Chapter 215: Website

**Chapter 215: The Website**

The person Jiang Cheng found on the forum went by the username *Melancholy Ambiguity*. Starting around September this year, they posted frequently—mostly venting about being too broke to eat, asking what could make quick cash, or begging for five bucks for net access. Mixed in were normal posts about games or daily life, posted roughly every two or three days until mid-October.

But after their last post on October 16th, the user suddenly vanished for over a week. When they returned, their first post was flaunting what looked like a pricey watch.

The post blew up with replies. People asked what kind of watch it was and where the money came from. In one comment, the OP responded:

*"Heh, sold some stuff."*

Someone recognized that the watch was worth several thousand yuan, which got people even more hyped. Many pressed them for details, but Melancholy Ambiguity only replied mysteriously:

*"Let’s just say everyone has this thing. If you're interested, hit me up privately."*

Then came a phone number.

Over the next few days, the person posted more items they’d acquired, but by the end of October, they went dark again and hadn’t reappeared since.

They looked at each other, then Zhou Qiming picked up his phone and dialed the number.

*“Beep—beep—beep—”*

The call rang for a long time. Just as they thought it would disconnect, someone answered. A weak, unfamiliar male voice came through:

*"Hello?"*

Zhou Qiming glanced at Shen Qingye and asked pointedly, *"Is this Melancholy Ambiguity?"*

There was a pause before the voice replied weakly, *"Yeah…?"*

*"Did you find me through the forum?"*

Zhou Qiming said, *"Yes, we wanted to ask about—"*

*"Don’t ask."* The interruption came abruptly. After a cough or two, the voice continued, *"Trust me, you don’t wanna know. It’s not worth it."*

*"A few grand ain’t worth it…"*

They exchanged glances again. Shen Qingye spoke solemnly, *"Was it selling a kidney?"*

*"What?"* The voice hesitated, clearly thrown off.

*"That ‘easy money’ thing you posted about—was it selling a kidney?"*

The line fell silent for a moment before replying in confusion, *"How’d you guess?"*

Shen Qingye asked, *"Where are you now? Mind if we meet?"*

*"I…"* After a long pause, the voice finally answered, *"I’m at City Central Hospital."*

Even though they had mentally prepared themselves, the sight of the gaunt guy lying in the hospital bed still made them catch their breath.

The young man leaned back against the pillows, looking up at the sound. At first he seemed dazed, but recognition kicked in and he mustered a tired smile. *"You’re the ones who called me, right?"*

Zhou Qiming stepped forward. *"What should we call you?"*

*"Chen Yingchao. Just call me Xiao Chen."* He gestured weakly. *"Didn’t realize there’d be so many of you. Seats are tight, my bad."*

*"It’s fine."* Zhou Qiming pulled up a chair beside Shen Qingye and sat down. *"We’re here to get the full story."*

The ward was a four-person room, but two of the beds were unoccupied, and another seemed to have a patient who was currently out, so there was no need to avoid any topics.

Chen Yingchao gave a strained smile. "Speaking of which, I wanted to ask—how did you know I sold my kidney?"

Wei Zhengyi showed his badge. "We're investigating a case where the deceased was missing a left kidney but had a sudden large sum of money deposited before his death. We suspect illegal organ trading. After checking local forums, it led us to you."

Chen Yingchao froze. "De...ceased?" His voice was strained. "That person... died?"

Shen Qingye nodded. "Due to other circumstances, he froze to death in the snow last night, wearing only thin clothing."

"I see..." Chen Yingchao seemed out of it.

Shen Qingye studied him. "From what I can see, your condition doesn’t seem great either."

Chen Yingchao let out a bitter chuckle. "Not great? It’s absolutely awful."

He closed his eyes. "For the first few days after the surgery, I didn’t feel anything wrong. But soon, I started feeling weak, exhausted, and out of breath after just a few steps. At first, I thought it was just post-surgery side effects. But then... I started passing blood in my urine, and the wound kept pulsing with pain..."

Chen Yingchao grimaced. "I freaked out and ran to the hospital. The doctor said my wound wasn’t healing properly—it was infected. Even my other kidney was severely damaged..."

"This past month, I’ve been stuck in bed, taking medication every day. If this keeps up, it could get worse. I can’t go to school, can’t work..."

He shook his head, his face full of regret. "So whenever anyone else contacts me about it, I tell them—don’t do it. Don’t."

"It’s not worth it."

In just over a month, he had nearly spent all the money he earned from selling his kidney. And it was clear that more expenses would follow...

Wei Zhengyi frowned. "Didn’t you think about demanding compensation from them?"

Chen Yingchao gave an empty laugh. "How? I don’t even know where they are."

Shen Qingye looked shocked. "How could you not know? Didn’t you go willingly?"

