CH 130

Naturally, sneaking into the residence of a single woman was wrong, but since it was more inconvenient for two men to stand in the corridor of the lewd apartments, after Xing Conglian quickly unlocked the door, Lin Chen flashed into the residence with him.

So, when Miss Lily arrived home and opened her door, she saw two men sitting on her sofa.

One of them was looking at the photo frame on the coffee table. Lily quickly recognized the other person as the man who gave her fake checks, which caused her serious trouble today.

When the two heard the door opening, they both turned to look at her.

Lily didn’t say anything. She picked up her handbag and rushed over and smacked it at the fake rich man. “Fuck, you still have the face to come here and do this to me?!”

Listening to Miss Lily’s shouts, Xing Conglian didn’t even fight back and was firmly beaten a few times.

“Asshole, using fake checks. If you’re poor, don’t go looking for whores!”

As if she felt it was useless to keep hitting, after venting, Lily took out her phone and was about to make a call.

Xing Conglian’s eyes flashed, and he quickly took the phone from her hand.

“Still trying to rob me, huh?” Lily’s cry became louder.

Lin Chen looked at the girl with heavy makeup and put down the photo frame. “We’re here because of Xu Ran. I know you know her.”

Hearing what he said, the anger in Lily’s eyes quickly dissipated. She subconsciously looked at the photo on the coffee table, which showed two girls hugging each other.

Lin Chen also looked at the photo frame.

Although girls loved beauty and often exaggerated themselves, he could still clearly tell from the photo that the person who was making the peace sign on the left was the one standing in front of him, while the one on the right was Xu Ran.

Lin Chen glanced back and saw Lily’s eyes covered in sadness, which she couldn’t hide.

After taking two deep breaths, Lily trembled and asked, “Xu Ran… Is she dead?”

“Her life remains uncertain,” Lin Chen said.

“I know she must be dead! I persuaded her not to go or she would definitely be killed!”

Lily covered her mouth, trying her best to hold back her tears. She leaned against the wall and slowly slid to the ground.

“We’re here because of her, so I hope you will trust us.” Lin Chen took out a tissue from the table and squatted in front of the girl, wiping her tears.

The snow-white tissue gleamed with the eyeshadow sequins.

The tears turned Lily’s entire face into a palette of colors. She suddenly looked up, showing bruises around her mouth and under her cheekbone, and said to them, “Are you good people?”

Her eyes were suspicious but innocent, showing a look of distrust towards everything in the world.

“I said, you can trust us.”

Lily sobbed a few more times, then calmed down. She said to them with tenacious restraint, “Xiao Ran, she left a letter.”

……

Before walking into the room, Lin Chen never thought they would get a letter left by Xu Ran.

If Xu Ran didn’t have the ability to predict the future, how could she leave behind a letter?

He followed Lily into the narrow bedroom by the living room.

The old-fashioned apartment was filled with a musty smell from the damp walls. Lily squatted down in front of the closet and found an old shoebox under the closet.

“Xiao Ran… They smashed up Xiao Ran’s room, but she gave me something important for safekeeping, so…” Lily’s voice suddenly became gentle. She sobbed and looked up at Lin Chen. “So she has a lot of things with me, but in fact none of them are really important. Then she gave me a letter, saying if she died or if the police came to Royal One to investigate her case again, to have me secretly hand them her letter. If there’s a police officer that’s willing to go to Royal One to check her case again, then they must be a good person, but if not, then forget it.”

Lily tucked her hair behind her ear. “Actually, I think that’s just wishful thinking—as if there were that many good people in the world…”

She opened the lid of a shoe box and took out a plastic bag from it, then sat down on the bed.

Lin Chen dragged a chair from the desk and sat next to her.

Lily carefully opened the plastic bag and took out the stack of things inside.

Those were all things like photos and postcards, as well as a sticker book and two posters.

Those things looked old. Some of the photos had an obvious trace that they were removed from a photo frame, showing trim marks. The backs of the posters were still sticky with some adhesive. After Lin Chen asked for Lily’s permission, he felt for a while that he couldn’t read the letter. He picked up the sticker book and opened the first page.

Sure enough, the records of these things belonged to the same person.

