Chapter 142

“Tan Shan, bring your homework to my office after class!” After a class ended, Zhang Dongmei routinely kept the students late. Only when there were two minutes left before the next class and the Chinese teacher arrived early did she say this.

During the extracurricular activity time after two Chinese classes, the small-framed Tan Shan was carrying a thick stack of homework books, heading toward the teachers’ office building.

On the way, she encountered the English teacher. The elderly man politely stepped aside, giving her room, “Tan Shan, delivering homework to Teacher Zhang again?”

Tan Shan nodded, “Yes, thank you, Teacher Wang.”

“Sigh, your math homework, every day so much homework and so many sheets. It’s really hard on you as the class representative.” As he said this, the old man shook his head, his tone carrying a bit of helplessness. Teacher Zhang was famous for assigning a lot of homework. Every day, Tan Shan was seen constantly delivering homework to the office, sometimes having to make several trips. The math homework was divided into A and B books, sometimes also including workbooks and test papers, always filling Zhang Dongmei’s desk to the brim.

“As the class representative, it’s my duty to help the teacher.” Tan Shan replied while holding the homework.

The old man sighed, wondering if the little girl in front of him hadn’t caught the sarcasm in his words.

Tan Shan turned her head and continued walking towards the office, her lips pressed together.

She knew how the other teachers viewed Zhang Dongmei.

Zhang Dongmei maintained the class’s math scores through a flood of exercises, often encroaching on the time for other subjects. Sometimes, when Zhang Dongmei couldn’t finish grading the homework herself, she would ask Tan Shan for help.

But Tan Shan still supported Teacher Zhang. She believed that the teacher was doing it for their own good.

Teachers were human too and could have bad moods. Although Zhang Dongmei often hit and scolded them, her teaching was indeed excellent. Many problems that other teachers couldn’t explain clearly, she could solve with just one explanation. As a result, other math teachers often sought her advice, and Zhang Dongmei’s classes were frequently rated as the best open classes.

As the class representative, she felt proud, even though these tasks took up much of her time and required her to put in more effort than other students.

She often stayed up late into the night to finish her homework and had to arrive at school the earliest in the morning.

When Tan Shan arrived at the teachers’ office, it seemed the teachers were in a meeting and not there.

Tan Shan, familiar with the place, found Teacher Zhang’s seat. She placed the thick stack of homework books on the desk.

Just as she was about to turn and leave, she glanced down as if guided by a ghostly hand and noticed something in the trash bin.

Bending down to look closely, she saw it was just shredded paper, but the pieces seemed familiar. Unable to resist, she crouched down and picked up a piece that had a character “祝” (wish) written on it.

Tan Shan suddenly realized what it was. Trembling, she pulled out the piece of paper.

Yesterday was Teacher Zhang’s birthday, and she had prepared a drawing to give to Teacher Zhang.

For the past few weeks, Tan Shan had been working on the drawing for a little while each day after finishing her homework. She had been working on it for three weeks, some nights staying up past one o’clock, and getting up at five in the morning. Her parents felt sorry for her, but the stubborn Tan Shan insisted on completing it.

She had given the drawing to Teacher Zhang yesterday along with her homework. It was a meticulously done painting of flowers and birds. Although the bird wasn’t drawn perfectly, she had put her heart into it.

At that time, Teacher Zhang thanked her, saying she really liked it, and then accepted the drawing.

But now, the drawing she had worked so hard on was lying quietly in the trash bin, mixed with other waste paper.

Tears streamed down Tan Shan’s face. She cried as she picked up the drawing from the trash bin, trying hard to piece it back together. The more she pieced it together, the more her hands trembled. The drawing was not only torn but also crumpled, with some stains that looked like tea.

Tan Shan felt that it wasn’t just her drawing that was torn apart but her heart as well.

She wanted to stop crying, but the tears wouldn’t listen to her, flowing uncontrollably.

She hadn’t cried when Zhang Dongmei hit her before, hadn’t cried when she stayed up late to finish homework, and hadn’t cried when her exam results were poor. But now, she was crying so hard she could hardly breathe.

Outside, Zhang Dongmei’s voice chatting with someone drifted in.

“Students nowadays really don’t know the hardships of life. Yesterday was my birthday, and I only got a stack of cake vouchers. You know what my class monitor gave me? Just a drawing, and the pheasant in the picture looked like a sparrow. I felt it was too ugly to even display at home.”

