Chapter 148 148 She really doesn’t need someone like this to sympathize with her…

Guan Xia and her friends were the last group to return to the hotel. When they arrived at Wang Yu's room, the others were discussing something animatedly.

However, upon seeing Guan Xia and the others, their attention shifted immediately. Zhong Xiaoyu was the first to speak, "It looks like you guys had a productive day today. The three of you were so busy that no one had time to reply to messages in the group chat. It was like they had disappeared since noon. How's everything going? Is everything going well?"

Lu Tingfeng even pinched Jiang Yingyao's shoulder in a very unruly manner and said with a playful smile: "Brother Jiang, you have worked hard. Tell me quickly, did you gain anything big today?"

Jiang Yingyao cried out in frustration from Lu Tingfeng's pinching. He finally managed to break free and took the water from Xu Nian's hand, drinking it as he said, "I did find some results, but it's a long story. Let's talk about yours first. How was your day? What did you find out?"

Wang Yu rubbed his eyes tiredly and said, "Brother Lu and I have been checking missing persons all day. We haven't found anything yet, but I have a vague feeling that something is amiss. Shangshuang City is a tourist destination, but compared to the nearby cities, it's still a bit less popular. That said, in recent years, there have been more and more people keen on traveling, especially those who want to stay abroad, but the number of missing persons is significantly higher. I even compared the data from our city, and it's two percentage points higher."

Zhong Xiaoyu asked, "Is it possible that since it's closer to the border than Yongquan City, there are more human traffickers and more missing persons?"

Wang Yu hesitated for two seconds, then shook his head and said, "I was skeptical at first, but then I compared the data from previous years and saw a clear upward trend. It was okay in the early years, but starting in 2017, the curve has become much steeper."

Guan Xia subconsciously exchanged a glance with Ji An after hearing this. 17 years, that was 7 years ago, the fourth year after the medical examination center was completed in Shangshuang City.

According to what they learned from Ning Xin's mother today, Kangjian Physical Examination Center was built in 2013 and opened in 2014. Since its opening, it has been committed to providing low-price services to the public and promoting its reputation. So in the fourth year, there were actually quite a few customers.

Jiang Yingyao obviously also thought of it, and his expression seemed thoughtful.

Lu Tingfeng's somewhat lazy voice sounded, "When it comes to tourism, Yongquan City is much more mature than Shangshuang City. Given this situation, the number of missing people is greater than Yongquan City. There's clearly something wrong."

As the three of them discussed, Xu Nian keenly noticed the changes in Guan Xia's and the others' expressions and couldn't help but ask, "Is Wang Yu and the others' discovery related to the clues you found today?"

Guan Xia exchanged a glance with Ji An before looking at Xu Nian and nodding, "We've discovered something special. It's related to a medical examination center."

"Physical examination center?" Everyone was surprised, and then they thought of something and their brows gradually frowned.

Guan Xia continued, "We've only found some peripheral clues so far, and no real evidence. However, we've opened a small gap. The next step is to figure out how to widen it and investigate deeper."

After Guan Xia said these words, she went on to recount today's findings in great detail, starting from when they heard about Dr. Hu's accidental death, all the way to the confessions of the two habitual thieves obtained in prison, and then she also emphasized their speculation about the criminal organization.

As Guan Xia expected, except for Lu Tingfeng who was a little confused, everyone else was shocked.

"The disappearance of Ning Xin and her daughter is very likely related to that criminal organization?" Pang Le was the first to say in disbelief: "Doesn't that criminal organization claim to be upholding justice?"

Xu Nian shook his head and said, "How can someone who unscrupulously wields the butcher knife truly have justice in their heart? Let's not talk about the distant past, let's take the Zhang Weiyan case we investigated earlier. He was Lu Manqing's accomplice and killed several people. If we say that every wrong has its perpetrator, his uncle's death is understandable, but what about his two cousins? Even if they were morally depraved, they didn't actually do any evil. Why should they die? Ultimately, this criminal organization just found a slogan to sound righteous."

Wang Yu also said: "This is a common practice among criminal organizations and some cults. They usually use slogans like this to deceive people and expand their scale."

