Chapter Four: The Eighth Item in the Warehouse

The shift changed at Hengfeng Bonded Warehouse at four in the morning. Jianwei did not enter through the front gate with Linchuan. As head of Obsidian's special review, she had formally requested access to the disputed inventory, listing nine that morning as her arrival time. Gu Mingzhu's lawyers had copied the notice to Hengfeng's board. Everyone would be waiting for her in daylight. For now, she and Linchuan wore gray maintenance uniforms and entered beside an abandoned cold-storage unit. “Does forging a work order qualify as a fair exchange?” she asked. “The order is genuine. Luminous bought the maintenance company yesterday.” “For how much?” “Less than it would cost to ask you to trust me.” She let that pass.