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For Wen Chengyu, the turning point in his life was the death of his biological father eighteen years ago. If that incident is proven to be a deliberate act by Yuan Zhibang, then Wen Chengyu's mental foundation as an Eumenides will instantly collapse, and he will realize that he is nothing more than a pawn—a pawn used by Yuan Zhibang to achieve the latter's cruel plan.

Moon Sung-woo will be reborn through painful reflection, but this will be accompanied by the complete death of Eumenides.

This is perhaps the ending Luo Fei would most like to accept: he must end Eumenides, but he doesn't need to end that ill-fated child.

It was Zheng Jia's sudden appearance that gave Luo Fei hope of writing such an ending. Through that girl, he saw Wen Chengyu's guilt and confusion; he saw Wen Chengyu standing at another crossroads in his life, unsure of which direction to take; he knew that Wen Chengyu's inner world was searching for his next mentor.

Of course, Luo Fei had to step forward at this moment; he wanted to guide the child who had never been in control of his own destiny toward the light.

He has now found the door to the other person's heart, but he still lacks the final key to open that door.

The secret of the key lies in the hands of this old man who is watering the flowers.

Luo Fei had an urgent desire to understand the secret, but when he actually sat in the courtyard, facing the old man, his heart suddenly calmed down. It was like a groom entering the bridal chamber; when the bride was sitting on the bedside, he often dared not lift the long-awaited red veil.

What kind of face lies beneath the red veil? Luo Fei needs some time to adjust and prepare for the answer that will determine the outcome.

He picked up the teacup in front of him and took a small sip. A refreshing aroma spread between his lips and teeth, just like the chrysanthemum courtyard, bringing him an incomparably pleasant feeling.

Ding Ke seemed even less anxious; he continued to patiently tend to the chrysanthemums in the garden. After watering them, he began fiddling with the flower branches.

Zeng Rihua had been intently watching Ding Ke, and when the latter was admiring a purple double-petaled chrysanthemum, he suddenly remarked, "This plant should be pruned."

"Oh?" Ding Ke turned his head slightly. "You know about flowers too?"

"My father likes growing flowers, so I know a little about it," Zeng Rihua said with a chuckle.

Ding Ke gently lifted the large flower head with his hand: "Well, tell me, why do we need to prune this flower? And how should we prune it?"

Zeng Rihua scratched his scalp and fidgeted, saying shyly, "I was just saying it casually. There's a lot to it about growing flowers; how could I dare to presume to teach you?"

Luo Fei glanced at Mu Jianyun, and the two exchanged a smile. Surprisingly, even someone as outgoing as Zeng Rihua seemed a bit reserved in front of Ding Ke. Mu Jianyun then smiled and encouraged Zeng Rihua, saying, "Just say what you're told. Even if you're wrong, it'll be good for Old Master Ding to correct you."

"Alright, I'll just say whatever comes to mind then." Zeng Rihua stood up and walked to the edge of the garden. He examined the chrysanthemum carefully for a moment, then, seemingly gaining more confidence, straightened up and said, "Look at this chrysanthemum, it's clearly growing crooked. The branches have encroached on the space of other plants. This will affect the growth of the chrysanthemums next to it, as well as its own growth. So, we should prune the outstretched branches."

Although Luo Fei and the others didn't reach the flower plant, they could still see it clearly. While the purple chrysanthemum was blooming beautifully, its stem was indeed growing crookedly. Its flowers had encroached on the branches of another chrysanthemum nearby, bending the latter's branches.

"It would be such a waste to cut them off." Mu Jianyun, feeling sorry for the beautifully blooming flowers, hesitated at Zeng Rihua's suggestion. "Besides, even if we cut them off, they'll just grow back. What will we do then? Will we have to cut them again?"

"These flowers are blooming beautifully, but they're affecting the plants around them, so there's nothing we can do about it." Zeng Rihua helplessly spread his hands towards Mu Jianyun. "If we don't prune them, these two flowers won't grow well in the future. And I noticed that the roots of this plant were crooked when it emerged from the soil, so it will definitely have problems growing later. The only way to completely solve this is to dig it up by the roots."

After saying this, Zeng Rihua looked at Ding Ke beside him with expectant eyes, wondering if his views would be accepted by the latter.

Ding Ke remained noncommittal. He turned to look at Luo Fei and the others sitting in the courtyard and asked, "What do you think?"

Mu Jianyun shrugged and said nothing more—it seemed she thought Zeng Rihua's words made sense.

