El hibisco como pintura

Capítulo 29

"Xiaoyuan."

"Hmm?" Gao Xiaoyuan looked at Xu An.

Xu An frowned slightly: "How did you disappear from Teacher Xia's house?"

Upon hearing this, Gao Xiaoyuan did not answer immediately. Instead, she lowered her head and thought for a few seconds before saying, "I don't know. I was looking under the bed for clues when I was suddenly knocked unconscious."

"So you didn't see clearly who knocked you out?"

Gao Xiaoyuan shook her head.

Xu An felt that things were getting more serious, and he thought to himself, resting his chin on his hand.

“But when I woke up, I found myself sitting in a very dilapidated corridor. The corridor seemed to be several decades old, and the paint on the walls was peeling off. That’s right!” Gao Xiaoyuan suddenly looked at Xu An, quickly took out the key from her pocket, and excitedly said to Xu An, “This key can open that door.”

Xu An looked at Gao Xiaoyuan in surprise.

"When I woke up, I found the key in my hand, and there was a door at the end of the corridor. The door was old, but the key could open it."

"You opened it?"

"Hmm, but it was pitch black inside when I opened it. All I could hear was a lot of noise." Gao Xiaoyuan looked up and thought for a moment, then said, "The sound seemed to be from a lot of people together. It was very lively and chaotic, and there was music too. In short, I couldn't hear anything clearly. It was too noisy."

Xu An listened quietly.

"Later I heard someone shouting for help, no, several people were shouting, but I couldn't hear clearly. At that moment, someone suddenly rushed towards me from the darkness, and then I knew nothing more. When I woke up, I was in the library."

Xu An narrowed his eyes; he suddenly realized that this matter was becoming increasingly strange.

Gao Xiaoyuan hesitated before asking, "Is that male student dead?"

Xu An nodded.

Gao Xiaoyuan lowered her head sadly: "I didn't kill anyone, it's possible I made a mistake..."

“No, he couldn’t have killed him,” Xu An said definitively.

Gao Xiaoyuan looked up at Xu An in surprise: "Why do you say that?"

"Because you couldn't possibly have met him, it must have been arranged by someone on purpose."

Gao Xiaoyuan looked at Xu An with a puzzled expression.

"Do you know who the male student who died was?" Xu An suddenly asked.

Gao Xiaoyuan stared at Xu An, waiting for his answer.

"Gao Qixian".

Evidence from the four murder scenes

The dim streetlights cast a long, slender shadow on the ground, and fallen leaves slid gently as the shadow moved. The night was truly still.

Gao Xiaoyuan quietly nestled against Xu An's back. His back was warm, exuding an indescribable sense of security, instantly comforting Gao Xiaoyuan's wounded heart. She closed her eyes contentedly, savoring this moment of warmth.

Xu An slowly walked forward: "Are you asleep?"

"No," Gao Xiaoyuan said without opening her eyes, "Xu An, where are you taking me?"

"Go to a safe place."

"You won't abandon me, will you..." Gao Xiaoyuan's voice grew softer and softer.

Xu An suddenly stopped. He turned his head to look at Gao Xiaoyuan on his back. She was already asleep, and soft breathing could be heard from her nose.

"I'm sorry..." Xu An said, then strode forward.

Chen Shuai paced back and forth in front of his house, anxiously looking ahead. Then he sighed, squatted down on the ground, and scratched his head: "This is so worrying!"

"It seems you really are an impatient person."

Upon hearing this cold voice, Chen Shuai suddenly raised his head and immediately saw Xu An standing not far away. He rushed over, only to find Gao Xiaoyuan on Xu An's back.

"What did you do to her!" Chen Shuai yelled at Xu An.

Xu An gave Chen Shuai a cold look and said, "She's just asleep."

Upon hearing this, Chen Shuai couldn't help but laugh awkwardly.

Is the room ready?

"I was ready as soon as I got your call." Chen Shuai reached out to hug Gao Xiaoyuan, but Xu An carried Gao Xiaoyuan on his back and walked towards Chen Shuai's house.