Lin Chen held the sticker book for a long time, silently. There was a lone lamp on the bedside table, which was so bright that it made him feel extremely sour.

Finally, he raised his head.

Xing Conglian was standing at the door frame, facing the bed full of photos, and was relatively speechless.

Everything had a reason.

For example, why did Xu Ran fight fiercely when facing Li Jingtian despite having worked in this industry for so long?

Or, why did she go to the police and accuse Li Jingtian, knowing that it was impossible for her to take him down?

And after that, why did she still insist on going to Hongjing knowing the dangers it possessed?

Although Lin Chen still didn’t understand what the connection between these things was for the time being, looking at the young singer on the bed who was laughing, singing, posing in various funny ways, and giving his middle finger to the camera, Lin Chen knew that the reason was here…

Because it was Song Shengsheng.

Nine years ago, the unruly young man was imprisoned for rape.

“Xu Ran… She…” Lin Chen finally came back to his senses. He looked at Miss Lily on the bed and realized that he was choking uncontrollably.

“Xu Ran likes Song Shengsheng. She has liked him for a long, long time. She always believed that Li Jingtian and Mu Zhuo, those bastards, framed Song Shengsheng. But what’s the use? Song Shengsheng is already finished.”

Lily took out the letter left by Xu Ran and handed it to him.

Lin Chen lowered his head and looked at the snow-white letter paper in front of him. For the first time, he felt a little scared.

He slowly opened the letter when suddenly his hands were pressed.

Xing Conglian had appeared at some point behind him.

“I’ll read it,” he said to him.

Lin Chen pressed Xing Conglian’s hand, remembering that when they were on the same bed, the other party took the initiative to take on the embarrassing role.

Xing Conglian always took the initiative to take on the responsibility.

But, Lin Chen thought, he had things he should bear, and no one could replace that.

“Let me do it. This is what I should see.”

Lin Chen looked at Xing Conglian’s worried gaze and pushed his hand away. He felt that although he had never said a word to Xu Ran and they were complete strangers who had never crossed paths, he seemed to have depicted Xu Ran’s appearance countless times in his mind.

The moment he opened the letter, he seemed to see Xu Ran’s appearance quietly writing this letter a few days ago.

Hello,

I don’t know how to call you, so let me just talk to you.

If you’re reading this letter, then it means I’m probably dead.

Many letters or suicide notes will say this at the beginning. I thought it was hypocritical before, but now that I’m writing this, I find that it’s quite a suitable way to start.

My name is Xu Ran. A woman who’s 28 years old.

Three weeks ago, I received a job. The job I’m talking about is sex trading. Yes, I am a prostitute. In more popular terms, I’m a chicken—the kind of woman who’s dirty to the bone. I can’t deny this.

So when I walked into that door, I knew very well that I was going to provide services to men.

But behind that door, the man sitting there was indeed a person I’ll never forget.

I hate him. Hate him to the bone. I used to like a person very much, and that person was ruined by him, never to be reborn.

The person I hate is Li Jingtian.

And the person I like is Song Shengsheng.

In fact, before entering the door, I didn’t know exactly what Li Jingtian had done to Shengsheng, although I always suspected that Mu Zhuo’s false accusation against Shengsheng was planned by him.

So, when I saw Li Jingtian, I was angry. I couldn’t control my anger, but what could I do to him? I can only tell him I didn’t want his business because he’s too disgusting.

After I told him this, I slammed the door and wanted to leave.

But he didn’t let me leave. He grabbed my hair and slammed my head on the door.

I told him to get out. I don’t want his business. I don’t want to do those things with him.

You see, although I’m a prostitute, sometimes I turn down clients.

But Li Jingtian didn’t give me a chance to refuse. At that time, I was so angry that I kept scolding him. I scolded him for being disgusting and treacherous. I told him I didn’t want to sleep with him.

When he heard Shengsheng’s name, Li Jingtian suddenly laughed, excitedly.

He grabbed my hair and pushed me to the ground. He was jubilant. He said to me, “So there are still people who like Song Shengsheng.”

Later, I don’t really remember much of it. I was dragged to the bathroom by him. He stomped on my head, then shoved it into the toilet. He beat me, humiliated me. He didn’t treat me like a human, but like an animal. I shouted for help, but no one cared about me.

