Chapter 63

Once outside, he finally no longer felt the cold.

In that basement, Lu Siyu’s psychological discomfort had long surpassed the physical abnormalities. As soon as he stepped outside, breathing in the air in big gulps, he calmed down.

The summer evening sky was turning dark, surrounded by the beginnings of dusk. The smoke from the neighboring factory made the sky look less transparent, and the entire world was shrouded in semi-darkness. With the arrival of the police, the silence was shattered by footsteps and the barking of police dogs.

The surreal feeling disappeared; the world seemed like a realm emerging from the depths, visited once again by people.

Lu Siyu watched the hustle and bustle of people, feeling his body temperature gradually returning. He ate a few bites of the biscuits Fu Linjiang had retrieved from the car, drank some warm water, used a tissue to wipe away the bloodstains on his hands, and then, wrapped in a coat that Fu Linjiang had pulled from the police car, he sat on the steps.

The yard was bustling with busy police officers, along with a few auxiliary police officers helping to secure the scene. Lu Siyu watched them without expression, his handsome face emotionless, as if the chaos just now had nothing to do with him.

Song Wen bandaged the wound on his head, briefly explained the reason for his arrival to Fu Linjiang and the others, slightly altering the story, only mentioning that he had called Lu Siyu over.

Fu Linjiang brought enough people to seal off the entire Wushan Nursing Home. They even had some police dogs searching for any suspicious areas. Indeed, they found some hidden cameras here. The mysterious individuals had evacuated earlier, leaving behind only some chaotic footprints in the backyard.

Once everything was arranged, Song Wen walked back. He saw Lu Siyu sitting on the steps at the entrance. In the sunset’s glow, his figure appeared even more slender.

Lu Siyu’s face was still pale, his clear eyes absent-minded, seemingly lost in thought. Yet, he gave off an otherworldly vibe, as if he was untouched by the mundane world—an image of crystal-clear water. Song Wen hurried over and reached out to ruffle his hair. “Come back to work tomorrow; we can catch up on the paperwork later.”

Only then did Lu Siyu snap out of it. He blinked, raised his head, and asked, “What? Are you not firing me?”

Song Wen sighed and explained, “Anyway, you’re just messing around on your own. Instead of doing that, it’s better for you to be where I can see you.”

“And…,” Song Wen squatted down, looking into his eyes, “I need you.”

He needed him.

Song Wen had to admit that having Lu Siyu around would greatly assist in solving the case. The current case was now confirmed to be linked with the one from eighteen years ago, and with such a significant development, the pressure on their team would not be light. With Lu Siyu, they could approach the answers more quickly.

Lu Siyu, who had felt very cold moments ago, with various sensations feeling somewhat unreal, was brought back to reality by these words. It was like a warm stream surging from the depths of his heart, warming his body. “Then, about Dr. Zhou…” he began.

Song Wen interrupted, “I’ll go with you.”

Lu Siyu lowered his head, remained silent for a moment, then spoke, “Captain Song, I want to visit the places where Xia Weizhi lived.”

Since they were already here, it would be a shame not to explore a bit.

Zhang Peicai had visited this place more than once before the incident occurred. Those mysterious individuals had surveillance set up here, indicating there must be secrets here.

In the reflection of the sunset, everything seemed to be dyed in a rich crimson color. Even the sky looked like a piece of finely crafted red jade. When no trains passed by, this place seemed like an old ground sealed by a curse. Walking through those buildings, only the sound of their footsteps and occasional barking of police dogs could be heard.

Room 307 in the staff dormitory building was where Xia Weizhi had once lived. Song Wen had seen pictures of this room more than once in the case file. At the door, Song Wen checked for safety before allowing Lu Siyu to enter.

Inside was a small room with peeling wallpaper, furnished in a style that was popular twenty years ago, now appearing somewhat outdated. At one end of the room was a bed, and on the other side was a bookshelf, a desk, and a chair. The sun was setting, casting a blood-red glow through the window, creating long shadows.

On the desk, there was a box of candy, long since dried up, and a water glass covered in dust. There were hair ties for women, a small black hairpin, some basic daily necessities like nail clippers, a makeup mirror, and a wooden comb with a few strands of hair still on it. Xia Weizhi had once sat at this desk, lied on this bed, contemplating those cruel deeds, systematically carrying them out one by one.

Next to the bed was a wardrobe containing a few pieces of clothing, all women’s clothes, indicating the owner had a graceful figure.

Lu Siyu’s gaze fell on the desk, where there were some scratches from long fingernails, one after another. From top to bottom, from old to new. He carefully searched the room and found that there was no trace of a man ever being here.

Song Wen’s gaze was on the bookshelves. His fingers swept over one book after another. Although these books had been searched by the police more than once and were still here, they definitely had no more clues. However, when he saw those book titles, he couldn’t help but check. Besides some nursing and profession-related books, there were also books in the field of psychology. Many of the books had yellowed pages, and the corners were damaged.

