Chapter 144 Identity Confirmation

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The car door opened, and two men with Chinese faces jumped out.

Their attire was very unassuming; they wore faded waterproof work jackets, baseball caps with the Seattle Ocean Shipping Supply Industry logo, and carried the salty, fishy smell of years of handling seafood.

They look no different from the refrigerated truck drivers who work night shifts at the Port of Seattle.

The two men walked quickly up to old Bill and Arthur, giving them a sharp once-over.

"Name."

One of the older drivers lowered his voice and asked in heavily accented English.

"William McIntyre".

"Arthur Pendleton".

The two old men, wrapped in large coats, quickly gave their full names.

The driver who asked the question nodded, took out a crumpled piece of paper from his pocket, glanced at it in the dim light of the car headlights, and suddenly, without warning, threw out two obscure questions.

"Mr. McIntyre, what is the most commonly used physical compensation method to eliminate the latch-up effect during low-speed rotation in the calibration of a ring laser gyroscope?"

Old Bill paused for half a second, then his ingrained professional knowledge made him instinctively blurt out the answer.

"Mechanical frequency jitter, or the application of an alternating magnetic field bias using the Faraday effect."

The driver made no comment and turned to look at Arthur.

"Mr. Pendleton, in single-crystal nickel-based superalloys, what elements are typically added in trace amounts to suppress grain boundary slip under high-temperature conditions?"

Although Arthur was physically weak, his mind was clear, and he answered fluently.

"Grain boundary strengthening elements are not needed because single-crystal alloys eliminate grain boundaries themselves. However, for directional solidification or polycrystalline alloys, trace amounts of boron, zirconium, or hafnium must be added."

After hearing the answer, the two Chinese drivers exchanged a barely perceptible glance.

They couldn't understand a word the two old men were saying, but according to the standard answers in China, the pronunciation was exactly the same, with only a few syllables.

Identity confirmed.

"No problem, get in the car, I'll explain the follow-up arrangements on the way."

The driver opened the side door of the truck, pushed the two people inside, then quickly closed the door and jumped back into the cab himself.

The truck restarted and headed towards the Port of Seattle.

The interior of the carriage was dimly lit and extremely cold, with the refrigeration unit humming overhead.

As soon as old Bill and Arthur settled down, they smelled the distinctive bloody odor of raw meat and the strange smell of frozen animal fat.

It looks like this vehicle is not only a refrigerated truck on the outside, but it is also actually full of goods inside, with boxes of frozen meat with labels stacked around it.

Just as the two were shivering from the cold, a sliding window between the cab and the cargo box was opened.

The driver who had just asked the question handed them two thick military-style cold-weather suits and explained the upcoming arrangements.

"Wear this; it's minus ten degrees Celsius inside. Don't freeze to death."

"Gentlemen, let's get to the point."

"Next, we need to go through port security."

"All international ocean-going freighters must replenish large quantities of fresh water, food, and engine room supplies in ports before voyaging across the Pacific Ocean."

"Our vehicle is the cover vehicle responsible for delivering frozen meat supplies to that Panamanian cargo ship."

He pointed to the deepest part of the cargo compartment, where there were two custom-made wooden crates that were noticeably larger than ordinary meat crates and printed with "Premium Frozen Pork Ribs".

"When we get close to the dock, we'll put you into those two specially made transfer boxes."

"The box has a double layer inside, with lead plates and polyurethane insulation material as the lining, which can protect it from routine thermal imaging and X-ray inspections by port customs."

"There are hidden ventilation holes at the bottom of the box, so you won't suffocate inside."

The driver paused, his tone becoming extremely serious:

"Once we reach the loading and unloading area, the cranes on the dock will lift your container, along with hundreds of other containers of frozen meat, directly into the cold storage at the bottom of the cargo ship."

"There may be violent shaking during this period, and customs anti-smuggling police may also patrol the deck with sniffer dogs."

"Remember, no matter what happens, you are absolutely not allowed to make a sound or cough. Even if a box hits the deck, you have to grit your teeth and hold it in."

The driver's last words were:

"Once the ship leaves U.S. territorial waters and enters international waters, someone on board will go to the hold and release you. He will arrange for you to be taken to a safe, private cabin until you reach the other side of the ocean."

Then, the sliding window slammed shut.

Old Bill and Arthur exchanged a glance, silently put on the heavy winter coats, looked at the two huge wooden crates in the darkness, and felt the vibrations of the carriage as it swayed with the road, their hearts pounding.

The atmosphere inside the driver's cab was somewhat somber.

The young driver in charge of the car is named Li Wei. (Latest update, now online, awaiting your interpretation.) He gripped the steering wheel tightly, his grip appearing somewhat stiff and awkward. He would occasionally glance at the rearview mirror, his breathing slightly rapid.

