Police officer Chen Shu

Chapter 306: Squeezing out the last bit of value

Evening, Jiefang Street, Dongzhou City, Chanyun Shopping Mall.

Originally, Chen Shu never answered calls from overseas. Firstly, he had no relatives or friends abroad; secondly, he was a staunch Chinese nationalist and looked down on foreign countries; and most importantly, most telecom fraud calls originated from overseas.

As a grassroots police officer, Chen Shu has seen far too much.

While waiting for dinner in the evening, Chen Shu lay on the bed scrolling through Douyin (TikTok), with enticing electronic music playing from his phone's speaker.

"This is North X, the place where I grew up. Welcome to my world, my precious little princess!"

Recently, perhaps in an attempt to capitalize on trending topics, many short video creators have portrayed Xibei as a wasteful and chaotic place. Many comments under the videos even suggest they'll definitely visit the area sometime.

If you go to North X with a legitimate tour group, with a guide or travel agency protecting you, there's really nothing to worry about. The problem is that some people might get carried away, thinking there's gold everywhere, and secretly go there on their own.

The real North is a place where the military and the government are divided, drug trafficking is rampant, and telecom fraud is everywhere. Poverty, chaos, violence, crime, disorder, and everything else you can or cannot imagine grow wildly in this place where the sun does not shine.

You might get sold in a van on your very first day. Yes, that's right, you could be sold in a van. Of course, the same goes for you if you're on a motorcycle.

Chen Shu was scrolling through videos when his phone lit up with an incoming call—a foreign number, obviously. Having spent a week lying around at home bored out of his mind, he decided to play around with the scammer to kill time and add some fun to his life.

When I answered the phone, it was like a bolt from the blue.

Zhang Yang is stuck in North X.

After hanging up the phone, Chen Shu remained silent for a long time.

He was just a deputy captain of the special police unit in a district branch; there was no way he could send officers abroad to rescue people. Even if he wanted to go alone, his passport was still at his unit, and his officer information was recorded in the border control system. If he went abroad without permission, he would definitely be stopped at the customs checkpoint.

Is it useful to call the police?
He's a policeman; he knows what he's doing.

Time ticked by, and Zhang Yang's every smile and gesture kept flashing through Chen Shu's mind. Although they were neither lovers in name nor in reality.

But Chen Shu wasn't stupid; how could he not see through Zhang Yang's hidden thoughts? When he faced a public relations crisis, it was Zhang Yang who, despite the overwhelming public pressure in Dongzhou, resolutely stood by his side; and in subsequent media events, she was always actively involved. This friendship alone was already quite significant.

The atmosphere inside the room was heavy.

Chen Shu leaned his cane against the window, stood firmly on the windowsill, and gazed at the peaceful night view outside the window. He slowly took out his phone and made a call.

"Fatty, it's your Brother Shu."

"Hehe, you're recovering quite well. Hmm, you can get out of bed now."

"Fatty, I need your help."

"Chen Shu, dinner's ready."

Outside, Chen Ma called out gently.

Recently, Chen Shu has been unable to work due to a left foot injury, so his mother usually comes over in the morning and goes back in the evening to tidy up and take care of the house.

Chen Shu's mother also personally cooks all three meals for Chen Shu every day.

According to the doctor, he can't put weight on his foot for a while, but he can manage by using crutches and ordering takeout.

But Chen's mother couldn't bear to part with him. Besides, she rarely saw Chen Shu on weekdays, and now that she could finally see her son every day, the retired Chen's mother was very happy.

"Yes, I'll be right there."

Chen Shu, leaning on his crutches, hopped to the restaurant. Today's meal was still four dishes and a soup: stir-fried green peppers with pork, stir-fried loofah with eggs, steamed pomfret, stir-fried bok choy, and a delicious crucian carp and tofu soup.

Especially these crucian carp, they're so fresh and lively!

Chen's mother helped Chen Shu sit down and urged, "Eat quickly, the weather is cool, the food will get cold and won't taste good."

Chen Shu picked up his chopsticks and, as usual, placed a slice of meat in his mother's bowl first: "Thank you, Mom. You've worked so hard these past few days. The food is delicious, and I like it very much."

Aunt Chen smiled, her eyes crinkling: "It's good that it's delicious, it's good that it's delicious. You, once you've recovered from this injury, hurry up and find a girlfriend, otherwise you'll still be thinking of eating my food for the rest of your life."

"Okay, Mom. I'll do what you say."

"Eh."

That evening, Chen Shu was fine and had a meal with his mother.

Late at night, in an underground factory in the northern suburbs of X.

Several young men and women, their hands bound and faces bruised and swollen, were tied together with thick ropes and led into the factory compound.

A bald man with a sinister look in his eyes scratched his head, stood in front of the group, and shouted arrogantly, "Here I am! I'm the boss! The world may be vast, but I'm the biggest!"

A young man with his hands tied muttered, "I definitely need to call the police."

A guard rushed out from the side, pulled out a knife, and beat the young man mercilessly until he bent over, kneeling on the ground and retching.

When the guards were beating people, the onlookers around them remained indifferent, as if they were used to such scenes.

After the young man had been beaten enough, the bald man waved his hand to stop the guards from continuing the beating. Then the other guards surrounded him and dragged the group of newcomers into the factory.

Upon opening the locked iron gate, a stench assaulted the senses, reminiscent of pork that had been rotting in the kitchen for a long time. Mixed with the stench was an extremely heavy, pungent smell.

The factory was dark, with no lights on, so you couldn't see anything.

The lead guard gave a strong tug and led the group inside.

Zhang Yang, at the back of the group, followed the crowd absentmindedly, her terrified eyes darting around.

"Snap!" The incandescent lights in the factory were turned on all at once.

The sudden bright lights blinded Zhang Yang, and after her eyes adjusted, she was struck by the hellish scene before her. She knelt on the ground, screaming involuntarily.

"Ah ah ah ah ah!"

But in her mind at that moment, she couldn't hear the scream, as if the sound wasn't coming from her mouth.

She could only watch.

One by one, living people were hollowed out and piled up haphazardly like deflated human skin dolls, one pile here and one stack there.

The bald man stood on the corpse, pointed downwards, and shouted with a forced smile:
“Listen up, all of you! The company doesn’t keep idle people. If you don’t work and don’t earn money, then you’ll just be squeezed dry of your last bit of value here.”

"This is your final destination!!!"

(End of this chapter)