For several days, the police officers staked out the area, but the thief never appeared. As soon as the police left, a package immediately went missing.

"Forget it. From now on when I buy something, I'll have it delivered to the courier station in the neighborhood across from us. I'll just take the long way around."

"Who knows when they'll get a surveillance camera installed at this courier station? This thief is just too despicable!"

"These days, people will steal anything!"

"At least it's only outside the community. If one day they start stealing inside, that would be truly frightening!"

"..."

The incident with the thief left all the property owners with a bone in their throat. As the saying goes, one doesn't fear a thief stealing, but a thief who is always thinking about it. With a thief in the community, nobody could truly feel at ease. Possibly, one day, it could be their own belongings that got stolen.

When Qin Mu read this, he couldn't help but search for a solution, but under these circumstances, he couldn't find an appropriate one. Moreover, he rarely shopped online and hadn't lost anything yet. Usually, being by himself, he didn't lack anything and could basically find everything he needed in the large supermarkets around him.

Just then, his phone's text message alert sounded.

"Your postal parcel has been collected. Please proceed to the courier station at Mountain and Water Garden District to pick it up. Your collection code is 3-3-3001."

After reading the message, Qin Mu was startled for a moment. When had I shopped online? Could it be feedback from the Financial Regulatory Authority?

Soon, he realized that the only possible item sent by the postal service would be documents, as he had mailed a report not long ago. The case was already closed, so this was likely the receipt and feedback being mailed to him.

With my current luck value of 2,000, a parcel shouldn't be stolen, right? Qin Mu swallowed hard. He hurriedly left his home and headed to the courier station.

「...」

「Half an hour later, at the courier station in Mountain and Water Garden.」

"It's probably not going to be found," Yi Xiangyang, the owner of the courier station, said to Qin Mu with a long sigh.

Twenty minutes earlier, Qin Mu had arrived at the courier station. After Qin Mu provided the collection code, Yi Xiangyang searched for twenty minutes but still couldn't find the package. Considering the previous incidents, he could be sure that Qin Mu's package had probably been lost too. And this was already the twenty-fifth package lost at their station this month!

At this particular time, it was the peak period for collecting packages, and the shop saw high foot traffic, making it difficult to spot any suspicious activity amidst the chaos.

"This parcel of yours... what was it? Is it of great value?" Yi Xiangyang asked Qin Mu carefully with a wry smile. Strictly speaking, if the perpetrator for these missing parcels wasn't found, the courier station almost always ended up compensating for them. Twenty-five parcels lost meant his efforts this month were almost for naught.

"A response letter from the Financial Regulatory Authority," Qin Mu frowned and spoke the truth. He had come to the courier station as soon as he received the collection code, only to find himself a step too late.

His 2,000 luck points... seemed to have no effect whatsoever. He seriously suspected that the "luck" from his luck value had made his package stand out from thousands, catching the thief's eye! Moreover, the thief this time... It's unlikely they would steal just one parcel. My package was likely just one of several, taken incidentally.

"A response letter from the Financial Regulatory Authority?" Yi Xiangyang's eyes widened, suddenly not quite understanding. If it were a product bought from an online platform, there would be insurance or similar means to provide compensation. The last thing he wanted to deal with was the theft of personal letters or identity documents. If they were stolen, dealing with it would become even more troublesome.

"Your store, it's been almost a month. Hasn't the surveillance been installed yet?" Qin Mu took a deep breath and asked a piercing question. If only there was surveillance in the store, the thief wouldn't dare to be so brazen and would have been caught long ago.

"We ordered a batch of store-specific surveillance cameras, but the delivery has been slow..." Yi Xiangyang sighed, his face full of helplessness. He hadn't expected... This thief is like someone repeatedly shearing the same sheep. Every now and then, there would be a report of a missing parcel. Despite his vigilance, he had never spotted any suspicious persons; everything always seemed to be in order.

After hearing this, Qin Mu was also somewhat speechless regarding the owner. Running a courier station like this... It would be a miracle if he wasn't losing money. Without surveillance and without catching the thief, this case would basically become unsolved. It was likely to remain unresolved.

In earlier years, many unsolved cases were indeed due to the absence of surveillance, which prevented the real culprits from being found. For the crime of theft, the sentence is generally no more than three years, and its statutory limitation period for prosecution is five years. Once five years have passed, even if the thief is found, the law no longer pursues them. Even with evidence, it no longer constitutes a crime.

Many similar offenses have a statute of limitations for prosecution but get shelved due to the inability to catch the criminal. For example, failing to repay borrowed money has a statutory prosecution period of three years. If you've borrowed money for more than three years and haven't repaid it, you're no longer legally obligated to do so. Even if the lender sues you, the court will not accept the case and will dismiss their claim. For crimes punishable by sentences of ten years or more, the statute of limitations is fifteen years. For crimes punishable by life imprisonment, it is twenty years.

Therefore, there have been cases where someone committed murder, hid in the mountains for twenty years, and then emerged to live openly.

This is troublesome. If the thief isn't found for a long time... Qin Mu furrowed his brows. The parcel he had lost wasn't particularly significant, but the issue of the statute of limitations could allow the perpetrator to escape legal accountability.

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