Chapter 340: Old Friends Meet Again

Translator: Azza

Editor: Conspiracing

The three sat at the table with three cups of tea, calm as if they were holding a family meeting.

Reuniting with his old online friend, Chen Shi also felt lots of emotions inside of him.

Most of the young people back then were mostly not content with their lives and kept bumping into obstacles in real life. That’s why they came up with such a game to release stress. They learned and exchanged criminal skills and issued tasks to each other every Wednesday. There were pranks, simulated robberies, simulated kidnappings, and simulated murder. In the quiet midnight city, no door or wall could stop them. This group of restless young people felt like they were wielding superpowers.

Breaking order was so interesting that they never considered the dangerous consequences of tasting this "Black Honey".

Chen Shi said, "It was just ignorance at that time. I thought it was cool to have a skill that others didn’t. We called it cathartic, but now that I think about it, did these people join 'Black Honey' just for fun? It’s hard to understand people’s hearts. Part of it is due to hatred towards someone and wanting to learn criminal skills to take their revenge. There were also some people who were the original kind, but found that taking shortcuts could achieve their goals faster and then went onto the wrong path... I often thought that this game should never have started.”

Gu You rubbed the edge of the tea cup with a slight smile. "But you and I have not taken on the evil path. You used it to overcome the crime. To me, it was really a means of catharsis... I was studying for graduate school and had a repetitive and monotonous life. The obstacles mentors purposely gave me and the indifference among my classmates annoyed me. This prank-type game allowed me to breathe. I feel that the evil of the human heart needs to be released regularly, otherwise it will change its form due to suppression.”

"There are many people in this world. They all have their own stress factors. Do they all have to dive into other people's houses late at night to release their stress to have a good life? Some evils are better buried in the heart. They are like fire. After leaving the furnace, they will ignite everything around them.” Chen Shi paused. "Let’s not discuss the concept first. I have a question for you. Is Zhou Xiao also a member?"

"Yes! In fact, I have been looking for him for the last few years. I want to kill him myself!" Gu You gritted her teeth.

Tao Yueyue looked at Chen Shi and Gu You, saying, "Uncle Chen, Sister Gu, have you not met before?"

"No!" They said in unison.

"Then, how did you play together?"

"Internet!" Chen Shi smiled. "The ‘Black Honey’ platform was a very hidden website. We discussed with each other anonymously over the Internet. There were more than 20 people at its peak. Later, something happened and ‘Black Honey’ changed.”

"The tragic case at Villa Luolin!" Gu You’s eyes looked as though they were glowing. "It was all planned by Zhou Xiao that time. The different parties were cleaned up. Those willing to join him were allowed to survive. Those unwilling were all killed. ‘Black Honey’ was dirtied by the poisonous snake, Zhou Xiao.”

"It seems you joined earlier than me."

"A lot earlier."

"How much do you know about Zhou Xiao?"

"I haven't seen him before and I don't know his real name. He suddenly appeared like a ghost and began to spread his crazy thoughts, inciting evil in everyone to commit real crimes."

"Your name..."

"kk!"

Chen Shi widened his eyes and stared at Gu You for a long time. Gu You touched her short hair. "What? Does my real identity make you disappointed?”

"Ahem... Not the type I like." Chen Shi said awkwardly.

"You haven't been online dating, have you?" It was the first time that Tao Yueyue saw Chen Shi act so coy.

"No... no. But at that time, we were relatively close and found it easy to talk to each other, so I proposed to meet..." Chen Shi looked at Gu You. "You also agreed, but when we got to the place, you sent me a bunch of puzzles. When the solution came out, you said that the time was up. It was unfortunate that I didn't see you in person."

"You must have been obsessed with me back then?" Gu You smiled. "You said a lot of cheesy words as well. Yueyue, do you want to hear about it?"

"No, no. Just forget about the past!" Chen Shi held his forehead.

𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

Gu You looked around. "Purposefully renting a house, Mr. Chen, you played a bit big this time. What’s your motive?"

"I want to confirm first. Are you intending to lead Yueyue down the wrong path?"

"Of course not. I just think that she is the same kind of person as us. I want to pass things on to her."

Tao Yueyue jumped in, "I like being a criminal. It's fun."

Chen Shi sighed and pointed at her. "We’ve already negotiated this. I allowed you to do bad things, but you must report to me truthfully."

Tao Yueyue pouted, "You were just talking about school."

"Okay, I will not pursue the matter of you breaking into the house. From now on, if you play this dangerous game again, I must know what criminal skills you learn... Of course, it mustn’t be illegal."

Tao Yueyue nodded earnestly. "I won't cross the line. Just pranks."

"Back to the question earlier!" Gu You said, "What’s your motive?"

"I'm helping the police with a case and I’ve locked onto a suspect. However, her defense is too perfect and conventional methods can't move the case forward. I need the help of an old friend and I happened to find you!"

"What's her name?"

"Yi Qing. An elegant beauty."

"Yi Qing. Yi Qing?" Gu You recalled. "Was that the quiet girl who was said to have been sexually abused as a child?"

"Oh, you know her?"

"There aren’t a lot who know each other’s real identities."

Chen Shi thought to himself. Fortunately, no one knew his true identity. No one knew that he was the police student Song Lang at the time and not Chen Shi.

It was fortunate because if he had met kk back then, he wouldn’t be able to talk so freely right now.

"Who else do you know? If they’re still comrades, we’ll invite them here, and this will be used as a temporary gathering place. If they’ve changed, I will kill them through the police."

"Using evil to control evil, I like it!" Gu You laughed, "I still know one person. Master Ge."

"Master Ge? That kid... I only know Little Worm’s real identity."

"The four of us should be able to bring Yi Qing down."

"I hope so!"

Tao Yueyue clapped. "You’re going to find former partners? How cool!"

"Cool my ass." Chen Shi smiled. "In reality, they’re all just people who suffered losses in life."

"Can I sleep in this room tonight?"

"No, you’re not allowed to come to the temporary command center or show your face in front of them. This time, it’s only to deal with Yi Qing. I will return the house when everything is done."