After Being Dumped by the Film Empress, My Acting Skills Soared - Chapter 37

Chapter 37

Before the police received the report from the film crew, they had already caught wind of related rumors. By the time they arrived on the scene, the only person there was Tang You, clutching a briefcase.

Before Tang You could process what was happening, he was hauled into a police interrogation room. The relentless questioning caused cold sweat to break out on his forehead, and his hands trembled involuntarily.

“I… what did I do? I didn’t do anything!”

The interrogating officer slammed the table, his voice stern. “You’d better come clean. ‘Didn’t do anything’? Then where did that briefcase full of cash come from? Does money just fall from the sky?”

“Citizens called 110 to report you for trafficking women and children. You know in your heart whether you did it or not.” The officer looked at him with a cold gaze. “Confess the details of your crime, and maybe you can fight for a more lenient sentence.”

Hearing this, Tang You thought of the cases he had researched. He knew he must never admit to it. Although he was nervous, he played mind games with the police. No matter what they asked, he replied with, “Never did it, don’t know, no such thing. I don’t know who was jealous of me and made it up.”

“Then where did your money come from?” The officer sneered. “Tang You, do you really think we’re that easy to fool? You’re a man who gambles under bridges all day, so poor you can’t put food on the table and had to send your daughter to a welfare center. Where did you get so much money? Have you paid off your gambling debts?”

“That’s… that’s money I borrowed! I borrowed it from relatives and friends to pay back my gambling debts.” Tang You sat in the chair spinning tall tales, relying entirely on his mouth to bullshit the police.

Tang You was a coward, but he was full of schemes. He hadn’t read many books, but he was a quick learner when it came to bad things. While others learned law from CCTV crime reenactments, he learned the thickness of a criminal’s skin and the spirit of lying. He analyzed typical cases to avoid crossing legal bottom lines. Regarding underground gambling, he was just a participant, not an organizer. It would be difficult to pin a major charge on him for that.

As for trafficking women and children—even if the whole world knew and made a fuss—the “mountains are high and the Emperor is far away.” He figured they couldn’t control him. As long as he insisted the money didn’t come from selling a child, the police couldn’t do much.

Seeing they couldn’t get anything out of him, the police detained him temporarily, waiting for him to crack. Meanwhile, they began organizing the information they had collected. They discovered that the surveillance footage from the middle school entrance did not show Xixi at all, which left the officers at a loss.

Suddenly, an officer checking computer records spoke up: “Wait, I see that no child is registered under Tang You’s household file. He separated his household from his brother’s, and no new population has been registered in recent years. However, Tang You’s wife committed suicide and passed away; she’s gone, but her ID hasn’t been canceled.”

Someone familiar with Tang You heard this and waved their hand in disgust. “Don’t even mention Tang You’s wife! That wife was bought with money from a neighboring village! It was blatant trafficking! Back then, Tang You’s mother was unreasonable; she’d roll around on the ground throwing a fit to gloss it over. Now that she’s dead and the light is out, we must make sure this beast Tang You gets what’s coming to him, so that woman can rest in peace.”

At this moment, the police station was practically bursting at the seams. Everyone in the county, whether they were busy or not, had gathered. After all, the town was small—everyone wanted to see the drama.

Moreover, not long after Tang You was arrested, someone came to the station to surrender—claiming their mother had trafficked a woman, the victim was their own sister, their whole family were accomplices, and Tang You was the buyer.

Once this came out, the already crowded station became even more chaotic. The small county hadn’t seen such a major case in decades. The stream of onlookers nearly trampled the threshold of the police station.

When Jiang Yan and Shao Niannian arrived, the police were busy dispersing the crowd. “What is there to see? Everyone crowding the entrance, go home!”

Niannian was pushed back by the crowd and couldn’t get near the door. Mo Yu and the others were inside accompanying those reporting the crime to record statements and fill in details. Niannian was anxious to squeeze in, but there were too many onlookers; any one of them was a farm laborer with immense strength. She couldn’t budge them.

Before she could shout for people to make way, she heard a voice. Jiang Yan half-embraced her, leading her inside and slipping through gaps in the crowd. When they finally reached the officer dispersing people, Jiang Yan quickly said, “We’re with the party reporting inside. A child from our film crew went missing.”