I don’t know if such a situation can still be considered rape.

You see, a prostitute took the initiative to deliver herself to the door, but refused a client, and was beaten to death by him.

This should be deserved.

Then, as I was submerged in the toilet, he entered me.

It hurts. It really hurts.

When he raped me, he whispered next to my ear, “The Song Shengsheng you like was also fucked by me like this. He likes it very much. He’s dirtier than you.”

Then, he beat and abused me repeatedly and kept telling me how he tortured Shengsheng in the same way. He said that Shengsheng was a masochist and liked to be fucked by him.

Shengsheng loves him to death and even volunteered to go to jail for him.

Those words are still swirling in my ears now.

At that time, I felt that the sky was falling. I really regretted that I couldn’t record his words and show them to everyone. Li Jingtian himself admitted that Shengshemg was innocent.

At that time, I felt I had to live. I wanted everyone to know that Li Jingtian isn’t human.

Later, I really didn’t die. When Li Jingtian left, he threw me into the bathtub and washed me many times.

He told me there was no evidence now. If I want to call the police, I can report it, but he said the police will never believe a whore. Who would believe a woman who sells her body would be raped at a place like Royal One?

Yeah, he’s right. No one will believe me, but I want to try. I think I should try.

The policewoman who received me was a very nice person. She really believed me. She took me for an examination. At that time, I felt Li Jingtian wasn’t necessarily right.

But I made a mistake. I regret it. I really, deeply regretted it.

When they asked me where the crime scene was, I remembered Li Jingtian’s words. If I said it was at Royal One, the police wouldn’t believe me, so I lied. I told them I was raped at his hotel.

I don’t know why I said that, but I really lied. Everyone scolded me, and they all sympathized with Li Jingtian. Then I realized that it was impossible for me to defeat him.

Because I lied, I lost the opportunity to get justice for myself and even the chance to seek justice for my voice. No one will believe what I say anymore. I screwed up, and I only have myself to blame. It’s all my fault.

This afternoon, Li Jingtian called me and asked me to meet in Hongjing. He said he wanted to compensate me.

I know he must want me to die.

But if I die, will someone look into my case?

Will I meet a good police officer, like that female police officer who trusted me and gave me another chance?

If my life can be exchanged for another chance to let you read this letter, then why don’t I die?

In fact, I didn’t have much hope, but I thought, ah, if I’m going to die, I might as well create some fantasies, right?

I know very well that it’s difficult for you to have the opportunity to get justice for me, but I hope that in any case, you can get justice for Shengsheng. He’s really innocent.

Please, believe me.

……

There was no final signature for this letter.

It started with a hello and ended with believe me.

Xu Ran didn’t know whether someone would eventually read this letter, but she still clearly stated what happened. She just wanted justice.

For the first time, Lin Chen felt that the word “justice” was so heavy—as heavy as Mount Tai—that it made people despair.

Unconsciously, Lin Chen found that his fingers were trembling. He knew very well that his eyes were frighteningly red now, but he thought, he really couldn’t cry.

His hand brushed over the snow-white letter; it was immaculately clean. Although Xu Ran’s handwriting was childish, the paper was really clean.

When Xu Ran wrote this letter, she didn’t shed a tear.

Every sentence in this letter was strong. Lin Chen raised his head and looked at the other girl sitting by the bed.

Although the girl had loose hair and messy makeup, she was looking at him with firm eyes.

Yes, they were all girls with the tenacious vitality of weeds. Although their lives were gloomy, the beliefs in their hearts were sometimes firmer than others.

Xing Conglian placed his hand on his shoulder.

He stood behind him and read the letter with him.

Lin Chen took a deep breath, turned his head, and looked at the man who had been silent this entire time.

At this moment, Xing Conglian’s phone rang.

Xing Conglian kept his hand on Lin Chen’s shoulder as he picked up the phone with his other hand.

The call was short.

The person on the other line probably only said one sentence.

Xing Conglian only replied with, “I see.”

But Lin Chen clearly felt Xing Conglian’s hand on his shoulder begin to tremble. The tremor was short, but such a thing was impossible for someone like Xing Conglian.

Lin Chen looked into his eyes and understood everything in an instant.

“Xu Ran is gone,” Xing Conglian said calmly.

