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墨書 Inktalez
Zhang Xue was caught, and the sixteen million returned to the police, ready to be handed over to the Economic Investigation Division for further processing. The dreams of four young men were shattered once again; each of their four million was enough to fulfill their aspirations, but now everything had returned to square one.
I cannot forget the look in Zhang Xue's eyes as she left. It was filled with resentment and sorrow, as if she wished to swallow me whole. If it weren't for Liu uncovering the truth, perhaps Zhang Xue would have succeeded. However, the book she gifted me, Alive, betrayed her; the protagonist's grandson met his end by choking on soybeans.
Perhaps Zhang Xue subconsciously mimicked that method, or maybe it was intentional—who knows?
The time for the High School Entrance Exam arrived, accompanied by a light rain.
That night, someone was sent to the detention center. This person was Zhao Erming. In a moment of desperation, Zhao Erming could no longer hold back and stabbed a client who was on top of his mother with a dagger, leaving him severely injured. On the way to the hospital, the client succumbed to his injuries.
Some say one drop of essence equals ten drops of blood; that night, he indeed shed a lot of blood.
Zhao Erming's mother cried outside the detention center. I looked over; she was a flamboyantly dressed woman, wearing revealing and provocative clothing. However, under the wash of tears, her heavy makeup turned into a smudged mess, making her appear comically grotesque.
For so many years, Zhao Erming's mother relied on selling herself to support her son’s education and living expenses. Yet her son disappointed her with poor grades and constant fighting. Still, Zhao Erming was her son; she wept outside because of her own failures, feeling it had nothing to do with him. She would willingly take his place in prison if it meant helping him, but it was all in vain.
When I left, she remained slumped on the ground. The vibrant makeup on her face revealed wrinkles; strands of white hair peeked through her long red locks. Her wails echoed far away, drawing curious onlookers who pointed and whispered among themselves. She had always been someone who cared about her appearance and beauty, but at that moment, she seemed indifferent to everything.
“Are you really not going to get involved in this case?” Gu Chen asked from behind me.
I shook my head. This case was straightforward; whether I participated or not made no difference. Besides, I didn’t know how to face Zhao Erming. If he had four million, would he still resort to such actions? Would his mother continue selling herself for money?
During summer vacation,
Lin Rou was thrown at the hospital entrance covered in wounds. According to informed police officers, those injuries were inflicted by her younger brother. In Lin Rou's family, the preference for sons over daughters was deeply ingrained. At home, Lin Rou held no status; her grandmother bullied her while her father beat her mercilessly.
Her younger brother grew up in this environment and often took out his frustrations on his sister without restraint. When the tragedy unfolded, Lin Rou was taking an afternoon nap. Her brother became upset after losing a game and unleashed his anger on her with punches and kicks. Later, seemingly unsatisfied with that, he struck Lin Rou with a heated iron wire.
It was the worst beating Lin Rou had ever endured. She was left gasping for breath, and her grandmother, fearing for her life but unwilling to spend money on her, abandoned Lin Rou at the hospital entrance before turning away. Fortunately, a kind-hearted stranger paid for Lin Rou's medical expenses, allowing her to survive.
The police arrested Lin Rou's family, but with one elderly and one young person, they were both as tough as leather. Lin Rou's younger brother was only thirteen and would be out soon, while her grandmother proudly declared that if she had to go to jail, so be it. The expression on her face was one of honor and greatness.
Their ugly demeanor stood in stark contrast to Lin Rou, who lay in the hospital room staring gloomily at the ceiling. She might have thought that if she had died from the beating, perhaps the outcome would have been better.
At sixteen years old, she found it hard to get a job anywhere, and returning home only led to this dismal fate. When would this life come to an end?
A month later, Lin Rou was discharged from the hospital. She had no idea that I had paid for her hospitalization with money I borrowed from Mary.
The lives of the wealthy were truly enviable; at least having money meant having the opportunity to choose one's own life. Many people, however, had no choices at all.
On the day Lin Rou was released, Li Taida was also set free. Being a minor and charged with attempted murder meant his time in detention was short. I was present when Li Taida walked out; he seemed to have heard about Zhang Xue. His eyes were filled with anger and provocation as he looked at me, and I had no doubt that if given the chance, he would kill me.
What I didn't expect was that we would soon meet Li Taida again.
It was a rainy night when Li Taida arrived at the City Bureau wielding a bloodied kitchen knife with ease.
Li Taida had come to avenge his father’s death. This time, he was determined to succeed. Last time he failed to poison his father, which left him furious. What Li Taida didn’t know was that Zhang Xue had deliberately arranged for his gambling friend to lure Li Xian out; otherwise, Li Xian would have been dead long ago.