“A few people are enough to record statements for this case. Why bring so many people? What do you think the police station is? A vegetable market?” The old officer’s tone was unfriendly, but he stepped aside to let them in.

Niannian moved with long strides, rushing to her companions. “How is it? Didn’t you say the kidnapper was caught? Where is Xixi?”

“How is Xixi? Where is she?”

Niannian was frantic. She couldn’t see the child anywhere in the station lobby. She grabbed Wen Jing’s hand and asked several times in a row. Wen Jing’s arm was gripped so hard it hurt, but she understood Niannian’s worry. She spoke gently to soothe Niannian’s emotions before relaying what the police had just told them.

“This matter is a little bit complicated.”

“Complicated?” Niannian didn’t understand. “Isn’t this a child abduction case? What’s complicated about it?”

Wen Jing frowned, clearly confused by the situation herself. “The cameras at the middle school didn’t capture Xixi appearing with Tang You. Instead, Tang You ‘found’ a huge sum of money, didn’t return it to the owner, and tried to keep it for himself. The police are investigating a trafficking case against Tang You, but the victim is Xixi’s mother.”

“The person who reported it is Xixi’s uncle.”

Niannian was stunned. She blinked repeatedly, her grip on Wen Jing’s hand loosening. She instinctively turned to look at Jiang Yan standing beside her.

“I recognize every Chinese word you just said, but I don’t understand the meaning of any of those sentences,” Niannian said, her lip twitching. “It shouldn’t be my fault, right?”

Wen Jing remained silent.

Mo Yu stroked her chin, feeling that there were too many coincidences. She looked at Jiang Yan; the woman’s expression was calm. Hearing the complications of the case didn’t seem to shock her at all. It was as if she had expected it. When Jiang Yan caught Mo Yu’s probing gaze, the former arched an eyebrow and looked back without hiding anything.

Mo Yu gave an imperceptible “tsk” in her heart; she roughly understood what was going on.

“It’s not your fault,” Wen Jing affirmed. “The police just checked Tang You’s household records in the system, then contacted the welfare center staff to confirm Xixi’s background. Then they called the County Civil Affairs Bureau. The bureau said that half a month ago, Xixi was registered for adoption. The party met Xixi through the mediation of the bureau and the welfare center, and it was a mutual, voluntary agreement.”

“In other words, Xixi has had adoptive parents since half a month ago.” Wen Jing licked her dry lips.

“But Xixi and Tang You…?” Niannian was lost.

“Tang You never registered Xixi in his household file. In a legal sense, it can’t be proven that he is her biological father without a paternity test. Additionally, since Xixi’s mother committed suicide and her maternal grandparents and other direct relatives are in hardship and unable to raise her, she was sent to the welfare center—meaning she was an orphan.” Wen Jing relayed the officer’s words. “The main issue now is to figure out Tang You’s criminal motive. The police will notify us once the investigation is clear.”

“But where is Xixi?” Even after listening to Wen Jing, Niannian felt it would be better if she didn’t know Chinese; the situation was far too complex. “Even if Tang You didn’t kidnap her, we still need to see her.”

Perhaps because Niannian’s questioning was too loud, a man in a suit coming out of an office looked up. After a moment, he retracted his gaze and nodded with a slight smile to the officer following him. “Please, stay. Tang You’s case is complex and involves too many people. Our boss doesn’t want his daughter to be affected by it.”

The suited man bowed slightly. “Because Xixi kept saying Tang You wanted to kidnap her, our boss, out of love for his daughter, conducted a private investigation into Tang You. While the evidence can’t be used directly in court, I believe it will provide you with new leads and a direction for the case.”

“As for the briefcase I lost this morning, I’m truly sorry for the trouble.” The man’s shrewd, calculating eyes were mostly hidden behind his glasses; his refined and cultured aura was highly deceptive.

The officer waved his hand. “As long as the money is found. Tang You’s case involves a lot; we will notify you of any progress.”

“Good.”

The man nodded slightly and walked straight toward Niannian and the others. He politely pulled a business card from his pocket and smiled. “Do I have the honor of inviting you all somewhere else to talk?”

