Ju Nian broke down in tears; she had never admitted to being so cowardly. But if everything could start over, would things be the same as they are today?
Why did she never say anything until things got to this point? Last night, they each had a different nightmare, and when they woke up, it was too late.
"Xie Junian, Junian..." It was a hesitant and confused voice, Han Shu!
Ju Nian was startled; he had actually managed to find this place.
She couldn't care less about anything else and urged Wu Yu, "Go quickly, leave now..."
"Ju Nian, don't be so foolish again..."
Han Shu had already run to Ju Nian's side. Seeing her tear-streaked face, he grabbed her arm. "What happened to you? Did he bully you?" He frantically wiped away Ju Nian's tears while glaring at Wu Yu.
"What are you doing, Ju Nian? What's he doing here?"
Actually, Han Shu was unaware of Wu Yu's actions at this time. When he arrived, the small shop was surrounded by ambulances, police cars, and onlookers, but compared to finding Ju Nian, those were simply other people's business. However, on the way, Chen Jiejie's family called him, saying their daughter had run away from home again and asking if Han Shu knew her whereabouts.
Han Shu was one of the few people who saw through Chen Jiejie's relationship with Wu Yu. He knew that her disappearance must be related to Wu Yu. He couldn't care less about what Chen Jiejie did, but Wu Yu's return to provoke Ju Nian made him hate and resent her immensely.
Wu Yu suspected that Han Shu knew about Lin Henggui's matter, and he also knew that he had to leave soon. However, when he saw Han Shu grabbing Ju Nian's hand with murderous intent, he couldn't help but worry that Ju Nian had been taken advantage of in front of him. He hesitated and couldn't make up his mind to leave.
But at this moment, Han Shu noticed the large bloodstains on Wu Yu's body. As the son of a prosecutor, and due to his profession as Dean Han, he had known many criminal investigation experts since childhood and had read numerous related books, giving him a certain sensitivity in this area. The sheer size of the bloodstains couldn't be explained by a simple cut finger or nosebleed. He quickly recalled the police cars down the mountain and the rumors circulating about the murder along the way.
"You...it's you..."
Ju Nian saw through the scheme, grabbed Han Shu, and shouted at Wu Yu with all his might, "Get out!"
Han Shu struggled, "Ju Nian, he... the blood on his body... you know someone was killed in the small shop... we can't let him go..."
Han Shu, always agile, broke free from Ju Nian's grasp and quickly caught up with Wu Yu. The two boys, about the same age, began to wrestle. Wu Yu was injured and physically weaker than Han Shu, and gradually fell into a disadvantageous position. However, he adopted a desperate stance, and Han Shu couldn't do anything about it for the time being. Gradually, the two fought their way to the pomegranate tree. Ju Nian saw large beads of sweat pouring down Wu Yu's pale face like rain, and a bad feeling immediately welled up inside her.
She tried to separate the two who were locked in combat.
"Let him go, Han Shu, let him go."
Han Shu's eyes reddened. How could this utterly useless person have earned her favor and protection? They had been so intimate last night, yet at daybreak she had left in a hurry, without even a word. Was it all for this? In his anger, he forgot his original intentions. Perhaps his dislike for Wu Yu had nothing to do with justice from the very beginning.
It was impossible to tell whose hand had swung at him. The struggle struck Ju Nian's shoulder, and he groaned and swayed backward. Han Shu glanced back, and Ju Nian held him back tightly.
"Don't pull me."
"Wu Yu, let's go!"
"No, he can't leave."
"Ju Nian, if I can't leave, please tell her for me..."
"No, no." Ju Nian shook her head desperately.
Wu Yu managed to stand up, but before he could take a step, his stiff body, out of control, caused him to fall headfirst, his foot slipping, and he instantly tumbled down the edge of the steep steps.
All of this happened so suddenly that even Han Shu didn't have time to react. He watched helplessly as Wu Yu tumbled down the steps like a lifeless puppet doll, and heard Ju Nian's sudden scream.
"ah--"
As the scream subsided, Wu Yu's body finally slowed its momentum at a wider step, hanging precariously from the edge. The surroundings seemed to quiet down, so quiet that even the birdsong among the pines sounded melodious and clear.
Ju Nian didn't move; every inch of her body was extremely tense.
