Myriad Calamities - Chapter 37
Xu Haicheng was most afraid of this kind of scene where tears fell like rain. Although he despised Ma Junnan's shamelessness, he began to sympathize with him. He could immediately tell how much torment Ma Junnan was enduring by seeing his emaciated appearance at the Nanpu City Psychological Rehabilitation Center. Was he afraid of the darkness of nature or the darkness of his heart?
There was a sound of brakes outside the security guard's room. Xu Haicheng turned his head and saw that it was an ambulance.
Ma Junnan's wife's face lit up with joy. Although she was clumsy in stature, she was quick-witted and had already figured out from Xu Haicheng's expression and Ma Junnan's evasiveness that the other side was in the right, not them. She said, "Our old Ma is still not well, and you've scared him like this. If anything happens to him, I'll never forgive you..." As she spoke, she helped Ma Junnan walk towards the door. The doctor and nurse who got out of the car ran over to help Ma Junnan.
Xu Haicheng didn't stop him. Watching Ma Junnan step out the door, he said, "Professor Ma, your biggest mistake was pushing the blame onto me. Wouldn't it have been better if you had just pretended you knew nothing?"
Ma Junnan stumbled and almost tripped over the threshold. His wife turned around, glared fiercely at Xu Haicheng, but dared not say anything more. She and Ma Junnan got into the ambulance and drove away.
Since the person involved had already left, the security guards had no reason to keep Xu Haicheng around, and they couldn't keep him anyway.
Xu Haicheng left the security room and slowly walked towards the school gate. The streetlights tormented his shadow, sometimes stretching it, sometimes compressing it. He felt an indescribable weariness and a deep sorrow; the truth of the matter had shocked him too much.
He was skilled in logical deduction and had already pieced together seven or eight parts of the story. After that gunfight, most people were seriously injured, and the Ghost Gu was very likely possessing Ma Junnan. His murderous intent surged. He picked up the pistol that Xu Haicheng had dropped. The gun was already off its safety, and he aimed it at a person's vitals at close range. A gentle pull would end a life.
Four lives were lost just like that.
How come Ma Junnan, who was afflicted with the Ghost Gu, is still alive? And who saved him?
After being rescued, Ma Junnan fully realized he had killed someone, and the fear terrified him so much that he developed obsessive-compulsive disorder. Fearing questioning, he feigned amnesia. Of the remaining five survivors, one committed suicide, two suffered mental breakdowns, and one remained unconscious. Only Xu Haicheng was a true survivor. He feared Xu Haicheng would remember his murder, so he continued to feign illness. Later, hearing that Xu Haicheng was receiving treatment at the Nanpu City Mental Rehabilitation Center, he transferred there, secretly guessing that Xu Haicheng would come to visit him.
Section 70: Chapter Eleven, Part One of the Void Tribulation (8)
He was right; Xu Haicheng had arrived.
Seeing that he couldn't remember what happened after being shot, Ma Junnan regained his memory the next day. Feeling guilty and fearing future repercussions, he decided to strike first and shift the blame for the murder onto Xu Haicheng. This explains the complex expressions he displayed when he met Xu Haicheng.
Although Xu Haicheng frequently dealt with crime and was well aware of the fickleness and fragility of human nature, Ma Junnan still deeply moved him. He sighed softly, looked up, and realized he had unknowingly left the school gate. Just as he was about to flag down a car, a police car pulled up in front of him, and Pan Xiaolu's smiling face appeared through the half-closed window: "Captain Xu."
"Why are you here?" Xu Haicheng asked in surprise.
"I answered the phone when the security guards from Nanpu University called the Criminal Investigation Department. I guessed you were causing trouble for Ma Junnan here and got surrounded. So..." She smiled and stopped talking.
Xu Haicheng chuckled. "So you drove over here to help me out?"
"I just drove up to the school gate and saw you coming out." Pan Xiaolu looked him up and down. "Looks like you didn't get beaten up."
Xu Haicheng chuckled again at her words, jumped into the car, and said, "If you're going back to the station, could you give me a ride?"
"Yes, ma'am." Pan Xiaolu responded loudly, turned the car around, and drove away from Nanpu University.
Xu Haicheng looked out the window at the deep night, still feeling emotional about what had just happened. He said, "Xiaolu, tell me, what exactly is human nature?" For example, Ma Junnan, if he hadn't gone to the Witch Domain, he might have been a refined and elegant scholar, pure in both appearance and character, and might never have even been involved in any scandals. He would have been remembered as a good person a hundred years later.
"That's a huge topic, I can't figure it out," Pan Xiaolu said, frowning. "However, one thing is certain: human nature is selfish. According to psychology, from birth to death, there is an absolute subconscious force that dominates every aspect of a person's life: protecting themselves." After not hearing Xu Haicheng's reply for a while, she couldn't help but turn her head to look at him. He was staring out the window, lost in thought, with sadness and weariness in his eyes.
Section 71: Chapter Twelve - The Second Part of the Void Calamity (1)
Chapter Twelve: The Second Part of the Void Calamity
Buddhism refers to the process from the birth to the destruction of the world as a kalpa, and ten thousand kalpas means ten thousand lifetimes, implying that it can never be restored...
