Wandernde Lieder am Ende der Welt

Kapitel 21

Wu Bingbing asked Gu Hongsheng, "Didn't you have any doubts? Didn't you go to Hunan to investigate?"

"It's all written so clearly in the file, what else is there for me to investigate? Although I copied down the information from the file at the time, after thinking about it again and again, I still admit I was wrong. There must be people in this world who look the same. Her name is Chen Xiaona, not Wang Xiaoyue. Besides, everyone I asked in those two trips to Wang Xiaoyue's family and village all said that Wang Xiaoyue was dead. I even saw her grave with my own eyes. What reason is there to keep looking? —By the way, Yang Li has also been looking for her. He even came to see me once later, suspecting that Wang Xiaoyue was not dead and that I had found her."

"That man is absolutely wicked. Is he still not giving up? Does he want to drive Wang Xiaoyue to her death again?" Wu Bingbing said angrily through gritted teeth when she heard that Yang Li was looking for Wang Xiaoyue.

"It's a real shame you didn't go looking for her again?" Zhang Qun asked with some regret.

"Later, I got married," Gu Hongsheng said, clicking his tongue. "Those things from the past are pointless to think about after marriage. I've forgotten what I should forget. Look at me now, I'm living a pretty good life."

Wu Bingbing glanced knowingly at Zhang Qun and said, "It's certain that Wang Xiaoyue isn't dead. If he so strongly suspects that Chen Xiaona is Wang Xiaoyue, then perhaps Chen Xiaona doesn't exist, and is just an alias?"

Zhang Qun said, "If he had investigated Chen Xiaona back then, he would have understood everything."

Wu Bingbing asked Gu Hongsheng, "Did you remember Chen Xiaona's detailed home address back then?"

Gu Hongsheng said, "I've written it down in a small notebook. I'll go upstairs and get it for you right now."

"It seems that we have no choice but to find out about her." Bingbing looked at Zhang Qun for his opinion.

"It's my duty!" Zhang Qun patted her shoulder readily.

When Gu Hongsheng stood in front of them again, both of them were startled.

His face was covered in bruises, a large bump swollen on his forehead, and blood was flowing from his nose. He wiped the blood with his palm, saying, "I fell down the stairs..."

Chapter Twenty-One

Years ago, her mother fled to the mountains, escaping the trouble she had caused and the bitter consequences of her indulgent emotions. Whether it was divine retribution or inevitable fate, her daughter suffered the same end. The agonizing debt of guilt caused her unbearable pain…

With Chen Xiaona's home address in hand, the two took a train from Henan directly to Hunan.

On the way, Zhang Qun's phone rang. It was her married older sister calling, saying that her mother had fallen ill and been hospitalized the previous night, undergoing emergency treatment for over ten hours, and urging her to return immediately. Her sister cried and complained that she was so old yet still acted like a wild child, never home, unreliable to their parents, and that no one was home when their mother was sick; if anything happened to her, who would they be able to face? Zhang Qun listened and began to cry, "Sister, please stop. I'll go back right now, okay?"

After hanging up the phone, Zhang Qun looked helplessly at Wu Bingbing without saying a word.

Wu Bingbing said, "Don't get off the bus. Just take it to Guangzhou and head back overnight! Your mother's illness is the priority. I'll go to Hunan first and investigate based on Chen Xiaona's leads."

Zhang Qun said, "I should have stayed with you until the end, but—"

"Don't say that. No matter how the investigation goes or whether we find the longevity lock, I'm very grateful to you. You've been with me for so many days and we've already made some progress. I'll keep investigating."

Zhang Qun said, "Why don't you get off the train when you arrive in Hubei and find your boyfriend? Didn't you say he went to Shennongjia for an internship a month ago? I can have him help you and accompany you on the investigation after I leave."

"I didn't go for my internship, and I'm sorry to drag others along with me."

"It's not just anyone, it's my boyfriend! I need his help in a pinch!"

"He hasn't called for two weeks. Maybe he's in the mountains and hard to reach?"

Next, Wu Bingbing tried calling Guo Kai, but the phone was always busy and out of service. She didn't know anyone else's phone number and was really anxious. Later, she called a female classmate who was staying on campus. That classmate's boyfriend was also doing an internship there. She told Wu Bingbing that the interns were living in Fang County in northwestern Hubei, a county bordering Shennongjia Forestry District.