"Brother Kang..."

Li Wei finally couldn't hold back any longer and asked his partner, who was sitting in the passenger seat, in a low voice.

Do you think it's reliable?

"Those two old men behind us... after all, they're so old. If they cough uncontrollably while going through security, or if something goes wrong, we're all doomed."

The co-pilot, known as Brother Kang, was named Wang Kang, the same veteran who had just been communicating with Old Bill and his companion. He was a middle-aged man.

Compared to Li Wei's nervousness, Wang Kang appeared very relaxed. He twirled a lighter in his hand, leaned back in his seat, and casually waved his hand.

"Don't worry, don't scare yourself."

Wang Kang looked at the road ahead, his tone calm.

"We've been lurking in the peripheral supply chain of this port for almost three years. Don't you know what kind of work those old men at customs and the port authority do in the middle of the night?"

"When they investigate smuggling, they mainly focus on shipping containers."

"For supply trucks like ours that deliver meat and vegetables to departing cargo ships, they simply can't be bothered to check each item one by one."

"Moreover, the customs declaration procedures for this batch of goods are perfect, and even the tax certificates are complete."

"As long as the weight of frozen meat on the delivery note matches, plus the bribes we give them, they won't even bother loading it into the truck."

"Even if we take a step back and assume that we encounter a surprise inspection by smuggling dogs or a thermal imaging scan today..."

"Those two transshipment containers were equipped with radiation-shielding lead plates, sound insulation cotton, and polyurethane insulation layers. This level of protection is already extremely redundant for dealing with the routine inspections at the Port of Seattle."

"Don't worry, nothing will go wrong."

After hearing this, Li Wei swallowed hard and nodded reluctantly, but his body remained tense.

Wang Kang turned his head and glanced at the right-side rearview mirror in the dim light outside the car.

On the pitch-black highway, apart from their truck, the road behind them was completely empty; not even a headlight could be seen.

But he knew very well that his own people were right behind him.

"Send a signal to those behind."

Wang Kang withdrew his gaze and decisively gave the order.

"Signal your hazard lights twice, then apply the brakes once."

"Tell the brothers who are providing protection on the perimeter to withdraw; they no longer need to escort you."

"The area ahead is a restricted port area. Without a special pass and a license plate from the whitelist, they can't get in. If they try to force their way in, it will only trigger an alarm."

"clear."

Li Wei immediately did as instructed, flicking the control lever twice and gently tapping the brake.

Then, Wang Kang pointed to an empty space on the side road not far ahead, where there were no streetlights.

"Pull over there and get ready to pack those two elderly gentlemen into their boxes."

Wang Kang looked at Li Wei's slightly trembling shoulders and sighed.

"After we're done loading the people in, it'll be my turn to drive."

"You're too nervous. If you drive like this to the checkpoint, that fat customs officer will see right through you. Why don't you go sleep in the passenger seat?"

"Okay...okay, Brother Kang."

Li Wei breathed a sigh of relief, quickly turned the car onto the auxiliary road, and stepped on the brakes.

The two got out of the car, walked around to the back of the truck, and opened the heavy cargo door.

The train carriage was freezing cold. Old Bill and Arthur, wrapped in winter coats, sat nervously beside the meat crate.

"It's time, gentlemen, get ready to get into the box."

Wang Kang and Li Wei worked together to pry open the tops of the two specially made wooden crates, removed the layer of frozen pork chops that were used as a cover, and revealed the small space inside that was lined with soft padding and insulation material.

"Go in, bend your knees a little. There are ventilation holes in the four corners at the bottom, so there's definitely enough oxygen." Wang Kang directed the two men to step into the wooden crate.

Old Bill and Arthur squeezed inside. The cramped space forced them to huddle together, and the unknown fear made Arthur's body tremble slightly.

Just as Wang Kang was about to put the disguised meat back on.

He paused for a moment.

Looking at the two emaciated old men abandoned in America in the wooden crate, his cold, businesslike agent demeanor softened slightly, and his tone became much gentler.

"Stay put, you two."

He reached out and gently patted Arthur's shoulder, comforting him:

"Don't be nervous, take a deep breath, and treat this like a normal nap. Our equipment is very safe, and the route is well-established; there will absolutely be no problems."

"When you open your eyes again, you will be in a warm cabin on the high seas. Soon, you will be in a place where you will no longer go hungry."

Old Bill and Arthur looked at the Eastern face in the darkness and nodded vigorously.

"Thank you," Arthur said softly.

Wang Kang didn't say anything more. He covered the camouflage layer and then picked up the heavy wooden plank to top it off.

"Bon Voyage."

As the last sentence fell, the wooden board closed with a "bang," and Li Wei used a nail gun to drive several long nails firmly into the board.