After hanging up the phone, Fan Jia remarked, "Tsk tsk, this wave of considerate persuasion almost had me convinced. No wonder those girls sent nude loan videos to them. Such empty promises act like lifelines, giving the girls a reason to deceive themselves and easily fall into the trap. From then on, they’re completely at the mercy of these people."
Xu Mengshan succinctly summarized beside her, "As the saying goes, 'Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.'"
This earned him a routine eye-roll from Fan Jia.
The police held their ground.
Sure enough, two days later, when Fan Jia’s interest and late fees became overdue, her phone started receiving a flood of harassing messages early in the morning:
"Your loan of 30,000 yuan from our company is overdue for interest and late fees! Overdue! Please repay the interest as soon as possible to avoid unnecessary disputes!" This was the polite one.
"Fan Lingling, pay up! Pay up! Pay up! How can you be so shameless? Defaulting on debts invites divine retribution!" This was the abusive one.
"Fan Lingling, we have your ID number and graduation certificate. Repay on time, or you’ll regret it!"
"You bitch, do you understand you need to repay? You live in Room 503, Building X, XXX Residential Area, and your phone number is XXXXXXX. If you don’t pay, expect to have paint thrown at your door!"
These were the insulting and threatening ones.
Fan Jia immediately "panicked" and called Chen Zhaoci, but this time, no one answered. Text messages went unanswered too. She was left to face the overwhelming barrage of harassing messages alone.
This left Fan Jia feeling somewhat embarrassed, thinking, "Do I really have no charm at all? Has he already started harvesting ruthlessly? How excessive!"
Meanwhile, You Mingxu, Han Feng, and the others felt the situation was progressing well. They needed Apple Bro to push Fan Lingling into a corner, just like the first two victims, to see what would happen next.
Whether "Fan Lingling" would become the third victim, no one knew. Whether Gold Splitting Treasure Company was connected to the serial murders remained unclear for now.
However, Han Feng’s team had conducted another round of in-depth investigations into the suspect vehicles in the city and the fingerprint, but found nothing. The detectives’ worst fear was gradually becoming a reality—a case with no leads, severed from the crime scene from the very beginning. You could sense it, like accidentally touching a silent landmine that explodes in your hands. For years to come, it would haunt you, a cold, heavy stone weighing on your heart, with no hope of even glimpsing the shadow of the perpetrator.
Thus, Gold Splitting Treasure Company became the task force’s only lead, albeit one without any direct evidence. Should they act? They had to move quickly—once the arrow leaves the bow, it does not return.
Another day passed, and the perpetrators’ methods rapidly escalated, much to the detectives’ satisfaction.
At this point, the emergency contacts Fan Jia had listed in the agreement—her mother (You Mingxu), father (Han Feng), classmates (Xu Mengshan and others)—all started receiving malicious calls:
"Hey, is this Xu Mengshan? Fan Lingling borrowed 30,000 yuan from our company and hasn’t even repaid the interest. Tell her to pay up now! Don’t be so shameless!"
"Your daughter borrowed 30,000 yuan from our company, and the interest has already ballooned to 6,000. When will you repay? Or else your whole family will pay the price!"
Apple Bro still didn’t answer Fan Jia’s calls, as if he had vanished into thin air.
…The team gathered for a briefing at the police station.
You Mingxu asked, "Where is Chen Zhaoci now?"
An officer replied, "Our people have been watching him around the clock. Ten minutes ago, they reported his location—he went back to the same spot where he met Fan Jia last time. Probably has another 'business deal' going on."
You Mingxu smiled faintly at Fan Jia and said, "Your charm isn't working too well. It's only been two weeks, and he's already ruthless, ready to push you to the brink without hesitation."
Fan Jia made an indignant expression. Xu Mengshan remarked, "With her like that, even a blind man wouldn't take pity."
Just as the two were about to start bickering, Yin Feng interjected, "It's precisely because of her charm that the other side is in a hurry to close the deal in just half a month. If they dragged it out for another month or two, the interest would pile up, and their profits would be even greater. Among them, someone might have taken a special interest in Fan Jia."
Fan Jia beamed, looking smug.
Xu Mengshan snorted lightly but couldn't hide a hint of a smile.
The team's spirits lifted. You Mingxu glanced at Yin Feng, sensing that this guy always had an uncanny ability to grasp the criminal's psychology with remarkable precision.
"What's next?" Han Feng said. "How do we lure 'that person' into the trap?"
You Mingxu thought for a moment and replied, "Fan Jia should go confront Chen Zhaoci again. Whether she cries, makes a scene, or tries to seduce him—just don't let her get taken advantage of. Now it's a matter of who's more desperate. Fan Jia, you stick to Chen Zhaoci like glue and see what their next move will be."
—
Dusk fell.
The economy was sluggish, and the sprawling street felt lifeless, with few people around. Chen Zhaoci stood at the street corner, a cigarette pinched between his fingers, smoking as he waited for another easy target to take the bait.
Before long, the young college junior arrived—dull-witted and mediocre in appearance, yet his eyes gleamed with greed when discussing the loan. Chen Zhaoci had seen too many like him.
As the boy approached, Chen Zhaoci switched to his harmless, senior-student persona, smiling even more shyly than the other. He casually outlined the loan terms, as if it were just a small favor between acquaintances. He knew all too well that these kids only grew more naive and blind with each passing year, easily falling for the hook.
In no time, he led the boy to "Big Brother Li," where the contract was signed, and the money handed over. Watching the boy leave gleefully, cash stuffed in his pocket, Chen Zhaoci tucked away his own share. Big Brother Li, now wearing a completely different face, bowed and scraped as he saw him off. Chen Zhaoci patted his shoulder and headed downstairs.
But as soon as he reached the bottom of the stairs, he encountered an unexpected person.
Chen Zhaoci hadn't expected Fan Lingling to have the courage to show up here. He tossed the cigarette butt into a trash can and, under the streetlights, studied the girl who had clearly grown much more haggard and fragile.
She was still pretty and adorable—long, dark youthful hair, a pale delicate face, and two small dimples at the corners of her lips as she forced a pitiful smile for him. Her slender yet vibrant figure, full of life, could make any man's throat tighten.
Chen Zhaoci had handled too many female clients; he could almost picture her without clothes in his mind—a pale, exposed body, breasts and private parts starkly visible, holding her ID card, reciting stiff loan phrases to the camera…
These girls, they were all too greedy, too depraved.
Chen Zhaoci walked toward her, his expression turning solemn and complex. "Lingling, what are you doing here?"Fan Jia grabbed his sleeve: "Zhaoci, help me, I've been driven into a corner!"
Chen Zhaoci's gaze traveled from her slender fingers up to her tear-streaked face, saying: "Don't panic, speak slowly. I will definitely help you."
Between sobs, Fan Jia poured out her misfortunes of the past few days. Chen Zhaoci led her to sit on the roadside flower bed, remaining silent as he handed her tissues. When Fan Jia looked up, she saw profound self-reproach on his face: "I shouldn't have helped you in the first place. When I lent you the money, you said you'd repay it as soon as your online store took off. I never expected you'd now struggle to even cover the interest..."
Fan Jia wept: "I'm truly helpless, Zhaoci. What should I do? What if they track down my family and involve my parents? My father is still hospitalized..."
Chen Zhaoci said: "The priority is to repay the interest and late fees. I've checked the accounts - you already owe 6,000. If you just film a video, wouldn't that solve everything? At this critical moment, you need to make a decisive move. Your destiny and future lie in your own hands, not in others' opinions. Indecisiveness is utterly useless!"
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