“Sigh, Teacher Zhang, you need to be more explicit. We work so hard, and we deserve it. Look at me, I just hinted a little, and several parents gave me gift cards…”

“There are wealthy students in my class too, but they’ve been quiet lately. It seems I’ll need to visit their homes soon…”

“Shh, lower your voice. The academic office is checking again recently.”

“What are you afraid of? Haven’t you noticed the new bag that the dean’s wife has? It’s probably worth her year’s salary.”

Tan Shan didn’t want to listen to them anymore. She covered her mouth, fearing that Zhang Dongmei would hear or see her. Fortunately, the teachers didn’t enter the office and left after staying at the door for a moment.

Tan Shan, clutching the torn paper, ran out of the office crying…

It was then she realized how hypocritical people could be. Those who smiled and said thank you might not actually like you.

During the final stage of the separate questioning, Song Wen and his team called in Tan Shan, who had been the most implicated based on previous interrogations. Tan Shan entered the room with her head down and sat nervously on the stool opposite the three of them.

The night was growing darker. Outside the window, it was pitch black, and the noise from the increasing number of people on the street was getting louder.

Song Wen wasted no time and got straight to the point: “In the earlier questioning, you lied to us, didn’t you?”

Hearing this, Tan Shan’s hands clenched tightly. “I…I didn’t…” She had no confidence in her words now, and her response was purely instinctive.

“Your classmates have all confessed. We found Qian Jiang’s phone and know that you organized tonight’s gathering.” Song Wen cut to the chase.

Tan Shan lowered her head and remained silent. Faced with so much testimony, her denial seemed powerless. She knew she had become the main suspect.

“Did Zhang Dongmei borrow money from you?”

“She did… thirty thousand yuan. I haven’t been working long, and that was almost all my savings,” Tan Shan whispered.

“Did she ever blackmail you?”

Tan Shan shook her head. “She never blackmailed me.” Then she added, “Maybe because I didn’t leave any evidence she could use against me. And I was the only one who, upon hearing her say she needed to borrow money, offered it to her willingly.”

“Why did you organize today’s gathering?” Song Wen continued.

“Because my mother fell ill with nephritis half a month ago and needed to be hospitalized. I wanted Teacher Zhang to repay the money. I asked her, but she kept making excuses, completely different from when she asked to borrow the money…”

Tan Shan said softly, “Zhang Dongmei often asked me to help her punch in, turn on and off the computer, and such. So, I knew her usual password. Once, when I passed by her desk and saw a snippet of her chat log, she was discussing borrowing money online.”

“I suspected then that she had borrowed money from more than just me. I… I was just afraid she owed too much and wouldn’t be able to repay me. So… so one time, when she wasn’t there and her phone was on the desk, I looked through it.”

“I found out that this woman had been blackmailing her students all along. I reached out to a few classmates I knew and talked to them one by one.”

“Initially, I just wanted to unite them to demand the money back from Teacher Zhang, but later I realized she might not be able to repay us. We should punish this woman…”

This explanation seemed reasonable. Song Wen then asked the key question.

“We already have a witness proving that you were arguing with Zhang Dongmei on the rooftop.”

Tan Shan started to feel guilty and stammered in her response, “We… we did have some disputes… but… that was because…”

“Because of what? You were Zhang Dongmei’s prized student and now her colleague. Why did you report her?” Song Wen’s gaze bore into her.

At the mention of “report,” Tan Shan’s face turned pale. The police knew more than she had anticipated.

“I was Zhang Dongmei’s most obedient student. Since school days, she trusted me the most… But that trust was built on… built on me doing all kinds of tasks for her and reporting the class’s situation. I had betrayed my classmates more than once, feeling like a traitor, so I had no friends in class…”

From Tan Shan’s description, it was clear she regretted her actions. Middle school students haven’t yet stepped into society and are supposed to believe in the inherent goodness of people. However, she was lured by her teacher into becoming a “betrayer” among her classmates, causing immense psychological pressure.

“Compared to others, I was closer to Zhang Dongmei’s life. Sometimes, I even went to her house to fetch things for her. I knew she was going through a divorce with her husband, and when she was upset at home, she would take it out on the class and the students.”

