TL: EKID
The alley of commercial buildings visible outside the window is always bustling.
On the first floor of the building I’m in, there are stores lined up such as restaurants, bars, grocery stores, and hardware shops. Although it’s a neighborhood on the outskirts, there’s a fair amount of foot traffic, so from early morning, the alley was crowded with people.
The restaurant across the street on the first floor set up tables outside in the alley to serve customers. The voices of customers chatting at the outdoor tables reach all the way up to the fourth floor where I am. Chinese people, whether male or female, have loud voices.
I always leave the window slightly open. And through the gap in the window, I observe the people in the alley.
I could hear the conversations of people having breakfast with youtiao made of flour and soy milk.
I respond to the voices coming from the street with soliloquy.
-This summer is too hot
“Summer is hot. Winter is cold.”
-The soy milk is too bland today
“Just eat whatever you’re given.”
After doing this for a year and a half, my Chinese conversation skills have improved a lot. Now I can understand Chinese.
The reason I observe the alley isn’t just to learn Chinese conversation. The biggest reason I observe the alley every day is to see Lingling.
Lingling is a young woman who works at the restaurant across the street. She’s not the kind of woman who instantly grabs everyone’s attention, but she has a gentle charm that comes from being a modest and decent girl.
Lingling is about 160 centimeters tall, petite, and flat-chested. Her voice is soft, so the only words I hear from her are responses to the restaurant’s female owner. Even a short word like “yes” sounded pleasant when it came from her. Her footsteps were light, like a deer’s.
The restaurant’s regular customers all like Lingling.
The regulars are mostly people who live in this alley. They treated Lingling with the warmth of an uncle or grandfather.
Sometimes there were wandering customers who made unwanted advances toward her. When that happened, Lingling would slip away into the restaurant like a deer. Then the restaurant’s female owner, who was built like a bear, would come out shaking a ladle and yelling at the customer. I’ve never seen a wandering customer talk back to the female owner.
The restaurant owner is scary but a kind person. When Lingling gets off work, she always packs leftover food for her to take to her grandmother. Thanks to the loud-voiced owner, I also found out that Lingling lives only with her grandmother.
In this prison-like workplace of mine, observing Lingling is a major pastime. The eight hours Lingling works at the restaurant are the least boring part of my day.
Before I knew it, it was 9 a.m. Time to start editing video.
I placed a Vivaldi’s violin concerto <The Four Seasons> LP record on the turntable. I always listen to classical music when I sit at my work desk to check and edit the footage recorded the previous day.
I like that my daily life repeats itself.
A repeating daily life means it’s safe.
After finishing two hours of editing, I went up to the rooftop.
The TAS-970K thermal surveillance equipment must be checked every day. Sometimes pigeons poop on the lens and leave.
On the rooftop, in addition to the surveillance equipment, there are barbells and a sandbag set up. After inspecting the surveillance equipment, I do daily physical training on the rooftop. I start with jump rope to work up a sweat, then hit the sandbag, and finish with weightlifting. It’s a relief that I at least have a rooftop where I can train.
“Hoo-cha”
-Pang pang, puk puk
I kicked and punched the sandbag. To muffle the sound, the striking area of the sandbag was wrapped in two layers of large towels. Even so, the sound of the sandbag jolting from my kicks echoed.
“Heavy. If you get hit by this once, you die. Die”
I stepped lightly, kicking and punching the sandbag. For some reason, I felt in great condition today.
“This is the kick of a Special Warfare Command Special Forces Martial Arts champion. Abyss.”
-Puk puk puk
Back in my Special Warfare Command days, I was champion of the Commander’s Cup Special Forces Martial Arts Tournament two years in a row. Thanks to that, I even got a reward leave.
Although it was Master sergeant Kim’s recommendation that helped, my title as Special Forces Martial Arts champion also played a part in getting into the NIS.
“After sweating a bit, I feel refreshed.”
Next up was barbell training. I lay down on the bench with my back flat to lift the barbell.
At that moment, I heard the vibration of my phone.
It was a call from Old-man Choi.
“Old-man, have you eaten?”
“Be at the place I sent you by 5 p.m. Don’t be late.”
Trring.
A text with an address arrived. I checked the address and immediately deleted the message.
“Finally, going out today.”
Still lying on the bench, I lifted the barbell with strength.
“One, two, three, four…”
After finishing the workout, I went back down to the 4th floor ops room.
I took a shower and headed to the kitchen.
Today was the day I was going to do a part-time job.
I planned to eat lunch at home before going out.
From the ingredients Old-man Choi had brought yesterday, I took out jjajang sauce and two sausages.
Once the water in the pot began to boil, I added the jjajang sauce and sausages.
When the jjajang sauce and sausages seemed properly heated, I took them out and then put the noodles in next. While the noodles were boiling, I ate the sausages.
After draining the cooked noodles, I poured the jjajang sauce over them, mixed roughly, and ate the jjajangmyeon.
Eating like this, ten minutes was plenty for a meal.
I finished washing the dishes and got ready to go out.
Old-man Choi said I just had to be at the suit shop by 5 p.m., but I couldn’t miss this kind of opportunity.
How long has it been since I last went out? I planned to leave early and look around downtown.
“Let’s pack the gear now, shall I?”
I started by packing the Austrian-made Glock 17 pistol. I also packed three 17-round magazines.
