Metamorphosis (8)
We arrived at our original destination, the Public Security Bureau, and waited for half a day. It wasn't until dusk that Gao Xusen, the deputy director of the Guangzhou Public Security Bureau and a first-grade inspector, finally showed his face.
"Sorry for the delay. Dealing with the aftermath of that reactionary disturbance earlier today took quite some time, and thanks to you saving my face, I had to make appearances all over the place. I hope you understand."
I set down my teacup and replied without rising from my seat.
"Don't worry about it. This should have extended your life—and your subordinates'—by a few days at least, so a few hours' wait is a small price to pay."
"Haha."
Despite my sharp tone—deliberately chosen to establish our dynamic with a man whose life had revolved around bullying others and casual condescension for half a century—Gao Xusen, with his plump cheeks, didn't get angry. Instead, he exchanged a friendly glance with Park Mi-joo standing behind me and faced me with a smiling countenance.
"Vice President Li... a pseudonym, no doubt, but you're the man himself. The master of old brother Seo, who gave me a second life before departing this world. The top executive of the infamous 'Nameless Company', renowned for human hunting and arms smuggling."
Nameless Company. So that's what they called my outfit in these circles.
"Old brother Seo often said his life was thanks to you. Given that connection, I have to say you're younger than I expected. I pictured someone my age, at least."
He seemed suspicious I might be a stand-in, but that doubt was actually useful, so I gave a bland response.
"Appearances aside, I'm older than that bastard Gapsu."
"What? You're not just exceptionally capable—you're full of surprises!"
Thud.
Gao Xusen plopped down across from me and crooked a finger. His secretary, in a short skirt, promptly brought over his teacup. He patted her ass as if it were the most natural thing in the world when she leaned forward, and once she'd withdrawn with a playful smile, he turned to me.
"I instructed them to give my esteemed guest special treatment so you wouldn't feel neglected while waiting, but when I arrived, I heard you'd turned it down flat. She was so hurt by how firmly you refused. Was she not to your taste?"
"I'm here for business, not to fool around. If it were the kind of job where I could afford distractions like that, I wouldn't have come all this way in person."
Sexual release was already a tiresome chore for me. As if I'd ever tie myself to this pig's hole. It also dredged up bitter memories of Kwang-si, who'd vanished over his concubine scandals, leaving me deeply irritated by the ploy.
"Hm. Indeed, that's the diligence your men follow you for."
Gao Xusen nodded in understanding, his voice growing more serious.
"To the main point, then... I knew your company had hunted down Korean scammers on Chinese soil in the past. Your tracking evasion and cleanup were so professional it raised eyebrows among officials now and then, but it benefited us too. Unlike greedy hunters who skimped, your company always showed proper gratitude after a successful hunt."
"That's right."
Scammers heading to China usually parked most of their ill-gotten gains in third countries outside China, bringing only their bodies across the border. Why would bureaucrats and tycoons—desperate to stash their own wealth abroad—naively haul everything in? Our human hunts were a boon for Chinese authorities. Profitable enough that later, they shoved us aside and did the hunting themselves, risks of diplomatic fallout be damned. That was why our China operations had tanked so hard since the mid-2010s.
If possible, I'll reclaim that business this time.
Killing off the Party's hunting dogs and filling the void with our company's services would be ideal. Back when China's surveillance was lax, we didn't need to pay tribute, but now, insurance from state power was essential for safety.
"I was an indirect beneficiary of those profits."
Meaning he hadn't been positioned to receive direct kickbacks during our heyday—likely only thanks to his uncle's influence.
"So I figured your company's experience and know-how could help track the Black Sea Party too. You find them, we catch them—that's all I expected. But the prowess you and your subordinate showed today was..."
Gao Xusen interlaced his fingers on the table and leaned toward me.
"Truly astonishing. Beyond belief."
It sounded like praise, but the barb was obvious.
"Suspicious?"
"I'd hate to doubt my benefactor's benefactor, but yes. How could mere civilians possess such capabilities? I can't shake the worry that you might be drawing in foreign powers—or worse, turning me into a real traitor, not just a framed one."
We were exceptional, but they were incompetents on a whole other level, you swine. The retort lingered on my tongue, but I feigned sympathy outwardly.
"I understand. Given China's situation."
"Thank you for that."
Gao Xusen looked weary.
"What weighs on me even more is the decisive betrayal from your homeland this time. Korea discarded our great nation's friendship like yesterday's trash and sided with American imperialists, didn't it? Even accounting for a small nation's survival strategy, it's an ungrateful, vile act. After all the goodwill we've shown Korea..."
