August 30, 2019  

Qin Rouxia had stayed up all night, her face gaunt and exhausted. In the dimly lit room, she stared fixedly at her phone screen.  

Her bloodshot eyes strained, terrified of missing any notification from the commission app—her last lifeline.  

That’s right. On her phone, there was also a Future Commission App with a yellow auspicious cloud logo.  

Exactly the same as the one on Song Zhining’s phone.  

Suddenly, a new message popped up on the screen.  

Qin Rouxia immediately checked it, her eyes lighting up with hope—only to find it was a spam text.  

She couldn’t help but murmur, “Please… you have to help my daughter. As long as Lele can come back, I’d give my life if I had to.”  

Outside the door, her husband, Zhou Hang, who had just returned from an overnight shift, overheard her words. His eyes reddened with unshed tears.  

They used to be a happy family of three.  

But a year ago, on his mother’s birthday, his younger sister had taken Lele out for a fun day—only for their only daughter to be abducted.  

The couple couldn’t bear the devastating news. They quit their jobs and began searching for their daughter day and night.  

But the outcome was predictable—they couldn’t find her.  

Eventually, with their savings depleted, Zhou Hang had no choice but to return to work, continuing the search while earning a living.  

The thought of his sister’s call earlier, demanding to know why he hadn’t come home for their mother’s birthday, twisted his heart with fresh pain.  

Maybe they only remembered today was their mother’s birthday—but none of them remembered that a year ago, on this very day, Lele had been taken.  

If Lele hadn’t gone to the mall with his sister, she wouldn’t have been lost!  

After the incident, his wife had lashed out at him more than once, suspecting that his mother and younger sister had deliberately let Lele go missing. Could it be true?  

Now the whole family was happily celebrating their mother’s birthday—but what about his daughter? What about Lele?  

No one except him and his wife cared whether Lele was dead or alive.  

The thought of Lele possibly being mutilated by traffickers made Zhou Hang tremble uncontrollably.  

His heart felt as though it were being wrenched apart by an invisible hand, the pain unbearable.  

Sitting on the sofa, Zhou Hang—barely in his thirties but already with streaks of gray at his temples—slumped forward, his back hunched. He buried his face in his hands, silent tears streaming through his fingers…  

…

First floor, Galaxy Mall.  

Song Zhining and Su Yue were eating noodles with minced pork sauce.  

Su Yue scrolled through stock market updates between bites, muttering under her breath, “How many years has this bear market been dragging on? Who knows when the next bull run will come.”  

She had dabbled in a few stocks, but only with small sums—just for fun.

Song Zhining’s mind was entirely focused on the child abduction case.  

She mechanically shoveled noodles into her mouth, her gaze locked onto the people in the supermarket—especially elderly women, young girls, and little girls, lingering on them a beat longer.  

According to Qin Rouxia, it was today at noon that her mother-in-law and sister-in-law would take Lele shopping, only for her to be kidnapped.  

Half an hour later, Song Zhining finally finished her last bite of noodles. Su Yue, who had long since finished eating, was waiting for her at the table.  

“Xiao Ning, do you need to use the restroom?”  

“Let’s go.”  

The two headed to the bathroom together, but along the way, they still didn’t spot any trio matching the description.  

Was it because I was on the first floor, so my line of sight wasn’t broad enough?

But that shouldn’t be the case—I didn’t hear any announcements about a missing little girl either.

Maybe that app really was a scam, and the commission was just bait to trick me.

Yes! That had to be it!

Song Zhining reassured herself inwardly and let out a sigh of relief.  

But the next second—  

Just as she entered the restroom and checked her phone, she saw a message from her younger brother, Song Yunzhou, asking about their father’s condition.  

She pressed the voice message button to reply when, suddenly, she overheard a woman’s voice from the next stall.  

“Mom, do you really think that man was a trafficker? Would he actually take Lele?”  

The name *Lele* sent a jolt through Song Zhining’s heart, her nerves instantly on high alert.  

An older, raspier voice replied, “Of course he’s a trafficker. I’ve seen his type back in the village—eyes darting everywhere, always staring at kids and young women. Some even strike up conversations to fish for information about your family. I’d bet anything that the moment we walk away, he’ll snatch that little brat.”  

“But… if Lele gets taken, what will happen to my brother and sister-in-law? They’ll go insane.”  

“Pah! It’s just a useless girl. Who cares if she’s gone? That Qin Rouxia must’ve drugged your brother with some kind of love potion—how else could she make him obey her every word? Even agreeing to just one child! Ridiculous!”  

“She claims they can’t afford more, but how much could a girl possibly cost? Back in my day, no matter how hard life was, we still had six or seven kids! Your brother is the only son in our family—how can we let the Zhou lineage die out with him? He has to have a son!”  

“And yet he refuses to divorce her. But now, fate’s handed us this opportunity. As long as that little brat disappears, they’ll have to give me a grandson!”  

The old woman’s relentless tirade hit Song Zhining like a hammer to the chest.  

“So… we’ll wait another half hour before going back out, pretending we didn’t notice anything?”  

“Okay.”

Song Zhining couldn’t listen any longer. Her heart pounded wildly as she bolted toward the fourth floor of the supermarket.  

Glancing at the time, she realized it was exactly when Lele was supposed to be abducted.  

This timing matched perfectly with the information from the app.  

Everything matches up!

It all lines up!

She could no longer convince herself that the app was fake.  

Recalling Qin Rouxia’s words in a flash, she sprinted toward the changing room.  

The mall had just opened, so the surveillance system wasn’t fully operational—but there were cameras outside.  

The trafficker had drugged Lele and hidden her in the security guard’s changing room first.  

To avoid detection, he disguised himself as a janitor, took Lele to the fourth floor, stuffed her into a trash bin, and then smuggled her out of the mall in the chaos.  

That was the conclusion the police later reached after reviewing the footage and interrogating mall staff.  

But by then, Lele had long vanished without a trace.  

So! She had to find Lele now—racing against time to snatch her back from the trafficker’s hands!  

Panting, Song Zhining stood in front of the changing room and pushed the door open without hesitation.  

She locked the door and flicked on the lights in one swift motion.  

Her eyes immediately landed on a brown locker. She rushed over and yanked it open.  

The next second, she saw a little girl around five years old, dressed in a pink dress, lying unconscious inside.  

Her face was identical to the photo of Lele that Qin Rouxia had sent her.  

It’s Lele!  

Without a second thought, Song Zhining bent down to pull Lele out.  

Then—footsteps echoed from outside.  

Song Zhining’s heart lurched. Was the trafficker back?  

What do I do?!  

Her hands trembled as adrenaline surged through her.  

Human traffickers were ruthless, capable of anything—and there were no cameras here.  

Think, think!  

Suddenly, her gaze landed on a stun baton hanging on the locker.  

A faint smirk curled her lips, her eyes flashing with determination.  

Click—  

The changing room door creaked open from the outside.  

At the same moment, Song Zhining swung the stun baton with all her might—