So, when the train reached Wuhan, Wu Bingbing parted ways with Zhang Qun and got off first. Zhang Qun continued on his way by car. Wu Bingbing transferred trains in Wuhan and headed west, arriving in Xiangfan the next morning. From there, it was still 150 kilometers to Fangxian, so she boarded a long-distance bus. The road ahead was all mountain roads, and she was exceptionally excited along the way. Tall paulownia and Chinese pine trees, as well as straight fir trees, flashed past the bus window. Chestnut, hawthorn, and wild cherry trees covered the mountains and fields, revealing their colorful hues tinged with autumn frost. Occasionally, a beautiful long-tailed pheasant would fly past the roadside, and one or two macaques would peek out from the bushes not far away.

Wu Bingbing was in a good mood and didn't feel the bumpy car ride or the fatigue of the journey. She walked and asked for directions until she arrived at the guesthouse in Hongta Township, Fang County. This was the base camp for the internship team. Only one sick girl was guarding the luggage in the room. She said that the professor was leading everyone to stay at the Han Dynasty tomb complex in Gaopai Village of the township, conducting research on the tombs. When the girl was about to call her internship supervisor, Wu Bingbing stopped her, saying, "Let me go directly there; I want to surprise them!"

When Bingbing arrived at the Han Dynasty tomb complex, it was already noon. She could see a cluster of tents in the distance; everyone was probably taking a nap after lunch, as there wasn't a soul outside. She lifted the covers of the nearest tent and saw two boys from her class. One of them ran out, saying how great it was that she had come, and then offered to take her to find the professor. Bingbing said, "No rush, let the professor rest. Where's Guo Kai? I'll find him first."

After asking for a while, the boy finally gestured with his chin to point to the tent next to her where Guo Kai was. Later, Wu Bingbing thought, no wonder the boy was so hesitant to speak, and no wonder he immediately went into the tent after telling her—he didn't want to see an awkward scene. When she, with a forced smile, tiptoed into the tent with a teasing air, she saw Guo Kai sleeping with a girl. They were sharing a blanket, and even cuddling while sleeping…

Wu Bingbing silently withdrew, tears streaming down her face, and staggered back to where she had gotten off the bus. Without asking a single question, she jumped onto a bus heading to the county town.

As the car drove away from the town, she glanced back and saw a group of people running towards them from the end of the long street. It was the professor and her classmates. But she didn't want to stop, so she buried her head, hugged her knees, and began to sob, her cries growing louder and louder, drawing the attention of everyone on the bus…

Wu Bingbing went to Hunan alone. Guo Kai called her cell phone again and again, and she finally answered in the car. Guo Kai explained to her that he didn't intentionally betray her; he had been bitten by a poisonous snake in the mountains, and the girl had sucked the venom out of his mouth and taken care of him for several days and nights afterward, for which he was very grateful. She had pursued him, making him lose control, and he felt sorry for her. She hung up before he finished listening, turning her face to the window, her eyes filled with tears.

Wu Bingbing arrived in Hengyang City and, following the address written by Gu Hongsheng, first went to the workplace of Chen Xiaona's father, Chen Chaolin. It was a large mechanical engineering company. An old man sitting in the gatehouse said that Engineer Chen had been transferred to the Three Gorges Project, to a construction site in Yichang, Hubei. When asked where Engineer Chen lived, the old man told her it was in a certain residential area.

Wu Bingbing found the residential complex by asking around. Gu Hongsheng had also provided information that Chen Chaolin's wife was named Duan Hong and worked at the Municipal Academy of Painting. So, she told the security guard in the complex that she was looking for Chen's wife, Duan Hong.

Unexpectedly, the security guard glared at her and said that Teacher Duan had passed away three years ago.

Wu Bingbing asked in astonishment, "You mean his wife, Duan Hong... passed away?"

The security guard nodded. "Yes, Mr. Chen has rarely come back since then."

How many children does Engineer Chen have in his family?

"I think there's only one?"

"Your daughter?"

"It's a daughter."

"Is her name Chen Xiaona?"

"I don't know her name, but I've seen her come here repeatedly."

Where does she live?

"She got married and moved out, so I don't know what kind of company her husband works for."

"Okay, thank you."

Wu Bingbing was somewhat bewildered. Chen Xiaona did exist, and her family was real; it wasn't a fictional name. Chen Xiaona wasn't Wang Xiaoyue; they might just look alike. What was there to investigate?

Just as she turned to leave, the security guard said again, "I think Mr. Chen's daughter works at the Friendship Shopping Mall. Just walk straight ahead from here, past two intersections. You can go there to find her if you need anything."

"She's in the mall? Is she a sales clerk? Or not? —"

"She was a sales clerk. She even helped Mr. Tian, who was on duty, carry some things once."

