《Once Upon a Time in a Foreign Land》Chapter 153 : Ximen Yixiong
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The two of them walked along the sidewalk that separated the garden wall from the road. It was very quiet. They didn't see a single person walking on the sidewalk. Yixiong looked at the watch he was wearing. "It's ten to eight. We've only got about ten minutes to get there."
"There it is, Sir!" Jingkang pointed to a section of the wall that was about a hundred meters from where they were standing. From where they were standing, it looked like a niche. "I think that's the entrance."
Yixiong and Jingkang rushed there. They quickened their pace. In fact, when they arrived at a point that was about fifty meters before that place, they ran.
Luckily, this kid is the one who bring the bag. I can't run with a big bag like that.
"You're right! This is indeed the entrance." Yixiong smiled broadly when they got there.
"Fortunately, we found this gate soon." Jingkang's voice sounded so relieved.
Although Yixiong smiled but he felt very uncomfortable. Running around in a full suit like that was really excruciating. He felt boiling. Sweat was profusely from the skin all over his body.
There was no one guarding the entrance. Visitors were free of charge. The two of them, still running, entered the park. They searched for a board with a park plan. But they didn't find it. They wanted to ask other people, but they didn't see anyone either.
Now what should we do? If we're late, things can get complicated!
Yixiong and Jingkang kept walking. The park turned out to be very large.
"Let's stop for a moment, Sir!" Jingkang gripped the sleeve of Yixiong's coat.
"What are you doing? Are you not strong enough to run?" Yixiong asked. "From here on out, please let me carry the bag."
Jingkang, who was panting, did not answer Yixiong's question. He just shook his head. After that, he pointed towards a small building located not far from where they were standing.
Yixiong gazed the building. The building was a public restroom. There was someone standing there smoking a cigarette. From the uniform he was wearing, it seemed that he was the janitor in the park.
Yixiong smiled. They then approached the building. After asking the person, they got information that the pond they were looking for was right in the middle of the park. They had to walk inward, not down the side of the park near the big road. After saying their thanks, Yixiong and Jingkang immediately ran in the direction the person was pointing at.
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"Are people who work here allowed to smoke while they're on duty?" Jingkang asked as they ran towards the pond.
"They really shouldn't have done that." Yixiong shook his head vigorously. "But now there are almost no visitors. So it's unlikely anyone would be bothered."
About two minutes later, they arrived at their destination. That was the point determined by the kidnappers as the place of the ransom delivery.
In front of them lay a pentagon-shaped pool. The pool was quite spacious. Each side was about fifty meters long. In the middle of the pond, there was an exquisite fountain. The five sides of the pool were soil covered by paving block. The width of each side covered by the paving block was about fifteen meters.
Yixiong imagined that when viewed from above, there would be two pentagons here. The first pentagon included the area covered by the paving block. The second pentagon was located inside the first pentagon and included the pool in the middle of which there was a fountain. Yixiong remembered the emblem at the top of the paper containing the message from the kidnappers.
On each side of the pool, either directly next to the pool or fifteen meters from the pool, there were three stone benches, each about two meters long. So in total, there were thirty benches around the pentagon-shaped pool.
Of the thirty benches, only six were occupied by people. One bench was occupied by three people, one bench was occupied by two people, and four benches were occupied by one person each.
The three people sitting on one of the benches consisted of one adult and two children. The two children each carried a gas balloon. The gas balloons were tied with ropes, which the children held at the ends. One balloon was yellow, while the other was green.
There were several park lights illuminating the place. But the lights were not very bright. Apart from the people who were sitting, there were also several people who were standing. They stood by the pool while watching the fountain in the middle of the pool. The water that came out of the fountain was thrown very high. Maybe five or six meters. In addition, there were also people standing in other parts. For example, there were those who were leaning against the park lights.
