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墨書 Inktalez
Soon, the police at the station found the older brother mentioned by Wang Xiaobao. They located him in an internet café, where he was engrossed in a game I didn't recognize. In our generation, we played World of Warcraft, often sneaking out to internet cafés for all-nighters, so I didn't view this situation with any prejudice.
Many parents today fear games and the internet, believing they can ruin a person. When they hear about internet cafés, it's as if they've encountered a plague, and they avoid it at all costs. If something goes wrong with their child, they hastily blame computers and games without investigating the root cause.
In reality, games do not ruin people. Those of us who spent nights online turned out both good and bad. Those who are supposedly ruined by games would find other ways to go astray if not for gaming. What we need to teach is not that games are bad but rather what games truly are. Nothing in this world is entirely beneficial or entirely harmful.
The police informed us over the phone that when they attempted to arrest Zheng Shicheng, he was still shouting something about Demacia, insisting that they could take him but only after he finished his game and couldn't let down his teammates.
Zheng Shicheng sat before us. Since he wasn't a suspect, he wasn't placed in an interrogation room but rather in the Small Conference Room. He was completely unaware of why we wanted to arrest him, staring at us in confusion. Our task now was to observe whether Wang Xiaobao's murderous actions were self-motivated or if Zheng Shicheng had somehow influenced him with hints of violence due to his older brother status.
These two points are entirely different concepts.
However, after several inquiries with Zheng Shicheng, we concluded that he genuinely had no knowledge of the situation. He was completely unaware that Wang Xiaobao had killed his ex-girlfriend. Surveillance footage from the internet café showed that Zheng Shicheng had been there for five days straight; during this time, Zhang's Boy had visited him, but Wang Xiaobao had never come by.
Regarding Zheng Yunyun's death, Zheng Shicheng described it as a disaster. It turned out that he was the one who initiated their breakup. In his twenties now, Zheng Shicheng had never held a proper job; he made money by leveling up others' characters in games, earning around a hundred yuan a day and sometimes even several hundred. However, everyone viewed this as a waste of time, and few in the village respected him.
Despite his income being quite decent for the village and owning a house there, the narrow-minded villagers constrained Zheng Shicheng. Although he pointed out that some game streamers earned thousands monthly and that he could aspire to that level too, no one believed him; they thought he was just wasting time playing games.
As the villagers put it, if playing games could earn money, then even pigs could fly.
As gossip spread through the village, Zheng Yunyun's parents grew increasingly displeased with their future son-in-law. They scrutinized him constantly. Zheng Shicheng realized that in this small village, aside from farming or working in town, anything else would be seen as unconventional. So he decided to break up with Zheng Yunyun to avoid further complications for both parties.
After hearing this story, we couldn't help but laugh and cry at the same time; we were unsure how to evaluate it. This wasn't just an isolated case in this village; similar stories echoed throughout our lives. From childhood, parents drilled into us the importance of attending university relentlessly. In doing so, many talents outside academics were overlooked.
Similarly, after graduation, people pressured you to marry—marry without pause—resulting in many ending up with partners they didn't love and entering unhappy marriages. Being different from others is not shameful; not everyone must conform to societal norms.
It's like the number four: everyone says two plus two equals four, yet when someone claims one plus three also equals four, those who believe in two plus two jump up and protest how one can say such a thing—insisting on two plus two only. They forget that even simple numbers can be added differently and that paths to success are incredibly diverse.
Often, successful individuals are those who think outside the box. Success belongs to a minority while conformity prevails among the majority.
Regarding Zheng Shicheng, we won't comment much on the path he has chosen. After all, a person's birth environment is beyond their control, but the road they choose to walk is something they can decide for themselves. The tragedy of this situation lies in the fact that Zheng Shicheng can view it with a mature perspective, while his so-called little brother, Wang Xiaobao, has done things that he should not have done for his older brother.
Through Zheng Shicheng, we learned that the set of beliefs Wang Xiaobao has developed likely came from watching poorly made gangster movies in internet cafes. Every man harbors a dream of being a hero or a gangster; this is normal. In real life, we often cannot act with swift justice or turn away gracefully, so we project these fantasies onto films.
