Conseillère militaire et princesse

Chapitre 25

"Ding Yan, your phone is ringing!" Da Mi pushed open the door, looked at the phone screen, and said, "It's Xi Li calling, do you want to answer it?"

"Rice!" Ding Yan screamed, but it was too late.

Xili weakly opened his eyes: "Xili?...From there?..."

Dami held her constantly vibrating phone. "No... that..."

“Sigh… Xi Li…” Ding Yan sighed. Since he had to tell Xi Li the truth sooner or later… “Xi Li, in fact, recently someone has been impersonating you, claiming to be Xi Li, and has appeared in the media.”

"Impersonating? Impersonating me?" Xi Li laughed. "So, there are people who impersonate me... So, I still have a reason to be impersonated. It seems I should live on. The fact that someone is impersonating me means I'm still needed, and I still have a reason to exist..."

"I'm so glad you think that way!" Ding Yan held his hand. "You must get better as soon as possible."

“Yes! Xili, you must recover as soon as possible and expose the fake Xili!” Da Mi said, “Otherwise, those 17 children died too unjustly!”

"17 children?" Xili looked at Da Mi with a puzzled expression.

"Dami—" Ding Yan rushed over and pushed Da Mi outside the door, "What's wrong with you today?!"

10.

What would you do if you were in that situation?

Lying in bed, doing nothing, you bore the burden of 17 young lives. No, not only that, these 17 lives were exploited and deceived because of you. You and those 17 living children became someone's stepping stones, the weight on someone's path to fame and fortune.

If it were you, you would definitely fight desperately, right?

Xili was working desperately. Aunt Mei took him to a secret villa in the suburbs, hired the best doctors and nurses, and was working tirelessly to help him recover to the Xili he was three years ago.

Although Lao You felt that Ding Yan could use his position as the fake Xi Li's special assistant to conduct an in-depth investigation and uncover his flaws, Ding Yan still refused the fake Xi Li's enthusiastic invitation and hired a lawyer to negotiate with him on the issue of property transfer, thus delaying the process.

During this period, thanks to Yang Xin's efforts, there was new progress in the case of the mass suicide. He found a phone number, and the person and each of the suicide victims had brief phone records the day before the mass suicide.

"Do you know who this person is?" With the case making progress, Yang Xin felt a great sense of accomplishment, especially in front of Ding Yan, and a smug look appeared on his face. "It's Ying Jie! That monk!"

“Ying Jie isn’t… isn’t…” Ding Yan covered his mouth, “wasn’t it said that he died in a mental hospital due to a brain hemorrhage?”

"Yes, but I remember that Ying Jie mentioned briefly that he lost his phone during the fight!"

"So, that 18th person may very well have been to the Extraordinary Apartment! Is that what you mean?"

Yang Xin nodded.

"Xiao Jia!" Ding Yan asked into the walkie-talkie, "Have the apartment surveillance footage from the past three months been deleted?"

"Delete it right now! Delete it right now!" Xiao Jia shouted from downstairs to Xiao Yi, "You idiot, I told you the recordings need to be cleaned up every two months!"

"Don't delete it yet! Bring it up!" Ding Yan hung up the phone and said to Yang Xin, "The video only shows the public areas. Let's check if there are any suspicious people first."

11.

A lie is a lie the first time it's told, and it may still be a lie the second time it's told, but by the third, fourth... hundredth time, even the liar himself may not think it's a lie anymore.

That's true.

Fake Xili wasn't interested in property. For him, being able to stand on the stage like Xili, receive the admiration of the masses, sing the songs he liked, and dance the dances he liked was already enough.

The one who is obsessed with wealth is Xi Li's personal assistant, Shao Wen.

"That girl Ding Yan clearly doesn't want to return the property; she's just stalling for time!" Shao Wen sat on the sofa and lit a cigarette.

"It doesn't matter!" Fake Xili said, sipping his juice. "I'll release more albums and hold more concerts in the future, and then I'll give you a raise!"

"A raise?!" Shao Wen sneered. "How much can you give me? Ten times? Hmph! Give me a raise? You really think you're Xi Li?"