Chen Shuai's hand froze in mid-air: "That brat!" He withdrew his hand and caught up with Xu An.

Xu An placed Gao Xiaoyuan on the bed, looked around the room, and said coldly, "Is this your bedroom?"

“Yes, my bedroom bed is the most comfortable. Xiaoyuan must sleep very comfortably.” Chen Shuai’s eyes were glued to Gao Xiaoyuan, and his mouth was agape.

Xu An stared coldly at Chen Shuai, making him feel uneasy: "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Xu An leaned closer to Chen Shuai and said in a warning tone, "The police are looking for Xiao Yuan right now. I brought her here because I had nowhere else to go. I just hope you can keep an eye on her and make sure nothing happens to her, but don't do anything to hurt her either, or I won't let you off the hook!" After saying this, Xu An walked out of the bedroom.

"Hey, what are you talking about? How could I hurt Xiaoyuan? Hey, where are you going? Hey—"

Xu An had already left, so Chen Shuai could only sigh and scratch his head a few more times: "If you're worried, then don't leave Xiao Yuan with me."

Chen Shuai looked at Gao Xiaoyuan on the bed, a confident expression on his face: "Xiaoyuan, I swear, I will protect you and will never let you get hurt again!"

Xu An had already left, so Chen Shuai could only sigh and scratch his head a few more times: "If you're worried, then don't leave Xiao Yuan with me." Chen Shuai looked at Gao Xiao Yuan on the bed, a confident expression on his face: "Xiao Yuan, I swear, I will protect you and will never let you get hurt again!"

The night grew deeper and deeper, so deep that one could not find its edge.

Xu An looked up at the teaching building, his gaze lingering on the window of the third-floor library.

Gao Qixian died there. He was also a student in Class 0 of the first year of high school, but he never showed up. His death proves that he has been alive all year, but where was he hiding? Why did he never show up? And why did he die as soon as he showed up? Where was Gao Xiaoyuan held when she disappeared? Why was she framed as a murderer? There seem to be a series of questions that I can't figure out.

Xu An wanted to find the answer. Regardless of whether Gao Qixian's death actually occurred here, he could always find some clues.

Xu An quickened his pace and climbed the stairs to the third floor, then walked to the library as fast as he could.

The library entrance was already cordoned off. Xu An looked around and, seeing no one nearby, quickly stepped over the cordon and slipped into the library.

The library was dark, so Xu An didn't dare turn on the lights. He took out the small flashlight he always carried, turned it on, and shone it on the ground.

A white line in the shape of a human was drawn on the ground; that was where Gao Qixian's body had been lying face down.

Xu An carefully searched the surroundings but found no clues; it seemed the police had done a thorough search. He stood up, holding a flashlight, and looked around.

Numerous bookshelves were neatly arranged all around, along with desks for students to read. Xu An shone his flashlight on the walls on both sides and noticed that the paint on the wall closest to the white line was peeling off. He walked over and carefully shone the flashlight on it.

Bloodstains remained on the ground, and there were signs of someone leaning against the wall. It seemed Gao Xiaoyuan had been knocked unconscious and leaned against this spot. Xu An picked up a small piece of wall plaster from the ground and examined it carefully. He noticed that this piece of plaster was greenish in color, while the walls of the entire library were uniformly white. Could it be that this piece of plaster wasn't from here? Then… Xu An suddenly looked up. He suddenly remembered Gao Xiaoyuan saying that the place she had stayed in was very dilapidated, with peeling plaster.

"Ha ha--"

"Come on, raise your glasses—"

"Ha ha……"

Xu An's nerves tightened. The sounds rose and fell, seemingly audible yet indistinct, but undeniably coming from outside the door. Xu An took a plastic bag from his pocket, carefully placed the plaster inside, and then calmly walked out of the library.

There was no one in the corridor, but the laughter from earlier still faintly echoed in the corridor.

Xu An frowned and walked steadily toward the direction from which the sound came.

The second floor, with layers...

