Why is the system taking my request to photograph a cosplayer seriously?

Chapter 220 Baima's Growth (Snow Mountain Saintess)

Time flew by and it was the day before school started.

Ding Heng sat in his study, a freshly compiled quarterly report on his computer screen.

Lin Man stood beside him, bending down to look at the screen, her long hair falling down and tickling Ding Heng's neck.

"Boss, there's nothing wrong with this batch of data. I'll have Secretary Huang file it in a bit."

Ding Heng grunted in agreement, closed the page, leaned back in his chair, and stretched.

"By the way, you're a senior this fall. What are your plans after that? Will you be taking the postgraduate entrance exam?"

Lin Man slowly closed her laptop, stepped onto the desk, her posture elegant and alluring.

She knelt on the table, placed her hands on either side of Ding Heng's shoulders, leaned down close to his face, and her foxy eyes curved into two crescent moons.

"Boss, I don't have any plans."

Her voice was soft and sweet: "I just want to serve the boss wholeheartedly~ Wherever the boss goes, I'll go, and be the boss's little secretary for life."

Ding Heng raised his hand and slapped her face lightly.

"Smack."

A crisp sound.

"You little slut."

Lin Man was not annoyed at all; instead, she smiled even more charmingly and rubbed her face against Ding Heng's palm.

Ding Heng took the opportunity to pinch her chin and gently lift it upwards.

"How are things at the Lin family's place lately?"

"Brilliant Planet is doing alright, I guess. Lin Zhiyuan and his gang can't do legitimate business, but they're experts at shady dealings."

Ding Heng gently stroked Lin Man's lower lip with his thumb: "Want to give them another big beating?"

Lin Man's eyes lit up, and she leaned down, pressing her forehead against Ding Heng's chest.

"Boss~ You're so good to me, I don't know how to repay you~"

Ding Heng felt ticklish from being rubbed, so he raised his hand and slapped her buttocks again.

"What's the rush?"

He ordered, "Go change your clothes first."

"Yes, boss!"

Lin Man flipped off the table, her long, black-stockinged legs landing steadily: "What does the boss want to play today?"

"The nurse uniform I bought last time is nice."

"clear!"

Lin Man was about to walk towards the dressing room when her phone suddenly rang.

The urgent ringing broke the ambiguous atmosphere in the room.

Lin Man's charming expression vanished instantly. She glanced at the caller ID and frowned slightly.

"Pema?"

She answered the phone without putting it on speakerphone, only saying "hmm" a few times, her expression growing increasingly serious.

Ding Heng leaned back in his chair and watched her quietly.

Less than a minute later, Lin Man hung up the phone, turned to look at Ding Heng, and her tone returned to seriousness.

"Boss, something's happened."

"What is it?"

"Bai Ma's friend, Huang Yue, was cheated out of 300,000 yuan by her boyfriend and ended up in the hospital after overdosing on sleeping pills."

The study was quiet for a moment.

Ding Heng and Lin Man exchanged a glance and smiled bitterly at each other.

It's time to come.

"Boss, you guessed right."

Lin Man sighed and took out her car keys from the drawer.

Ding Heng stood up and straightened his collar: "Can we find him?"

"It shouldn't be a big problem."

As Lin Man walked out, she dialed Duan Biao's number.

The call was answered quickly, and Lin Man's tone was decisive and straightforward.

"Duan Biao, help me find someone. His surname is Li, Li Chongfeng, and he seems to be a SF Express courier. He suddenly went missing yesterday afternoon, and I guess he's no longer in Changsha. Have your people do their best to find him for me."

Her voice turned cold: "After finding it, have your own people ask them questions first, then hand it over to the police—handle it as appropriate."

Duan Biao responded on the other end of the phone and asked a few more questions about the details, which Lin Man explained in detail.

"Get it done as soon as possible, and I will arrange payment and bonuses afterwards."

Lin Man hung up the phone and pushed open the door to the study.

Ding Heng followed behind her, seemingly lost in thought: "Are you still paying Duan Biao and the others?"

Lin Man turned around, a smile returning to her lips: "After all, they were all people who followed my mother back then, so it's not good to let them starve. Now we've set up a property management company, specifically responsible for the security and daily maintenance of several properties, and occasionally—we also help the boss with some minor troubles."

