Insights Chapter 116: Damn

Chapter 116: Damn

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Karai

In the afternoon, after finishing their conversation, the police obtained a lot of important information. Bai Meng quickly searched and found Yan Chi’s personal information. He was 25 years old, from a small town, graduated with a bachelor’s degree in computer science, tall and handsome, giving the impression of being talented.

This was obviously what Liao Qing mentioned before, tempting those “fish” with “bait”. When Gu Yanchen first saw that eerie scene, he felt it was difficult to explain the mindset of the person disposing of the body. But if the person killing, handling the scene, and disposing of the body were actually three different individuals, then the scene would be much easier to explain and understand.

Yan Chi, as the one disposing of the body, hoped someone would discover Xia Tian’en’s corpse. Finding this Yan Chi became the key to solving the case.

Gu Yanchen made arrangements, “Bai Meng, contact the detective team and the cyber police, and locate Yan Chi’s whereabouts as soon as possible.”

Bai Meng replied, “The signal is intermittent, but we are working hard to pinpoint it.”

Gu Yanchen frowned, recalling something, and asked, “Has Yu Shen been keeping an eye on the movements of the vehicles under the name of the Mansion 13 and its affiliated companies recently? How are they doing?”

Bai Meng replied, “Let me ask…” Then she continued, “Yu Shen said those people are gathering in the west of the city.”

The hunter follows the trail of the prey.

Gu Yanchen quickly deduced, “Yan Chi should also be in the west of the city. Have Lu Ying and Yu Shen assemble the members of the criminal investigation team, ready to depart at any time.”

After finishing the call with Bai Meng, Gu Yanchen turned to Li Zhongnan and Shen Junci, “I’ll go to the meeting with the team immediately. Also, if we can find the connection between Xie Yuna and Yan Chi, they might realize it too. Considering there have been attempts to take Xie Yuna away, I think this place might not be safe.”

Although today’s conversation wouldn’t be recorded, Xie Yuna was still an important witness for them.

Xie Yuna looked puzzled, “Then what should I do? Move to another house again?”

Shen Junci suggested, “Should we temporarily accommodate her at our place?”

He and Gu Yanchen lived together, and there was an empty room across from theirs.

Gu Yanchen nodded, “That’s possible. Currently, it’s relatively safe there.”

Li Zhongnan said, “Then I’ll accompany Shen Junci to take Xie Yuna there, and we’ll have another meeting later.”

With that settled, they split up. Gu Yanchen got into the car and drove straight to the City Bureau.

Upon arrival, Bai Meng gave him some good news, “We’ve located Yan Chi’s exact address. It’s in a warehouse in the west of the city. And we found out he has a fellow townsman working there.”

Gu Yanchen said, “That must be it. We’re ready to depart.”

At this moment, Yan Chi was hiding in a building in the west of Penang City. He had initially planned to leave Penang and escape back to his hometown. However, before he could leave the city, he saw the mansion’s car near the toll booth and hurriedly turned back. Later, he realized he had been too impulsive. He wasn’t prepared enough; his card was frozen, and he couldn’t access cash.

His actions this time thoroughly angered the mansion. As long as any way out of the city came to his mind, the mansion had people searching for him. His former colleagues, who had now turned their heads, were searching for him everywhere. The situation was even more dire than he had imagined. But Yan Chi didn’t regret what he had done.

He hid first. This was where his fellow townsman, Xin Zining, worked. Xin Zining was a warehouse security guard, and they had had dinner together a few times. Their relationship was quite good. Now that something had happened, he came to seek refuge with Xin Zining. Xin Zining didn’t ask much and arranged for him to stay here.

This was a semi-abandoned old factory building, with hardly anyone around usually. The building had a total of four floors, converted into warehouse storage space, with goods categorized and stored accordingly.

In the afternoon, Xin Zining said he would help him go out to see the situation. But after Xin Zining went out, he never came back.

The sky began to gradually darken. Yan Chi huddled in the warehouse, feeling increasingly nervous and uneasy. He blinked his eyes, gazing into the bewildering unknown darkness, reminiscing about his life. He was 25 years old this year.