"If that's the case, we need to be careful in our subsequent investigation," Jiang Yingyao suddenly said. "If that medical examination center is really involved in the human organ trade as we suspect, then it must be a core part of the organization. If we investigate too blatantly, with just a few of us, they might have some ideas. After all, based on the clues we've found so far, Shangshuang City is very likely a key area of ​​their development."

Lu Tingfeng glanced at Jiang Yingyao and asked, "Brother Jiang, do you mean to report the case?"

Xu Nian pondered for a moment and said, "If it's confirmed to be related to that criminal organization, we really can't act rashly. Let me talk to Director Ren first. We should be careful in the following investigation and do our best to disguise ourselves. Don't be too careless. It would be best if we disguise ourselves as tourists."

"I have experience in this," Lu Tingfeng raised his eyebrows and said, "Not only me, but Sister Ji and Xiaoyu also have a lot of experience. Let's pretend it's a company team building event."

Lu Tingfeng said this while glancing around the room with great interest. Finally, he patted Jiang Yingyao on the shoulder and said, "I've been looking for a long time. The only person in the room who looks like a boss is Brother Jiang. Xu Nian is not good enough. He looks like a technician. Qi Bai looks too naive. Sister Ji looks like a financial manager. Guan Xia looks like a cashier. Pang Le looks like a sales manager."

After being interrupted by Lu Tingfeng, everyone suddenly became curious.

"What about me?" Zhong Xiaoyu raised her hand and asked, "Brother Lu, you forgot about me. What do I look like?"

Lu Tingfeng smiled and said, "What else can it look like? Like a sales champion."

Qi Bai also raised his hand anxiously and asked, "What about me?"

Lu Tingfeng said, "You look like the boss's silly nephew who was brought out to play. You don't have the temperament of a corporate slave at all."

As soon as Lu Tingfeng said this, everyone looked at Qi Bai with a smile. They didn't think so before they heard it, but now after hearing it, Qi Bai really doesn't look like he has been tortured by society. Even if he has been staying up all night, as long as he has some free time, his eyes are bright again and he is always full of energy.

Qi Bai was very unhappy, but everyone agreed with Lu Tingfeng's proposal, and the final disguise plan was decided.

After chatting for a while, Guan Xia felt that the fatigue in his body had dissipated a little, and then he spoke to bring the topic back on track.

Guan Xia looked at Xu Nian and asked, "How are you guys doing today? What have you found? I saw Qi Bai's message in the group at noon, saying that you might have discovered another suspect in the disappearance of Ning Xin and her daughter besides Geng Jing?"

As the case started to unfold, everyone's smiles faded. Xu Nian nodded and said, "We do have suspicions about this. Some of the woman's features are very similar to what the eyewitness described."

Guan Xia immediately understood and asked, "Did you go find that witness today?"

Xu Nian nodded. "That guy was a taxi driver. We deliberately hailed his car and got everything out of him after just a few questions. Judging from his expression, there must have been some exaggeration in his words, but the claim that he had fair skin and looked wealthy is pretty close to the truth."

Guan Xia said, "So that's how it is."

She didn't ask why he didn't give a statement. She guessed that the man was very talkative and was afraid that Geng Jing would hear about it, so he was so cautious.

"What happened next?" Ji An asked, "Has the woman's identity been confirmed?"

Qi Bai said, "It's confirmed, but on the surface, he didn't have any contact with Geng Jing. When Pang Le and I followed him today, we only saw him enter the supermarket owned by that woman. The time from entering to leaving was very short. From what we saw, he didn't say more than two words, so there probably wasn't any special communication."

"So, how do you plan to investigate next?" Guan Xia was more concerned about this question and subconsciously glanced at Pang Le. "Are you splitting up and following us separately? Pang Le and Qi Bai as one group, and Xu Nian and Zhong Xiaoyu?"

Xu Nian's expression was somewhat helpless. "We didn't expect to find another suspected criminal suspect so easily. With this discovery, our previous plan has to change. If Geng Jing is really involved in human trafficking with that woman for a long time, the police should be very alert. Tracking them with only two people is too easy to be exposed. I contacted Captain Zhou before I came back. They have already ruled out Geng Jing's ex-wife Tang Lianhua as a suspect. They can easily spare someone to take turns tracking with us."

