Out of Control

Chapter 12

Bingbing said, "Whether you believe it or not, just take good care of yourself. I just wanted to tell you this."

Some things don't happen because we have to experience them, nor do they only happen because we imagine them.

"It can't be that mysterious, can it?" Zhang Qun still didn't believe it, tilting his head suspiciously. "Are you trying to stop me from investigating further, trying to stop me from writing about Jiang Lan?"

"No matter what you say, I can't explain it clearly right now... and even if I could, you wouldn't believe me. I'm leaving. Like I said, take care of yourself! You're a good person."

They came out of the coffee shop and walked onto the street, one after the other.

Zhang Qun was completely bewildered, and even as they parted, he still said, "I still want to ask—?"

"Forget it, knowing some things isn't necessarily a good thing. It's better not to know than to know." With that, Bingbing turned and left.

Zhang Qun stood there, one hand resting on his glasses, watching her walk away...

As the afternoon workday drew to a close, Wu Bingbing returned to the museum's art exhibition hall. Standing before Jiang Lan's painting, her gaze earnestly fixed on the "woman practicing yoga." "I've been looking for you for days! Where are you? You're not here, you're not in your house, so where did you go? Did you leave? Never to return? — I really hope so. I'm anxious to find you, not only because of Xu Miaomiao, which I've already told you, but also because of Zhang Qun. I know she went to your house. She investigated you, and you know that too. You saw her business card, you definitely saw it. Please don't harm her… She's a good person. She, like me, sympathizes with you. You've taken your revenge; go now, stop killing indiscriminately. Whether it's Xu Miaomiao, Zhang Qun, or me, we are all innocent. Why are you killing us? Why are you forcing me to harm others? —"

The painting bulged outwards from the center, emitting a rustling sound. The woman in the painting opened her eyes, and her face transformed into Jiang Lan's. Although she was sitting there, she stopped her martial arts practice and said angrily, "I know you're looking for me. I'm right here; I haven't left and I won't disappear. My body has been divided up by you, and my soul needs a place to rest, so I can only hide here. This is my pitiful little nest, the escape route I prepared before I died. Why are you causing me trouble? Why are you making my life miserable? What do you want from me? Do you want to educate me, save me? Or do you want to break ties with me? —Stop racking your brains. You belong to me; your body has no right to control itself. I will often sneak into your dreams, torment you, bewitch you, and make you miserable. Now get out of here, and don't forget what I said. Do what I told you to do. Otherwise, you'll regret it!"

Having said that, she vanished as if a dark cloud had suddenly dispersed and sunlight had poured down; the painting immediately returned to its original state, hanging there dignifiedly and calmly, without the slightest change.

Wu Bingbing stepped forward and shouted, "Why are you forcing me? Why should I listen to you?" But no matter how she shouted, the painting and the person in it did not react at all.

"Ring ring ring ring ring..."

A piercing sound came from above, startling her; it was the museum's closing bell.

She glanced at the painting with resentment, then sullenly walked away. At the door, the female caretaker looked at her suspiciously, prompting her to yell, "What are you looking at? You're crazy!"

Chapter Eleven

It was half a child's corpse, the stomach had been ripped out, the lower limbs had been gnawed by a dog, but the upper body was intact, and even the clothes were still intact—she recognized him as the child of the craftsman from the next city, she had seen him a few days ago when she came.

Around midnight, a cool breeze blew in through the window; if Wu Bingbing hadn't gone to sleep yet, she would have sensed the unusual nature of the breeze; but she had already gone to bed early and was fast asleep.

Under the pale moonlight, the breeze flowed freely, shimmering like mercury; it slid softly down from the windowsill, like an eel slipping into the room, gliding leisurely across the clean floor. When the breeze brushed past the mirror, a blinding white light appeared in its reflection. The breeze blew to the bedside, making Wu Bingbing's hair roll around on the pillow; then, the breeze quietly disappeared.