Luo Fei and Yin Jian nodded in agreement. Although they had never grown flowers before, seeing the two chrysanthemums intertwined and interfering with each other, they felt that they really needed to deal with them.

Seeing that no one spoke, Ding Ke turned his gaze to his apprentice and called out directly, "Huang Jieyuan, you tell us what to say."

"I felt something was off about this flower yesterday—" Huang Jieyuan seemed to have no objection, "It's growing completely crooked and affecting the other flowers, so let's just cut it off."

Ding Ke gave a soft "hmm," then bent down and gently stroked the purple chrysanthemum with his hand, his gaze focused, seemingly lost in thought.

"Every single flower is the result of Old Master Ding's hard work," Luo Fei pondered Ding Ke's thoughts. "Even though they're growing crookedly, it's still heartbreaking to uproot them."

Ding Ke sighed silently, seemingly deeply moved by Luo Fei's words. Then he straightened up, looked at the two intertwined chrysanthemums, pondered for a moment, and suddenly asked, "Why didn't anyone suggest getting rid of the other chrysanthemum?"

"The other chrysanthemum is growing perfectly normally—" Zeng Rihua immediately shook his head and asked, "--Why should we get rid of it? The one that's growing crooked is the real 'black sheep' in the whole garden."

Ding Ke looked up at Luo Fei and the others not far away: "You all think the same way, right?"

Everyone nodded in agreement, showing no disagreement with Zeng Rihua's point of view.

"Everything has a cause and effect. These two chrysanthemums are entangled because the purple one is growing crooked. And although that chrysanthemum is blooming vigorously, its leaning branches clash with the other chrysanthemums, affecting the overall beauty of the garden. So, if pruning is to be done, it should definitely be done to the crooked one." Luo Fei first explained his thoughts, then left some room for interpretation by asking, "However, since Elder Ding has raised this question, he must have some other insights."

"Everything has a cause and effect... That's right. Because this chrysanthemum grew crookedly, it not only disturbed the other chrysanthemum but also clashed with the overall atmosphere of the garden, so it should be removed—this logic seems as self-evident as a matter of course." Ding Ke paused for a moment, then suddenly changed the subject, "But have you ever thought about why this chrysanthemum grew crooked in the first place?"

Everyone was taken aback, seemingly unprepared for such a question. Zeng Rihua scratched his head, "Why did he grow up crooked? I really don't know... Maybe I can ask my grandfather."

Ding Ke smiled and said, "No need for that trouble—I know the reason. If a flower stalk grows in a certain tilted direction after emerging from the soil, there are only two possibilities: First, it's because other chrysanthemums around it are blocking the sunlight, leaving only a small gap in that direction. So, out of its instinct to chase the sunlight, this chrysanthemum can only grow in this tilted shape. The second possibility is that the roots of this chrysanthemum were squeezed by the roots of other chrysanthemums in the soil, so that its stem was already tilted before it emerged from the soil. In this way, after it grows up, it will encroach on the growing space of other chrysanthemums on the ground."

"So that's how it is." Zeng Rihua nodded as if he had just realized something. He first changed the angle to observe the current state of the sunlight, and then buried his head in the chrysanthemum roots to study them carefully, wishing he could dig up the soil immediately to find out what was going on.

After listening to Ding Ke's explanation, Luo Fei lowered his head slightly. He picked up his teacup, brought it to his lips, but then stopped, his eyes fixed on the emerald green tea, his thoughts seemingly frozen. However, he didn't have much time to ponder, because Ding Ke quickly posed his next question: "Captain Luo, now, how should we interpret the concept of 'cause and effect' regarding these chrysanthemums in the garden?"

Luo Fei shook his head helplessly, unsure how to answer the question. Mu Jianyun and the others beside him understood his predicament. Previously, Luo Fei had agreed to remove the crooked chrysanthemum, analyzing it from a cause-and-effect perspective: because the crooked chrysanthemum was interfering with the other chrysanthemums, it should be removed. But now it seemed that the chrysanthemum's crooked growth was due to the interference of the other chrysanthemums. So, to trace the initial culprit, should they remove all the surrounding chrysanthemums blocking the light, or dig up the soil and clean up the tangled roots first?

Seeing that Luo Fei had gotten caught up in his words, Huang Jieyuan couldn't help but try to smooth things over: "No matter what, from the perspective of the overall interests of the garden, we still need to get rid of that crooked chrysanthemum, right? It's the simplest solution. We can't drag many other flowers into this mess just because of one."

