Malicious Competition

There was no other way! Gritting his teeth, Hou Rui could only follow the burly man further inside, leaving Lux behind. The man led Hou Rui and his companion into a concealed basement. When all the lights were turned on, a massive wooden table appeared before Hou Rui, covered with weapons—ranging from the latest 164 automatic assault rifles to the ancient Mosin-Nagant, at least 230 types of rifles and submachine guns in total.

Hou Rui looked further and saw that every wall was hung with an array of handguns, bullets were piled in crates at the corners, and most astonishing of all, he spotted two sets of Soviet Model 42 body armor from World War II on top of one of the boxes. This was nothing short of a century-old weapons museum.

“This one, that one, and that one,” Hou Rui murmured, and immediately sprang into action, pointing out a pile of weapons on the table, then discreetly signaled to Jerry to get ready. At this moment, there were six members of the Yellow River Gang in the basement, all heavily armed with AK-47s, and one kid even had a Desert Eagle tucked at his waist.

Two against six, unarmed against the fully armed! This was by no means an opportune moment for a confrontation, but Hou Rui could wait no longer. After tonight, their cover as tourists would be blown, and when that happened, the pressure from the authorities would be far more than anything these sixty-seven men could handle.

But just as Hou Rui was about to make his move, the entire basement suddenly shook violently. The walkie-talkie on the Vietnamese man’s belt crackled to life. Instantly, the six gang members tensed up, switching from lazily lounging about to full alert, robbing Hou Rui and Jerry of their best chance for a surprise attack.

Hou Rui watched the burly man shout rapidly into his radio, but he couldn’t understand a word, which only made his anxiety worse. Thirty seconds later, the man tossed down the radio, yelled at Hou Rui and Jerry, and forcibly shoved them out of the basement.

By now, chaos had erupted throughout the nightclub. The boxing match had stopped; tourists and gamblers were running about in confusion. Nguyen Ah Wen sat on the podium, taking a phone call, while Lux and the hapless Jane still sat quietly to one side, surrounded by Yellow River Gang thugs.

Seeing Hou Rui, Nguyen—looking agitated—shouted something, gestured, and left with his bodyguards. With no other choice, Hou Rui and the others followed the crowd out of the Sailor Nightclub.

“What did that old man just say?” Standing on the street, Hou Rui saw that the entire red-light district had plunged into turmoil. Police cars wailed past, Vietnamese guides were either on their phones or urging their Western tourists to leave the chaotic area as quickly as possible.

“He told us to get lost. Please, let me go, I beg you,” Jane pleaded, nearly out of her wits. Her mascara had long since run from her constant tears, making her look rather like a raccoon.

“Go ask around, find out what happened.” Hou Rui caught sight of flames and thick black smoke rising from a distant corner of the city.

With Lux keeping a close watch, Jane approached two fellow guides to inquire. Soon, she returned. “All they know is that there was a huge explosion. No one knows the details.”

A huge explosion? Could it have been some kind of accident? No, they had to find out as soon as possible. Hou Rui made up his mind, gathered his companions, and slipped into an alley, soon reaching a quieter street.

Just then, another police car drove by. Hou Rui had a sudden idea—he stepped into the middle of the street, arms spread, blocking the vehicle.

With a screech of brakes, the police car stopped. Two Vietnamese officers stuck their heads out, shouting at Hou Rui. But while Hou Rui distracted them, Jerry and Lux circled around from both sides, each knocking an officer unconscious. Jerry stuffed the policemen into the trunk, Hou Rui donned one of their hats, and the four of them climbed into the police car.

Lux fiddled with the police radio in the front passenger seat, while Jane, under Jerry’s glower, strained to glean any useful information.

“The South City Garrison warehouse was attacked—fierce gunfire and explosions. The guard unit has been routed. Preliminary assessment: the attackers are a group of Westerners, exact number unknown.” Through Jane’s halting translation, Hou Rui finally grasped the situation, and his mind raced.

An attack on the garrison warehouse at a time like this? What was in the warehouse? Guns and ammunition! Who would need a large cache of weapons in peacetime? Who would defy the Vietnamese government so brazenly? Ding Ye! It had to be Ding Ye’s team attacking the warehouse! As Hou Rui pieced it together, he grew only more anxious.

With Ding Ye’s move, Hanoi would be thrown into chaos. The police and security forces would surely clamp down on the streets and roads, perhaps even screening every Westerner in the city. How could his group obtain weapons or carry out their mission if they couldn’t even show their faces?

While Hou Rui was still contemplating their next move, Jane—momentarily unsupervised—suddenly made a decision. She flung open the car door and sprinted desperately toward the end of the street. Hou Rui had never imagined someone in high heels could run so fast.

Lux silently raised her gun, but Hou Rui pressed down her .38 revolver. “Let her go. She’s no use to us anymore—no need to kill her.”

