Chapter 279 - 165: Peeling Back the Layers, The Truth (Part 2)

"He’s selling videos from pinhole cameras!"

What was that?

Back in ’04, almost no one had heard of such a thing. Of course, it wasn’t even that common by 2010.

But in the year 2024 of Xu Huo’s past life, plenty of people knew about it!

What was it?

It’s a scheme where you install pinhole cameras inside a hotel you manage, secretly film guests, and then sell the footage to porn sites.

Doesn’t sound like it would make much money, does it?

After all, you can find tons of pirated content with a simple search, and even the biggest pornographic comic sites have free material.

But that’s not how it works. A large portion of these porn sites’ revenue comes from integrated online gambling. The porn is just bait to attract traffic, so they’re definitely willing to buy content!

But how much money could you actually make?!

First, let’s be clear about one thing: this is illegal, unconscionable, and you will eventually be caught and arrested!

Take the case of ’Mr. Hang.’ He secretly filmed and sold over a hundred videos, profiting more than one million.

Or in 2020, someone installed cameras while staying at a hotel, sold two hundred videos, and made over four hundred thousand.

Or ’Brother Dui,’ who also sold over a hundred videos and made over a million.

Does that sound like a small amount?

Actually, that’s just one way to profit: recording, editing, and selling the footage.

There are other criminal methods.

These include, but are not limited to, selling access to the real-time live stream.

What does that mean?

Let me put it this way: a camera costs around 150, and it can be set up so that 100 people have simultaneous viewing access.

On the dark web, a single access pass can be sold for six hundred. A hundred passes is sixty thousand. A single camera, sold out once a month, can bring in sixty thousand!

Will people actually buy it?

The traffic on the dark web is beyond your imagination!

There are at least 2.7 million users globally, but because of its secretive nature, the actual number...

No joke, you could easily multiply that by five or six and still be on the low end.

And this can be sold in real-time. In other words, the moment you and your girlfriend walk into the room...

...there might be the eyes of at least six hundred people staring at you from behind their phones and computers.

Every detail of your girlfriend, your movements, everything between you, from a spot no one would ever notice...

...is being broadcast over the internet to countless people hiding in the dark, their eyes filled with excitement!

"So."

"Based on the information I have, the first porn sites appeared in ’95."

"And now, in ’04, this should be the very era when maggots like you are just starting to crawl out."

"That signal box next to the TV... I don’t need to tell you what that little flashing red dot is, do I?"

Xu Huo looked at the owner, whose face had gone completely pale, and spoke relentlessly.

"Heh. Your guests probably just think it’s a power indicator."

The moment he said that, the owner’s body went limp and he collapsed to the floor.

He was the owner of the hotel.

’Would a hotel owner really stoop to this?’

Hundreds of thousands a year—at least half a million. That’s forty thousand a month, over thirteen hundred a day. It’s more profitable than running the hotel itself!

’Even if the police find out, as long as I deny everything and claim I didn’t know, there’s nothing they can do to me.’

’I can’t just throw away money for the sake of my conscience, can I?’

That’s right. This was the mentality of such animals.

So...

"I’ll give you one more chance. Pull up the surveillance footage of Qin Zhong in the hourly-rate room, between 5:30 and 6:10 PM on August 7th."

"Otherwise..."

"...you’ll face the consequences."

Xu Huo said with a tight smile.

Li Jianye’s expression was grim as he glared at the owner.

’Pinhole cameras?’ To be honest, he’d seen them before.

But using them to secretly film in hotels? He’d never even heard of such a thing!

’I can’t believe these guys would dare to pull something like this...’

’Most importantly, judging by the owner’s reaction, this is one hundred percent real!’

"I... I’ll pull it up! I’ll pull it up right now!"

The owner, his face a mask of panic, began to lead the way.

"You can’t access it from the computer at the front desk. It’s in the office..."

The office was upstairs.

The space inside wasn’t large, about the size of a junior manager’s office.

As the owner turned on the computer...

A moment later, a Nine-Box Grid of camera feeds appeared clearly on the screen for everyone to see!

No, it wasn’t just nine cameras. Every single room had them.

And each room had at least three cameras, all with different angles.

Right then, on several of the feeds, a few couples were passionately going at it...

Li Jianye’s expression darkened.

"Hurry up!"

"Yes, okay, I’m hurrying..."

The owner, trembling, quickly began to work the controls.

A moment later, the owner’s face suddenly stiffened, a look of utter horror spreading across it.

"It’s... it’s him!?"

’Who?’

Li Jianye’s eyes narrowed. "You know him!?"

"No, I... I..."

The owner was flustered and speechless for a long moment before finally letting out a sigh.

"You officers should see for yourselves. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to forget him for the rest of my life..."

Then, the owner moved the mouse and clicked on the screen.

Watching it load, Li Jianye took a deep breath and waited.

The truth of this case, which had dragged on for nearly four months with no resolution... it was very likely hidden within this video, less than fifteen minutes long!

The third party, who both existed and did not exist...

The ’lover’ Qin Zhong had been in contact with since at least elementary school...

The deeply confusing clues left in the bedroom...

Even the fact that Liu Li had personally heard him talking as if on the phone, yet the police could find no trace of a call...

The truth to everything.

It was all in this short, ten-minute-plus video.

Amidst the sound of held breaths, Qin Zhong’s figure gradually appeared on the computer screen.

They watched him walk into the room and lock the door from the inside...

As they watched, Li Jianye and Zhao Shui grew more and more bewildered, then more and more shocked.

Expressions of absolute shock slowly spread across their faces.

Their mouths fell open, as if they were witnessing something utterly terrifying.

And then...

"BLEAGH!!!"

In an instant, Zhao Shui was dry-heaving, clutching a trash can as a wave of primal revulsion, seemingly stemming from the very soul of humanity, washed over him.

He then raised his head, staring at the video on the screen with a numb, disbelieving expression.

Zhao Shui was frozen.

This was a man with over a decade on the force, a veteran criminal detective with the rank of Police Chief, a man who was even said to be the next team captain...

And at this moment, his eyes had been well and truly opened.

Completely and utterly opened!!!

He also understood now.

He understood why the owner, who must have secretly watched countless live feeds, was able to recall this person instantly upon seeing the clip...

Even Li Jianye couldn’t help but take two steps back, his face a mask of horror as he spoke in a shocked voice.

"How could he be this depraved!?"

...

...

PS: Today is the second to last day to participate in the monthly ticket event before the deadline.

I’ll be ending the event tomorrow at 8 PM.

If you haven’t participated, feel free to join in. Just by voting, you can enter the prize drawing. Winners can contact me in the group to claim their prize.

The group number is at the very bottom of the novel’s synopsis.