"That is indeed the simplest method," Ding Ke nodded, his right hand resting on the delicate purple chrysanthemum again. "But isn't it very unfair to this chrysanthemum? It was forced to grow at an angle because of the other flowers; now it's being criticized for growing crookedly and affecting the overall benefit. Isn't its life destined to be hopeless?"

Everyone fell silent. Even Zeng Rihua realized the hidden meaning in Ding Ke's words—he was clearly no longer just commenting on flowers, but harboring a deeper, more profound meaning.

In the ensuing silence, Ding Ke's hand suddenly tightened, gripping the chrysanthemum's stem and uprooting the entire plant. His action was completely unexpected, giving onlookers no chance to intervene. Everyone was stunned, and Mu Jianyun couldn't help but exclaim, "Old Ding, you...you really pulled it up?"

Ding Ke chuckled, "Isn't this the plan you all agreed on just now?" As he spoke, he gently tossed the chrysanthemum onto the ground. The flower remained vibrant, but after being removed from the soil, it quickly lost its life-giving luster.

Looking at the withered flower, Mu Jianyun's eyes revealed a hint of regret: "That's true... but it's not its fault that it grew crooked—isn't there a better way to handle it?"

"There's no better way," Luo Fei finally spoke again, this time with an even firmer tone, "--because it has grown crooked, and for the sake of the overall good, it must be removed."

Ding Ke stared intently at Luo Fei: "You're right. Removing plants that hinder the collective interest is simply a gardener's code of conduct. But in any case, this choice doesn't follow the theory of 'causal analysis.' If we try to analyze cause and effect, we often won't find the final answer. Captain Luo, you've been a policeman for over ten years, haven't you? You've solved countless cases; you should understand what I'm saying."

Luo Fei felt a chill run down his spine. Guided by Ding Ke's words, his thoughts flew out of the small courtyard and reached into many past times.

The criminals he had relentlessly pursued appeared before him one by one, each with their own twisted and distorted personalities. But as Luo Fei attempted to analyze the causes and effects behind those "personalities," his head throbbed with excruciating pain, as if it were about to burst. Ye Zifei, Li Yanhui, Ling Guangfeng, Qiao Yun… when these people strayed onto the dark path, who paved that road for them?

Luo Fei had tried to think about these questions before, but always ended up giving up. This time was no different.

"Indeed, there's no answer." Luo Fei sighed softly. "Perhaps our actions shouldn't be governed by the idea of 'cause and effect.' We're simply following the rules, rules that make the overall interest better."

"You're running away from this problem..." Ding Ke dusted off his hands, his gaze drifting back into the distance. His eyes drooped slightly, revealing a complex mix of sadness, pain, and guilt. Then he softly added, "But what if you can't run away from it?"

Luo Fei's heart skipped a beat: There was no way to escape? Yes... he must have been thinking of his son.

A moment later, Luo Fei's guess was confirmed. When Ding Ke turned around, his gaze fell on Huang Jieyuan.

"I know you'll blame me—" the old man said in a desolate tone, "—blame me for leaving without saying goodbye back then. But what choice did I have? When you see your son grow into a leaning plant, how can you not look for the reasons that caused his twisted growth? But in the end, the source lies within yourself."

Knowing that Ding Ke was about to reveal the secrets behind the January 12th massacre, everyone pricked up their ears and listened intently. Ding Ke then turned to Mu Jianyun: "Professor Mu, Huang Jieyuan relayed your analysis of the case to me. I admire your insights into psychology; my son is indeed as you described."

Mu Jianyun nodded slightly. Receiving praise from a legendary figure in the police force should have been a delightful thing, but she couldn't bring herself to smile in this situation.

But Ding Ke continued, "My wife left me more than twenty years ago—I don't hate her. Back then, I was busy investigating cases every day and didn't give enough to my family. Any woman would have left me, right? It's just that when Ding Zhen was young, he accidentally witnessed my wife being intimate with her lover, and that image left a deep shadow in his heart. When he grew up, he was afraid to interact with women because just thinking about that image made it impossible for him to act like a real man."

Ding Ke's words were somewhat veiled, but Luo Fei and the others understood: Ding Zhen suffered from psychogenic impotence because he witnessed his mother having an affair when he was young. This should be the root of the "hidden inferiority complex" that Mu Jianyun mentioned.

"But I didn't know any of this at the time," Ding Ke sighed softly. "I was just wondering why my son, who was in his early thirties and so outstanding in every way, hadn't found a girlfriend yet. I wasn't just wondering, I was also very anxious. So I kept urging him to settle down as soon as possible. He finally gave in to my pressure and had no choice but to..."