(Excerpt from "Police Detective's Diary")
The night was as dark as ink, and the distant streetlights stood bare and sparse in the darkness, yet were tightly shrouded by it, revealing a timid air. Perhaps humanity is like a lamp in the darkness; a slight misstep and it can be swallowed by the darkness, Xu Haicheng thought. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of a smile on Pan Xiaolu's lips, and paused, puzzled as to what she was so happy about.
Little did he know, Pan Xiaolu was experiencing a strange sense of joy. The road was sparsely populated, allowing her to drive very fast, and he was sitting right beside her. If they continued driving like this, even if he remained forever silent, the night would still be beautiful. However, her beautiful thoughts were quickly shattered by the ringing of her cell phone.
Pan Xiaolu's smile faded as she answered the phone, her expression turning serious. She replied loudly, "I'll be right there." She slammed the phone shut and slammed on the gas. "Huang Yisen is awake. Deputy Captain Feng wants me to go to the People's Hospital to check on him." Huang Yisen had been extremely anxious and disoriented since being admitted to the hospital last night. He had fallen into a deep sleep after being given a sedative and had only just regained consciousness.
Xu Haicheng's eyes lit up, then dimmed again.
Pan Xiaolu noticed the changes in his expression and said, "Captain Xu, come with me."
Xu Haicheng wasn't usually one to follow rules rigidly, but the thought of how his overstepping the rules would implicate Deputy Captain Feng and Pan Xiaolu made him hesitant to act rashly. After a moment's internal struggle, he said, "Forget it, let's not let you get scolded again."
"I'm not afraid." Pan Xiaolu stubbornly raised her eyebrows. "Let them scold me. Director Chen said he'd keep you informed. Besides, your suspension isn't because of work-related issues, and you're regaining your memories now. Didn't you kill those four people?"
"But there's no evidence right now." Xu Haicheng thought of the man who had threatened Ma Junnan earlier. It seemed he knew a lot about what happened behind Julong Cave. He wondered if the two plainclothes officers had caught him.
Pan Xiaolu also said with difficulty, "That's true."
"Where are Deputy Captain Feng and the others?"
Pan Xiaolu glanced at the time on the car screen and said, "It's almost 11 o'clock. All the police in the city have assembled and are preparing to conduct a surprise inspection of all small and medium-sized hotels. I'm on duty today, so Deputy Captain Feng told me to go to the hospital to take a statement first, and he'll be here shortly." With the cultural festival opening in two days, this surprise inspection is aimed at eliminating vagrants, regulating the orderly operation of small and medium-sized hotels, and also hoping to find clues to the November 2nd serial murder case.
During their conversation, they arrived at the People's Hospital parking lot. Xu Haicheng was itching to get back to work, and after thinking it over, he decided to stay in the car and wait for Pan Xiaolu to finish her questions. Pan Xiaolu didn't urge him to come along anymore. After all, not all the police officers in the Criminal Investigation Brigade were on good terms with Xu Haicheng, and Deputy Director Yan also had many opinions about him.
Pan Xiaolu got out of the car and hurried towards the inpatient department. It was so late at night, and apart from the emergency room, which was still brightly lit and filled with faint voices, there was only the whistling wind in other places. But a strange feeling flashed through her mind, as if she were being watched by a pair of eyes. She stopped and looked around, but found nothing unusual.
As Pan Xiaolu approached the entrance to the inpatient department, she suddenly turned around again, but there was still nothing behind her. The Bethune statue in the middle of the square stood quietly in the distance, and the buildings next to it were hidden in the night. The wind rustled the green plants in the hospital, as if something might suddenly emerge.
She stood there for a moment, but still couldn't find anything, so she went into the inpatient department, took out her ID, and flashed it in front of the nurse on duty. Huang Yisen was in a special care ward, and his name and information were fake. His family members were not allowed to visit him; only two plainclothes officers disguised as his family members were guarding the ward.
The nurse glanced at her curiously, but didn't dare ask which patient she was visiting, and watched her walk deeper into the corridor.
Visiting hours were long over, and the corridor was deserted and smelled unpleasant. Along the way, you could hear various faint sounds from patients, including groans of unbearable pain, coughs that tickled the throat, and of course, the soft laughter of nurses in the duty room.
Huang Yisen's ward was arranged in the most secluded corner on the first floor. Pan Xiaolu knocked on the door three times, lightly and heavily, paused for a moment, and then knocked twice more heavily.
A voice came from inside the house: "What number?"
November 2nd.
The password was confirmed, and the plainclothes officers opened the door. It was a single-occupancy hospital room, small and easily visible. The windows were closed, and the curtains were drawn. The bedside lamp was on, its warm orange light casting a soft glow on the white walls and sheets. The noise startled Huang Yisen, who was lying on the bed. He sat up, looking noticeably more haggard than two days ago, with lingering fear in his eyes.
Seeing that there was only one plainclothes officer, Pan Xiaolu asked, "Where's the other one?"
The plainclothes officer said, "He went to the restroom and hasn't come back yet. He's probably having a craving for cigarettes and wants to smoke a few more."