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墨書 Inktalez
Gu Tianye arrived at the bottom of the building where Nie Xiaoyu lived. He didn't rush to go up but sat down on a bench in the community's green space.
The community was small, with only five buildings. Exiting the community led directly to a main road, where the sounds of cars rushing by came in waves, occasionally interrupted by the clattering of loose manhole covers.
There were several lush trees by the flower bed of the public activity center. The rain had stopped, and the sun peeked out again. Although the bright yellow sunlight lacked warmth, it still provided a visual sense of comfort.
In the distance, a few children were playing, their joyful laughter and innocent faces holding his gaze for a long time.
How wonderful it would be if nothing had ever happened! Then his life could be as beautiful as this lovely scenery. But ifs are just ifs, because everything has changed, including the ending...
A cold breeze blew by, causing him to shrink his neck and tighten his coat. The leaves rustled in response.
He shivered and pulled out a cigarette from his pocket, lighting it with a lighter. Another gust of wind came, extinguishing the flame. He tried to light it again, but the fire went out once more.
Gu Tianye felt anger rising within him and threw the lighter away. It landed on the ground with a crisp sound before shattering into pieces. Finally, he stood up resolutely and walked toward the entrance of the building.
Upon reaching the third floor, he didn't knock but took out a key and unlocked the door. This key was given to him by Nie Xiaoyu for easy access when he came over.
When he opened the door, he found a black-and-white puppy lying on a soft mat at the entrance. The little one stood up as soon as the door opened, looking up at him with wide eyes while wagging its tail back and forth slowly.
"Mao Mao, come here." Nie Xiaoyu walked out of her room wearing pajamas and with her hair down.
"My classmate's old dog had puppies, and she gave me one yesterday," she said with a smile to Gu Tianye before bending down to pick up the puppy.
"What's wrong? You look unwell," Nie Xiaoyu asked with concern.
"I didn't sleep well last night, so I look pale. Didn't you work the night shift? You should go rest in bed; I'll wash my face and come over to keep you company," Gu Tianye said.
"Okay," Nie Xiaoyu replied happily as she returned to her room and lay back down on the bed, covering herself with the blanket.
In less than five minutes, he arrived in the room.
He hung his yellow trench coat on the floor rack in front of the bed, then walked to the bedside, took off his shoes, and lay down next to Nie Xiaoyu.
The bedroom window was closed, and the dark blue checkered curtains were drawn. There was no wind, but he still felt cold, a chilling sensation rising from deep within him that threatened to freeze him completely!
He placed his hands behind his head, as if contemplating something.
Tears welled up at the corners of his eyes, and a tear rolled down his cheek.
Nie Xiaoyu, curled up in the warm blanket, suddenly turned her head and saw his tears.
"What’s wrong with you?" she asked, looking at him in surprise.
"Why did you poison Qi Luoling?" he wiped the tears from his face and said coldly.
Upon hearing this, she appeared flustered.
After a few seconds of silence, she replied coldly, "It's your fault for not agreeing to divorce her. If you want to blame someone, blame yourself."
Suddenly, Gu Tianye's eyes turned red, and the vein next to his temple throbbed. "You are so cruel; you poisoned two lives. You killed my child."
Seeing his fierce gaze, Nie Xiaoyu felt a bit scared.
At that moment, the little dog Mao Mao ran to the foot of the bed, barking frantically at them as if it had never behaved this way before.
"Stop barking, Mao Mao!" Nie Xiaoyu shouted anxiously at the little black dog that was squatting under the bed and barking loudly. The little black dog ran out of the bedroom, continuing to bark in the room.
Although the exhausted person was not very sensitive, Nie Xiaoyu still faintly smelled a strange odor.
It was gas!
Her face turned pale with fright. Barefoot, she got out of bed and ran to the kitchen.
The smell of gas was even stronger in the kitchen.
The kitchen window was tightly closed.
She wondered why it was closed when she had clearly opened it earlier.
With a forceful pull, she opened the window to its maximum position and then carefully checked where the gas was leaking from.
The gas switch on the stove was off. She bent down to sniff and then opened the cabinet under the stove. Sure enough, the strange odor was much stronger there; most likely, it was a problem with the gas rubber hose.
She was about to turn off the gas main when a hand reached out from behind her, stopping her from closing it.
Startled, she understood everything.
The hands gripped her ankle tightly, causing her to scream in pain, and then pushed her into the corner.
Gu Tianye closed the kitchen window again and dragged Nie Xiaoyu back to the bedroom.
She screamed desperately, trying to break free from his grip.
But it was all in vain.
Because their expressions began to change slowly. The relaxed muscles on their faces tensed up and then became rigid.
Breathing grew rapid, their faces started to turn pale, and consciousness began to blur...
Liu Siling hurriedly closed the security door.
The door across from her house was wide open, and the place was empty except for some clutter scattered on the floor. There were a few people inside, walking around and talking loudly.
