Chapter 379: The Human Trafficking Syndicate (2/2)

Xiaotao glanced at the foundation, ”The water is rather deep. We might need a pump to drain it.”

”That'll take too much time. I'll try to fish out whatever’s in there, then you can drain it and check to see if there is anything else!”

I found a bamboo stick and hooked a wire at the end, stirring the water till it finally caught onto something. With a pull, a military green canvas bag was revealed. This sort of bag was seldom seen in recent years and the cloth was seriously worn, indicating it had been used for quite a long time.

We found a vacant area to empty the contents of the bag. It was full of soaked photos and a notebook which had to be dried before we could read its contents.

These were all photos of girls. ”It's them!” I cried, flickering my gaze towards the rescued girls.

”Who do you think dropped the bag?” queried Xiaotao.

”Whoever fell in?” I speculated. “I’m almost certain it’s Zhang Bing. Let’s ask the traffickers.”

I went over with the canvas bag and asked the trafficker whose it was. ”Zhang Bing!” he answered without a second thought.

It was just as I expected!

As it turned out, these traffickers needed a local pimp to sell the “goods” when conducting business across borders, so they contacted Zhang Bing. Last night, Zhang Bing came to take pictures of every girl and contacted the buyers. If everything went well, these girls would’ve been sold to illegal establishments as prostitutes and Zhang Bing would’ve received his cut.

He was supposed to meet them today but he never showed up so the gang had decided to wait for him.

Of course, they weren’t aware of Zhang Bing’s death. My guess was Zhang Bing left the abandoned building last night and happened to bump into the murderer who kicked him into the water and pummeled his skull with the mace.

But what I didn’t fathom was the murderer’s motive. Did the murders happen in the spur of the moment? Or was it really related to the ghost bus? Or perhaps it was revenge!

”Half of the people who went on that ghost bus last night are dead.” Xiaotao solemnly urged, “You four must be careful. Should I put you under protective custody?”

”No,” I shook my head. “Dali, Luo Youyou and I won’t leave the store. Once we go back, I’ll install alarms and monitors in the store, and you can watch after Bingxin.”

Xiaotao turned to Bingxin, ”Miss Sun, your father has been busy as of late. It’s not safe for you to stay at home alone. Please stay at my place tonight!”

”I have a solution that will make everyone happy,” Bingxin giggled. “Dali and Luo Youyou can stay in the store, while Song Yang-gege stays at my place!”

”You just have to push your luck, don't you?” Xiaotao chided with arms akimbo.

The two stared each other down in a battle of wills. I had to be the one to break them up. ”Don't worry about that. I’m guessing tonight’s going to be a sleepless night. Don’t forget, the ghost bus appears at midnight!”

”We haven’t found much information on the bus. We tried to match the rumors to the accidents in Nanjiang City but found no incident of a bus plunging into the river,” Xiaotao reported. “The closest match is an accident that happened ten years ago. Because the driver was drunk driving, he had an accident that caused the fuel tank to burst into flames when the bus overturned. More than twenty passengers died that day, and the driver who escaped death faced prosecution by law. In the end, he committed suicide before the trial by jumping off a building!”

”How could he drive a bus while drinking? That’s completely unheard of!”

”Which is why the public condemned him at the time and the driver couldn't handle the pressure. That’s why he killed himself.”

”What's the driver's name?” I asked.