Since the kidnappers had tapped into the hotel's video surveillance system, Wenjie invited the delivery man in. Xiao Dao closed the door behind them, not without taking a look outside first. It was still relatively quiet and there were no other tourists around. 

The delivery man placed the bag with the breakfast on the living room table and took payment from Wenjie. Ding Wei watched them. The delivery man seemed relaxed and not suspicious. His clothes matched the uniform of his delivery service. 

"Do you also take orders?" Wenjie asked the delivery man directly. 

"Yes, of course."

"I'd like to surprise a friend. He works at the public security office."

Ding Wei grinned. A friend. They had no friends there in Taizhou, but perhaps Captain Luo had already contacted them. Then, their approach wouldn't come out of nowhere. He leaned against the wall next to the door, his arms crossed. 

The delivery man took the order without questioning the unusual request. Not even when Wenjie asked him ,if he could take an envelope and enclose it with the delivery. It contained the drawings and a letter to the police, including her telephone number and current whereabouts. 

When the delivery man turned around and walked to the door, Ding Wei studied his features closely. He didn't notice anything unusual about the man. He seemed clean. Xiao Dao looked after him thoughtfully. His eyes instinctively wandered around, constantly searching for uninvited guests. Hopefully the delivery man would reach his destination. He felt the urge to warn him. But the less he knew, the better. 

The door slammed shut. Ding Wei turned back to his friends.

Zhijian ate already.

“Don't gorge like that or you'll get a stomach ache,” he advised the younger man. 

“I'm hungry.”

Hecould tell. Wenjie, on the other hand, hardly ate anything. Given their situation, Ding Wei hardly had no appetite either. They might as well pack some of the breakfast. "We shouldn't take too long to eat and better set off straight away. Then they'll have less time to wait for our messenger."

Zhijian almost choked. "You mean they'll stop him?"

It can't be ruled out. 

"He was in the house. We could have tipped him off. If they're watching us on the outside cameras, they won't have missed it," Wenjie replied.

Zhijian devoured the rest of his bun almost in one piece and packed up the rest. Then he closed the laptop and stuffed it into his backpack. 

Ding Wei and Wenjie were also ready to leave. 

They took the route via the foyer and then waited for a bus. This way, they would run into more people, who would remember them in case of doubt. Leaving as many traces as possible, especially those that could not be easily removed by the criminals. 

On the way, Ding Wei texted the kidnappers that they were already on their way and asked which section they should come to. The harbor was already busy in the morning. Mainly people going about their daily business or tourists. The latter, however, were only at the quay for passenger ships. 

The criminals' instructions were not long in coming: “Bulk cargo handling section. Dock 3."

Ding Wei thought of his father again.

He would certainly have chosen this section of the port too. Because of the large number of goods and the confusing activities on site, the section was suitable as an inconspicuous meeting point. Cranes, conveyor belts, silos and warehouses offered good opportunities to pursue criminal activities and make people disappear relatively unnoticed. The remote location and logistical requirements of goods handling also provided good conditions for criminal activities. Some parts of the section were not even under video surveillance, which made it easier to remove traces. 

A sinking feeling spread through Ding Wei's stomach as they entered the area. Hardly any of the people they encountered took any notice of them. He didn't spot any video surveillance devices on the way to Dock 3 either. If there was any, it had certainly been tampered with.

All that remained were their smartphones for the police to track them, since at the entrance to this part of the port, their direct trail had probably been lost. 

They passed a long conveyor belt. It cut them off, which Wenjie saw as a welcome opportunity to take a detour. It was not difficult to get lost among the warehouses and machines. After a short time, Zhijian no longer knew which direction they had to take. 

"Wenjie knows where we have to go," Ding Wei reassured him. 

In fact, the detour was to save time. Xiao Dao understood this immediately. This time it didn't bother him at all. The longer they took, the better he could prepare himself for the meeting. His father had only taught him to follow his orders without questioning them. 

If he wanted to work as an undercover agent, he had to make his own decisions and act accordingly. It seemed so much easier in theory than in practice. Since his apprenticeship with his father only gave him limited advantages, he remembered Wenjie's father's words. What had Zhuang Yaobai said? They had to remain self-effective, act, not just react. 

It was questionable whether there was much point in leaving traces in this environment. But it was better than nothing. At irregular intervals, he left scraps of paper, a pen, packaging material and some personal items. If it only came to a conversation with the kidnappers, he could pick up the things right away. If not, Zhuang Yaobai or the police could find them and have another clue to their whereabouts. 

Finally, they reached Dock 3, where the two men Zhijian had described were waiting. A van parked nearby. A little way down the dock, two ships were moored at the harbor. A crane loomed on one side of the dock. It was loading one of the ships with heavy boxes. 

Ding Wei took a deep breath as they approached the criminals. He assumed that the two men were part of a larger group. Their leader still remained in the dark. There was still the possibility that it was his father. 

One of the men looked at his watch. "You've taken a long time."

His gaze wandered from Xiao Dao to Wenjie and remained on the young man. 

"You shouldn't try to trick us. We know that you have contacts with the police."

Wenjie remained silent. His expression remained expressionless. 

"A few conveyor belts blocked our way," Ding Wei said. "You could have given us more precise directions."

The man laughed. "For your sake, I hope no one was following you. Give me your smartphones."

To be continued ...