Xu Nian briefly discussed his plans for the subsequent investigation, then asked Guan Xia, "What about you guys? With such an important discovery, what are your plans for the future?"

Guan Xia didn't say anything and looked at Ji An hesitantly.

Ji An received Guan Xia's gaze and said, "In a couple of days, we may have to leave Shangshuang City for two days to check on Dr. Hu's nephew who inherited the estate. But before that, we will apply to search Dr. Hu's home first, hoping to find something."

After finishing his words, Ji An immediately added, "Of course, in order to avoid alerting the enemy, we will use other excuses, such as other relatives of Dr. Hu coming to visit Shangshuang City and helping Dr. Hu clean up his old house so that it won't deteriorate quickly due to frequent vacancy."

Xu Nian nodded again, but judging by his brows which had never been relaxed, he still felt a little uneasy.

Everyone talked about the clues they had discovered until almost the early morning. After they finished their meal and discussed everything that needed to be discussed, they said goodbye to each other and prepared to go back to their rooms.

But Guan Xia didn't expect that Xu Nian would stop her as soon as she left the room.

"Wait a minute, Guan Xia," Xu Nian walked briskly to Guan Xia's side and said in a lowered voice, "I have something to tell you. Let's find a quiet place to talk."

Guan Xia was a little confused. She spoke to Ji An first before walking to the end of the corridor with Xu Nian.

As soon as she stopped, Guan Xia couldn't help but ask curiously, "What do you want to talk to me about?"

She really couldn't think of any topic between the two of them that would require avoiding other people.

Guan Xia was just guessing when she heard Xu Nian ask in a low voice with a strange expression, "Do you... remember the woman who looked very similar to you that we met in the wild mountains before?"

Guan Xia never thought that Xu Nian would talk to her about this. She was stunned for a moment, and a bad feeling arose in her heart. She answered hesitantly, "I remember. What's wrong?"

Xu Nian pursed his lips, raised his head and carefully looked around. Seeing that there were indeed no people nearby, he continued in a low voice, "I received a call from my mother today. She said that she met a very strange person in our neighborhood this morning. She looked a bit like you and claimed to be your sister. She asked around and even got to my mother. Of course, my mother was very cautious and didn't say anything, fooling her."

The bad premonition in her heart came true, and Guan Xia couldn't help showing an expression of irritation and disgust.

Seeing this, Xu Nian's tone became more cautious. He pursed his lips and hesitated for a few seconds before asking in a low voice, "What are you going to do?"

Guan Xia shook her head subconsciously. Although she had expected this, she really didn't know what to do. After all, in her plans and ideas for the future, those three people who were only related by blood but not by family had never appeared. When this happened suddenly, Guan Xia was a little caught off guard.

But things have already happened, and we can only face it. Guan Xia thought about it, took a deep breath and said: "She has gone to such great lengths, I think she will definitely not give up until she finds me. Let's go back. If she is still there when I get back, I will talk to her and see what she really wants to do."

Xu Nian hesitated again and asked tentatively, "Do you need my help?"

Guan Xia looked at him with amusement, "How do you want to help? Talk to her?"

Guan Xia just felt that although they were friends, it was not easy for others to interfere in such matters, and she had to solve it herself.

Unexpectedly, Xu Nian said in a serious tone, "I'm a police officer. I can talk to her about the law and maybe make her back off."

Guan Xia's heart fluttered for a second at Xu Nian's suggestion, but recalling the surprised and stunned expression on her blood sister's face, she finally shook her head and said, "I'll talk to her first and see what she says. If she insists on pestering me, we can try your method."

Xu Nian readily agreed, "Okay, I live across the street from you anyway, and my phone is on 24 hours a day, so you can always contact me if you need anything."

After finishing the conversation, Guan Xia was about to turn around and leave, but Xu Nian called her again, "Guan Xia."

Guan Xia subconsciously stopped and turned to look at him. She didn't say anything, but just gave him a questioning look.

