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墨書 Inktalez
Seeing Chen Bo's features all scrunched up, his brows furrowed like the pleats of a bun, I understood that something serious must have happened. I set Hu Ningning down and signaled for her to stay calm before turning to Chen Bo. "What’s going on? What happened?"
"Yang Ting has been arrested!" Chen Bo exclaimed.
Upon hearing Chen Bo's words, a wave of confusion surged within me. Right now, Ha Li Min was in the interrogation room, and Zhang Zijun was also there. Both murderers were sitting in the interrogation room; could there really be a third murderer? Was it possible that one of Zhang Zijun or Ha Li Min's lovers committed the crime? Even thinking about it with my heels was impossible.
Yet, it had happened—Yang Ting had indeed been arrested. But who was the one who caught Yang Ting?
I grabbed my head and whispered, "What exactly is going on?"
Chen Bo sighed, looking somewhat anxious. "Here’s the situation: when we arrived, the police released Zhang Zijun."
"What?" I kicked a chair beside me to the ground. "Who authorized them to release Zhang Zijun? I emphasized multiple times that it had to be the couple working together. Even if Ha Li Min wanted to take all the blame upon herself, Zhang Zijun is still a murderer. There’s still Yang Ting who hasn’t died; how could you let Zhang Zijun go?"
Chen Bo looked awkward at my expression and replied, "We caught Zhang Zijun last night, but it's been over twelve hours now. You know we don’t have any evidence proving that Zhang Zijun is the murderer, so after twelve hours, we had to release him. Besides, the guys thought this case was closed, so they didn’t keep an extra eye on things."
Mary patted my shoulder and said, "Now that this problem has arisen, it's not the time to get angry. Is Zhang Zijun the one being arrested now? What’s happening with Yang Ting?"
Chen Bo rubbed his eyes and quickly said, "We just received word that after leaving the police station, Zhang Zijun went straight to Taishan Academy. It’s raining, and everyone on the road is wearing raincoats; Zhang Zijun probably disguised himself as a parent to blend in. Then, during the chaos of school letting out, he kidnapped Yang Ting."
"Kidnapped?"
I focused on Chen Bo's mention of kidnapping and asked, "Where is Zhang Zijun right now?"
"On the rooftop of a teaching building at Taishan Academy," Chen Bo replied.
"Let’s go." I said. "That means Yang Ting is still alive. Since Zhang Zijun didn’t kill Yang Ting immediately, it’s clear he must have other demands. He’s likely waiting for us; he might have something to say. Let’s move!"
With that, we divided our tasks: Chen Bo would first take Hu Ningning back to the police station while the rest of us headed directly to Taishan Academy.
The rain outside the car intensified, pounding relentlessly on the roof. Inside the vehicle, the occupants remained silent, each lost in their own thoughts. Pedestrians hurried by, umbrellas and raincoats shielding them from the downpour. Occasionally, glimpses of children could be seen beneath their rain gear, making their way home from school.
However, at that moment, one child was unable to return home. That child was Yang Ting, who was currently being held hostage by Zhang Zijun on the rooftop. By the time we arrived, several police cars had already surrounded the area beneath the teaching building; these were the first responders to the emergency call. Beside the officers stood school officials and Yang Ting's homeroom teacher.
People around were trying to persuade Zhang Zijun, urging him not to act impulsively.
A cordon had been set up around the area, allowing those on the ground to see what was happening above.
The rooftop had a railing about one and a half meters high, seemingly designed to prevent falls. Yet, we could see that Yang Ting was standing precariously on the edge of this railing, most of his foot dangling in mid-air. His hands and legs were bound together, leaving him unable to fight back.
Behind Yang Ting, Zhang Zijun held onto his clothing with one hand. This meant that if Zhang Zijun let go for even a moment, Yang Ting would have no chance of saving himself; bound as he was, he wouldn't be able to grab onto the railing and would fall directly from the seventh floor. The combined height of the seventh floor and the lobby was approximately twenty-five meters.
Falling from such a height posed a terrifying risk of death. While some individuals have survived falls from twenty-five meters unscathed, it was clear that Yang Ting was unlikely to be among the fortunate ones.
Zhang Zijun appeared clever; even if a sniper arrived on scene, shooting Zhang Zijun would mean that as soon as he released his grip, Yang Ting would plummet. Therefore, we could not allow Zhang Zijun to die—not until we had ensured safety measures were in place.
"Where are the air cushions?" I asked.
A police officer hurried over and replied, "We can't use air cushions. If he sees us preparing them, he'll let go. From up there, falling takes only seconds; we need at least ten seconds or even half a minute to get ready."