After he finished speaking, the room suddenly became quiet.

This was the inevitable ending, and this was also the ending she prayed for.

Lin Chen looked out the dark window.

There was continuous rain. It was fine and soft, like a girl’s soft hair, like a girl’s insignificant life.

The night was dark, and it must equally be as dark in Hongjing.

Lin Chen looked at the dark night sky. He suddenly thought if people’s faith could really break through time and space, then Xu Ran should know they have read this letter.

So, she had persisted until now, and finally she could end her not-so-long, not-so-good life.

Xing Conglian patted Lin Chen lightly on the shoulder.

Lin Chen looked back at the man he loved deeply.

He suddenly wanted to ask a question, so he naturally did. “Your guarantee is very effective, right?”

Xing Conglian suddenly squatted down in front of him.

He stared at him with deep but serene eyes and then answered him.

“Please, believe me,” he said.

……

Wang Chao came later on.

When he arrived at Red Street, Lin Chen had already sorted out all the photos and letters with Xing Conglian.

When they left, Miss Lily was sleeping soundly in the room. They closed the dilapidated iron door and walked into the drizzle.

The teenager held his head and squatted under the streetlight where they were standing.

Seeing them approach, Wang Chao jumped up excitedly and shouted in a low voice, “Captain, A’Chen, you’re finally here. This place is too scary.”

Wang Chao really had a strange magic power. When they looked at the boy’s eyes that would never dim, it was like meeting a flame that would never go out in the endless night. He would make you believe that everything would be fine.

Lin Chen walked over, rubbed the boy’s wet head, and said, “Let’s go.”

Probably because they were so close, Wang Chao noticed their abnormality.

“A’Chen Gege, what’s wrong? You… You were crying again?”

Lin Chen couldn’t help but smile. “It’s really not this time.”

“Then what happened?”

Lin Chen found that when Wang Chao asked this, he was unable to answer.

“Xu Ran is dead.”

Xing Conglian walked up to him and answered it for him.

Wang Chao instantly became shocked, and he asked incredulously, “Then, do we have no case?”

Looking at the teenager’s disappointed but not sad gaze, Lin Chen began to understand why Xing Conglian was always protective of Wang Chao.

Lin Chen thought that although the night had many ups and downs, the luckiest thing was that Wang Chao didn’t read the letter.

This arrangement was probably their only good luck tonight.

“No, now we can start investigating the murder case,” Xing Conglian said.

“But, isn’t Xu Ran dead? Could it be that you found some important clues from Miss Lily?” Wang Chao sharply asked.

“Yes, we found clues.” Lin Chen pinched Wang Chao’s face.

“But this clue makes you very uncomfortable, right?”

“Why are you talking and thinking so much? Do you want to learn psychology from your brother A’Chen?” Xing Conglian abruptly cut in.

As they talked, they started walking out of the alley.

Lin Chen and Xing Conglian walked side-by-side, while Wang Chao faced them, briskly walking backwards. “Then what about the investigation of the murder case, Captain? Did you find evidence that Li Jingtian is suspected of murdering Xu Ran?”

“There’s no evidence,” Lin Chen said.

“Then, how can it be called murder?”

“Mr. Xiao Wang, do you have a misunderstanding about the murder?” Xing Conglian asked seriously. “It’s not like Li Jingtian stabbed Xu Ran to death with a knife. That’s murder. Those who persecute, trick, or incite others to commit suicide are all punished according to the crime of intentional homicide. You really should study harder.” Xing Conglian concluded.

“So now, are we going to investigate the evidence chain of how Li Jingtian caused Xu Ran to commit suicide? Wait, did Xu Ran commit suicide?” When they reached the entrance of the alley, Wang Chao finally turned around. “What are we going to do next?”

“We have to prove one thing first,” Xing Conglian said.

“What’s that?”

“We have to prove that Xu Ran isn’t the culprit who took to the stage and tried to slit Li Jingtian’s throat.”

Lin Chen thought about how Xing Conglian would arrange their next move, but he never thought Xing Conglian would say that.

He didn’t understand for a moment, but then he got it in an instant.

This was Xing Conglian.

……

Xu Ran’s suicide note was written too early, and she didn’t mention what happened after she went to Hongjing. She just said that Li Jingtian asked her to go there.

