“Boss, could you at least tell me what you do for a living? Come on, at least let me die knowing what’s going on…”
After sending that text message, Zhang Songyang put his phone aside and didn’t dare to look at it.
He was terrified that Jiang Chuan would reply saying he was some big shot from the underworld, or an arms dealer, or something along those lines.
If that turned out to be the case, then he was probably doomed for real.
Zhou Ran and Liu Changshan, meanwhile, were staring intently at the phone screen.
Ding-dong.
Before long, the text message alert rang out.
“Haha, I’m not like you. I’m a law-abiding citizen. Don’t go on about dying and all that—it’s not like I’m the one who asked you to die.”
After reading this message, Zhou Ran and Liu Changshan were both taken aback.
A law-abiding citizen?
Since when does a law-abiding citizen mail a Desert Eagle to a scammer?!
Zhang Songyang also saw the reply at that moment and started trembling all over. “Officers, he says he’s a law-abiding citizen! He says he’s a law-abiding citizen! He’s lying—he’s absolutely lying!”
“Of course we know that!” Liu Changshan barked at him.
Did he really think they didn’t know the guy was anything but a law-abiding citizen?
Zhou Ran rubbed the stubble on his chin. “Here’s what we do. Ask him where he got the gun. Don’t be too direct—just say you think the gun looks pretty nice, and ask if you can buy it off him, no matter the cost. Also, tell him you can hook him up with some business.”
Since asking directly wasn’t getting them anywhere, they had to take a roundabout approach.
“Okay, okay, okay, I’ll send it right now, right away.” Zhang Songyang grabbed his phone and started typing.
“Boss, can I buy this gun off you? I’ll pay whatever it takes. And I can definitely line up a huge order for you—I know a general who needs a lot of guns. Like, a lot of guns.”
Soon, the message was composed and sent out.
Ding-dong.
The text alert sounded once more.
The three of them huddled together in front of the phone, reading the reply.
“You can’t afford this gun. And I don’t need anyone buying guns from me. You just hold onto that piece—I’ll send someone to pick it up eventually, but not right now. By the way, are you the one who really wants to know where this gun came from? Or is there someone else who wants to know?”
“Officers, he—he definitely knows I’m at the police station right now, and he knows you’re right here with me too! He said that on purpose, I swear! He’s trying to set me up!” Zhang Songyang shouted.
Liu Changshan nodded. “Chief, based on the current situation, it looks like he’s caught on and seen through our intentions. Should we keep pressing him?”
“Keep going. Turn his game back on him. Ask him if he made the gun himself, and tell him that under Jiu Zhou law, it’s illegal to manufacture firearms privately.” Zhou Ran said with a furrowed brow.
Zhang Songyang bobbed his head up and down like a pecking chicken, typed out the message, and sent it.
——-
Inside the rental apartment.
Jiang Chuan hadn’t gone to sleep. Instead, he stared at the scammer’s text messages, a deeply amused look on his face.
He’d already figured out how to make this con artist even more miserable.
Because just a short while ago, he’d dug up some intel on the guy.
Zhang Songyang. Male. 42 years old.
Used to be a gambling addict who got lured to Myanmar under false pretenses to make money. Somehow, he managed to escape and come back. But instead of turning over a new leaf, he used the experience he’d gained over there to set up a scam company right here.
Jiang Chuan had paid a hefty sum online to have someone dig up this information.
The main issue was that Zhang Songyang was indeed very careful. His company always presented itself as an information storage firm, dealing with all kinds of clients. Their financial records looked perfectly clean—there was no hard evidence on the surface that could prove the company was running scams.
So without resorting to less conventional methods, there was no way to uncover this information.
But now that he had this intel, the rest would be easy.
Ding-dong.
“Boss, did you make this gun yourself? But Jiu Zhou law doesn’t allow private gun manufacturing—how did you pull it off…”
So this Zhang Songyang thought he was an arms dealer, huh?
But the guy was clearly trying to fish for information, hoping to catch him slipping.
Fine then. If that’s the game he wanted to play, Jiang Chuan would play along. Since the guy had ill intentions anyway, he might as well scare him half to death.
“The law? You’re talking to me about the law? Now that’s just laughable.”
“Kid, don’t try to pry. Let me tell you something—the only reason you’re still breathing right now is because I’m giving you a chance. I hope you make the most of it. Otherwise, I can’t guarantee what might happen.”
“Oh, and one more thing—this gun is my favorite piece, and I made it with my own hands. If it so much as gets a scratch or a dent, you’re going to end up looking just like it. I promise you that.”
After firing off three texts in a row, Jiang Chuan tossed his phone aside, a playful grin spreading across his face.
That scammer was probably scared out of his wits by now.
If only he could show his face, he’d love to go right up to that con artist and see the look on his face. It would definitely be priceless.
At the police station, in the interrogation room.
“Officers, he—he’s completely disregarding the law! He made that gun himself—he’s definitely got an illegal arms factory somewhere! He’s an arms dealer, a major one for sure! Please, save me, I’m begging you, you have to protect me!” Zhang Songyang clung to Zhou Ran’s arm with both hands, his eyes completely dry—he’d already cried himself out.
Zhou Ran was annoyed by all the shaking. “I know, I know. Just calm down first.”
Based on what they knew so far, it was unlikely the guy had a full-blown arms factory, but the chances of him being a gun runner were pretty high.
In Jiu Zhou, trafficking firearms was a serious felony!
“Chief, he’s not budging—not with threats, not with niceties. Plus, he’s figured out we’re trying to bait him. His guard is way up.” Liu Changshan gave a quick analysis.
“In that case…” Zhou Ran thought for a moment. “Let’s call him directly. Zhang Songyang, you’ll need to think on your feet. Do whatever it takes to get as much useful info out of him as possible. Got it?”
After mulling it over, he felt that texting was just too slow. A phone call would be much more efficient.
Besides, with texts, the other party had time to think. But on a call, there was a chance he’d let something slip in a moment of carelessness, revealing more than he intended.
Plus, they could pick up on tone of voice, attitude, and other subtle cues to get a read on his daily habits, personality traits, and even what kind of work he did.
“Off—officers, I… I don’t dare…” Zhang Songyang cowered, waving his hands nervously.
Zhou Ran snapped, “I told you to call, so call! Zhang Songyang, let me make this clear—if you don’t make this call, even we might not be able to keep you safe!”
Hearing that, Zhang Songyang perked up immediately and nodded frantically. “I’ll call, I’ll call right now! Officer, you have to save me…”
“Remember, do everything you can to extract information from him. The more you get, the better your chances of survival—and the better our chances of catching him. Do you understand?” Zhou Ran said sternly.
“I understand, I understand… Officer.”
