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"Why don't you all stay at my place tonight?" Wang Yikai said through the rearview mirror, looking at us with a helplessness reminiscent of a child. "Really, once my innocence is proven, I will apply to the board for a business trip to another city. After this matter settles down, I'll come back. It's just too terrifying; a friend of over ten years died right in front of me."
I turned to Wang Yikai and asked, "Weren't you quite opposed to us before?"
Wang Yikai nodded, generously admitting, "That's true, and it's actually one of the main reasons I want to take you home. Although I didn't kill anyone, I know that if this is investigated deeply, my involvement will definitely be exposed. You need to understand, this is my secret."
"What secret do you have?" I inquired.
Wang Yikai left us hanging without answering.
When we arrived at Wang Yikai's home and he opened a floor-to-ceiling wardrobe in one of the rooms, Zhao Mingkun and I finally understood what he meant. Our mouths dropped open in shock, unable to calm down.
The wardrobe was crammed full of women's underwear, stockings, cotton socks, and more. From the condition of these items, it was clear they had been worn by someone, some even yellowed and stained. Just a glance revealed there were probably over a hundred pieces of lingerie in that wardrobe.
At that moment, I finally understood why Wang Yikai had reacted so negatively upon seeing us.
Wang Yikai stood before us, his face flushed. He stuttered slightly as he pleaded, "I beg you, please don't let this matter get out. Otherwise... otherwise my life will be over. I'm terrified of this secret being discovered; that's why I really didn't want you to get involved."
"But now..." Wang Yikai closed the wardrobe and locked it before continuing, "But now six people are dead. Starting with Xing Yafang, I didn't realize anything at first. But when I saw three of my friends die right in front of me, I truly felt... scared."
It is only when death begins to threaten someone that they feel fear. His relationship with Xing Yafang wasn't particularly close; her death might have been just gossip for him. But if we hadn't come looking for Wang Yikai and had chosen to seek someone else instead, then Wang Yikai would also be dead.
I think Wang Yikai understood this point well enough to feel such terror.
He had brushed shoulders with death.
Seeing that we remained silent, Wang Yikai added urgently, "Please promise me you won't let this matter get out!"
Zhao Mingkun pondered, "So this is the reason you haven't married even though you're in your thirties?"
Wang Yikai nodded and said, "I won't hide it from you; this habit started when I was around ten years old. At that time, I inadvertently came across something about stealing other people's clothes for self-gratification. One day, I decided to try it myself. It was like opening the door to a new world, and I couldn't stop after that."
Wang Yikai's condition is actually a form of psychological sexual inversion. To be precise, his behavior is known as fetishism. There is another term for fetishism called paraphilia. Most people used to prefer the latter term, but now psychology is gradually leaning towards the former.
Fetishism sounds like a disease, while paraphilia sounds more like a peculiar hobby.
Everyone has their unique preferences; for instance, some people enjoy the smell of gasoline, while others might like body piercings. Over time, people have come to realize that if someone's peculiar preference does not harm society, then there is no need for correction.
From a psychological perspective, fetishism generally falls into two categories. The first category involves an intense obsession with a particular object; for example, some people are obsessed with oil drums or tables. A passionate stamp collector also falls into this category. The second category specifically refers to the repeated collection of items used by the opposite sex driven by sexual urges.
Fetishism usually begins during puberty and is more common among males. When males frequently use women's underwear for self-gratification over the years, they develop a conditioned reflex pattern. When they acquire a piece of women's lingerie, it triggers sexual arousal, linking sexual climax with these items.
In severe cases, this can lead to an inability to engage in normal sexual relationships.
Starting from age ten, if no one intervenes and allows Wang Yikai to continue down this path, it’s likely that his fetishism has become quite severe by now. In our less tolerant society today, this undoubtedly affects Wang Yikai's life. It's no wonder he hasn't dated anyone at thirty years old. Despite many girls pursuing him, he remains indifferent.
Knowing this story makes it hard to label Wang Yikai as simply perverted. While we don't discriminate against such preferences, using money to have Luo Ding steal is truly excessive.
"That doesn't justify your request for Luo Ding to steal underwear," I said seriously. "You can prove your innocence; who can prove yours?"
Wang Yikai replied, "That's right; what happened back then was indeed my fault. I was very immature at twenty. But that night I asked Luo Ding to return the underwear. Later on, I thought it through and realized Luo Ding would definitely spill my secret, so I needed to explain things clearly to Lu Zhiqiu myself."
