After the preliminary police questioning, those living nearby were allowed to return home. By the time Bai Shi and Pei Cangyu got back, it was already three in the morning.
Pei Cangyu was exhausted. This curse of shattering the peace wherever they went made him wonder if they had watched too much *Detective Conan*. He unbuttoned his shirt as he walked toward the bedroom, tossing his tie aside, only to realize belatedly that a button was missing from his suit jacket. He stood dazed for a moment until he heard Bai Shi call him, prompting him to quickly change and head back out.
Bai Shi was uncharacteristically solemn. He remained energetic, showing no signs of fatigue, but his expression was grim. Even after returning home, he stood by the window, staring at the house across the street.
Pei Cangyu handed him a glass of water and leaned against the window frame beside him. "What are you looking at?"
"Something’s not right."
"Who killed him?" Pei Cangyu asked.
Bai Shi hesitated before answering, "I don't know."
"Why are you so tense?"
Bai Shi glanced at him. "Things are spiraling out of control."
Pei Cangyu lowered his eyes. "So even you have moments of panic..."
Bai Shi turned to face him, grabbing Pei Cangyu’s arm with his free hand. His grip was a bit too tight; Pei Cangyu winced and tried to pull away, and Bai Shi loosened his hold slightly.
He asked, "You don't think I'm the killer?"
Pei Cangyu shook his head. "You aren't."
"Why?"
"A feeling." Pei Cangyu shrugged. "You always have a reason for what you do."
Bai Shi looked at him for a moment, then turned back to the window.
The police were wheeling the body out. They set up cordons around the house, and reporters had already begun to swarm the area.
This was bad—very bad. This level of exposure threatened his quiet life.
Bai Shi thought to himself that Prophice held significant power. He had stayed at the crime scene for a long time without the police objecting; perhaps he could even influence the outcome. From Bai Shi’s brief observation earlier, there were no signs of a struggle at the scene. Regardless of who did it, it seemed likely the kill was delivered in a single blow. Furthermore, the position of the knife in the chest was peculiar—it was driven straight into the heart. The precision was what made it strange; under normal circumstances, it was rare to be that accurate.
He saw Prophice speaking to the police across the street, seeing them off at the door. A few officers entered the house, likely staying behind for the forensic investigation. Normally, Prophice should have moved out. Given the current situation, he would likely stay with a nearby neighbor. Since he had a daughter, he would probably choose the house next door, where there was a mistress of the house and a girl around Vanessa’s age.
Sure enough, after the warning signs were placed, Prophice emerged with Vanessa, carrying several bags. The neighbor woman rushed forward to hug Vanessa, stroking her hair and offering comfort, though to Bai Shi, Vanessa’s face remained entirely void of expression.
Prophice moved in next door. Bai Shi had expected this; Prophice wouldn't go far. Only by staying close could he maintain the ability to influence the direction of the investigation.
Bai Shi felt uneasy. He had a premonition that this case—the only one that actually had nothing to do with him—would soon affect him.
Pei Cangyu finished his water and prepared to take a shower and sleep. He set the glass down and headed for the bathroom.
Watching his retreating back, Bai Shi suddenly said, "Let's leave."
Pei Cangyu stopped and turned around. "What?"
Bai Shi stood up straight. "Leave this place. Go somewhere else."
Pei Cangyu laughed, speechless. "Somewhere else? What is this, a game of Earth-trotting Connect-the-Dots? Another one..."
"I'm serious."
Pei Cangyu sighed, looking down. "And where do you plan on going?"
"I haven't decided." Bai Shi turned back to stare at the heavily guarded house across the street. "This place won't work anymore."
Pei Cangyu turned back toward the bathroom. "I'm going to shower first. You think about it." He paused. "Besides, if you leave now, won't the police question it? It’s not that easy."
Bai Shi stiffened. He turned to look at Pei Cangyu, staring at him for a while without speaking.
Pei Cangyu stood his ground. "What is it?"
"You..." He paused. "You're right. You're starting to think ahead now."
Pei Cangyu shrugged. "Yeah. He who touches pitch shall be defiled."
As it turned out, they truly had no room to run.
At nine the next morning, the doorbell rang.
Bai Shi hadn't slept much. He was brewing coffee when the bell rang, and the moment he heard it, he knew who it was.
Two police officers, both in their thirties, stood at the door. One wore a long, thin, yellowish-grey coat made of a stiff fabric that looked water-resistant; it wasn't expensive and had clearly been worn for a long time, with dirt smudged on the shoulders. The other wore a black police jacket with the precinct's initials printed on the back.
