The local police quickly conducted a thorough search of Gao Chenggen's residence and found key evidence linking him to the murders of the women, along with the testimony of Shen Ning, who had been rescued and was receiving medical treatment. She became the crucial witness in the case.
Though the villagers of Tengyun Village found it hard to believe, they had to face the truth: Gao Chenggen, the reclusive relative who refused to interact with anyone, was a cold-blooded and twisted murderer. Before Shen Ning was rescued, he had already killed two other girls, one of whom was nine months pregnant and died in his cellar during childbirth.
This human trafficking case caused a huge uproar in Baimu Province. Even state media got involved, closely following the latest developments about this deranged killer. Eventually, the police charged Gao Chenggen, and he was sentenced to death by immediate execution. Zhang Xingyu, who was involved in the trafficking, was sentenced to ten years in prison.
Of course, this was all what happened later. For now, both Zhang Xingyu and Gao Chenggen had been arrested, Shen Ning was receiving medical care, and Zhou Yun and Feng Zhizhi had taken leave from school to travel across the country to Baimu Province to take care of her.
With Shen Ning's case resolved, Xiang Wan really wanted to end the livestream, but the fans in the stream were so enthusiastic, pleading with her not to stop. They begged her for just one more reading, just one fortune-telling, and then they promised to behave and wait quietly until her next stream.
Manager Hong and Xiao Zhang also sent her messages backstage, urging her to keep the stream going. After all, in just this short period of time, Zhuang Zhou Mengdie had once again drained the entire live-streaming platform's traffic, causing a nationwide sensation. There was no way she could just stop now.
Xiang Wan thought about how she had just leased a mountain to build a road and villa—everything needed money! She had to keep earning!
After thinking it over, Xiang Wan said, "Alright, let's keep the livestream going. Given today's special circumstances, I won't follow the usual lottery draw. I'll pull the second reading from the chat, and the third one will be auctioned off."
"Wow, there's going to be a third reading! Are you sure your body can handle it?" one of Zhuang Zhou Mengdie's long-time fans asked, recalling how Xiang Wan had collapsed from exhaustion during her third reading last time.
Xiang Wan nodded. "It shouldn't be a problem. I've made a lot of progress in my cultivation recently, so doing three readings won't be an issue."
"I've been waiting for this day! I feel like I'm about to witness an auction in the stream that could rival Sotheby's!"
"You're not alone. If it weren't for the fact that the raccoon platform's CEO is a powerful red capitalist who keeps the streamer under tight protection, you'd already see countless millionaires waving their cash, begging the streamer to do fortune readings to avoid danger."
"The richer you are, the more afraid of death you become. Who knows if you can earn this kind of wealth again in your next life?"
"Is the streamer short on money lately?"
"What are you talking about? I think anyone might be short on money, but not the streamer. Do you even know how much she makes in a single stream? At least millions! She can't even spend it all—she's basically swimming in cash!"
Xiang Wan happened to catch this conversation amidst the flurry of flashy gift effects. She fell silent. This fan definitely misunderstood her. She was short on money. Building a house in the mountains was a money pit, especially in undeveloped, untouched forests like these!
"If someone's going to make money from livestreaming, I'd rather it be Die Die. At least she's got real talent!"
"If someone's going to make money from livestreaming, I'd rather it be Die Die. At least she's got real talent!"
"If someone's going to make money from livestreaming, I'd rather it be Die Die. At least she's got real talent!"
The chat quickly flooded with copies of this message.
Someone else added, "I honestly don't feel the slightest bit jealous of Die Die making this money!"
The livestream chat was buzzing with excitement, and everyone wanted to be the next lucky person that Die Die picked for a free reading.
In a forest in Yun Province, a couple dressed in hiking gear sat panting under a big tree, exhausted from their trek. Sun Wenli couldn't help but complain to her boyfriend, "How did you plan this trip? You really dropped the ball at a critical moment. The mosquitoes in this forest are worse than those on the prairie! After one bite, I feel like they're draining all my blood!"
As she spoke, she dug around in her backpack. "Hey? Where's the mosquito repellent and the essential oil?"
Seeing her boyfriend, Xu Chao, sweating profusely while staring at his phone, she couldn't help but feel even angrier. "Hey, what are you thinking about right now?"
Xu Chao wiped the sweat from his forehead and glanced at his phone from time to time. It seemed they had ventured too deep into the forest; there was no signal, and he couldn't contact anyone.
He quickly found the mosquito repellent in his bag and handed it to her. "Lili, here, mosquito repellent."
After catching the repellent, Sun Wenli sprayed it on her neck, and the itchiness subsided a bit. Covered in sweat, she complained, "Why did we have to go hiking on such a hot day? Now we can't find our way and can't make a phone call!"
Xu Chao tried to reassure her but sounded a bit distracted. "Don't worry, Lili. Maybe we'll run into other hikers out here?"
Sun Wenli crossed her arms and moved closer to him. "I hope not. We're almost at the border; who knows what kind of people we might meet out here?"
Xu Chao replied, "What do you mean by that? Aren't we here hiking too?"
Sun Wenli couldn't hold back a roll of her eyes. "I don't know what went wrong in your head to insist on coming here."
Xu Chao was getting restless. "Lili, I need to go find a signal. We can't just keep getting lost!"
Sun Wenli urged him not to be so impatient. "It's getting late. Let's just find our way tomorrow. You're a local; how could you get lost?"
"That's not an option!" Xu Chao raised his voice, filled with an unexplainable anxiety and urgency.
Sun Wenli was confused by his attitude. "What's wrong with you? You've been acting strange all day. Are you hiding something from me?"
Xu Chao awkwardly shook his head. "What are you talking about? I've told you to stop watching all those ridiculous dramas!"
Under the cover of night, Sun Wenli couldn't read anything from Xu Chao's face, so she decided to ignore it and continued swatting at mosquitoes. She pulled out the sleeping bag for camping. "Let's just make do with one night. Come sleep next to me."
Xu Chao quietly agreed and then opened his backpack to lay out his sleeping bag next to hers.
As a couple deeply in love, Sun Wenli took his hand and began talking about their dreams for the future. Xu Chao half-heartedly engaged, his eyes constantly drifting to his phone to check the time.
Just as Sun Wenli was about to say more, Xu Chao patted her shoulder. "Alright, we've had a long day. Let's get some sleep; I'm tired too." He exaggeratedly yawned.
Yawns are contagious, and immediately, Sun Wenli felt sleepy as well. She opened her mouth wide and let out a yawn, curling up into Xu Chao's embrace and falling into a deep sleep.
As Xu Chao gently patted her back, he quietly watched the moonlight filtering through the leaves above, patiently waiting for his prey to fall asleep.