The South Korea Army uses the K5 Pistol. The K5 is a lightweight pistol made by Daewoo Precision in 1988, using the 9mm Parabellum round, NATO’s standard handgun ammo. I used the K5 Pistol during my military service. But Black Agents stationed abroad use Glock pistols to conceal their identities.
I wore my work pants, a hoodie, and a lightweight backpack.
Inside the backpack were a windbreaker jacket for cold weather and the Glock 17 magazines.
It was 2 p.m. The suit shop Old-man Choi mentioned was within a 40-minute walking distance.
Even though 40 minutes was more than enough, I planned to leave 3 hours early.
Before leaving the house, I checked the camera set up in the ops room. Even in my absence, the Yalu River Bridge would be recorded without issue.
“Perfect.”
I locked up and left the 4th floor ops room.
I exited through the back door facing the Yalu River instead of the alleyway where Lingling’s restaurant was located.
Next to the entrance on the first floor was a storage room secured with a padlock. I unlocked the padlock and pushed the door open.
Inside the storage room was the Chinese-made Voge 300ACX Scrambler motorcycle that I ride.
It’s an 8-year-old used bike, but my baby can still go up to 100 km/h.
Of course, I didn’t buy the motorcycle. It’s a Company asset used by my predecessor.
It had been a while, but I started the motorcycle.
Vroom vroom.
At first, thick black smoke came out, but after idling for a bit, there was no more smoke.
“That’s why it needs to be ridden once in a while.”
I rode the motorcycle toward downtown Dandong City.
If I wanted to do some sightseeing before heading to the suit shop, I had to hurry.
***
“Use this camera. After the job’s done, return here and hand over the camera.”
The middle-aged man wearing sunglasses handed over a Canon camera with an EF Telephoto Lens. He looked to be in his mid-40s and had a military background written all over him.
“Take this map. I marked the drug deal location. It’s a gas station near Hwanggeumpyong.”
“When will the drug deal take place?”
“I don’t know the exact time. I only heard it’s happening this evening.”
“How will I identify them?”
“A man wearing a flight jacket with an eagle on it will appear. The people dealing with him are the targets. You must capture the moment of the transaction.”
“What if they don’t show up?”
“Then the deal’s been canceled. If they don’t appear by dawn the next day, withdraw.”
“You’ll still pay me the daily wage, right?”
The middle-aged man smiled at me.
‘Is that a yes or a no?’
I stared right back at him.
“Don’t worry about the daily wage. But you must not make a mistake. This operation has been two months in the making.”
“Will there be any other agents on site besides me?”
“No more questions. You just focus on your assigned task.”
The middle-aged man was the type who didn’t say anything unnecessary.
Probably the person wearing the flight jacket with an eagle drawn on it is The Company person who infiltrated a Chinese drug organization.
I placed the telephoto lens and camera into my backpack and left the suit shop.
Then I rode the motorcycle toward Hwanggeumpyong.
***
‘Hwanggeumpyong’
It is a small island located at the mouth of the Yalu River, forming the border between North Korea and China.
A gas station sign came into view on the national highway facing Hwanggeumpyong.
‘Heping You Ting’
It is a gas station on the south side of Dandong City, which translates to ‘Peace Gas Station’ in our language.
There was nothing around the gas station except for silvergrass. It was literally a gas station standing alone by the roadside. It was an ideal location for a drug deal.
I hid myself among the silvergrass and settled into position.
The spot I chose gave me a view of Hwanggeumpyong at the back, the mouth of the Yalu River, and the gas station 150 meters directly ahead. I had parked the motorcycle at a distance and walked here.
I looked at the gas station through the telephoto lens. The field of view was clear. I pressed the camera shutter a few times to take some test shots.
“This is good enough.”
The photos came out clearly.
Looking at the time, it was only 6:20.
With the Glock pistol tucked into the back of my pants, I lay down in the reeds and ate a chocolate bar. Tonight’s dinner would be nothing but a chocolate bar.
The only thing that came to mind during the wait was smoking a cigarette. But I couldn’t smoke while on a stakeout.
“If I think about the daily pay, I can endure this.”
Thinking about the 5 million won daily pay made me smile. If I could just land one of these gigs a month, I’d become rich in no time.
There were barely any vehicles passing on the road. In over two hours, only five vehicles passed by the gas station. Not a single one entered.
“This gas station would go bankrupt if not for the drug deals.”
At 8:50, a sedan and a van pulled into the gas station. Three men got out of the vehicles. One of them was wearing a flight jacket with an eagle on the back.
“They’re finally here.”
Ten minutes later, a truck entered the gas station. It was a familiar truck.
‘Pyeongbuk 90-330’
The truck’s license plate caught my eye, it was familiar.
The North Korean truck that I was used to seeing crossing the Yalu River Bridge had now appeared at the Peace Gas Station.
It was the very truck that hadn’t returned to the North Korea for a week after entering Dandong, the one Old-man Choi had been wondering about.
“Ho~ Pyeongbuk 90-330, what have you been doing in Dandong? Don’t tell me you’re acting as a drug mule?”
Five men got off the North Korean truck. Three of them were armed with assault rifles.
I started pressing the camera shutter.
-Click click
Four more men got out of the van that had arrived earlier. They too were armed with assault rifles.
The deal seemed to be starting.
A bag that looked like a money bag came out from the van, and a wooden crate suspected to contain drugs came out from the North Korean truck.
Both sides checked the money bag and the drug crate brought by the other. From where I was, I couldn’t hear their voices.
I just kept taking photos.
-Click click click click
The deal was taking longer than expected.