Chapter 964: Extortion Scam

One month later, at the urban-rural junction of Wuzhou, Furong Road.

This road is one of the main arteries connecting the county town, with many large trucks, a potholed surface, and logistics parks and repair shops on both sides.

A white Audi was driving along the road.

The driver was Character's sister—Guo Huixiang, a small business owner in her early fifties. This time she had come to Wuzhou on business, and the navigation led her onto this broken road.

She drove while complaining, saying that Wuzhou's roads were not as good as those in her hometown county.

Ahead was a T-junction with no traffic lights, only a crookedly planted sign that read 'Reduce speed, go slow'.

Guo Huixiang slowed down, turned on her right signal, and was about to turn right.

Suddenly, an old man darted out from the roadside, taking three steps in two, and lunged to the front of the car. Guo Huixiang was so frightened she slammed the brakes, nearly jumping out of her skin.

The old man cried 'Ay!' and fell to the ground.

Guo Huixiang was completely dazed, thinking, 'Did I hit someone? Impossible! Just now my reaction was fairly quick; when the car came to a stop, I clearly hadn't hit anyone.'

Guo Huixiang gripped the steering wheel tightly, her heart rate spiking.

She was absolutely certain—she had definitely not hit anyone! She even saw that, before the old man fell, he seemed to have splashed something onto the front of her car.

'Ay, I've been hit to death! Someone, help!'

The old man lay on the ground, wailing incessantly.

In just a moment, a large crowd gathered to watch, some pulling out phones to record video, some just gawking, and others angrily pounding on Guo Huixiang's car door: 'Hey, you hit someone—get out!'

Guo Huixiang took a deep breath and got out of the car helplessly.

She glanced at the old man lying on the ground, then at her car's front. A puddle of red unknown liquid sat on the bumper, still wet and dripping down.

She dipped a finger in the unknown liquid and smelled it, making her nerves tense.

That unknown liquid turned out to be fresh blood!

She looked again at the old man lying on the ground, wailing continuously.

The old man looked about sixty, wearing a drab gray Zhongshan suit, with a hole torn in the knee of his trousers, fresh blood seeping out.

Seeing the old man's ashen face, the leg injury was clearly real.

"Just now my car was still half a meter away from you—I didn't hit you at all." Guo Huixiang flared with anger: "The blood on the front of my car is something you splashed yourself; your leg wasn't injured by me."

The old man said nothing, just lay on the ground wailing.

A middle-aged man suddenly rushed out from the crowd, pushed past Guo Huixiang, knelt beside the old man in filial devotion, and cried, 'Dad! Dad, what's wrong? Don't scare me!'

He called out twice.

The middle-aged man then roared at Guo Huixiang: 'You hit my dad into this state and still dare to say you didn't? Look at his leg! The blood is almost drained—don't you have eyes? Pay up! One hundred thousand.'

The middle-aged man wore an oversized T-shirt, his hair messy, his voice rough like a beast's.

His name was Fan Shirin?, the old man's son.

The onlookers grew more numerous, some pulling out phones to record video, some pointing and commenting, and others couldn't help chiming in.

"This female driver is a road killer—how can she drive with such skill? Her eyes must be on her buttocks; she can't even see a person this big crossing the road."

"Those who drive an Audi, if they hit someone, they hit them—don't deny it."

"Exactly, look at his leg—you've broken his bone. Asking for a hundred thousand is not much. This old man is elderly; if he doesn't pull through, even a million might not settle it."

……

The onlookers spoke in a cacophony, basically all speaking up for the old man.

Guo Huixiang struggled to suppress her anger: 'I didn't hit him; he rushed out himself. Why should I pay? Call the police, let the traffic police handle it.'

"Fine, call the police!"

Fan Shirin? jumped up angrily, glaring at Guo Huixiang: 'You think driving an Audi makes you something special? I tell you, this matter isn't over today!'

You gang up to extort, and you still think you're justified? See who ends up with whom.

Guo Huixiang immediately pulled out her phone and dialed 122.

The traffic police arrived promptly.

Soon a patrol car pulled up beside them, and two officers got out.

The younger one held a law‑enforcement recorder.

The older one wore sunglasses and held a notebook. They glanced at the scene, then at the old man lying on the ground.

"Who called the police?" the older officer asked.

Fan Shirin? pointed at Guo Huixiang and blurted out: 'She hit my dad and still won't admit it! Look at his leg—what state it's in! There's even blood on the front of her car!'

The older officer took off his sunglasses, crouched down, and examined the old man's leg.

He saw the trousers torn, a wound on the knee, blood still seeping out. He frowned, stood up, and looked at Guo Huixiang.

Guo Huixiang hurriedly explained: 'I didn't hit him; he fell on his own! The bloodstains on the front of my car are something he splashed himself—this is an extortion attempt!'

"Bullshit! With so many people watching, you say you didn't hit him—you didn't hit him?"

Fan Shirin? roared like a beast.

Guo Huixiang couldn't be bothered arguing with a petty thug, and turned her gaze to the police: 'Whether I hit him or not, check the surveillance and you'll know.'

The older officer countered Guo Huixiang: 'Does your car have a dashcam?'

"No."

Guo Huixiang shook her head.

The officer looked up at the intersection, pointed to the camera overhead, and said: 'That camera is a public‑security monitor recently installed by the City Bureau, not a traffic monitor.'

Guo Huixiang looked up: 'A public‑security monitor is still a monitor—just pull it up and you'll know.'

"To access the public‑security monitor you must first apply to the City Bureau and go through the procedure—it's not something we can pull up at will…" The older officer paused, not continuing.

He thought, as for this newly installed batch of public‑security monitors, whether they work is still up for debate.

Guo Huixiang grew anxious: 'Then go ahead and apply! He's lying on the ground—if you don't pull the surveillance, how can you prove my innocence? I clearly didn't hit him, and his leg wasn't injured by me!'

Fan Shirin? heard this and immediately exploded: "Still saying it wasn't you who hit me! The blood on your car's front is proof—now my dad is lying on the ground, unable to get up, his leg broken! You trying to dodge responsibility?! I'm telling you, if you don't come up with 100,000 yuan for medical expenses today, you're not leaving here!"

"You're extorting!" Guo Huixiang shouted, trembling all over.

"Extorting? You hit someone and still say I'm extorting?" Fan Shirin? called out to the onlookers: "Everyone come judge—people who drive Audis always bully others like this?!"

The onlookers immediately erupted, pointing and gossiping at Guo Huixiang.

The senior traffic police officer said to Guo Huixiang: "Hand over your vehicle registration and driver's license; we need to temporarily impound your vehicle."

"I already said I didn't hit anyone!" Guo Huixiang exclaimed: "That camera on the road—can't it just be for show?! You guys won't check the footage, yet you're impounding my car instead!"

"Calm down first."

The senior traffic police officer said: "I already said that's a public‑security camera; obtaining the footage requires applying to the relevant authorities first. Until the investigation results come out, impounding your vehicle is standard procedure."

Seeing Guo Huixiang anxious and speechless, she turned back to the car to fetch her driver's license and vehicle registration.

The senior traffic police officer turned to Fan Shirin? again and asked: "Do you have no other family members present? First have someone take your dad to the hospital, then come with me to the Traffic Police Team."