Mu Jianyun gently interrupted Ding Ke, "Old Ding, please stop. We can probably guess what's going to happen next..."

Luo Fei nodded silently. With Ding Ke's account, coupled with Mu Jianyun's previous psychological description of the perpetrator, the sequence of events surrounding the bloody incident became clear: Faced with pressure from his father, Ding Zhen had no choice but to reluctantly seek out women. Due to a hidden psychological issue, he dared not pursue the woman he truly desired, instead setting his sights on the victim, whose circumstances were quite ordinary, hoping to regain his masculine confidence from her. However, the victim verbally humiliated him, ultimately leading to the tragedy.

Ding Ke knew everyone didn't want him to relive that painful and embarrassing memory, so he silently accepted their well-intentioned words. After a moment, he said with a bitter smile, "Now you should understand: the one who should truly be held responsible for that massacre is myself—that's why I've been living in seclusion for ten years."

Yes. Luo Fei fully understood Ding Ke's dilemma at the time: since he believed that he was the starting point of this "cause and effect", how could he bear to watch his son bear all the sins alone? But the cruel reality made it impossible for him to face it, so he could only choose to retire until that karmic debt was completely over.

Luo Fei's thoughts also wandered from this point. After the old man calmed down a bit, he asked again, "So, your resignation from the police force eighteen years ago wasn't just due to health reasons, was it?"

Ding Ke looked at Luo Fei: "I know what you're thinking—but you're only half right."

Luo Fei said "Oh?", not quite understanding what "half right" meant.

"My resignation eighteen years ago was indeed somewhat related to Yuan Zhibang," Ding Ke said. "However, even without Yuan Zhibang, I wouldn't have stayed in the criminal investigation team for long."

Through their previous conversations, Luo Fei had discerned that Ding Ke was an insightful, profoundly thoughtful, and compassionate old man. Therefore, he guessed that after Yuan Zhibang's downfall, Ding Ke, likewise, couldn't bear to punish him, which was why he resigned. But now it seems there are other, more important hidden circumstances.

"So you're saying you already had the intention to retire?" Luo Fei asked thoughtfully. "Why?"

Ding Ke looked at everyone seriously: "Because at that time I had already realized that the work of a criminal police officer didn't have much meaning."

It was utterly unexpected for such words to come from the mouth of a legendary figure in the police force. Luo Fei and the others exchanged bewildered glances, unable to comprehend it for a moment: how could the work of punishing evil and upholding justice be meaningless?

Ding Ke had anticipated the confusion in everyone's minds, so he quickly began to explain: "Our job is simply to remove those plants that have grown crooked. But why did these plants grow crooked? The duty of a police officer requires us to remove them regardless of whether the crooked plants themselves are at fault. When we strictly perform this duty, we are forced to avoid thinking about the 'cause and effect' root cause, because such thinking often makes us question the legitimacy of our duty."

"Does he agree with Yuan Zhibang's theory?" Mu Jianyun whispered to Luo Fei. Indeed, Ding Ke's words implied a questioning of legal rules, and it was under this kind of thinking that Yuan Zhibang embarked on the path of becoming an Eumenides.

As Mu Jianyun spoke, Ding Ke's eyes narrowed, his gaze shooting sharply towards her. But before Mu Jianyun could finish speaking, Ding Ke shook his head and said, "No, you're wrong."

Mu Jianyun blushed, revealing an embarrassed and surprised expression. She had spoken almost in a whisper; how could Ding Ke, several meters away, have heard her?

Luo Fei, however, had a clear idea: judging from Ding Ke's expression when he looked at Mu Jianyun, this old man should be able to read lips—as a former legend in the police force, his meticulous observation skills were evident.

Yin Jian and the others were unaware of what Mu Jianyun had said, so they were all somewhat bewildered by Ding Ke's rebuttal. Fortunately, Ding Ke then explained in detail, "My viewpoint is not only different from Yuan Zhibang's, but completely opposite." As he spoke, he turned to look at the garden at his feet and asked in a guiding tone, "Think about it, if we followed Yuan Zhibang's approach, how would you handle those tangled chrysanthemums?"

After a moment of contemplation, Mu Jianyun quickly answered, "He'll definitely remove the crooked chrysanthemum. And those blocking the sunlight or whose roots are encroaching on other plants, he'll most likely not let them go either."

Luo Fei muttered in agreement, "Not bad."

