Naming Technique of the Night

Chapter 895: 551. Performance Art

The black steam train sped across the pure white snowfield.

Someone looked out from the carriage and could see the distant snow-capped mountains, with snow-white peaks and solemn black beneath, looking particularly magnificent.

It passed through the wilderness and lakes.

In the snowy mountains, there would even be natural hot springs exuding steam, making it seem like passing through a fairyland when the steam train crossed.

The Northern Country’s snowfield scenery is picturesque, intoxicating.

At one point, Qing Chen felt that this steam train was like a tourist line, specially choosing the most beautiful places.

A ticket costing one or two gold wasn’t too expensive, converting to over 19,000 dollars for a 27-day tour around the Federation.

It’s worth noting that in the Outer World, tourist trains like K2 and K3 have cabins priced higher than this, and the journey is even shorter.

Honestly, if the Federation didn’t restrict citizens from freely leaving cities, Qing Chen felt this train might have been quite lively.

Qing Chen even thought he might one day open the steam train doors, and if he let go of everything in the Inner World, he could comfortably become a ticket seller.

Passengers wouldn’t need to give Gold Coins to the steam train, just to him, and he’d open the doors for everyone.

It seemed pretty good.

At this moment, a herd of deer ran across the snowfield, and upon seeing the steam train, instinctively stopped, curiously gazing.

The snowfield and deer, indescribably beautiful.

Li Cheng gazed out the window foolishly: “These deer… look delicious.”

Once he said this, a rumbling sound immediately echoed through the carriage, these people… hadn’t eaten anything proper in a long time.

Otherwise, there wouldn’t be so many soldiers falling behind, sacrificing on the way.

They had left the A02 base, consuming the captured individual rations on the first day, and for the next four days, eating only dried grass and bark.

If they were lucky enough to hunt some game along the way, it wouldn’t be enough to share.

So, at this moment, the soldiers were all starving desperately, not caring if the deer were beautiful, only if they were tasty.

But the steam train doesn’t wait for anyone, it won’t stop just because Qing Chen tells it to; each stop lasts only 10 minutes, not enough time to go out and find food.

Qing Chen calculated the map, they still needed at least 3 more days to head south and escape Jindai territory, and before that, everyone had to endure.

But three days—there wasn’t even snow to eat on this train, everyone would starve to death.

This made Qing Chen feel a kind of bitter amusement, having painstakingly escaped with everyone, only to die of hunger on the train?

He glanced at the countdown display: “Alright, everyone squat down first, this steam train is about to stop at the next station, which is outside City 23. Be careful not to be noticed by Jindai people.”

As he spoke, all the soldiers crouched as if receiving military orders, making them invisible from the window.

Before the steam train entered the station, it drove into a void, and only when it reached the station did the world brighten again.

Yet at this moment, voices suddenly came from outside: “Quickly, quickly, stop dawdling, hurry and move the goods over, the boss is waiting at the next station!”

As they spoke, dozens of burly men wearing minks carried boxes, filled with mechanical limbs they robbed in the city, intending to launder them in another city.

Just like stealing a car, you steal a car in City A, take it to City B to dismantle and launder the parts, otherwise, driving it directly in City A risks being discovered by the owner.

36 burly men carried 18 half-man high boxes, the value of these goods alone was substantial, clearly members of a large syndicate in City 23, specializing in smuggling mechanical limbs.

One person was confidently saying: “Once this deal is done, when the boss wires me the money, I’ll take you to the entertainment district to enjoy some fun, eat fancy and spicy food, with a girl with exposed thighs draped over each arm, making up for all the hardships we’ve endured. Later, I’ll get on the train with the third brother to carry the goods, while you wait below, otherwise we’ll have to spend more Gold Coins.”

The burly men laughed while working, not caring if the weather was cold.

Their working method was simple; within the ten-minute window, two people got on the train to receive goods through the window, while the rest waited below.

This way, they only needed to spend two Gold Coins.

The steam train only charges “people tickets,” not “goods tickets,” during this ten minutes, however much cargo they could lift was their skill.

Yet at this moment, as they lifted the goods, they looked up.

Only to see the train carriage filled with more than nine hundred faces, watching them with interest…

“Holy crap!” 36 burly men were instantly shocked.

Imagine being in a deserted wilderness with a supposedly deserted train, committing illicit deeds.

Then, on that supposedly deserted train, suddenly more than nine hundred people appeared, aiming automatic rifles at them through the windows.

This scene, remembering it at midnight would surely induce nightmares.

Qing Chen stood at the window, smiling: “Come on, hand the goods over, or we’ll shoot you dead.”