Xu Nian looked at Guan Xia for several seconds before whispering a few words, "Be careful and stay safe in the next few days."

It turned out that he was just telling her this. Guan Xia smiled silently and said softly, "You too, be careful."

This time, when Guan Xia turned around and left, Xu Nian finally didn't call her again, allowing her to return to the room smoothly. But when she entered the room, she noticed out of the corner of her eye that Xu Nian was still standing at the end of the corridor. She couldn't see his expression clearly, and it seemed that he was thinking about something.

Guan Xia didn't pay much attention to it. She just took a quick glance and walked straight into the room.

As soon as she closed the door, Pang Le came up to her with a chuckle, his face full of gossip and couldn't wait to ask her, "What did Xu Nian say to you just now? Did he say something romantic and romantic?"

Guan Xia knew that Pang Le couldn't say anything decent, so she said helplessly, "When will you stop trying to match people up? There's really nothing between us."

Pang Le looked unconvinced. "Then why did he call you out alone? What could you two have said that we couldn't hear? He certainly didn't want to discuss the case with you, did he?"

Guan Xia sat down on the bed and said irritably, "He told me a piece of news. His mother called him and said that she saw my biological sister in the neighborhood where I live, and she was asking around about me."

Pang Le's eyes widened as he uttered a cry of shock. After a few seconds, he reacted and said excitedly, "Fuck, this woman really chased after you. What does she want to do? To find you as a relative? She can't be so shameless, right? Could it be that she doesn't know that you were abandoned by her parents? Or her parents don't know, so she came here secretly? But no matter what she wants to do, it's disgusting enough. She won't think that you really want relatives and come to make it up to you."

Guan Xia didn't say anything, but in her heart she agreed with Pang Le's guess.

She still remembered what Meng Lan had told her before, that her biological sister had lived a good life since she was a child, not only in terms of wealth in life, but also in spirit. Perhaps she really felt sorry for her from the bottom of her heart, so she came all the way here and kept asking about her.

Guan Xia didn't know whether others were moved or not. Meng Lan, who longed for family affection, would indeed be moved, but for her, she really didn't need it. Maybe when she was very young, she still hoped to live in a normal family and not have to compete with so many children. But now she has grown up and even achieved financial freedom. She enjoys her current life very much and really doesn't need someone like this to sympathize with her and make up for her.

After thinking it over, Guan Xia couldn't come up with a good solution. She could only sigh and say, "Let me talk to her first and see what she says. If she insists on finding me to recognize her as her biological parent even after I refuse her in every possible way, we can think of other ways then."

Pang Le asked tentatively, "How about I go and beat her up? A little girl like her who hasn't experienced much of the harshness of society shouldn't be very courageous, right? Maybe if I scare her, she'll back off."

Guan Xia shook her head decisively. "I might be being overly sympathetic, but I think the ones who are sorry are the couple who abandoned me. It has nothing to do with her. She shouldn't have been treated like this before she did something truly hurtful. Let me talk to her, and once we understand her perspective, we can find the right solution."

Pang Le always supported Guan Xia unconditionally and said cheerfully, "Okay, then when the case here is over, I'll stay at your house when I return to Yongquan City. I'd also like to get in touch with this girl and see if she knows the truth. If she doesn't, it's fine. But if she does, she's really shameless. I'll definitely give her a good scolding."

Speaking of this, Guan Xia suddenly thought of Meng Lan again. She hadn't contacted her since she returned to Linshan City. She didn't know how she was doing now, and there was also the woman named Wang Huiqin who was constantly following her.

I knew that Wang Huiqin was from Shangshuang City before, and I had suspected that she had something to do with the disappearance of Ning Xin and her daughter. It was not until I later learned that she had not returned to Shangshuang City after going to Linshan City that I gave up the idea.

But now that I found out that Shangshuang City is indeed very likely to be one of the cities that the organization focuses on developing, I suddenly had the same idea as before.

Guan Xia has been thinking about this in her spare time today. Wang Huiqin went to Linshan City in 2015, and according to what they found out, the Kangjian Physical Examination Center was built at the end of 2013 and opened in 2014. So is it possible that Wang Huiqin's sudden departure has anything to do with this?