Ding Heng didn't ask any more questions.

Lin Man used her own money for this, so let her handle it.

Moreover, having a capable person like today is better than him personally going to find that Li Chongfeng.

It would be beneath me to do these things myself.

The two went downstairs, got into the car, and headed straight for the hospital.

In the hospital corridor, Baima stood at the door of the ward, looking down in a daze.

Hearing footsteps, she looked up, her eyes red-rimmed.

The moment she saw Ding Heng, tears welled up in her eyes again.

She timidly moved in front of Ding Heng, clutching the hem of his clothes with her fingers, not daring to speak.

Ding Heng raised his hand and gently ruffled Bai Ma's hair: "What happened?"

"Sister Huang Yue—she was deceived by Li Chongfeng."

Baima sniffed and began to recount the story in fits and starts.

After receiving the 300,000 yuan, Li Chongfeng first coaxed Huang Yue to go house hunting, saying that he had already raised enough for the down payment and that they should go find another development to pay the deposit. Huang Yue excitedly followed him to several places, and after much deliberation, they finally settled on a small apartment.

Yesterday, the two of them arranged to go to the sales office together to pay the deposit. Huang Yue arrived at the location but waited for a long time without seeing anyone. Her phone was switched off, and she didn't reply to messages.

She thought something had happened to Li Chongfeng and frantically searched for him everywhere. She looked for his rented apartment, but it was empty. She went to the branch office where he worked, but they said he had just resigned a couple of days ago.

Ding Heng then asked, "How did you discover that Huang Yue had taken sleeping pills?"

Baima was still shaken: "She suddenly transferred 6102.52 yuan to me out of the blue, then stopped replying to my messages and answering my calls. When I called Guo Rong again and went to her usual internet cafe room, I found out—"

Ding Heng didn't say anything, but patted her head again.

Baima wiped her face hastily: "Brother, do you think she's making such a fuss—it's just 300,000!"

Ding Heng was both amused and exasperated.

It's only 300,000?

Does this girl even know what she's saying?

He was certain that, aside from the compensation he received for the last heatstroke, Huang Yue had never had more than three thousand yuan in her entire life.

Finally, 6102.52 was transferred to Baima, which was probably the only balance she had left.

Therefore, 300,000 yuan was an astronomical figure for Huang Yue, a debt that she could not repay even if she worked desperately, and the last straw that broke the camel's back.

And it wasn't just money that was stolen.

All feelings, trust, and hopes for the future were burned away by the man's fire.

Wanting to die is perfectly normal.

Ding Heng asked again, "Did you call the police?"

Bai Ma shook her head: "Not yet, I want to wait until Sister Huang Yue wakes up before we talk about it."

Ding Heng didn't ask any more questions and took out his phone from his pocket.

"You should go back now."

Baima was taken aback.

"go back?"

"You start school the day after tomorrow, and you'll have a lot of things to do. I'll arrange for a caregiver to look after things here, and I'll assist Huang Yue with the police report. Li Chongfeng won't get away with this, don't worry."

Baima lowered her head and didn't move.

"I—I want to wait until she wakes up before I leave."

"There's no point in you staying here."

Ding Heng's tone left no room for negotiation: "Once she's awake, doctors and nurses will take care of her. What are you doing standing here, unable to help?"

Baima bit her lip and remained silent.

Ding Heng sighed, reached out and pinched her cheek, gently pulling it outwards.

"What, you don't trust your older brother?"

Baima winced in pain and mumbled a vague "Ugh—no—", but finally nodded obediently.

"Alright, I'm leaving. Brother, could you—please tell Sister Huang Yue for me that I—"

"Don't worry, I know."

Ding Heng patted her head.

Baima turned and walked a few steps, then looked back at the ward door, before quickening her pace and disappearing at the end of the corridor.

Lin Man walked over from the other end of the corridor: "Boss, the person has been found."

"

Ding Heng raised an eyebrow slightly: "So fast?"

"These kinds of petty thugs aren't hard to find."

Lin Man said casually, "If you ask around in the industry, you'll always find someone you know, no matter how many twists and turns you go through."

Ding Heng pondered, "To be able to scheme against Bai Ma from Huang Yue, this person's mind is not like that of an ordinary thug."

