Цветок весенней реки, лунная ночь

Глава 15

"Then what about the fire at your ancestral home?" Ningxia pressed him relentlessly.

Lin Wei turned to look at Ning Xia, somewhat annoyed: "How should I know? Are you a policeman? Looking for a suspect? You think I started that fire?"

Seeing Lin Wei's ashen face, Ningxia paused, feeling a little guilty. Her voice softened as she said softly, "Do you know that someone found a human skeleton in the ruins burned by the fire?" After saying that, she carefully observed Lin Wei's face, hoping to find something.

"Oh! Really?" Lin Wei's expression disappointed Ning Xia, and she seemed somewhat dismissive.

"Could it be that woman?" Ningxia asked cautiously again.

Lin Wei raised his eyes and looked at Ningxia. His serious expression made Ningxia feel uneasy.

"Ningxia, stop overthinking, okay? It won't do you any good!" Lin Wei's tone suddenly softened, and his eyes held something that Ningxia couldn't quite decipher—was it pleading, or worry?

"But..." Ningxia weakly defended herself, touched by the sorrow in Lin Wei's eyes.

"No buts, listen to me, don't touch this again, go back to work, okay?" Lin Wei glanced at his watch. "It's getting late, I'll take you home!"

Driven by Lin Wei's unyielding tone, Ningxia had no choice but to stand up and walk with him towards Lingyun Road. Ten minutes later, Lin Wei escorted Ningxia to the bottom of her building and then went back home, his mind heavy with worry. Seeing Lin Wei's extremely uneasy expression, she swallowed the words she was about to say, watching his lonely figure disappear through the gate. Back home, after thinking for a while, she called Fang Jian, but the call still didn't go through, so she hung up. She sat there blankly for a while, then dialed another number.

"Ningxia!" Lin Wei's tired voice came from the other end of the phone.

"Are you... alright?" Ningxia asked with some concern.

"I'm fine! I'm almost home now!"

"Then... you should get some rest!" Ningxia still didn't say what she wanted to say.

"You too! Don't stay up late online, it's bad for your health! Bye!" Lin Wei said, then hung up the phone, feeling uneasy. She sighed heavily, put down the phone, and realized she had wanted to ask Lin Wei when they could go to Heizhen together to relax, but she was afraid of making him uneasy and didn't know how to bring it up.

"Bang, bang, bang..." A series of loud knocks suddenly rang out, particularly jarring in the quiet living room. Ningxia's heart, which had just settled, pounded wildly again. She looked through the peephole before finally calming down and opening the door.

"Why are you here so late?" Ningxia let Fang Jian, who looked a little strange, in.

Fang Jian walked in, rubbing his head, which was swollen from being hit, and complaining, "Ouch! Ouch!"

"What's wrong?" Ningxia handed him a glass of water.

"I was knocked unconscious at your gate just now!" Fang Jian grimaced and rubbed the back of his head.

"You've been robbed?" Ningxia exclaimed.

"No!" Fang Jian waved his hand, "I didn't lose a single penny!"

Feeling a bit strange, Ningxia casually joked, "Then that would really be a ghost!"

Upon hearing this, Fang Jian's face turned deathly pale, as if Ning Xia had indeed hit the nail on the head.

Ningxia wanted to laugh at Fang Jian's expression, but couldn't: "What's wrong? What did you see just now?"

Fang Jian frowned, seemingly lost in thought. He looked up at her again and said with a serious expression, "Do you believe in ghosts?" Ning Xia's smile vanished. For some reason, Fang Jian's words sent a chill down her spine!

"But it's really strange. After I was knocked unconscious, I vaguely felt a cold wind blowing over me!" Fang Jian's expression was a bit strange.

Ningxia glared at him again: "Stop acting!"

"Really!" Fang Jian became serious. "I really felt that woman bring a chilling wind!" Ning Xia was stunned: "A woman?"

"Yes!" Fang Jian's expression was serious, no longer sounding like he was joking. "When I woke up after fainting, there were several long women's hairs on my face!"

Ningxia suddenly felt a chill run down her spine and stammered, "A woman's long hair? How long?"

"It's at least a meter long! Thinking about it now, it's really a bit scary!" Fang Jian shrugged.

