Chapter 723: The Alliance of Nine Men

The next day, the task force split into groups to investigate the nine men. Lin Dongxue and Chen Shi were assigned to a man named Xiao Si.

When they called him, Xiao Si lazily mentioned he was at a bathhouse and told them to come over if they wanted to see him. This irritated Lin Dongxue. After hanging up, she said, “With that attitude, he better hope we don’t find any evidence against him.”

Upon arriving at the bathhouse, Lin Dongxue was surprised to find other groups of police there as well. After a round of “Why are you here?”, they realized all nine men were there together.

These nine men lived in different parts of the city, so it was suspicious that they had all gathered at the same place. Lin Dongxue said, “They must be planning something, maybe coordinating their stories.”

“I hope they are, it means they have something to hide.”

“These disgusting PUAs, I hope we find enough to arrest them all.”

A man walked out, not unattractive but not Lin Dongxue’s type. He scanned the police in the lobby and said, “Whoa, so many cops. No wonder customers aren’t coming in.”

“What’s your name?” Chen Shi asked.

“Liu Qiang, English name Tony, but you can call me Xiao Si.”

“I called you. We’ve been waiting.”

Seeing Lin Dongxue, Xiao Si whistled and said, “Had I known a policewoman was waiting, I wouldn’t have bothered with a bath!”

Lin Dongxue frowned in disgust. “Let’s talk somewhere else.”

“Sure, let me settle my bill first.”

Outside, there were no cafes or teahouses nearby, so they stood on the sidewalk. Xiao Si glanced at the passing cars and said, “Hurry up, I just had a bath and this place is filthy.”

Chen Shi showed a photo on his phone. “Do you know her?”

“Nope, why would I know an ugly girl like that?”

“Be serious! Zhang Xiao has confessed. On March 27th, each of you received a piece of her body, which you disposed of on Peace East Street on April 1st. Do you know how much panic that caused? An old lady in the neighborhood had a stroke from the shock.”

Xiao Si raised an eyebrow but stayed silent.

“What are you guys involved in?”

“A hobby club.”

“What kind of hobby?”

“Mushroom growing.” Xiao Si laughed, unable to keep a straight face.

“Mushroom growing?” Chen Shi scoffed. “Name four types of edible mushrooms.”

“Um, frozen mushroom, doom mushroom, mini boom mushroom, mega boom mushroom…”

“And sunshine mushroom, right?” Lin Dongxue said, arms crossed and visibly annoyed.

“Whoa, miss, you play Plants vs. Zombies too?” Xiao Si teased.

“Enough nonsense. If you don’t cooperate, we’ll talk somewhere less pleasant.”

Under Lin Dongxue’s stern gaze, Xiao Si finally got serious. “Duan Lin’s death has nothing to do with us. Yes, we received her body parts and were scared shitless. Someone’s framing us! Our leader decided to dispose of the body, but we’re victims here.”

“Who’s your leader?” Chen Shi asked.

“Brother Xiao!”

“You knew her name was Duan Lin. How did the body end up with you if she had no connection to you?”

Xiao Si frowned, looking frustrated. “Okay, fine. We’re a PUA group. Yes, the kind you hate. I’m an art student. I was insecure in college and never had a girlfriend. Seeing others in relationships made me jealous. A senior told me, ‘Xiao Si, if you don’t mess with women, how can you create good art?’ So I joined this group. It’s straightforward, no nonsense. We just focus on getting girls into bed.”

“Get to the point!” Chen Shi interrupted.

“Alright, alright. This Duan Lin was involved with one of us, but I don’t know who. We usually don’t form attachments. I’ve dated so many women, I can’t even remember their names. I once dumped a girl the morning after meeting her, without even knowing her name.” Xiao Si chuckled. “I think Duan Lin was dumped and couldn’t handle it, so she killed herself. Then some psycho sent her body parts to us as revenge. You should be looking for that person, not us!”

Lin Dongxue felt disgusted, like she had swallowed a fly. “You’re despicable.”

Xiao Si shrugged. “I know you don’t see us as good people. Being good gets you nowhere. Good guys get ‘good guy cards.’ The rise of PUAs is partly because of women. Look at them, dreaming of marrying rich men or young CEOs. If they weren’t so naive, they wouldn’t fall for us.”

Seeing Lin Dongxue clenching her fists, Chen Shi warned him, “Stop spreading your twisted views, or I’ll hit you.”

“Oh no, police brutality!” Xiao Si mocked.

“I’m not a cop.” Chen Shi showed his consultant badge.

Xiao Si’s expression changed. “Fine, fine. I get it. But we didn’t kill anyone. That psycho did. Go find him!”

“Who was Duan Lin dating?” Chen Shi asked.

“I don’t know!”

“Then how did you know her name?”

“Someone mentioned it in our group chat.”

“Don’t you have names in the chat?”

Xiao Si seemed to realize he was contradicting himself and became defiant. “I don’t know, okay? Ask me a thousand times and I still won’t know!”

“Fine, we’ll find out how Duan Lin died and who dismembered her. If we discover your involvement, you’ll regret not talking now.”

Xiao Si shrugged as if he didn’t care. The questioning ended.

Other teams had similar results. Some men admitted to being part of the PUA group but were vague about Duan Lin’s boyfriend.

A detail emerged: Duan Lin’s body parts had been delivered in coolers to their homes on the morning of March 27th.

Chen Shi speculated that the group was covering for each other. If Duan Lin had committed suicide after being dumped, there would be no need for secrecy. It was likely she was coerced into suicide.

Over the next few days, the police continued their inquiries. Some men were summoned for further questioning, but they remained tight-lipped.

This reminded Chen Shi of a saying: men’s alliances are strong because they know each other’s secrets, creating a balance that ensures loyalty.

The case stalled until an unexpected murder shattered the calm…