pjbooks Chapter 177 The Mysterious Ghost Market
Chapter 177 The Mysterious Ghost Market
Chapter 177 The Mysterious Ghost Market
After a moment's thought, Ma Jie waved to the call girl, who turned her back to him, put on her clothes, and moved along the wall toward the door with her bag and high heels in her hands.
"Wait a minute." As she passed by, Ma Jieke, barely able to suppress the pungent smell of cheap perfume, said, "Listen up, ma'am. As you just said, we have no grudges between us. You want to be respectable, and I'll give you respect, but you'd better not try anything funny with me. It won't do you any good."
"I understand, I understand. This isn't the first time I've encountered this situation."
Goldie glanced at Homir, who looked like he was about to die, and said sarcastically, "Besides, I have no connection with this guy. He always orders the cheapest set meal, which makes me work hard for a long time but I don't earn much money. I'm planning to never take his orders again."
"Fuck you, you bitch!" Being mocked by a prostitute broke Homir's defenses.
"Shut up and stay put." Ma Jie shook his head at the door. "Go on, ma'am. Close the gate behind you. Remember what I just said, and don't get yourself into trouble."
"Thank you, sir." The woman walked behind Ma Jack, raised two middle fingers at Homill in the living room, and mouthed the words "I'm cursing."
Ma Jie walked straight up to him, and before the other man could even speak, he smashed a rifle butt into his head, causing the man to see stars.
This stunned Homir. Just as he was about to react, Majek kicked him hard in the groin.
Stunned by the blow, Homir froze, instinctively covering his groin with his hand. After standing frozen for a few seconds, he collapsed onto the floor with a thud.
The next scene was quite abstract: the guy was in so much pain that his face was red and his forehead was covered in cold sweat, but he couldn't make a sound, as if he were performing a silent movie.
This is because the brain's ability to process information is limited. When extremely strong pain signals flood the central nervous system like a tsunami, the body will prioritize allocating all resources and energy to the most important survival functions, such as heartbeat, muscle contraction, and brain nerve feedback.
Speaking is not the primary task for survival, so the muscle function that controls the vocal cords and mouth is temporarily suppressed, and energy is diverted elsewhere.
Many films and television dramas have depicted similar scenes, which viewers may mistake for artistic exaggeration. In reality, however, these scenes are true. It's just that most people haven't experienced the most extreme pain and therefore cannot truly empathize with it.
Ma Jieke, with his experience, found a dirty, tattered rag and, just as the guy was finally able to scream, roughly shoved it into his wide-open mouth.
This really upset Homir, his face turned as red as a monkey's bottom, and he could only make the strange sound of boiling water.
However, someone did not let him off the hook. Instead, they imitated Black Knee and launched a kneeling and instant-kill attack, pressing their knee against his neck and grabbing his hair, causing his face to slam against the floor.
After being repeatedly struck more than ten times, the wooden floor cracked. Homir lay there covered in blood, his body twitching unconsciously, seemingly unable to move.
Ma Jie got up and went to the bathroom, picking up a small plastic bucket at random.
Splash! A bucket of cold water was poured over him, and Homir, who had been unconscious, shuddered and came back to his senses.
When he forced himself to open his eyes despite the excruciating pain, all he saw were blurry images. Someone was sitting in a chair in front of him, looking down at him.
The latter pulled the rag out of his mouth, spat out a mouthful of blood onto the floor, his mouth filled with a fishy and salty taste, and gasped for breath.
When his vision finally returned and he saw the face of this living devil clearly, he was so frightened that he burst into tears.
There was nothing I could do. I've been on the streets for so many years and I've seen my share of tough guys, but I've never heard of anyone who comes up to someone and beats them to death without asking a single question.
Most importantly, this guy is actually Asian. It's terrifying to think about.
After all, this isn't Chinatown. The dominant force is always the Black and White people. How could someone who survives such a double attack not be ruthless and stand firm?
"Damn it, you're spineless." Seeing his effeminate, arrogant demeanor, Ma Jie cursed, "I'll count to three, then shut your dog mouth."
"Three, two, one!"
The countdown was more effective than magic; when it reached one, the emotionally distraught Homir instantly returned to normal.
Do you know why I'm looking for you?
"I know," Homir sniffled. "I was wrong, I'll never do it again..."