During college, he studied computer science, various programming languages, linear algebra, discrete mathematics, and after graduation, he became a programmer, working hard with a schedule of 996 every day. At this time, his mother suddenly fell ill and was hospitalized, with three-fourths of her stomach removed. Hearing his father’s sighs over the phone, without a second thought, he sent all his savings over.

After the surgery, there were still many medical expenses to be covered. His father couldn’t work while taking care of his mother, so the burden of life fell on him. Every time his father asked, he couldn’t bear to refuse. He kept sending money home, accumulating more and more debt on his credit cards and on platforms like Huabei (a Chinese credit service), and he became increasingly anxious.

At that time, a senior from college came to him. The senior lived a very glamorous life, well-dressed every day, and claimed to know a way to make money quickly. He was intrigued and asked the senior to introduce him to a job or lend him some money for emergencies. But Yan Chi never expected that the money borrowed from that person would come with high interest.

Soon, the interest piled up rapidly. After half a year, not only had he not paid off the original debt, but he also owed over a hundred thousand more. Those people threatened him, took photos of him, and claimed they would cut off his fingers if he didn’t pay.

Then a man appeared and asked him, “Would you like to work for us? Your salary can go toward paying off your debts. We’ll give you money to treat your mother, provide you with a good house to live in, and give you a nice car to drive.”

He hastily agreed. That man became his manager later on, named Li Yiyang. He brought him to Mansion 13. At that time, he never imagined that it was the beginning of his falling into a trap. Those wealthy people were truly idle. His job turned out to be chasing after girls for them. Someone cut his hair, shaved his stubble, gave him a makeover, dressed him in fitting clothes, taught him manners, and a week later, he hardly recognized himself in the mirror.

He already had a decent foundation, and after the transformation, he became even more handsome. Then someone taught him various ways to talk to girls, helped him create a good family background, fabricated a financial profession for him, and he practiced sweet talk until it flowed naturally.

After that, he drove luxury cars, occasionally went to the gym, and frequented various bars, restaurants, and entertainment venues. Soon, he became popular with girls because of his youthful and handsome appearance. Gradually, he became more accustomed to this kind of lifestyle. With a flick of his wrist, he could swipe various cards, and his pockets were filled with business cards of various positions.

Once he had honed his skills, he pursued the girls designated by his boss. A cup of coffee, some jokes, a pick-up line, a chance encounter. He found that under the perfect packaging, those girls were not so reserved. Each of his relationships was at the company’s behest.

They set targets for him, told him how to progress, and even provided him with small gifts to please the girls. The previously hand-to-mouth existence finally saw a turning point. His mother’s health improved somewhat, and life seemed to be back on track.

“I haven’t harmed anyone, have I? It’s all just a game. I’m doing it for my family. When I earn enough money and pay off my debts, I can return to my hometown.” He even began to entertain the thought that maybe this way of life wasn’t so bad after all.

Just when he was very satisfied with this life, those people began to make him change girlfriends. He would block his past girlfriends and pursue new targets. Unaware and unthinking, he had no idea how the boss made his money.

Until one day, a colleague told him the truth. Pointing to a nearby camera, the colleague typed a line on his phone’s memo, “We and those girls are being watched. We are actors hired by the boss.”

He broke out in a cold sweat, realizing that there were people who enjoyed spending money to pry into others’ lives. Even more terrifying was that everything he and those girls did, even in bed, was watched by thousands of people.

One day after that, in a clubhouse, he saw a girl he had dated before. The girl had obviously been beaten, with blood stains on her skirt. She stumbled out of a room, looking like a broken doll. When the girl looked up, she recognized her mysteriously disappeared ex-boyfriend. She immediately reacted, her eyes fixed on him, her teeth gnashing. Then she began to curse him loudly with all the vicious words she knew.

Yan Chi stood still, frozen in the corridor, until the manager urged him, “Get her back here!”

Only then did he stiffly pull the girl into the room with the colleagues who rushed over. Then he deeply realized what he had done, to the point where he would be awakened by nightmares. But later, that girl didn’t call the police, and it seemed that the matter passed. Then, on another occasion, he saw a secretly filmed video on a friend’s phone. Although the angle didn’t show the man’s face, he recognized himself.

