Chapter 2: Old Friends!

Although Mo Fei desperately wished he could simply ride out the entire “Child of the Buddha” state, the director’s audition was scheduled for the morning, so he could only pray that nothing would happen before noon.

If this world had a God, that God surely didn’t hear Mo Fei’s prayers.

Of course, perhaps it also had something to do with Mo Fei not being religious.

In any case, as soon as he stepped out of his apartment complex that morning, he saw a young woman and a middle-aged woman tugging at a stroller, both fighting for it.

As he passed by, the young woman called out to him directly, “Hey, handsome guy in the jacket! Please help me call the police—this person is a child trafficker!”

Mo Fei stopped and turned to look.

The young woman was stylish and well-groomed; despite her panic, she maintained a certain composure. The middle-aged woman looked every bit the archetype of a rural housewife and was so flustered she could barely speak. “No, it’s not like that! This is my child, my own child!”

The middle-aged woman could only repeat one phrase over and over, looking nowhere near as sharp as the young woman.

Even without the “Child of the Buddha” state, Mo Fei would never tolerate something as heinous as child trafficking happening right before him.

But both women seemed equally convinced of their claims, each sounding reasonable in her own way.

Mo Fei took out his phone and glanced at it.

By now, a few passersby had been drawn by the commotion and began to gather around.

The tug-of-war over the stroller continued.

The middle-aged woman, looking utterly aggrieved, fumbled with the phone hanging from her neck, opened a photo, and showed it—sure enough, it was a picture of the stroller and a baby. “Look, here’s a photo I took of my child. Young lady, how can you try to snatch someone’s child at your age?”

At that, the crowd immediately erupted.

A man shouted, “How could a pretty young woman like her do something like this?”

In an instant, the looks directed at the young woman turned suspicious and hostile.

“No, that’s my photo…” Her protest sounded feeble, “Please, just call the police, I beg you!”

Tears welled in her eyes as she looked at Mo Fei, pleading.

A middle-aged couple, apparently eager to help, stepped forward from the crowd, trying to calm things down and taking sides.

By this point, Mo Fei still couldn’t be a hundred percent sure whose child it was, but there was one thing he did know.

He stepped forward, took hold of the stroller, and, under the astonished gazes of all present, smiled slightly and raised his phone, displaying the emergency call screen. “Hello, I’m at Lamp Post 75 on Fangcao Road. I’ve found a lost child; two people are claiming to be the family. I can’t confirm who’s telling the truth and need assistance.”

That’s right—he didn’t know whose child it was, but he was certain the child wasn’t his.

On the other end, the dispatcher was momentarily stunned.

They’d handled lost child reports before, but this description… sounded a bit odd.

After Mo Fei made the call, the young woman immediately calmed down and stood silently by the stroller.

The middle-aged woman and the couple exchanged glances; the next moment, the man suddenly lunged for the stroller, scooped up the child, and tried to run.

The sudden turn of events caught the crowd off guard—but not Mo Fei.

He was well aware of how desperate criminals could become. As the man moved, Mo Fei struck him decisively on the back of the head with his phone.

There was method to his strike—the lower rear of the skull is close to the cerebellum and brainstem, which control movement.

Mo Fei also angled his phone deliberately. Modern smartphones keep getting thinner; even though his was an old model, it was no thicker than a finger.

Under the effect of the “Wrathful Vajra” skill, the man collapsed forward as soon as he was struck.

Mo Fei had held back a bit; otherwise, he could have killed the man outright.

As the man fell, Mo Fei stepped forward and took the child from his hands.

The child looked barely over a year old, eyes wide and face full of bewilderment.

The two women, seeing their accomplice down, turned and bolted.

This time, the crowd realized all three were traffickers and quickly moved to restrain the women, preventing their escape.

The young woman, seeing the kidnappers brought down, finally broke down in tears and reached out to take the child from Mo Fei.

He sidestepped her.

She stared at him, tears still on her cheeks.

Mo Fei’s expression was solemn. “As I said, I can’t confirm which of you is the child’s parent. Let’s wait for the police.”

Only then did she recall what he’d said on the phone earlier. Choking up, she silently withdrew her hands.

Mo Fei was already good-looking; with the “Child of the Buddha” aura, he seemed even more kind and benevolent—a born good man.

The child in his arms even started clapping and laughing, completely at ease.

In any case, the police would soon arrive. Once IDs were checked and calls made, the truth would be clear.

The concerned onlookers didn’t leave, instead waiting with Mo Fei for the police car to arrive.

It didn’t take long.

From the car stepped two officers—one older, one younger.

The younger officer was the very one who’d taken Mo Fei’s statement the day before.

When he saw Mo Fei, he grinned. “Good job. Today, you’re the one who called me out, not the other way around.”

Mo Fei could only manage an awkward but polite smile.

Blame it on “Moth to Flame”—and those damned traffickers.

The crowd quickly recounted the incident, filling in the officers.

Still, the nature of the situation had changed from the initial report.

The police had only brought one car, which was just enough to take the three traffickers, but they also needed Mo Fei and the child’s mother to come to the station for statements.

Mo Fei agreed, though he explained he had an audition to attend and might need to coordinate the timing.

The older officer understood—after all, with so many witnesses and everything clear, it was fine if Mo Fei came in a bit later.

The younger officer took out his phone, grinning. “Let’s exchange numbers. At this rate, next time it’ll be faster to just contact me directly.”

Mo Fei: …Are you implying something?

Once it was noon and the troublesome state passed, he’d be fine again!

Still, no matter what he thought, Mo Fei dutifully took out his phone to scan the code.

As he unlocked the screen, he froze.

He hadn’t had anything else in hand earlier, so he’d used his phone in the heat of the moment.

Now, his already battered old phone had suffered a grievous new injury.

Cracks covered half the screen.

Mo Fei’s eyes turned red in an instant.