We had visited the jade street once before and were familiar with it. Da Huang and I went straight to Old Wang’s shop next door. To my surprise, the owner was a woman.
I frowned and thought hard. Da Huang went out to check again and then walked back, "That’s right, it should be this shop."
"How did the owner change?"
Such schemes, if I hadn’t experienced one before, I wouldn’t believe someone would set them up like this. Senior Sister had used a similar tactic, fabricating a family background. Thus, I had experience this time.
"I’ll explain later. We need to get to Ye Qingcheng’s home as soon as possible."
"Why go to her house?"
"If we’re lucky, the traces in her home may not have been completely erased. We might still be able to find them based on the clues."
...
Da Huang couldn’t understand me, but he trusted me. Since I said so, he didn’t ask further and chose to follow me. We returned to Ye Qingcheng’s home at the fastest speed. The moving company had already left, the furniture inside was emptied, and several renovation workers were destructively dismantling things.
"Boss, can I ask you one thing? Is the owner of this house named Ye Qingcheng, around 45 years old?"
"I heard this family was an old couple who went to Foshan to retire, so they sold the house."
I looked at the empty flower room. "Who bought this house? Why are you dismantling it?"
"Not sure. This should be a new house bought for their son, and they’re redecorating it."
"Have you met the people who bought the house?"
The renovation workers became a bit displeased and asked with surprise, "Who are you? Why are you asking so many questions?"
"We are from the Beijing Municipal Criminal Investigation Bureau, investigating a financial dispute. I don’t have my credentials with me at the moment, but you can verify my identity with the police station. Tang Nan, Criminal Investigation Bureau. I’m sure they’ll give you feedback."
After revealing our identity as from the Criminal Investigation Bureau, the renovation worker leader became much more subdued. "No problem, officer. You investigate your case, and we'll continue later."
"What did the person who signed the contract with you look like?"
"He was wearing a suit and tie, looked like an elite, very generous. The first installment for the renovation has already been paid. He said his father helped him buy the house, and he was renovating it himself."
What the renovation workers said didn’t match the people we had encountered at all.
"Can I take a look inside?"
"Please, feel free."
When we went inside, many places were violently dismantled, a mess. Da Huang looked around and asked me confusedly, "Tang Nan, what are we looking for?"
"I don't know."
"Then why are we wasting time here?"
"If we don't look here, where else do you think we can go?"
At this moment, I was also feeling anxious. This scheme wasn't without a trace. If I hadn't been so focused on identifying Kuai Zui Ya, I would have seen through the scheme from the subtle clues. But I was a step too late and was completely on the defensive.
"Brother Da Huang, you go to the kitchen, and I’ll stay in the flower room. Let’s search thoroughly. Even though we don’t know what we’re looking for, if anything seems suspicious, call me, and we can analyze it together."
Da Huang went to the kitchen, and I stayed in the flower room. Most of the flower room floor had been dismantled, but the walls were made of PVC panels. I removed them one by one. Nothing. No clues. Da Huang was the same as me, finding nothing.
Helpless, I went to the kitchen to wash my hands. The renovation workers hadn’t dismantled the bathroom when they were removing things. Firstly, it was difficult to dismantle, and secondly, it could still be used for the toilet and sink.
There was a mirror above the sink. After washing my hands, I splashed some water on my face to calm down. Looking at my slightly disheveled face in the mirror, my eyes suddenly stopped. I saw some blurry traces on the mirror that were difficult to make out.
I called Da Huang over. Da Huang stared at it and shook his head. I was a bit speechless. It seemed someone had written something, and when it was seen, it was wiped away.
"What do we do?" Da Huang asked me.
"It's been wiped away, there's no way to restore it."
"Wiped away?"
Da Huang touched the mirror and immediately shook his head, continuing, "No, no, it wasn’t wiped away. The writing on it is because the mirror surface was dirty, causing the marks. Could it be?"
Da Huang deciphered the design of the mirror. He pondered, then leaned closer to the mirror and sniffed, "It smells."
"What kind of smell is it?" I also sniffed, but I was unfamiliar with it.
"I don't know."
"Let’s take the mirror down and bring it with us."
...
In Guangzhou, Da Huang and I didn’t have any relatives or friends. However, before coming to Guangzhou, I had asked Ning Caishén to buy a shop. Because it was urgent, I hadn’t contacted him yet.
Ning Caishén’s efficiency was very reassuring. After I called, I learned some things. In just a few days, his shop had already opened. Since he couldn’t do the jade business directly in the short term, he collaborated with an old craftsman who specialized in inlay work and sold gold. Because of the opening promotion, the prices were low.
When Da Huang and I arrived at the shop, it was still bustling with people.
...
Many people were buying gold today, so the workshop was idle. Ning Caishén led Da Huang and me into the workshop, then asked, "This brother has been clutching this mirror nervously. What is it?"
"A clue, but we haven’t deciphered it yet."
Da Huang added, "It smells, but we don't know what was used to write on the mirror surface."
Ning Caishén nodded, "Oh, a blank scroll of wisdom."
Da Huang almost got agitated upon hearing this, "What blank scroll of wisdom? I’m looking for someone here, do you think I’m joking around with you?"
I knew that Lin Han was still missing, and Da Huang was anxious. I could only help Da Huang by saying, "Ning Caishén, don't blame Brother Da Huang. He's anxious. Don't joke around for now."
"I’m not joking. The blank scroll of wisdom is a basic technique in setting up schemes. It's a compulsory course for The Schemer in the scenario stage system."
"Have you studied it?"
"It's colorless fluorescent ink. It has no color itself, but it can be seen under a UV light. The 1990 edition of 100 yuan and 50 yuan notes have Arabic numerals and Renminbi denominations printed with this ink. Under UV light, they emit yellow, red, blue... the fluorescence is clearly visible. As for the content, these are just minor tricks."
To Ning Caishén, these were indeed minor tricks, considering he had been involved in a counterfeit money scam. For Da Huang and me, this was a professional barrier.
However, it didn't matter, let's look at the content.
SOS: Tang Nan, if you see this message, please contact Train K to rescue me. I was taken hostage by my tool people without any secret orders. The sky is changing, Old K is in trouble.
...
Being held hostage by tool people. The Four Colors of Old K received secret orders and then commanded twelve tool people to execute missions. The current situation is that one of the Four Colors of Old K, Kuai Zui Ya, has been taken hostage, and the tool people have started setting up their own schemes. They can no longer be considered tool people. Based on the situation I've encountered, these individuals have clearly become true schemers.