He felt he had degraded into an irredeemable scum of a person. A demon cloaked in human skin. Just the thought of what he had done made him feel nauseous. He wanted to struggle out of the mire, but he was already trapped. If he resisted, not only would his past deeds be exposed, but he might also be in mortal danger. He had also considered whether to report it to the police.

But…report it?

The senior, Pei Zhenghao, who brought him in seemed to sense something was wrong. He invited him to dinner and took him to a secluded room with no signal. He told him that Mansion 13 was frequented by the powerful, and they all protected each other. Even if he reported it, no one would believe him. And in the end, he might be the one to be eliminated.

The best way was to pretend not to know and continue with all of this. One of his targets was named Xie Yuna, a simply beautiful girl. When she smiled, she had a dimple, and her eyes curved like crescent moons. Xie Yuna had graduated from college for a year, with an incredibly bright future, and she relied on him a lot. She liked to drink milk tea and would often have a cup every few days, saying she was afraid of getting fat but enjoying it nonetheless. She enjoyed going to various places for fun. He took her to an amusement park and bought her a hairpin with cat ears. She also liked to buy small fireworks sticks and watched them ignite until they burned out. She loved hot pot, even though she couldn’t handle spicy food well. She would order spicy hot pot, tearing up and panting as she fed herself meat. She also loved watching movies. When she saw touching scenes, she would wipe away tears, and when she saw scary parts, she would hide behind him.

This girl was too wonderful, so lively, so wonderful that he didn’t dare to hope. Several times, he almost let slip about those things to her, but he never did. Xie Yuna had always wanted to go to Lover’s Tree. Once they were nearby, he realized her intention and pretended to be angry, walking back.

Xie Yuna grabbed him, “Just tie a red string, we’ve come all this way. Are your promises just empty words?”

A chill ran from the soles of his feet, as if he were a monster whose true form had been exposed. They were empty, everything was empty. He was a monster who had sold his soul to the devil long ago. A person like him had no future at all. He couldn’t reply to Xie Yuna, nor could he give her any promises.

That day was their first argument, not too intense. On the way back, he said to Xie Yuna, “The reason I was angry is because you didn’t tell me beforehand. In my imagination, being together for a lifetime is a solemn promise. When we get to that point, I will bring you here again. I will give you a diamond ring and we will make vows together.”

Xie Yuna accepted his explanation. The temper of a young girl came and went quickly, and soon they reconciled as if nothing had happened. So much so that he almost forgot he was just bait in an emotional game.

On Xie Yuna’s birthday, he bought her a teddy bear cake she liked. Although it should have been just a show, he was actually happy. He found that he seemed to really like this girl. Awakened by the last bit of conscience, he, who had already become a beast, realized his wrongdoing.

Later, Xie Yuna encountered workplace harassment. The girl sat across from him crying, and he knew the reason but couldn’t speak. Suddenly, Xie Yuna said she felt like she was being watched. He realized he couldn’t continue like this. It would harm the girl in front of him and many others.

Summoning his courage, he typed a line on his phone’s memo, “Now, let’s break up.”

Xie Yuna visibly froze. He continued typing, “You’re right, you’re being watched. Your phone is bugged. I was also sent by those people. My identity is fake, and they are filming our love story.”

He disobeyed the company’s orders. If he were discovered, he could be in grave danger. But he couldn’t care less anymore. He looked at the girl in front of him and spoke a lie, “I lied to you. I don’t like you.”

Xie Yuna burst into tears, deeply saddened. Yan Chi sat across from her, realizing for the first time how heartbreaking a breakup could be. But he had hurt so many innocent girls; this was his karma. He watched as his beloved girl finally escaped from the clutches of evil, feeling somewhat relieved.

From then on, he began dating and breaking up with girls continuously. He borrowed a spare phone from a fellow townsman and secretly contacted the outside world. Unable to resist, he called Xie Yuna again and explained everything. Suddenly, his mother’s condition worsened, and she passed away. The company didn’t allow him to leave. Upon learning this news, he felt hopeless, losing his direction.

He had borrowed money for his mother’s illness, but now he had become a tool for the wealthy, like a walking corpse. At that time, a man named Li Zhongnan found him and inquired about the mansion’s affairs. Li was very smart and noticed many things.

