EXCLUSIVE EXCERPT
‘Old Bao, I’m glad I got you.’
‘Hongbing? To what do I owe this pleasure, a call from a mighty Party Hero?’ Bao, a friend and local tycoon based in Wose, teased.
Sigh. The Party Hero in question exhaled softly. ‘I need to call in a favour.’
‘No problem, any time! You know I owe my life to you. What do you need?’
‘I need half a million PD . . . in cash. And within an hour.’
There was silence at the other end.
‘Hello? Bao?’
‘Yes, I’m here. That’s a lot of money, in such a short space of time . . . May I ask what the money is for? Are you in some kind of trouble? I heard some rumours from my channels—’
‘Hey Bao, how long have we known each other? Have you forgotten how I’ve stuck my neck out for you?’ Hongbing countered. Then, catching his breath, he quietened down, ‘I can’t divulge the reason as it’s a state secret. It’s urgent and I wouldn’t have troubled you if it wasn’t.’
‘Don’t misunderstand, I will definitely help. Just thinking about how to gather enough cash at such short notice. Let me figure out how. I’ll ring you back on this number in ten minutes.
‘Okay, I will wait for your call. Thank you.’
Hongbing returned the handset to the fisherman. ‘You heard me, I’d know how to get the money in ten minutes. You better be prepared to take me to Seoul,’ he told the smuggler snidely.
The fisherman took a drag of his cigarette and slowly blew out a cloud of smoke. ‘Chill man,’ he glanced sideways at his tense-looking potential passenger with a smirk, ‘my vessel is ever ready. Let’s see if you get your money.’
*****
For the People’s Glory is based in a totalitarian state of Utopia. Shan Hongbing is focused on getting to the bottom of understanding some of the government’s workings and as he digs in, he realizes that all eyes are on him for asking questions. The state’s surveillance technology he reveres—which ‘keeps the citizens safe’—has now turned against him, tracking his every move at every turn to hold him in line with the Utopia’s principles.
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