Xu An's eyes widened instantly; the sound was coming from the classroom of Class 0, Grade 11. He immediately quickened his pace and rushed to the classroom, pushing the door open with all his might, only to find it locked. In desperation, he kicked the door open with his foot.

The sound stopped.

The classroom of Class 0, Grade 11 was empty, and Xu An stood there blankly.

Five old school buildings exist

When Gao Xiaoyuan woke up, the sun was already high in the sky. Half-opening her eyes, she instinctively reached out to grab something, only to grasp a strong, large hand. She looked up happily and called out, "Xu..." But her smile froze when she met those eyes, then slowly faded like a withered flower. "Chen Shuai..."

Chen Shuai glanced at Gao Xiaoyuan with a cynical expression and asked, "Why are you so disappointed to see me?"

Gao Xiaoyuan looked at Chen Shuai awkwardly: "It's not disappointment, it's unexpected."

Chen Shuai brought his face close to Gao Xiaoyuan's, then looked at her with a teasing expression and said, "It seems you were quite surprised to see me." Chen Shuai raised his left hand: "I was quite surprised too, that you would actually take my hand."

Gao Xiaoyuan blushed, immediately released Chen Shuai's hand, and lowered her head without saying a word.

Chen Shuai could tell that Gao Xiaoyuan was in a bad mood. He suppressed his smile, leaned back in his chair, and said calmly, "Does seeing me make you so upset?"

Gao Xiaoyuan didn't look up; she kept her head down and asked softly, "How did I get here?"

Chen Shuai yawned and stretched: "You were asleep last night. Xu An brought you here."

"Why...why did he send me here?" Gao Xiaoyuan's voice grew softer and softer.

“He probably had nowhere else to put you, so he sent you here. Besides, you’re a murder suspect now, the police are definitely looking for you everywhere, and my place might be the safest.” Chen Shuai said as he stood up, opened the door and walked out: “What do you usually eat for breakfast? Do you prefer Western or Chinese food? Would you like a glass of milk…?” Chen Shuai realized that Gao Xiaoyuan wasn’t listening to him, but was looking down at her, lost in thought. He could only sigh and leave.

Why did you leave me? Didn't you say you wouldn't leave me? Gao Xiaoyuan's eyes welled up with tears. When she looked up, she noticed a brown paper bag on the bedside table. She picked it up casually. She took out a thick stack of documents from the bag and flipped through them, only to find that they were background information on some of the school's teachers. When she got to the last document, Gao Xiaoyuan saw a photo of Principal Chen when he was young.

"What are these? This..." Gao Xiaoyuan suddenly felt her eyes light up, and she immediately jumped out of bed.

In the kitchen, Chen Shuai opened the refrigerator door, took out a bag of milk, looked up at the second floor, a hint of sadness flashing across his face. Just then, the doorbell rang. Chen Shuai put down the milk and rushed into the living room, opening the bedroom door.

It was Xu An. He still had dark circles under his eyes, so it seemed he hadn't slept all night again.

Chen Shuai took a glass of milk from the kitchen and handed it to Xu An, who drank it without hesitation.

"Where did you go last night? You didn't go to that library where the murder happened, did you?" Chen Shuai sat next to Xu An, looking at a morning newspaper.

Xu An didn't say much, but took out the plastic bag containing the wall plaster from his pocket and threw it on the coffee table.

Chen Shuai looked away from the morning paper and onto the plastic bag. Out of curiosity, he picked up the bag and carefully examined its contents.

"What is this? It looks like plaster or something."

Xu An remained silent, then took out another piece of paper from another pocket and threw it on the coffee table.

Chen Shuai glanced at Xu An and then picked up the paper, only to find that it was a lab report. He looked at it carefully, then suddenly looked up and stared at Xu An with wide eyes: "Could it be that this wall plaster is decades old?"

Xu An nodded, looking very tired: "I heard from Xiao Yuan that she was seen in a very old corridor during her disappearance, a corridor with a lot of peeling paint..."

“Xiaoyuan appeared in the library, so this plaster on the wall may have been accidentally left by the murderer when moving Xiaoyuan,” Chen Shuai said.