Chapter 40: The Meeting

He Jueyun drove Qiong Cang to the entrance of her building. Instead of getting out right away, Qiong Cang invited him up for a visit.

He Jueyun studied her face for a moment. Deciding she was probably just being polite, he said, “There’s no need, is there?”

To his surprise, Qiong Cang quickly replied, “Alright.”

He Jueyun’s face fell. Was she really that blunt? Didn’t she know that a polite back-and-forth was needed to show real sincerity?

Right after that, Qiong Cang added, “Then how about I treat you to a meal?”

He Jueyun was practically traumatized by the idea of Qiong Cang treating him. This time, he said firmly, “No, that’s really not necessary. I wouldn’t want you to spend your money.”

Qiong Cang smiled at his response and said, “I’m paying, really.”

He Jueyun’s expression softened slightly.

Qiong Cang lowered her head and reached into her pocket, saying, “Perfect. I have a voucher for that shop nearby. It’s going to expire if I don’t use it soon.”

He Jueyun’s eyes went dead.

Fortunately, he hadn’t had time to go through the full emotional roller coaster from shock to joy. He really shouldn’t have trusted someone like her.

But to his surprise, Qiong Cang ended up pulling out a bank card. Holding it between two fingers, she waved it in the air and said with amusement, “Just kidding. The tips from the first Sanyao livestream have cleared. I even have enough to pay off the rest of my apartment now. Consider this meal my way of saying thanks.”

Having been toyed with several times in a row, He Jueyun would have to be an idiot not to realize it. “You’re messing with me on purpose, aren’t you?”

Qiong Cang looked innocent. “You figured it out so fast?” His IQ really has improved.

He Jueyun accused her with a heavy breath, “Do you have any conscience at all?”

Qiong Cang adjusted her attitude and acknowledged her mistake. “I really am inviting you to dinner.”

Embarrassed and annoyed, He Jueyun reached all the way across to her side and opened the door for her.

In his agitation, he forgot to unbuckle his seatbelt. The strap yanked him back mid-air, nearly sending him crashing into Qiong Cang. Fortunately, his fingers had already reached the door handle. Twisting his face away in an awkward posture, he quickly pressed the release.

A wave of heat blew in through the open door, dispelling his embarrassment. Trying to cover it up, He Jueyun shooed her away. “I can’t be bothered with you! Out, out!”

Qiong Cang let out a theatrical sigh, pushed the door open, and stepped out.

She had expected to get a face full of exhaust fumes and stood prepared by the side of the road, but to her surprise, He Jueyun didn’t start the car immediately. He just sat there.

The dark window tint prevented Qiong Cang from seeing inside. With one inside the car and one outside, they stood in a quiet standoff for a full minute.

Qiong Cang didn’t know if He Jueyun was quietly watching her through the window, but she knew this good-natured man must be feeling incredibly awkward with every passing second.

She smiled and started walking toward the main entrance.

Only after she opened the security door downstairs did He Jueyun’s car turn around and slowly drive away.

With her hands in her pockets, Qiong Cang chose not to take the elevator, opting instead to walk up the stairs with a rhythmic stride.

When she reached her door, Qiong Cang paused to listen. She could already hear sounds coming from inside.

Qiong Cang looked down, fished out her keys, and opened the door. Sure enough, someone was sitting inside. He looked quite young, lounging on the sofa with his legs crossed, playing a game. The game’s sound effects were turned up loud, with all kinds of skill sounds blaring from the speaker, along with the soft groans of male and female characters taking damage.

Qiong Cang asked, “What are you doing here?”

“You stood me up for two appointments, so I came to see if you were dead. Do you have any idea how much my time is worth, and you just flake on me?” Fang Qi said without looking up. “Don’t forget, if you want to keep participating in 【Case Analysis】, you still need me to write your mental evaluation reports. Don’t go burning bridges so soon.”

Qiong Cang ignored his playful tone and sat down on the other end of the sofa.

Her thoughts drifted, her gaze growing unfocused as she looped her finger through the key ring and spun it repeatedly.

The clinking of the metal keys drowned out the game’s sound effects.

Fang Qi lost a match and yelled, “Stop spinning that! It’s so annoying!”

