Chapter 10

“I knew it,” the technician said with a click of her tongue, sounding half envious and half resentful. Even so, her hands never stopped working. “For the past two months, she’s suddenly been spending money like water. Before, she’d agonize for days over ordering a bowl of spicy hotpot for lunch. Now she’ll buy a gold bracelet worth over ten thousand yuan without batting an eye!”

She curled her lip.

“So that’s what happened. She made a scene at the Public Security Bureau and squeezed some compensation out of them. Society’s way too forgiving these days. As long as you’re shameless enough and refuse to be reasonable, there’s always a way to profit.”

A faint crease appeared between Luo Jingyao’s brows.

That wasn’t quite the answer she’d expected.

The copycat version of the June 13 Serial Murder Case had only surfaced last week, and Wang Guifen had only begun causing trouble at the bureau within the past few days. The police had already confirmed that there had been no procedural mistakes in Huang Guojun’s original case, which meant there was no reason whatsoever for the authorities to compensate her.

Still, the information wasn’t entirely useless.

Wang Guifen was one of the lowest-ranking employees in the spa, a basic service worker whose income was relatively fixed—base salary plus attendance bonuses. Under what circumstances would someone who had always lived frugally suddenly be able to spend so freely?

And could it somehow be connected to her recent outburst at the police station?

Thoughts raced through Luo Jingyao’s mind, yet outwardly she revealed nothing, casually continuing the conversation with the technician.

Unfortunately, by the time the treatment ended, she hadn’t managed to uncover anything else of value.

After seeing off Sister Fang, the beauty consultant who looked thoroughly satisfied with her service, Luo Jingyao changed into the bathrobe provided by the spa while organizing her thoughts. Then, under the guidance of a staff member, she took the elevator upstairs.

The second floor was spacious and largely unobstructed. Decorative partitions made of lush greenery divided the area into public lounges, entertainment sections, and dining spaces.

The moment she stepped out of the elevator, she spotted Pang Guang leaning against an arcade machine in the distance, watching something intently.

He was so unusually focused that he didn’t even notice her approaching from behind.

Two minutes later, a cheerful failure tune rang out from the machine. The little boy monopolizing it had finally exhausted all of his tokens. Head drooping, he shuffled away, glancing back every few steps with obvious reluctance.

The instant the child left, Pang Guang practically lunged toward the machine.

Digging a pitiful handful of tokens from the pocket of his men’s bathrobe, he stuffed two into the slot without hesitation.

Then he grabbed the joystick and began playing.

Or rather, from Luo Jingyao’s perspective, he barely seemed to be playing at all.

His movements were casual to the point of carelessness.

Just as she was beginning to wonder what he was doing, the familiar failure jingle sounded once more.

Yet instead of being discouraged, Pang Guang looked even more excited.

Without missing a beat, he inserted another two tokens and started again.

The same lazy attitude.

The same perfunctory movements.

The only difference was that his long face was gradually turning a deep purplish red.

Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding!

A sharp, unexpected alarm exploded through the arcade.

The machine lit up from top to bottom, flashing dazzling lights. The spectacle immediately drew everyone’s attention.

Moments later, a torrent of tokens poured out from the bottom of the machine.

Pang Guang nearly danced with joy.

Using the front of his bathrobe as a makeshift pouch, he carefully gathered up his winnings before grinning from ear to ear and heading straight for the prize counter.

Along the way, he happened to run into the same little boy who had been playing the machine earlier.

The shameless man even waggled his eyebrows and made faces at the kid.

The child burst into tears on the spot.

Luo Jingyao could only stare in stunned disbelief.

“Most arcade machines like these are programmed with hidden settings,” a familiar voice suddenly explained from behind her.

She turned to find Lin Jiafan standing there.

“At this sort of probability-based system, Pang Guang is especially gifted. Usually all he needs is a few minutes of observation to figure out the trick behind it.”

Lin Jiafan paused before adding dryly, “He’s actually a lot more restrained these days because of work. Back when he was in school, he made it onto the blacklist of practically every arcade in the city. More than a few owners hired people to drag him into alleys and give him a ‘lesson.’”

Luo Jingyao blinked.

“And yet he kept going back?”

“Of course.” Lin Jiafan’s lips twitched faintly. “The more an owner tried to teach him a lesson, the more determined he became to target that arcade. Which naturally led to even harsher lessons afterward.”

Speechless, Luo Jingyao’s mouth twitched.

“Well… Officer Pang is still a highly specialized talent. A unique stress-relief hobby is understandable.”

Lin Jiafan merely let out a low chuckle through his nose.

Not long afterward, Pang Guang came trotting back toward them, hugging an enormous polar bear plushie nearly as large as himself.

“Coach Luo’s finally here!” he exclaimed happily. “Boss, can we go enjoy ourselves now?”

Lin Jiafan shot him a sidelong glance before jerking his chin toward the hallway.

“Follow me.”

Soon, the three of them arrived at a guest room furnished with two single beds.

Before either Luo Jingyao or Pang Guang could ask what they were doing there, someone knocked on the door.

A male and a female massage therapist entered.