There was also someone standing next to the bench. It was not clear why the man did not sit down. Yixiong had suspected that the person might be suffering from hemorrhoids. He watched the people. Yixiong really couldn't figure out which of the people were park visitors, undercover cops, or the kidnappers who were waiting for them.
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Yixiong told Jingkang to take a seat on one of the empty benches there. After carrying the large bag that Jingkang had been carrying, Yixiong looked around. He tried to find the trash can the kidnappers were referring to. He gasped. There was not only one trash can, but five trash cans. The bins were in every corner of the pentagon outside the pool. He didn't know which dumpster the kidnappers were referring to.
Yixiong glanced at his watch. It's now 7:59 p.m. He only had a minute to decide which bin to stand in. In trepidation, he looked once more around him. He once again looked at the five trash cans. There was nothing special about the five bins. Each trash can consists of three parts, namely the green, yellow, and red trash cans. The green one was for organic waste. The yellow one was for inorganic waste. And the red one was for garbage that contains toxic and dangerous materials.
Suddenly he withdrew the impression. Yixiong furrowed his brows.
So weird! Why did this park designer put five trash bins next to each other? Is there any other purpose other than its function as a place to throw garbage? If there is, then what symbolic meaning can be drawn from this formation? Then did the kidnappers realize this symbolic meaning and use it to determine the place of the ransom delivery?
Various questions raced through Yixiong's mind. He really didn't know which trash to go to. He looked at his watch. It's eight o'clock. Like it or not, he had to choose. Without a second thought, Yixiong walked to the trash can closest to him. With steady steps, he headed there. Arriving there, just like the kidnappers' instructions. He stood beside the trash can.
Thirty seconds he stood there. Even though it was only thirty seconds, it felt like hours. During those thirty seconds, there was no movement whatsoever. Yixiong almost gave up. He had thought that because he was late standing beside the trash can, the kidnappers canceled their agreement. But at the thirty-first second, he saw something.
A man who had been sitting alone on a stone bench suddenly stood up. After standing, he sat down again. Yixiong was disappointed. But the next second, his eyes widened. The person sitting on the stone bench suddenly stood up again, then sat down again. That person's behavior was bizarre. It wasn't even enough for him to do that twice. A few seconds later, he did the same thing again. Jingkang, who was sitting on one of the stone benches, looked at the person, and then at Yixiong.
The person sitting on the stone bench then stood up again. But unlike before, this time, he didn't sit back down again. He stood looking left and right. After that, he walked up to Yixiong. Yixiong was relieved and panicked. He didn't know how to deal with that person. If that person was really part of the kidnapping herd, he probably already knew how Shanquan sounded. Although his appearance was very similar to Shanquan, but as soon as Yixiong opened his mouth, people would immediately know that he was not Shanquan.
The man walked up to him. Yixiong was ready. The person then stopped in front of the trash can. He reached into his pocket and pulled out an old battery. Then throw the battery into the red trash can. After that, he immediately turned around and walked away. Yixiong was surprised. That person didn't mean to meet him.
Just want to throw away the used battery, he took so much time to consider it?
Suddenly, someone else approached. He was the one sitting on another stone bench. Just like the previous person, he immediately walked closer to Yixiong. After arriving in front of the trash can, he glanced briefly at the three different colored trash cans. After that, he turned his gaze directly to Yixiong. The person looked Yixiong in the eye. Yixiong shuddered. His eyes were cold and scary.
The person walked closer to Yixiong. He stopped when his body was right in front of Yixiong. This time, Yixiong was ready. This person's standing position was very advantageous for Yixiong. The man was standing right on the parallel line between Yixiong and Jingkang. Now Yixiong could see Jingkang sitting on the stone bench without taking his eyes off the person in front of him.
"Are you Mr. Duanmu Shanquan?" asked the person. His voice was heavy. Like the voice of a heavy smoker who used to consume more than twenty cigarettes in one day.
Yixiong nodded. He tried hard not to look scared.
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