"Of course I am Xili!" the fake Xili said solemnly. "Who else am I?!"

"You're getting a little too into your acting! Don't forget, you're just a puppet! If I weren't by your side, how could everyone believe your words so easily?"

"What do you mean by believe or not? I am Xili!" The fake Xili stood up and said angrily, "If you keep talking nonsense, believe me, I'll fire you!"

"Haha!" Shao Wen exhaled a puff of smoke and sneered, "You're not Xi Li. The real Xi Li died three years ago!"

"Shut up!" The fake Xili's lips trembled. "I'm not dead at all! You say I'm not Xili, how can you prove it? What evidence do you have?!"

How can you prove it?

Shaowen was stunned. Yes, even if he knew the person in front of him was fake, how could he prove it?

This person has the same face as Xili, has trained to have the same physique as Xili, and most importantly, he has the same talent and singing voice as Xili, and even the same personality!

Even his true background is a blank.

He is Xili, without a doubt.

"I am Xili! Xili is me!" The fake Xili squatted on the ground, holding his head and violently ruffling his hair. "That's right! I am Xili."

He stood up and said coldly to Shaowen, "Sister Shao, don't say things like that anymore, don't say things like I'm not Xili. Because, in fact, fundamentally, I am Xili, I have always been Xili."

Shaowen stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray and gave the fake Xili a cold look. "Fine, Xili. I don't think you can compromise on the issue of property. You are Xili, those properties originally belonged to you, isn't it only right that you take them back?"

"Aren't the lawyers for both sides already handling this?"

"This is such a waste of time. If the gentle approach doesn't work, we'll have to use the force!"

12.

"Stop!" Ding Yan and Yang Xin, their eyes red, crowded in front of the big screen, while Old You half-deadly operated the computer.

"Stop! Here! Here!" Ding Yan pointed at a man on the screen. "Zoom in! Zoom in! Zoom in on his arm!"

The old postman zoomed in on the man's arm and asked in confusion, "What's wrong with this man's arm?"

"Tattoos!"

"What's wrong with the tattoo?" Yang Xin noticed an irregular circular tattoo on the man's arm, which looked a lot like a pear.

“That pear-shaped tattoo is a symbol of extreme Xili fans!” Ding Yan said. “Back when Xili was at its most popular, many Xili fans said they would live for Xili for the rest of their lives, so they would get a pear-shaped tattoo on their arm, claiming it was a mark of Xili fans and that they were now Xili people!”

“These fans are really unreasonable,” Yang Xin said. “Xi Li is just a singer, isn’t he? In ancient times, he would be called an actor! He was at the very bottom of society!”

"What do you know?!" Ding Yan rolled her eyes at Yang Xin. "Do you have someone you like? Someone you admire? Someone who is most important to you? Someone you would give your life for? If not, then don't talk nonsense!"

"I do!" Yang Xin said, his face turning red. "I have someone I want to protect, someone I like..."

"Tch! Who is it?"

"It's...it's...hey? What's Wang Xiaofeng doing here?" Yang Xin suddenly pointed at the screen. Behind the tattooed man, there was a figure that was vaguely visible. Although it was blurry, it was still clear that it was Wang Xiaofeng.

"Maybe he's here to see me?" Wang Xiaofeng had indeed come to see Ding Yan recently, but she had forgotten when it was. "Never mind him for now, let's go back to the day of the fight on the video and see if this person is there!"

The video only captured public areas such as corridors, elevators, and lobbies. On the day the believers beat Yingjie, the tattooed man—or rather, the young man—aggressively pushed aside Xiao Bing, who was blocking his way in the lobby, and got into the elevator.

“Old Postman, you understand lip reading, see what he’s saying in the elevator,” Ding Yan ordered.

“He said,” the old mailman frowned, staring at the screen, “he kept repeating two words, damn it.”

Damn it!

The tattooed young man went straight to the 5th floor. At that time, Yingjie had already been dragged to the door by the believers. Although Da Mi, Xiao Jia, and Xiao Yi kept protecting him, they were obviously outnumbered.