For some reason, when Ningxia heard Fang Jian's description, the image of the woman in white with long hair suddenly popped into her mind, and a chill ran up from the soles of her feet, and cold sweat appeared on her palms.

"What's wrong with you?" Fang Jian didn't seem as scared as Ning Xia, but he felt that her expression was a little strange.

"Why did that woman knock you unconscious?" Ningxia asked, puzzled.

Fang Jian shook his head: "I don't know either. Maybe they mistook me for someone else! If a few people hadn't come over, I don't know how long I would have been unconscious!"

"Yeah?"

"Yes! Luckily, a few students came out of the research institute next door, saw me lying on the ground, and immediately woke me up. That female thief was probably scared away too!"

"You think she's a female thief?"

Fang Jian nodded: "What else could it be but a thief? Your question is rather strange!"

Ningxia shook her head and sighed, "I don't know either!" She secretly hoped that the person who knocked Fang Jian unconscious was just an ordinary thief.

Fang Jian scratched the back of his head and walked towards the door.

"Are you alright? Do you need to go to the hospital?" Ningxia opened the door.

"I still need to go to the hospital, don't make a fuss!" Fang Jian had just reached the door when he suddenly remembered something, "Oh, right! The human skeleton we heard about in the ruins of the old house on the mountain today belonged to a man, about thirty to forty years old!"

Ningxia asked in confusion, "It wasn't even broadcast on the news, how did you know?"

"Of course I have my own way!" Fang Jian left triumphantly, leaving Ningxia with a question.

Late at night, the moonlight quietly filtered through the curtains and gently spilled into the bedroom.

The moonlight gradually shifted westward, gently brushing across Ningxia's flawless white face. A strange expression appeared on her sleeping face, and then she suddenly opened her eyes...

Ningxia stood amidst the ruins of an old house, dressed in a thin nightgown. A sudden gust of cold wind from the mountains ruffled her long, dark hair, which mingled with the soft white nightgown, creating a striking contrast of black and white, like two beautiful ribbons, particularly captivating in the moonlight. Standing atop the fire-ravaged ruins, she gazed silently at a certain point within the ruins, her face serene and beautiful. Her porcelain-smooth feet trod across the blackened, charred wood, like a bright moon appearing in the darkness, illuminating this hellish scene. Her feet stopped. Not far away, on the blackened ground, lay a skeleton, deformed by the fire.

Suddenly, the black ash on the skeleton quickly faded, revealing the original white bone color. Then, some fine flesh color covered the entire skeleton, the muscle tissue gradually recovered, and after the last layer of skin wrapped the entire skeleton again, a familiar face appeared in Ningxia's eyes.

"Brother!" Ningxia cried out in surprise and fear. She sat up abruptly. Before her was the same dressing table. The moonlight shone on the bedside. Everything was quiet. She wiped the sweat from her forehead and checked the time. It was only four o'clock in the morning.

She lay back down and closed her eyes, but the image of the skeleton reconstructing into Ning Kang wouldn't leave her mind. Ningxia sat up, turned on the lamp, and pulled a business card from her backpack, hesitating whether she should call the person on the card at this moment. After thinking for a while, she lay down again.

Nine o'clock in the morning, Municipal Public Security Bureau.

Wu Linshan was reviewing the report on the remains found in last night's fire when his phone suddenly rang.

Who is it?

"Officer Wu!" A soft female voice finally came through the phone, "This is Ningxia!"

"Ningxia! Hello!" Wu Linshan was somewhat surprised.

"Officer Wu! There's something I'd like to ask you. Is it convenient?" Ningxia hesitated for a moment.

"Just tell me, and I'll tell you everything I can to help you!" Wu Linshan was quite straightforward.

"You and a friend? Is it Fang Jian?" Wu Linshan asked coldly.

"Yes! Officer Wu, how did you know?" Ningxia was very surprised.

"Hmph! I knew it was him!" Wu Linshan's brows furrowed deeply. "Ningxia! Why are you so concerned about that skeleton?"

"I...I still haven't heard from my brother!" Ningxia's slightly trembling voice came from the other end of the phone.

