Winter Time Rendering

"That’s an interesting way to put it," Qingyi said, catching the key phrase. "You’re asking if she *should* have seen it, not if she *could* have?"

"I have my doubts."

"Now that you mention it, yeah. Their live-in nanny clearly said she didn’t notice anything unusual, but the kitchen has a perfect view of where that dog was?"

"Mhm," Zhang Shutong nodded. "But there are two uncertain factors. First, she might genuinely not have seen it. It was dark, and the dog was black. Plus, few people stare out the window while they’re cooking or washing dishes."

"Second, even if the nanny did see it," Zhang Shutong said, frowning at this point, "what would be her motive for hiding it?"

Qingyi fell into thought as well. "If she was in cahoots with the arsonist, she should have just opened the door for them, coordinating from the inside."

"That’s why I said it’s a discovery that’s not really a discovery."

"How long has this live-in nanny been working for them?" Qingyi asked.

"Since Gu Qiuyan was in her first year of middle school."

"Then there’s even less of a motive. If she wanted to do something, she would have done it long ago. Unless... something happened recently?"

"Can’t rule it out," Zhang Shutong sighed. The threads of the case were only getting more tangled the more he tried to sort them out.

"Well, you’ve got a tough mission today then. It’s not just a fun outing. You have to keep Gu Qiuyan company *and* try to make sense of this mess," Qingyi said, making a rare joke.

"That’s not all." Zhang Shutong held up a third finger. "I also have to be on guard against Ruoping."

He recalled her attitude at school—the comments about matching outfits, how she couldn’t wait to meet her "new deskmate." She was like a little she-devil who just loved to stir up trouble.

He had no idea why people always insisted on speculating about him and Gu Qiuyan romantically. Just thinking about it gave him a headache.

Song was like that, and so was Ruoping... But it was just a headache. He could still handle it.

"Why isn’t she back yet? And Gu Qiuyan, too."

"Girls are like that." ’And I haven’t even told you about the clothes-changing incident this morning,’ Zhang Shutong thought.

"I’m actually looking forward to seeing how you handle it." Qingyi was feeling a little mischievous.

Zhang Shutong ignored him and glanced toward the restrooms.

The toy store and the restrooms weren’t far apart, situated diagonally from each other. That’s why he hadn’t moved, just stood outside the display window chatting with Qingyi. He could admire the Optimus Prime figure, and with a turn of his head, keep the entrance to the restrooms in his line of sight.

’Unless Gu Qiuyan gets into trouble inside the women’s restroom.’

But the probability of that was minuscule. Zhang Shutong believed in being prepared, but that didn’t mean he had to be paranoid. Otherwise, he might as well worry that the young miss could choke on a sip of water.

Besides, the mall was crowded. Who would dare try anything here?

The entrance was easy to spot, but with so many people today, it was difficult to see through the crowd and locate a specific person.

Zhang Shutong took a subconscious glance. Not seeing the girl in the cyan dress, he looked away and continued his analysis.

"I estimate the police station will have some answers by noon. We’ll see then."

"True. So don’t put too much pressure on yourself. Just treat it like a puzzle," Qingyi comforted him. "Besides, her family is coming back tomorrow, and we’re not going anywhere isolated. It’s not like something is going to happen today of all days."

"I hope so..." But before he could finish, his phone suddenly vibrated in his pocket. Zhang Shutong took it out to see a new message.

It was a picture from Ruoping.

She was holding a plastic bag containing three... very thick, small pies, a bit like doornail meat patties.

"Egg burgers. One for each of us. Give them a try."

Zhang Shutong had never heard of them and asked Qingyi, but his friend’s focus was elsewhere.

"How do we split three of them?"

"Whatever. I’m not having any. By the way, help me explain something later."

"Explain what?"

"About Gu Qiuyan. Ruoping is too much of a gossip, and so are you and Du Kang. Stop with the wild guesses."

Zhang Shutong replied casually, feeling the need to hurry "Autumn Drizzle" along. He’d heard that some girls even do their makeup in the restroom, a truly terrifying prospect.

But just as he sent the message, a vibration came from the purse he was holding. Only then did Zhang Shutong remember she hadn’t taken her phone.

Just then, Qingyi’s eyes lit up and he said:

"Whoa, look at this! Is that a Blue-Eyes White Dragon?"

Zhang Shutong knew he was talking about a rare card from Yu-Gi-Oh! and glanced over. "It’s a fake, right?"

"Of course I know it’s fake, but the workmanship on this counterfeit is pretty good. Look at the holographic foil, and the 3D effect on the art..."

The two of them ended up wandering into the toy store. Qingyi asked him to press the card against the glass, wanting to take a picture of it as a memento. Zhang Shutong then asked why he didn’t just buy it since it was a cheap bootleg and he could look at it at home.

But Qingyi said it was a matter of a man’s honor. A fake was a fake and couldn’t be taken for the real thing. To do so would be to desecrate it.

Zhang Shutong couldn’t comprehend his friend’s logic, but he nodded anyway and did as he was told.

So, holding the purse in one hand, he used his fingernails to pinch the top edge of the card, pinning it to the glass. His gaze naturally drifted forward.

"A little to the left, it’s a bit crooked..."

