Chapter 13: Are All Ghostwriters This Omnipotent?

One hour ago.

Anling City's Public Security Brigade struck quickly, directly destroying an underground gambling den.

However, due to the large number of people involved, the Public Security Brigade did not have enough personnel, so they requested support from the Criminal Investigation Brigade.

Shen Qianqian, who was off-duty accompanying her best friend on a blind date, was called back to the police station.

Upon rushing back to the police station, Shen Qianqian changed into her police uniform.

She quickly got into her role.

"Qianqian, there's a swindler inside, help with the interrogation," the head of the Public Security Brigade handed Shen Qianqian the interrogation sheet.

"Okay."

Shen Qianqian turned and walked into the interrogation room, her face turning cold.

At first glance, it looked as if Dragon Hollyhock had turned red.

Inside the interrogation room.

Across from Shen Qianqian was a middle-aged man who was slightly overweight, with somewhat swollen eye bags, grey hair amongst the black, and showing signs of balding.

"What's your name?" Shen Qianqian's voice was ice cold.

When interrogating criminals, Shen Qianqian was always like this.

"Zhang De."

"Age?"

"54."

"What's your occupation?"

"Does being a landlord count as an occupation?"

The middle-aged man across from her flickered in his gaze.

He had just been in the police station two days ago, experiencing the interrogation by the police comrades.

Unexpectedly, here he was again.

Shen Qianqian slightly lifted her eyes. "Your specific address."

The landlord sulkily responded, "Happiness Community, building 3, No. 3 garden villa, City East District."

Happiness Community?

Shen Qianqian's eyebrows furrowed.

She had been to the City East District's Happiness Community.

Lin Chuan also lived there; during the last theft case, she had personally gone to summon Lin Chuan.

This community… so many talented people?

Indeed, this landlord was none other than Lin Chuan's landlord, Old Zhang.

Shen Qianqian's pen tip moved as she noted down Old Zhang's information, then she asked, "Are you a swindler?"

Landlord Old Zhang hastily shook his head, denying, "No."

Shen Qianqian raised her hand and pointed towards the two walls of the interrogation room, where eight conspicuous characters were displayed.

Leniency to those who confess, severity to those who resist.

"Really not."

Landlord Old Zhang had a bitter face.

Shen Qianqian's eyes narrowed and her voice grew heavier, "The others have already confessed, they've revealed that you were cheating in the gambling den, and we were just about to deal with you when our men arrived, saving your hands. Will you continue to conceal the truth?"

Old Zhang pursed his lips, not daring to hide anything, and honestly admitted, "Not a swindler, just learned a bit of cheating techniques."

As it turned out.

Old Zhang had practiced cheating techniques all through the previous night, unable to sleep.

He felt he had a natural talent for it, considering himself a cheating techniques prodigy. In just one night, he had made considerable progress.

This morning, unable to resist the itch in his hands, he sneaked out without telling Xinxin and secretly went to an underground gambling den, wanting to test his newfound skills.

Old Zhang was still in the grace period for beginners; indeed, he had shown a bit of his skills in the gambling den.

But soon, Old Zhang was noticed by the people running the gambling den.

After reviewing the surveillance footage in slow motion, they spotted his tricks and decided to take him out.

That's when the Public Security Brigade raided the gambling den.

And caught everyone in one swoop.

Old Zhang was fortunate to save his hands and ended up back at the police station.

"Just-learned cheating techniques?"

Shen Qianqian furrowed her brows slightly, slightly surprised.

"Mhm."

Landlord Old Zhang nodded.

"Who taught you?" Shen Qianqian asked.

Old Zhang shook his head. "No one. Self-taught."

Shen Qianqian was taken aback, her eyes narrowed slightly, some surprise evident, "Self-taught? How did you teach yourself?"

"Just… just learned it from tutorials."

Old Zhang wore a pained expression.

Shen Qianqian was even more surprised. Could a swindler really be self-taught?

She had interrogated swindlers before, but each one had been taught by a master, practiced hard for years, before they dared to venture into the martial world.

But the 54-year-old landlord in front of her, who had learned cheating techniques on his own, was the first she had ever seen.

It really was a sight to behold.

"Where did you get the tutorial from? How long have you been practicing?"

Shen Qianqian fired questions in quick succession without giving Old Zhang much time to think, creating an overwhelming sense of pressure.

"Just practiced for one night, from a tutorial I saw in a novel."

Old Zhang answered honestly.

Even though Shen Qianqian had seen her fair share of bizarre suspects, this answer still took her by surprise.

Cheating techniques learned in one night?

And from a tutorial in a novel?

Good heavens!

The last time Shen Qianqian read Lin Chuan's novel "Thief," readers said they could learn lock-picking skills from it.

This time it was something even more exaggerated.

Learning cheating techniques!

Are authors these days all so omniscient?

Shen Qianqian thought to herself, I really want to see, which author is this audacious?

Teaching someone cheating techniques, in reality, is a form of instructing criminal methods, which constitutes the crime of disseminating criminal methods, and can result in a fixed-term imprisonment of not more than five years, criminal detention, or control.

If the circumstances are serious, it can be a fixed-term imprisonment of not less than five years but not more than ten years.

In particularly serious circumstances, a fixed-term imprisonment of ten years or more or life imprisonment can be imposed.

"Which novel is it?"

Shen Qianqian was also curious to know which author it was.

"Sailing Novel, 'Swindler'."

Under duress, landlord Old Zhang had no choice but to reveal everything.

Even if he didn't say it, the police would search his phone and find the novel.

Shen Qianqian took out her phone.

She opened Sailing Novel and searched for 'swindler'.

The first one on the list was a work called "King of Cheating" by an author named 'Handon'.

Shen Qianqian clicked into it and put the phone screen in front of Old Zhang: "Is it this one?"

Old Zhang looked and shook his head: "No."

This website had several books titled "Swindler," with a high rate of duplication in names.

"Do you remember the author's pen name?" Shen Qianqian asked.

Old Zhang's mouth twitched: "I remember."

"What's it called?"

"It's called… Mr. Lin." Old Zhang revealed Lin Chuan's pen name.

Shen Qianqian's brows furrowed.

She was no stranger to the pen name Mr. Lin!

A duplicate name?

Shen Qianqian pursed her lips, her slender, fair fingers rapidly tapping the screen, entering the keywords 'Mr. Lin' and 'swindler'.

At that moment, a book with over one million words popped up.

Shen Qianqian asked, "Is this the one?"

Old Zhang glanced at it, and nodded vigorously, his eyes filled with a sense of guilt.

Author, you've been implicated!

Shen Qianqian clicked into the author's homepage, and with a quick glance, she was taken aback.

Author: Mr. Lin.

Works: "Thief," "Swindler,"...

"Well done, Lin Chuan, passing on criminal methods in a novel, teaching people cheating techniques," Shen Qianqian thought, her chest heaving with emotion.

After questioning Old Zhang,

Shen Qianqian reported the interrogation details to the head of the Public Security Brigade.

The decisive and efficient Captain Li Bing quickly issued an order: "Qianqian, help contact Sailing Novel Website and retrieve this 'Mr. Lin's' information. Prepare to contact the local police station and summon him."

Shen Qianqian shook her head: "Captain Li, there's no need. I know him."

Li Bing raised his eyebrows in surprise: "You know him?"

"I invited him to the police station last time to investigate a perfect-level home invasion theft," Shen Qianqian said.

"Immediately summon him to the police station, Qianqian, you'll conduct the interrogation," Li Bing said with a smile.

Shen Qianqian nodded.

She then quickly left the Public Security Brigade of Anling City's police station and hurried towards the Redwood Cafe.