Visiting his alma mater for a speech had exhausted Liang En considerably. After two days of rest, during which he almost fully recovered, he received an unexpected call from the Golden Dawn one morning.
“You mean to say, you want me to lead a team to return some Indian relics to India?” Liang En nodded slightly after hearing President Charles’s words over the phone. “When do I leave?”
Although the Golden Dawn collected various ancient artifacts, they adhered to legal principles. This custom had been a steadfast tradition since the organization’s inception.
This tradition was rooted in the members’ belief as occult researchers that human fortune is balanced. They believed that their actions would be recorded and weighed on some cosmic scale, and to ensure good luck, they needed to accumulate good deeds beforehand.
Thus, the members of the Golden Dawn engaged in charity work and returned any illegally obtained artifacts they found. Of course, before returning the artifacts, they would thoroughly study and document them, which was the only benefit the Golden Dawn received from these items.
Interestingly, things happened just as they had predicted. Since establishing this rule, the members of the Golden Dawn seemed to experience better luck.
In reality, this made perfect sense. When you express goodwill by returning items to those countries, those countries reciprocate with goodwill.
In this era of unprecedented international exchange, such goodwill naturally brings various benefits, promoting overall development.
Thus, within the Golden Dawn, such return missions were seen as a perk and the best way for new members to access the organization’s internal resources.
Liang En was quite pleased with this mission because he indeed wanted to find a place to relax.
“Remember, after getting off the plane, avoid local food even in the hotel, and don’t eat anything once you leave the hotel.” Fan Meng showed a deeply concerned expression.
“This is partly due to hygiene issues. In such hot and humid places, various microorganisms can easily breed, and some Indians have poor hygiene habits.”
“Additionally, Indians tend to add a lot of strong spices to their food, and our stomachs aren’t accustomed to the local cuisine, which can naturally lead to severe diarrhea.”
These lessons came from Fan Meng’s comrades’ experiences. One professionally trained soldier almost couldn’t stand up from the toilet after eating street food.
“Alright, I’ll be careful with my diet.” Liang En nodded seriously. He had heard about the unreliability of Indian food in his past life, so he naturally wouldn’t take any risks now.
A few hours later, the plane landed at Mumbai Dubai International Airport. This wasn’t because Dubai tycoons bought the naming rights; after all, Indians weren’t that poor.
The name came from a Maratha emperor named Mumbai Dubai in the 17th century. However, to the Chinese, this name was puzzling.
After disembarking, a wave of heat hit them, unlike the nearing winter in Europe. It felt like summer in India. Worse, the coastal location made it humid. Within minutes, they were sweating all over.
After walking a few steps in the crowd, the situation worsened as the smell of curry mixed with sweat hit them. This made Liang En regret his body’s enhanced senses for the first time.
On the tarmac, someone was already waiting for them. This wasn’t Golden Dawn’s first relic-returning mission, so the local officials were well-versed in such reception work.
Due to the boxes of relics, Liang En and his team didn’t go through normal immigration channels but handled their entry through the local officials.
Because of this, the procedures were incredibly fast, making it seem unlike the famously slow India.
After completing the checks and customs, they boarded a Land Rover sent by the Indian side. Since Tata Group bought Land Rover, Indians took pride in it and naturally used Land Rovers for international receptions.
Liang En’s previous knowledge of Indian transportation came from the internet, like people hanging on the sides of vehicles and standing on rooftops, or cooling off with splashed water in the summer.
But upon arrival, he realized that these were just a small part of the picture. India, one of the countries with the widest wealth gap, had both terrible and top-notch transportation tools.
Mumbai, as India’s largest city, exemplified this dichotomy: luxurious private residences and vast slums; seaside boulevards in wealthy areas and manual laundry facilities for thousands; a melting pot of religions and a deeply colonized city by the British. It was the world’s largest textile export port.
Mumbai Airport was located in the northern part of the city. Due to the noise, the airport’s surroundings were uninhabitable, forming part of Mumbai’s famous slum area.
Driving from the airport to the city center, the car passed through the slums. Traffic jams, roaming sacred cows, filthy conditions, and beggars blocking the way—all these met the stereotypical images of India.
“In my impression, India was a very prosperous place.” Jeanne sighed, looking at the chaotic scene outside. “Now it seems quite disappointing.”
Before coming, Jeanne had unrealistic hopes for India. Seeing the positive situation in China, she had hoped India might be similar.
Western media hadn’t portrayed China well, so Jeanne thought India’s poor international image might be a similar Western smear campaign. But now, it seemed the Western media had actually beautified India.
Taking the simplest traffic problem, the overloading of vehicles in India had reached a terrifying level, making it seem like a circus act to outsiders.
For example, on their way to the city, they saw many overloaded vehicles passing by.
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