After copying the eavesdropping Trojan program onto a tablet and handing it to Jiang Zhentai, Jack arranged for the family to stay and then left. The Wolf brothers had already sent word that their ship had arrived.
Jack was still quite bewildered when he saw the two men in white naval uniforms appear before him.
"Is this what you call a small fishing boat?" Jack pointed in astonishment at a cargo ship anchored in the harbor, displacing at least tens of thousands of tons, with the prefix "USNS" painted on its side.
"I'm talking about a small boat, nothing to do with fishing. This is a transport vessel leased long-term by the Naval Military Command, and it's considered very small for a cargo ship."
Braxton looked quite impressive in his naval uniform, but his military air was immediately shattered the moment he put his arm around Jack's shoulder with a smile.
In comparison, Chris, with his stern expression, looked more like a serving naval officer.
"Is it really okay to impersonate a naval officer?" Jack felt these two were being a bit unconventional.
Braxton pointed to the name on the side of the cargo ship and explained, "See that USNS? Only ships with USS on them are active warships. USNS stands for Naval Auxiliary Ship.
Only the captain and first and second mates are civilian naval officers. The crew are all civilians. Captain Thompson is one of us, don't worry."
Chris added, "This ship will be docked at Incheon Port for three days, then will return directly to the US mainland. If you haven't solved it in three days, we'll find other options."
Jack calculated that if the drugs weren't found, the Taiwanese gang would be looking for trouble with Zhou Xingzhe tomorrow night. Three days should be more than enough time.
In other places, the two men in US Navy uniforms would be quite conspicuous, but in South Korea, especially Incheon Port, it was a different story.
Along the way, uniformed sailors saluted the two captains. Judging from their hurried pace, it was obvious that they had been stuck at sea for too long and were eager to go ashore for some fun.
After settling them in a hotel, Jack handed them two phones and hurried off. Ma Seok-do had just called to report that the body of Hwang Dong-gyun's supervisor, the missing Team Leader Jung of the Northern Police Department's Narcotics Division, had been found.
Jack hurried to the morgue at a hospital near Incheon Port, where Ma Seok-do and Hwang Dong-gyun, looking distraught, had also arrived.
"The body was washed up by the tide, and a nearby fisherman found it and called the police," Hwang Dong-gyun said, tears streaming down his face. He choked up, unable to speak, and the photos in his hands shook.
Jack took the photos of the scene from his hand. The body had been wrapped in layers of plastic wrap, tied with ropes, and finally, iron blocks were placed around the head, waist, and feet before being thrown into the sea.
Originally, this was a fairly safe way to dispose of the body. But for some reason, perhaps the body's decomposition and expansion caused one of the loosely bound iron blocks to fall loose.
Furthermore, because it was wrapped in plastic wrap, the decaying gases eventually caused the body to float to the surface, a seemingly unintended consequence.
"Well, let's not wait for the medical examiner. I'll go in and take a look. You guys call Prosecutor Kim Junho," Jack said as he changed into his protective gear.
Huang Dongjun looked at him tearfully, as if he wanted to express his gratitude but didn't know where to begin.
Over an hour later, Jack emerged from the morgue and began removing his foul-smelling protective gear. Huang Dongjun looked at the grim-faced FBI agent, seemingly hesitant to speak.
"When exactly did your Team Leader Zheng disappear?" Jack asked.
"Almost a week ago, six nights ago," Huang Dongjun replied, his voice trembling.
"He must have been killed on the day he disappeared. He has scars all over his body from being beaten, especially on his head. His jaw is shattered, his skull fractured, and his face is practically unrecognizable."
Jack paused, then continued with a hint of reluctance, "But the cause of death was asphyxiation, which means he was thrown into the sea alive."
Huang Dongjun collapsed to the ground upon hearing this, burying his head in his knees and whimpering. "How am I going to explain this to my sister-in-law? His two children aren't even ten yet!"
"Ashiba!" Ma Xidao's face remained expressionless, but his cheeks puffed slightly as he uttered a three-character classic between his teeth.
—
"Ashiba, it seems we can't rely on the law to punish him." After sending Huang Dongjun away under the pretext of dealing with the aftermath, Ma Xidao, upon getting into the car, arched his triangular eyes, a fierce expression on his face.
Jack raised his cell phone, "Don't be impatient, he is already discussing with his men about running away."
Ma Xidao exhaled two heavy breaths from his nose, like an angry bull, "These bastards are too unscrupulous, they don't even let their fellow police officers go. In your America, such guys would be shot to death, right?"
"Hmm," Jack tilted his head slightly as if thinking, "The one I met recently shot himself in the head in front of me."
Ma Xidao's breathing stagnated slightly, then he shook his head irritably, "There is no death penalty in South Korea. The maximum sentence for killing someone is ten or twenty years. This bastard can't commit suicide."
Jack glanced at him for a long time, and then asked quietly after a long time, "Are you serious?"
The latter nodded heavily without any hesitation, "Of course!"
But soon Ma Xidao showed a hesitant expression again, "By the way, I can pretend not to see other things, but as for the money, can you keep some for me at the end?"
Jack was slightly stunned. Why was he thinking about dividing the money before the work was done? Then, a sudden realization hit him. "You want to give it to Team Leader Zheng's family?"
"Not much, just enough for his two children to grow up safely," Ma Xidao said, looking rather embarrassed.
Jack smiled and clapped his hands. "It's a deal. From now on, we're true friends."
--
Late at night, a flash of light flickered across the dark room. After a burst of giggling, a cell phone suddenly vibrated, followed by a deliberately muffled voice.
"Brother, I'm still looking."
"You must find it for me. If you don't deliver it by tomorrow, those Taiwanese won't let us go."
"Got it. I'll find it even if I have to tear down the entire wall."
The call ended, and moments later, the flashlight came back on, revealing the resounding sound of wall-breaking within the room.
At the same time, a hundred meters away, a BMW, its engine turned off, sat unnoticeable among a row of parked cars.
Jack took off his Bluetooth headset and smiled at Ma Xidao. "Am I right? Zhou Xingzhe is almost going crazy with worry. His people are looking for that batch of goods everywhere."
Ma Xidao tried to lower his sturdy body and peered at the Japanese-style building in the distance. "Is this the office of the Korean branch of the 'Ichijo Group', Hikita?"
Jack nodded. "I went in and saw it during the day. There must have been a lot of deaths. There was blood on the walls and the floor. The killers from Japan last night must have cleaned up this place first and then went to the hotel to find Hikita."
"A lot of deaths?" Ma Xidao was a little confused, because there was not even a security tape in front of or behind the house.
(End of this chapter)