"Have they assessed the situation? Does he have any demands?" I inquired.
The officer nodded and said, "He only made one request: he wants Ha Li Min to come."
I frowned. From our current perspective, it seemed unlikely that just Zhang Zijun and Ha Li Min could create any significant disturbance—could they really escape? But if they had Wu Zui backing them up, that raised serious concerns.
"Stay calm," Gu Chen shouted over the chaotic noise surrounding us.
Seeing the serious expression on Gu Chen's face, the people around gradually fell silent.
I shouted through the police car's loudspeaker, "Zhang Zijun, you're quite the player, huh? Deliberately coming in and planning to leave after twelve hours. Did you and your wife think this through beforehand? I should have been more cautious and advised them to keep a close watch on you. Knowing that you still have another target, we still let you out."
After a pause, I continued, "So now what? What do you intend to do? Your wife, Ha Li Min, is on her way here. If you release Yang Ting, we can negotiate. I can arrange a car for you and give you a lot of money. But if Yang Ting dies, we will have you trapped with no way out. Do you understand?"
Zhang Zijun's face appeared beside Yang Ting, his voice low enough that I had to listen carefully to catch his words.
Zhang Zijun said, "From the very beginning of this plan, I never intended to stay alive. In fact, I should have died six months ago. It's just that I've been holding onto a breath of air; as long as that breath remains, I can't die. And now, everything is coming to an end. People like you will never understand our feelings. If this world were beautiful, who the hell would want to kill?"
At a distance of twenty-five meters, I couldn't see Zhang Zijun's face or his expression clearly.
He continued rambling: "This world is too beautiful! Beautiful enough that I can kill when I want to, beautiful enough that others can bully people at will. This world is truly wonderful. People do whatever they want; that's why I kill and others kill me—it's fair."
Hearing Zhang Zijun's words made it clear that there was no way to reason with him now. You can never wake someone who pretends to be asleep; you can never save someone who is already dead. Perhaps six months ago, Zhang Zijun and Ha Li Min had already died. Their souls were gone; only their shells remained.
I shook my head. Though I didn't want things to turn out this way, it was already predictable.
Zhang Zijun kept rambling on, but his voice grew softer; those below could no longer hear what he was saying. At this moment, the only person who knew what Zhang Zijun was saying was the one whose life hung by a thread—Yang Ting. Whether Yang Ting had abused Zhang Zuocheng or not, who could say?
"Is there a way up?"
While Zhang Zijun continued his monologue, I asked the School Leader beside me.
He looked utterly despondent. In just a few short miles, such events had unfolded. Even if the police managed to control the situation during the investigation, once the case was closed, these events would soon be visible on computers, televisions, and newspapers. At that point, the leadership of Taishan Academy would likely be untenable.
He shook his head: "There's only one way up, but we've tried it and found it blocked by something heavy. Besides, as soon as we try to come up, he'll immediately let go. So right now we have no options. That kid seems determined to kill; even if Old Wang comes in here, what can we do?"
I furrowed my brow; the situation was quite dangerous. After Zhang Zijun finished his rambling or perhaps after he saw his wife, he would definitely loosen his grip.
I turned to the police officer beside me and said, "You go outside and keep an eye out. Don't let Ha Li Min come in, and make sure Zhang Zijun doesn't see him. Wait until I think the timing is right before you let anyone in, understood? Come back and report to me later."
"Got it," the officer replied.
I then addressed Gu Chen, saying, "From the current situation, a target as large as an air cushion will definitely be spotted. And even if the sniper can take him out with one shot, once Zhang Zijun is dead, he will also loosen his grip. At that point, Yang Ting will still be a lost cause. So I think if we want to get closer, we only have one option."
"What option?" Gu Chen asked.
I glanced at the corner of the teaching building and said, "We can only climb up to a place where Zhang Zijun can't see us. The so-called 'darkness under the lamp' means that from Zhang Zijun's perspective, he won't be able to see what's happening right under his nose. You need to go to the seventh-floor room, bring a safety rope, and climb up from the window. When the time comes, grab hold of Yang Ting and don't let go, even if it costs you your life. Just hold on for a little while, and the other officers will help you secure Yang Ting."
Gu Chen nodded and said, "Okay."
Then, Gu Chen called over a few officers and moved back, actually planning to circle around the teaching building and enter through the back door.
At this moment, to prevent Zhang Zijun from noticing them from his elevated position, I needed to attract his attention.
“Zhang Zijun.”
I shouted through the loudspeaker.
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