Lu Siyu wiped away the dust on the table with a tissue and then leaned against it. “Captain Song, do you think people like Xia Weizhi, these monsters, are born with it, or is it caused by their environment?”

The debate between whether a killer is born or made has been ongoing for ages. Especially when dealing with children who, at a very young age or in their teens, start brutally killing without showing any remorse, their cruelty is enough to send shivers down the spine of adults.

Song Wen thought of the long-standing debates in criminal psychology. He began, “I don’t agree with either viewpoint. I only know that some people, even if pushed to the extreme by their environment, would never harm others. And some, regardless of age, can be incredibly cruel.” At this point, Song Wen turned to Lu Siyu and asked, “Do you think there is such a thing as a perfect murder in this world?”

Lu Siyu whispered, “I think the real trouble is not the act of killing but making the traces on the corpse disappear.”

Song Wen continued questioning him, “So, what do you think is the most untraceable method?”

With advancements in forensic technology, committing murder without leaving any traces has become increasingly difficult. Physical evidence, eyewitness accounts, surveillance, footprints, fingerprints, bloodstains—things that couldn’t definitively identify a suspect in the past are now routinely used in investigations. Song Wen was somewhat glad to live in an age of technological advancement, where more perpetrators had nowhere to hide.

Lu Siyu tilted his head in contemplation. The sunset outside cast a glow on his pale and handsome face. His amber eyes remained tranquil and mysterious. “I know of a stretch of sea with huge waves and rocky bottoms. At night, when you look down, it’s pitch black, like a vortex. Throw a person in there, and the body will never resurface; alive or dead, you won’t see it again. In our country, there are many remote mountains and forests where people rarely tread. In those places, there might be bones buried underground.”

Lu Siyu sighed softly as he spoke, shifting his gaze to the window. “Making a person disappear isn’t that difficult. Cases of disappearances are much harder to investigate than murder. With a corpse, you have evidence and leads to follow. But if people don’t know where someone went, many leads turn out to be dead ends. Ten days, a month, half a year, and the missing person is soon forgotten by others and the world. Nobody will look for them, and nobody can find them.”

The Earth is too vast, and there are corners that remain undiscovered—buried deep underground, in remote wells, or in the unreachable depths of the ocean. These places seem like dark traps, ready to swallow up tiny humans at any moment.

Even with the utmost effort, they can’t be found.

Lu Siyu’s voice was soft, but he spoke of extremely cruel matters. Song Wen put down a book titled “Common Diseases and Care for the Elderly” and pondered before saying, “I understand what you mean. In cases of disappearance where no substantial body is found, whether it’s the family or the police, there’s always a glimmer of hope. Disappearance cases offer too many possibilities, and often, those unsolved cases succumb to persistence and time.”

The Nancheng police had dealt with numerous missing persons cases, with thick files on missing individuals. Only the police knew that the number of missing persons in the country was substantial. In most cases where the person had been missing for an extended period, if they hadn’t reappeared, they were likely dead, in a corner of the Earth unknown to their loved ones.

Just like Xia Weizhi now – they couldn’t confirm whether she was dead or alive and, if alive, where she might be.

The two fell into a moment of silence. Song Wen continued searching through the room, while Lu Siyu bit his fingernails one by one, murmuring to himself, contemplating the words Wu Qing had told him earlier, “This isn’t the end of everything, but the beginning of everything… So, what kind of beginning would it be?”

Hearing him repeat these words, Song Wen furrowed his brows slightly, pausing his actions. “What does that mean? A beginning? How could events from eighteen years ago be the beginning of what’s happening now?” He then looked down at the book in his hands titled “How to Identify Early Signs of Alzheimer’s,” and added, “At that time, the people involved were either old or dead.”

For elderly individuals in the twilight of their lives, there wasn’t much time left, and many people entering the nursing home had no intention of leaving.

When Song Wen spoke those words unintentionally, it suddenly clicked for Lu Siyu. He stopped biting his nails and looked up, saying, “I’ve figured it out; it’s the child!”

For the elderly, eighteen years meant moving closer to death. Still, for a child, it was the time to grow into adulthood. The methods of murder employed by Xia Weizhi had evolved and been passed down. The elderly couldn’t achieve it, but a child could. As long as enough time could be spanned, the cycle and reincarnation could begin.

Eighteen years later, the child had grown up, becoming a new beginning, like a cycle.

Song Wen was slightly stunned, his eyebrows furrowed lightly. He turned to Lu Siyu and said, “But according to the police records, Xia Weizhi didn’t have any children.”

Now, as day and night alternated, the last rays of sunlight became redder. The light shone through the window onto Lu Siyu’s face, giving his pale skin a reddish tint. He blinked and whispered, “Sometimes, things exist even without records.” Then, he couldn’t help but follow this line of thought.

“Before, when I reviewed Xia Weizhi’s life, there were always missing pieces, things that didn’t make sense. But if this hypothesis is true, everything falls into place. During Xia Weizhi’s school days, she was forced into a relationship with a man, and as a result, she unexpectedly became pregnant. Later, she gave birth to a child. Due to these circumstances, she couldn’t arrange for the child in a hospital. She didn’t acknowledge the child and didn’t take them home but raised them in this nursing home.”

