In a dimly lit private room of a nightclub, Lian Qiang stood poised near a dancing pole. The room was cloaked in shadows, punctuated only by the erratic hues from a disco light that painted patterns on the walls. With a mask concealing her features, only her eyes remained visible, gazing intently from above its edge, which stopped just above her nose.
When the soft music began, she started to dance around the pole. Her moves were smooth and looked easy, but she had practiced a lot.
Across the room, she saw a rich man. His name was Chen Pei. He was with some men who looked like guards. They were sitting and watching over her. Chen Pei looked at her a lot. His eyes were sharp, and he seemed to be thinking something.
As she danced closer to where Chen Pei was sitting, she whispered, "Hey." She did this to get closer to him. But when Chen Pei tried to touch her, she quickly turned and went back to the middle of the stage.
While dancing, Lian Qiang was quick and smart. She secretly put a small tracker on Chen Pei's shirt without him noticing. This would let her know where he went if he tried to leave.
Chen Pei drank from his glass and talked to another man. They looked like they were talking about important things. As time passed, people in the room drank more, and they started to act silly.
After a while, Chen Pei spoke to her. "Come here," he said. She walked over and sat next to him.
"What do you want?" she asked him, keeping her voice low and sweet. She tried to sound like she was just curious, not scared or worried.
The room was noisy with people talking and laughing. But Lian Qiang saw Chen Pei pull out a small packet from his pocket. Being part of the Orphan Mission, she guessed it could be something dangerous, drugs. She gritted her teeth.
She felt more nervous now, but she kept acting calm. Chen Pei seemed to like her acting. He smiled at her and said, "Let's go to another room."
She didn't want to, but she followed him. She had to stay close to learn more about what he was doing. She hoped the team outside the room would back her up if she needed it.
Chen Pei, the wealthy man, led Lian Qiang into a different room, holding her wrist tightly. She felt his fingers dig into her skin. The room was dim, but she spotted a large, plush bed in the center. Next to it, a table displayed shiny packets that resembled drug packaging.
Fear started to rise inside Lian Qiang. But she pushed it down. She had a job to do. She wanted to do well and get a promotion. She remembered her training and all the things she learned about being undercover.
Though her face remained calm, Lian Qiang's heart raced. She had to tread carefully; any mistake could be costly. She subtly touched her ear, activating a tiny device that allowed her to communicate discreetly with her team.
A faint beep confirmed its activation. "Officer Lian, we're in position and ready," whispered Officer Xiao Xi through the device. Knowing her team was close gave Lian Qiang a surge of confidence.
But then Chen Pei moved closer to her. He looked at her with eyes that made her feel uncomfortable. "You're very pretty," he said. His voice sounded like he was trying to be nice, but Lian Qiang could hear something else in it. She was disgusted. She could even smell the alcohol from his mouth.
He looked at her mask and slowly took it off and she let him. When he saw her face, he looked surprised. "You're not like the others," he smirked. He meant the other girls he had met before. Lian Qiang didn't say anything. She just waited.
Chen Pei smiled at her, but it was a lecherous, unsettling grin that made her skin crawl. "Do you want to have fun?" he asked. He took slow, deliberate steps toward her. Lian Qiang instinctively retreated until the cold, unyielding surface of a wall pressed against her back. She was trapped, with no escape in sight.
Chen Pei was very close now. Too close. Lian Qiang felt scared, but she didn't show it. She thought about what she should do. And then she made a decision.
With a quick move, she punched Chen Pei ion his groin. He didn't expect it. He fell to the floor, holding his groin and making sounds of pain.
Lian Qiang stood over him, breathing hard. She had done it. She had defended herself. And she had done her job. She knew now for sure that Chen Pei was a bad man. She had seen the drugs. She had heard him talk. She had all the proof she needed.
"Sorry, but I'm not interested in your disgusting old face!" Her face showed clear disgust, and she adjusted herself as if the man's touch was a virus to her.
Now, Lian Qiang just had to wait for her team to come and help.
She felt proud and was about to call her team when she felt someone behind her. It was Chen Pei. Even after she had hit him, he got up quickly.
Chen Pei wrapped his arms around her neck tightly.
Just when she believed this mission was almost over and she could mark it as 'completed', things took a turn. Lian Qiang was determined, she had to find an escape.
Despite her best efforts to break free, Lian Qiang found herself trapped. His grip on her neck was too strong, and every move she made only seemed to tighten his hold. She felt the pressure intensify as she struggled, realizing that escaping wouldn't be as easy as she initially thought. He grabbed her more tightly, putting his arm around her neck. Her arms was held by his other hand.
She found it hard to breathe. She was pushed against a table. She tried to think of a way to get out.