their new boss, but never had they expected Hua Muying to bring them to a place like this.
Back when they’d worked for human traffickers, they’d seen plenty of cruel faces. But these men looked even more ruthless, even darker.
What truly sent chills down their spines was the sight of several men gathered around a mannequin, gesturing and discussing angles and force. One even pulled out a fruit knife and stabbed it into the dummy.
"This way, you avoid the liver’s vital spots."
"Your angle’s still off—you’ll hit an artery. Too much blood loss would be messy."
"..."
Even Hua Muying felt a shiver run down his spine, let alone Xiao Hu and the other boys.
What the hell was going on here?
Had the Wanlong Society expanded into organ trafficking?
If not for the intel he’d gathered earlier, which suggested they weren’t that deranged, he might’ve bolted right then.
The sound of heavy footsteps echoed.
A chubby young man walked in, followed by a towering, fearsome giant. Xiao Hu and the others froze, their eyes welling up with tears.
"Brother Hua… c-can we go back?"
"Brother Hua…"
Hua Muying scowled and snapped, "Shut up! You’re here now, so obey. I’ve already taken the money—there’s no going back!"
Xiao Hu and the others turned deathly pale.
They’d been betrayed.
If only they’d chosen the orphanage instead.
They were doomed. Completely doomed.
Ma Da stepped forward, scrutinizing the five boys with clear dissatisfaction.
Even in their slightly cleaner clothes, they still looked grubby—scrawny, short, and barely older than thirteen or fourteen.
"Hua Muying, what is this? Yesterday you said they were sixteen or seventeen. These kids look like they’re barely hitting puberty. Are you screwing with us?!"
"No way, Brother Ma! They’re just late bloomers—their ages are legit!" Hua Muying hurriedly assured him.
"ID cards. Show me," Ma Da demanded, holding out his hand.
Hua Muying hesitated. "They… don’t have any."
"No IDs? So you are screwing with us?!" Ma Da’s temper flared.
"Brother Ma, they were all trafficked as kids—they’re unregistered. How could they have IDs?" Hua Muying explained helplessly.
Ma Da’s expression softened slightly at that.
"Fine. We’ll sort out their paperwork later."
Perhaps worried that Ma Da and the others might mistreat the boys, Hua Muying added, "Brother Ma, don’t let their size fool you. They’re hard workers, and each of them has a special skill."
He hoped the Wanlong Society would at least give them a chance instead of tossing them out to fend for themselves.
Ma Da’s interest was piqued. He turned back to Xiao Hu and the others.
"Special skills? Show me."
The boys exchanged nervous glances, unsure what to demonstrate, and stood frozen in place.
Ma Da barked, "Well? Get moving!"
Hua Muying stepped in. "Go on, show Brother Ma!"
Then, to Ma Da, he said, "They used to be pickpockets—light fingers, quick hands."
"Thieves?" Ma Da’s eyes lit up.
"I’ve never been pickpocketed in my life. If any of you can steal something off me right now, I’ll treat you to a feast!"
"If not… I’ll send you all to a very safe place!"
The boys shuddered. Their eyes darted to the mannequin in the corner. Was this "safe place" code for an organ-harvesting operation?
Hua Muying kicked them lightly. "Hurry up! No backing out now—you chose this!"
After a moment’s hesitation, Xiao Hu—the most tiger-like of the group—stepped forward with newfound determination. He walked up to Ma Da and extended his right hand.
Ma Da was taken aback. This is their idea of theft?
If this was all they had, he’d be sorely disappointed.
Still, he played along, shaking Xiao Hu’s hand while keeping a close watch for any sudden moves. After all, Hua Muying had said their hands were quick.
Sure enough, the moment their hands clasped, Ma Da felt fingers dart toward the inner pocket of his suit jacket—where his wallet was.
He reacted instantly, reaching to grab Xiao Hu’s wrist, but before he could, the boy had already retreated a few steps.
Ma Da patted his inner pocket and pulled out his black wallet, waving it triumphantly. "Still got my—"
Mid-sentence, he felt a draft below.
He looked down.
Whoosh.
His pants dropped to the floor, revealing boxers printed with an oversized cartoon Doraemon.
Ma Da: ???
The office fell silent for a split second.
Then—
"Pfft—"
"Cough… cough…"
"Brother Ma’s… taste, hahaha…"
Meanwhile, Xiao Hu raised his hand high, proudly displaying a black leather belt.
"Damn it!"
Ma Da hurriedly pulled up his pants and roared at the crowd, "Stop laughing! Can't a man buy pants that are too big?"
He then snatched the belt from Xiao Hu's hands and fastened it again.
Once done, he sized up the boy with a tiger-like demeanor. "How did you pull that off?"
Xiao Hu gestured slightly and explained that during the handshake, he first pretended to go for the wallet to distract him, then seized the moment of distraction to swiftly yank off his belt—using just a bit of special technique.
Ma Da nodded. "Your hands are quick, I’ll give you that."
Then, he barked at the black-clad members of the Ten Thousand Dragons Society, "Men!"
"Take them away and deal with them properly."
"Yes, Brother Ma!"
In an instant, seven or eight men in black stepped forward. Under Xiao Hu and the others' terrified gazes, they were dragged away roughly.
