Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
At a height of eight meters, Yang Feiwen took less than a second. When Jiang He leaned by the window to look, the railing had already pierced through Yang Feiwen's body. It entered through her back and exited through her abdomen, with her intestines even hanging over the railing. But this was not a quick death; it was a painfully drawn-out one.
Those few minutes, perhaps even more than ten, would be an excruciating period.
Jiang He leaned against the window, and he could clearly see that a smile lingered at the corner of Yang Feiwen's mouth. She gasped for breath, her entrails spilling out, blood filling her mouth and nose. Yet she made no sound of pain; she simply stared blankly into space.
"Ah."
At that moment, a scream pierced the air. Jiang He could see clearly from the second floor that the voice came from Xu Yiman nearby.
During Jiang He's absence, Xu Yiman had sent countless messages and made numerous calls to him, but he never replied. The phone in his hand seemed like nothing more than an ornament. However, Xu Yiman had experienced Jiang He's eccentricities before and did not become angry.
Old Shao knew that Jiang He must have found the murderer, but who could it be? Old Shao was aware that his observational skills were nowhere near Jiang He's level, especially now that he was older and finding details at the scene was increasingly difficult. Thus, in his middle age, he focused on psychology to analyze Jiang He; he believed that Jiang He must have thought of some subtle clues.
Old Shao understood that Jiang He trusted his own eyes and never relied on psychology to make guesses. He was certain that Jiang He had seen the murderer; if Jiang He had seen the murderer, then so had he. This person's sewing skills were poor, and Old Shao first thought of Li Wei.
But then Old Shao reconsidered; someone with Li Wei's personality would never devise such a meticulous plan.
A name sprang to mind. Although Old Shao was skeptical, he still notified Captain Li to bring people over while he and Xu Yiman went ahead.
Just as they parked the car and walked forward, they heard a muffled "thud."
Then they saw someone lying on the railing.
Yang Feiwen lay across the railing, its sharp end having pierced through her body. Three railings were lined up piercing her form, pulling out her entrails. Xu Yiman was startled by this sudden turn of events and immediately screamed. Meanwhile, Old Shao rushed over to assess the situation.
"Jiang He?" Old Shao called out upon seeing Jiang He by the window. "Get down here quickly."
With that, Old Shao hurried to check on Yang Feiwen.
Three iron bars pierced her abdomen, and her limbs hung limply. The railing stood at a height of about five feet seven inches, and due to gravity, it wouldn't be long before Yang Feiwen would be torn in half by her own weight. Old Shao was unable to protect Yang Feiwen from the agony of being pulled apart.
He could only support her upper body, trying to lay her flat to alleviate some of her suffering.
Yang Feiwen struggled to bring her face close to Old Shao's, murmuring something as blood poured from her mouth like a waterfall.
Old Shao gently stroked the young woman's head and said, "It's okay. With today's medical technology, this isn't a serious problem. Just listen to me and don't fall asleep, understand?"
Yang Feiwen continued to mumble, prompting Old Shao to lean in closer.
"I... I'm the murderer. I jumped down myself."
These were Yang Feiwen's last words in this world.
If you were about to die and had just enough strength for one final statement, what would it be? Perhaps you would want to settle affairs, express regrets, or cry out against death. But Yang Feiwen spoke not of herself.
In her final moments, she thought of Jiang He.
Old Shao understood what Yang Feiwen meant. She was afraid that the police would suspect Jiang He had thrown her down, even though Old Shao himself would never doubt Jiang He. Yet Yang Feiwen still felt compelled to say this. It was the last kindness she offered to the world and her final words.
After that, Yang Feiwen closed her eyes.
"Don't sleep! Don't sleep! Hold on!" Old Shao's voice rose in urgency.
Yang Feiwen fell silent.
Meanwhile, Xu Yiman stood in the corner, pressed tightly against the wall, trembling all over. She dared not take a step forward.
Jiang He rushed down from the second floor and heard Old Shao shout, "Support her other half; otherwise, Yang Feiwen's body will split in two."
Jiang He supported the other half of Yang Feiwen's body.
"Is Yang Feiwen okay?" Jiang He asked. "Was she on stage the night Qin Qingxue committed suicide?"
Old Shao shook his head.
Jiang He continued, "Then what did she say?"
Old Shao's expression darkened slightly. "She jumped down without caring about you."
Jiang He nodded. "Indeed, she jumped down on her own."
