Manager Dong's eyes darted around, and he began to stammer.

Uncle Ma wasn't about to tolerate him any longer and immediately stepped on Manager Dong's dislocated wrist.

Manager Dong burst into tears: "Stop stepping on it! I said, please stop!"

Uncle Ma showed no sign of loosening his grip; instead, he increased the pressure.

That's true. People like that, if you don't make them feel pain, they'll keep looking for opportunities to avoid problems.

Manager Dong couldn't bear the pain any longer and even started panting heavily: "Ah~ huff~ ah~ huff~ I said..."

"It's because Chen Fanghai found out that I tampered with the project funds."

"I personally oversaw the selection of materials for the project."

“But once, when the higher-ups asked Chen Fanghai to follow up on the progress, I accidentally included a falsified list of materials and supplies in the progress report.”

"Chen Fanghai discovered the falsified list and came to ask me for details."

“I told him that it was because of the latest arrangements made by the higher-ups that the list was revised.”

"But this reason won't fool him for long. Three months later, when the project funds are approved, he'll definitely know that the list is fake."

“If the news leaks, I’ll go to jail. I’ve worked so hard to get to this position, and I’m about to get the money. How can I let it all go to waste because of him!”

Uncle Ma narrowed his eyes slightly: "Didn't you ever think about bribing Chen Fanghai?"

"That way, we can get him onto the boat. Isn't that more effective than killing him?"

Manager Dong's body was constantly writhing, indicating that the backlash from the Death Curse had taken a heavy toll on him.

“I did think about it, but Chen Fanghai would never accept this favor.”

"He's too honest and upright; he would never take such a risk to get on my ship."

"Moreover, there is no need for it. After I get this money, I can use the project as an excuse to settle abroad."

"At that time, I can live a carefree life."

"The blame for the misappropriation of project funds can now be shifted to Chen Fanghai, this dead man."

"After all, he's in charge of project follow-up."

"However, despite all our calculations, we didn't anticipate..."

Uncle Ma stood up and clapped his hands:

"Brilliant, truly brilliant! What a brilliant move, killing two birds with one stone! They got the money and found someone to take the blame."

“But all I see on your face is the look of someone in prison.”

"Even without me, you won't succeed."

"I understand the situation now. You can go where you need to go."

Uncle Ma took out his phone from his pocket and dialed a number:

"Xiaoying, I need you to come over for a bit."

I could vaguely hear a woman's voice coming from the other end of the phone.

"Okay, give me the address, and I'll take some men there right now!"

Clearly, the other party's identity is not simple.

Uncle Ma hung up the phone, glanced disdainfully at Manager Dong on the ground, his eyes filled with disgust.

He turned and walked towards my parents: "I'm sure you know what happened."

"Your daughter has suffered injustices she shouldn't have had to endure because of you."

"I suppose you didn't understand her actions before."

"But she has to endure even more pain."

"Bearing the mental torment of nightmares, your lack of understanding, and the pressure of the deadline of the Death Curse."

"What she has sacrificed is something you have never seen."

"You are very lucky to be parents."

When my parents heard what Uncle Ma said, they both turned to look at me.

I don't know what to say.

My father slowly walked towards me: "Xiaoxi, if that's the case, why don't you tell your father?"

"It must be tough for you to bear so much all by yourself."

I even saw tears in my father's eyes.

My father held me in his arms, and I felt his familiar body temperature, which made me feel more at ease.

"It's okay, Dad, I'm fine."

Just then, I heard my mother crying: "Xiaoxi, I'm sorry."

"It's all my fault, I made you suffer so much."

"Mom is being unreasonable. Mom... was wrong."

I turned around and hugged my mother.

My mother is very strong-willed, but how I long to hug her like this.

I held her tightly. I couldn't see my mother's expression, but I could feel her body trembling. She must have been crying very sadly.

After a while, the doorbell rang.

Uncle Ma stood up from the stool, turned around, and dragged Manager Dong towards the door.

"You can't escape the prison sentence for the rest of your life."

Manager Dong's pupils stiffened upon hearing this.

He probably knew that there was no hope left in his life.

When Uncle Ma opened the door, I saw a tall woman in a police uniform standing in the doorway.

The woman's eyes were very solemn, carrying the air of a soldier; she looked like she came from the military.

The first impression of bronze skin is one of resilience.

The woman saluted Uncle Ma: "Commander Ma, what are your instructions?"

Uncle Ma waved his hand nonchalantly: "I've told you so many times, I'm not your superior. Just call me Old Ma."

The woman showed no sign of backing down: "The bureau chief personally instructed that I must greet you with the courtesy due to a superior!"

Uncle Ma shook his head helplessly: "Old Zhang is really something. Fine, fine, you two are both stubborn."

Then, I went to Uncle Ma's side and asked, "Uncle Ma, who is this?"

"Ah, her? Let me introduce you. She's the police captain of the Shanghai branch of the Paranormal Investigation Bureau."

After Uncle Ma introduced the woman, she extended her hand to me: "Hello, my name is Zhang Xiaoying, it's nice to meet you."

I looked at the hand Zhang Xiaoying was extending, her hands clasped in white gloves—apparently standard issue for the team: "Hello, my name is Chen Xi. Thank you for coming all this way."

Zhang Xiaoying gave me a slight smile: "Serving the people is my lifelong mission!"

I even saw faith in her face.

It turns out that a person can indeed assign themselves a mission because of their profession.

Uncle Ma turned to me and said, "Girl, let Xiaoying take this person away. His company's disputes will be handled by the police."

"As for his use of evil magic to harm people, the paranormal department will assess his behavior."

"If nothing unexpected happens, I'll never get out of here in this lifetime."

"However, the beggar Taoist priest he mentioned has not yet been caught, which is also a potential problem."

"I thought I could catch them right away this time, but I didn't expect them to be more cunning than I imagined."

"If anything happens in the future, you can send me a message."

"I went back to the station with Xiaoying first, and then I caught up with Lao Zhang."

Spend quality time with your parents.

I nodded, wanting to say something, but I didn't know how to start.