Early the next morning, the makeup artist worked on Noah's disguise for hours. By the end, Noah was unrecognizable. His face was wrinkled, and there were age spots on his dark yellow skin.
Noah, a handsome man of thirty, turned into an old smuggler whose eyes were full of the same hatred and rebellion he had seen in the eyes of every criminal he had ever arrested.
Noah's voice was deep and hoarse and easily identifiable to Vivian, so he was not to speak during the entire sting operation. His subordinates would do the talking for him.
Director Shen had already sent people to guard the intersection of South Road and West Forest Street close to Silverhall Nightclub. Everything was going in perfect order.
At two o'clock in the afternoon, Noah's subordinates received a phone call. They had been instructed to drive along the route Vivian had given them with the money, but the specific location was not revealed.
Vivian was a cautious person. She had installed many cameras on the route she had given them. The car had almost circled around half of Lexingport City. After confirming that there was no one following them, Vivian ordered the driver to go to Silverhall Nightclub.
Two hours later, it was exactly four o'clock. Silverhall Nightclub was closed in the daytime. Only a few guards and members of the cleaning crew were present at this time.
Vivian's people led Noah and his men to the nightclub's underground warehouse.
"You can only bring one of your subordinates with you, Mr. Yuan."
"Mr. Yuan" was Noah's chosen code name. It was from his mother's surname, Yuan.
One of Noah's subordinates was Mr. Black. His real name was Rayden Zhang, an irritable man. Even if he did not disguise himself, no one would suspect him of being a spy.
One of Vivian's men frisked the two of them and even checked the black-framed glasses and watch that Noah was wearing. He was very thorough.
Noah's black hat was also inspected.
Noah had a camera and a bug on him to collect evidence. They were on the watch that Nina gave him, and they were impossible to detect without precise equipment.
"You may go in."
Noah dipped his chin in acknowledgement and put his hat back on, shrouding half of his face in shadow.
Rayden followed Noah into the underground warehouse, carrying two silver suitcases in his hands.
The warehouse was dimly lit and filled with piled-up stuff that looked like they had been pushed aside to clear the center of the room.
It was deathly quiet save for the sound of Noah's and Rayden's shoes scraping across the floor.
They had just adjusted to the darkness when something clicked and then half of the warehouse lit up.
The sudden light made them close their eyes instinctively. As they squinted their vision back into focus, they saw a group of people standing in front of them. Up front was a faintly smiling woman in a white dress, swirling red wine in a glass in her hand.
Vivian was fond of this style. She even set up a marble round table in front of her that was adorned with flowers that matched the color of her drink. She was leisurely sitting in a blue velvet chair.
Behind her was a small army of hulking men who looked like they snapped necks and crushed bones for a living. The dignified and elegant Vivian was in stark contrast with her henchmen.
But if there was something that she and her burly subordinates shared, it was the viciousness and wild ambition in her eyes.
As the old saying went, appearance was created by the heart, and therefore, evil eyes reflected evil hearts.
Except for the way she was dressed, Vivian was no different from the people behind her.
"I've heard a lot about you, Mr. Yuan. Finally we meet. It hasn't been easy setting up a meeting with you these past three years." Vivian raised her wine glass to show her respect. When the glass was close to her red lips, she flashed them a charming look, like a poppy blooming slowly.
Over the years, Vivian had learned a lot about seducing men to get her way. Her every move was no longer as reserved and noble as a lady's. She had turned into a cold, heartless bitch that would do anything for material gain.
Noah knew that Vivian had changed a lot, but he did not expect her to be totally different. In the past, even if she did something wrong, she was still kind-hearted.
But now, she embezzled the Ye Group's funds, illegally imprisoned her biological father, and engaged in smuggling.
No matter what, Vivian was still his sister. At the thought of this, Noah felt a dull pain in his heart. He had tried his best to stop her but to no avail.
In the end, he had to arrest her.
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