Wu Bingbing's dream was also disturbed by this wind. In her dream, the wind grew sudden and fierce, enveloping her like a leaf, tossing her high into the air, and shrinking smaller and smaller as she tumbled until she became a tiny dot. Then, she plummeted from the sky. The fall was agonizing. The wind whistled past her ears, stinging her nose and eyes; the clouds scattered in panic like a flock of sheep; below, a dense, dark forest rose like dark clouds rushing towards her. She felt her body, like a withered blade of grass, merging into the darkness, floating lightly…

When she opened her eyes, she found herself in a forest. In the distance was a mountain that looked familiar, its peak shrouded in dark clouds, as if it were raining, and lightning flashed across the sky. Then she heard a rumbling sound, and the wind blew from the other side of the mountain, pushing the dark clouds in. Herds of wild rabbits, wild boars, and roe deer ran down the mountain toward her.

Suddenly, a deafening clap of thunder boomed through the air. Startled, she fell to the ground. A torrential downpour began, blinding her. She tried to get up, but packs of wild animals repeatedly knocked her down, trampling over her and crushing her skull. Tears streamed down her face as she lay in the mud.

For some reason, there wasn't a ray of light. She groped her way through the woods, first through wetlands, then into water, which grew deeper and deeper until it reached her knees. Where was she? Had she wandered into an underground tunnel? Or a chilling cave? She decided to turn back, but lost her way; the mud clung to her like glue. Rats or water snakes kept crawling over and biting her toes. She kicked them away desperately and ran forward; something spiky like a spiderweb snaked her face; then she suddenly crashed into a tree, the pain making her clutch her head and scream.

Through her tear-filled eyes, she seemed to see a light ahead, like a crack torn open in the thick night.

She lunged forward with all her might, but the light seemed to drift further and further away. Then she heard a low, ferocious roar, clearly the menacing howl of a wild beast…

She dared not move forward any further, and turned around to grope her way to the other side.

In the darkness, something suddenly rushed over, like a giant bird, accompanied by a gust of wind, stretching out its root-like, sharp hands, grabbing her shoulders, and shoving her forward violently, slamming her into the mud. She screamed in terror, struggling in the mud for a long time before finally getting up, her whole body trembling as if she had lost her soul.

Just then, a high-pitched laugh, like a chick whimpering, rang out from above. An aged voice said, "Go forward! Your death is over!"

She couldn't see anyone, but her voice sounded like an old witch; she had no idea where she was.

She cried out, "Who are you? Why are you trying to hurt me? Why?"

As soon as she finished speaking, a hand grabbed her face and pushed her to the ground again; she was covered in mud, her hair and face were stuck together, and even her mouth was full of salty and fishy smell.

As she struggled to her feet, she heard the old witch's maniacal laughter again.

The hoarse voice said, "Move forward, you are already dead!"

She calmed herself down and walked straight toward the direction from which the witch had made her voice; sensing something approaching in the darkness, she frantically waved her arms, deterring the witch from getting closer. Soon the water became shallower, and her feet touched the steps below. She climbed the steps and reached level ground.

When she regained her footing, the light suddenly intensified. Looking behind her, all she saw was a vast expanse of white; the water and silt were gone, replaced by snow-covered mountains, a world of pure white stretching out before her. She wondered if she had just crawled through the middle of a mountain, or emerged from underground.

Suddenly, the old witch's vicious voice rang out: "Go back! You shouldn't have come up here! You're already dead! Go back!"

Above was a bare forest, and she saw the witch sitting on a branch. The witch reached out, grabbed a handful of snow, blew on it, and threw it. Instantly, a cat appeared on the ground. The cat bared its teeth and claws, shrieking as it pounced on her, forcing her back step by step. As she retreated, she sidestepped and broke off a nearby branch to fend off the cat's attacks. The cat howled and yelped, scratching her leg until it bled as it pressed forward.

The witch jumped and shouted from the tree, "Go! Charge up and bite her to death! Drive her back!"

The cat's face became even more ferocious. It first shrank its neck, staring fiercely at her, then let out a loud hiss and leaped towards her. Wu Bingbing, startled, dodged to the side. The cat whooshed past her head and landed in the snow pit behind her, letting out a long, mournful cry. The cat plunged into the water, and it was only after a long while that the sound of it hitting the water was heard, indistinct and distant, like a small stone thrown into a deep well.