As for why she wore that red dress, dressing exactly like the culprit who slit Li Jingtian’s throat, Xu Ran didn’t explain these things.

Therefore, the contents of the letter were all unilateral statements by Xu Ran. Even Xu Ran herself stated at the end of the letter that she had no evidence to prove those statements.

In other words, they still couldn’t rule out that possibility—the possibility that all the incidents were committed by Xu Ran. In order to avenge Song Shengsheng and herself, Xu Ran planned all this and used her own death as the final touch of the entire conspiracy.

Although it was impossible for anyone to believe in the possibility that Li Jingtian was innocent after reading that letter, a fact-based investigation of the case had nothing to do with Xu Ran’s plea; it could only include factual evidence.

Even an extremely terrible monster like Li Jingtian or Xu Ran; both had the right to a fair and impartial investigation.

And the most critical breakthrough point of this investigation was whether the person who slit Li Jingtian’s throat was Xu Ran.

In fact, the identity of the throat-slitter had always been the primary focus of the investigation in Li Jingtian’s case.

Lin Chen was grateful for Xing Conglian.

Xing Conglian trusted his judgment on Li Jingtian, so he took him to Fengchun before the investigation report from the forensic department was released.

But it was necessary to investigate the truth of the whole matter, so it was impossible to bypass the threshold of the throat-slitting case.

It was 16 hours after the incident, which meant it had been 6 hours since they left Hongjing.

Lin Chen thought that Xing Conglian was stretched for time. During this period, Hongjing’s forensic department could release the investigation report of the throat-slitting case, while at the same time, during this blank period, Xing Conglian was able to bring him to Fengchun to investigate Li Jingtian’s sexual assault on Xu Ran.

The conditions for going out to handle cases were difficult, and the time was really late—or rather early.

The Jeep wasn’t around, so they found an internet café next to Red Street. Naturally, the place was chosen by Wang Chao because of its internet speed.

After Xing Conglian sat down in the small cubicle, he started making phone calls.

Lin Chen went out and ordered instant noodles. When he came back, he heard Xing Conglian speaking on the phone to another police officer who was in charge of the blood test.

“Status?” Lin Chen put down the instant noodles and asked Xing Conglian.

Xing Conglian put it on speaker, and the voice of the police officer responsible for the blood test sounded.

“Captain Xing, the blood test has just been completed. The blood on Xu Ran’s dress only contained her DNA. There are no other people’s blood samples mixed in. I really have no way to prove whether Xu Ran was or wasn’t the assailant. Shall we test for other things, like hair samples on the stage, and see if we can prove that Xu Ran was there?”

“I see.” Xing Conglian hung up and remained silent.

Sitting across from him, Wang Chao took a big mouthful of noodles and sighed. “Captain, don’t you feel uncomfortable being a police officer? You have to give evidence for everything!”

“Check on your stuff.” Xing Conglian knocked on the teenager’s head.

Wang Chao was dissatisfied. “Why don’t you say things like, Wang Chao, have a good meal first. I’m still a kid!” Wang Chao slurped up another mouthful of noodles unhappily but didn’t forget to move the mouse with his other hand.

Xing Conglian didn’t bother talking nonsense with him. He made another call. Lin Chen glanced at the number. It was another police officer who was in charge of the scene investigation.

“Captain Xing, Captain Xing, please don’t rush me, okay? Do you know how many things are on that stage? I have to test everything…”

“Has any DNA sample belonging to Xu Ran been detected?”

On the other end of the phone, the on-site police investigator seemed to be checking through documents. After a while, he replied, “I haven’t detected any DNA of Xu Ran for the time being…”

“Continue.” Xing Conglian hung up again.

The third call was to the officer in charge of trace inspection.

But the result was still disappointing.

“Captain—Captain Xing, don’t mention fingerprints. The outer surface of the bouquet was covered with fabric, so there wouldn’t be any left behind. The footprints were also checked, but they’re basically useless. You know how many people were at the scene. All I can say now is that the assailant’s height is similar. There are photos floating around on the internet everywhere, but hey, it’s the same as if I’m not saying anything.”

Xing Conglian hung up the third call.

Everything was returning without success and without evidence. Despite that, it was actually a good thing.

