Военный советник и принцесса

Глава 28

"Does she have any reason to be afraid of you? Killing me is the same as killing both of us. Then no one will be able to stop her. Such a good opportunity may not come again." Li Hong put on her shoes, stood up, and began to brush the dirt off her clothes.

“I’m not going to just watch you jump into the ditch!” Zheng Zhihao said. “She definitely won’t succeed.”

"Ah, maybe. But I have a feeling that she let me go because she couldn't bring herself to do it after seeing you."

"You have that feeling?" Zheng Zhihao asked in surprise.

"Yes, she is a woman, and I am a woman too. It's a woman's intuition."

"Come on. Who is she? A she-devil! How could she not have the heart to do it? Besides, she's a 'gay,' she's not exactly a woman." Zheng Zhihao's tone was filled with intense hatred.

“Hey, that’s not right of you. Don’t you think she’s pitiful?” Li Hong said, somewhat indignantly.

"Where is she pitiful? I think the people she killed are the ones who are pitiful."

"Imagine how she would feel if, after she died, she discovered that all the people she loved had betrayed her."

"That's no excuse for murder!"

“Oh dear, I can’t reason with you.” Li Hong stood by the roadside, looking bewildered. “She might not be what you think she is. You might have a deep misunderstanding about her.”

"Really?" Zheng Zhihao asked in a tone of complete disbelief.

“Sigh…” Li Hong picked up her bag and started patting it. “You said it yourself, you never really understood her. I want to go back and ask Xu Feifei what kind of person she really is.”

"Is this necessary? The key point now is behind that tile in the bathroom; we don't know what might be there."

“I don’t think that’s important,” Li Hong said, shaking her head. “According to your logic, if you were here at this time, you could start winning over Liu Yun, right? It would still go on without that so-called key point, wouldn’t it?”

Zheng Zhihao remained silent, which seemed to be his tacit agreement.

“See? I was right.” Li Hong laughed, then looked at the red taillights of the cars on the street and said, as if talking to herself, “I think there must be another reason for her appearance. Maybe she wants to talk to me and tell me about her past…”

2.26 Burden

It was a rainy day when Xu Feifei was discharged from the hospital. Rainwater was incredibly precious for parched Beijing. Li Hong stood at the hospital entrance, holding an umbrella, gazing absently at the puddles flowing into the sewers. The rainwater washed the dust-covered leaves of the trees along the roadside clean, making them sparkle and shine, a lovely green, like spirited sentinels, each standing tall and proud. This reminded Li Hong of when she first arrived in Beijing, walking alone on Chang'an Avenue, looking at the upright sentinels outside Xinhua Gate, feeling a sense of envy that even invigorated her.

Time seems to have flown by; nearly ten years have passed in the blink of an eye. She has grown from a medical student into a qualified forensic pathologist. However, what worries her now is not work-related matters. She received a call from the ward doctor that morning, who mistook her for Xu Feifei's sister. Li Hong could only vaguely agree on the phone. The doctor informed her that she could pick up Xu Feifei from the hospital today. Therefore, Li Hong braved the rain and rushed to the hospital early in the morning.

To be honest, Li Hong could have easily pushed this matter away, and Xu Feifei, living alone in Beijing, was capable of handling these things. However, Li Hong decided to see her again to gain a deeper understanding of Liu Yun. Xu Feifei was like a key, holding the key to Liu Yun's mysterious past. Li Hong was considering how to tell Xu Feifei about another side of Liu Yun, and the crimes she had committed in the past.

The raindrops fell heavily, pattering against the umbrella. Li Hong saw Xu Feifei emerge from the inpatient department, looking up at the sky with a worried expression. She was dressed beautifully today; her light makeup made her skin appear even whiter. Although her skirt was a bit short, it didn't matter much for a young person. Li Hong waved to her.

Xu Feifei clearly hadn't expected anyone to come and pick her up, and a bright smile immediately appeared on her face as she ran over in a few steps.

"Aren't you cold? Wearing such a short skirt, aren't you afraid of showing your butt?" Li Hongtou scolded her in the first sentence.

"Hehehe~~~~" Xu Feifei laughed, "It's alright, it's not too short. I don't have any clothes to change into, this is my bar uniform."