The old witch screamed wildly, then leaped down from the tree, transforming into a yellow dog upon landing. She bared her teeth and pounced, knocking Wu Bingbing to the ground, where she rolled more than ten steps.

As Wu Bingbing got up, she touched the steps beneath her. Strangely, she couldn't see the steps; all she saw was flat, empty snow, stretching as far as the eye could see. Yet, she could clearly feel the steps extending below, and below those steps, cold water. She knew that beneath that deceptive snowfield lay a dark abyss, the abyss of the dark world she had just escaped from.

She couldn't go back; that would be certain death. So, when the dog lunged at her, she jumped up and met it head-on, pinning it to the ground and wrestling with it. The dog scratched and bit her wildly, but she endured the excruciating pain, using all her strength to hold it down, pinning its head to the snow, and furiously pounding on it. The dog lunged at her, nearly knocking her over several times; one of her legs even slipped down the steps, and she felt the wet snow soaking into her skin.

She freed one hand to pull the branch that the dog had pinned beneath her, and plunged the sharp end into the dog's heart. The dog let out a pitiful howl like an old woman, its enormous belly suddenly collapsed, and its massive body instantly transformed into a withered, dark-skinned witch. The witch was dead!

She staggered up and leaned against a withered tree, panting. She felt utterly exhausted; her legs felt like lead, and she didn't want to go anywhere. So she lay down on the snow. Then she fell asleep and had a dream in which she flew away and quickly flew home…

As dawn broke, Wu Bingbing opened her eyes from her dream, feeling utterly lost. Where was she? Faded curtains, a cramped room, a yellowish ceiling… Where was she? Looking closer, the old wooden door frame, the simple bed, the posters on it, and the teddy bear on the bedside table—all seemed familiar. She sat up and found a woman lying beside her, jumping in fright—the short, plump body and full, round face were so familiar. The woman was deathly pale, her eyes wide open, a box cutter stuck in her chest, dark red blood staining her upper body…

Wu Bingbing screamed and ran to the corner. She recognized that it was Xu Miaomiao's mother!

"Ah, she's dead?" Wu Bingbing cried out, staring at the blood on her hands. "How did I get here? Did I kill her? —No! It wasn't me! Why is this happening? —"

She saw the door to the balcony was closed; she knew Xu Miaomiao lived there. She stood against the wall, her hair disheveled, her lips trembling. She glanced at the woman on the bed, and tears streamed down her face. She clearly remembered sleeping at home; how did she end up here? And that familiar paper cutter, which had always been in the pen holder on her desk…

The scene before her made her realize that she had become a murderer!

Next, she felt she had to leave as soon as possible; hurriedly tidying her hair and clothes, she put on her shoes; just as she was about to open the door and run out, there was a loud knocking at the door. She stopped abruptly. It was Xu Miaomiao's brother, his voice hoarse and gruff: "Mom! Open the door! What's wrong? Speak up!"

The door pounded loudly. She hugged her shoulders, trembling with fear. She went to the window, flung open both panes, and peered down. There was nothing below the fourth floor; jumping would mean certain death or serious injury. Just as she was trapped, with no way out, a blinding white light rushed in through the window, engulfing her like a whirlwind and carrying her away. She closed her eyes in terror.

When she opened her eyes, she was being safely placed on the ground. This was Jiang Lan's house in the western suburbs of the city. After figuring it out, she tried to run outside, but the door was locked. She pulled hard, "Let me go! —"

The room was dimly lit. She saw Jiang Lan standing in front of the bed in another room, her back to her; the dog was squatting in front of her, looking up at her.

Jiang Lan said coldly, "Stop yelling. You killed someone. If I hadn't saved you, you would have been arrested by now. A life for a life, understand?"

Wu Bingbing cried out, "I didn't kill anyone! I didn't kill anyone! It wasn't me!"

"Not you? If it wasn't you, why were you in someone else's house? Sleeping in someone else's bed? And that person died next to you? Look at the blood on your clothes and hands, can you say it wasn't you?"