Wu Bingbing was puzzled. Chen Xiaona had graduated from university, and more than ten years ago, the state guaranteed job placement. There were also few people studying fine arts, so she should have been assigned to a college or art institution. How could she be working as a sales clerk?

Following the security guard's directions, she arrived at the Friendship Shopping Mall. When someone pointed her out to the short, busy woman behind the grocery counter, she became even more confused. The Chen Xiaona before her was short and plump, with sallow skin, looking nothing like Wang Xiaoyue. How could even Gu Hongsheng have mistaken them?

"You—your name is Chen Xiaona?"

"Yes! Who are you? What do you want with me?"

"Did you study at the Xidu Academy of Fine Arts?"

"Hey, no, you're talking about Wang Xiaoyue."

"What? You know Wang Xiaoyue?"

"Don't make a fuss. Of course I know her."

"That's great, that's great..."

"Who are you? Her classmate?"

"Yes, we are classmates."

Wu Bingbing waited until Chen Xiaona got off work before following her to her home. She lived in a spacious apartment, seemingly well-off and quite content. Her husband, who worked at the tax office, hadn't returned yet, but her elementary school-aged son cried out that he was starving as soon as he entered the door. Chen Xiaona immediately went into the kitchen to prepare food for him. Wu Bingbing also quickly took out some groceries she had bought on the way, letting the little guy open them to fill his stomach. She then went into the kitchen to help while chatting with Chen Xiaona. Chen Xiaona was straightforward and efficient, her conversation flowing like a string of firecrackers amidst the clanging of pots and pans.

"It's all my mom's fault, always meddling in other people's business. She started teaching art at a university, then transferred to an art academy, traveling all over the country to paint. I was still young then, often left at home. That autumn, she went to the Taihang and Wangwu Mountains to sketch, staying in the mountain valleys for over two months. When she came back, she said she met a girl in a mountain village who was a talented and gifted painter, so she gave her home address and said she would look for her when she grew up and recommend her to art school, maybe she could become a great painter. It was just talk, and it was over in the past, even my mom herself forgot about it. But one winter, she suddenly received a letter from that little girl in the mountain village, in which..." She recounted her tragic past, saying her only family was an elderly mother who couldn't afford to send her to school. They had betrothed her to someone, but the man didn't want her to study, so she had to learn secretly. She hadn't forgotten her teacher's guidance and successfully gained admission to university to study art. However, after only a few months, her fiancé caused trouble at the school, and she was expelled. Then, the man took her back home, often locking her in his room and forcing her to be his wife and have his children. She said she was unwilling to accept this and thought every day about running away and retaking the university entrance exam. She said she loved painting and hoped to become a painter. She hoped her teacher could help her escape this remote mountain village, escape this den of wolves, and she would be grateful for the rest of her life.

Wu Bingbing asked, "Did your mother reply to her letter? Did she help her?"

Chen Xiaona said, "My mom is soft-hearted, so of course she would help her. At first, my mom didn't know how to help her, so she just wrote back, hoping she wouldn't drop out of school or her art, and that she could take the college entrance exam again next year and apply to a university far from her hometown. She also said she could recommend a professor at the university. There was no reply after the letter was sent. Unexpectedly, two months later, she suddenly showed up at our door. Although her clothes were old and she looked travel-worn, she didn't look like a little girl at all; she was a real beauty. Since she came to stay, you know, my mom is a natural philanthropist and genuinely liked her, so she kept her at home and even adopted her as her goddaughter. From then on, she went out to paint during the day and studied at night, following the plan my mom had given her..." She was preparing for the college entrance exam in the fall. Later, my parents adopted her as their daughter. She was beautiful, sweet-talking, and charming, stealing the spotlight from her mother and becoming her darling. I, on the other hand, seemed like the unwanted child. Before that, I had been hospitalized for over a year and had fallen behind in my studies, taking a leave of absence in my first year of high school, which disappointed my mother. Later, Xiaoyue repeatedly asked to change her name to her father's surname, so my parents started calling her Chen Xiaoyue. Unexpectedly, the following fall, when it came time to register for the college entrance exam, they required her to bring her household registration booklet. After much deliberation, my mother let her use my name. She did very well on the college entrance exam, and my mother found someone to help her get accepted into the Xidu Academy of Fine Arts. From then on, she used my name. My grades couldn't keep up, so I didn't take the college entrance exam and had to take a job recruitment exam to become a sales clerk in a shopping mall.

"Chen Xiaona...I'm sorry, how long has Wang Xiaoyue been staying at your house?"