Qiong Cang stopped and looked at him, saying seriously, “I suspect you have bipolar disorder.”

Fang Qi asked, “Do you want me to give you a lecture on bipolar disorder?”

Qiong Cang replied, “Never mind.”

Qiong Cang got up to boil water and peel some fruit, at least showing some hospitality to this uninvited guest. When she returned with the fruit platter, Fang Qi was throwing a tantrum in his game. “Fuck! Who was that? How dare they backdoor my base! Is this guy an idiot? If you don’t know how to play, why are you even playing!”

Qiong Cang stood a meter away, watching him with disgust.

Fang Qi slowly realized he was making a fool of himself. He looked up at her and said sheepishly, “Sorry, got too emotionally invested. An occupational hazard in our line of work.”

How shameless.

He Jueyun was much more endearing.

Fang Qi closed the game interface, put on a track of soft, slow instrumental music, and set his phone aside. Then he picked up a toothpick and started eating the fruit on the table, not holding back at all.

Qiong Cang sat to the side, checking files on her computer.

Just as the atmosphere in the room began to relax, Fang Qi suddenly asked, “As your therapist, how is it that I didn’t know you have post-traumatic stress disorder?”

Qiong Cang replied, “I don’t.”

Fang Qi said, “You said you’re afraid of the dark, and not just in a normal way. Judging by the symptoms, it really doesn’t look like standard fear.”

Qiong Cang’s long eyelashes fluttered. “I lied to He Jueyun.”

Fang Qi countered, “I think you’re lying to me.”

Qiong Cang gave a half-hearted response. “How could I?”

Fang Qi frowned, his expression turning serious. “If you don’t cooperate with me, I’ll have to consult my mentor. Since you asked me to do your psychological evaluation, I have to be responsible for my professional integrity.”

Qiong Cang nodded. “Sure, go ahead.”

Fang Qi stood up and slid over to the seat next to her. “I just don’t get why you dislike my mentor so much. You’re the first person I’ve met who doesn’t like him. After all, you two are distantly related, aren’t you?”

Qiong Cang said calmly, “Nobody likes being around a therapist who is always in work mode.”

“Well, we are indeed in work mode right now, so you shouldn’t shut me out. PTSD can be treated, and I want to help you.” Fang Qi paused, then asked, “Did Fan Huai contact you? Did he pass any information to you? Most of the time, the human brain is much more susceptible to influence than you think. You can’t solve everything on your own. I hope you can trust me.”

Qiong Cang said, “No.”

Fang Qi gritted his teeth and said, “You’re lying.”

Qiong Cang finally looked away, swept her gaze across his face, and said, “You’re the one lying.”

Fang Qi: “…”

He ran a hand through his hair. “Do you have x-ray vision?”

Qiong Cang said modestly, “I do okay.”

Fang Qi bantered with her for a bit, but realizing he really couldn’t pry anything out of her that she didn’t want to say, he gave up.

Wasting time was never his style. Fang Qi casually ticked off a few boxes on the report he had brought, wrote a brief comment, and picked up the documents to leave.

As he reached the entryway, Qiong Cang spoke up, “Next time you come, I hope you’ll call me first. I almost brought a man upstairs today. What if he saw you and got the wrong idea?”

Fang Qi wanted to say he had called, but Qiong Cang’s phone was offline twenty-four hours a day; how could any normal person reach her? Halfway through, he finally understood what she meant and asked in sheer horror, “Who is it?”

Qiong Cang smiled at him.

Fang Qi gasped again. “Really?!”

He immediately rushed to the window and looked down. But the street below was already completely empty.

Qiong Cang said suggestively, “Please respect the private life of an adult.”

Fang Qi’s feelings were incredibly complicated, but his position forced him to exercise restraint, so he could only say dryly, “Well, alright then.”

He walked to the door, then turned back reluctantly to ask, “Who is it, really?”

Qiong Cang waved. “Goodbye.”

·

On Wednesday morning, a drizzling autumn rain began to fall.

He Jueyun drove a low-key car to pick her up. Since the weather was turning cold, he had also placed a trench coat in the car.

Qiong Cang stood by the roadside waiting for him, holding a cup of soy milk and clutching a meat bun.

