Chapter 106

Eighteen years ago.

At that time, Nancheng was undergoing construction everywhere. Next to the Wushan Nursing Home were some old residential buildings.

The sky was a pale yellow, and the morning air was mixed with a faint smell of sulfur, slightly irritating the nose.

It was an evening that seemed ordinary, with the lingering heat of late summer in the air. Many of the residents were unaware of recent events. They only noticed an increase in people coming and going, along with strange noises outside.

Finally, when it was time to close the net, several police cars stopped outside and behind the nursing home. Angry citizens had just attacked the gatekeeper’s lodge, and many windows were broken, with glass shards littering the ground.

Detective Chief Song Cheng hurriedly led a team through the yard and rushed in. Just last night, they had obtained decisive evidence of Xia Weizhi’s killing of the residents. The police began searching room by room, but the suspect, Xia Weizhi, was nowhere to be found.

Unable to contain his anxiety, Song Cheng raised his voice, asking, “Where’s Xia Weizhi? Did you find her? Has anyone seen her?” Now, Wu Qing was still in the hospital, his life hanging in the balance. Song Cheng desperately needed this victory to boost morale.

“Dr. Xia was on night duty yesterday,” a timid young nurse said. Despite several previous inquiries and people’s understanding of what might have happened at the nursing home and what Xia Weizhi might have done, they still referred to her as Dr. Xia.

“I think I saw Dr. Xia downstairs last night…” an elderly person spoke up.

Song Cheng’s brows furrowed, suddenly feeling a sense of foreboding.

Although they hadn’t formally begun the arrest yet, they had stationed undercover officers at the entrance to ensure that no one entered or left the nursing home. But now, why was this happening?

“Step up the search!” Song Cheng ordered sternly, “Issue a wanted notice. We need her alive or dead. Anyone? Who saw her last?”

A young boy stepped forward from the crowd, just a boy of about ten, with short hair, dark skin, and a scar on his eyebrow. He approached the police, seemingly summoning great courage, and said, looking up, “I saw a man leading Dr. Xia downstairs. They climbed over the wall from the back together…”

The responsible officer subconsciously denied it, “That’s impossible. Not even a fly could have flown out last night!”

The high wall behind the nursing home was over three meters high, with glass shards and barbed wire on top. How could two people help each other climb over? Even if they did manage to climb over, the officers on duty at the back couldn’t have failed to notice.

The entire nursing home was thoroughly searched, every room, every corner, without a single omission. Who would have thought that last night was the last time Xia Weizhi would be seen by anyone?

The police, frustrated by their fruitless search, had no choice but to believe the witness’s account. Following the description provided by the eyewitness, they drew a portrait of the man.

However, the descriptions provided by several children about the man’s appearance were inconsistent, and the elderly residents also expressed that they had not seen that person.

Xia Weizhi seemed to have evaporated from the earth, never to appear in front of people again, and the man was nowhere to be found.

After the case of the Wushan Nursing Home was publicized in the media, it caused a sensation. Some people went to the gates of the City Bureau and hung banners demanding that the perpetrator be severely punished and apprehended. Song Cheng was overwhelmed by this matter, and posters of Xia Weizhi were plastered all over the city’s electric poles.

At that time, they still didn’t know that while they were searching for Xia Weizhi, this woman was already dead. Her body lay quietly in the sewer below the Wushan Nursing Home, gradually decomposing and decaying until it turned into bones…

Eighteen years later.

It’s now past eight o’clock in the evening, and the sun has long since set. The cemetery is about to close, so there aren’t many people in the graveyard.

As night falls, the streetlights in the cemetery gradually illuminate, extending forward like stars in the sky. And those deceased people? Have they gone to heaven too?

Before the cemetery closes, a middle-aged man in his forties walks up to a tombstone and lays down a bouquet of white lilies. This tombstone has been around for some years, with some moss growing on it. There is no name or photo on the tombstone.

It’s been eighteen years. Approaching the Mid-Autumn Festival, he remembers that it’s the anniversary of that woman’s death.

The man lowers his head and looks at the tombstone. The grave is empty, and the tombstone was erected by him. That woman was his confidante, his lover, his adversary…

The man stands in front of the tombstone for a while, then turns around. Perhaps he’s been standing for too long; his knees ache, and he almost stumbles when he tries to leave.

Someone suddenly reaches out to support him.

It’s a slender girl, with delicate features and small hands exuding warmth.

The man speaks, “Thank you.”

“It’s okay, it’s the least I could do…” Anyone who comes to the cemetery at this time is undoubtedly mourning the loss of loved ones and friends. The young girl, inexperienced in the ways of the world, naturally offers sympathy to the middle-aged man.

His expression is somewhat solemn; perhaps his wife has passed away?

The girl thinks to herself as she brushes her hair aside, “I used to be blind, and many people helped me, so now, it’s only right to help others.”