“I always thought that being her class monitor and subject representative for three years meant I bore much more than the average class leader. Despite the numerous punishments from this teacher, I still believed she meant well for us. At least… at least she treated me differently. People have feelings… It was this unique feeling that supported me…”

Tan Shan paused to lick her lips, her voice trembling as if she was about to cry. “When we were about to graduate in ninth grade, it coincided with Zhang Dongmei’s birthday. I drew a picture for her. Although it was quite immature, it was heartfelt. I gave the drawing to Teacher Zhang, and she said thank you, very touched. But… not long after, I found the drawing crumpled into a ball in her trash bin while delivering homework. I cried all the way back to the classroom.”

Even now, Tan Shan could recall that feeling, as if her heart was being torn apart.

She also overheard the teachers’ conversation. A decade ago, the supervision of the teaching profession was not as strict as it is now, and giving gifts to teachers wasn’t a big deal.

From the day she heard those words, she began to doubt herself and her relationship with Zhang Dongmei.

“After graduation, while other classmates stayed away from her, I, due to family reasons, took the teacher qualification exam and came here to teach. I thought that being colleagues would make us equals. But from the first day as colleagues, Zhang Dongmei still saw me as her student…”

“She treated me like a student who hadn’t graduated, making endless demands, using me to pick up her packages, grade her assignments, and cover her duties.”

Tan Shan bowed her head even lower, as if she wanted to disappear underground. “I… I have a soft nature. I didn’t know how to refuse her face-to-face. Every time I resolved not to do her bidding again, I would still comply the next time she asked. I… I hated myself for that.”

“I genuinely love my job and care for my students, hoping they will improve. I help students from poor families, buying them cakes and snacks. I remember their preferences and birthdays, writing special comments for them on their birthdays. I talk to students suffering from depression, hoping they will emerge from the shadows.”

“… But sometimes I feel lost. It’s like I’m serving those kids, trying to please them, but not receiving equivalent love from them…”

“I confiscated the phone of a student who wasn’t paying attention in class, only to be openly rebuked and called nosy. I shared some well-written essays with the students, only to be reported to the school by parents for exceeding the curriculum. Other teachers thought I was easy to bully, taking over my classes and secretly telling students not to bother with my subject’s homework if they didn’t have time.”

“But why is it that Zhang Dongmei thrives in school? Her classes are always packed to the brim. During my job interview, I got hired because I was her student. Does this mean Zhang Dongmei’s way is the right way? Does society, the school, and parents only need teachers like Zhang Dongmei?”

Tan Shan looked up at this point, revealing a confusion that she had never shared with anyone. Her large eyes were filled with uncertainty.

She didn’t understand the difference between a good teacher and a bad one.

As if how to act depends entirely on one’s conscience.

“I think this situation is wrong. I wanted to get away from Zhang Dongmei, so I went to the education bureau to report her.”

Tan Shan explained why she reported Zhang Dongmei.

“I wanted to get my life back on track, to make this woman pay for what she had done, to prove that she is not a good teacher.”

“But I didn’t expect that after she lost the income from her tutoring classes, she would become even more aggressive in borrowing money…” Tan Shan’s voice was full of grievance. She hadn’t anticipated such a chain reaction.

“We had an argument on the rooftop, and she did try to pull me. At that moment, I pushed her down on the rooftop and left with my bag. When I left, she was definitely alive…”

As she said this, Tan Shan’s body swayed, as if unwilling to recall that corpse.

She had once been a student and later became a teacher. The shift in identity made it difficult for her to handle and coordinate her relationship with Zhang Dongmei. The right and wrong between teacher and student often tormented her soul.

Song Wen looked at the woman in front of him. “Is there anything that can prove that when you left, Zhang Dongmei was still alive, and she either jumped off herself or was pushed by someone else afterward?”

“I… I can’t prove it… but…” Tan Shan shook her head.

She turned her head, looking at Cheng Mo for help, “Father Cheng, I really didn’t do it, you have to believe me…”

She was too nervous, clutching her blue dress at the sides, wrinkling it into a mess.

She felt like she was the one clinging to the edge of the building. If she let go, she would fall, shattering into pieces. Her fingers were slipping from the railing, about to fall. Desperately, she tried to grab onto anything…

Cheng Mo finally spoke, “Teacher Tan, you said earlier that you drank a lot. Could it be that you remember it wrong?”

On the surface, this seemed to help Tan Shan find an excuse, but it actually identified her as the murderer. At this point, even Cheng Mo had turned against her.

“I… I don’t know, it really wasn’t me…” Tan Shan’s eyes reddened, her mouth opening but unable to form a single word of defense, only repeating, “I… I didn’t kill her…”

Song Wen pointed out, “Teacher Tan, your previous demeanor in the video, when you were lying, wasn’t as pitiful as you seem now.”