"Let's see how you sit later." Li Hong tilted the umbrella to the side to shield her from the rain.

"When you're working, you don't have time to sit," Xu Feifei said. "Why did you come to pick me up?"

“I received a call from the doctor here this morning. He thinks of me as his older sister and asked me to come pick you up,” Li Hong said as she pulled Xu Feifei across the street.

"You're my older sister!" Xu Feifei started grinning again, and even hugged Li Hong's arm. "Where are we going?"

"Where are you going?" Li Hong asked. "Shall I take you home?"

"Are you alright? Don't let this interfere with your work," Xu Feifei said sincerely.

"I'm doing okay lately, but I'll be busy in two weeks. Summer vacation is almost over." Li Hong sighed softly as she thought about having to start classes again after summer vacation.

"Aren't you from the Public Security Bureau?" Xu Feifei asked, puzzled.

“Yes, but my main job is as a teaching assistant, and I also do forensic work for the Public Security Bureau,” Li Hong said. “Where do you live?”

"No need for you to take me!" Xu Feifei said a little shyly, "It's just over at Beisha Beach, not far at all."

“It’s alright, I still want to talk to you about Liu Yun,” Li Hong said.

"Oh." Xu Feifei's face darkened slightly. "That's fine then. You can take Sister Liu's belongings with you."

"What are all these things?" Li Hong asked curiously.

"There were only some clothes left; everything else was burned. I never went to her room where she lived alone."

"Is it because she won't let you go?"

"No, it's because I had no idea," Xu Feifei said. "At that time, all I knew was that she worked at a dance hall, working the night shift, so I never asked her when she went out at night."

"Haven't you been to the dance hall where she works?"

"No, I work at night too. When I'm on my day off, I just want to sleep. I've never been to that dance hall."

"I see." Li Hong nodded thoughtfully.

They flagged down a car and got in one after another. They drove in silence. After Li Hong mentioned Liu Yun, Xu Feifei stopped talking, both lost in their own thoughts.

Xu Feifei lived in an old neighborhood, surrounded by dilapidated buildings that stood somberly in the rain. Xu Feifei skillfully opened the door and let Li Hong in.

Li Hong couldn't help but connect this room to Zheng Zhihao's room, which she had seen some time ago, but the girl's room was much cleaner in comparison. Because of the overcast sky, the room was poorly lit, so Xu Feifei turned on the light and then carried a rather large bundle out of the bedroom.

"How did you and Liu Yun meet?" Li Hong took the bundle and asked directly without wasting any words.

“We met at a bar. She was a regular there,” Xu Feifei said.

"And then?" Li Hong continued to ask.

"Would you like water or a beverage?" Xu Feifei asked, standing by the refrigerator.

“Just drink some water. It’s warm. Your room is quite damp,” Li Hong said, feeling a bit cold.

"Yeah, I don't get any sunlight," Xu Feifei said as she poured water. "I ran into her as soon as I started working at the bar. She approached me and was very nice to me."

Li Hong took the water and listened with great interest.

"Because I came to Beijing alone and didn't know anyone, I was living in a dormitory provided by a bar and felt very lonely after work. Then she would often come to see me. Because she was a woman and very beautiful, I became familiar with her."

"Where are you from?" Li Hong asked.

"Me? I'm from Shanxi. Sister Liu is from Dalian."

"oh."

"Later she told me that she rented a room but couldn't afford it by herself and wanted to share it with me, and I agreed without thinking."

"And then...?" Li Hong raised her eyebrows and asked with a strange expression.

Xu Feifei nodded. However, Li Hong couldn't discern any expression of joy or dislike on her face.

“You were too young then,” Li Hong said with a touch of emotion.

“Yes, I was only in my early twenties back then and didn’t know anything,” Xu Feifei said. Then, as if she remembered something, she asked, “Who exactly is Sister Liu? Why did she…” She stopped and didn’t continue.

“She…” Li Hong didn’t know how to answer for a moment.

"She doesn't work at a dance hall, does she?" Xu Feifei asked cautiously.

“No.” Li Hong carefully chose her words. “She’s not an ordinary person… You might understand her better if you think of her as a witch or something like that.”