There was no emotion in Jiang He's words, as if the Yang Feiwen before him, still faintly breathing and on the verge of death, had already passed away. It seemed that Jiang He had no concern for a person's life or death. What left Old Shao feeling helpless was that Jiang He truly did not care.
In Jiang He's view, death was an ordinary occurrence. It wasn't that he didn't want to intervene; rather, he had calculated the odds in an instant and found he didn't even have a one percent chance of success. The only reason Jiang He wanted to stop Yang Feiwen was that she hadn't answered his question yet.
In such a situation, even with only a thirty percent chance, Jiang He would have tried.
But ultimately, Yang Feiwen made her own choice.
"She's dead," Old Shao said softly.
"Come here, Xu Yiman," Old Shao added.
Xu Yiman slowly walked over and looked at Yang Feiwen. It was clear that Yang Feiwen was indeed dead.
In truth, Old Shao had long understood that Yang Feiwen was beyond saving. Her body was nearly split in half, wedged against a railing nearly seven feet high. Even with an ambulance parked nearby, it was unlikely she would survive. Old Shao's words to Yang Feiwen were merely lies; yet sometimes, even in the final moments of life, deception could serve a purpose.
Even after taking so many lives, in her last moments, Yang Feiwen still wished to leave a trace of tenderness in the world. This understanding came to Old Shao only when he turned forty.
Old Shao gently released his grip and said to Jiang He, "Yang Feiwen is dead. If you have anything to say, go ahead. Yang Feiwen admitted that she was the murderer."
Jiang He also let go and walked out of the courtyard. He spoke, "I have a fifty percent chance of believing that Yang Feiwen was at the scene the night Qin Qingxue committed suicide. Based on the snack packaging left in the plastic bag at the scene, those snacks were quite expensive, and Qin Qingxue couldn't afford them. This means someone bought those snacks."
Jiang He continued earnestly, "Among the snacks, there was a brown Häagen-Dazs ice cream, which is Yang Feiwen's favorite. From these two points, I have a fifty percent certainty that Yang Feiwen bought them for Qin Qingxue. So when Yang Feiwen committed suicide, she should have been present. I asked her about this, but Yang Feiwen didn't respond."
Old Shao frowned and slowly said, "About twenty years ago, I was just like you. Back then, I always wanted to understand all the problems in the world and see through everything. But I often couldn't do it because many times there are no answers in this world, you know?"
Jiang He had heard this phrase from many people—those who could easily get answers from others but were unwilling to share them until death. He found it strange and didn't understand why they acted this way.
"I just want to know the truth," Jiang He retorted.
Old Shao sighed, "Many things don't really have a truth. Moreover, too often, the truth can lead to despair. I used to think that as long as I knew the truth, everything else could be ignored. But living people always need hope; they need to look forward and require a bit of kindness."
Jiang He shook his head. "I don't understand."
Old Shao patted Jiang He's shoulder and said, "You will understand one day. Let me ask you: you have a fifty percent certainty that Yang Feiwen was present the night Qin Qingxue committed suicide. This means Yang Feiwen witnessed Qin Qingxue's suicide; she could have saved her but chose not to intervene. Qin Qingxue might have regretted her decision during the process."
Jiang He nodded. "That's right."
Shao the Elder continued, "Don't you think that's too dark? Wouldn't it be better if we left the story as one where a good friend avenges another good friend who committed suicide? Since the murderer is already dead, everything has ended. Are you sure enough to determine that Yang Feiwen was definitely at the scene?"
"I can't," Jiang He honestly shook his head.
At that moment, Yang Feiwen's phone suddenly rang with a beautiful song:
The first time we met, I found you unappealing
Who would have known our relationship would become so close
One of us like summer, one like autumn
Yet we always turn winter into spring
If it weren't for you, I wouldn't realize
Friends understand listening better than lovers do
The body still lay split in two.
In the car, Xu Yiman specifically sought out Yang Feiwen's ringtone to listen to it. As she listened, tears began to flow from her eyes.
What is a best friend?
The technical staff of the criminal police team conducted a search of Yang Feiwen's home, but they found nothing. If it weren't for Yang Feiwen's own admission, they would have had no way to charge her with a crime. In fact, in the final report, Old Shao did not include Yang Feiwen's name at all.
They only discovered many brown-packaged Haagen-Dazs ice creams in Yang Feiwen's refrigerator.
Comment 0 Comment Count