Chapter 8: A Plea for Protection

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“In fact, my parents went missing in that hotel as well.” Du Bin was startled; so that was why Li Ping had become a police officer.

“My sister and I joined the force to uncover the truth and find our parents. Recently, because of some unusual cases, we formed a special investigation unit,” Li Ping said, taking a sip of his drink before continuing: “By the way, you must have a girlfriend now! Why haven’t you brought her around to meet us?”

Du Bin was at a loss, stammering, “Uh, well…”

Though they were still together, it was more in form than in substance. In reality, it was no different from being broken up.

Hu Guozheng seemed to have forgotten about Fang Yilin and Wu Jiahao, and regardless of the truth, he exaggerated Du Bin’s romantic history with wild abandon, afraid people wouldn’t know: “Don’t mention it. Those two are always fighting and about to break up. I’m worried old Du’s going to get cheated on. I’ve patched things up for them several times already, but this time, I think you’d better prepare for the single life again.”

“A woman needs to be cherished, not treated like air. Don’t tell me you still don’t understand that! Ha, no wonder. Men who don’t know how to care for women really aren’t much,” Li Ning mocked Du Bin, not bothering to hide her disdain, leaving him a little embarrassed.

“Hahaha... So that’s how it is, old Bin!” That night, thanks to Hu Guozheng’s relentless mouth, Du Bin’s face was dark throughout the gathering.

The next day, Du Bin and Hu Guozheng returned to the newspaper office. After some hesitation, they decided to go in and confront Wu the Beast.

It was an ordinary office building, but a gigantic banner hung outside, loudly declaring this to be Beast Publishing House.

They took the elevator to the fifteenth floor. As soon as they stepped out and were about to turn the corner, they heard a commotion. Peeking around, they saw a crowd at the door of Beast Publishing—some big, some small.

“Wow, could those guys be here for us?”

It was because not long ago, the two had followed a crime boss—standing among the crowd, a man in his forties, dressed head to toe in designer brands. Accidentally, they had caught his private affairs on camera and exposed them, inciting his hatred toward the publishing house and threatening to hack up the two who photographed him.

“Open up! I’ll give you ten minutes. If you don’t, I’ll storm in.”

“Come out, hand over those two bastards or I’ll cut down everyone in your office.”

After ten minutes with no response, the angry crowd stomped their feet, brandishing weapons and smashing the glass door, then left exhausted. Du Bin and Hu Guozheng came out laughing, but were stunned—the knives had hacked at the door, but when had those bent arrows appeared? How could that be explained?

Hu Guozheng stood at the stone wall opposite and made a few gestures toward the surveillance camera. The tiny camera beeped a few times, and the wall swung open before him.

The two entered, and the wall automatically closed behind them. Looking around, the space was about three hundred square meters. Each person had a workstation, busy with their tasks; some desks piled with folders like mountains.

Beep... The phone kept ringing. Xiaoyue, the secretary, answered, “Hello, this is Beast Publishing. How may I help you?”

Xiaoyue spoke politely, but the caller was anything but: “Put your boss on, damn it. How dare you embarrass me!”

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“I’m very sorry, our boss really isn’t here right now. Perhaps you could call back later?”

Hearing this, the caller grew furious, refusing to hang up and insisting on speaking to the boss. Helpless, Xiaoyue pressed the speed dial and, with an aggrieved look, said, “Wu the Beast, this person insists you answer, claiming he’ll kill your whole family.”

Inside, Lin Xiuwu stepped out of his office and shouted, “Tell them I’m not here. If anyone else calls for me, just say I’m dead.”

With a flourish, he slammed the door shut. Xiaoyue apologized to the caller, “Sorry, you heard my boss just now—he’s already dead. That’s that.”

The caller was utterly confused, unable to react before Xiaoyue hung up. Du Bin and Hu Guozheng clutched their stomachs, laughing; such calls truly put Xiaoyue in a tough spot.

The two walked straight into the office and knocked. “Come in,” came the reply.

Inside was a man with a center part, sharp, gaunt face, a traitor’s air, a cigar between his lips, occasionally blowing smoke rings, his smile fixed on the two—an old fox in every sense.

Hu Guozheng stepped forward. “Beast, we failed our mission and lost the camera.”

“Could you explain to me how you managed to be so useless?”

“Oh, that’s nothing. In fact, we could be even worse.”

Lin Xiuwu’s expression grew serious. “What happened? Start from the beginning.”

They recounted the events at the hotel. Du Bin said nothing about the mysterious girl. Lin Xiuwu was shocked at the mention of cyborgs.

“From now on, you two will shadow the special investigation unit and gather all news related to cyborgs. Once we break this explosive headline, Beast Publishing will surpass the top three newspapers.”

“Can’t we not go?” Du Bin felt it was a betrayal to Li Ping.

“I don’t care. Even if you die, you must get me the information. Otherwise, your monthly stipend—hmph, hmph, hmph.”

Hu Guozheng jumped up. “Damn, dying for work is so romantic. I’m saving the country by clocking in!”

“Whether you save the country or not, just do your best! I believe in you—the elite of the paparazzi elite!” Du Bin and Hu Guozheng forced smiles, awkward but still managing to grin.

A month later, since Qin Ling encountered the most incredible event of her life at the Binxing Hotel, she truly thought she would die there, but was rescued just in time.

The terror of that night surpassed her endurance. Though friends called and visited, Qin Ling had promised the police not to reveal what she experienced, only saying she was nearly abducted by criminals.

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That day, Qin Ling returned home, lay on her bed, and soon drifted into sleep. With her growing fame, she’d taken several roles, but in her current state could only decline work and take a break, hoping to get over her ordeal.

As she slept, she dreamt vaguely of that girl. The words she’d spoken had echoed in her mind all month.

“The number one beauty on the Guangdong online scene is nothing special. You must be careful—they’re watching you, and who knows what they’re planning. It’s best you leave the mainland tomorrow.”

Suddenly, Qin Ling jolted awake, cold sweat dripping from her forehead. She shuddered, hugging herself, and after regaining composure, picked up her phone and dialed a number.

“Miss Qin, is there something you need?” The voice was Li Ping. She replied, “I need to talk to you. Can we meet?”

“Of course. What would you like to discuss?”

Qin Ling hesitated. “It’s about that incident.”

“Go ahead. If there’s anything we can do, we’ll help.”

“Then I hope you can protect me.”

“Protect you?” Li Ping was startled. It was broad daylight—why would she need protection? “Miss Qin, could you clarify?”

Qin Ling recounted everything, including the girl. Li Ping listened, puzzled. Du Bin had mentioned a lone girl before; Li Ping suspected he’d been withholding information.

What baffled him was who this girl really was—how did she know the kidnappers were targeting Qin Ling? He couldn’t help but admire this mysterious girl. If their aim was to capture Qin Ling, what was their purpose? Perhaps meeting the girl would reveal more about these secrets. Li Ping pondered these questions deeply.

“Captain Li, Captain Li, what’s wrong?” Qin Ling anxiously prompted, seeing Li Ping silent for so long.

“Nothing, just thinking things over.”

“Oh, I see.”

“Miss Qin, please give me your address. We’ll come find you.”