Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
Watching the ambulance speed away from the street, the clinic became lively once again. Everyone was asking me what had happened, but I wasn't in the mood to answer their questions.
I looked at the doctor and asked, "Am I, Calomel, going to be okay?"
The doctor nodded and said, "Well, the principle isn't difficult. Anyone with a bit of understanding should know this. In high school, yes, this kind of knowledge should have been learned. If one is determined, even a high school student could figure it out. I just don't know if my guess is correct."
"From what I saw at the scene, it is true," I replied.
The doctor smiled and said, "You see, I didn't even go to the scene, yet I could guess it. The principle isn't hard, right?"
I nodded. From a theoretical standpoint, this wasn't a particularly complicated method of murder; rather, it was a clever one. If Murderer had prepared this killing device in advance, all Murderer had to do was wait.
Thus, Murderer must have understood Wang Xin's character well. He knew that Wang Xin was someone who loved to show off, especially when guests were around; Wang Xin would never miss an opportunity to boast. So Wang Xin took this incense burner from a home that didn't belong to him.
Mercurous Chloride is toxic and can be transported easily as long as it's not exposed to sunlight. Placing it in the incense burner allows it to slowly decompose into a highly toxic substance, and then all that's left is for Wang Xin to unwittingly bring about his own demise. This time, Murderer also had an unexpected gain; he probably didn't anticipate that Yang Licheng would also meet his end in this manner.
Originally, Yang Licheng was supposed to hide in Wang Xin's home to avoid danger, but little did he know that Wang Xin's house was the most dangerous place of all. A thought suddenly struck me: Murderer has killed so many people without ever appearing at the scene. Could it be that previous murders were also carried out using a method that wasn't complicated but was very clever?
I furrowed my brow and seriously pondered what kind of person Murderer must be. Murderer is intelligent and enjoys thinking and solitude; perhaps he also likes tinkering with things. Moreover, he possesses knowledge of chemistry. At this point, I recalled someone: Lu Xiangyang.
According to his girlfriend and his best friend's testimony, Lu Xiangyang often liked to study strange things—like ghost-raising or practicing witchcraft—and even alchemy. Among the three essential elements of alchemy are salt, sulfur, and Mercury.
Therefore, it wouldn't be impossible for Lu Xiangyang to use Mercury for murder.
"Then it's settled!" I said to the doctor. "Regardless of anything else, thank you."
The doctor nodded but then shook his head before speaking again: "You know, being a doctor isn't easy these days. Back when I was in college, I held onto the idea of Save Lives. But after seeing too much over the years—I've been a doctor for nearly twenty years now—I've witnessed too many people being misled. Especially when faced with matters of life and death, the greed and evil that human nature reveals can be truly terrifying. I absolutely won't let my son study medicine."
As I stepped out of the clinic, I glanced at the banner hanging beside the medicine cabinet that read "Save Lives, Miraculous Recovery", feeling an inexplicable emotion rise within me. Perhaps this doctor has his own story too.
Zhao Mingkun spoke up: "I suppose you won't be going to the hospital with us?"
I nodded and said, "Given our current identities, there's no way we can go to the hospital. If someone has died, the police will definitely come. The doctor just revealed the truth to me; Yang Licheng and Wang Xin are probably beyond saving. Both of them inhaled a large amount of toxic gas without knowing it, and since they didn't receive immediate treatment, I'm afraid they won't survive."
"Life can be so fragile sometimes," I said helplessly. "And there's one more thing; I don't know if you've noticed it."
"What is it?" Zhao Mingkun asked.
I replied, "Wang Xin's house has very poor ventilation. So, who gets poisoned and who doesn't completely depends on how much of that substance was in the incense burner. It's clear that the Murderer didn't use a large amount; otherwise, we would have all died by now, right? The Murderer has a good grasp of the dosage, ensuring that not everyone in the room would die."
"You mean the Murderer isn't a particularly cruel person?" Zhao Mingkun looked at me and said, "He only wanted to kill those thirteen people and didn't intend to harm anyone else? But if that's the case, what about Hu Xiaoxue? Hu Xiaoxue wasn't even born when Lu Zhiqiu died seven years ago; why wouldn't the Murderer spare a child?"