He Jueyun asked, “Why aren’t you eating?”

Qiong Cang asked, “Do you want some?”

He Jueyun froze.

If he didn’t take it, he would feel unsatisfied. After all, this was the first time Qiong Cang was truly treating him to a meal, even if it was probably only worth five yuan, and even if the setting was incredibly informal. But if he did take it… he had already eaten breakfast.

Qiong Cang tore open the plastic bag and took a bite right in front of him.

He Jueyun’s facial muscles twitched before settling into the weary expression of someone who had seen it all. “Get out of the car,” he said. “Do it yourself.”

Suppressing a smile, Qiong Cang said, “Thank you. I’m really treating you to a meal today, really.”

As He Jueyun started the car, he grumbled, “Do you think a double affirmation makes it true? Can you be serious for once? Do you think I care about your free meal? Do I?!”

Qiong Cang listened in silence, nodding in agreement beside him.

She hadn’t expected He Jueyun to fall for even her simplest jokes. He was especially obsessed with the idea of her treating him to a meal, to the point where he wouldn’t even mind a meat bun¹ and soy milk.

…It really wasn’t that deep.

She had genuinely wanted to buy him a meal before, but he had walked away on his own.

He Jueyun’s indignation didn’t last even two minutes before it dissipated. He turned to go over the precautions for the meeting, telling her not to get angry, excited, or make a scene when she met the other person.

However, he figured these three emotions were rarely seen in Qiong Cang anyway, so there was no need to worry.

After signing in at the entrance, the two entered a private booth.

The woman sitting opposite them was clearly only twenty-seven or twenty-eight, yet she looked thirty-five or thirty-six. She was the real-life prototype for Li Yujia.

Facially, she did not resemble Li Yujia. The real woman’s features were slightly more delicate than the in-game model’s, but the aura of despondency around her completely overshadowed her beauty.

Born into a middle-class family and married to a billionaire, only to end up like this; her life story was truly lamentable.

Qiong Cang pulled out a chair and sat down opposite her.

Separated by a glass window, the two stared at each other. Aside from their blinking eyes, neither made a single movement.

One had a numb expression, dark circles under her eyes, and slumped shoulders, looking as though she had lost all hope in life.

The other was expressionless, her heavy presence pressing down as her gaze remained fixed on the woman opposite her.

The room was dead silent, the ticking of the second hand growing distinct.

He Jueyun raised his hand to check his watch, confirming that time was indeed flowing and that he hadn’t suddenly developed some superpower. They were also in reality right now, not a game simulation.

He Jueyun shifted his posture, his gaze darting between the two of them, wondering if they possessed some special method of communication.

After this bizarre scene persisted for over ten minutes, He Jueyun could bear it no longer. He leaned down and said, “Could you two please communicate in a way I can actually understand?”

Qiong Cang nodded.

He Jueyun waited for a moment, and seeing that she still didn’t speak, he added, “You do know this visit is only thirty minutes, right? Didn’t you insist I bring you to see her? Is all you wanted to do gaze lovingly into her eyes?”

Prompted by the reminder about the time, Qiong Cang stirred and finally spoke. “Hello.”

The woman behind the glass looked at her, still offering no response.

“I am Fan Huai’s teacher,” Qiong Cang said. “You might not know, or perhaps you don’t care, but he is now wanted nationwide.”

Qiong Cang continued on her own, “I came to see you today to ask you: how did you find out about your husband committing perjury during that robbery years ago?”

The woman’s hair had been cut short, fully exposing her face and allowing Qiong Cang to read every subtle expression at a glance.

Qiong Cang said, “He wouldn’t have told you, because he didn’t trust you. That was his secret, and he wouldn’t share it with anyone. It couldn’t have slipped out when he was drunk either; if he had that habit, it would have been exposed long ago given how many years he spent drinking at business dinners. More importantly, the setup of the crime scene overlapped with certain details from the first three murder cases that the police never released to the public, yet you managed to recreate them. That couldn’t have been a mere coincidence. Only the real Murderer could have told you those details.”

The woman’s eyes flickered, and the muscles beneath them twitched slightly. Although she hid it well, Qiong Cang still caught it.

