Crimson Instinct

Chapter 152: Treading the dark waters of Internet (3)

*Xin Lei*

Four days...In four days, we had to find Chu Jie and Cocoa and save them. We had already missed three days, and now I felt the time pressure really building up on me.

I typed. "Do you see if they are talking about any location? Are they mentioning any place in their messages?"

Qi Qiang shook his head. "No. I don't see them specifically talking about any place. They are only cursing him for putting that request. But wait...at the start, there is some chaos about the location."

Bai Li nodded. "There should be. Their usual base was in Langfang. But after that got exposed by us, and after what happened in Andingzhen, they were bound to change the place."

Bro said in a grave tone. "The usual customers who visit the site must definitely ask about the sudden change."

"Right. They have kept Chu Jie and Cocoa somewhere else, but where? They must have left a hint about it. Somebody."

Qi Qiang scrolled upwards to see the chat history while the rest of us read through it too to find any clue.

Ilikeascars : Hey, what is with the change in the location?

Bloodygame : Isn't our usual place in that park?

Careless : Boss, why did we change the place?

CrimsonInstinct: I know there is an inconvenience, my dear friends, but we cannot use that place anymore. It is seized by the authorities.

Nittyoicky : What? Why? That was such a cool place!"

Injuriedxx : It was dark and so mysterious. Hehe, no matter how they much screamed, nobody could hear them.

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Bloodygame : *shrugs* Well, I don't mind. As long as I enjoy my time with our trophies, I am okay with any location.

Careless : Haha, I am ready to sail the seven seas if I have to.

Nittyoicky : Boss, where this new place! Does it have all our special tools for torture?

Ilikeascars : Somebody is already getting too excited~~

Nittyoicky : Shut up! Boss~~~

CrimsonInstinct : Thanks, @Careless, for understanding. Don't worry, all of you. The new place is just as fine and equipped with everything we need. Actually

Careless : What, what, boss?

Injuredxx : Tell us!

CrimsonInstinct : Well, this place is really closer to my heart and home. It is very special to me. I cherish this place. This is all where it started.

Bloodygame : Ho~~ this is interestingDid you meet your first love here?

Nittyoicky : That can be so true~~

Ilikeascars : Oooooohhh, that is so emotional!!

Injuredxx : I didn't know boss can be so romantic, haha!

CrimsonInstinct : *chuckles* Well, you could say it like that. I found my first love here.

Everybody : Ooooohhhhh~~

Qi Qiang scrolled some more, but the discussion about the location was over. This much was the only part where they mentioned anything about the possible place in the chat.

He said, "This is it. And then they started to curse Chu Jie for asking seven days."

They didn't give any exact place, and I had a feeling that they wouldn't expose it so easily even if they were chatting in their trusted forum. They didn't even mention any rough direction relative to Langfang with which we could guess the place.

Closer to heart and home...what place could it be? I wondered. 

Zhang Xiulan...home...I think it could be...

"I think it's Dongcheng." Bai Li said as if he read my mind.

Maybe I was right. I wanted to know what Bai Li thought.

I typed. "Dongcheng?"

"Yes. Closer to heart and home. I still don't know what heart could mean. It said something about falling in love, which I have no idea about. But home...if we consider Zhang Xiulan as the true culprit, then Dongcheng would be her home because that's where the Zhang family lives. They were in Andingzhen and Langfang only for the rallies. But their home is at Dongcheng."

Liao Huifang said, "But would she take the risk of setting up a base in Dongcheng where her father's influence is the most prominent? That would be so dangerous."

I typed. "She would be in his territory and easier to track. But if she could hide for one year from him, I don't see it as difficult for her."

Yuan touched his chin. "But home can be a subjective term. What Zhang Xiulan might consider home cannot necessarily be Dongcheng."

That was a good point.

Luo Zhiqiang slowly spoke. "Plus, according to her, she suffered in her home where she thought that Zhang Chao loved Zhang Ning more than her. Zhang Chao and Zhang Qiuyue also fought a lot, so there were heated arguments when she was small. She would hardly consider that as her home."