Meng Qingyi was advising him, only to see Zhang Shutong’s hand suddenly go slack, the card fluttering to the ground.

Then, for the first time, he saw such a rich fluctuation of emotion on his best friend’s face. The two of them were similar in a way—one had a deadpan face, the other a cold one. Even surprise or anger rarely showed on their expressions.

But this time was different.

Meng Qingyi stared at Zhang Shutong’s face. He saw his friend’s eyes slowly widen, a complex expression forming. ’Horror? No. Panic? A little. But it was more like something had gone completely beyond his control. Meng Qingyi knew that for people like them, that was the most upsetting thing of all.’

The boy was no fool. He immediately looked in the same direction as a reflex. Through the glass, his gaze fell on the entrance to the restrooms.

"What’s wrong?"

"This is bad!"

Before the word "bad" was even fully out of his mouth, Zhang Shutong was already bolting out of the store.

The scene not far away was completely beyond his expectations. Even the worst-case scenario he had imagined was only this bad—no, it was worse than the worst!

Right now, he wished he could teleport over there.

However—

It was too late.

...

「A few minutes earlier.」

A faint sound came from behind her, and the girl named Gu Qiuyan turned her head instinctively. The mall was bustling with people, so she shouldn’t have been able to hear a noise right behind her, but a faint, sweet scent drifting from that direction gave the person away.

It was a woman wearing sunglasses and a face mask. She was fashionably dressed, with a slender waist and long legs.

She had long, wavy, chestnut-brown hair and was wearing a pair of tall boots. She seemed to be digging for something in her purse.

Gu Qiuyan took a step back. It all happened in an instant, causing the woman’s outstretched hand to miss its mark.

However, the woman didn’t give up and moved closer, asking:

"Miss, I saw you were shopping with your classmate earlier?"

Although she couldn’t see the woman’s face or guess her exact age, judging by her voice, she was probably smiling.

"Don’t panic, don’t panic. I’m not a bad person, dear." As she spoke, the woman lifted her sunglasses with a finger and gave a playful wink. "What’s your name?"

From her eyes, Gu Qiuyan could tell she was a beautiful woman. Before Gu Qiuyan could speak, the woman’s hand was back in her purse, fumbling around for a good while. When it emerged again, a piece of chocolate was wedged between her fingers, which were adorned with red nail polish.

"Here, have some."

The woman’s fingers were fair and slender, yet somewhat rough; you could see calluses on the sides. She dangled the chocolate in front of Gu Qiuyan’s eyes and added in a cheerful tone:

"Don’t you worry, I’m not a child snatcher. I just thought you seemed really sweet. You know, sometimes it’s all about fate between people. See, I forgot my phone. Could you let me borrow yours to make a call?"

Aside from her slightly strange attire, she actually had a rather friendly demeanor. Her aura, however, was reminiscent of one of those great she-devils who loved to watch the world burn.

"I don’t have my phone with me either." Gu Qiuyan didn’t take the chocolate, simply replying coolly and cautiously.

"Oh dear, that’s not good. My kid is at home waiting for me right now. Let me tell you, he’s only this big."

The woman gestured toward her leg in distress, but she seemed to grow excited as she started talking about her child.

"He’s so adorable. You can pinch his cheeks and he won’t say a thing, just glare at you and roll his eyes. But he can’t even make a simple meal. If I don’t call home soon, he’ll definitely start crying."

Gu Qiuyan thought for a moment.

"How about I take you to the information desk, Ma’am?"

"No, no, I couldn’t possibly trouble you."

"But my phone is with my classmate. You could come with me to get it."

"Oh, that’s no good, it’d be too much trouble for you..." As she spoke, the woman looked around as if afraid of being spotted, yet she asked with an overly familiar tone, "But your classmate, are they a boy or a girl? What’s your relationship? Need me to check them out for you?"

She seemed to take control of the conversation’s rhythm with ease.

Gu Qiuyan glanced subconsciously in a certain direction and shook her head in refusal.

Strangely, she didn’t have a bad feeling about this woman. Although her attitude was a bit overly... enthusiastic, if she hadn’t been so completely covered up, Gu Qiuyan might have actually felt an urge to chat with her for a bit.

So, Gu Qiuyan just repeated what she’d said about the phone.

"You really didn’t bring it?"

Gu Qiuyan nodded.

Seeing this, the woman’s beautiful eyes instantly filled with disappointment, like a child who couldn’t get their favorite toy. Even her tone became a little dejected.

’Maybe she wasn’t lying. Maybe that child really is at home all alone, missing his mom.’

She thought the woman would give up, but instead, she dug into her purse again. This time, she pulled out a small notebook. She held it with both hands, her expression serious.

"Well then, miss, could you write down my number and send a text for me when you meet up with your classmate?"

It wasn’t a difficult request. Gu Qiuyan was about to nod in agreement when a figure came running from the opposite direction, moving so fast that he was in front of them in the blink of an eye.

Gu Qiuyan blinked, looking at "New-Peach-Old-Talisman" in confusion. Before she could process what was happening, the boy had already darted forward to shield her behind him.

He was panting, his scalp was tingling, and he blurted out—

To the great she-devil in sunglasses, of course:

"Mom, what are you doing here?"