Seeing Qiong Cang deliberately adopt an understanding expression, He Jueyun narrowed his eyes and stared searchingly at the person opposite them.

“The time between the killing and setting up the crime scene was very short. Honestly, it strikes me as incredible that you were able to calm down so quickly. After all, you aren’t usually such a clear-headed person. I’m certain that even though you didn’t mean to kill your husband that day, your reaction shows you had already imagined that scenario in your mind. Someone gave you instructions, teaching you how to set up the scene and frame Fan Huai. And you took it to heart.”

The woman met her gaze directly, but swallowed hard.

“Who was it?”

The woman lifted her chin slightly, shifting uncomfortably in her seat.

Qiong Cang pressed both hands on the table and leaned forward, staring into her eyes. “Who was it?” she demanded, her tone heavy.

The woman still did not respond.

Qiong Cang’s patience had run out, her voice tinged with the impatience built up over their prolonged probing. “So many people have died because of this. You got what you wanted, and in exchange, you sacrificed Fan Huai’s entire life, along with the lives of his mother and sister. Perhaps there will be even more victims to come. Your life has already become far more despicable and shameless than your husband’s. For the rest of your life, will you really be able to find peace again?”

She parted her lips and finally spoke. “Some people in this world are just bound to be unfortunate.”

“Unfortunate?” Qiong Cang looked as if she had heard something hilarious, and she did indeed laugh, though it was dripping with irony. She said, “Your misfortune was your own choice. Did anyone force you to marry your husband? Did anyone force you to live submissively in that household for seven years? Did anyone force you to cheat, contract a disease, commit a crime, and go to prison? You had countless opportunities to make a choice, to turn back, but you didn’t. You walked this path step by step to where you are today, and you should bear the consequences, right or wrong. But what about Fan Huai? When did he ever get to choose his own life? Was his misfortune caused by his own mistakes? Yet you say some people are just unfortunate? What right do you have to compare yourself to him?”

Qiong Cang leaned back. “What you experienced wasn’t misfortune; it was stupidity. And what he experienced wasn’t misfortune either; it was man-made. Isn’t that right?”

He Jueyun was worried that Qiong Cang was pushing too hard and would make the woman storm out.

The woman opposite them took a deep breath and retorted, “I didn’t try to frame Fan Huai, and the police didn’t suspect him because of it. In fact, I even helped clear him of suspicion, didn’t I?”

“Is that your excuse for self-deception?” Qiong Cang asked. “Why are you hiding the truth for that Murderer? You’re already going to prison, and there’s no longer any conflict of interest between you. Why bother?”

“I don’t know if Fan Huai was innocent back then,” the woman said. “It has nothing to do with me, and I don’t need to be responsible for him.”

He Jueyun could clearly sense “Li Yujia” wavering. She had shown signs of hesitation because of Fan Huai, but she calmed down again the moment the so-called Murderer was mentioned.

Qiong Cang said, “Wu Ming… I mean your husband. His testimony back then aligned logically with the others, which is why it became key evidence. He couldn’t have fabricated that statement on his own, yet he had no clear connection to the other witnesses. So how did his testimony come about? Could he have been guided, brainwashed, and colluded with, just like you were? After Fan Huai was released from prison, all the witnesses met with accidents. You could say this is Fan Huai seeking revenge, or you could say he has lost any chance of overturning his case.”

The woman gave a noncommittal smile at her words, the anxiety she had shown when being accused completely gone. It seemed she did not believe that the one who killed the witnesses and the one who framed Fan Huai ten years ago were the same person. Or rather, she did not believe the mastermind behind this current string of murders was acting to harm Fan Huai.

She even understood and approved of that behavior.

The woman stood up, letting her chair scrape harshly against the floor behind her, and then swayed slightly as she walked toward the door.

Qiong Cang stood up as well. He Jueyun placed a hand on her shoulder, signaling her not to act impulsively. Qiong Cang remained calm, only asking quietly, “Why?”

“I’ll say it again: some people in this world are just bound to be unfortunate. Misfortune is contagious. Some people can endure it, and some can’t.” The woman stared out at the long, narrow corridor outside the door, then turned her head. “The answer you’re looking for might not be the one you want. Seriously, just let it go.”

Translator’s Notes