"I did," Chen Yingchao scrubbed at his face. "But when they took me, they said since this stuff is illegal, some people who sold their kidneys before came back demanding more money. To avoid trouble, they blindfolded everyone."

Luo Kaiyang frowned deeply. "And you believed them? You knew it was illegal—"

"I wasn’t in my right mind back then. All I could think about was the money. And they kept telling me it was safe, that they’d done it many times before..."

Chen Yingchao let out a heavy sigh, his expression numb.

Shen Qingye asked, "So you don’t have a clue where the surgery took place?"

Chen Yingchao nodded. "All I know is it was far from here. It was a long drive..."

"How long did you stay there after the surgery?"

"Under five days," Chen Yingchao said. "They told me the operation went fine, that I was recovering well and could leave early. So I believed them..."

Then the infection hit.

Shen Qingye frowned. "Can you remember how many people were present during the surgery?"

Chen Yingchao replied, "Only one..."

Wei Zhengyi couldn't help but speak up: "A kidney removal is such a major surgery. Even in a reputable hospital, you'd need an anesthesiologist, nurses, and assistants. With just that one doctor, you believed him?"

Chen Yingchao looked ashamed: "The middleman said it wasn’t a big surgery, and the doctor was skilled enough to handle it alone..."

Wei Zhengyi took a deep breath, unsure what to say. Zhou Qiming spoke: "Tell us everything—how you contacted them, how the surgery was arranged."

Chen Yingchao began recounting slowly:

"Since I was little, I never liked school. After starting high school, I struggled for two years and realized I just wasn’t meant for studying. But my parents disagreed and insisted I finish high school first."

"I didn’t want to stay in school, so I’d sneak out daily to hang with friends, hitting up internet cafés or clubs. But I had no money—my parents only gave me a fixed allowance, and once it was gone, it was gone... I wanted more."

Chen Yingchao lowered his head: "They’d always buy new shoes and clothes, some even bragging about their cheap watches, looking down on me for not having money... I thought if I had money too, they wouldn’t treat me like that."

"So... I started posting online, asking how to make quick money. Then some guy replied, 'Want quick cash? Sell a kidney!'"

"Maybe he was just joking, but I took it seriously and started searching for info on selling kidneys online."

By accident, I found a forum full of posts about selling organs, some from people who’d already done it and were flaunting their earnings.

"They made it sound easy—just an extra kidney, something the body could spare, and you could sell it. Some bragged about selling theirs years ago with no issues. Seeing all that cash, I got impulsive and posted my info."

He continued: "Honestly, it was just a spur-of-the-moment thing. Later, I realized how bad it was and felt uneasy. After two days of silence, I figured nothing would come of it."

"But a week later, out of nowhere, someone messaged me, asking if I wanted to sell my kidney."

"I was about to refuse, but he convinced me, even offering 50,000 yuan."

"Most sellers on the forum only got 20,000 or 30,000... I caved and said I’d think about it."

Zhou Qiming asked: "So in the end, you agreed?"

Chen Yingchao hung his head, his shaggy bangs hanging down, making him look gaunt.

A guy over six feet tall, now barely 120 pounds, his wrist bones starkly visible.

"Fifty thousand yuan..." he murmured.

That was years of his family’s savings.

"I thought, it’s just a kidney, not a heart or something... It’ll be fine, it’ll be fine... So I told him yes."

Shen Qingye watched him quietly: "And then?"

Chen Yingchao: "Then we met. He checked me out and said I was in good shape, that my kidneys must be healthy. He got me a medical checkup, confirmed everything was fine, and scheduled the surgery."

"The rest... is what I already said."

They blindfolded him and took him to the operating room, where he was kept for five days, and came back in this state.

Wei Zhengyi asked, already knowing the answer: "Do you know his name?"

Chen Yingchao: "He told me his surname was Zhang, to call him 'Brother Zhang.'"

"How old?"

"About thirty, not old."

A heavy silence fell over them.

Shen Qingye spoke up, "Did you two have any other exchanges? Talk about anything else?"

"Other things..." Chen Yingchao thought for a moment. "Oh right, I remember now."

"When he transferred the money to me, I asked if there were any other ways to make money if I wanted to. He said if I were a woman, he could introduce me to a steady source of income. At the time, I didn’t understand what he meant. He explained that women could sell their eggs—one egg could fetch at least eight to ten thousand—and they could keep selling them. Too bad I'm a guy. I argued back, saying if women can sell eggs, why can't men sell sperm? He said guys' sperm doesn’t go for much. Then he added that if I really wanted to make money, they also bought corneas and other organs, and the payouts were way higher than for a kidney."

Shen Qingye glanced at Zhou Qiming. Eggs? Other organs?

This operation was way bigger than they’d thought.

"What’s that website called?"