"You once pursued Lu Zhiqiu madly?" I suddenly recalled something and asked, "Did you not know she had a boyfriend?"
"I know," Wang Yikai said. "At that time, everyone around me had a girlfriend, so of course I had to find one too. That's when I started pursuing Lu Zhiqiu. Kori Chiu really liked her boyfriend and rejected me several times, but I was stubborn. Later, I didn't even know if I was just being rebellious or if I really liked her."
Zhao Mingkun snorted coldly. "So you decided to steal her underwear?"
Wang Yikai blushed and replied, "I was out of my mind back then. That thousand yuan was originally meant for buying someone else's used items. I thought, if I gave the money to Luo Ding to steal it for me, it wouldn't be any different."
"So did you explain everything to Lu Zhiqiu later?" I asked.
Wang Yikai shook his head. "When I got there, I saw Luo Ding running away from me in the distance. I knew he must have spilled my secret, which is why he looked so scared when he saw me. At this point, all I could do was go over and explain, but just as I was about to speak, Yang Licheng walked out from deep within the construction site."
"Yang Licheng?" I asked. "Is he the one competing with Lu Zhiqiu for the scholarship?"
Wang Yikai nodded. "Yang Licheng saw me with Lu Zhiqiu and seemed a bit angry. He stood in front of Lu Zhiqiu and wouldn't move, so I couldn't do anything about it. After thinking for a moment, I decided to go back with Yang Licheng."
"You went back with Yang Licheng?" I continued. "Do you know what he was doing at that time?"
Wang Yikai waved his hand dismissively. "I wanted to ask him too, but Yang Licheng seemed really annoyed that Lu Zhiqiu and I were together at night. He told me not to get too close to her, or else he would be rude to me. I never thought Yang Licheng liked Lu Zhiqiu, but then it hit me—he actually does."
"What about Lu Zhiqiu?" Zhao Mingkun asked. "Didn't she come back with you two?"
Wang Yikai shook his head again. "No. Lu Zhiqiu probably didn't want to cause any misunderstandings with her boyfriend by going back with two men, so she didn't walk back with us. But I'll admit one thing: when I first heard that Lu Zhiqiu had died, my first reaction was relief instead of sadness."
Wang Yikai clutched his head with both hands and avoided looking at us. "Because Lu Zhiqiu's death meant my secret would never come out. And Luo Ding, that Tall Guy, seems to think I killed Lu Zhiqiu; every time he sees me, he runs away far from me, so he's too scared to reveal my secret. I can tell, but I don't want to explain because if he fears me, he won't say anything."
"I originally thought we would catch the murderer in a few weeks at most, but unexpectedly it's been seven years," Wang Yikai said. "In these seven years, I've finally seen myself clearly—I don't actually like women; I only like the things they wear. It's ironic, isn't it? I know there are many girls in our company who want to pursue me, but I'm not interested in them at all; I'm only attracted to their stockings and underwear. But how could I ever admit that..."
After leaving Luo Ding, Wang Yikai encountered Yang Licheng. If he could obtain detailed information from Yang Licheng, it would prove that neither of them was the murderer.
"Did you see Liang Mei that night?" I asked.
"Liang Mei?" Wang Yikai shook his head. "No, I only saw Yang Licheng. I didn't kill anyone; my relationship with Yang Licheng is just average, and there's no way we would team up to commit murder. If you don't believe me, you can ask Yang Licheng. He can definitely confirm that I'm telling the truth."
So much had happened in just one night. All thirteen individuals had motives to kill Lu Zhiqiu, and after Lu Zhiqiu's death, it indeed benefited them. But who exactly killed Lu Zhiqiu? How many people did Lu Zhiqiu meet that night? It was impossible for all thirteen to take turns meeting him.
At this moment, we could only eliminate one person's suspicion at a time.
I wondered how Gu Chen's investigation was going and if he had found any leads on Lu Xiangyang's whereabouts.
Lu Zhiqiu, who could have killed you? Why did all thirteen have reasons and motives to want you dead? You were such a kind person; why did these thirteen not express sorrow over your death and even feel pleased about it in private?
Was it all out of jealousy? Jealous of your beauty, your academic success, your kindness?
"What kind of person was Lu Zhiqiu?" I posed this question to Wang Yikai again.
"What kind of person was Lu Zhiqiu?"
Wang Yikai remained silent for a long time before arriving at an answer: "He was just someone with a good personality, I suppose..."
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