A Few Tips Regarding the Red Sausage and Black Fungus Chapter: Please understand that some typos in this chapter are intentional to circumvent upload restrictions.
The sky was clear, washed clean, and the golden evening glow spread across the horizon.
Gan Lin stood alone beneath a lamppost. Her long, cloud-like hair was casually pinned up in a bun, revealing a delicate, beautiful face and skin as white as snow. Bathed in the reflection of the golden twilight, her entire body was overlaid with a faint, ethereal gold.
This spot was at the edge of a newly established economic development zone. Across the road stood the rear entrance of a large, privately-owned textile factory. Occasionally, a few young female workers would emerge from the gate, walking a considerable distance to frequent hair salons, grocery stores, and other local spots.
Behind her ran a small river. Green willows draped gracefully along its banks, but unfortunately, various domestic refuse floated on the water intermittently. The river was murky, emitting a faint, fishy odor.
Although she was dressed in the simplest attire—a plain T-shirt, capri-length denim trousers, and clear jelly sandals that left her feet bare—her youthful beauty was more effective than any elaborate dressing. She stood alone on the quiet roadside, like a pristine lotus emerging from the water, tall and graceful.
...
A black minivan, bearing a license plate from Inner Mongolia, traversed slowly through the development zone, weaving past internet cafés, hair salons, and the narrow alleys of the streets.
The van's windows were covered with thick, opaque black film; from the outside, one could see nothing of what transpired within. It moved like a phantom, drifting along the fringes of this large metropolis, resembling a highly venomous black mamba, ready to strike its chosen prey at any moment.
Inside, the driver was a lanky young man, probably just over twenty. A coiled azure dragon was tattooed across his chest, and a distinct scar sliced across the corner of his left eye, causing the eyelid to droop slightly.
In the passenger seat beside him sat a short-haired man with a sparse mustache. He was stocky and solidly built, his skin tanned to a dark, earthy hue.
Behind the two was a short curtain separating the front from the rear compartment. The light inside was dim. Several people were seated cross-legged on the floor where the rear seats had been removed. The glowing tips of cigarettes flickered intermittently, accompanied by sporadic bursts of conversation.
“Damn it, what’s the deal? Why does that guy surnamed Wang get to live it up at home, gambling and chasing women, while we have to go out and do this kind of repulsive shit?”
The speaker was a man with a high, reedy voice. As soon as he finished speaking, someone smacked him hard on the head, chastising him, “You idiot kid, watch what you say! What do you mean ‘repulsive shit’? If you can’t speak properly, just shut your mouth!”
“Brother Xue, I didn't mean you, I just…”
The reedy-voiced man tried to explain, but Brother Xue wasn't interested in hearing it and snapped, “Stay quiet. One more word out of you, and I’m tossing you out.”
The reedy-voiced man had no choice but to close his mouth obediently. The lanky driver turned and chuckled, “Shanya Zi, Brother Xue’s wife is pregnant. What you said was just asking for trouble.”
Brother Xue waved him off irritably, “Lian Chang (Lanky Face), focus on driving. We’re still short one target for today’s job!”
“Heh heh,” Lian Chang replied with a grin, turning his attention back to the road, scanning left and right with the dark, sturdy man next to him in the passenger seat.
The dark, sturdy man suddenly whispered, “Brother Xue, here’s a good one!”
The curtain behind them was immediately pulled back, revealing two heads: one was a round, shiny bald head belonging to Brother Xue, and the other belonged to a sharp-featured man with a monkey-like face—it was the reedy-voiced Shanya Zi.
“Damn, what kind of eyesight is that!” Brother Xue grumbled, retracting his head after glancing in the direction the dark, sturdy man was pointing.
“That’s what you call good?” Shanya Zi cackled mockingly, teasing him. “That non-mainstream girl? I can go to an internet café, fire up Audition, mash the spacebar for a while, and attract a whole row of them! They’re all covered in explosive hairdos and messy chicken coops, makeup so thick you can’t even recognize them as your own daughter. All they do is hang out at internet cafés or eat instant noodles. No chest to speak of, no butt to speak of, but they manage to grow a paunch around their middles! Black Brother, what’s wrong with your taste? You’d even fancy something like that?”
Lian Chang beside him snorted with laughter, chiming in, “Heizi (Blacky), there are pretty ones even among the non-mainstream crowd. The one you picked out really isn't it.”
“For someone like her, nobody would pay for her company even if we sat here for three days straight!” Shanya Zi was about to continue his tirade when Blacky shot him a warning glance, and he immediately shut up and retreated.
“You son of a bitch, aren’t you a post-90s kid yourself? Aren’t you non-mainstream?”
Just as Shanya Zi settled back, Brother Xue smacked him again.
Shanya Zi blocked the blow with his hand, then suddenly whispered urgently, “Hey Brother Xue, she’s awake!”
On the floor near the rear of the van, a figure stirred a few times, emitting a muffled groan. It turned out to be a young woman whose hands and feet were tied. She was struggling to open her eyes!
“Quick, the cloth! Hurry up and stuff it in her mouth!”
The two fumbled around and found a large piece of cotton cloth. Just as the young woman managed to open her eyes and before she could assess the situation, they clamped her mouth open and stuffed the cloth inside.
