Speaking of the boats he depended on for a living, the old store manager remembered something else and felt even more distressed. "That boat you helped me find yesterday—the stolen one—it came back, but the ship anchor on it was stolen... Sigh, those damned criminals. Fine, murder someone if you must, but why wreck my two boats?"
Jiang Xia looked at him. "A ship anchor?"
The old store manager nodded. "The waves around here are relatively calm, but when you head out to fish, you need to use something heavy like this to minimize the effects of the tide—"
He pointed at another intact little boat, where a heavy iron block tied to a rope lay on deck. "You throw it into the sea, and it keeps the boat in place."
"It may not look like much, but this thing is actually pretty expensive. Buying a new one costs a lot." The old store manager sighed. "Not long ago, the cable on my large boat was stolen. I'd only just bought a replacement, and now another ship anchor is gone... Sigh, why have I been so unlucky lately? Should I go pray at a shrine?"
Jiang Xia nodded as though pondering something. "So that rope still hasn't been found?"
The old store manager nodded sorrowfully, while casting a mildly reproachful glance at the police: Look at this. Things keep getting stolen every other day. What kind of public security is this?
The two officers noticed his gaze and looked awkward. "Well... your boat is left here day and night without any protective measures at all. You didn't even install a Camera. It's really hard to guard against thieves like that.
"As for the missing items, we've already helped you recover two boats. Things like ropes and ship anchors are small