Zhang Xue used twenty million to buy sixteen million worth of chips; the extra four million served as gambling funds for Li Xian. Otherwise, why would a gambling friend lend money to another gambler?
Now free, Li Taida decided to take matters into his own hands and kill his father.
The gambling friend's money was suspected of being dirty money, leading to an investigation that left Li Xian without funds for gambling.
Thus, Li Xian remained at home drowning his sorrows in alcohol. That night, he got drunk and wrecked the house. When Li Taida returned home and saw this destruction, he could no longer hold back. This was the only thing his mother had left him; even now he didn’t know where she was or what she was doing—this was his only connection to her.
A sharp kitchen knife and a drunken man swaying on his feet. When the police arrived to examine the body, Li Xian's neck had been slashed multiple times, with only a small piece of flesh still attached. The blood from a severed artery had even splattered onto the ceiling, demonstrating the force with which Li Taida had struck.
I recalled what Li Taida had said when he first entered prison: "But remember, as long as he is still alive, I will kill him."
Li Taida was serious.
Would the outcome have been different if they had four million? I wasn't sure. But I knew what their fate would be without that four million. So was my choice the right one? Zhou Guo had indeed decided to sacrifice himself; that was his decision. Did I really have to be so cruel?
I sat in the lounge, smoking one cigarette after another, when someone walked in through a slightly ajar door. I turned to see Captain Shao.
"What's wrong? You look troubled," Captain Shao said. "The case is solved, and the money has been recovered."
With that, Captain Shao took a cigarette from my pack.
I sighed and said, "Captain Shao, there's a question I've always wanted to ask you. After every case is solved, I feel conflicted. Sometimes, do we really have to catch the murderer? Why do we have to extinguish the last glimmer of hope for those who know they won't offend again and are forced into their actions?"
Captain Shao lit his cigarette and replied, "From the very beginning, I knew what kind of person you were. Ever since that Lin Shu case when you secretly hid those tens of thousands, I realized that often you sympathize with criminals and feel pity for them. There are even many times when you shield them."
"Don't you ever feel that way?" I looked at Captain Shao, hoping for an answer. "You don't get tangled up in the stories behind criminals? That kind of mindset where anyone who is a criminal should be caught? I've heard that crime is actually your mentor?"
Captain Shao slowly exhaled a puff of smoke and said, "That's right. Now I can give you this answer; just remember one thing, and you'll never feel conflicted again. No matter who it is or what reasons they have, no matter how tragic their background is, as long as they are a murderer, I will catch them."
I straightened up and listened intently. "What is it?"
Captain Shao stated firmly, "Because there are many people in this world who have faced similar circumstances. Yet most people, even when confronted with such tragedy and on the brink of despair, do not choose to commit crimes. They continue to strive with their own hands to survive, even without hope."
Captain Shao stood up and walked toward the door while saying, "If you let them go just because they are tragic or forced into it, that would be too unfair. I didn't understand this before until I encountered a certain situation."
"What is it?" I asked Captain Shao.
Captain Shao leaned against the door, smoking as he spoke. "Back then, I was still a student. One time, I went out to buy something. An old lady was selling some sewing supplies at a stall. A girl bought something for fifty cents, and after the old lady gave her change, a beggar came over. The girl casually handed the beggar a dollar. I can never forget the look in the old lady's eyes."
"The old lady worked hard from dawn to dusk to set up her stall, yet she received less than a beggar who was younger and able-bodied." Captain Shao had already stepped outside. "At that moment, I understood that there are always people in this world who work hard with their own hands. I don't want to give this world to those who seek sympathy. I want people like that old lady to see the kindness and hope in this world. Every time I think of this, I know that crime is crime; there are no criminals who shouldn't be caught."
Captain Shao had walked away, but his words lingered in my heart. No wonder he had never been conflicted; it was because of this understanding. If tragedy could justify crime, it would be too unfair to those who abide by the law. We must give people hope, not criminals.
I extinguished the cigarette in my hand and looked at the yellowed copy of Alive beside me.
No matter how great a person's life is, if they wish to die, they cannot live.
Suddenly, I recalled something Zhang Xue often said: "Is life always this painful, or just sometimes?"
Her tone and gestures, the confusion and unease in her eyes were firmly etched in my mind. Now I indeed had an answer; I wanted to tell her: "It's always like this."
Yet even though life is filled with suffering and pain, there are still those who strive for themselves without resorting to crime.
They never speak of their hardships; they simply live for the sake of being alive.
Perhaps that is what makes them more admirable.
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