“So what do we do now? Keep looking for the gang, or just go rob the weapons ourselves?” Jerry waved the police sidearm and magazine he’d taken, looking ready to start a massacre.

“We leave Hanoi, head straight for Ha Long Bay.” Hou Rui gazed at the distant flames.

“Just like that? Without weapons or intel, what do we do out there?” Jerry hadn’t expected this plan.

“We’ll take advantage of whatever Ding Ye’s team manages to accomplish,” Hou Rui replied with a sly grin.

After gathering their team over the next hour, they headed to the banks of the Mekong River, found a small open-top tour boat, and set off down the river.

On both sides of the river, police had begun clearing the streets and enforcing curfews. Hou Rui could see, from a distance, that the temporary checkpoints were scrutinizing every Westerner passing by. Truckloads of heavily armed police and soldiers were pouring into the city.

“If only we could get our hands on some of those Type 18s,” Jerry drooled, eyeing the weapons the Vietnamese authorities carried.

“If we were still on shore, those guns would be pointed right at our heads,” the bald man retorted mockingly, then quietly asked Hou Rui, “So we just keep going downstream?”

“No, all the way to the sea,” Hou Rui replied. Just then, the boat owner’s phone rang. After a brief conversation, the owner’s face turned troubled. He began gesturing at Hou Rui and the others, preparing to dock the boat.

“It must be a police alert. What now?” Lux, seated beside Hou Rui, asked.

But before anyone could react, the bald man struck. He seized the boatman’s wrist, removed his sunglasses, and with a quick motion, snapped a leg off and drove it into the boatman’s temple.

The boatman’s eyes glazed over, a strangled sound issued from his throat, and after a final spasm, he lay still.

“Ladies and gentlemen, we have a new captain,” the bald man announced, rinsing his bloodied hand in the river and plopping the owner’s conical hat on his own head.

Hou Rui watched coldly. He disapproved of such casual killing, but in these tense circumstances, it was not the time to turn against the bald man. Besides, everyone on this boat, himself included, had blood on their hands—none had any right to judge the others.

Lux pulled a seat cover over the body, quickly searched the man’s phone, then tossed it into the river. The group sat in silence as the boat continued on.

The tour boat traveled more than a hundred kilometers, well beyond the limits of Hanoi. Before them now stood another Vietnamese city. According to the information gathered before disembarking, this was Ha Long City, the capital of Quang Ninh Province and the hiding place of the pirates from their mission.

After such a frantic escape, it was already the second night. Fishing boats lined the docks, and the lively night market thronged with people—a bustling scene from afar.

Their tour boat attracted little attention in this tourist city, allowing Hou Rui’s group to quietly slip ashore and blend into the night market crowd.

To avoid drawing attention, the foreigners—except Hou Rui—wore either traditional Vietnamese conical hats or oversized sunglasses. As they quickly ate to restore their strength, they carefully avoided the patrols of the local police.

“The police look pretty relaxed. I don’t think the news from Hanoi has reached here yet,” Lux said, still clinging to Hou Rui’s arm, posing as his lover.

“It’s already reached them, for sure. They’re just pretending to be calm. If they panic the tourists, it’ll be a huge blow to the local economy,” Jerry replied, his dark face almost comically conspicuous under his giant sunglasses.

“No matter if the news has spread or not, we need to move quickly. Once Ding Ye’s group secures their weapons, they’ll act immediately—try to finish their mission before the authorities catch on and leave the country,” Hou Rui said, scanning the dark sea. He feared that if they failed, their entire team would be eliminated by their own organization.

“So are we seeking out the gang again?” Lux ventured.

“No, without a translator, it’s too troublesome. We’ll go after them,” Hou Rui said, his eyes fixed on the port. He had just spotted a maritime police vessel docked there.

The night market stalls pressed close together, filling the air with the aromas of rice rolls, fried shrimp cakes, and lotus leaf sticky rice. As they walked and ate, Hou Rui and his group also collected a good number of cleavers, sharp knives, and iron skewers from the food stalls. Thus armed, they quietly made their way toward the docks, closing in to within five hundred meters of the maritime police ship.

“There are three armed guards at the dock entrance, a wire fence, a tower and searchlights on the office building. Not sure how many men are inside. There are lights and shadows moving in the ship’s cabin—probably thirty-four personnel in all,” the sharp-eyed, sturdy man whispered after a careful look through narrowed eyes.

“Give me a pistol and two magazines. I can board the ship in two minutes, but getting it moving will be up to you,” the bald man said menacingly.

“No. If we use guns, helicopters will be on us within an hour. The boat won’t get far,” Hou Rui shook his head.

“Then how about I sneak in?” Lux pushed out her chest and struck a seductive pose.

“Too dangerous alone. If you fail, we’ll have no backup plan,” Hou Rui replied, again shaking his head. He looked out at the pitch-black sea. “We’ll have to steal the boat.”