However, Wang Xiaobao is too unable to distinguish between reality and fantasy. Coupled with excessive pampering at home, there was no guidance to correct his misconceptions, which ultimately led him down this path.
Considering all of this, Wang Xiaobao's act of murder stems from a chaotic sense of loyalty, and the timing and location correspond well; it should have nothing to do with Guo Guoqing. After careful consideration, we decided to let Zheng Shicheng have a serious talk with Wang Xiaobao. During our interactions with Zheng Shicheng, we discovered that this young man in his twenties has his own views and opinions. Wang Xiaobao would not listen to us, but we also did not want him to continue holding onto such incorrect beliefs. It would be better for Zheng Shicheng to talk to him.
"After all, you are recognized as his older brother. Your conversation will be more effective than ours or even his parents'," I said to him.
Zheng Shicheng nodded and then told us, "I might do something extreme later; I hope you won't stop me. Some people can't be awakened by words; they can only be shaken awake."
"Just be mindful of your limits," I replied after looking at Zheng Shicheng, and ultimately agreed to his request.
We stood outside the one-way glass while Zheng Shicheng walked in alone. Since Wang Xiaobao is a minor and poses far less danger than Guo Guoqing, we did not restrain him with handcuffs. Upon seeing Zheng Shicheng enter, Wang Xiaobao first looked surprised and then exhibited an inexplicable excitement.
But soon after, he displayed a sense of desolation: "Brother, I know that killing means paying with your life, but I have no regrets. That woman, Zheng Yunyun, is not worthy of you. Truly, I mean it. So I killed her; you will get something better."
As he spoke, tears streamed down Wang Xiaobao's face: "Today we part ways; let's continue being brothers in our next life."
Hearing this made us feel an immense irony; Wang Xiaobao was utterly ignorant of the law. He did not realize that minors under fourteen do not bear criminal responsibility—a point where Guo Guoqing far surpassed him. Yet Guo Guoqing knew this well and thus dared to kill without restraint. In contrast, Wang Xiaobao understood the simplest truth that killing incurs consequences; he was not fearless but resigned to the notion that he too would die for his actions.
Two young murderers with two entirely different mindsets.
Zheng Shicheng stood still after hearing Wang Xiaobao's last words and then swung his arm around to slap Wang Xiaobao across the face. The blow left Wang Xiaobao dazed and confused about what had just happened. Zheng Shicheng followed up with another slap—five slaps in total—leaving Wang Xiaobao's face swollen.
At this moment, Zheng Shicheng said: "The first slap was for the deceased Zheng Yunyun; the next two were for your parents; the last two were for myself. I took you to internet cafes and told you that playing games isn't wrong and that you shouldn't care about others' opinions. Yes, your studies aren't good, but does that mean there's no way out?"
"I told you these things not so you could lose your sense of right and wrong!" At this point, Zheng Shicheng appeared somewhat agitated: "I encouraged you not to care about others' judgments, but what did you do? You went and killed someone! Did I ever say that killing is a good thing?"
"Big Brother..." Wang Xiaobao seemed unable to believe that his loyalty to his friends had led to such a result. He looked at Zheng Shicheng, tears welling in his eyes. Indeed, this matter needed Zheng Shicheng to educate Wang Xiaobao.
Zheng Shicheng continued, "No matter what excuses people make, killing is a disgusting act, not cool at all! You are only thirteen years old. I know you killed for the sake of so-called loyalty, but let me tell you, if being with me means killing over trivial matters, then I would rather not have you as a brother."
"But if you can realize the mistakes you've made starting today and strive to be a useful person in society, doing good deeds as much as you can, then I will still recognize you as my brother. I am many years older than you and understand many things that you don't know, including things your parents might not understand. Do you understand?"
Wang Xiaobao stared blankly at Zheng Shicheng for a long time before suddenly kneeling down and crying out, "Big Brother, I was wrong! I was wrong!"
Then the two embraced and cried together.
We were also deeply moved. The reason Zheng Shicheng could become the big brother among these kids was not just because he could give them game currency; more importantly, it was likely due to his special charisma. For this young man, I believe that if given the opportunity, he could soar even higher.
I said to Yuzelin, "This case ends here. The follow-up will be handled by the others. A day has passed; Guo Guoqing should be unable to hold back from saying something to us."
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