This bizarre experience kept me awake all night, and I wrote straight until 5 a.m.
A few afternoons ago, a person claiming to be a middle school teacher contacted me via WeChat Work, saying they wanted to build a website for the school. The conversation went quite smoothly, and since we were in the same city, we arranged to meet at the school at 4 p.m. the next day to discuss the details. When business comes knocking, of course, we agree.
Unexpectedly, the unexpected happened the next day.
Early the next morning, the “teacher” called with a voice message: “Could you help check the computer configuration? The school is in a hurry to purchase.” My wife and I were playing with our child by the lake and casually looked up prices online, replying to the teacher that the configuration was fine.
This is where things started to go wrong.
She asked me to contact the computer owner who “had previously supplied the school,” saying: “Our procurement colleague is no longer available. Can you help check if delivery can be made today?”
I was puzzled why they wanted an outsider like me to ask, but instead got motivated: if I don’t understand something, I’ll learn it—that’s a chance to practice communication skills, making a call is no trouble.
Looking back now, this was exactly the start of their trap—the fish took the bait.
I added the owner’s WeChat and first asked for the owner’s phone number to communicate by call. The owner immediately called via WeChat voice, and I followed his lead in conversation.
The computer owner appeared very professional. When quoting the price, he proactively said: “If you order 20 units, the price can be lowered by 200 each at most, and if no invoices are issued, we can reduce another 150.” I even thought he was quite honest.
I told the teacher about this, and the teacher hinted: “I’ll report the original price to the school. We can’t let you help for nothing; we’ll split the price difference fifty-fifty.” I actually calculated the numbers in my head—making some middleman profit seemed reasonable for a businessman?
I continued to ask the owner about payment; he said a 50% deposit was required, which was over 20,000 yuan.
This is not a small amount; typically, businesses don’t pay such a high 50% deposit, but he said business is tough nowadays, many buy on credit, and they have no choice. I expressed understanding.
I told the deposit amount to the teacher; the teacher said it was fine and asked me to calculate the total and give a bank card number so the finance department could transfer the full payment.
However, since money was involved, I hesitated about whether to proceed.
At this time, the owner called, asking: “Are you still placing the order? We need to ship by 12 o’clock soon.”
The teacher also called, saying that the finance department would be off at 12 and asked the owner to hurry up and send the account number.
I got a bit flustered and decided: okay, let’s do it anyway; after all, I don’t have to pay out of pocket—I just receive the money and transfer it.
What I hesitated over next was whether to use a corporate account or a personal account, but the computer owner did not ask me and directly gave me a personal bank card account.
I said I still wanted to use a corporate account; the owner said fine and that he would check with finance.
Then we waited. The owner had no news for several minutes, and I watched time tick closer and closer to 12.
Getting a little anxious, I thought maybe just the personal account would do—after all, the school didn’t require an invoice, and I could earn 150 yuan extra per unit on the price difference.
I sent my personal card number to the teacher, thinking it was settled.
But another surprise came—the teacher said the money had already been transferred, but from a corporate to a personal account would take 2 hours to arrive, and sent a screenshot of the transfer.
I thought this was just a minor problem. Next came the critical turning point—see why I gradually fell into their trap.
I told the owner about the need to wait 2 hours; the owner said: “We’ve had customers before with corporate to private transfers. You should have him transfer to a personal account.”
I said, “There’s nothing we can do; we can’t catch up now, so you can deliver tomorrow.”
The owner said, “Okay then, cancel it.”
I told the teacher that since we haven’t received the money, they couldn’t ship, and we had to wait until tomorrow. The teacher said, “I really want it delivered today, otherwise I can’t explain to the leadership.”
“Please talk to the owner properly. We’re all doing business. Ask him to ship first, the money will arrive after the goods reach. Please negotiate well with the owner. Sorry to trouble you and thank you.”
Being thanked so much, I decided to persuade the owner again.
Since we had already agreed, I definitely wanted to get this done. There was business to discuss that afternoon.
As you can imagine, the owner refused to budge. The teacher also insisted on delivery today, repeating thanks and apologies.
Now I was truly caught between both sides.
I thought, we can’t even handle something we’ve agreed upon? The teacher trusted me so much, how can I talk business in the afternoon?
What to do? I wanted to show a reliable personality. I’m a businessman, a company partner, of course, I have to be reliable.
The clever thing was, they never directly asked me to advance money. It was all my own “bright idea”: “What if I pay a 10,000 yuan deposit first?” The owner “reluctantly” agreed.
Now came the critical step of transferring money. My subconscious kept telling me to be very cautious and think it through more.
But the reality was, it was now 12 o’clock noon, the blazing sun above, my child playing in the sand had wet clothes, and I’d been talking with both sides for more than an hour. Every conversation brought some unexpected details that gradually wore down my willpower, patience, and mental energy. I was in a very strange state but completely unaware.
When there is only one doubt, it is obvious; when there are many doubts, the brain rationalizes them (cognitive dissonance theory).
My mind was full of thoughts: what if the money goes through but the computer doesn’t get fixed—how do I report to the teacher?
At worst, I thought, I trust the police. The real-name verified bank card—if it was a scammer—couldn’t the police handle it?
In short, my defenses broke down, and I transferred 10,000 yuan from a Minsheng Bank credit card to the owner. I even felt a sense of relief.
The owner started arranging delivery, gave me the receipt, and the delivery driver’s phone number. Teacher Huang also expressed gratitude, and I was satisfied with my ability to handle things—a win-win-win.
Next was to discuss business. Of course, not at the school, but at the police station.
This was my first time at a police station, no experience, but staying optimistic.
I won’t detail the police station visit—it was tedious, and reality crushed my optimism.
Quietly, I gave my statement, fingerprints, and waited for notice. The whole process took until nearly nightfall. Completely different from the dramas like “Guarding Jiefang West.”
The most ironic thing is, no one forced me the whole time. It was me who “actively” stepped into the pit, wanting to establish a reliable image in front of this “big client.”
I don’t like gambling or risks, thought I wouldn’t be scammed like online or in movies, underestimated the saying: “Everyone gets scammed; you just haven’t encountered a scam tailored for you,” and overestimated my judgment.
Their chosen victim profile was: young entrepreneur, small micro business, hopes to cooperate and sign deals, sincere, tries to present a reliable image.
Their channel was video accounts, and WeChat Work their tool. Due to privacy protection, WeChat Work doesn’t show the “teacher’s” personal information, preventing identity forgery.
They are better at finding users than me, a small entrepreneur.
The more I think about it, the more ridiculous I feel, but since it happened, I won’t let it affect my mood further. I’ll use this chance to reflect and better understand myself.
I’m glad to have experienced the whole scam with my wife. It’s a unique life experience, and I hope it’s the last time (fingers crossed). We endured this hardship together. If we were victimized alone, blame would be inevitable.
It’s false to say I have no negative emotions, but I still want to embrace this chaotic world. Let’s go camping!