Although the test results they got were no use in solving the case, at any rate, they cleared up some suspicions on Xu Ran.

After contemplating for a moment, Xing Conglian was about to start calling again, but he stalled and didn’t dial out.

Lin Chen pushed the instant noodles in front of Xing Conglian and said, “Let’s eat something first.”

At this time, he really couldn’t find any breakthroughs, so Xing Conglian put the phone down.

Lin Chen opened the instant noodle bowl with him.

The noodles were soaked just right.

The smell of cigarettes in the room was strong, and the rain outside the window gradually turned from light to heavy. Inside the room, except for the slurping sound of instant noodles, there was only the hissing noise from the computer fan.

Wang Chao was the first to finish his bowl. He drank the soup, wiped his mouth, and said, “Captain, A’Chen, I have taken all the photos of the crime scene that were taken by the fans that I could find online. They have been sent to you. Hey, at such a critical moment, you still have to rely on me!”

Xing Conglian didn’t respond.

As if feeling lonely, the teenager started to chatter again. “Captain, don’t ignore me. I looked at all the photos and videos of the fans for you. There are not many photos where you can see the assailant’s face clearly. It seems that Li Jingtian’s brain dead fan group called for deletion of the bloody and violent photos of the scene, so no one posted pictures. That is to say, only the first photo that was posted showed a clear picture of the assailant. I suspect that the person who posted the post was arranged by Li Jingtian, but unfortunately, there’s no problem on Weibo’s end. It really is a Li Jingtian’s die-hard fan… You said that it would be nice if the surveillance wasn’t blocked, but let me tell you, Captain, it’s useless even if it wasn’t. You also know that face recognition algorithms are based on feature points. The assailant only showed their eyes. There are not enough feature points, so it won’t help you. Don’t blame me for talking too much. The assailant really looks very similar to Xu Ran. When she was caught on the street, she looked fearful, like she committed a crime, and ran to the streets and was hit by a car. There really is no proof. What should we do if we can’t find evidence proving Xu Ran wasn’t at the scene of the crime?”

“That can only be done by pulling a net and seeing if someone has seen Xu Ran within the time of the crime, so we can establish her alibi.”

Listening to what Xing Conglian said, Wang Chao was stunned, and the fork in his mouth fell to the table with a thud.

Lin Chen turned his head and looked at Xing Conglian’s face, which was hidden under the dim light. Xing Conglian ate his noodles carefully, neither fast nor slow; extremely methodically.

He suddenly realized that Xing Conglian’s attitude towards Xu Ran was actually more determined than his.

In fact, after stumbling into a dead end at the clubhouse and after reading the letter, Lin Chen subconsciously felt despair for Xu Ran’s sexual assault case because there was no evidence. Someone had wiped it all out in advance.

But after experiencing these things, Xing Conglian’s attitude towards this case was clear on who was innocent and ambiguous results couldn’t be accepted. If there was no evidence, then he would continue to look for evidence.

Lin Chen recalled what he thought. If people’s beliefs were strong enough to break through time and space, then they must also be able to break through bad luck.

Even if Li Jingtian’s calculations were foolproof, there would still be oversights.

People like them had to embrace faith.

……

Lin Chen pushed away the noodle bowl and checked all the photos and videos of Ansheng International Mall that were sorted by Wang Chao together with Xing Conglian, trying to find any omissions.

Those fan photos were either clear or blurry, but the protagonist in all of them was Li Jingtian. To be honest, even if he forced himself to look at these photos with the mentality of proving Xu Ran’s innocence, Lin Chen still felt nauseous every time he saw Li Jingtian’s hypocritical face.

Moreover, he was in a terrible state today. The hangover made his vision gradually blurry. He lowered his head, rubbed his eyes, and noticed that Xing Conglian had patted him on the shoulder. “Go and help Wang Chao find out more about Song Shengsheng’s case. I can look at these things myself.”

“Yeah, yeah, A’Chen. Stop looking at that disgusting idiot!”

Lin Chen habitually wanted to be polite, but since it was Xing Conglian saying this, there was no need to. He nodded, changed his seat, and sat beside Wang Chao.

“Okay, A’Chen Gege, my big sword is hungry and thirsty. Tell me what I need to check!”

