False evidence

Chapter 163 The Tailor Shop (Part 1)
Gao He was stunned by Shen San's words and asked in surprise, "Child, why would you think that?"

Xiao Shen said in a childish voice, "Before, we only drew portraits, only faces, we didn't take photos. Since we got cell phones, I've become obsessed with taking pictures."

He pointed to a photo of me on his phone: "If you like someone, you would never take a photo like this. I can tell that the person who took the photo wasn't focusing on my profile, but on my mouth. I think the person who took the photo must have been thinking: If I had a knife, I would definitely cut off the other corner of his mouth too."

Hearing him say this, even Gao He, who was used to seeing big scenes, couldn't help but show a hint of fear, and said to me:

“This child… I suggest that if you have time, you take him to see a psychologist.”

Xiao Shen rolled his eyes dramatically: "I'm not crazy. I only answered you because you asked me what I thought! Forget it, I'm not going to waste my breath on you. Whatever, let's find that person first!"

By then, I had flipped to the last photo.

The person in the photo is not me, but Fang Ling herself, taking a selfie in front of the wardrobe mirror.

Because it was a selfie, Fang Ling's face was half-covered by the phone, with only half of her face showing.

I stared at that half of the face for a while, and finally a set of images appeared in my mind.

Just then, Uncle Cheng came up to us, and Gao He cleared his throat and asked me, "Do you have any clues?"

Instead of answering him directly, I said, "Get in the car, we're going to Cao Furui right away!"

After we got in the car and drove onto the main road, Gao He asked me, "Fang Ling went to Cao Furui? Who took her there?"

He asked this because he knew that Fang Ling not only had intellectual disabilities, but also a considerable degree of autism.

If no one is with her, Fang Ling doesn't even dare to take the bus.

I told Gao He not to ask any questions yet, and to drive as fast as possible.

Pidan asked me for Fang Ling's phone, stared at the selfie for a while, and frowned, saying, "I think this woman is annoying!"

"Hey, what nonsense are you talking about!" Xiao Shen gestured towards Uncle Cheng in the passenger seat.

Pidan realized what had happened and quickly apologized, "Uncle, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to..."

Uncle Cheng waved his hand: "It's alright, you don't need to apologize. Actually, lately... I don't know why, but I also feel that this child is a bit strange sometimes. Anyway... I can't quite put my finger on what's wrong with him."

……

Cao Furui is a person's name.

It is also the signboard of a shop.

It was a traditional tailor shop.

Making clothes is more expensive than buying ready-made clothes now, and tailor shops are becoming increasingly rare. If they do exist, they are usually located in densely populated residential areas with relatively low rents.

However, this tailor shop, named Cao Furui, is located in the heart of the city.

Wangfu Back Street is a landmark of the city and a tourist attraction on par with Dongtai Gate.

The difference is that Dongtaimen sells "junk" under the guise of an antique street, while Wangfu Back Street sells almost entirely so-called "local delicacies," which is actually a street that rips off tourists. However, more than 70% of the buildings on that entire street are cultural relics.

When I first came here to study, I also visited many local attractions.

What impressed me most about Cao Furui was the owner of this shop—he had such a unique personality. Because it was a weekday and not peak tourist season, there weren't many people on Wangfujing Back Street.

The group walked to the middle of the room and saw the "Cao Furui" plaque hanging high in an old shop, and stopped in their tracks.

"Fang Ling really came here?" Gao He asked, puzzled, with a worried expression.

Seeing that I was pouting and not saying anything, Pidan tugged at my sleeve and said with a strange expression, "If we go in to look for someone, the five thousand six we just earned this morning will definitely be gone."

Not only were she and Gao He reacting strangely, but even Uncle Cheng seemed very conflicted.

Xiao Shen asked curiously, "A tailor shop isn't a coffin shop, why do you all have that kind of expression?"

I didn't say anything, but pointed to a sign on the outer wall of the storefront, indicating that he should look at it himself.

Xiao Shen glanced at me sideways and asked, "Besides making calls and sending WeChat voice messages, I mostly use my phone to take pictures; I also only use the mouse to browse the internet on my computer, mostly watching videos and looking at pictures. Do you know why?"

"Why?" Pidan was usually quite smart, but his IQ would drop out every now and then in front of Xiao Shen San.

"Because he's illiterate! He can't read much!"

I answered the question for Pidan, pointing to the sign and reading:
"Here, I'll pay a thousand for sewing a pair of underpants."
Take photos from a distance;
Don't come in if you're not going to make a purchase;

If you can't afford it, don't come in.
Don't bother me, I have a bad temper.

Xiao Shen San burst out laughing: "What the hell is this business practice? A thousand for a pair of underwear? Are they the emperor's dragon underwear? Can't you even go in and talk to someone? You have to spend money?"

Pidan said in a low voice, "When I was in high school, I came here to 'explore' with two classmates. I asked my mom to transfer money and I spent four hundred to buy a handkerchief. The two classmates didn't buy anything. As a result, after they went back, one of them attempted suicide, and the other still hasn't fully recovered from depression."

Observing the expressions of others, Xiao Shen raised his face and asked Gao He and Uncle Cheng, "Have you also patronized this store?"

Gao He remained silent, while Uncle Cheng said with a wry smile, "This shop was promoted even earlier than the inner circle in Beijing, and the owner's temper..."

Before he could finish speaking, I walked over to a wood carving stall next to me, picked up a craft knife, cut a slit in the sleeve of my jacket, put the craft knife back, took off my jacket and handed it to the stall owner, who was in his thirties: "Mending clothes!"

The stall owner, who hadn't raised his eyelids, glanced at the jacket but still didn't look up: "You're not the first to do this. This jacket, once patched... three thousand."

"I have no money!" I declared matter-of-factly. "I was the first to do this! I'm not paying you this time either!"

The stall owner lazily raised his head. "It's you again! You dare to come back? Perfect, let's settle that debt from three years ago!"

"What kind of debt do you want without evidence or an IOU?" I pointed at Gao He. "Do you even know what he does for a living?"

The stall owner glanced at Gao He sideways and said, "People's police are disciplined and don't bully ordinary people."

He then glanced at Uncle Cheng again, his voice even more languid: "He's quite the little tycoon. Otherwise, how could my old man have ripped him off by 12,000 when he came to our store?"

"Oh! I remember now, you're that kid from back then? Young Master?" Uncle Cheng stepped forward hurriedly. "Young man, to tell you the truth, I came here looking for someone, for my daughter. She's not quite right in the head! I'm afraid something might have happened to her..."

The stall owner leaned back in his bamboo chair, crossed his legs, and looked completely indifferent.

"If you're not going to spend money, don't bother me. You're not my father-in-law, so what does it have to do with me if your daughter goes missing?"

(End of this chapter)