He Huiran was a stay-at-home mother.
Today was her eldest daughter’s birthday.
The family’s financial situation was usually not great, so they rarely bought snacks.
But today the snack shop had a promotional sale, so after sending her eldest daughter to school, He Huiran brought her youngest daughter to the snack shop.
He Huiran’s plan was to buy snacks her eldest daughter liked, and order a small cake too.
That way, when the child came home from school, she would definitely be pleasantly surprised.
While she was picking out snacks, in the blink of an eye—she looked down, and her youngest daughter, who had been tagging along at her feet, was gone.
He Huiran called out: “Erbao, Erbao.”
In that instant, her heart shot straight up into her throat.
The snack shop wasn’t small, and He Huiran thought her youngest daughter was too short to be seen, blocked by the counters.
She called out as she searched, drawing the stares of everyone around.
But she searched the entire snack shop and still couldn’t find her youngest daughter.
He Huiran hurried outside.
Pedestrians came and went on the sidewalk, cars flowed past on the road, but nowhere could she see a child that tiny.
She rushed back into the snack shop and grabbed the clerk’s clothes: “My child is missing, please, I beg you, let me look at your store’s surveillance footage.”
The clerk was busy—today was a promotional day, so busy she wished she could split herself in two.
Hearing the customer’s plea, the clerk just shook her head: “We don’t have the authority to check the surveillance footage.”
He Huiran was crying by now: “Please, my child is really missing, I need to see the footage.”
“Ma’am, we genuinely don’t have the authority to check the surveillance. Look, there are all these people lining up behind you. Please don’t hold everyone up because of your personal problem.”
He Huiran looked at the crowd, quickly pulled out her phone, and showed a photo of her youngest daughter to everyone: “Excuse me, have you seen this child?”
She asked one person after another, and all she got in return were shaking heads.
Some people even snapped at her: “Instead of wasting time asking around, you should call the police right now.”
In her panic, He Huiran only then remembered to call the police. She spoke incoherently, and in the end, it was a passerby who couldn’t bear to watch.
“Snack shop, a two-year-old child is missing.”
Liu Ce received the report and glanced at Shen Wangshu in surprise.
Shen Wangshu tapped her finger on the address written on the desk: “It’s here.”
Liu Ce took a deep breath.
Shen Wangshu spoke smoothly: “I know, I know—superstition isn’t allowed. This was deduced through reasoning.”
For safety’s sake, Liu Ce still split into two teams—one went to the snack shop, and one went to the address Shen Wangshu had given.
The snack shop had already descended into chaos.
Today’s promotion was fifty percent off, so there were tons of people.
Unable to find her child, He Huiran made a public scene, blocking the entrance and refusing to let anyone leave.
Her behavior drew resentment from many people present.
Some even started cursing at her.
“Are you here to cause trouble because they just opened with a promotion? Did the snack shop next door hire you to put on a show?”
“This is ridiculous. If there are this many people, don’t bring your kid out. You’re just causing trouble for everyone else.”
He Huiran couldn’t voice her pain: “My child is really missing. As long as the clerk lets me see the surveillance, you can all leave. I’m begging you, my child is really gone.”
She couldn’t think of any other way. She only knew that every second that passed meant more danger for her child.
She tried to use the crowd to pressure the snack shop, but she never expected people’s hearts to be so cold.
It wasn’t until the police arrived that the scene was brought under control.
But the clerk still didn’t have the authority to touch the surveillance—she had to ask the boss.
That request cost even more time.
By then, He Huiran was crying so hard she could barely breathe.
She kept pleading desperately, but the answer she got was still that they had to ask for approval, that they had to follow proper procedure.
Meanwhile, Liu Ce learned about the situation over there.
He arrived at the address Shen Wangshu had given.
His subordinate was very confused: “Ce-ge, what are we doing here? The snack shop is on that street. Even if we’re doing a sweep, it wouldn’t reach this street—this is three streets away.”
How was Liu Ce supposed to explain?
He couldn’t explain it.
He felt he must be insane to believe Shen Wangshu’s words.
Liu Ce led his subordinate upstairs.
He pressed the button for the 18th floor.
After getting out of the elevator, Liu Ce found a spot and crouched down.