"Fuck you!" Ma Jie slapped him hard across the face and glared at him fiercely. "What's the point of spouting this nonsense? Reorganize your thoughts and think them through before you speak, or I'll beat you to a pulp."
Homir covered his burning face, his head drooping in front of his chest as he carefully considered his words, afraid of saying the wrong thing again.
Ma Jie casually snapped a picture of his disheveled appearance and immediately sent it to Valentina.
Although the girl said she didn't care, Ma Jieke knew very well that she was extremely aggrieved inside.
After all, it was a gift from her family, and it contained so many wonderful memories. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it a pillar of support; it's something that money can't measure.
Valentina: Is this the same conman photographer from this afternoon? My God, how did you find him? How did you beat him up like this? Didn't I tell you not to do anything dangerous?! Were you even listening to me?
Ma Jieke: I have no choice. I'll do anything for my angel.
Valentina: ...Ugh, you made me cry again. Now I'm hiding under the covers by myself, afraid my roommates will see me.
Ma Jieke: Okay, that's all for now. Let me find the camera first. I just wanted to tell you that things aren't as bad as you think.
Valentina: Well, be careful then. I'll keep praying for you.
After closing his social media account, Ma Jieke looked at the dejected Homir: "You've dragged this out long enough. Have you figured out what you're going to say to me?"
"I sold the camera..." At this point, he covered his head with his hands and curled up like a turtle: "Don't hit me, don't hit me, I can find a way to get it back, I mean it."
Ma Jieke then withdrew his hand: "Tell me first, where did you sell the things?"
"Ghost Market".
"Where is this market?"
"No, no, no, that's just a name." Homir, afraid of being beaten up, quickly explained, "Actually, it's a trading network made up of receivers and sellers of stolen goods. We're all in an encrypted social group. To join this group, you need at least three long-time members who have been in the group for more than a year to vouch for you. After I get the goods, I'll post photos in the group. If anyone is interested, we'll meet at a random offline location and exchange money for goods."
"How many people are in this group?" Ma Jie asked curiously.
"More than a thousand people, of whom over 90% are pickpockets and scammers, all operating in Los Angeles."
More than a thousand people? My God, this is the underworld of Los Angeles, where a vast black market industry is hidden beneath the seemingly prosperous city, like a dense network of sewer pipes.
Behind every crime lies another crime.
After learning the details, Ma Jieke took Homier's phone, followed his instructions to enter the password, and opened the encrypted group to check. He found that they were having a lively chat inside.
Golden Banana: Anyone interested in a 90% new Apple M4 MacBook Pro? Friendly price: $800.
Wandering Swordsman: We buy large quantities of Apple smartwatches and Bluetooth earphones. Please message us for details.
Kalixi on the Grassland: Just got my hands on a Nikon Z50II kit. If you're interested, please @ me or message me privately.
I tried flipping up a few pages and sure enough, I saw Valentina's camera pictures. The person who made the deal with Holder was a group member with the ID "Evil Fisherman".
Ma Jieke directly turned on the camera, took a picture of his newly bought iPhone 16 Pro Ma, and sent it over.
Half a minute later, the other party replied: "The stuff is good, buddy, but it's too late today, let's talk about it tomorrow."
Damn... Ma Jie was annoyed when he saw his reply. Such a popular model and you're waiting until tomorrow? You have no ambition at all, you must be a black man.
After thinking for a moment, I'll use Homir's pseudonym to edit the message again.
Moonlight Boy: Hey, don't wait until tomorrow, bro. I just snatched it from an Asian guy, it's still warm. How about I give you a discount?
Evil Fisherman: How much memory?
Moonlight Boy: Bro with the lock, how would I know? But I guess it's 1TB. That guy looks really rich.
Evil Fisherman: Okay, how about $500 for you?
Ma Jie was about to agree, but then he thought that if he didn't bargain at such a low price, it would be too easy to arouse suspicion.
Moonlight Boy: Are you kidding me? This phone originally cost $1599, it's practically brand new, and you're only offering me $500? Even slaves wouldn't be sold for that cheap!
Evil fisherman: Take it or leave it!
Holy crap, is this how you do business? Jack Ma is speechless. This kind of person will probably never eat four dishes in his entire life. If someone criticizes you a couple of times, you're just going to give up making money?
