組織、仲介性交易的第三人在女性主義書寫中經常被視為性剝削者。透過深度訪談中國移民／性工作者，以及組織、仲介兩岸性交易的第三人，本文將指出主流「人蛇集團」的論述一方面誤導了這類地下經濟網絡的性質，另方面也錯失了揭露此地下經濟網絡背後的物質基礎。在本文的分析中，兩岸底層階級男女是這類網絡的主要勞動力來源，而罰娼的性體制與移民體制則塑造了中國移民／性工作者易受第三人剝削的結構性關係。然而，本文的資料顯示，中國移民／性工作者並不必然在這些地下網絡中感受到剝削或淪為毫無能動性的受害者。相對的，她們和第三人之間經常充滿著矛盾的關係─他們彼此間既合作又鬥爭，勞務所得分配不均的表象下潛藏著互利共生的互惠性。

For decades, "human snakes" (a slang name for sex traffickers) have been described as sexual exploiters, especially in the feminist literature. Based on data from interviews with Chinese migrant/sex workers and Taiwanese sex traffickers, I will argue that the prevailing discourse misconstrues crossstrait commercial sex networks and the material bases of the underground economy. I will also argue that the cross-strait underclass represents the main labor source in this economy, and that the regime that criminalizes commercial sex and rigid border controls actually makes Chinese migrant sex workers a vulnerable group for exploitation. The intersection of gender, class, sexuality, and migration thus makes the fragile positions of Chinese migrant sex workers even worse than those of local sex workers. However, my data indicate that Chinese migrant sex workers are not necessarily sexual victims, nor do they generate the feeling of being exploited. Instead, relations between them and human snakes are usually contradictory and ambiguous, marked by a mix of co-operation and antagonism. The balance of power between migrant/sex workers and human snakes is uneven, yet migrant sex workers may view it as reciprocal, since their pimps and traffickers are the only actors capable of negotiating with the state.