“Jia has been involved in a number of international criminal activities. Jia is a heavyweight snake head. He’s been arrested in New York in connection with these activities. To convict him, the American authorities need a witness who will testify to his involvement with an immigrant smuggling ship-The Golden Hope.”

“Oh, I remember reading about that disastrous operation a couple months ago. The ship, carrying more than three hundred Chinese, was stranded off the U.S. coast. When the Coast Guard arrived on the scene, there was only a sick pregnant woman remaining on board. She had been too weak to jump into one of the fishing boats that were supposed to transport them to shore. Later, several bodies were discovered in the sea-those who had failed to land in the boats.”

“That’s the ship,” Li said. “So you are familiar with the background. Jia is the owner of The Golden Hope.”

“We have to do something about human smuggling,” Chen said, putting down his cup, in which the tea leaves no longer appeared so green. “The situation has deteriorated in the last few years. Especially in the coastal areas. That’s not the way we want China to open up to the world.”

“Feng Dexiang was one of those on The Golden Hope. He managed to board a fishing boat. And he started in as a ‘black man’ in New York, working day and night to pay for his passage.”

“I’ve heard that those people work like dogs. Most of them do not know what really awaits them there. We have to deal a crushing blow to the snake heads.”

“Jia is as slippery as a rice paddy eel. The Americans have been after him for years. Now they finally have a good chance to nail him for the deaths of those from the ship who drowned,” Li said. “Feng was caught in a gang fight in New York and arrested. Faced with criminal charges and deportation, he cut a deal in return for serving as a witness against Jia.”