Lin Man smiled and said, "Don't worry, boss. Duan Biao is already asking around. Once he understands the situation, he'll hand it over and deal with it accordingly."

"OK."

Ding Heng didn't ask any further questions. He didn't want to know what methods Duan Biao would use to "find out the truth," nor did he need to know. Whether it was Li Chongfeng or Huang Yue, it was all irrelevant.

As long as the result is correct, the process doesn't matter.

The next morning.

Pema groggily got out of bed, her hair sticking up in a mess, and her eyes were still a little swollen.

She barely slept last night.

Lying in bed, tossing and turning, my mind was filled with thoughts of Huang Yue.

Baima took a deep breath, patted her face, and got out of bed to wash up.

After changing into clean clothes, she went downstairs to ask Sister Jiang to prepare some light porridge to take to the hospital later.

As soon as he reached the corner of the stairs, he suddenly stopped.

Two people were sitting on the sofa in the living room.

Ding Heng, and Qu Zhen.

Baima was stunned for a moment, then quickly ran downstairs.

"Mom? What brings you here?"

Qu Zhen wore a simple dark gray dress, holding a cup of hot tea in her hand, her posture composed.

"With something this serious happening to you, how could I, as your mother, not come?"

She looked her daughter up and down, her brows furrowing slightly. "You look pale. Did you stay up late playing games again last night?"

"No! I, I—"

Bai Ma stammered, then subconsciously glanced at Ding Heng.

Ding Heng gestured with his chin toward her: "Come sit down first."

Baima obediently walked to the sofa and sat down properly next to Quzhen, looking very well-behaved.

"Mom————"

She tentatively asked, "Is everything... all taken care of?"

Qu Zhen put down her teacup, not answering Bai Ma's question, but instead saying, "Your friend is out of danger, but he hasn't woken up yet. I'll have someone send some tonics over later. Just tell my secretary what you need."

Baima responded and then turned her gaze to Ding Heng.

Ding Heng didn't beat around the bush and spoke directly.

"The matter concerning Li Chongfeng has been thoroughly investigated."

He began his story: "This guy was originally just a layabout. He was pretty good at games, making some money in his early years by boosting accounts, but then he got involved with PGs and racked up a mountain of debt. To pay it off, he started scamming everyone—relatives, friends, ex-girlfriends—even boosting account owners! When he was completely desperate, he simply became a pampered young master."

Baima blinked: "Young Master? What young master?"

Ding Heng coughed lightly and looked at Qu Zhen.

Qu Zhen raised her hand and gently patted the back of her daughter's head.

Don't ask questions you shouldn't ask.

"Um----"

Baima covered the back of her head, pouted aggrievedly, but didn't ask any further questions.

Ding Heng continued, "Li Chongfeng isn't particularly good-looking, but he's got a sweet tongue, and in that area—well, he's not bad either—so he can easily win women over. Huang Yue is one of them."

"That aspect—which aspect?"

"Don't interrupt your brother!"

Qu Zhen slapped her again.

"Ugh————"

Baima, shut up obediently.

Ding Heng smiled and continued, "Later, he saved some money and gained some experience. He withdrew from that circle. During that time, he also cheated a married man out of about 200,000 yuan. The man was too afraid to report it to the police because of his infidelity. So Li Chongfeng took the money and ran back to the countryside to hide for a while, pretending to be a reformed and honest man. But he quickly spent all of the 200,000 yuan."

Baima was stunned.

"and then?"

"Then—one day he was scrolling through his WeChat Moments and saw a photo of you and Huang Yue together."

Baima was stunned.

"Did he see me?"

"more than."

Ding Heng picked up his phone, swiped it a couple of times, and handed the screen to Baima.

It's a screenshot from Huang Yue's WeChat Moments.

The accompanying images are two: one is a photo of Baima and Huang Yue in a private room at an internet cafe, and the other is a screenshot of their game's settlement screen.

Baima scratched his head: "What do you mean?"

"What a coincidence, the account boosting service you had for a period of time was run by Li Chongfeng!"

Ding Heng chuckled: "Your skins, boosting services, and gaming companion services—the total cost is at least several hundred thousand. You're notorious in the boosting industry for being naive and rich. And do you think no one knows you use a voice changer to pretend to be a man? Actually, it's been known throughout the gaming companion industry for a while now."