There was no reasoning to be had with these syndicate members, knowing those mechanical limbs were forcibly taken from others, akin to slicing off the limbs of the victims.

So, these people, every single one of them, if dragged to court, would face charges of intentional injury and robbery, with a minimum sentence of 15 years.

Thirty-six hulking men stood still, someone whispered: “Don’t listen to them, this train leaves in 8 minutes, once it starts moving, we’ll make a run for it.”

Bam.

Qing Chen shot and shattered the guy’s kneecap: “Type Three meniscal injury, anterior cruciate ligament rupture, tibial plateau comminuted fracture, you can only use mechanical limbs for the rest of your life. Anyone else want to try?”

The big guys suddenly wet themselves, these people really fired their weapons.

But the problem is, who are these people? Over 900 people on a steam train touring the Federation, engaged in black-on-black? What kind of outrageous imagination is this?!

This is too romantic!

Qing Chen smiled and said: “Rest assured, I’m keeping track of time. Before the steam train starts, I’ll make sure every one of you is disabled anyway, since you’re not good people to begin with.”

The next moment, the hulking men scrambled to lift the boxes through the windows into the train car, while Li Cheng and Qing Ling directed the soldiers to neatly stack 18 boxes.

Qing Chen continued: “Take off your clothes.”

The hulking men reluctantly removed their clothes and emptied their pockets.

What disappointed Qing Chen a bit was that these people didn’t bring much food, only a few dozen pancakes, not enough to stuff the teeth of nine hundred people.

The only surprise was that these people had satellite phones on them!

Qing Chen instructed: “Hand over the satellite phones and tell your boss to wait for me at the next station…”

The steam train started moving again, heading into the darkness.

The naked men in the snow quickly donned their clothes and ran towards their car stashed away in the distance.

In the car, the person in charge of transporting goods immediately called the boss, crying: “Boss, we’ve been hit with black-on-black!”

The person on the phone was furious: “Do you know how much this batch is worth? 3 million! I already found buyers, and you’re telling me you got hit with black-on-black?”

“Boss, I didn’t want it either, there was really no choice.”

“Bullshit, no choice! I specifically told you to bring more than thirty people, how many people do they have?” the boss asked.

“Over nine hundred…”

“Hiss!” The boss gasped, bewildered: “Which syndicate is it? Someone trying to mess with us? That’s quite a huge operation.”

Many are unaware that even syndicates have human resource costs to consider. Paying salaries for one person costs five to six thousand, nine hundred people would be a cost of approximately 4.5 million.

Using a 4.5 million cost to rob goods worth 3 million is not profitable!

The hulking man said aggrievedly: “It’s not a syndicate. We were using the steam train to transport goods, and they came on the steam train. Yes, boss, you heard right, they arrived with over nine hundred people on the steam train. I suspect they want to dismantle the entire Federation’s black supply chain.”

Upon hearing these people were on a steam train, the boss was taken aback.

Bear in mind, riding the steam train costs over ten thousand for a single ticket, so for nine hundred people, it’s an astronomical sum.

Boss: “That’s quite extravagant! This isn’t just black-on-black robbery, this is practically performance art!”

The boss also had the dream of being a chivalrous thief, fantasizing about taking the steam train to rob the world. However, there was a problem, taking too many people was unprofitable, but taking too few was risky. If you take 30 people and rob upon arrival only to discover there are 60, wouldn’t that be awkward?

In that case, it wouldn’t be taking the train to rob but to deliver money.

The idea of nine hundred people robbing on a steam train never crossed his mind; he even admired the concept to some degree.

The boss hesitated: “Are they still on the train? I don’t even have a chance to seek revenge with so many of them.”

The hulking man quickly said: “Oh, right, they said for you to wait at the next station and exchange things with them for this batch of goods!”

The boss was puzzled: “Exchange what? Cash? Taboo items? Women? Organs?”

The hulking man said: “They want 300 boxes of water, 300 boxes of bread, 100 boxes of vegetables, 100 boxes of meat, and 100 alcohol-stove hotpots. They instructed you to be prepared and start loading once the steam train arrives, otherwise there won’t be enough time.”

Boss: “???

That’s it?

Is this really black-on-black or just stocking up for the festive season?

Boss: “Are you kidding me? Don’t let it be they asked for a box of gold and you set me up for them to gun me down, so you can become the boss?”

The hulking man lamented: “Boss, that’s really all they asked for, not deceiving you, the brothers are all here with me.”

The boss suddenly held Qing Chen and the others in high esteem: “They truly are doing performance art, I should at least give them two extra boxes of dried fruit!”

Hulking man: “…”

…

Another chapter at 11 PM