Shi Ruiling added. "And didn't Zhang Chao locked her up after Zhang Qiuyue's murder? He brought psychiatrists too to treat her. She would surely hate that place that treated her as a prisoner."

Bro said, "The points are valid enough, but there is another hint in what CrimsonInstinct said."

Bai Li continued. "Yes. It said that the place is where it all started. Zhang Xiulan killed Zhang Qiuyue when she was only nine years old. So we can consider that as her start. She was a child, and as a child, she was living with her parents. I am not saying that it could be the Zhang mansion, which is impossible anyway for her, but it could be very well Dongcheng. That's where it started in the literal sense."

I slowly nodded.

Yuan said, "I agree. And it can also reinforce her mentality. Perhaps she also chose Dongcheng as if she was laughing at Zhang Chao. She is doing everything right under his nose and where he holds the most power, yet he didn't get any clue about his daughter already back from abroad and who even established her base. He drove her away, and she was back in the same place."

Bai Li agreed. "So Dongcheng is our best bet. When Sufy in Andingzhen went away with Chu Jie, we didn't know the route she took. But there was a road that leads back to Dongcheng, which was quite near the Andingzhen's base. She could have very well used it."

I typed. "You are right. We should leave for Dongcheng as soon as possible if that is the case. But I wonder, why did CrimsonInstinct listen to Chu Jie's request?"

"Yes! That is what bothering me too" Liao Huifang seemed confused as me. "I mean, of course, all the victims begged them to let them go, but they didn't listen to anybody at that time. So why did they listen to Chu Jie?"

Qi Qiang said, "According to what I read here, CrimsonInstinct says that the boy and the dog were courageous. He impressed her."

Bai Li's gaze deepened, and he seemed in thought. "Something must have definitely happened. Maybe Chu Jie and Cocoa put resistance against them but not quite in the usual way. He must have said something that would have taken the boss by real surprise. And I don't think Chu Jie asked for it first. The thing about seven days."

"Then?"

"CrimsonInstinct got impressed with him or what he spoke, and most probably, it said to him to ask anything he wants. It would fulfill any one of his wishes. Obviously, Chu Jie wasn't allowed to ask to let him go. That was out of limits. He was their prey. They wouldn't leave him. So anything other than that. It is similar to how you fulfill someone's last wish. Like, 'You are going to die anyway. Why not I fulfill your last desire?'"

Bro snickered. "Yes. Instead of getting angry at Chu Jie, it became happy, and out of sheer amusement, it granted him what he asked."

This person was really... unpredictable.

I typed. "That is why the others are so furious. Their boss is making them wait for seven days, and they cannot hold themselves that long."

Qi Qiang nodded. "Yeah. This is the first time it seems that they are vehemently opposing their boss."

"But why only seven days? Chu Jie could have asked for more if it was his wish."

I shook my head and typed. "No. There is a limit to the number of days he could have asked for. In fact, I am even surprised that CrimsonInstinct agreed to wait for seven days."

Bai Li nodded. "Indeed. Maybe a day or two, but seven? Is there anything special the coming Thursday?"

"Oh, I can find out. I will check Chu Jie's information. Give me a sec." Qi Qiang rapidly typed on his keyboard again. "Here it is. Oh, there is a reason. The coming Thursday is Chu Jie's birthday."

That took me by surprise.

Birthday?

"Ah, now I get it. Chu Jie must have asked to let him live until at least his birthday is over. Seven days is indeed hard, but if you think about in terms of a birthday that comes once a year, then the boss would have allowed it."

Bai Li clenched his fists, and his voice was deep and grave. "It's not just about sparing their lives for seven more days just to wait and die. Chu Jie and Cocoa are hoping too. The hope that we would find them before the seven days are over. This is not about letting them live for seven days. This is about giving us seven days to find those bastards, free Chu Jie, and Cocoa, and put an end to this vicious cycle once and for all."