Baima was completely dumbfounded, her face turning red and then white.

"Me—a fool with too much money?"

No sooner had he finished speaking than he was struck on the back of the head again.

Qu Zhen glared at her angrily: "I always tell you to play fewer games, but you don't listen and you even try to act smart like a man."

Pema retorted, feeling wronged and indignant: "Mom! That's victim-blaming!"

"Still talking back?"

Baima shrank her neck and shut her mouth, looking aggrieved.

Ding Heng, acting as peacemaker, waved his hand and said, "Alright, alright, that's how it is. The person has been found and handed over to the police. He paid off a lot of old debts while he was on the run. Of your 300,000, less than 200,000 has been recovered so far. The rest should be recovered once the police complete the procedures."

Pema nodded, then asked, "So—how long will he be sentenced?"

"It's hard to say; it depends on how the lawyer defends the case."

"After he gets out—will he still lie?"

Don't worry.

Ding Heng smiled faintly, his tone meaningful: "He can no longer lie to people, especially women."

Baima seemed to understand something vaguely, and didn't ask any further questions.

"What about Sister Huang Yue?"

"Hmm—the police will probably take her statement later."

Ding Heng countered, "What other ideas do you have?"

Pema took a deep breath and turned to Quzhen.

"Mom————"

She leaned closer, placed her hands on Qu Zhen's shoulders, and began to gently massage them: "Mom, have you been working very hard lately? Let me give you a back massage~"

Qu Zhen said expressionlessly, "Speak your mind."

"Mom~"

Bai Ma increased the pressure on her hand, her voice becoming sickeningly sweet.

"Could you please help Sister Huang Yue? Find her a decent job, not too strenuous, so she has a place to stay and can support herself. She's not a bad person, just unlucky and not very educated."

Qu Zhen didn't reply, but picked up her teacup and took a sip.

Seeing that her mother was ignoring her, Baima became anxious and tightened her grip: "Mom~ please help her~"

Don't you always say that we should do good deeds and accumulate good karma? Helping her is a good deed, isn't it?

Qu Zhen put down her teacup and finally turned to look at her daughter: "You really want to help her?"

Baima chuckled and continued to vigorously massage his back.

For her, Huang Yue was the first true friend she ever made.

Although Wen Shu was also her good friend, it was Ding Heng who arranged it.

Qu Zhen was at her wits' end by her daughter's nagging and could only sigh helplessly.

"Okay, I'll have someone arrange it."

Baima immediately pounced on Quzhen and gave her a big kiss on the face.

"Mom is the best!"

Then she let go of Qu Zhen, ran to Ding Heng, stood on tiptoe, and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.

"My brother is the absolute best!"

Ding Heng was covered in her saliva from her kisses, and he reached out to wipe his face, both amused and exasperated.

"Come on, brother, take me to the hospital!"

Bai Ma immediately grabbed Ding Heng and ran outside as fast as she could.

Qu Zhen sat on the sofa, watching her daughter and Ding Heng disappear through the door, her expression thoughtful.

After a long while, he gently shook his head.

hospital.

When the two arrived at the ward, the door was open.

The hospital bed was empty, and the blankets were neatly folded.

-

On the bedside table, the gaming phone that Baima lent to Huang Yue lay quietly, with a piece of paper pressed down next to it.

Baima stood frozen at the doorway, stunned for several seconds before slowly walking in and picking up the white paper.

There were only three words on it—"I'm sorry."

The handwriting is crooked and messy.

Baima felt as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over her from head to toe, and she was instantly stunned and motionless.

Ding Heng walked to the bedside, picked up the phone, and swiped the screen.

The data has been cleared—contacts, photos, chat history—nothing is left.

Yu Yu Jingjing, as if Huang Yue had never existed.

Ding Heng turned around and called out into the corridor.

"Nurse?"

A young nurse jogged over.

"May I ask who you are?"

Where is the patient in this bed?

The nurse peeked into the empty bed.

"She woke up this morning and said she wanted to go for a walk. I thought she seemed okay, so I didn't stop her—and then I didn't pay attention anymore—"

Ding Heng didn't ask any further questions, waved for the nurse to leave, and called out softly.

"Pema?"

"Brother————"

Pema's voice trembled: "Why?"