Han Shu panicked; he had never imagined things would turn out this way. After tightly gripping Ju Nian's hand, he rushed to Wu Yu's side at the bottom of the twenty-odd steps.
Wu Yu's eyes were closed, his expression serene, yet black blood silently seeped from under his head, dripping down the edge of the steps with a "drip".
In a panic, Han Shu stretched out his finger and pressed it on Wu Yu's carotid artery. After a few seconds, he hurriedly withdrew his hand as if he had been burned.
“Ju Nian, he seems to be…” His voice trembled noticeably, as if he couldn’t believe what he was seeing. He waited helplessly for Ju Nian to confirm his suspicions.
Ju Nian had somehow walked up behind Han Shu, and the brightest morning sunlight dried the last trace of tears on her face.
She stood, Han Shu half-squatted, and Wu Yu lay stiffly on the ground. Han Shu thought she would rush forward to check on him, but she didn't. There was even someone between her and Wu Yu. Far away, she said something to herself, but unfortunately, he couldn't understand her.
Are you free now?
No one answered.
She slowly opened her right hand. The physiognomy book says the left hand represents destiny, the right hand represents change. Her left hand bore the inscription "childhood sweethearts, sharing life and death," while her right hand had a deep, long lifeline and a Venus mound covered in a web of intrigue.
It was an unexpected separation, death, and a long period of living alone.
Chapter Forty-One: All Turns to Ashes
The person was lifeless, but the blood continued to flow as if it would never stop.
Ju Nian stood still, while Han Shu beside her opened and closed his lips, saying something, but it didn't matter.
It seemed she asked, "Don't you want to look at him?"
Ju Nian shook his head.
No matter whether she looked ahead or back, all that remained was a splash of crimson; the rest was gray.
The ambulance arrived, the police arrived, everyone who was supposed to come arrived... People surrounded Wu Yu, and after a while, his body was lifted onto a stretcher. When the white sheet covered his face, the red color disappeared completely. Ju Nian's world was plunged into darkness.
Both she and Han Shu were taken to the local police station. The questioning started with Han Shu, who was led into another room. A policewoman noticed that Ju Nian seemed distracted and poured her a glass of water. Ju Nian drank it all and realized that she was thirstier than she had ever imagined.
Not long after, a graceful middle-aged woman hurried over. She seemed not to recognize Ju Nian, but Ju Nian recognized her; she was Prosecutor Cai. Back when they lived in the municipal procuratorate's family compound, Prosecutor Cai was the ideal woman for all young girls, not only because she was a renowned female elite within the G city's political and legal system, but also because of her unforgettable beauty and pride in her youth. In Ju Nian's memory, Prosecutor Cai was a full-figured, tall woman; now she had gained some weight, but her features remained.
Prosecutor Cai and the Han family have always had a close relationship. Presumably, Han Shu had gotten into trouble and dared not easily disturb the old man, so he had no choice but to ask her for help.
Sure enough, when Prosecutor Cai entered the large room where Ju Nian was, she looked around but couldn't find the person she was looking for. She went outside and made a phone call. She seemed to be very familiar with many of the officers in the police station, as most of the officers who came and went greeted her. A short while later, a man who looked like a leader led her into the room where Han Shu was. She quickly and smoothly led Han Shu out, politely and warmly shaking hands and exchanging pleasantries with the police station leader.
Ju Nian remained silently seated, watching Han Shu patiently wait for Prosecutor Cai to finish catching up. He hurriedly pulled her to a corner, whispered a few words anxiously, and pointed in Ju Nian's direction. Prosecutor Cai glanced in his direction, then shook her head. Han Shu's voice rose, "I don't care, I'm going with her."
"My dear, at least wait until the procedures here are finished and all the questions that need to be asked are asked," Prosecutor Cai comforted him.
"Then I'll wait for her." Han Shu said this to Prosecutor Cai, but his eyes were on Ju Nian.
This is when the female police officer, Yi Ju Nian, entered the small room Han Shu had just left to take a statement. The door to the small room closed after she went in. It was a room of less than 10 square meters, with only a bare rectangular table and two chairs. One of the chairs was occupied by a male police officer in his early forties, thin and wiry, with deep nasolabial folds on his face.
Despite it being daytime, the curtains in the room were tightly closed, the main light was off, and only the glow of a table lamp illuminated the long table. Ju Nian sat down, and the policewoman went out.
