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墨書 Inktalez
Xiao Ting paused for a moment, hesitating before asking, "Will you help me?"
I deliberately furrowed my brow, pretending to be in deep thought. After a brief silence, I replied, "I need to know Xiao Guolin's action plan this time before I can make a decision. The last operation caused us too much harm; you can't understand."
"I understand," Xiao Ting said, her eyes clouded with something. "After my dad returned last time, it was like he became a different person. He used to go out of his way to spend time with me. Even though he didn't have much time, I could feel it. As long as there were no field archaeology missions, he was always with me—taking me to the park, going camping, buying me dolls. Even in high school, he still bought them for me, and my classmates laughed at me, but I liked it. Then he suddenly changed, becoming irritable and rarely talking to me at home. He locked himself in his room and never turned off the lights at night. Things have improved a bit in the past year or two, but I can still see the difference. He seems to be afraid of something; his gaze towards me is filled with fear. I can't tell if he's afraid of me or our environment. There's a demon inside him. I want to help him; I want to rescue him from this fear, which is also why I applied to the JD Archaeology Department."
At this point, Xiao Ting's tone became calm, and her eyes brightened.
A sparse applause came from a corner of the room. I turned to see Fatty sitting in a swivel chair with a cigarette dangling from his mouth, rhythmically clapping his hands. His expression surprised me; he didn't have that signature mischievous grin. He then took the half-smoked cigarette from his mouth, blew out a smoke ring, and waved his hand dismissively. "You all continue."
I was irritated that Fatty disrupted my rhythm. This kind of pressure and digging for information needed to be interconnected; her thoughts had to follow my lead without any flaws or interruptions for effective guidance. I stole a glance at Xiao Ting and saw her face show disdain, which relieved me; at least she wasn't distracted by Fatty.
Handing her a glass of water brought her focus back to me. "It's best if you understand that. I'll show you the information regarding Xiao Guolin's whereabouts in this letter; anything unrelated is off-limits. This is for your protection, and it's what your dad wants." I made it clear what I could show her and what she couldn't know while skipping over the detail about the USB drive in her hand, trusting she would follow this misdirection.
Xiao Ting seemed much calmer now; she didn't rush to answer me but let her gaze drift between me and the computer for a moment before saying, "You still haven't agreed to help me."
Of course, I wouldn't easily agree to such a thing. The problem was that she seemed more alert now and began grasping the key issues—this was not a good sign. It appeared that the pressure I'd applied wasn't enough. Since I'd made it clear that searching for Xiao Guolin was beyond my capabilities, I needed to be more assertive and eliminate any sense of false hope she might have; she needed to understand that the power lay with me.
I quickly made up my mind and frowned again. "I must read Xiao Guolin's letter before making a decision; I need to know his attitude and the purpose behind leaving this letter for me."
Upon hearing my words, Xiao Ting furrowed her brow as well. I wasn't in a hurry; I wanted to give her time to make a decision, confident she would arrive at the conclusion I desired. The situation was stronger than any individual; I didn't believe anyone else could help her—she would have no choice but to compromise.
The room fell silent, with the ticking of the clock sounding particularly loud; even Fatty's smoking could be heard distinctly.
"I'm sorry, but my dad is a person of integrity, and I think he misjudged you." Xiao Ting lifted her head, her expression seemingly relieved. "I trust him, but not you. Before coming to you, I spoke with Uncle Cao Mingzhe and Uncle Zhou. I don't know the specifics of your situation, but I know who can help me. If you can assist me, that would be great; if not, I'll find someone else to help me in exchange for this." She shook her hand tightly gripping the USB drive.
After hearing this, I felt a bead of sweat forming on my forehead. The tone of her words was completely different from her earlier demeanor; was she acting before? If that were the case, then my performance was utterly pathetic in comparison. I felt a mix of embarrassment and anger at being toyed with by a college student while thinking too highly of myself. My face flushed, and I felt hot all over as my plans unraveled completely. Taking a moment to calm myself, I realized that I had told many lies earlier. If she had indeed spoken with Captain Zhou, then those lies would have been exposed long ago. Yet she seemed unfazed by my fabrications; where did this girl get such cunning?
"Who else can you turn to for help? Captain Zhou? Or Cao Mingzhe?" I quickly grasped the key point: if she handed over the USB drive to the JD Archaeological Team or the organization behind this operation, they would undoubtedly have the means to crack the code. However, neither unit would allow her to participate in any subsequent search and rescue efforts—assuming there even was one. They wouldn't even let her know the contents of the letter, not even a single word. It seemed Xiao Ting understood this well, which is why she sought me out instead of going through official channels.
"I've already contacted someone willing to help me; what I need now is just the content of this letter. Thank you for helping me crack the code. After reading it, I'll make a copy for you—every word intact." Xiao Ting spoke calmly and methodically.
However, she didn't leave immediately. It seemed I had caught onto something; there was a flaw in her plan. I desperately pushed aside any distracting thoughts and negative emotions as the question became clear: why wasn't she in a hurry to leave? She had obtained what she wanted and found assistance; leaving immediately would be the logical choice. She should be able to tell that we wouldn't resort to violence—Fatty was merely trying to intimidate her.
"Who are you looking for? I know everyone involved in this matter." I stared into her eyes as I asked.
"Yes, you know him. But I'm not going to tell you his name; that's part of my agreement with him." Xiao Ting continued to look at me steadily. "You see, I've prepared thoroughly; I'm ready to act at any moment. I've also investigated you and discovered that you've participated in an archaeological activity and a geological event over the past two years. Your studio is quite renowned in the field of archaeological culture exchange. I was surprised to find that you haven't given up on your last mission; you're the only one who has consistently followed up on it. I admire that about you. You know, when I saw your sand table, I realized your thought process aligns with my dad's—you should know better than anyone where they are searching for missing persons; you're the most suitable person for this task. It's a pity..."
She had already revealed her intentions, trying to lure me into her trap without realizing my underlying fear. While I was indeed making an effort for a promise I'd made, I never intended to take action myself again. The more certain I became that the so-called helper she mentioned was fabricated, the more convinced I was that she had no other leverage.
It’s really cold today; my hands are starting to feel numb.
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