There was no one in the corridor. Only the sound of the engine rumbled between the walls. The space was limited. Ding Wei went ahead, Wenjie followed him. They moved to the engine room quietly . 

Xiao Dao peered through the window at the door. Before the men inside noticed him, he ducked away. He signaled his friend, that he had seen two guys inside. Diagonally opposite to the engine room, Ding Wei discovered a storage room. Wenjie slipped inside. 

Ding Wei went on towards the bridge, where he suspected the rest of the group to be. Submarines of this size normally required a larger crew with a higher number of technicians. Their control over the submarine was limited. An advantage for the prisoners. Without knocking, Xiao Dao opened the door.

The command bridge offered more space than the corridor, despite the control panels and other equipment. Two men operated the control systems. Another took care of the navigation. A third sat at the communications equipment. The boss kept an eye on the surveillance monitors.

Ding Wei closed the door with a bang, which caught the men's attention. One of them started to say something. The boss signaled him to get back to his work. He then turned towards the visitor, his body partially covering the screens. On one of them, Xiao Dao saw the engine room. The common room, on the other hand, did not appear to be monitored.

“Are you still sick?

Ding Wei waved him off. He leaned casually against the wall next to the door. “We've been on the boat for a while. Just wanted to ask, how long the transfer will take. I think the youngster's planning something.” 

The boss approached him. “And you're not going to help him?” There was a lurking undertone in his voice. 

“Should I?” Xiao Dao tried to sound as indifferent as possible as he darted a glance past the man. The two guys from the engine room had disappeared. So the action started. 

“Aren't you two good friends by now? I thought he trusted you.”

Ding Wei's muscles tensed. He had only told Xu Zhengqing about this on the phone. “He shouldn't. That's why I don't need to know everything he does. It might just be interesting for you. He thinks you're playing a game with us.”

The boss leaned his right hand on the wall next to Ding Wei. “Is this supposed to surprise me?” His lips formed an ominous smile. “I was wondering how long it would take for one of you to show up here. But before you get your hopes up. Your little diversion is useless.”

Ding Wei stared at him aghast. Then he blinked in irritation. The temperature suddenly dropped by several degrees. Wenjie could now be seen on the screen. Xiao Dao swallowed. His mind was a blank. 

The boss made an effort to turn around. 

Ding Wei's thoughts and actions began to change again. “You don't work for my father or Madame Hong.”

That got the man's attention again. 

“Why aren't we playing with open cards? Xu Zhengqing thinks I've defected? He wants to test me, how much I've been influenced by Wenjie.” He pushed himself away from the wall and stepped past the man. In doing so, he provoked the man to turn his attention back to the screens. But as long as he positioned himself cleverly, he blocked the direct view onto the screens. With his hands in his jacket pockets and his back to the screens, he remained in front of the older man. 

“I've already told Monsieur. I'll repeat it for you. I don't like ending up in jail. Captain Luo has had his eye on me ever since he captured my dad. It was only a matter of time, before he accused me of being involved in the kidnapping.” 

“Is that so?” 

That didn't sound like he'd convinced the man. Well. He hadn't expected it to be so easy either. 

“I think you're just trying to stall.” Without warning, the older man grabbed him by the shoulder and shoved him aside. 

Damn. Ding Wei wheeled around. Wenjie was no longer on the screen. Phew. Xiao Dao breathed a sigh of relief. 

The boss leaned over the control panel in front of the screens. He tapped something on it and the time display and images changed. 

Ding Wei simply sat down on the chair. “Save yourself the trouble. Wenjie has sent out a signal.”

That didn't stop the boss from playing the recording. “It was only a matter of time.” He drummed his fingers on the table. 

Before he could accuse him of being involved in the matter, Xiao Dao reacted. “He didn't get very far with it.” He shrugged his shoulders demonstratively, took out his knife and flipped it open and closed. “I wonder if he's already found out that you've installed an interception circuit or jammer.”

The man next to him raised an eyebrow. 

Ding Wei met his gaze with a grin. “Haven't you?”

His expression darkened. Before Xiao Dao knew it, the boss had grabbed his wrist and taken the knife. He didn't even have time to protest. Then the older man grabbed him roughly by the collar, pulled him to his feet and pushed him against the wall. 

Ding Wei narrowed his eyes. Had they not taken any security precautions? No, he could hardly imagine that. The knife came quite close to him.

“Don't kid me. You're working together,” the man hissed.

Xiao Dao wriggled out of his grip. “Believe what you want.” He grabbed the man's wrist. “I think it's funny to watch him trying to pull his head out of the rope.”

To his surprise, the man did not stop him from retrieving his knife. Seemingly calm, he pocketed it. His heart was beating fast. Secretly, he prayed that either Wenjie or Zhijian had managed to send out a message. Despite this little interlude just now. 

He could feel the gangster in him and the thrill that came with this life. In fact, he had enjoyed watching Wenjie resist being controlled by others at the time.

“Should I drag the kid onto the bridge?”

“Hm...” The boss looked him over again, from head to toe. Then he nodded. “Your video conference with Xu Zhengqing is also canceled.”

to be continued ...