"I didn't kill her! Why would I kill her!" Wu Bingbing covered her face with her hands and cried bitterly. "I know it was you! You drove me! It was all your doing! It's all your fault!"

Jiang Lan laughed loudly: "But what others saw was you, you killed that woman with your own hands."

Wu Bingbing said, "You're really despicable. Whether you want to kill, seek revenge, die, or live, it's up to you, nobody's interfering. But why are you bothering me? Why are you trying to frame me with all these tricks?"

Jiang Lan was angry. She said, "I told you, you can't get rid of me because my heart is inside you. The only way to get rid of me is when you die!" She paced back and forth in the room as she spoke. "Am I despicable? You're the despicable one! You possess someone else's heart, yet you don't listen to its commands. I told you to kill that little girl, but you hesitated. Not only did you disobey my orders, you even ruined my plans!" She suddenly lunged at Wu Bingbing, who hugged her shoulders and backed away. "You told that girl's mother that her daughter was in trouble. Last night, if it weren't for the talisman on the girl's door and the willow branch soaked in pig's blood hanging on the wall, I would have pushed you into her room. That girl's matter would have been settled long ago, and this part of the plan would have been completed. But—because of you, they became wary of me and stopped me. You deserve to die!" She shoved Wu Bingbing to the ground and continued pacing back and forth in the room. "Later, I put you on that woman's bed, crawled into your dreams, and became a witch to torment you... If I had, I would have killed that witch a hundred times over, but you endured it all, running away, crying and screaming, until dawn before you fought back. What a pathetic wretch!"

Wu Bingbing said, "You're basically saying you did all of this, aren't you? You manipulated me into doing it. Then let me go! Let me out!"

Jiang Lan said, "You're so naive. You still don't understand that you killed him with your own hands! The blood on your hands hasn't even been washed off! —Of course, you killed him to help me, to participate in my revenge. —It was your heart that drove you step by step closer to me. As long as you listen to me, follow my lead, and work together, you have nothing to fear. Now, promise me that from now on you will obey my commands and never disobey my will again!"

"No, I won't listen. You keep killing people, why are you dragging me into it?"

"Hmph, you chose me, not me! From the day you had my heart transplanted into you, you were no longer yourself; you threw away your rotten heart, and half of your seven souls and six spirits were thrown away too; you kidnapped half of someone else's soul, but it refused to remain dormant in your body; thus, you became a contradiction, sometimes this controlled you, sometimes that controlled you, sometimes a person split in two, sometimes a soulless body. So, you can't say that I dragged you in, that I turned you into a murderer. Because most people have had the desire to kill, but for various reasons, they just didn't carry it out. If you didn't kill so actively, that can be understood as subconscious, that I aroused your deep-seated desire in your dream. But after all, it was you who killed the person—like when you went to that old lady's house—what was her name? Yes, the Aunt Wei Pan you kept calling her. You walked in so easily, you strangled her in her sleep. I just secretly followed in, enjoying your performance..."

Wu Bingbing's mouth gaped wider and wider: "No! It couldn't be... I killed Aunt Wei Pan?"

Jiang Lan said loudly, "Yes. You didn't just kill her, you killed other people too. You just don't remember. Although you didn't kill as many people as I did, you killed just as many as I did; you are my partner, my accomplice; we are one, don't try to separate us."

"No! —" Wu Bingbing cried, "Please, let me go! Let me go!"

“The body cannot exist without the soul,” Jiang Lan said. “You cannot leave me. You should form an alliance with me… I will give you freedom, I will give you wonder, I will give you magic. Then, you can do whatever you want. Kill those who have harmed you! Kill those who have oppressed you! Kill those who have insulted you, those who have fooled you! Even those accomplices, those you don’t like, you can easily kill them. You can kill when you hate, you can kill when you are happy; you can kill what you hate, you can kill what you like; no one will be able to find you, no one can control you…”

Jiang Lan spoke with exaggerated gestures, her excitement bordering on madness. Wu Bingbing grew increasingly frightened as she listened.

She asked timidly, "You're seeking revenge, killing your enemies. Why did you kill so many patients? Just to ruin Dr. Meng's reputation? But those patients who underwent surgery had nothing to do with you! They were innocent!"