He looked specifically at Niannian. “I am currently the only person who can answer the questions you want to know.”

Niannian took the card. A very famous corporate logo was printed on it, and the surname was the rare “Rong.” Niannian instinctively pressed her lips together—she remembered Mr. Li mentioning this company. The family in power was surnamed Rong, a classic example of a large family-owned enterprise.

The man before her was named Rong En.

“Of… course?” Niannian replied uncertainly.

It was fifteen minutes later when Rong En led the four of them to a quiet place to sit down. As soon as he sat, Rong En pushed his glasses up and asked with a smile, “Does Miss Shao know what ‘entrapment’ is?”

Niannian criticized him bluntly: “Mr. Rong, this look really is typical.”

“It’s just like when men say ‘Let me test you,'” Niannian sneered. “I didn’t come here to hear Mr. Rong say these things.”

Rong En, sprayed with her anger, didn’t get upset. He followed her lead, checked the time on his phone, did some mental math, and dialed a video call.

While waiting for the call to connect, Rong En said, “Xixi is currently with my boss. If you want to see her, a video call is the only way for now.”

“Your boss?”

“Xixi’s adoptive parents are my bosses.” Rong En flashed a smile. “If you insist on a connection, we are distant cousins.”

Niannian: “?”

“Wait a second. My brain is failing me. CPU usage is at 95%, and I’m starting to lose the ability to understand human speech.” Niannian raised her hand to interrupt him.

Wen Jing was also full of question marks, lamenting, “Chinese culture is truly profound. Look at how three sentences can shock an entire room.”

“Speaking is truly an art,” Mo Yu said from behind. She nudged Jiang Yan with her elbow and teased, “Right?”

Jiang Yan rolled her eyes at her.

Soon, everyone’s attention was drawn to the connected video call. The light on the other end was very bright; the background looked like a hotel or a rest stop. The camera shook for a moment.

Niannian could only hear a gentle female voice talking to Xixi. The woman seemed to help Xixi adjust the camera, and finally, Xixi’s face appeared.

“Xixi!”

“Sister Niannian~” Xixi was chewing on something, her voice sounding normal. Whether from tiredness or the phone being heavy, the camera wobbled occasionally.

Suddenly, the image stabilized. A small section of a fair-skinned arm appeared in the frame. “It’s okay, Mommy will hold it.”

Hearing this, Xixi nodded and stared at the screen with blinking eyes, a happy smile on her face. She looked nothing like someone who had just been through an ordeal. She waved at Niannian and acted cute toward Wen Jing. Because she was chewing, she couldn’t open her mouth wide, making her voice sound sweet and clingy.

Seeing that she was fine, Niannian’s heart settled. Thinking back, the whole thing was incredibly strange, especially combined with Rong En’s first sentence: “entrapment.”

The truth began to piece itself together in Niannian’s mind. Since she was still on the video call, she kept her deductions to herself and said nothing. As soon as the call ended, she questioned Rong En.

“The welfare center has always been hands-off with Xixi, and they’re in such a remote area that follow-up work is probably just a phone call.” Niannian paused and said very seriously, “So, can you leave a contact number so I can personally conduct follow-ups? I want to ensure you are sincere toward Xixi.”

“And not just doing this for entrapment.”

Rong En chuckled and pulled out another phone, letting them scan his QR code. “My private contact info. Later, if you want to contact Xixi individually, I can pass it on once she has her own way to communicate.”

Mo Yu added him as a friend with suspicion. “A little kid having a private contact? Isn’t it bad to have a phone at that age?”

Rong En thought of the room full of children’s supplies his uncle and aunt had bought in anticipation. He glanced at the “culprit” who was casually scanning the QR code and rubbed his nose.

“A smartwatch for kids can also add WeChat friends. If you’re not afraid of being on call 24 hours a day to answer a child’s call… I don’t think Xixi would refuse.”

Wen Jing, who had already successfully added him: “?”

“Forget it then. Pretend I never added you. I’m not even on call 24 hours a day for work! Why would my working hours turn into 007 (9 AM to 9 PM, 7 days a week) after taking care of a kid?”