?52: Chapter 49: Hard to Distinguish True from False 52: Chapter 49: Hard to Distinguish True from False It was already dark when they passed through customs.

    Gao Yi had told Sean that after the customs, they would head straight to Los Angeles overnight, as Los Angeles, being a large city close to Mexico, was a sensible place to settle.

    However, in reality, after clearing customs, Gao Yi’s first act was to find a motel.

    Gao Yi had told a little lie about this matter.

    No harm meant, yet precaution needed—despite Sean’s insistence on him joining the Garden, Gao Yi had made his refusal clear.

    People, harboring the intent to destroy what they couldn’t possess, were not few, and given Sean’s underworld connections and the precarious situation of the Garden, Gao Yi certainly had to be wary.

    So, after clearing customs, his first step upon arrival in the United States was to go on the Dark Web to contact the person who handled his passport, and then, following the other party’s instructions, he checked into a motel instead of truly heading to Los Angeles.

    The US-Mexico Border was notorious for illegal immigration, so it was normal and reasonable that the group that could get him a passport had connections near Tijuana.

    Gao Yi managed to get some sleep in the hotel and wasn’t too worried until someone knocked on his door around nine the next morning.

    With caution, Gao Yi opened the door to find a middle-aged man in a short-sleeved shirt, a gun hanging at his waist partly covered by his clothes, but still slightly visible, holding a suitcase with wheels.

    “Busan?”

    The man who knocked asked the name of Gao Yi’s Dark Web alias.

    Gao Yi nodded, then the man immediately said, “Red and Blue Group.

    Call me Martin.”

    Gao Yi stepped back, and Martin entered, closing the door he said, “Let’s conduct the transaction first, pay after it’s completed.

    I’m in a hurry, let’s be quick.”

    Gao Yi liked the efficiency, he immediately asked, “How do we proceed?”

    Martin placed the suitcase on Gao Yi’s bed and opened it; both compartments were stuffed full.

    Puling open a compartment, Martin casually said, “Asian documents are rare, but we have them.

    What year were you born?”

    “1994.”

    “You’re lucky, there’s an identity born the same year as you, otherwise you’d have to choose a nearby year for the birth certificate.”

    Martin quickly pulled out a document case, handed it to Gao Yi, and said, “Open this and have a look.”

    Gao Yi opened the document case, which contained a card with no picture but a set of numbers and a name.

    The surname was Zhuang, and the name was Booth, anyway, that’s what the pinyin spelled out.

    There was also a medical birth certificate issued by a community hospital in Palm Valley, which also had no picture.

    Gao Yi puzzled, asked, “What is this?”

    “Social Security number, medical birth certificate, and also information about the original holder’s growth, education level.

    Just memorize it casually, from now on you are Booth Zhuang.”

    Gao Yi, taken aback, said, “Replacement?

    You want me to replace someone?

    Martin wasn’t in a hurry and slowly said, “You can choose a Green Card instead, same price, guaranteed to get it processed, but you’ll need to fill out a lot of applications, and wait at least twenty days to get it.”

    Gao Yi didn’t want to wait that long, hesitating he said, “But what I need is a passport.

    You’re only giving me a number, what do I do next?”

    “Of course, we’ll take care of everything.”

    Martin pulled out a device that looked quite like an iPad, similar to those used by the CIA for identity checks.

    He placed the device on the bed, started it up, and then instructed Gao Yi: “Stand against the wall, stand straight, don’t move.”

    Gao Yi positioned himself in front of a white wall, and Martin casually took a photo.

    He put down the iPad, pressed a few buttons and then said, “Enter your fingerprints, all ten fingers.”

    Gao Yi felt uneasy and whispered, “What’s this for?”

    Impatiently but likely experienced with such queries, Martin knew better than to command Gao Yi directly and instead opted to explain briefly.

    “Now you have a Social Security number, a birth certificate, we’ll get you a driver’s license next.

    You’ll have a photo and fingerprints, then with the driver’s license, Social Security number, and birth certificate, you can apply at the Administrative Bureau for your passport, and then you’ll receive a legally issued passport.”

    Is this how fake identities are made?

    But it doesn’t seem this easy to get real ones.

    Though Gao Yi didn’t understand the intricacies, he knew better than to ask unnecessary questions.

    Thus, he cooperated and entered his fingerprints.

    Martin took the now thicker iPad, input a few more commands, then put away the iPad and said, “Wait ten minutes.”

    There were two chairs in the room, Gao Yi and Martin each took a seat, then Martin proficiently said, “Let me tell you about the original owner’s identity.

    His parents were Chinese, obtained Green Cards in 1990, had a child in 1994, then they died in a car accident in 2010, the original holder dropped out of school in 2012, started wandering and died of a drug overdose in 2014 but did not have a death certificate, his identity has been kept until today for your use.”

    Gao Yi couldn’t help but grimace; the original owner he was replacing sure was unlucky.

    Martin, unconcerned with Gao Yi’s feelings, continued, “A good point is the original owner never had a driver’s license, so it’s much easier to make you one.

    Once you get the driver’s license, you will have everything.

    You can live under any name you like.

    Just use the false name when showing IDs, or you can apply to change it.”

    Gao Yi immediately asked, “Can I still change the name?”

