My hometown is far away in Moscow.

Chapter 287 Another Wave Rises

"I haven't decided yet." Hu Yi glanced at Natasha, who was chatting with Dajana and her husband. "Maybe in the future... I might do something else."

"Do something else? Stop doing marketing?!" Fu Jiahui looked bewildered. "No way, no way! If you leave, who's going to manage this mess?"

Hu Yi smiled sadly: "Jia Hui, I told you, as long as you're in the container market, I'll stay with Meng Xuanna wholeheartedly. But now the container market is about to disappear, maybe..."

He paused briefly, then, seeing the sadness on Fu Jiahui and Uncle Yu's faces, he suddenly felt a pang of pity and changed his words, saying, "Well, who knows what the future holds? Maybe the container market will reopen in a while. We'll see!"

The discussion ended, and after a few more casual words, they paid the bill and went out. The air outside carried a faint, damp smell of earth, suggesting that it was raining somewhere far away.

Everyone stood at the door saying goodbye. Hu Yi was about to give Da Liu a few words of advice when his phone rang again. He took out his phone and saw it was Lu Tao calling. He then realized he hadn't called him after finishing the delivery, and hurriedly answered the phone, saying apologetically with a laugh, "Brother Tao! Everything's taken care of here! Thanks to you—"

"All done?! The goods are all in the warehouse?!" Lu Tao interrupted him hastily.

"Yes, they were all unloaded before dinner."

"This is terrible!" The usually calm Lu Tao suddenly became extremely anxious. "We've been tricked! Those warehouses are a trap!"

"What?!" Hu Yi felt a chill run from the top of his head to the soles of his feet, and stood there dumbfounded, holding his phone. The others also realized that the situation had changed and gathered around him.

"Twenty minutes ago, a warehouse we rented was looted." Lu Tao's voice was filled with despair and indignation: "A lot of trucks and a lot of people came, and they just opened the door and started stealing our goods."

"What?! Who did this?!" Hu Yi was dumbfounded.

"I heard it was bandits." Lu Tao calmed himself down a bit. "At the same time, another company's warehouse was also robbed. Like ours, it was rented from that Russian woman just a few days ago."

"That...that woman...is...a bandit?"

"She probably isn't. But the other company that was robbed just found out that the woman's lover is a thug named Yuri. He booked these warehouses in advance, had his mistress sublet them to us, and then secretly bought our goods and resold them to bandits. That bastard!"

"Yuri?! What did you say his name was? Yuri?!" This name struck Hu Yi like a thunderbolt, his head buzzing.

"Who? Yuri?" Fu Jiahui and Uncle Yu, who were also nearby, sensed something amiss and were momentarily flustered. However, Yuri was a very common Russian name, and Hu Yi and the others couldn't be sure whether the Yuri Lu Tao mentioned on the phone was the one they knew.

"Never mind his name for now, hurry up and move your goods to a safe place!" Lu Tao urged. "They've rented out several large warehouses in the city, filled with a lot of high-value goods. They probably won't be able to bother with your small, remote warehouse for the time being. While there's still time, you need to figure something out!"

"Okay, I understand!" Hu Yi's relaxed mood was suddenly tightened again, and he felt dizzy. He quickly explained the situation to everyone, then bit his lip, looking at the Dagana couple and then at Yabalov.

"What are you waiting for! Let's go!" Dajana tugged at Natasha urgently. "Nata, we have to save your goods no matter what! Otherwise, all our work these past two days will have been for nothing!"

"Yes, that's right!" Natasha, who had been somewhat disoriented, immediately snapped back to reality after Dajana's tug. She pulled a hair tie from her pocket, gathered her long, flowing red hair behind her ear, and looked at Hu Yi with renewed spirit: "Luckily, my rented truck is still here, Anton, let's go!"

"We'll go help." Yabalov's expression was as troubled as ever, but with an unusual firmness. Tanya stepped forward to stand beside him: "It's to help, please don't give us money."

"Since the matter is urgent," the tall, dark-haired man said, unusually serious, "Boss Anton, I'll go with you."

"Thank you, thank you! I—" Anger, worry, gratitude, and impulse mingled in Hu Yi's heart, surging and churning, making him inexplicably excited.

He was just about to encourage the dejected Fu Jiahui and Uncle Yu when he suddenly remembered something and sighed dejectedly, "But it's already eleven o'clock. Where are we going to find another warehouse to unload the goods?"

"This—" The group looked at each other, at a loss for what to do. Only Dajana's husband seemed to want to say something. After a slight hesitation, he leaned close to his wife's ear and whispered a few words.