Betrayal.
He meant Korea's choice to join a massive new military alliance at America's behest: the Pacific-Rim Treaty Organization—PARTO for short, or sometimes PARTREO.
PARTO's birth came from America forcing a binary choice on its Pacific allies: us or China. No neutrality. Refusal or delay would bring China-level sanctions, a mad declaration. But it wasn't mere madness. In an era where swelling numbers of primitive magic Awakened turned population into asymmetric power, China's 1.44 billion people were a catastrophe to halt at any cost.
China warned Korea of a second Hallyu Ban and worse repercussions, but at the crossroads, Korea chose America. Officially buckling to pressure, but really due to geography making China's threat more visceral than America's. If America failed to check China, the fallout would be apocalyptic.
That was why some jingoistic Chinese now called Koreans Han Jian—traitors, echoing the term for quisling collaborators under Japanese rule, same pronunciation, different tone on one character.
I mulled over the ignorant mob mentality and the Party's survival ploy stoking it before replying.
"I get it, but it's pointless worry."
"Is it?"
"Even if I were a death merchant bought by foreign powers, I'd still be your best option. No sense fretting over the unsolvable."
"What if you're just the lesser evil?"
"When your choices are worst and lesser evil, lesser evil is best. Am I wrong?"
"..."
"Coincidental or not, I've already provided you unpaid service. Admit it—you enjoyed this afternoon, didn't you? For a moment, forgetting the purge looming over you, strutting around as the Party and nation's hero in dire straits?"
"I did. Thanks to you."
I shrugged leisurely at Gao Xusen, who smiled and conceded readily.
"Enough time-wasting. I'll hunt in the territory you open for me, securing your survival and honor. In return, you'll be my distinguished friend—a true lao pengyou—offering privileged 'friendship'. We'll split profits based on safety and contributions. How's that sound?"
"Hm."
My "friend" meant deep guanxi. As Gao Xusen crossed his arms and pondered the ceiling, Park Mi-joo interjected calmly.
"Deputy Director, may I?"
"Ah, Director Park. Go ahead."
"No long speech. The late Director Seo owed his life to our vice president here and vowed to repay it with lifelong devotion. He fulfilled that vow in this city—literally with his life."
"..."
"In short, you owe your survival in part to our vice president. He's strict on promises and trust, so for Director Seo's sake—and mine—please place your faith in him."
Gao Xusen stared at Mi-joo, then nodded deeply, head drooping.
"Entrusting the life old brother Seo saved to his company makes sense."
He turned back to me.
"No more time-wasting, as you say."
"Wise choice."
"Alright, let's hear it. Where do we start, and how?"
"That depends on how much influence you have left... but from what I saw coming here, the military's out, and other municipal or public security departments won't differ much."
Otherwise, there'd be no need for this face-to-face.
Gao Xusen grimaced uncomfortably.
"Too blunt."
"Correct me if wrong. I need to factor it into the plan. But remember—its accuracy decides if you live."
Don't puff up your ego with pointless pride. Pride was in Chinese DNA, but a Standing Committee member navigating the Party's viper pit should have the sense for this.
If not, shelve the guanxi. Find another mark or walk away.
Operating undercover still secured funds—a net positive—but luckily, Gao Xusen sighed irritably, meeting my hopes.
"...Damn it, spot on. From the Politburo down to Cyber Police Detachment, Public Security Management Detachment, Criminal Police Detachment—they've all frozen me out. Even my Patrol Police Detachment can't be fully trusted."
Cyber Police handled cyber ops, Public Security Management monitored anti-state activities, Criminal Police tackled crime and terror. With the army added, Gao Xusen and his patrol brass were cut off from intel, reduced to cleanup duty before being fed to the political lions one by one.
"In short,"
I lifted my chin.
"You expect another fluke encounter like this afternoon and start from the bottom up?"
"Yes."
"That's hunting basics, sure, but who knows how long till meaningful results... You okay with that?"
Will your head still be attached?
Gao Xusen's face crumpled worse than before.
"I have to trust your company's skill. Got another option?"
"I do. A big score to extend your life right now."
"What's that?"
"Crush the local Triads. They've long been the Party's dirty fixers, so even sidelined as you are, you must have intel on the Guangdong Triad—cadre profiles, org charts, business sites and locations."
"Wait, but the Triads have zero ties to the Black Sea Party—why?"
"Don't play naive."
I cut off his stunned protest and rapped the table.
"We'll make the connection."