Why are there new tenants again? What happened to that fortune teller? Liu Siling wondered. However, she wasn't in the mood to investigate this today because she had heard that her daughter was hospitalized again, which made her anxious.
In the stairwell, she ran into Master Chen who was going upstairs. Master Chen was the landlord of the house across from hers; they used to work at the same factory. Later, because his daughter-in-law had a baby, he and his wife went to help take care of their grandson. The house across had been rented out to tenants.
It had been a long time since they last met. The three exchanged a few pleasantries when Liu Siling suddenly remembered something. "Master Chen, why has your tenant changed again? What happened to that fortune teller, Mr. Su?"
"What fortune teller?" Master Chen looked a bit puzzled.
"The one who rented from you a few months ago?"
"That tenant wasn't a fortune teller! He told me he was engaged in unofficial civil and commercial investigation services, which is basically a private detective." Master Chen patted his head.
"Really? That can't be! He even did a fortune-telling for my daughter!" Liu Siling exclaimed in surprise.
"Liu Jie, you must be mistaken. He really isn't a fortune teller. Besides, his last name isn't Su; it's Li. I saw his ID. I've arranged for a new tenant, so I’ll be heading up now."
After saying that, Master Chen quickly went upstairs, leaving Liu Siling alone in a daze in the stairwell.
Outside, it was drizzling, and the whole world seemed shrouded in a light veil.
After entering the hospital, Liu Siling put away her umbrella and hurried to the second floor, pushing open the door to the ward.
Qi Luoling was lying on the hospital bed with an intravenous drip. The drip was very slow, and she watched as the hypertonic glucose dripped into her bloodstream, bringing a cool sensation.
In the adjacent bed lay a girl around fourteen or fifteen years old, likely in her prime youth but suffering from acute leukemia. Looking at her pale face and frail body, Liu Siling couldn't help but feel sorrowful.
Seeing her mother enter, Qi Luoling quickly propped herself up with her hands, preparing to sit up.
"How do you feel?" Liu Siling adjusted the blanket for her.
Under the dim light of the lamp, her face appeared pale, perhaps due to Light.
"I feel much better," she smiled.
"Why did you have potassium poisoning?" Liu Siling asked, puzzled.
"I'm not really sure," she lowered her head and murmured.
"What about Gu Tianye?" Liu Siling looked around.
"He said he was in a hurry to handle something."
"What is it?"
"I'm not quite sure either. I've been trying to call him all morning, but I still can't get through. I don't know what's going on."
After saying that, Qiluo Ling took out her phone again, found the previous call log, and dialed the number once more. Still unable to connect.
She frowned and put down her phone.
It's really strange. Usually, Gu Tianye rarely has trouble with his phone; even if he is in an area with no signal, once he reaches a place with signal, he would see the missed call notification and return the call within ten minutes.
She had no doubts about him at all. They had been together for so many years, and she had always believed in him. She never peeked at his phone because she firmly believed that their relationship, while not unbreakable, was quite deep.
Had he set his phone to vibrate? Or had he left it in the car?
Suddenly, she felt the urge to go to the restroom, possibly due to the large amount of IV fluids. She asked her mother to hold the IV bag up high while she got up to go. When she came out of the restroom, she happened to see Dr. Chen standing by her hospital bed.
He frowned and said, "What's going on with your husband? I can't get through to him on the phone. It's been almost a whole day; where could he be? Director Yang from Cardiac Surgery is urgently looking for him."
She took out her phone again and tried dialing once more.
To her surprise, it actually connected.
After just a few rings, someone picked up the receiver.
"Hello."
"Hello, where are you...?" Qi Luoling suddenly held back the words "where are you" when she realized that the voice on the other end was not Gu Tianye's but belonged to another man.
Had she dialed the wrong number? She felt a bit suspicious.
"You're not Gu Tianye?" she asked cautiously.
"Who are you?" The other person's tone was somewhat brusque.
"Don't care who I am, just let him answer the phone," Qi Luoling said unhappily.
"What is your relationship with Gu Tianye?"
"I am his wife, and who are you?" Qi Luoling retorted.
She was a bit angry; who was this person to speak in such an interrogative tone?
"Are you really Gu Tianye's wife?" The other party did not answer her question and continued to ask.
"Is there any doubt? What happened to my husband?" The anger that had just flared up in Qi Luoling had vanished, replaced by a vague sense of unease.
"Please hold on." After saying this, the other party fell silent.
Qi Luoling tightly gripped her phone, feeling cold and silent, her palms slightly sweating.
After waiting for nearly a minute, another unfamiliar man's voice came through the phone.
"Hello, Miss Qi, I am Dong Ying, the captain of the Criminal Investigation Team at Chengxi District Public Security Bureau. Unfortunately, your husband Gu Tianye is deceased."
Qi Luoling's mind went blank...
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