His subordinate couldn’t understand what he was doing, so he crouched down too.
Half an hour passed.
Only then was the surveillance footage from the snack shop retrieved.
When He Huiran entered the snack shop with her youngest daughter, a woman had followed them in as well.
Then, while He Huiran wasn’t paying attention, the woman tore open a lollipop wrapper and lured He Huiran’s youngest daughter out of the snack shop.
The woman was wearing a blue top and black pants.
The child was wearing yellow clothes with two little pigtails.
Liu Ce’s subordinate had been crouching there with Liu Ce for half an hour.
He finally couldn’t hold it in anymore: “Ce-ge, there’s something I don’t know if I should say.”
Liu Ce: “Then don’t say it.”
He knew what his subordinate was going to say. He didn’t have confidence in this either.
Shen Wangshu was indeed impressive, but if things weren’t as Shen Wangshu had said, he would be disciplined for this.
Liu Ce crouched there, feeling time pass slowly. He decided to wait one more minute.
His subordinate gritted his teeth. “No, I have to say it. Ce-ge, what are we doing crouching here? We’re on a case, not slacking off.”
Liu Ce said, “Then use your brain and think about it.”
His subordinate was silent for a moment. “Ce-ge, I can’t figure out why a missing kid would be here. It’s not like a rabbit running into a tree. What’s the point of you waiting here like a fool? You think a kid’s just going to show up?”
The elevator dinged.
Both of them turned to look at the elevator doors.
A woman and a child stepped out.
The woman wore a blue top and black pants.
The child wore yellow clothes, had two pigtails, and a lollipop in her mouth.
His subordinate’s eyes went wide.
They actually…
They actually crouched there and a kid really showed up?!
The woman didn’t see Liu Ce and his subordinate. She carried the child and walked straight toward the window.
Liu Ce sprang up and charged over. The moment the woman was about to throw the child out the window, he tackled her to the ground, catching the child in his arms.
Adrenaline surged in an instant. Liu Ce clutched the child tightly, his breathing ragged like it hadn’t been in a long time.
His subordinate also restrained the woman.
He shouted excitedly, “Ce-ge, that’s insane! How did you know the suspect would come here?”
The suspect was caught, the child was rescued. They wrapped up.
After interrogation, it turned out the woman had some mental issues.
Liu Ce looked at Shen Wangshu, who was eating instant noodles in the meeting room.
Last time she’d eaten a bowl of instant noodles here.
This time she was eating instant noodles again.
Liu Ce took off his jacket and sat down across from Shen Wangshu.
Shen Wangshu was slurping down the last bite.
Liu Ce said, “Last time you provided a lead on the missing women case, the two thousand yuan has been approved. Shaohua said you’re not in good health, so you should eat less instant noodles.”
Shen Wangshu chewed and swallowed the last bite of noodles slowly before pulling out a card. “Transfer it here then.”
Liu Ce noted down the number. “The account holder is Shen Wangshu, right?”
Shen Wangshu shook her head. “The account holder is Gu Qingyan.”
Liu Ce was stunned.
This card belonged to Gu Qingyan—that was even more shocking than Shen Wangshu calculating where the child was!
Shen Wangshu continued, “It’s easier to chase after Gu Qingyan.”
Liu Ce was even more stunned.
He entered the card number, entered Gu Qingyan’s name, and the transfer went through successfully.
He felt that his earlier advice for Shen Wangshu to take care of her health and win a gold medal for the country was slapping him right in the face.
Liu Ce was so shocked he couldn’t help but laugh. “Student Shen, how many more surprises do you have?”
Shen Wangshu blinked. “Officer, I want to report a crime.”
Liu Ce: “!!”
The second shockwave hit!
Liu Ce took a deep breath. From the moment Shen Wangshu appeared with Gu Qingyan’s bank card, he felt that even if the sky fell, he could accept it.
Liu Ce adjusted to a professional attitude. “Go ahead, what do you want to report?”
Shen Wangshu: “Fraud.”
Just then.
Gu Qingyan received a text message about two thousand yuan being deposited into his bank account.
There were also words like “lead provided” and “transfer from the Public Security Bureau.”
Gu Qingyan dialed the three-digit hotline. “I want to report a crime. I suspect my card has been fraudulently used by a scam ring.”