Chapter 119: Three Deaths in One Day
CLATTER. Zhang Qingzhi’s phone fell from her hand and hit the floor. Sun Cong’s bloodcurdling screams from the other end of the line echoed through the room, punctuated by other horrifying sounds.
Terrified, Zhang Qingzhi clutched her head and shrieked, "Ruan Zhixia! It’s her again! How can she still be haunting us after she’s dead?!
What do we do? Brother Ziyan, what should we do?"
Zhang Qingzhi stared at Yang Ziyi, completely at a loss. Her face was deathly pale.
Wincing, Yang Ziyi shoved Zhang Qingzhi away. "So now you’re scared? Weren’t you the one who told Sun Cong to drive into the woods? The one who had them... do that to Ruan Zhixia?
Qingzhi, you said you watched Ruan Zhixia die with your own eyes. You must remember the gruesome state she was in."
Zhang Qingzhi’s breath caught in her throat, her pupils constricting. She remembered. Of course, she remembered. She would never be able to forget it for the rest of her life.
At the time, all she felt was a thrill. But now... now, the more she thought about it, the more terrified she became. ’What if Ruan Zhixia has really come back for revenge?’
"But you were the one who said that if Guo Tianqi found out Ruan Zhixia was tortured and killed, he’d definitely kill himself out of grief.
I... I only did it because you said..."
A cruel light flashed in Yang Ziyi’s eyes. Ruan Zhixia had always been good to Guo Tianqi. When they were kids, they trained together. Whenever Guo Tianqi was punished, Ruan Zhixia would always protect him.
Guo Tianqi was loyal and sentimental, and he’d been in love with Ruan Zhixia for years. Yang Ziyi had assumed that, given how much Guo Tianqi adored her,
he would surely break down, go mad, and then kill himself. But he hadn’t expected Guo Tianqi to act as if nothing had happened. It was completely different from what he’d anticipated.
Now, not only had they failed to take down Guo Tianqi, but they had also drawn the attention of the police. And now Wang Hua and Liu Shan were dead under such bizarre circumstances.
’If Ruan Zhixia has really come back to claim their lives, then their fate will be worse than a firing squad!’
"Then... what do we do? They’re all dead. The police are definitely going to suspect us," Zhang Qingzhi said, panicking.
She didn’t want to go to prison. She had just managed to go viral online. Her recent opera performance had become a hit, and she’d made a lot of money.
She was on the verge of a life of comfort and luxury. How could she let it all be destroyed?
"Brother Ziyan, you have to think of something! I did all of this for you!"
Zhang Qingzhi clutched Yang Ziyi’s arm. She didn’t want to die, and she didn’t want to go to prison.
Yang Ziyi frowned, annoyed. If Zhang Qingzhi went down, he would be dragged down with her.
’Three deaths in one day. It’d be impossible for the police not to be suspicious. The only option now is to run. Get out of this city.’
"Qingzhi, we’re leaving. Right now. Before the police figure things out."
Zhang Qingzhi nodded frantically, scrambling to her feet and pulling him toward the door. "Okay. Let’s go. Let’s go right now."
...
Meanwhile, the officers Zhou Tiancheng had stationed downstairs from Sun Cong’s apartment heard a scream from above. They immediately charged upstairs and broke down the door, but they were still a step too late.
In the living room, Sun Cong was slumped over, a knife in one hand and a phone in the other. Both of his legs had been hacked at. Even worse, a beer bottle was sticking out of his back.
The officer who entered took one look at the scene and recoiled half a step in horror before pulling out his phone to call Zhou Tiancheng.
"Hey, Cap... Captain Zhou... Sun Cong is dead. The... the state he’s in is even worse than Wang Hua and Liu Shan’s..."
Zhou Tiancheng listened to the voice on the other end of the line, and a moment later, a photo from the scene appeared on his phone.
Zhou Tiancheng instantly sucked in a sharp breath.
Ji Qinghe walked in. "Yang Ziyi and Zhang Qingzhi couldn’t sit still. They tried to make a run for it tonight, but our colleagues caught them as they were coming downstairs."