Lu Siyu closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them, looking around the blood-colored room. It was as if he had already constructed an image of a mother and child, or mother and daughter, living together in his mind. He continued to reason softly, or more precisely, he wasn’t just reasoning; it was a brainstorm, envisioning all possible scenarios. In this abandoned room, his voice was clear, pleasant, and slightly deep, as if he were narrating the story of what happened in this nursing home, inside this room.

“She resented that man, resented herself, and also resented the child. When she killed those elderly people, she didn’t shy away from the child’s presence. She would even involve the child. That man continued to disrupt her life from time to time. After the exposure, he helped her escape, taking her and the child away. Eighteen years later, the child grew into an adult, inheriting Xia Weizhi’s legacy. Due to childhood experiences, they embarked on a path similar to Xia Weizhi. It was at this point that Zhang Peicai discovered everything and was subsequently killed by them.” Analyzing it this way, everything could be explained. Xia Weizhi had a motive for the crime, and Zhang Peicai’s case had a reasonable cause.

“This relationship involves inheritance and succession, but the methods of murder evolved, and the motives changed, making it harder to catch.”

The existence of that man had likely been confirmed by Mr. Cao, but Lu Siyu couldn’t reveal the reasons to Song Wen. He could only present it as his own reasoning and hypothesis.

After listening, Song Wen applauded and said, “The reasoning seems logical and reasonable, but I still hold the same opinion. The police couldn’t have overlooked such crucial information.”

Lu Siyu calmed down, gently tapping his pointed chin, and whispered, “Yeah. It was Mr. Wu’s case; they couldn’t have made such an obvious mistake.”

Lu Siyu felt that Song Wen’s view was correct. What he could think of now must have been considered by someone back then. Leaving aside other aspects, if Xia Weizhi had indeed given birth, there couldn’t be absolutely no records. Everyone in the nursing home couldn’t have been unaware of it.

Lu Siyu got stuck in his own logic, and he lowered his eyelashes, habitually placing his fingers in his mouth. The finger joints were soaked in blood, carrying a faint bloody scent. Instead of repulsing him, the smell excited him.

For a while, Song Wen thought Lu Siyu had fallen asleep. However, the gradual sound of nail-biting in the corner told him that Lu Siyu was still awake, pondering the problem.

Lu Siyu rapidly reviewed all the clues he knew and those Song Wen had shared, wondering where the mistake lay. What was the error in their reasoning?

After Song Wen had searched the room, dust filled the air, and the odor became stifling. Song Wen walked to the window, unlatched it, and pushed it open.

By now, it was almost completely dark outside. Leveraging the last bit of sunlight, Song Wen could encompass the entire nursing home from his vantage point—administration building, critical care building, activity area, canteen…

Suddenly, Song Wen’s right eyelid twitched. He felt a sense of familiarity with the scene before him. The sight formed a complete picture in his mind, one that seemed oddly familiar.

A realization struck him, and he hastily searched his pockets. Retrieving a piece of paper from his pocket, a document Bai Luorui had given him—an introduction to the Longyue Elderly Care City, unfolded in his hands.

Comparing the promotional brochure with the current scene, Song Wen noticed that the locations of all the buildings on the promotional image were nearly identical to those of the Wushan Nursing Home. It was an almost exact replica, but larger and more sophisticated—a “Wushan Nursing Home” that had been completely duplicated.

Someone was replicating this place!

Lowering his head, Song Wen compared the images on the brochure with the current scene. He spoke, “I seem to be able to confirm the connection between Bai Luorui and this nursing home… She actually built an exact replica!”

Upon hearing this, Lu Siyu opened his eyes and walked over to look at the promotional brochure in Song Wen’s hand. His mind connected the clues, and everything gradually became clear. The truth was within reach.

Unable to hold back his frustration, Song Wen cursed, “Damn it, I’m starting to believe what you just said about Xia Weizhi having a child!”

“No, Xia Weizhi didn’t have a child,” Lu Siyu shook his head. “Or maybe she did. I seem to have sorted things out…”

“How so?” Song Wen looked at Lu Siyu, the fading sunlight casting a golden hue on the tips of his hair.

“Xia Weizhi didn’t have a child, or… her child may not have been born.” Lu Siyu’s amber eyes, clear as the finest amber, conveyed his understanding. Just now, he had finally clarified the intricacies of the situation and released the grip on his lip. “It’s not the end; it’s the beginning of everything. What we overlooked is… the children living in the nursing home.”

As the sun sank lower, daylight waned. It seemed as if a monstrous creature was about to devour all the sunlight, heralding the impending arrival of the night.

TN:

“Oh, you think darkness is your ally. But you merely adopted the dark; I was born in it, molded by it. I didn’t see the light until I was already a man, by then it was nothing to me but blinding.”