“I have no other requests, I just hope Yuanyuan can live a safe and happy life. That’s the only wish of this father.” Gu Jinghan had only one mission: to protect his daughter, to ensure her safety and happiness for life. He pondered that perhaps Gu Yuanyuan’s death in her past life was not an accident but an intentional act of revenge. He checked the special phone he used to contact informants; still no news. The days of relentless work had exhausted Gu Jinghan, and he soon fell into a deep sleep, dreaming of chaotic scenes, ending with Gu Yuanyuan, covered in blood, crawling towards him, screaming for help. He woke up with a start, realizing he was in a hotel room, relieved it was just a dream. He wiped the sweat from his brow, checked the time on his watch; it was already six.
He got up to open the door for his morning routine when he heard urgent knocking. He opened the door to find Cheng Lin, “What’s wrong, Xiao Cheng?”
“Uncle, look at this.” Cheng Lin showed him his phone.
Gu Jinghan saw Gu Yuanyuan’s WeChat Moments, a short video where she was in a car driven by Wu Tianwei, with several unfamiliar young men and women, and it was his car. Shocked, he turned back to Gu Yuanyuan’s room, only to find it empty, with her car keys gone. He called her phone; it was off. Burning with anger, he went out to find her. Did she not realize she could be in danger at any moment? How could she go out with strangers in an unfamiliar place?
“Uncle, take my car, I can keep track of Yuanyuan’s movements,” Cheng Lin offered.
Gu Jinghan nodded, “Good, let’s go quickly.”
Gu Yuanyuan didn’t know that Cheng Lin had her WeChat because he had bought a female classmate’s account to keep an eye on her. Cheng Lin had tried to add her, but she hadn’t accepted, so he came up with this workaround. True to form, Gu Yuanyuan didn’t disappoint; she kept posting on her Moments, allowing Gu Jinghan and Cheng Lin to catch up with her.
“Yuanyuan, we’ve been out having fun, and everyone’s short on cash. Do you have any money? Could you lend me some for now? I’ll pay you back once my dad sends money in a few days,” Wu Tianwei said awkwardly when they reached a scenic spot.
Gu Yuanyuan generously replied, “No problem, we just met today, I’ll treat everyone. Have fun!” Gu Jinghan had always been generous with her financially; her card was linked to his secondary account, so she didn’t mind spending a little money.
Wu Tianwei and the others praised her for being generous, which made Gu Yuanyuan feel elated, ready to fulfill any request. In just half a day, she had spent tens of thousands. Upon receiving the bank notification, Gu Jinghan immediately called to freeze her card. When Gu Yuanyuan tried to pay and was informed her card was unusable, she argued with the waiter in disbelief. Wu Tianwei calmed her down, suggesting, “Yuanyuan, did your dad freeze your card?”
“He wouldn’t dare!” Though she said this, Gu Yuanyuan knew it must be Gu Jinghan’s doing; otherwise, the card wouldn’t have been declined, and she now despised him for embarrassing her in front of her friends.
“Your dad doesn’t seem to love you much if he freezes your card over just a little money.”
“Yeah, why keep such a dad?”
“If it were me, I’d cut ties with him.”
Feeling increasingly embarrassed, Gu Yuanyuan clenched her fists, hopping mad like a frog. Just then, Gu Jinghan and Cheng Lin arrived. Gu Jinghan approached, pulling Gu Yuanyuan, “Come with me!”
“I’m not going with you! How dare you freeze my card? Do you know how embarrassing this is for me in front of my friends?” Gu Yuanyuan shook him off, shouting angrily.
Gu Jinghan suppressed his anger, “Friends? They’re a bunch of swindlers.”
“Sir, you’re slandering us. We could sue you for this,” one of them said discontentedly.
Wu Tianwei glanced at the man, then turned to Gu Jinghan, “Uncle, we were just short on cash, so Yuanyuan treated us a few times. I’ll pay her back, but you can’t just call us swindlers. If that’s the case, we won’t hang out with Yuanyuan anymore.”
“Fine, if it’s a loan, leave an IOU before you go,” Gu Jinghan said coldly.
Wu Tianwei hadn’t expected him to demand an IOU and was momentarily stunned. One of his female companions said, “Gu Yuanyuan, are you playing us? You said you’d treat us, and now you’re asking for money back? If you can’t handle it, stay home and be a good girl!”
“Who said I was asking for money back? I said I’d treat you, and I won’t ask for a single cent!” Gu Yuanyuan quickly clarified.
Wu Tianwei glanced at her, then waved to the others, “Let’s go.”
“Tianwei!” Gu Yuanyuan tried to chase after him.
Gu Jinghan grabbed her arm, “Stay put! Did you not hear me? They’re swindlers, you’ve been tricked.”
A few tens of thousands, just consider it a lesson learned. If they don’t pay back, so be it, but he needed Gu Yuanyuan to realize she had been deceived, to learn from her mistake, and not easily trust strangers. “You keep calling them scammers, but what have they scammed from me?” Gu Yuanyuan asked angrily. Gu Jinghan pulled out his phone and showed her the bank message, “They scammed your money!” “I gave it willingly; they didn’t scam me.” Seeing that he couldn’t reason with her, Gu Jinghan forcibly pulled her into the car and quickly drove away. Cheng Lin rushed back to his car to follow.
Gu Jinghan took Gu Yuanyuan to the police station, where he had previously handled cases and knew the police chief. He called the chief, and they retrieved Wu Tianwei’s file. “Wu Tianwei has a history of fraud, drug use, and prostitution. Do you still think he’s a good person?” Gu Jinghan showed her the documents. Gu Yuanyuan was in disbelief and couldn’t accept that everyone she knew was bad. She didn’t reflect on herself but thought Gu Jinghan was just picking on her, preventing her from making good friends. She shot him a resentful glance and ran off. Gu Jinghan called out to her a few times, but she didn’t stop. He handed the file to the police, informed them of Wu Tianwei’s whereabouts, and asked them to keep an eye on him to prevent further harm. After finishing his instructions, Gu Yuanyuan had vanished. He quickly got into his car to chase after her.
“Wood, go buy some cigarettes.” On the roadside, in a car, a man with red hair spoke to another man with short hair. Wood responded dazedly and got out of the car. “Money, dude.” The red-haired man called out, handing him a hundred yuan. Wood took it and headed to a nearby convenience store. Inside the car, someone shook their head and said, “I really don’t know why the boss keeps this blockhead around; he’s like an idiot, what can he do?” The red-haired man said, “Wood’s kung fu is top-notch; all of us combined aren’t his match. He used to be sharp, but after a car accident over two years ago that injured his head, he’s become like this.” “I see.”
Wood bought several packs of cigarettes and walked back in a daze. Suddenly, a student on a bicycle rushed out from the roadside. Wood agilely dodged, watching the student ride off into the distance. Yet, strange images inexplicably flashed through his mind.
