Chapter 290 168: A Product from Hell! The Elixir of Immortality

But Chen Jin hadn't.

It was as if he had silently, suddenly pulled out 'a million' and then started a business.

Before that, there had been no financial signs whatsoever!

"And the relationship between the three of them?"

"They didn't know each other."

"They didn't know each other, but they all had a sum of money from an unknown source."

Xu Huo fell into deep thought, his brow furrowed.

'Money from an unknown source. In other words, dirty money.'

The authorities were extremely strict about dirty money. It might not seem like it now, but Xu Huo had experienced it firsthand in his past life.

If you transferred money to a high-risk account, your ability to make even a little profit would be restricted.

Of course, if you had dirty money… small amounts were usually fine.

"Small amounts" meant one or two million. You could buy a car or a house, and no one would bother you.

'This sort of thing only gets flagged when it involves large sums, starting in the tens of millions.'

'In this era, that meant millions.'

'Millions…'

'Zhao Shan was just the owner of a student aid website. How much dirty money could he possibly have?'

'Even if it was dirty, how dirty could it get?!'

"Does the student aid website have a physical location?"

Snapping out of his thoughts, Xu Huo looked up at Li Jianye.

He had to go see it for himself. Only then would he have enough information to make a judgment.

There was no other way. The student aid website was, by nature, just like a charity or a foundation.

You could say it made money, but they were non-profit organizations. By the book, they weren't supposed to be profitable.

But if you said it *didn't* make money…

A certain non-profit donation platform had even gone public.

And with these kinds of operations, there were plenty of ways to rake in cash!

If all five victims had angered the killer over the same issue, then it was likely… that examining each individual case could still reveal something about the perpetrator.

"We'll split into three groups. Brother Zhao, you head to the volunteer teacher's location."

"Captain Li and I will handle Zhao Shan—specifically, the student aid website's physical location."

"As for the businessman… Director Chu, you'll need to handle that search as you see fit. My advice is to move on it immediately."

Xu Huo laid out the plan for everyone.

Zhao Shuimei had no objections; he was fine with going anywhere.

The same went for Chu Linhai. He had previously tried to investigate the monkey trainer but had come up with nothing.

Having something to do now was much better than having nothing to do at all!

"Alright. In that case, let's get this over with quickly!"

Xu Huo nodded. Without giving anyone a moment to react, he got into a car parked by the road. Li Jianye was right behind him.

"Let's go!"

Whether they were saints or sinners, good or bad, deserving of death or not…

A single glance would tell all.

With their tasks clearly divided, the three teams immediately sprang into action.

...

...

'Donation websites… In my last life, the first student aid website was founded at the end of 2003.'

'The student aid website in this life was founded around the same time as the one in my past life. However, this one's student aid program was established a bit earlier.'

'This kind of thing is great. It gives children from remote mountains a chance to leave.'

'Then again…'

'Anything involving children and isolated places…'

'…is also far easier to use for some behind-the-scenes dealings than in other industries.'

The Great Mountain Student Aid Network.

It was a student aid network dedicated to helping children in remote mountain villages get an education.

Their physical operations were rooted in the mountains, where they had set up a thatched-roof hut as a school. They provided a free learning environment, charging only for textbooks.

But even the textbook fees were covered by donations from kind-hearted individuals. In theory, the students only needed to worry about their own meals.

The location was within Jiangsan City's jurisdiction, in a barren, remote mountain village.

"This is Zhang Family Village?"

「Two and a half hours later.」

It was four o'clock in the afternoon.

When the police officers stepped out of their vehicle deep in the mountains and took in the scene before them, their brows furrowed.

This was a remote mountain region.

The individual mountains weren't large, but there were countless of them, one connecting to the next, forming a veritable 'primeval forest' of peaks.

The Lunar New Year was approaching and the weather had turned cold. The mountains were bare of animals and foliage.

Here and there, they could see a few elderly people, as well as children squatting on the ground, playing with pebbles.

Upon seeing the police, the villagers became reserved. They kept their distance, yet peeked over with curiosity.

"Let's go check out the school."

Xu Huo spoke, and the group set off towards a simple thatched-roof hut in the distance.

At the foot of the overlapping mountain range stood a relatively large thatched-roof hut.

This was the children's school.

A number of children were still gathered inside for their last classes of the day. Their faces were grimy, and their fingers left dark smudges on the clean pages of their textbooks.

"They really are running a school…"

Li Jianye stood by the window, peering inside. His brow creased.

"Go check Zhao Shan's quarters. Look for financial records, surveillance footage, any recorded videos, that sort of thing."

Xu Huo said to Li Jianye and his men after a moment's thought.

Li Jianye nodded and immediately led his men toward the living quarters, which were not far from the school.

Xu Huo, meanwhile, stepped into the classroom. He moved very quietly, making no sound.

The teacher at the front of the class noticed him and was about to speak, but Xu Huo gestured for her to continue her lesson.

He waited until the class was dismissed.

After all the grimy-faced children had packed up their books, the teacher finally walked over to Xu Huo and the others.

"Off… Officer…"

The teacher stammered.

She was a woman named Sun Yuhui, twenty-eight years old, and a volunteer teacher here.

"Relax, we're not here for you."

Xu Huo reassured her, then paused before asking, "Do you know someone named Zhao Shan?"

"Yes, he's the school's principal…"

Sun Yuhui said quietly, an awkward smile appearing on her face.

She was plain-looking, with a somewhat stocky build.

"Tell me about Zhao Shan."

"What kind of person do you think he is?"