Ding Ke nodded: "That's right. Yuan Zhibang sees himself as a judge outside the law. His purpose is to pursue those responsibilities outside the system. Therefore, he will use the most ruthless methods to clean up this garden; all 'bad' plants are within his scope of cleanup."

"And what about you?" Mu Jianyun looked at Ding Ke with sparkling eyes. "What's your opinion?"

Ding Ke sighed softly. He put his hands behind his back, looked up at the sky, and after a long while said, "I don't think any flower plant deserves to be cleaned up—not just the one forced to grow crooked, but all the other flower plants, whether they bother others or not, we lack sufficient reason to punish them. Because every flower has its own 'cause and effect,' we simply cannot trace back to a truly pure 'source of evil.'"

Mu Jianyun gave a rather poignant "Oh." Ding Ke's attitude towards things was consistent with many of his previous remarks, giving one a sense of both surprise and clarity. What was even more lamentable was that, despite both harboring doubts about the system itself, Ding Ke and Yuan Zhibang had diverged into two completely different paths of the heart: one of extreme ruthlessness, and the other of extreme compassion.

Is it because of this compassion that Ding Ke decided to abandon his career as a criminal police officer, which had accompanied him for half his life?

With this question in mind, Luo Fei finally spoke again.

"According to you, does that mean we should do absolutely nothing?" he bluntly expressed his skepticism. "Because we can't find the root of the 'cause and effect,' we should just let those plants entangle and interfere with each other? If this continues, won't the entire garden be destroyed? So this seemingly 'compassionate' method may ultimately lead to the most 'ruthless' result."

Ding Ke slowly shook his head. "You misunderstood—" he said, looking directly into Luo Fei's eyes, "I didn't say we wouldn't do anything. When considering the overall interests, clearing crooked flower bushes is certainly a necessary measure. In fact, I've devoted over twenty years to similar work. In those twenty years, I've solved countless cases, and wave after wave of leaning flower bushes have been cleared from my hands. But I haven't seen the garden become more beautiful; instead, more twisted branches have been growing. Finally, I've begun to understand: the problem we've been avoiding is precisely the most crucial point."

"The question we've been avoiding..." Luo Fei murmured, pausing for a moment, "in the end, it all comes down to 'cause and effect,' doesn't it?"

Ding Ke narrowed his eyes and said, "Yes."

"I think I understand what you mean. You're saying that those crooked plants are just the tip of the iceberg; simply treating them isn't very effective. We should address the more fundamental issues." Luo Fei said, observing Ding Ke's expression. After receiving confirmation, he changed the subject, "But we can't find the root of the 'cause and effect.' Just like you said, every chrysanthemum in the garden is a 'cause,' but it's also experiencing other 'effects.' With so many causes and effects intertwined, what can we do besides addressing the symptoms?"

Ding Ke smiled slightly and replied, "We cannot find the source of 'cause and effect,' but we can sever the pathways through which 'cause and effect' is transmitted."

Luo Fei's eyes lit up, as if he had grasped something. Mu Jianyun, standing to the side, was also listening intently to the conversation between the two, her mind racing. However, Zeng Rihua and Yin Jian, the two young men, looked bewildered, as if they were increasingly unable to understand.

Ding Ke continued to use the garden in the yard as a metaphor, elaborating on his thoughts: "Look at these flowers, each one has its own way of growing. They influence others, and are inevitably influenced by others. So what should a good gardener do? Just remove the crooked plants? Or is there something more meaningful?"

Everyone's thoughts were stirred: what could be something more meaningful?

Ding Ke has already offered some answers: "If we know that the roots of the plant will crowd each other, then we should leave more space when sowing; if we know that the light will be blocked, then why don't we create more sunlight? Once these problems are solved, there will be no more crooked plantlets, and we will no longer be caught in the contradiction between rules and reason."

As Luo Fei nodded to himself, he heard Zeng Rihua mutter, "But some things are impossible to do, aren't they? Take sunlight, for example—how can we create more sunlight? There are so many chrysanthemums in the garden, and eventually a few will not get enough sunlight. There's no one else who can help them."

"There's always a way, it just depends on whether you're willing to do it." Ding Ke pointed to a young chrysanthemum in the garden and asked Zeng Rihua, "Do you see that chrysanthemum? Do you think it's possible for it to get some sunshine right now?"

The young chrysanthemum was still short and located on the east side of the garden. As the sun gradually set, it was completely blocked by the tall plants in front of it, leaving the young chrysanthemum to suffer in the dim environment.