"That's right! Looks like you're not so muddle-headed after all!" Dajana exclaimed happily. "Nata! Anton! We have several long-term cooperative transit warehouses south of Moscow. Although they're a bit far, they're absolutely reliable. Let's take the goods there!"

There seemed to be no better choice. Without further ado, everyone prepared to depart immediately. Hu Yi wanted Da Liu and Uncle Yu to stay at home, but the two insisted on coming along.

More people mean more strength. Hu Yi didn't say anything more, ran home to get his car keys, haphazardly stuffed a dozen bottles of mineral water and two bundles of rubles into his backpack for later use, thought for a moment, then grabbed a kitchen knife from the kitchen, went downstairs, started his old Opel, and picked up Fu Jiahui and the others.

Yabalov, Tanya, and the tall, black-haired man each boarded one of the three trucks, and the four trucks—three adults and one child—speeded off at breakneck speed.

Dajana made several phone calls on the way and finally contacted a warehouse a little further away. A round trip by truck at night would take about two hours. At this point, there was no way to be picky; she could only hope that the bandits would linger in the city for a while longer.

A light drizzle was falling outside Moscow. On a quiet road near Damadydava Airport, several tall houses stood alone in a row, one of which was their warehouse.

Twenty minutes later, four vehicles pulled up in front of the warehouse. Dajana and the others jumped out of the truck first, and were about to ask someone to unlock it when they saw the door of a small, lit room nearby be pushed open. A middle-aged, disheveled man who looked like a manager stumbled out, hiccuping, as he fumbled through a large tray of keys. He walked towards them in a flustered manner, muttering incoherently, "You… hiccup! Why are you… here so early…?"

"Good morning?" Dajana's thick eyebrows shot up. "You knew we were coming?"

"Huh?" The administrator, his eyes still blurry with drunkenness, stopped and looked closely. His face immediately changed color. "Wh...why is it...it's you again?"

"It's us." The tall, dark-haired man quickly put his arm around the man's shoulder. "We're here to pick up some goods. Open the door quickly."

"No! No!" the security guard cried out in panic. "This...no...it's too late...we can't open the door..."

He tried desperately to break free from the tall, strong man's arms, but couldn't move an inch. The tall man waved to Hu Yi, who had just gotten off the car: "Boss Anton, this guy is probably one of the bandits."

"No, no! I, I'm just the gatekeeper! On duty!" The gatekeeper, struggling to breathe, forced a smile and cried out, "I, I don't know anything... hiccup!"

The taller man snatched the key tray from his hand and tossed it to Yabalov: "Find the key and open the door!"

Hu Yi's eyes flashed with a fierce light. He took a few steps forward and held a kitchen knife to the administrator's face: "Speak! Who are you waiting for!"

"No...no..." The manager stammered, glancing at the gleaming blade of the cleaver, before changing his words, "Waiting for...the boss's customers..."

"Who is your boss?!" Hu Yi lightly pressed the knife against his nose. "And who are your clients?!"

"The boss is... a Mr. Yuri!" the administrator replied with a mournful face. "The customers... I don't know, I only know they won't be here until very late..."

"Pah! A bunch of scum!" Hu Yi spat fiercely, then instructed the tall man, "Keep an eye on him!"

Yabalov had already opened the warehouse door. Hu Yi and the others went in and turned on the lights to check. They saw that the cargo packages were piled up in seven small mounds in the order they were unloaded. At first glance, the quantity did not seem to have decreased, but several packages had been torn open, and a lot of pants had fallen out. It was estimated that the manager had opened the packages to check the goods inside in order to estimate their value.

The tall, dark-haired man tore some yellow tape off the damaged cargo package, picked up a few pairs of pants that had fallen to the ground, tied the administrator up, and threw him in a corner.

Yabalov handed the tall man a pack of chewing tobacco, then popped one into his own mouth, chewing as he glanced at the goods in front of him and urged, "Hurry up, Anton, which ones are yours?"

"In the order of unloading," Hu Yi said without hesitation, pointing to Fu Jia Hui's piles of goods: "Let's start from here."

"Old Hu..." Fu Jiahui's throat moved slightly, "The situation is urgent now, you should..."

"Alright, enough arguing." Hu Yi clapped his hands to signal everyone, "Time is tight, and the task is heavy, let's get started! Load one truckload at a time, and we'll leave once one truck is full!"

Natasha didn't know the place, and although there was navigation, it would be best if someone took her there first. The eleven people present divided the work: Yabalov, Tanya, Hu Yi, Natasha, Uncle Yu, and Da Liu were one group; the tall black hair, Dajana and her husband, Fu Jiahui, and Xiao Linzi were another group. Before long, they had filled both cars.

"Stay close to me, Natasha." Tagana pulled a flat flask from her bosom and tossed it to Natasha. "Tired? Have a sip to perk you up!"

