Seeing Crime Scenes in My Sleep

Up on the mountain, Jiang Li saw Yu Shuzhen sitting by a sea of flowers, dressed all in red. She walked over. "Aunt Yu."

When Yu Shuzhen heard Jiang Li’s voice, she suspected she was hallucinating. ’How could I be hearing Jiang Li? Didn’t they already leave?’

Yu Shuzhen turned. Across the sea of flowers, she saw Jiang Li, and her expression shifted from shock to resignation. "Oh, you foolish girl..."

She never knew Jiang Li could be this stubborn.

"Xiao Li, go on. You all can leave safely now." Yu Shuzhen forced a smile at Jiang Li, her gaze sweeping over the sea of flowers.

Jiang Li heard footsteps behind her. She turned to see Yu Huannian, Lu Xingye, and the others, her lips pressing into a tighter line.

Ning Sinian looked at the old woman and the bees swarming around her. He instantly understood that the horrific scene in the village was all her doing.

"Aunt Yu, I’m Ning Sinian, Ning Rou’s older brother. Thank you so much for taking care of her all these years."

Yu Shuzhen glanced at the young man before her, then her gaze fell back on Jiang Li. "I killed them all. Just take the two children and leave."

With that, Yu Shuzhen bent down and lit a fire, preparing to perish in the inferno along with her killer bees.

"Aunt Yu, don’t!"

Seeing the flames that suddenly erupted and engulfed Yu Shuzhen, Jiang Li ran headlong into the inferno.

’She couldn’t just stand by and watch Aunt Yu disappear before her very eyes.’

"Jiang Li!"

Lu Xingye saw Jiang Li charge into the fire and immediately ran after her.

Ning Sinian grabbed him and held him back. "Are you crazy?!"

Lu Xingye stared, stunned, at the spot where Jiang Li had vanished. ’One second. He was just one second too late to stop her.’

Yu Huannian stared blankly at the scene. He suddenly understood why his mother had been so fond of Jiang Li. ’His mother was right. Affection is a two-way street.’

Looking at the others beside him, he snapped out of his thoughts. "Don’t go in. My mom doused this whole area with oil. She never planned on making it out alive."

Lu Xingye struggled to his feet and grabbed him by the collar. "Then what about Jiang Li! Why didn’t you call the police if something was wrong? Why resort to such an extreme method?!"

Yu Huannian looked at Lu Xingye, his face devoid of expression, a sneer in his eyes. "Aren’t *you* the police officer? If the police were any use..."

"...I never would have been born into this world, nor would I have lived this long."

Yu Huannian shoved Lu Xingye’s arm away and looked at him with disgust. "You people... you’re the worst kind of hypocrites!"

Yu Huannian turned and walked away. As for the others, when they left or what they did was no longer his concern.

Lu Xingye stood frozen, staring at the inferno and recalling the scene at the foot of the mountain. ’That’s right,’ he thought. ’What good am I?’

Wu Ming was so terrified by the scene that she couldn’t speak. ’So, Jiang Li... is dead?’

’Just like that, she died right in front of her.’

On the other side of the mountain, Cao Kun was slumped on the ground, having given up, when he suddenly saw a man in the distance dressed in traditional Miao Clan attire who seemed very familiar with the area.

"Hey, hey! Young brother, are you headed to Zhaozi Village, too? Mind if I tag along?"

Miao Anji, carrying a woven bamboo basket on his back, glanced back at the old man sprawled in the dirt. A smile touched his red lips. "You’re going to Zhaozi Village too, Uncle? Let’s go together."

Cao Kun scrambled up and followed behind him, his eyes on the silver ornaments that jingled and clanked on the man’s clothes.

"You’re not from around here, are you? What brings you here?"

Miao Anji smiled. "I’ve come to see an old acquaintance."

The two chatted as they walked deeper in, and Cao Kun was surprised that he was actually able to enter.

They had just reached the village entrance when the stench of blood hit them. Looking up, they saw bodies strewn everywhere, the entire village path stained red with blood.

A flicker of disappointment crossed Miao Anji’s fair face. He sighed softly. ’It seems I was a step too late.’

"Uncle, the person I came to see is no longer here. Goodbye." Miao Anji politely bid Cao Kun farewell. Carrying his small basket, he walked away, the pleasant jingle of his silver ornaments growing fainter and fainter.