"A witch?!" Xu Feifei's eyes widened.

“Yes.” Li Hong nodded. “I’ll tell you the rest later. Tell me, what kind of person do you think Liu Yun is?”

Xu Feifei was clearly still in shock and simply lowered her head.

"Don't think about it too much," Li Hong said. "Now that she's dead, we'll find a way to get rid of it."

“Witch…” Xu Feifei muttered to herself, “No wonder she’s sometimes so mysterious.”

"When? Do you remember?" Li Hong asked hurriedly.

"To be specific, I can't think of anything right now," Xu Feifei said. "Ah! I remember now."

Li Hong sat up straight and listened attentively.

"I was walking alone at night one night. You've been there before, haven't you? You know there's a dark alley outside the bar, right? It's deserted at night."

“Yes, I know, I walked by last night,” Li Hong said, trying her best to keep her expression unchanged.

“One night, I was walking at night with her. She was a little drunk and put her arm around me. Then I noticed a strange shadow on the side of the road.”

"What shadow?"

"I couldn't see clearly, it was just a white light-like thing."

"And then?" Li Hong opened her notebook.

"Then I didn't know what it was and wanted to take a closer look. But Sister Liu pulled me back and said, 'Don't look! In the middle of the road!' It startled me. But I still glanced at it a few times, and then I saw a pair of eyes in the white light..."

"Eye?"

"Yes! A pair of eyes. I couldn't see them clearly, but I could see they were red. It terrified me, and I couldn't speak. Then Sister Liu led me to the middle of the road, and suddenly she said to me out of the blue, 'They're afraid of people, so they don't dare come to the middle of the road. From now on, when you walk at night, you must walk in the middle of the road.' At that moment, all I could do was nod. She hugged me tightly and said, 'Don't be afraid, I'm here. With me here, they won't dare touch you.'"

Xu Feifei picked up her water glass, took a sip, and gave Li Hong a deep look.

“After we got out of there, she didn’t say anything more,” Xu Feifei continued. “But I didn’t pay much attention to it at the time. After all, everyone hears some legends about this thing when they are young, so I thought she was teaching me based on her own experience.”

"Is there anything else?" Li Hong asked, still wanting more.

"That's about it," Xu Feifei shook her head.

"Then tell me, in your impression, what kind of person is Liu Yun? Kind or..."

"Of course she's kind. I don't think I've ever seen her get angry with anyone. She always seems very confident."

"Then... do you remember that Liu Yun's personality changed one winter, after Christmas?" Li Hong reminded her.

“Winter…after Christmas?” Xu Feifei asked in surprise, then shook her head. “I don’t think so. I just remember one year after it got cold, she went to bars less often. I asked her what she was doing, and she said she was teaching a dance class. Then I didn’t ask any more questions.”

"Oh." A look of disappointment appeared on Li Hong's face.

"Why don't you take a look at Sister Liu's things?" Xu Feifei said.

"Oh, okay." Li Hong said, putting down her water glass and opening her bundle.

Sure enough, the bundle was full of clothes, which Li Hong casually rummaged through. It was clear that Liu Yun wasn't someone who cared much about her appearance. Just as she finished looking through the bundle and was about to re-tie it, she suddenly spotted a piece of clothing that looked very familiar. She took it out; it was a brown leather jacket.

Xu Feifei looked at Li Hong with some curiosity, and saw her reach into her pocket. Then, Li Hong's expression changed. She took out two things from her pocket: a silver lighter and a neatly folded yellow piece of paper.

"What is this?" Xu Feifei asked curiously. Li Hong didn't answer her, but put down the lighter and opened the paper. The paper was very thin, with strange lines drawn on it in red ink, making it impossible to tell what it was.

"Soul-guiding talisman..." Zheng Zhihao's voice echoed in Li Hong's mind.

2.27 Guiding the Soul (Part 1)

Li Hong held the yellow paper, examining it carefully, but she couldn't make out what was drawn on it. The strokes were red, and when she brought it close to her nose to smell it, she detected a faint scent of cinnabar. She also heard Zheng Zhihao's words, finding it very strange that they had found this item, as if it had been prepared for her to discover it, just like when they found the finger bone in Zou Shunqing's bag.