Including the later argument with Zhang Dongmei on the rooftop, she should have been feeling triumphant.

Regardless of their past, tonight, she completely overpowered Zhang Dongmei, humiliating her and exacting her revenge.

“So, did you kill your teacher Zhang Dongmei tonight?” Song Wen asked the final question.

As long as Tan Shan admitted it, everything tonight would end.

Tan Shan felt like the boy in the story of the boy who cried wolf. She had told so many lies before that now, even when she finally spoke the truth, no one believed her anymore.

She couldn’t even remember if, under the influence of alcohol, she had pushed Zhang Dongmei off the building.

She only remembered hating that woman. She had shoved her, pulled her hair, feeling no guilt at the time, only satisfaction.

It was something she had always wanted to do. She used her frail body to press Zhang Dongmei firmly against the railing, watching her struggle…

Then… what happened?

Tan Shan felt her memory break off.

Lu Siyu looked coldly at Tan Shan in front of him. He finished his notes, thought for a moment, and then asked Tan Shan, “Do you subconsciously fear becoming a teacher like Zhang Dongmei?”

This fear might not be concrete but abstract, psychological. Tan Shan had always been an obedient student, her growth path planned by others. She had fear, reverence, and admiration for her teacher, but Zhang Dongmei herself shattered this relationship. After experiencing disappointment, Tan Shan’s feelings towards her underwent subtle changes, with former admiration turning into hatred…

Tan Shan, feeling exposed, became frightened. Tears streamed down her face as she cried, “You don’t know… the impact a teacher can have on a student, especially for someone who has become a teacher like me…”

She sobbed, “Sometimes when I get angry with my students, when I can’t control myself, I unconsciously say the things Zhang Dongmei used to say to us. I unknowingly use her ways of punishing students. I… I hate myself for it…”

The work of a teacher is very stressful and demanding. She hated Zhang Dongmei and also hated herself for always listening to her.

Tan Shan had always tried to be the good teacher she thought she should be, but her somewhat weak personality made it increasingly difficult for her to uphold this “good” standard.

Zhang Dongmei’s influence on her was too deep. Those impacts, those more than a thousand days and nights, were deeply imprinted in her bones and blood.

Sometimes she simply vented her own past suffering onto her students.

What made her even more fearful was discovering that those words were actually more effective than her gentle coaxing… Her painstaking efforts couldn’t make them obedient, but Zhang Dongmei’s methods could…

Those students showed terrified, fearful expressions. They obediently listened, bowed their heads, and began to submit, transforming from unruly little troublemakers into obedient lambs.

Faced with such an outcome, she didn’t know what to do!

Reporting, punishing, and fighting with Zhang Dongmei on the rooftop—she could only use these extreme measures to prove that she was right and Zhang Dongmei was wrong!

She reached out her hand, not just for those crying children, but also for her crying self from years ago.

Killing Zhang Dongmei was like killing herself once more.

Now, the motive for murder had also surfaced.

If she really did commit the act of killing her teacher, this action stemmed from her psychological struggle and resistance. This killing was her self-reflection and self-destruction.

In her subconscious, killing Zhang Dongmei meant killing the negative side of herself, the imperfect part of herself, and would completely sever her connection with Zhang Dongmei, removing the shadow cast over her.

Lu Siyu looked at the five recorded testimonies, piecing together a complete truth.

But somehow… something still didn’t seem quite right.

Song Wen continued to question Tan Shan: “Do you admit your crime?”

Tan Shan cried and shook her head, shouting: “I hate her! But it really wasn’t me, this time I’m not lying…”

Her fingernails were almost peeled off from her digging. She felt as if her body was suspended in the air, falling heavily from a great height, lying beside Zhang Dongmei’s corpse, with blood continuously spreading from beneath her.

At that moment, there was suddenly a distant “bang” in the air, followed by a sudden brightness outside the window.

Cheers came from outside.

From their angle, they could see a brilliant firework blooming in the dark sky, with countless points of light scattering in the air.

Even Tan Shan’s tear-streaked face changed in the light and shadow of the fireworks.

Lu Siyu checked his watch. They had been so busy with the interrogation that they had lost track of time; it was already nine o’clock.

More bursts of fireworks continuously soared into the sky, and the sounds of the fireworks and the crowd interrupted their interrogation.

Song Wen stood up and said, “Let’s take a break, everyone. The fireworks display lasts for half an hour. We’ll continue after that.”