Perhaps because Ju Nian kept her head down, the middle-aged policeman comforted her, saying, "Don't be nervous. The person who died at the bottom of the steps might be a suspect in one of our cases, and you and that boy were the only two witnesses present. So there are some things we need to know from you."
Ju Nian didn't speak, but when she heard the word "death," she trembled almost imperceptibly.
Tell me what you saw at the time.
The Year of the Orange is silent.
He was an experienced policeman who had probably seen all sorts of strange people and things. The girl in front of him was just a timid little girl who had just witnessed a tragedy and was completely terrified. It was perfectly normal for her to be at a loss for words.
"Don't be afraid, he's already dead. My surname is Huang, and I'm the officer in charge of this case. You just need to cooperate with me and answer a few questions before you can leave. I've already learned some things from your classmate Han Shu. I just want to know if, before Han Shu arrived, when the deceased tried to harm you, he said anything to you or showed any unusual behavior."
Officer Huang was pleased to see that his kind and gentle attitude had worked, and the girl slowly raised her head.
"He didn't hurt me."
"What?" Officer Huang didn't understand at first.
"He never hurt me; he is my friend."
The girl's voice was thin and weak, but very clear.
"You mean, you knew the deceased?" Officer Huang asked, a hint of surprise on his face.
Ju Nian said, "His name is Wu Yu."
She refused to call the boy who had walked hand in hand with her through the past dead.
Officer Huang quickly jotted down notes in his notebook. "You mean to say that what Han Shu said is not true, that you know the dead... Wu Yu, and that he did not hurt you at the time?"
Ju Nian hesitated for a moment.
Why aren't you answering?
“I didn’t say that what Han Shu said wasn’t true; the truth he saw was different from what I saw.”
"What's different?"
"......"
After Ju Nian had been in the room for a while, Officer Huang finally took a good look at the girl in front of him. Her initial impression was too gentle, so much so that even with his extensive experience in handling cases, he didn't notice the finger-like bloodstains on her white socks at her ankles at first glance.
"Your name is Ju Nian, right? Are you injured?" Officer Huang asked calmly.
Ju Nian shook his head.
"Did you go to the martyrs' cemetery with Han Shu to get some fresh air?"
Ju Nian paused, then shook her head again.
"Then why were you there? Was it a coincidence...? I hope you can answer my question clearly. I'll ask you one more time, why were you there? If, as you say, you were friends with the deceased, did he arrange to meet you at a certain place?"
Ju Nian shook his head halfway, then remembered the other person's warning. Just as he was about to reply, Officer Huang's phone rang.
"Wait a moment, I'm going to take this call." Officer Huang walked out of the small room.
This wait lasted for almost an hour.
When Officer Huang sat down opposite Ju Nian again, his expression was noticeably more serious than before.
"Do you know that Wu Yu killed someone?" he asked bluntly.
Ju Nian's eyelashes trembled slightly a few times.
"Lin Henggui is dead?"
"Do you know Lin Henggui?" Officer Huang's eyes sharpened.
“I lived in that area for a few years, and I know many people in the neighborhood.”
"So you also know where Lin Henggui lives? This morning around 7:20, a nearby hospital received an anonymous call requesting an ambulance. Did you pass by his residence during that time, and what did you see?"
Ju Nian finally looked up and faced the person opposite her. She had a general idea of what the other person meant. "That's right, I made the call."
"How did you find the injured Lin Henggui? According to our inquiries with nearby residents, they passed by his shop on the right at 7 a.m., and the roller shutter door was still closed properly. Of course, the lock on the door had actually been broken, but a person would not have noticed this unless they were close to the door and looking carefully. You don't have a close relationship with Lin Henggui, so why would you go and pull on his door so early in the morning?"
Officer Huang's suspicions were not without merit, and Ju Nian knew that she had no choice but to tell the truth.
“I went to see my friend Wu Yu because I was worried that he would get into a conflict with Lin Henggui.”
"So you know that it was Wu Yu who robbed Lin Henggui?"
"He didn't..." She wanted to say that Wu Yu wasn't a robber; he was just taking back what was rightfully his. However, in the eyes of an outsider, in the eyes of a policeman, he robbed Lin Henggui, even killed him—that was the truth. Just like a prostitute who sells herself for a reason—that's not important; what's important is how she becomes...