Bro, it's me

"Bro, it's me." The voice on the other end of the phone was slightly hoarse, yet with a hint of barely concealed excitement. Xia Yizhou's hand, holding the phone, trembled slightly. This voice, he was too familiar with. It was his brother, Xia Yiye, who had been missing for five years.

For five years, he had fantasized about this phone call countless times, imagining his brother's safe return, the scene of the two brothers reunited. He tried to remain calm: "Yiye? Where are you? Are...are you okay?"

"I'm in..." The voice on the other end paused, the background noise was chaotic, mixed with some incomprehensible dialects, "I'm in a, uh, 'special place'."

Xia Yizhou's heart tightened. He could hear the unease in his brother's tone. It wasn't the joy of reunion, but more like a...cover-up? He recalled the news reports about overseas scam dens. A chill surged up from the soles of his feet.

"Bro, have you...have you run into some trouble?" Xia Yizhou asked cautiously, afraid of provoking the other person.

"It's nothing, how could anything happen to me." Xia Yiye's tone sounded more relaxed, "I just...miss you, and miss home. By the way, how's everything at home recently? Is Mom still doing okay? And, about that collection I had before, how are you keeping it safe for me?"

"Everything's fine, everything's fine." Xia Yizhou responded perfunctorily, his mind racing. He remembered that his brother's only noteworthy collection was a set of limited-edition stamps, which he had once cherished, but now had become a test from his brother.

"That's good, that's good." Xia Yiye breathed a sigh of relief, his tone softening. "Bro, I'm a bit short on cash recently. Since you're home, could you maybe lend me a little?"

"How much?" Xia Yizhou's throat was dry. He was almost certain that this was a scam call. It wasn't that he hadn't seen scams before, but he never thought one would happen to him, and in this way.

"Not much, 100,000, just a little help between brothers." Xia Yiye spoke casually, as if 100,000 yuan was just a small matter. "When I get back, I'll pay you back double."

"Bro," Xia Yizhou took a deep breath, trying to keep his voice calm. "You know, just a few days ago, I participated in a counter-fraud campaign by the Ministry of Public Security. They said that the first step of an overseas scam is to pretend to be someone you know, the second step is to play on your emotions, and the third step is to borrow money."

There was silence on the other end of the phone.

"And then," Xia Yizhou continued, his voice gradually turning cold, "I just came out of the bank and I'm going to report it to the police station."

"You..." The person on the other end finally panicked, his voice becoming urgent, "What do you mean? I'm your brother!"

Xia Yizhou sneered, "Really? Then guess what the last stamp in my brother's stamp collection looks like?"

The person on the other end was completely speechless. Instead, the call was cut off with a busy tone.

Xia Yizhou stared at the phone screen, a mix of emotions in his heart. He suddenly felt a wave of fatigue. This wasn't the result he wanted. He thought the reunion he had been anticipating would be warm and real. He put down his phone and walked to the window, looking at the gray sky outside.

After a while, the phone rang again. It was the same number. Xia Yizhou hesitated for a moment, but still answered it.

"Bro," the voice on the other end sounded very naive this time, with a hint of grievance, "Actually, I'm your 'brother', this is the thirteenth time I've made this call. I haven't completed my target yet, and I'm afraid I'll have my salary deducted..."

Xia Yizhou held the phone, stunned, unable to speak for a long time.