After saying this, the girl walks to another newly erected tombstone and places a bouquet of pink flowers beneath it. At the beginning, the graves were sparse, but as more and more people passed away, renovations were carried out, adding more spaces. Thus, these two old and new graves are now connected.

The middle-aged man’s gaze falls on the tombstone, with a photo of a young man on it, and his name engraved next to it—Chen Yanqiu.

The man asks, “Is this yours…?”

“It’s my brother.” The girl bows respectfully to the tombstone.

She has just retrieved her brother’s belongings, quit her job, and chosen to work as a piano teacher at an educational institution. It turns out that life isn’t as terrifying just as the police officer said; facing each day with effort is enough.

The middle-aged man nods, “My condolences.”

“You too,” the girl replies.

On this ordinary night, two strangers meet in the cemetery.

This city sometimes appears very large, but at other times, it seems very small.

The man steadied himself and walked towards the cemetery. After brushing past the girl, his steps became more determined.

“I saw a beast coming up out of the sea. It had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on its horns, and on each head a blasphemous name.”

As the man walked farther away, the colossal beast sank into the sea, leaving no trace on the surface.

In a daze, Lu Siyu felt like he was walking forward, with every path constantly changing, without end. He was exhausted, but his legs seemed not to belong to him, unable to stop.

There were many people around, each with different expressions, and he couldn’t recognize any of them. But he could discern those gazes: indifferent, hesitant, disdainful, fearful, terrified. It was as if he were truly insane, abnormal, mentally ill.

Then he heard Wu Qing’s voice, “You’re not suited for forensic medicine. It involves dealing with corpses. You’re using those corpses to numb yourself. You’re very intelligent, your thinking is different from others. I think you should learn to communicate with the living. You could try being a detective.”

Lu Siyu spoke, “But I applied for the forensic medicine program.”

“Have you considered a graduate program in investigation? It’s been a long time since I personally supervised a graduate student. I’ve reviewed your grades; there should be no problem if you apply for my specialization. You won’t find more clues from forensic work, nor will you find the real culprit behind the murder of your parents.”

Then Wu Qing looked up at him and said, “Ji Siyu, I remember you.” He sat in a wheelchair, his gaze steady. “You were the child found at the scene of the murder years ago, the only survivor of the 519 case…”

In an instant, Wu Qing’s face morphed into Song Wen’s.

Lu Siyu suddenly widened his eyes, feeling a strong sense of weightlessness, his body suddenly in pain as if being torn apart.

Dizzy for a few seconds, Lu Siyu realized it was a dream, where truth and falsehood intertwined, everything bathed in surreal light and shadow.

Lu Siyu wiped the sweat from his forehead, feeling a bit dizzy. The sky outside was still dark. Because of Li Luanfang’s visit earlier, Song Wen had taken the blankets and pillows out of the room, and Lu Siyu hadn’t slept in this room today.

Getting out of bed, Lu Siyu checked the time. It was five o’clock. He poured himself a glass of warm water. Passing by the bathroom, he glanced at the mirror inside. The person in the mirror didn’t look as calm as usual; the cold eyes made him feel unfamiliar, like the face of a murderer.

Then he heard his phone ring. Who would send a message at five in the morning?

The sender’s name was Bei Tian Ji.

*North Celestial Pole

Bei Tian Ji, the point where the Earth’s axis intersects with the celestial sphere in the north, the virtual center point of the rotation of the northern hemisphere.

For thousands of years, people on Earth have used its starlight for navigation.

Lu Siyu clicked to accept, and the status of the other party showed online. He quickly opened the location tracking app and saw that the other party was also in Nancheng, but the specific location was unknown.

Seemingly aware of what Lu Siyu was doing, a line of text appeared on the screen: “You won’t find me.”

Lu Siyu squinted slightly, pondered for a moment, and typed three words to ask: “Who are you?”

The other party quickly replied: “I’m a source for Teacher Wu. Just thought I’d say hello to you. We’ll meet in the future.”

Then the other party’s profile picture went offline, turning into a dull gray. The message that had just been sent disappeared quickly, and the dialogue box turned blank, as if everything were just an extension of that dream.

At that moment, the light in Song Wen’s room suddenly turned on, casting light through the crack in the door, and the sound of him answering the phone came from inside. Lu Siyu walked to the door with his cup of water, and through the half-open door, he saw Song Wen sitting cross-legged on the bed, taking the phone call.

It was five o’clock in the morning now, darkness shrouding the earth, and the whole city was very quiet, with most people still in the realm of dreams.

“Has something happened?” Lu Siyu softly asked Song Wen as he waited for him to hang up the phone.

Song Wen murmured, “Did I wake you up?” Then he added, “A female corpse was found in the east of Nancheng. We need to respond.”