Wang Chao was full of vigor.

In fact, there were as many as three cases they needed to investigate.

Lin Chen sorted out his thoughts and said, “I’ve seen the files for Song Shengsheng’s case. In fact, files that can be closed have been heavily reviewed, so the possibility of any issues isn’t high. However, Xu Ran believed that Song Shengsheng was innocent. So, I think there must be a lot of his former fans that also insist on this, and among them, some may have evidence, which may exist in previous fan debates or forums. Please try to search for them.”

But what Lin Chen didn’t tell Wang Chao was that Xu Ran also revealed in the letter a piece of information that Song Shengsheng and Li Jingtian might have been in a relationship, and the relationship between them was quite distorted.

“A’Chen, what are you talking about? Why are you being so polite to me? Don’t you love me anymore?”

Wang Chao was focused on the wrong point.

Lin Chen had no choice but to rub his head and say, “Of course I love you, good boy.”

Xing Conglian coughed softly.

“Captain, what’s wrong with you? Jealous?” Wang Chao snickered and then said, “A’Chen, do you want to sleep for a bit? It’ll take a while for me to check these things, and there’s still some time before dawn. You should rest for a while.”

Wang Chao pointed to the sofa at the corner of the room.

Being polite would look hypocritical. He really needed sleep. “Okay.” After Lin Chen replied, he laid down on the sofa.

“Thank you for your hard work,” he said before closing his eyes.

“You don’t love me anymore!” Wang Chao continued to draw out his whining.

Lin Chen quickly closed his eyes.

Sleepiness covered him like a tide.

In fact, before going to sleep, Lin Chen wanted to tell Wang Chao to wake him up in an hour, but before he could, he had already fallen asleep.

He had a dream.

The dream began on an extremely long, red street. The neon lights that washed over him turned into thin shades of red and green lights on the ground; as thin as the eyeliner on Lily’s face.

Then he saw Lily crying to him, and soon, Lily’s cries turned into the laughter of the taxi driver, Master Guan. It was equally loud and full of emotions.

The scene reverted to the dark basement of Royal One, where Xing Conglian was pulling him to run, then the two of them were lying in the same bed, with Xing Conglian on top of him, jerking him around.

While on the bed, he turned his head sideways and saw Xu Ran’s face.

Xu Ran stared at them with her face covered in blood as she fell into a pool of blood and a truck ran over her.

Li Jingtian’s face suddenly appeared. His eyes were vicious, staring with excitement at the person in the pool of blood. The scene seemed to be rewinding, frame by frame, going back to the beginning of everything.

The surroundings were noisy. People crowded over each other as Li Jingtian was singing. Through the gap between people, Lin Chen saw someone walking onto the stage.

It was a girl in a red dress; not tall, very thin, holding a bouquet of roses in her hand. She handed the flowers to Li Jingtian, who hugged her.

Bright red blood seeped out of Li Jingtian’s throat.

Lin Chen suddenly opened his eyes.

He got up from the sofa. Before he knew it, the sky outside the window was already bright.

Wang Chao had fallen asleep at the table, while Xing Conglian was steadily clicking his mouse. He looked at him but said nothing.

Lin Chen closed his eyes and rubbed his forehead vigorously.

If every dream revealed something, Lin Chen thought, his dream must also be indicating something.

Li Jingtian hugged Xu Ran.

He opened his eyes again, stood up from the table, and walked over to Xing Conglian’s side. Xing Conglian was looking at a photo. It was the first photo that was posted, accusing Xu Ran of being the assailant.

The picture was clear.

For them who had lost on-site surveillance, this was the clearest of all the photos.

In the photo, Li Jingtian turned his back to the camera and seemed like he was about to hug the fan holding the bouquet. His hand was raised high to put his arms around the assailant’s shoulder.

Xing Conglian kept zooming in on the photo to see the position of Li Jingtian’s hand.

Xing Conglian turned his head and asked Lin Chen, “Do you remember where Li Jingtian’s hand ended up?”

“On the shoulder,” Lin Chen replied with great certainty.

His gaze finally fell on a very unusual place in the photo.

On the shoulders of the red dress, there were two leather decorative straps.

Kinky Thoughts:

This was a fairly heavy and graphic chapter.