The comments said I was deeply affectionate, I just added points by using an alternate account.

Chen Guan realized that, compared to himself, these people cared more about his leopard.

The short-haired woman said "oh" and didn't ask any more questions. She lowered her head and continued drinking her water.

The bald man didn't say a word from beginning to end. After wiping the knife, he put it under his pillow, then lay down facing the wall.

The tall, thin man never opened his eyes.

Chen Guan leaned against the wall, his fingers resting on his knees, staring blankly at a crack in the opposite wall.

The blank stare was fake.

He was counting the details in the room.

A door without windows, ventilation relies on gaps between the corrugated iron sheets in the roof, and the airflow direction is from the doorway inwards, indicating that the outside passage is the main source of ventilation.

There are six cots, three people are living in them, so with him there are four, and one is still empty. Maybe someone else will come, or maybe it's reserved for rotation.

Chen Guan took a quick look at his three temporary roommates.

Three people, three types, all seemingly characters who have lived on the fringes of society.

The casual laborers hired by the new circus were indeed not to be trifled with. No wonder Baihu sent him instead of Yin Chen Hongyuan, who was practically his subordinate.

One of them possessed an unyielding pride, while the other was innocently naive and unaware of the ways of the world.

The cheetah yawned at his feet, revealing a row of sharp teeth, then rested its head on its front paws and closed its eyes.

Chen Guan patted its head to comfort it.

Since leveling up, Leopard has become increasingly lazy and has lost its previous energy. I wonder if it has anything to do with leveling up.

Moreover, Leopard is a bit slow; it can't transform into human form or speak human language, which really worries its parents.

Time slowly passed, the light on the tin roof gradually dimmed, the sky outside slowly darkened, and the sea breeze, carrying a salty and fishy smell, blew in through the gaps in the roof.

No one speaks.

This silence isn't awkward; it's an unspoken understanding. In places like this, silence is the safest form of social interaction.

About two hours later, the iron gate was pushed open from the outside.

The person who came in wasn't wearing a hoodie; it was someone Chen Guan had never seen before.

He was not tall and wore a drab old coat.

After he came in, he stood at the doorway, his gaze sweeping around the room before finally settling on Chen Guan, where he paused for a moment.

For other reasons, wearing a mask was indeed quite eye-catching, but the person didn't seem to care much; it's normal for people to have some quirks.

"Is everyone here?" he asked, his voice not loud, but everyone in the room could hear him clearly.

The bald man sat up in bed.

The tall, thin man opened his eyes.

The short-haired woman put down her enamel mug.

"There's a job tonight," the man said. "At 11 p.m., there's a shipment to unload at berth number three. You'll be responsible for perimeter security. You don't need to touch the cargo; just make sure no unrelated people get close during the unloading process."

He took out a few pieces of paper from his pocket and handed one to each person.

Chen Guan took it and glanced at it. It had a simple map of the area drawn on it, with each person's position marked.

His location was in the northeast corner of berth number three, near a row of abandoned containers.

"Is there a problem?"

No one speaks.

"If there are no problems, we'll meet at the entrance at 10:30."

……

Half past ten.

The iron gate was pushed open from the inside, and several people filed out.

Chen Guan and Cheetah walked at the back.

No one speaks.

After walking for about seven or eight minutes, a figure in a hoodie appeared ahead. He was leaning against the side of a shipping container, holding an unlit cigarette in his hand.

"Have they all arrived?"

"We've arrived," the bald man replied on behalf of everyone.

He tucked the cigarette behind his ear, pulled a palm-sized walkie-talkie from his pocket, changed the channel, and then the buzzing of the radio went silent after two seconds.

"On your positions. Once you're in your place, announce 'Channel 3' over the walkie-talkie."

He took out four identical walkie-talkies from a metal box next to him and gave one to each person.

Chen Guan took it, weighed it in his hand. It was an older model, and its signal coverage was probably only a few hundred meters, but it was enough for a place like the warehouse complex.

Russo Port is indeed an old place; even the communication tools seem outdated.

After learning of his mission, Chen Guan walked alone towards the northeast corner.

The dock was quieter at night than during the day, and in the quiet, he found his place.

A row of abandoned shipping containers stood against the dock's fence, their bodies rusted and some doors half-open, the inside dark and obscuring everything.

Chen Guan crouched down with his back against the side of a shipping container. The cheetah lay quietly at his feet, its purple pupils barely glowing in the darkness, perfectly concealed.

He pressed the call button on the walkie-talkie.

"Northeast corner, we've arrived."

Other people's voices came through the walkie-talkie one after another.

"Northwest corner, we've arrived," came the bald man's voice.

"South passage, we've arrived." It was the voice of the short-haired woman.

"Southeast corner, we've arrived." The tall, thin man's voice sounded younger than he had imagined.

The hoodie concluded by saying, "Understood. Stay in your positions and report any incidents immediately."

Then the channel went silent.

Chen Guan clipped the walkie-talkie to his waist, adjusted the volume, and lowered it to a level where it was just audible.

He peered out through the gap in the container and saw that a few lights were on at berth number three, but not many, illuminating only the berth itself and a small area next to it; the rest of the area remained in darkness.

A speedboat docked at the shore.

Then came the second one.

Someone jumped off the boat; the movement was swift, and the landing was almost silent.

Unloading has begun.

From the angle of the coffin, only a rough outline could be seen, and several figures were moving around the berth, carrying something from the ship to the shore.

The box wasn't big; one person could carry it, but the person carrying it was very careful, as it seemed to contain something fragile.

Chen Guan didn't believe it was anything ordinary, but he wasn't curious either; it was none of his business.

A very short buzz came from the walkie-talkie, followed by the sound of a hoodie.

"Reports from all locations."

"Northeast corner, normal." Chen Guan pressed the call button.

"Northwest corner, normal."

"South passageway, normal."

"Southeast corner..." The tall, thin man paused for a moment, "There's some movement."

There was a two-second silence on the channel.

"What's that noise?" The hoodie's tone remained the same, but the question came quickly.

"There's someone here, just one, coming from the southeast. He walks silently."

The tall, thin man's voice was very low, as if he were somewhat afraid.

"Did you see clearly? How many people are there?"

"one."

"Sure?"

"Confirmed, female, short hair, no, long hair, silver."

The tall, thin man hesitated noticeably while describing the scene, as if what he saw was not quite what he had expected.

Chen Guan's finger remained on the walkie-talkie, but he didn't press it.

Long silver hair.

This hair color is quite unusual.

The instructions for the hoodie came through the walkie-talkie.

"Stop them, ask for their identities, don't attack, confirm their identities first."

"receive."

The tall, thin man's voice trailed off.

The channel has returned to silence.

Chen Guan glanced through the gap in the container towards berth number three. The people unloading cargo were still moving things, their speed and rhythm unchanged.

This means they haven't received the message yet, or they have received it but don't intend to stop.