When Ji Qinghe saw the photo on his phone, her brow furrowed and her stomach churned.
Qin Shu had just left the examination room, ready to breathe a sigh of relief, when she heard there had been another incident.
Looking at the messages from her colleagues at the scene sent a chill down her spine. The state of the body was just too... too gruesome.
"Where’s Wu Ming? Is she here? This is too much. I need to get a peace charm from her. My heart’s not feeling so good."
Qin Shu leaned against the wall, pressing a hand to her forehead. "It’s all so bizarre," she muttered, looking utterly defeated. "So bizarre it’s starting to creep me out."
Ji Qinghe couldn’t help but smile at her words. "Let the other colleagues handle the scene. You get some rest. We have Zhang Qingzhi and Yang Ziyi in custody now, so there’s no rush."
Qin Shu let out a long sigh of relief. "Oh, right. I almost forgot what I wanted to say. I found identical wounds on Wang Hua and Liu Shan’s bodies.
They look like insect bites. I noticed something similar back when Jiang Li used her insects to deal with Lin Ye.
It’s possible the killer is using the same method.
It’s highly likely that the victims were made to see something they feared, which then drove them to suicide."
Saying it out loud seemed to ease some of Qin Shu’s own anxiety.
Ji Qinghe nodded. "Good. We’ll ask Miao Anji when he gets back. He knows about this stuff. Maybe he can help us find the real killer."
"In that case, I’m going to get some sleep. I can’t take any more of this."
’If I keep working at this pace, I’m going to drop dead from exhaustion.’
Ji Qinghe watched Qin Shu leave, then took out her phone to contact Zhao Shuo and the others.
"Sister Qinghe says Sun Cong is dead too, and Zhang Qingzhi and Yang Ziyi are in custody. She told us not to rush back, but to get some rest and head back first thing in the morning."
Zhao Shuo looked at the others, then had a colleague get some rooms so they could rest for the night.
Jiang Li and Wu Ming shared one room, while Yu Huannian and Miao Anji took another.
Jiang Li washed up, lay down, and was out like a light.
Wu Ming glanced at Jiang Li with envy. ’I probably haven’t slept that soundly since I was a newborn.’
The thought of her own past brought a flicker of sadness to Wu Ming’s face. She placed the bell Cao Kun had given her on the nightstand and tucked the red scissors under her pillow.
Wu Ming took a deep breath, glanced over at Jiang Li one more time, and then finally lay down, feeling a bit more at ease.
「The next morning」
Yu Huannian woke up to find Miao Anji gone. He sat up, confused. ’Where could he have gone? He doesn’t know this place at all.’
"AAAAGH! Miao Anji, you scared me to death!"
Wu Ming’s eyes flew open to the sight of Miao Anji, and she let out a piercing scream.
Miao Anji shot her a cold glance, and the snake on his shoulder issued a warning HISS.
Wu Ming’s scream died in her throat.
Jiang Li woke up instantly at the sound of Wu Ming’s voice. She started to move but was immediately held down by Miao Anji. "Sister, don’t move!"
Miao Anji’s expression was serious, his tone much steadier than usual.
Wu Ming’s eyes widened. ’Wait, so his voice was just an act before?’
’God, doesn’t he get tired of that?’
’Such a nice kid, but he’s completely two-faced.’
"Jiang Li, there’s a bug on your arm!" Wu Ming finally noticed the insect on Jiang Li’s arm.
If Miao Anji hadn’t spotted it in time, the bug would have likely burrowed inside already.
Jiang Li froze, not daring to move a muscle.
Lu Xingye and Yu Huannian rushed to the doorway. "What’s going on?"
Wu Ming threw on her jacket and got out of bed to give Miao Anji room to work. ’Thank god I don’t have the habit of sleeping naked when I’m traveling.’
The group entered and saw Miao Anji pinching an insect. Half of its body was visible, while the other half had already burrowed into Jiang Li’s flesh.
Jiang Li gritted her teeth, her skin crawling. She wasn’t afraid of bugs, but with half of this one inside her flesh, she could feel it squirming against Miao Anji’s grip.