Cao Kun surveyed the scene. ’No wonder I couldn’t get in,’ he thought. ’My spiritual merit is too high, and this man-eating place was keeping me out.’

Cao Kun was examining the state of the dead when he suddenly heard his young apprentice crying. He turned to look.

Wu Ming’s face was a mess of tears, snot bubbling from her nose with every sob. The moment she saw Cao Kun, she threw herself at him.

"WAAAH! Master, Jiang Li is dead! My little lucky star is gone! I’ll never have good luck again!"

"Jiang Li is dead?" Cao Kun exclaimed in shock. ’It hasn’t even been a full day. How could she...?’

"She ran into the fire and died! Waaah!"

"Let’s get out of here first. There’s no signal in this place, so we can’t contact anyone."

Ning Sinian glanced at Lu Xingye and forcibly dragged him away.

Back in town, Ning Sinian opened the door, and Ning Rou rushed over. "Brother, you’re finally back!"

Ning Rou looked around but didn’t see Yu Huannian or Jiang Li. "Where are Huan Nian and Jiang Li?"

Ning Sinian looked at her and said tactfully, "Jiang Li went to find Aunt Yu, and Yu Huannian has also left."

Ning Rou’s eyes widened in shock. "Left? That’s impossible. We clearly agreed..."

Then it suddenly hit Ning Rou—Yu Huannian had never actually agreed to her plan.

"I’m going back to find them." Ning Rou, her eyes red, ran for the door, but Ning Sinian grabbed her. "Little Rou, you’re the only witness now. Don’t you want to get justice for all those innocent victims?"

"Even though they’re gone, what happened here needs to be brought to light."

Ning Rou’s head was spinning. A sudden thought made her whole body sway. ’So, Yu Huannian had been lying to her from the very beginning. Just like Aunt Yu, he never planned on getting out alive.’

Ning Rou looked at the bag on the bed, which contained the things Yu Huannian had stuffed into her hands.

Fighting back tears, Ning Rou sat down and handed the contents to him. "It’s all in here."

Ning Sinian took them. Inside was a diary and some yellowed photographs, all documenting the crimes committed in Zhaozi Village over the years.

Ning Sinian’s hand tightened around the evidence. He grabbed the dazed Lu Xingye and slapped him across the face.

"Lu Xingye, don’t forget you’re a police officer! What is it you’re supposed to be doing right now?!"

Lu Xingye took the items and glanced at them, but he couldn’t bring himself to look past the first few pages.

"Go back to the city. Contact Captain Zhou. Tell him to submit the evidence and request a full-scale national investigation."

As soon as he finished speaking, Lu Xingye’s vision went black, and he nearly fainted.

Ning Sinian led the shell-shocked group back to the city. In the end, it was he who explained everything, photographing the evidence and uploading it.

The next day, authorities from above arrived to investigate and were horrified to discover that the small town was even more terrifying than they had imagined.

When Zhou Tiancheng and Ji Qinghe heard the news of Jiang Li’s death, the things in their hands fell with a CLATTER.

"Impossible! There’s no way Jiang Li is dead! Tiancheng, I have to go there! I don’t believe it! I won’t believe it!"

Ji Qinghe clung desperately to Zhou Tiancheng, so he had no choice but to take her. They found Lu Xingye sitting alone in a hotel room.

"Xiao Ye, how on earth did Jiang Li die?"

Seeing the two of them, the emotions Lu Xingye had suppressed for days finally erupted.

"Sister Qinghe, maybe I’m just not cut out to be a police officer." It was thanks to Jiang Li that his sister’s case had been resolved, but he hadn’t been able to help her at all, and now she was...

Through Lu Xingye’s sobs, Ji Qinghe finally learned that Jiang Li had run into the inferno and never came out. When the fire was extinguished, there was nothing left but ashes.

Zhou Tiancheng patted Lu Xingye’s shoulder. "Don’t think like that. What we need to do now is make sure these criminals get what they deserve. That way, their deaths won’t have been in vain."

Hearing Zhou Tiancheng’s words, Lu Xingye found his resolve again. He cooperated with the dispatched officers to conduct a thorough search of Zhaozi Village, investigated all the local unlicensed taxi drivers, and followed the clues all the way up the chain...

The bodies of the Zhaozi Village residents were left exposed to the sun for several days, eventually decomposing into piles of rotten flesh.

...

「Seven days later, in a bamboo house.」

"You’re awake?"