Ding Heng held Bai Ma's shoulders and turned her to face him.

"That's 300,000."

"What's wrong with 300,000?"

Baima's eyes were red, and her voice was muffled and strained: "Is 300,000 yuan more important than a friend?"

Ding Heng didn't speak, unsure of how to address her.

Huang Yue isn't particularly smart, but she's not particularly stupid either. She has a bit of cleverness, but unfortunately, her vision, knowledge, and thinking are all lacking.

In Baima's view, 300,000 is nothing. How can it compare to a good friend?

But in Huang Yue's eyes, that was a full 300,000.

It's a debt she can never repay in her lifetime.

Baima was just a friend she had known for less than a month.

In this respect, Li Chongfeng is much better than her.

At least Li Chongfeng could tell at a glance that Baima would lend hundreds of thousands of yuan to someone without batting an eye.

Having been cheated out of money, deceived emotionally, and treated like a fool my whole life, I finally mustered the courage to start over, only to fall into the same trap again.

Huang Yue tried to escape through suicide, but after being rescued, she didn't have the courage to attempt suicide a second time.

So she chose to run away once again.

Leaving her phone and a note was the last bit of dignity she could muster.

From now on, she might go back to her hometown and marry an honest man. Or she might move to another city and continue to drift along, working one day and resting three.

To live out one's life in a daze.

She will never know that by choosing to run away, she missed an opportunity to change her life.

And this is also the greatest punishment for her cowardice.

Baima lowered her head, and muffled sobs escaped from her throat.

She spoke very softly, and sounded very aggrieved.

The "friend" she had longed for and finally had was ultimately no match for a mere 300,000.

Should I blame Huang Yue for this?

Baima didn't know—

Perhaps compared to Huang Yue, she was just a lucky one who was born into a better family.

Ding Heng pulled Baima into his arms and comforted her gently.

He didn't have much to say.

Some things you have to experience yourself to truly understand.

"Brother—I have no friends again."

Bai Ma finally understood why Ding Heng had asked her to make money.

It wasn't to make her endure hardship and live frugally—but rather to help her understand that money has different meanings for different people.

Huang Yue is the best example.

"Who said that?"

Ding Heng's voice was very soft: "Don't you still have Wen Shu? And your sisters-in-law, and—me."

Baima looked up, her face streaked with tears, a complete mess.

"Brother."

"Um?

'

"If one day—you also—do it because of money, or something else—"

She didn't continue.

Three hundred thousand might not be much.

Three hundred million?

What about three billion?

Bai Ma suddenly felt inexplicably afraid and clutched Ding Heng's clothes tightly.

Ding Heng lowered his head, just about to say a few words to comfort her, when a prompt suddenly popped up in his mind.

[System notification: The saintess of the plateau has been tainted.]

[A New Chapter in the Holy Light Revelation: Prayer flags in the snowy land whisper in the wind, and the reflection of the sacred lake ripples. She was born on the roof of the world, and the sacred fire of the plateau, which has burned for millennia, flows in her veins. But the thorns of the mortal world entangled her ankles, and the dust of the secular world clouded her eyes. Her heart, once as pure as a snow lotus, wandered in the mist, lost, unable to find its way home.]

Young sage of light, the sacred flame in your hands has heard the call of the distant snow-capped mountains. Go! Go find her!

Melt the frost in her heart with the warmth of your palm, and illuminate her path with your unwavering light. Let her understand that holiness is not about aloofness far removed from the world, but about facing the light even amidst chaos. When the fog dissipates, the saint will once again stand atop the plateau, lighting an inextinguishable lamp for all who are lost.

[Mission Objective: Awaken the tarnished saintess "Pema Yangjin"]

[Task Rewards: 5000 Divine Merit, Perception +12, Constitution +12, unlock the relic "Holy Pendant", unlock the exclusive skill "Purification".]

Ding Heng was instantly dumbfounded.

Baima was also suddenly selected by the system?

What the hell is this "saintess"?

After hesitating for a long time, Ding Heng reached out and cupped the girl's cute little face, gently wiping away the tear stains left at the corners of her eyes with his thumb.

Then he lowered his head and gently kissed her forehead.

"Won't."

His voice was steady, without the slightest hesitation.

"You're my very, very, very best little sister!"

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