Natasha unscrewed the flask and took a small sip. The two women smiled at each other, got into their respective cars, and sped off southward, one after the other. The rest of the group quickly filled Tagana's husband's truck and watched him drive away into the rainy night.

What followed was a long wait. Hu Yi kept in touch with Lu Tao and learned that the bandits had looted two more large warehouses in the city. At this rate, they would be delayed in the city for at least several more hours.

There should be enough time. But just in case, Hu Yi arranged for everyone to take turns looking around and keeping watch, while the rest of them stayed in the warehouse to take shelter from the rain and rest. He also parked his Opel behind another house about 100 meters away.

Natasha and Dagana returned at 2 a.m. Those in the warehouse who had taken a short nap immediately perked up and began loading the trucks one by one.

Dagana was still full of energy, but Natasha's anxiety couldn't hide her exhaustion. Hu Yi felt a pang of heartache and hesitated, looking at the rented truck: "This truck... can I drive it?"

"No," Natasha shook her head firmly. "A truck is different from a car; it's hard for you to control. Besides, it's nighttime, and it's raining heavily to the south; the roads are difficult to travel on."

"Boss Anton, I can drive a truck." The tall, dark-haired man tossed a package onto the truck, turned around, put his hands on his hips, and looked at Hu Yi: "If you trust me, how about I make this trip in her place?"

"Of course I trust you! I couldn't be happier!" Hu Yi stepped forward and firmly grasped the tall man's hand. "Thank you, buddy, this truckload of goods is yours now!"

This round of loading was less efficient than before; before the two trucks were even full, the third truck returned. Taking advantage of everyone being present, they finished loading all of Uncle Yu and Fu Jiahui's remaining goods in one go, leaving only Hu Yi's own pile of goods in the warehouse.

There wasn't much manpower needed here anymore, so Hu Yi told Fu Jiahui and the others to follow the truck to the new warehouse, leaving only Natasha, Yabalov, and Tanya behind. Once the tall guy returned, the five of them could finish loading the last truck and make their triumphant escape.

Three trucks drove away in a line. Hu Yi checked his watch; it was already past 2:30. No further news came from Lu Tao's side. Just to be safe, the four of them locked the warehouse door and returned to their Opel to rest.

It was an incredibly tiring day, leaving him utterly exhausted. Fortunately, Fu Jiahui and Uncle Yu's goods had all been delivered, which put Hu Yi's mind at ease after a night of worry. He took out the last two bottles of mineral water from his backpack and handed them to Natasha and Tanya respectively. Then, he sat in the car, lost in thought for a while, when he suddenly felt Natasha gently taking his arm.

"Darling?" Hu Yi was taken aback, surprised to find Natasha in a pure white wedding dress, gazing at him with deep affection, her beautiful face radiating happiness.

"My dear," Natasha smiled radiantly, "we've been in love for so many years, and now we're finally officially husband and wife."

"Really?! Is that so?" Hu Yi was both surprised and delighted, and for a moment he was dizzy and couldn't remember how the two of them had prepared for the wedding.

He found himself dressed in a suit and surrounded by relatives and friends. His parents and Natasha's uncle and aunt sat in the center, with Li Baoqing, Yu Feifei, Yan Zhiwen, Lu Tao, Xiang Dong, Xiang Nan, Zhou Dali, Xia Yan, Caihua, Fang Qing, Lao Wei, his high school classmates who often skipped class to play games with him, and his childhood friend who had accompanied him to job fairs.

Looking behind them, Anna, Professor Sergei, Teacher Yulia, Uncle Abbassav and his nephew, and the short policeman who had saved him in the subway—everyone was clapping enthusiastically and shouting in fluent Chinese to him and Natasha: "Happy wedding! Wishing you both a happy and fulfilling marriage! May you grow old together in harmony and mutual respect!"

"Thank you! Thank you!" Hu Yile was beaming with joy, bowing repeatedly to express his gratitude, yet he also felt as if a few people were missing.

"Where are Jia Hui and Uncle Yu?" He tiptoed around the crowd, searching for them, then turned to Natasha and asked, "And what about Da Liu's family, and Aba and his wife? Why aren't they here?"

Natasha, basking in the blessings of the crowd, seemed oblivious to his words. Just as Hu Yi was about to ask again, Lu Tao struggled through the crowd, shouting anxiously at him, "Hu Yi! Where are your goods? Are they all safe?"

"Goods? What goods?" Hu Yi was completely bewildered.

Suddenly, two muffled thuds sounded beside him, followed by a voice that seemed both near and far: "Anton! Anton! Wake up!"

(End of this chapter)