However, in order to lure the snake out of its hole, he had no choice but to shamelessly chat with the other party.
Moonlight Boy: Don't be so impulsive, bro. How about this, you add a little bit more for me.
Evil Fisherman: 500 is not a small amount. Don't think that new models are easy to sell. The best-selling models right now are actually low-end and mid-range phones. Everyone is short of money. Who would be willing to use such an expensive phone? People who are really rich will not buy second-hand phones. They will just buy new ones.
Moonlight Boy: ...Never mind, we're all old friends, so let's decide where to meet.
Evil Fisherman: Same subway station as before, same rules, you come alone.
Moonlight Boy: OK, it's a pleasure to work together.
To avoid any unforeseen complications, MaJack first recruited two helpers, namely Bubu and Sandy.
The former is purely combat-ready, since he retired from the Marine Corps and his skills and marksmanship are impeccable.
The latter grew up on the streets and knew a lot about the unspoken rules of gangs.
After hoisting Homir into the pickup truck, Majek drove while briefly explaining the situation to the two men.
Bubu listened very carefully and carried his weapon with him, just in case.
Sandy, on the other hand, looked displeased: "Tch, if I had known it was to help that Mexican girl, I wouldn't have come. We're rivals, have you ever seen anyone help someone who stole their man?"
"Let's keep quiet." Ma Jieke looked at the navigation and turned the steering wheel. "Valentina is my friend, and you're my friend too. From that perspective, you two should be friends as well. What's wrong with friends helping each other out?"
"I won't listen, I won't listen, I won't listen!" Sandy covered her ears in frustration at his bizarre logic. "Let me make this clear: I'll help you this once, but please don't come to me again if this happens again."
Seeing the girl's jealous expression, Ma Jie smiled helplessly. But that's just her girlish personality. She used to target Fiona, but now she's starting to look for enemies in the shadows, treating Valentina as a hypothetical enemy.
"Is this it?" Ma Jie asked as he drove the car to the agreed-upon subway station entrance.
Homir glanced at the old black man beside him and said hesitantly, "No...yes, this is it."
After all, this guy hadn't said a word since he got on the bus, but the more silent he was, the more uneasy people felt about him.
Seeing his cowardly appearance, Ma Jie laughed and said, "Don't be nervous, buddy. My black brother here is just an ordinary soldier who retired from the Marine Corps. He's proficient in using rifles, machine guns, pistols, grenade launchers, anti-tank weapons, and demolition devices. He's also an expert in wilderness survival, boat handling, amphibious warfare, underwater demolition, individual tactics, squad tactics, hand-to-hand combat, and battlefield first aid. He shouldn't pose much of a threat to you, right?"
"Don't...don't say any more, buddy. I know the rules."
Homir felt a chill run down his spine, inwardly cursing himself for not checking the calendar before leaving home. Of all people to mess with, he had to pick on such a hardcore and ruthless individual.
As the time approached midnight, the subway station was about to close for the day, but there were still a few passengers inside, dragging their tired bodies to catch the last train.
Homier pulled the hoodie over his head, deliberately covering half of his face. After all, he had been beaten half to death by Ma Jieke, and the wounds were simply covered with band-aids.
As he reached the corner of the stairs, a mysterious dark figure suddenly appeared—it was the evil fisherman he had met before: "Hey bro, you're late. Did you bring the stuff?"
"Of course I brought it." Homir tried to appear calm, reaching into his pockets and rummaging around to buy time for Ma Jack and his men to retreat and encircle them.
"Wait a minute, what happened to your face?" The evil fisherman quickly noticed something was wrong and realized that something was amiss.
"No...nothing's wrong, I just tripped and fell."
Despite his best efforts to cover it up, Homir was inevitably caught off guard and began to stutter.
At this moment, Ma Jieke had successfully circled around to the back, disguised himself as an ordinary passenger, and slowly walked down the stairs.
However, he clearly underestimated the other party's counter-surveillance capabilities. After sensing a hint of danger, the receiver of stolen goods, who was using the alias "Evil Fisherman," shoved Homir away.
"Stop him!" Majeke shouted. Homir reached out to grab him, but only managed to grab the other man's backpack strap before he forcefully broke free and ran at full speed toward another exit inside the station.