As soon as the young man got off the elevator and saw Ying Jie, his eyes blazed with fury, and he muttered something under his breath.

“He said it must have been you who killed my brother. Someone saw you talking to him that day.” Old You glanced at Ding Yan and Yang Xin and said, “That person might be the brother of the child who was killed by Ying Jie.”

"Yang Xin, the police station should have that child's file, right? Can you get it?"

“Okay,” Yang Xin said. “Now it will be easy to find this person.”

"What if he didn't take the phone?"

"Yes, look!" The old postman pointed at the camera and saw that when the young man came out of the robbery room again, he was holding a mobile phone in his hand. He looked around and, finding that no one was paying attention, secretly put it into his pocket.

13.

"Xi Li, your comeback this time is unprecedented. Few stars can make a comeback as spectacular as you. Of course, everyone knows that this is because of the mass suicide case. Some people have even suspected that you were the mastermind behind the mass suicide. What is your opinion on this matter?"

"It's all my fault." Xi Li said to the camera, tears streaming down her face. "I don't deserve to be a so-called idol. I didn't guide my fans properly. Actually, I'm not an idol at all. I'm just a singer, an ordinary artist. I feel really happy to be loved by so many people... Rather than becoming an idol, I would rather be friends with everyone."

"Xi Li, I heard that you used money to resolve the anger of the parents of the group suicide victims. Is that true? If so, how much did you spend?" another reporter asked.

"You think money can solve everything?" Xi Li angrily raised her head, glared at the reporter, and retorted, "How much do you think a human life is worth...?"

"How much do you think your life is worth?" Wang Xiaofeng turned off the TV and looked at the dirty child in the room.

The child leaned against the wall, his eyes filled with fear: "I...I...I don't know...but!" He looked up, his eyes wet with tears, "But you promised me you would help Mom get medical treatment! You promised!"

"Don't worry..." Wang Xiaofeng pinched his childish face, "I'm a doctor, I guarantee I can cure your mother's illness. But, think it through, okay? If your mother gets better and finds you're gone, won't she be sad? Won't she feel like she'd rather be dead?"

The child lowered his head, tears dripping onto his small, worn plastic slippers. "Mom will be sad, but it will pass quickly. Because she has four children. Losing one child is just a lighter burden for her... If Mom dies, my younger siblings will starve to death anyway... It's better... It's better..." The child sobbed softly.

"Don't worry, you'll be very valuable. The money you get from selling yourself will be enough to feed and clothe your family."

"Really?!" The child wiped away his tears and actually smiled. Perhaps, such a young child doesn't even understand what it's like to be alive. If he doesn't understand the taste of life, then he certainly doesn't know what death is.

"Really." Wang Xiaofeng smiled and took out a syringe. "Ready?"

"Yes!" the child smiled.

"It will hurt a lot!"

"Yes!" the child nodded.

"It's started?"

"Mmm!" The child closed his eyes.

Wang Xiaofeng's needle barrel pierced the child's wrist with steady precision.

His eyes gleamed with excitement as he watched the blood coagulant slowly being injected into the child's body.

Blood clotting agents are very simple in composition; they are just plasma proteins that kill silently and were originally used to make animal specimens. Of course, humans are animals too.

After the blood clotting agent is injected, it is transported to all cells via the blood vessels, causing the muscles to harden. The more that is injected, the higher the blood concentration and the slower the blood flow. The corpse is then subjected to a plasty process, removing fiber, water, and fat, thus permanently preserving the body.

Life, in this very moment, reaches eternity.

"Oh..." Wang Xiaofeng groaned softly, "This must be the happiness of being alive? It's so good to be alive..."

Seeing others die is the only way to prove that you are alive and to feel happiness. Wang Xiaofeng thinks that death is simply wonderful.

Before the body stiffened, he carried the child to his basement workshop and continued working. This child would become Wang Xiaofeng's next great work of art.

It was Ding Yan who inspired him.

Ding Yan said that the human body is the most perfect, magical, and outstanding sculpture in the world.

Ding Yan's words always made sense. Wang Xiaofeng decided to become the world's greatest sculptor, using corpses as models to create the most beautiful works.