Chapter 30: The Living Doll Toy

"Chen Fei killed you, and Qiangwei knows about it, right?" I ignored his provocations and asked directly.

He nodded. "Of course she knows. That woman is nothing but a loose tramp. She only dares to act so recklessly because of her connection to Mr. Liao."

"Mr. Liao? Which Mr. Liao?"

"You don't even know Mr. Liao?" He looked at me with some surprise, but quickly sneered, "Makes sense, I suppose. You’re just a measly soul collector and a poor wage slave—of course you wouldn’t know Mr. Liao."

"…I don't think not knowing him is anything to be ashamed of. But you know him, and I don’t see him doing you any favors. So, what's there to be so smug about?" I replied with a cold laugh.

Hearing this, Fang Xiaolong's face darkened at once, his head lowered, anger brimming in his eyes.

"What’s the matter? Did I hit a nerve?" Tan Xiao, noticing the dark aura swirling around him, tugged at the chain of the shackles again.

Seeing his expression, I asked directly, "If I’m not mistaken, you knew this Mr. Liao before Qiangwei did, didn't you?"

Fang Xiaolong looked up at me. "How did you know?"

"Your face just now said it all," I replied.

"That’s right. That slut Qiangwei stole Mr. Liao from me with her body," Fang Xiaolong said, seething with rage.

"Alright, since you’re so upset, why don’t you tell me more about their crimes? That way, they’ll be joining you down here soon enough," I told him.

This time, Fang Xiaolong didn't quibble further. He spilled everything about their misdeeds in the black market. That Mr. Liao, it turned out, had some unsavory preferences, and he knew others like himself. With money and influence, he was always willing to spend on his vices, so naturally, people liked being friends with him.

But Fang Xiaolong was no saint either. He liked to record things in secret, so he had evidence of both Qiangwei and Mr. Liao’s crimes.

Especially Mr. Liao—there was one time he got drunk, and Fang Xiaolong, seizing the opportunity, secretly took several incriminating photos, which he kept on his computer.

Later, I had Lin Chuan get someone to retrieve Fang Xiaolong’s home computer. Sure enough, in an encrypted folder, we found those forbidden photos.

And it wasn’t just Mr. Liao’s—there were also pictures of Qiangwei with Mr. Liao, and Chen Fei with Qiangwei. But those were just messy affairs among adults.

What I truly couldn’t tolerate were the photos with children and living doll girls. The images were too brutal, and there were also photos of Yang Minghui experimenting on children, videos of him cutting their vocal cords alive without anesthesia.

It was gut-wrenching. I wanted nothing more than to kill him right then and there.

"Is the evidence solid enough?" I asked Lin Chuan grimly.

He was furious, too, his fists clenched on the table. "More than enough. Even if they escape the death penalty, I’ll make sure they rot in prison!"

"If it can be a death sentence, let’s not waste space. I don’t mind sending several off at once," I said, my own anger burning.

If I hadn’t seen those images myself, I wouldn’t have believed people capable of such things deserved to live.

"What’s this?" Tan Xiao asked.

"Living dolls," I replied.

Tan Xiao stared at me in disbelief. "The girl in the video—she’s alive?"

I nodded. I remembered what the little girl had told me yesterday. Her 'sister' must be the girl in the video—no arms, only half her legs left, her whole body wrapped in black tape except for her head and between her legs.

"It’s monstrous. How could they keep hurting her like that?" Tan Xiao said, beside herself with anger.

"To them, she’s just a toy. Anyone going to the black market wouldn’t feel pity for a toy," Fang Xiaolong replied.

Looking at those photos and videos left a bitter taste in my mouth. But for those with such perversions, it was exactly what they craved.

"Xiao Bei, thank you for gathering so much evidence. From here, just leave the interrogation and arrests to us. You’re welcome to observe," Lin Chuan said, closing the laptop.

I nodded and watched from outside the interrogation room as he questioned Chen Fei.

Chen Fei, knowing Qiangwei had connections, was blasé at first. But when Lin Chuan told him that Mr. Liao had also been arrested, he immediately grew compliant.

With so much evidence, Chen Fei eventually confessed. But Qiangwei was another story. She insisted she’d only been promiscuous in her private life, not done anything illegal in the black market.

Seeing her so confident, Lin Chuan could only detain her for now—he only had photos of her with the two men, after all. At least, this time, there was no pressure from above to wrap things up quickly.