The moment she realized she was in an unfamiliar place, bound, and gagged, the woman struggled violently, letting out muffled cries.
“Behave!” Shanya Zi showed no mercy and slapped the woman hard on the head, growling fiercely in a low voice, “Make one more sound, and I’ll kill you! Shut up!”
The woman was already terrified senseless and ignored him, continuing her hysterical struggles. Shanya Zi, having just been ridiculed by his companions, felt deeply humiliated that he couldn't even frighten a woman. He grabbed the woman’s hair with both hands and slammed her head against the floor twice.
The woman finally stopped struggling. Soon, she began to weep softly, tears and snot streaming down her face, washing away the hastily applied eyeliner and quickly turning her face into a messy canvas.
Shanya Zi looked at his handiwork with satisfaction, menacingly whispering, “Even if you cry, keep it quiet for me!”
“That bastard, he has no other skills, but bullying women is his specialty,” Lian Chang sneered, before suddenly slowing the van and calling out softly, “Brother Xue, come look, here’s a prime specimen!”
The sturdy Blacky also exclaimed, “Holy crap, now that is a prime specimen! Brother Xue, get over here!”
“You watch her!”
Brother Xue handed the struggling woman over to Shanya Zi, lifted the curtain, and followed the direction of Lian Chang’s pointing finger. His eyes immediately lit up, but then his brow furrowed slightly as he said, “This one might be tough, look at how she’s dressed. She doesn’t look like someone easy to bully?”
“Brother Xue, you’ve misjudged this one!” Lian Chang grinned wickedly. “Look at where we are—the back gate of the Hongli Textile Factory! Have you forgotten? We were here twice last month. How many of those four girls we picked up have caused any trouble since?”
“That’s right, Brother Xue,” Blacky said, his eyes fixed ahead. “This girl looks like she just got off work waiting for her boyfriend. Who else would stand around foolishly in a place that’s neither here nor there?”
“Textile workers, right? They’re outsiders, no connections, no power, no backing. If they go missing, nobody cares. If we don’t pick on them, who do we pick on?” Lian Chang pulled the van to the roadside and asked, turning his head, “What do you say, Brother Xue? This girl has curves, she has legs—if we bring her back, she’ll definitely be a hit. Maybe Wang Bin will be so pleased he’ll give us three days off.”
Brother Xue pondered, nodding slightly. He glanced left and right and said, “Fine, it’s her. Let’s be quick and efficient when we move!”
The sun was sinking low in the west, and a warm summer breeze drifted by, carrying the faint scent of osmanthus. The surroundings were quiet and deserted. The target was completely unguarded—the perfect moment for an attack.
The minivan silently advanced toward its second target of the day; the black mamba had prepared its venom.
After listening to a few songs, Gan Lin removed her headphones and gently rubbed her ears, intending to rest for a few minutes before continuing.
It was said that listening to music for too long could cause hearing impairment. Gan Lin was a girl who took great care of her body, so she maintained good habits in this regard.
As she rubbed her ears, she heard the sound of a vehicle passing behind her. She turned and saw a black minivan just glide past the slow lane and stop very close to her position.
A small, agile young man jumped out of the passenger seat. He was sturdy and his skin shone with a dark sheen. Gan Lin regarded him with some wariness.
The short man stood still, smiling as he asked, “Beauty, can you give me directions? How do I get to Sanhao Street?”
Sanhao Street was the electronics hub in Shenyang; did Jiangzhou also have a place with the same name? Just as Gan Lin was about to say she didn't know, the short young man suddenly moved.
He lunged forward like a nimble leopard, covering the distance in two strides. Gan Lin only managed to let out a scream. She hadn't even taken a single step back before he grabbed her arm and pulled out something from his pocket to cover her face.
An attack! The thought flashed through Gan Lin’s mind instantly. She immediately held her breath, struggling desperately, twisting her head!
“Damn it! Heizi, what the hell are you doing!” Brother Xue cursed, quickly pulling open the van door and jumping out. The standard procedure was to first engage the target in conversation to lower their guard, and ideally, lure them into the car. If that failed, they were supposed to pretend to drive away before suddenly turning back for the ambush. What was Blacky doing now?
“You son of a bitch, cheating on me behind my back!” Blacky spat out the rehearsed line, forcefully dragging Gan Lin toward the minivan.
This kind of dialogue was meant to be used if an onlooker appeared, making them believe they were witnessing a lovers' quarrel, thus discouraging them from calling the police.
“Stop the crap! There’s no one around here!” Brother Xue snapped, hopping out to help pull the struggling girl. His bald head, reflecting the twilight glow, looked like an unusual, bizarre mirror image.
Gan Lin desperately held her breath, terrified of inhaling whatever was on the cloth. Without a doubt, it must have contained chloroform; smelling it would cause her to pass out! She didn't even fully grasp the situation she was facing—kidnapping? Wrong person? Robbery?
But against three strong men, her resistance was pitifully futile. Lian Chang merely struck her abdomen with about eighty percent of his force, causing her entire body to convulse, completely stripping her of the ability to fight back.
The men awkwardly hauled her into the van, tying her hands and feet. The cotton cloth, reeking of a pungent odor, was pressed tightly against her face. At that moment, tears of helplessness streamed from her eyes.