Chapter 50: Metamorphosis

Leaving the bustling commercial district behind, the temperature dropped by a few degrees, and the oncoming breeze felt rather refreshing.

Bai Lu placed both hands gently around Lu Fan’s waist, arching her body slightly to avoid pressing fully against his back. Yet, their occasional contact still sent ripples of subtle emotion echoing through both of their hearts.

Bai Lu swallowed a few times to steady her nerves, then asked in a whisper near his ear, "Lu Fan, are we shipping out our goods tomorrow night?"

"Originally, I wanted to hold off for another day, but we've run out of time. Let's just do it tomorrow."

"Why is that?"

"Someone's got their eyes on us. Tonight, a young girl took my picture with a camera. I'm far too familiar with the scent she was wearing."

"Ah! Did you go around sniffing other people?"

"Uh, not that kind of scent. What I mean is, one look was all it took for me to know what she does for a living!"

"What does she do?"

"A cop. My dad is a police officer, and I grew up in a public security residential compound. Everyone around me was a cop. I know that kind of demeanor inside and out."

"Why would the police be watching us? We haven't broken the law!"

"There's a certain type of scam that looks a lot like our marketing approach—both play on human greed to set up a trap. The only difference is that they pack up and run at a certain point, while we ship out our products. Even though the outcomes are completely different, the marketing mechanics are quite similar. The police probably just misunderstood us."

Bai Lu remained somewhat uneasy. "Won't this affect you going to university?"

"Of course not. Stop worrying for nothing."

"The biggest difference between us and actual criminals is that one has merchandise and the other doesn't. We own a garment factory and over 70,000 pieces of inventory. With all that, what we're doing is strictly a marketing strategy."

"Oh, well... in case something does happen, you can pin all the blame on me and say everything was my idea."

Hearing Bai Lu's words, Lu Fan chuckled.

"I changed my mind about shipping tomorrow not because I'm afraid of this, but mostly because I hate trouble. Right now, they only suspect us and haven't launched an investigation yet. Shipping our goods early is equivalent to proving our innocence and dispelling their doubts. If we wait until they take action before trying to clear our names, we'll eventually be fine, but we'd inevitably waste time. We still owe someone five hundred thousand, and we have to pay it back when the deadline hits. We can't afford to waste a single second, nor can we afford any accidents. So, even if we make a little less money, it's better to eliminate invisible risks before they ever materialize."

"Mmm, you're really amazing. We're the exact same age, yet you can think about so many things, while I'm just clueless and understand nothing."

"Don't rush! Once you've been through enough experiences, you'll naturally understand."

When they arrived home, it was already past nine o'clock. Skipping their usual late-night snacks at the night market left both of them thoroughly hungry.

Liu Yue'e hadn't left any food aside either, so she bustled about busily to whip up a simple meal for them.

"Auntie, just cook two bowls of noodles; it'll be faster. A few days ago, Bai Shuang made me a bowl of scallion oil noodles, and they were quite good."

"Oh, oh! Bai Shuang learned how to make those from me. Mine taste even better. Do you want a fried egg on top?"

"Yes."

Moments later, Liu Yue'e brought out two bowls of steaming noodles, placing them on the small table as a mouth-watering aroma filled the air.

His bowl was large, topped with two fried eggs.

Bai Lu's bowl was smaller, featuring only a single egg.

Although Liu Yue'e had changed back into her usual clothes and washed away all her makeup, her hairstyle remained the same. Yet, a wondrous transformation seemed to have taken place within her, giving off the aesthetic beauty of someone cleansed of worldly dust.

Lu Fan knew that her inner vitality and spirit were gradually shifting, and human demeanor is primarily sustained by that very spark of life. Though her facial features remained unchanged, altering one's spirit made her look almost like a completely different person.

"Bai Lu, don't you think Auntie looks exceptionally pretty today? I mean, even without any makeup."

Bai Lu scrutinized her birth mother and nodded in agreement. "In the past, my mom's mouth was always pursed into a bitter, miserable expression. Today, the corners of her lips are turned up. She really feels like she's aged backward by a lot."

"Eating your egg still isn't enough to shut that mouth of yours!"

Liu Yue'e tapped Bai Lu lightly on the forehead, her eyes crinkled with smiles.

Though she was saddled with five hundred thousand in debt through no fault of her own, this was paradoxically the most relaxed day of her entire life. She felt as though the layers of heavy bindings that had long constrained her were all being torn away into nothingness by a mighty force.

She felt so light! So completely free!

Once he was full, Lu Fan said, "I'll go take a look at the garment factory and be right back."

Bai Lu hastily set down her chopsticks as well. "I'm coming too!"

Liu Yue'e laughed, "You don't need to worry. I went over to check twice tonight, and those women you hired are extremely dedicated. The moment there's the slightest rustle, they pop right out to investigate."

Seeing the two of them still staring at her, Liu Yue'e added with a grin, "I stayed hidden in the shadows and threw a few pebbles inside. The second they heard the noise, they rushed out to hunt for the culprit, and when they couldn't find anyone, they started cursing up a storm."

With that, she burst into laughter herself.

Bai Lu reached out to feel Liu Yue'e's forehead. "Mom, did something possess you? Why are you suddenly acting so mischievous?"

...

At the Baoshan District Night Market, ever since Lu Fan and Bai Lu had departed, Shi Hu and Jiang Ermei had started making phone calls.

Each holding a phone, they dialed numbers from the contacts they had gathered previously in the market, chatting briefly with anyone who picked up. They claimed there was a massive money-making opportunity right now and asked if they wanted in.

Because Lu Fan had promised them a two-yuan commission for every person they brought in who purchased goods, they worked with extraordinary zeal, their words growing increasingly exaggerated.

They boasted that once things got rolling, a person could easily clear ten thousand yuan in just a few days—becoming an overnight ten-thousand-aire.

"If you don't make the money, the next time we meet, you have my full permission to slap me across the face and spit right on it! If I'm lying to you, may my entire ancestral lineage lose all skin integrity!"

They spun a mountain of exaggerations, bets, and curses, completely losing interest in running their actual stalls.

Their booths were set up for self-service; customers could simply pick out what they liked and leave the money behind. Consequently, even though two people had been squatting in front of their stall for over ten minutes, the owners hadn't noticed a thing.

Xue Gang and Yi Yi pretended to be browsing the clothes, picking one item up only to put it down again, seemingly unable to find anything to their satisfaction.

However, the more they listened, the brighter their eyes became.

This wasn't some petty case; people were rallying their friends and peers, showing clear signs of viral dissemination. If a case like this was allowed to grow, it would blossom into a major multi-person gang fraud operation. Catching the whole lot would undoubtedly yield a massive merit.

These two stall owners were clearly frontline recruits developed by the young man earlier, and they had even accepted his assignment to recruit fresh subordinates further down the line.

Pyramid schemes were run precisely like this!

Just listen to what they were saying—making ten thousand in a few days! How could that possibly be true? Aside from theft and robbery, the only explanation was fraud.

Before 1998, economic investigation and criminal investigation had not yet been split into separate divisions. Xue Gang had occasionally participated in economic crime probes and was thoroughly familiar with these kinds of tactics. He flat-out refused to believe that honest business could yield such astronomical profits.

Yet, one detail left him rather puzzled.

Had modern criminals really become this brazen? Daring to openly shout about their criminal enterprise right in the middle of a crowded commercial district!