“These two are in your hands,” Lin Jiafan said, folding his arms across his chest.

With his handsome, refined appearance, he looked absurdly innocent.

The next thing Luo Jingyao knew, she and Pang Guang had each been coaxed—and quite firmly pushed—onto separate beds.

Before she could even take a proper breath, a shriek erupted beside her.

It sounded less like a human being and more like a pig being slaughtered.

At the same moment, a powerful pressure dug into the muscles near her shoulder blades, bringing a dull, aching pain.

But for Luo Jingyao, this level of discomfort barely registered.

The recovery sessions she endured after intense training were far more brutal than a simple acupressure massage.

While she remained expressionless throughout the entire ordeal, Pang Guang’s experience was nothing short of catastrophic.

Forty agonizing minutes later, the massage therapists finally stopped.

Pang Guang collapsed onto the bed like a discarded rag.

Worn out.

Broken.

Utterly devoid of a soul.

Only after the therapists left and the room was once again occupied solely by the three of them did he sniff pitifully and glare at the man seated in the rattan chair near the foot of the bed.

His reddened eyes made him look unexpectedly pathetic.

“I knew there was no way your generosity came free!”

A trace of amusement flashed through Lin Jiafan’s eyes.

It vanished almost immediately as he returned to business.

“Pang Guang and I both found opportunities to ask around downstairs and upstairs about Wang Guifen. Nothing particularly unexpected turned up.”

“How can you say that?” Pang Guang protested. “Didn’t we discover that nobody likes her?”

Over the past two hours, they had spoken to at least eight or ten employees.

Every single one reacted strangely whenever Wang Guifen’s name came up.

The more outgoing staff members would casually bring up some of her infamous past behavior.

As for the quieter ones, even they couldn’t completely hide the meaningful expressions that crossed their faces.

“With a personality like hers, it’s not surprising people dislike her,” Pang Guang concluded with a dismissive curl of his lips.

Lin Jiafan turned his attention to Luo Jingyao.

Stretching lazily, she rolled her neck before reporting, “I never actually saw Wang Guifen. I didn’t want to attract suspicion by seeking her out deliberately. But I did hear something interesting from one of the beauty consultants.”

“She said Wang Guifen has suddenly become wealthy recently. Do you think it could be connected to her making trouble at the police station?”

Lin Jiafan fell silent for two seconds.

“It’s certainly possible.”

If someone really had put Wang Guifen up to causing trouble, then what was their ultimate goal?

To mislead the investigation?

To disrupt the police’s current line of inquiry?

The theory seemed both reasonable and somehow not.

Silence settled over the room.

Pang Guang sat cross-legged on the edge of the bed, looking as though the weight of the world rested on his shoulders.

The furrow between Lin Jiafan’s brows was equally pronounced.

Only Luo Jingyao’s gaze moved back and forth between the two men.

Deep down, she wanted to help.

But different professions were separated by mountains.

She honestly didn’t know where to begin.

In the end, it was a phone call that shattered the headache-inducing atmosphere.

The conversation was brief, but as Lin Jiafan listened, his expression changed.

He rose immediately.

“Brother Guo and the forensic department have made new progress. They’ve confirmed the identity of the latest victim.”

His voice sharpened.

“We’re heading back to the station. As for Wang Guifen, we’ll have to take a longer-term approach.”

Pang Guang had no objections.

Luo Jingyao felt a little disappointed, but she wisely kept her opinions to herself.

She wasn’t a police officer.

She couldn’t know that sometimes the key to solving an entire case lay hidden within a seemingly insignificant clue.

That was why neither Lin Jiafan nor Pang Guang appeared discouraged.

Investigations had always been like this.

You repeated countless dead ends and fruitless efforts before finally finding the one path that led to the truth.

Without another word, the three of them went their separate ways.

Luo Jingyao took the elevator alone back to the women’s section on the first floor.

Stepping out, she found the corridor unusually quiet.

There were probably very few customers that morning.

After briefly orienting herself, she started back the way she had come.

Yet before she had gone more than a few meters, sounds drifting from an employee lounge on her right brought her to an abrupt halt.

Whatever the staff inside were discussing seemed highly entertaining.

Every few dozen seconds, another burst of hearty laughter erupted from the room.

Among the voices was one she found strangely familiar.

Luo Jingyao moved closer to the door and listened carefully.

The moment she heard footsteps approaching from inside, she swiftly retreated behind a nearby marble pillar.

She had barely concealed herself when the lounge door opened.

Wang Guifen emerged alongside another employee.

The two women chatted and laughed as they walked.

At the upcoming intersection, they separated and headed in opposite directions.

At that exact moment, a customer entered from the opposite side.

Wang Guifen instantly greeted the guest with a bright, professional smile.

After checking the customer’s electronic wristband, she escorted them into a private bathing room.

Then she stepped back out.

Crossing to a storage cabinet containing service supplies, she picked up a black cup, filled it with water, and returned to the room.

Luo Jingyao maintained a careful distance the entire time, observing every step of the process.

Yet something felt… off.

Very off.

Wait.

That cup!

To be continued…