Li Zhongnan asked him, “Do you plan to live like this for the rest of your life?”

He didn’t want to. From then on, it seemed like a seed had been planted in Yan Chi’s heart. He wanted to escape; he didn’t want to be an accomplice to evil for the rest of his life. Just a few days ago, something happened at the mansion.

As he walked down the corridor, the door of a VIP room suddenly opened, and a man walked out, wiping blood off his hands. He looked inside and saw a girl lying on the ground, no longer breathing. It was like a bucket of cold water poured over his head. He had seen that girl before; she was his mentor’s former girlfriend. Now she had been pushed into hell, turned into a corpse. He was trembling with fear, but others acted as if it were just another day.

Li Yiyang called some people over. A few hours later, the corpse was disposed of as if nothing had happened, and the mansion resumed normal operations. That night, he was assigned to bury the corpse. The bag was a bit heavy. He touched the things inside the bag; some were round, which was the girl’s head, now unrecognizable and covered in blood.

He and his mentor, Pei Zhenghao, drove to a deserted hill in the north of the city. They dug a hole on the mountain, preparing to bury some of the body parts. The night was dark and windy, pitch black. The only companions were the sounds of insects.

Pei Zhenghao was very skilled. He took out two shovels from the trunk. During the digging process, his hands trembled, sweating in his palms. He didn’t dare to look down, feeling like everything was stained with the girl’s blood.

Pei Zhenghao was very skillful, holding a cigarette in his mouth. “This is the third one we’ve played with this year.”

He trembled and asked, “Wasn’t she your girlfriend?”

“It’s just acting. I don’t have any feelings for her. Besides, I didn’t kill anyone.” Pei Zhenghao looked at the bag on the ground. “These women deserve it. They wanted to live in luxury and rent expensive apartments, thinking they could find a rich and handsome boyfriend out of nowhere. How could there be anything cheap and good in this world?”

He gritted his teeth, silently digging the hole. Even if those girls were a bit naive and easy to deceive, that wasn’t a reason for them to die. They never did anything wrong. Just like Xie Yuna, she just rented a house and dated a boyfriend. He asked, “Won’t the police investigate?”

Pei Zhenghao said, “You don’t know how much money the mansion gives to the sub-bureau every year? And there will be cleaners to wipe away all traces. Her death will only be treated as a missing person case. Do you know how many people go missing in this city every year? Soon people will forget about her.”

He wiped his eyes with his hand.

Pei Zhenghao mocked him, “Haha, are you crying? Aren’t you afraid of looking like this?”

He lowered his head and continued to dig without speaking. 

Pei Zhenghao said, “Bait and fish are both in the hands of the fisherman.”

He stopped and looked at his shifu who had led him into hell. He couldn’t even recognize his human form anymore; before him was a complete devil. For a moment, he even had the impulse to kill him.

Pei Zhenghao turned to him, “What are you looking at? Keep digging! If you hadn’t begged me to introduce you to this job, let me help you borrow money, you wouldn’t have ended up like this. Once you enter this door, it’s for life. You don’t still fantasize about getting out, do you?”

He said to his colleague, “You weren’t like this before.”

He remembered he used to serve in the student union at school, often running around for the students’ affairs. His family was not well-off, only ordering cheap vegetarian dishes for meals every day. He liked wearing white shirts, played basketball very well, and many girls secretly admired him.

This mansion turned him into another person.

Pei Zhenghao gave up on himself. He sneered, “I’m a coward, I’m afraid of death. Trash like us, being able to find such a job and barely survive, is already a blessing for generations.”

Hearing such words. He suddenly woke up. Damn, it wasn’t these girls. Damn, it was them, these cowardly and cruel people, damn, it was the johns of those girls, damn, it was the bosses behind using these girls to make money, damn, it was the voyeurs hiding behind screens! He made up his mind in his heart. He had had enough of this half-human, half-ghost life.

After burying the corpse, he made a mark on the ground.

Two days later, on a rainy night, when nobody was paying attention, he climbed over the wall, drove away a company’s car, and dug up the girl’s corpse. If someone wanted to bury everything, he would make sure everyone saw it…