"It took about a year in total."

"Did she maintain contact with your family afterward?"

"Yes. She studied for four years and then stayed on as a faculty member for a few more years, writing to my mother frequently. Then one day she suddenly disappeared, and we never heard from her again. My mother wrote to the school to inquire, and a professor surnamed Ma replied, saying he was Xiaoyue's husband and that Xiaoyue had committed suicide a few months ago. My mother was heartbroken and fell seriously ill. She was still talking about her when she died a few years ago. To be honest, I didn't like Wang Xiaoyue. She was a very scheming person, always finding ways to get others to help her. Apparently, in her letters she wrote that she was involved with these men, loving this one one moment and that one the next, it was all a mess, I couldn't be bothered to read it."

"Do you still have the letter she wrote to your mother?"

“Yes. After my mother passed away, when I was packing my things, I found that she had kept her letters in bundles. Some time ago, when I went to my mother's place to look for some materials, I saw a stack of letters on the bookshelf, all of which she wrote after she was assigned to the school. It seems that she stopped writing letters after that. I glanced at them a few times and then put them back in.”

"You're sure you still have it there?"

"It should be in my mother's study."

"That's great. Can I see those letters? Are there any pictures of her too?"

"I'll just give you the letter. There's also a photo of her, taken shortly after she came to my house."

After having lunch at Chen Xiaona's house, Wu Bingbing went with her to the family compound she had visited that morning. They entered her mother's neatly organized room and saw a stack of seven or eight letters she had written after graduating and being assigned a job. She quickly flipped through them; one letter was dated the month before her disappearance. Then, Chen Xiaona showed her her mother's photo album. When Wu Bingbing saw Wang Xiaoyue's picture inside, she was both surprised and excited—it was clearly Jiang Lan in her youth, clearly the Jiang Lan of her early years…

Wu Bingbing left Hengyang, Hunan, and took a long-distance bus northwest to Chengdu, Sichuan. She wanted to investigate the details of Chen Xiaona, who had studied at the Xidu Academy of Fine Arts and later stayed on as a faculty member.

Her phone rang. It was Guo Kai calling again. He had explained things two days ago, and she understood this man who couldn't resist women's temptations. What more was there to say? She didn't answer, but the call kept ringing persistently. Ring ring ring… Ring ring ring—the sound reminded her of the past, of those nights at school when Guo Kai would stand downstairs calling her name, insisting she come down to meet him. Ring ring ring—

She pressed the call button and held the phone far away from her ear.

"Hey, Bingbing, where are you?" Guo Kai said on the other end of the phone. "Can you hear me?"

Bingbing finally spoke slowly and gently, "I'm listening. Is there anything else you want to say?"

"Are you alright? I'm suddenly worried about you—"

"There's no need! Just say what you want to say."

"I'm glad you're alright. I wanted to tell you that something happened to that girl—she's dead."

"Don't play games with me! Why would I curse her to die? As long as you're happy, that's all that matters."

"She really died, the night before last, the day you left. We had a little argument, and then she..."

She went to sit on the hillside alone one night and didn't return until midnight. When they found her, she was dead at the foot of the hill. It's unclear whether she rolled down the hillside or was chased and attacked by wild animals; in any case, she was covered in wounds…and dead!

"Really dead—?" Wu Bingbing gasped in shock.

"He's dead," Guo Kai said on the other end of the phone.

"He died after I left the day before yesterday?"

"That night..."

"How could this be—?" She looked around; the car was full of unfamiliar faces. She had a guess, but dared not voice it. Could it be Jiang Lan? Had that ghost been following me all along?

"Who knew it would turn out like this? Even her family said she shouldn't have thought of doing something like this."

"You made that phone call? You don't suspect I killed her, do you?"

"How could that be! She only has herself to blame. I didn't want to tell you this, but after thinking it over, I couldn't stop worrying about you, so I called you. I know I hurt you, and you must be in more pain than her. I was afraid you might do something rash—"

"No, she won't. By the way, did she have suicidal tendencies that day?"

"Who knows? It was just a little argument, who would have thought she'd be so petty."

After hanging up the phone, Wu Bingbing suddenly felt inexplicably cold all over. Looking at the hillsides and trees rushing past the car window, and at the passengers sleeping soundly and sprawled on the long-distance bus, she felt a deep-seated fear and exhaustion.

On the way, Wu Bingbing opened her backpack, took out the stack of letters Chen Xiaona had given her, and carefully read them one by one. Two letters in particular caught her attention with their revelations. The contents are as follows—