    “Yes, for extra money, I can sort it out.

    This is a little side hustle of mine.”

    Martin’s face finally showed a sly smile.

    He casually mentioned, “Once you have these documents, you can change your name through marriage, apply at a local court in your state for a name change, or let me help you with it.”

    Gao Yi blinked and finally asked, “How much?”

    “Ten thousand dollars.”

    Gao Yi thought for a moment.

    Something didn’t seem right.

    When he contacted the Red and Blue Group on the Dark Web about the naturalization process, customer service didn’t mention any extra fees.

    Ten thousand dollars is a lot for most Americans, but compared to the total expense of five hundred thousand, it seems like very little.

    So the name change was actually included in the total cost, and Martin was just trying to make some extra money from Gao Yi.

    After pondering it, Gao Yi shook his head and said, “No, that’s not what the customer service on the Dark Web told me.

    I’ll have to ask them.”

    Martin, taken aback, then quickly said, “Wait—uh, never mind.”

    Gao Yi didn’t want to be cheated, but he also didn’t want to offend the person who was processing his documents, as the Chinese philosophy of harmony deeply ingrained in him took over.

    Gao Yi thought for a moment and said, “Should I mention that I might be buying passports from you guys frequently in the future?”

    Transactions online, processing offline, so it’s natural for the staff handling the offline procedures not to know the clients’ specific identities. sea??h thё Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

    Clearly, Martin had misunderstood Gao Yi’s identity, which seemed to frighten him a bit.

    Of course, he wasn’t afraid of Gao Yi but rather scared that his own illicit earnings might come to light.

    Switching expressions, Martin was no longer as laid-back as at the start and instead became serious, whispering, “Uh, sorry, I didn’t know, can we…

    pretend this never happened?”

    Gao Yi shrugged and said, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.

    What happened?”

    Martin,”

    Marked with difficulty, smiled then walked over to his suitcase, pulled out a printer-like device, and then addressed Gao Yi: “What do you want to change it to?”

    From the Chinese maxim that a man should neither change his name nor alter his surname, Gao Yi was okay with having an English given name, but the surname had to stay.

    “Uh, still call me Booth, but I want the surname Gao.”

    After operating the tablet a bit and entering the pinyin Gao Yi wanted, a printer started, and soon a card came out.

    The pinyin ‘zhuang’ changed to ‘gao’.

    “Is this okay?”

    “No,” Martin seriously said, “Your Social Security card’s name also needs to be changed.

    Keep the original documents, but your birth certificate can’t be changed, though you’ll get a legal document certifying the necessity of your name change to substitute the birth certificate.”

    While he spoke, the printer worked, soon a new Social Security card emerged with the name changed but the number the same.

    Then Martin picked up a blank certification paper, placed it in the printer, and after some operations, a document certifying Gao Yi’s legal name change was produced.

    Handing all the documents to Gao Yi, Martin spoke softly, “Keep all the original documents.

    With this certification, your name change is legitimate and can substitute your birth certificate.

    Just take this certification and your driver’s license to apply for a passport.”

    The speed of process was unbelievable, and notably, the document had some powerful backing.

    Gao Yi picked up the certification, the largest letters on it were ‘FBI’.

    An FBI certification stating Gao Yi needed a name change for security protection.

    This document could substitute a birth certificate.

    Brief words, no reasons for the name change were given, but that seemed unnecessary.

    Gao Yi drew a sharp breath, but he didn’t make it too obvious.

    Could it be that this Red and Blue Group was an FBI operation?

    FBI personnel on the Dark Web not for catching criminals but conducting business?

    Conducting business was one thing, but willing to establish a long-term cooperation with an account like Gao Yi’s, a known assassin?

    Something felt unsettling.

    But it didn’t matter, because the fingerprints Gao Yi had entered were fake, still bearing the adhesive fingerprint patch Sean had helped him apply and yet to be removed.

    Using fake fingerprints could complicate any future need for fingerprint verification, but that was less risky than letting someone have all his real data.

    After all, fake fingerprints could be reproduced at any time.

    Gao Yi didn’t yet know how, but the technique wasn’t complex; it was having the set of fingerprint data that was tricky.

    Even if he couldn’t do it himself, Gao Yi would rather deal with the Garden, rather seek Sean’s help again than hand over his fingerprints and iris data to the FBI.

    It’s tough being out here alone, perhaps he should contact Sean again?

    For a moment, Gao Yi seemed conflicted, and Martin noticed, spreading his hands he said, “If you want to verify the authenticity, I can accompany you to check, and you can pay once you confirm these documents are accurate.”

    Martin misunderstood what Gao Yi was conflicly about.

    Gao Yi shook his head and said, “No need, thank you.”

    He declined Martin’s conciliatory gesture and took out one thousand dollars from his bag, then as he handed it to Martin, he smiled and said, “This is for your service, please accept it.”

    Martin, seemingly just a facilitator, one thousand dollars should suffice.

    Gao Yi’s gesture meant, I can give, but you can’t demand, and you certainly can’t cheat me.

    Martin needed to know Gao Yi was generous, he took the cash, smiled awkwardly, then suddenly said, “Are you in a rush for the passport?

    I can take you, um, things might move faster if I go.”