"Captain Lin!" The cyber police soon approached Lin Chuan.

"Captain, the black market pass is ready, but he wants our delivery address. What should we do?" Xiao Luo asked.

"Just use a hotel for the delivery," Lin Chuan replied.

"Got it!" Xiao Luo hurried off to arrange it.

I suddenly remembered He Yanran was still at the hotel. "Make sure you don’t use my hotel as the delivery address," I told Lin Chuan.

"Don’t worry—it’s fine. In fact, using your hotel makes it safer. They know that’s not the real address," Lin Chuan reassured me.

His logic made sense, but I was still worried about He Yanran’s safety. I turned to Tan Xiao. "Could you help me find a female ghost to watch over He Yanran?"

"Of course. Are you worried something will happen to her?" Tan Xiao asked.

I nodded. "Yes. I’m already involved in this mess. I’m afraid they’ll trace me and go after her."

"I’ll get a little ghost to keep an eye on her," Tan Xiao said, and promptly disappeared. Soon, she returned with a little ghost in tow and instructed her, "The Soul Collector has a task for you. Do it well and you’ll be rewarded."

"I will do my best!" the little ghost replied obediently.

"Xingyuan Hotel, room 305. Watch over the woman there, wherever she goes or stays. But don’t get close enough to scare her," I said.

"Do you want me to spy on her?" the little ghost asked, looking at me.

"No, just protect her for me. If she’s in danger, let me know at once."

"Understood!"

"Go," I said, and she vanished.

So I waited at the precinct for Lin Chuan’s interrogation, while the cyber police dug into Yang Minghui’s information.

At that moment, Tan Xiao approached. "Zhang Xiaobei, there’s another task!"

"Who is it this time?"

She pointed to the photo of the living doll girl we’d seen on Fang Xiaolong’s computer earlier. "It’s her."

I was stunned. "She’s dead?"

Tan Xiao nodded.

"Where is she?"

"According to the information I received, the body is on Qianyuan Road."

"I understand," I said, and after informing Lin Chuan, prepared to head to Qianyuan Road with Tan Xiao and the two little ghosts.

But Lin Chuan stopped me. "Xiaobei, are you going alone? Should I call some—"

"No need, Lin. This is something you can’t help with. More people will just make things harder," I cut him off.

He nodded, and I hurried outside to hail a cab to Qianyuan Road.

When I arrived, I asked Tan Xiao, "Do you know where the body is?"

"Yes, follow me," she said, leading me to the old street on Qianyuan Road. There were many old houses here, most scheduled for demolition, and no surveillance cameras around.

We stopped under an old apartment building. "Wait here. I’ll go check first," Tan Xiao said.

I waited. Before long, she returned. "She’s dead, and her resentment is immense. But because of the torment Yang Minghui put her through, she’s now terrified of him, even in death."

I couldn’t help but sneer. Yang Minghui had managed to become someone even ghosts feared—his presence now more intimidating than mine as a soul collector.

But from what she said, was Yang Minghui here too? I asked, "What’s the situation inside?"

The old apartment was two units per floor, but Yang Minghui had merged them, even building a secret door. One side was his living quarters; the other, his laboratory.

"His laboratory? So the girl’s body is in his lab?" I asked.

"Yes. He hasn’t disposed of it."

"Damn it. He won’t even let her go in death," I said, moving to knock on Yang Minghui’s door.

Tan Xiao grabbed my arm. "Be careful. He’s not easy to deal with."

I nodded, then knocked on the door.

There was no response at first, so I knocked again.

"Should I go in and open it for you?" Tan Xiao offered.

I shook my head, signaling her to wait, as I heard footsteps approaching.

The door cracked open. Yang Minghui’s face was cold as he asked, "Who are you looking for?"

"Sorry to bother you. I’m with the community gas safety inspection team, here for a routine check."

"My gas isn’t used much. It’s very safe," he replied, still composed, showing none of the guilt of a murderer.

But I wasn’t going to back down. "Sorry, we have to check every home, whether you use it or not. I need to take a photo and mark it down. Otherwise, I can’t do my job."

Seeing my polite demeanor and youthful appearance, Yang Minghui agreed to let me in. No doubt, he thought he could handle me if things got physical.

I acted as if it were just business, inspecting the kitchen, snapping a photo of the old water heater. "Looks like it’s getting old. You don’t use it often, do you?"