I frowned and said, "I've been puzzled by that too. If Jiang Xiaochun, Hu Pei, and others are suspected of killing Lu Zhiqiu, then Hu Xiaoxue is innocent. Moreover, Jiang Xiaochun isn't dead; she just went mad from fear. I'm not sure about that part, but that's not what I'm focused on."
"Not that?" Zhao Mingkun looked at me.
I nodded and said, "That's right; that's not what I want."
"What is it then?" Zhao Mingkun asked again.
"Precision," I replied as I got onto Zhao Mingkun's motorcycle. "Sufficient precision. The Murderer's dosage is very precise. He calculated exactly how much would lead to Wang Xin's death. And regardless of whether he wanted to kill the others or not, I feel this is more like a habit."
"A habit?" Zhao Mingkun asked.
I nodded and said, "Exactly. The truth is already in our hands."
"Then next, we should..."
Before Zhao Mingkun could finish his sentence, my phone rang.
"Gu Chen?" I asked. "What's going on?"
The background noise on the other end was chaotic when Gu Chen said, "I'll give you an address in a bit. Come over; I've caught Lu Xiangyang."
"You caught Lu Xiangyang?" I asked.
"That's right!" Gu Chen's voice was breathless, as if he had run several kilometers. It sounded like he was in a noisy place, and I couldn't tell where he was.
"I have something to deal with right now," Gu Chen continued. "You all need to hurry over. If you wait too long, I’m afraid you won’t see me or Lu Xiangyang. No time for chit-chat; I'm sending you the address now. Get here immediately."
"Hey? Gu Chen? Gu Chen!"
Gu Chen had already hung up. From what I heard, it seemed like he was in some trouble. Within seconds, an address appeared on my phone. I handed my phone to Zhao Mingkun and said, "We need to rush to this place; Gu Chen seems to be in danger."
"That armed police officer?" Zhao Mingkun looked at me and said, "Isn't he quite capable? What kind of danger could he be in?"
"I don't know, but it sounds urgent, and you heard him—he caught Lu Xiangyang." I replied.
Zhao Mingkun revved the motorcycle and sped down the street. While riding, she said to me, "So that means Lu Xiangyang never went south; he has been in Dongxing City all along. It looks like Lu Xiangyang is quite suspicious. Is this move of his meant to mislead the police?"
"Very likely," I said. "This case came about purely by coincidence for us. Normally, with Hu Pei's death, it would take some time before anyone noticed. If the police were to investigate based on that lead, they would definitely be behind us."
"Exactly," Zhao Mingkun nodded.
I continued, "If we look at it from the police's perspective, we would have learned about Lu Xiangyang at least by now. So many people have died already; aside from those four women in the dormitory who are still alive, everyone else is dead. If we give Lu Xiangyang any more time, those four women might also end up dead."
Zhao Mingkun glanced at me through the rearview mirror and asked, "So do you really think Lu Xiangyang is the murderer?"
"At this point, I can't say for sure!" I replied. "But whether or not Lu Xiangyang is the murderer, we've found him. If he's not guilty, he should at least be able to prove his innocence, right? However, I actually think Lu Xiangyang probably isn't the murderer."
"Why do you think that?" Zhao Mingkun asked.
I pointed to my chest and said, "It's intuition and clues. The age gap between Lu Zhiqiu and Lu Xiangyang is too significant. Lu Xiangyang doesn't seem like someone who would know his sister's classmates. He has no connection with these people at all. Among these thirteen individuals, I've never heard anyone mention how Lu Xiangyang is doing. This clearly indicates that they probably don't even know who Lu Xiangyang is."
"Is that place far from here?" I asked. "You'd better drive faster."
Zhao Mingkun snorted and said, "Do you know why I prefer riding a motorcycle over driving a car?"
"Why?" I asked.
Zhao Mingkun replied, "Hold on tight."
I nodded and wrapped my arms around Zhao Mingkun.
Just as I tightened my grip, I saw Zhao Mingkun lift the front wheel of the motorcycle. When it landed again, I felt like I was no longer sitting on a motorcycle. It wasn't just going too fast; it felt like we were flying too low.
The wind shattered Zhao Mingkun's words: "Because motorcycles are faster, and you don't have to worry about traffic jams."
I exclaimed, "Slow down a bit; this is too fast! What if a car suddenly comes out? You won't have time to dodge it."
Zhao Mingkun laughed heartily and said, "Aren't you the one who told me to speed up?"
"This is way too fast..."
Comment 0 Comment Count