"Because they are plunderers, if others die, I won't let them live either!"

"And what about Teacher Li Qin? Did you kill her too? She had nothing to do with any of the events or anyone. Why did you kill Teacher Li Qin?"

"Which Li Qin? ...Oh, it's that art teacher. She brought her students to see my paintings, criticizing them. Her accent reminded me of the village chief's daughter from my childhood; her arrogant demeanor disgusts me. That's why I said I'd kill someone when I'm unhappy, as long as you offend me—"

By then, the light in the room was getting brighter. Jiang Lan suddenly stopped talking, walked to the window, glanced out, and said, "It's dawn, people are all up, I can't take you back. Take your time. I need to get back before the museum opens. Remember my advice, don't cause me any more trouble."

With that, the door opened. Wu Bingbing quickly ran out, and Jiang Lan followed her out of the house. But the dog darted out from behind and blocked Wu Bingbing's path at the doorway. Jiang Lan said, "I'm going to feed the dog before I leave, and I also want to show you something." As she spoke, she pulled a piece of meat from under a pile of picture frames and threw it in front of the dog.

Wu Bingbing looked closely and was immediately horrified. It was half a child's corpse, the stomach ripped out, the lower limbs eaten by the dog, the upper body intact, and even some untorn clothes. She recognized him; she had seen him a few days ago when she came—the silly little boy from the carpenter's house next door who climbed trees.

As the dog pounced on the food, Wu Bingbing cried out, "Why? —"

Jiang Lan said somberly, "That female colleague's betrayal taught me that I can't let people see too much!"

Chapter Twelve

He gradually fell into the trap set by Jiang Lan, unable and powerless to extricate himself. Helplessly yet willingly, he surrendered to her embrace, becoming her tool for bloodthirsty killings. Jiang Lan told him to remember: "Your body must forever obey the command of my heart."

The evening paper published the events of the previous night. The gist of it was: a middle-aged woman committed suicide in a residential area last night. The report also included background information, stating that the woman's husband had passed away 10 years prior, leaving her to raise a son and a daughter alone. She was already struggling financially, and two days earlier she had been laid off, which was presumably the reason for her suicide.

It was the newspaper her father brought home. After reading it, Wu Bingbing stuffed it under the sofa—although she had only skimmed it once, every word was etched into her mind. She didn't want to read it again, as if she were afraid someone would see it. For three days in a row, she didn't go out, locking herself in her room, her heart torn by self-blame and regret. She couldn't tell anyone what had happened.

That morning, Wu Bingbing's phone rang—no one had called her in a long time, and the sound startled her. A hoarse voice, as if straining, said they wanted to see her.

Wu Bingbing asked, "Who are you? Why?"

The person didn't answer, but coughed twice on the phone.

"Say something!" Wu Bingbing asked anxiously.

"You'll know when we meet," the man said. "At the Dongfeng Bridge."

Then came the busy tone of the phone being disconnected. Wu Bingbing felt a little flustered; she had a bad feeling, but she calmed herself down and mustered her courage to go.

Reaching the Dongfeng Bridge, she stood there looking around. Passersby were everywhere, but no one approached her. Unexpectedly, a thin man in black was crouching under a nearby telephone pole, watching her like a hawk. When she finally saw him, she was stunned: it was Xu Miaomiao's brother.

He stood up and swaggered over here. As his head swayed from side to side, his buttocks wiggled like a fish tail, behaving like a complete hooligan.

When Wu Bingbing met his gaze, he was initially a little timid, but he immediately bit his cheek and became defiant: "My name is Xu Xiaoquan, and I'm here to tell you that the old lady has already melted away."

Wu Bingbing thought he was here to cause trouble. "What? What melted?"

"You still don't understand even after it's been burned or buried."

"Oh, how unfortunate—"

"You seem to know my mother died?"

No, I don't know.

"You don't know? Aren't you surprised?"

"Oh, I know, it was in the newspaper..."

"The newspaper didn't publish the name. How do you know who it is?"

"Yes—I think, now that you mention it, I guess it's her..."