"Really?" Wu Linshan's eyebrows relaxed, and his voice softened. "Oh! Don't worry! The forensic examination of yesterday's skeleton confirmed it was a male corpse, between thirty and forty years old, but I'm certain it's not your brother Ning Kang!"

"Are you sure?" Ningxia seemed relieved.

"Of course I can be sure, because that skeleton died at least fifteen years ago!" Wu Linshan answered with absolute certainty.

"Really!" Ningxia immediately relaxed, her tone becoming lighter. "Thank you! Officer Wu! Goodbye!"

"You're welcome! By the way, if you need anything, be sure to call me first! Goodbye!" Wu Linshan hung up the phone after saying that. He thought for a moment and then dialed another number.

"Fang Jian! Come to my office after get off work!" Wu Linshan said, and hung up the phone without waiting for Fang Jian's reply.

Fang Jian arrived at Wu Linshan's office before six o'clock.

"What is it, brother-in-law?" Fang Jian was a little surprised by Wu Linshan's call.

"What have you been up to lately?" Wu Linshan asked coldly.

"Nothing! Just going to work!" Fang Jian avoided Wu Linshan's sharp gaze.

"Hmph! Are you and that Ningxia looking for something?" Wu Linshan sneered.

"How did you know?!" Fang Jian was greatly surprised.

"Tell the truth!" Wu Linshan said.

Fang Jian glanced at him, his eyes darting around, then shook his head: "Nothing to say!"

Wu Linshan raised his eyebrows again: "You don't want to tell me? Fine! Then I'll call your sister right now and have her ask you!"

"No! No! Please don't let my sister know!" Fang Jian panicked and quickly grabbed Wu Linshan's hand as he reached for the phone. "I'll tell you, that's enough!"

"Okay! I'll have someone bring dinner over, and we'll eat together!" Wu Linshan prepared to make a phone call.

"No way! I want seafood hot pot, you're paying!" Fang Jian snatched the phone away in an extremely domineering manner.

"Seafood hotpot? You're quite the con artist! Alright, let's go!" Wu Linshan scratched his head and reluctantly agreed.

Ningxia kept calling Lin Wei from home, but his phone was always off. Tomorrow was Wednesday, and Lin Wei was off work. He had promised to go to Heizhen with her last week. Since Lin Wei explained the old house to her in the teahouse a few nights ago, he hadn't contacted her again. Now, she couldn't get through to him on the phone, and Ningxia couldn't help but worry.

"Ring ring..." The phone suddenly rang, and Ningxia grabbed it: "Lin Wei!"

"It's me!" But Fang Jian's voice came from the other end of the phone, "What, waiting for his call?" His voice sounded a little sour.

"Is something the matter?" Ningxia didn't want to answer his question.

"Didn't you say you were going to Black Town with him tomorrow?"

"Yes! What's wrong?"

"Can I come along?" Fang Jian asked cautiously, afraid that Ningxia would refuse.

"I don't know! I can't get through to him on the phone either, and I don't even know if I can make it tomorrow." Ningxia replied irritably.

"Then contact him first, and give me a call later. If he can't make it, I'll go with you tomorrow!"

"Okay!" Ningxia hung up the phone and dialed Lin Wei's number again. Finally, the phone was turned on, and Ningxia was overjoyed.

"Hello! Ningxia!" Lin Wei's voice came from the other end of the phone, finally putting Ningxia's mind at ease.

"Why has your phone been switched off all this time?" Ningxia asked with a slight reproach.

"Oh! I'm so sorry! My phone was dead. I just realized it and started charging it when I got your call! You must have been worried!" Lin Wei said apologetically on the other end of the phone.

"No, that's not it! I wanted to ask you, can you still come with me to Black Town tomorrow?" Ningxia's mood immediately improved.

"Of course! I promised you, so of course I'll go with you! I'll pick you up downstairs at eight o'clock tomorrow morning. Don't sleep in!" Lin Wei laughed.

"A friend of mine would like to go too, is that okay?"

"Sure! I'll pick you up first tomorrow, then I'll pick up your friend!" Lin Wei agreed readily.

"See you at eight tomorrow! Get some rest!" Lin Wei hung up the phone.