The man in the grey coat smiled politely at Bai Shi. "Good morning, Mr. Dirac. Is it convenient to chat about last night?"
Bai Shi understood perfectly, but he simply crossed his arms and leaned against the doorframe. "Weren't questions already asked yesterday? Or rather, early this morning." He complained, "I haven't slept for very long."
The grey coat smiled again. "My apologies." He pointed outside. Bai Shi followed his gaze and saw police presence near the other houses as well. "It’s necessary for the investigation."
Bai Shi sighed and stepped aside. The two men nodded and walked in, one after the other.
They followed Bai Shi to the main hall. He told them to sit and asked if they wanted anything to drink. The grey coat asked for coffee; the black coat wanted nothing.
Bai Shi sat across from them. "Have you been busy since yesterday?"
The grey coat was already pulling out a pen and notebook. He smiled at the question. "Yes."
Bai Shi leaned back. "What do you want to ask?"
The grey coat looked up. "There is another person living here, isn't there? Could you ask him to join us as well?"
Bai Shi frowned. "He isn't up yet..."
Just as the words left his mouth, Pei Cangyu emerged from the bathroom, shaking water off his hands. He collided with three pairs of eyes looking his way and gave a stiff wave.
Bai Shi looked at him and told the police, "He just woke up."
"How should we address this gentleman?" The black coat prepared to record Pei Cangyu’s name.
Bai Shi said, "This is my younger brother."
The black coat didn't write anything; he was waiting for a name.
"...You can just call him Pui."
The black coat nodded and turned to Pei Cangyu. "Is it convenient to ask you a few questions?"
Pei Cangyu looked at Bai Shi. Bai Shi explained, "His English isn't good. I'll translate."
The grey coat continued, "When did you arrive?"
"Last month."
"Do you have any plans to leave the city soon?"
"Why do you ask?"
"No reason, just asking."
"Not for the time being."
"Is this gentleman your biological brother?"
"My stepfather's son."
The grey coat looked up. "Then I'll have to trouble you to describe your activities at the banquet last night between 9:00 and 10:30 PM."
***
After seeing the police off, Pei Cangyu began rubbing his stomach. "What's for lunch?"
He looked over at Bai Shi, who had somehow returned to the window, staring at the house across the street and the police moving about. He was silent and expressionless.
Pei Cangyu walked over to his side. "Now it's your turn to spend all day staring across the street."
Bai Shi glanced at Pei Cangyu, then turned back. "We can't leave."
Pei Cangyu leaned against the window. "It's not like you did it. Why are you more nervous than when you've actually committed a crime?"
"They've started questioning you."
Pei Cangyu froze, lowering his head.
"Look." Bai Shi pointed to a line of cars across the street. "Those reporters. Once the police finish for the night, they'll be looking for people nearby to interview. The exposure is too high." He frowned in disgust.
Pei Cangyu looked at the rigid lines of Bai Shi’s face; his own smile faded. He reached out and touched Bai Shi’s hand. It was like touching a block of ice.
"You're afraid."
Bai Shi grabbed Pei Cangyu’s wrist, squeezing hard enough to cause pain. He stared at Pei Cangyu with a complex gaze. Pei Cangyu felt as though he were looking into a pool of dark, stagnant water.
"Yes," he said.
Later, Bai Shi gave strict orders not to open the door for reporters. They ate dinner and turned off the lights, moving about with only a small lamp or a flashlight. They pulled the heavy curtains tight; not a sliver of street light could penetrate the room, leaving the interior in total darkness. Sometimes they sat together to watch a movie, but at the slightest sound from the door, Bai Shi would instantly pause it and stand by the entrance to listen. Only after confirming it was nothing would he return.
Bai Shi’s tension broke Pei Cangyu’s heart.
"Look," Pei Cangyu finally said one night when he woke to see Bai Shi lifting a corner of the curtain to peer at the street corner. "This is what a real fugitive looks like."
Bai Shi turned to look at him.
In the pitch-black room, Pei Cangyu could only discern Bai Shi’s direction by the faint sliver of light. "Hiding, evading, nerves frayed, jumping at shadows."
Bai Shi remained expressionless. "Have you been studying idioms lately?"
Pei Cangyu couldn't bring himself to laugh. "I'm scared too." He lowered his head. "What happens next?"
Bai Shi let go of the curtain. It fell back into place, plunging the room into absolute darkness.
Pei Cangyu looked up sharply. He couldn't see Bai Shi in the dark, but he felt the bed sink. Bai Shi pressed down on his shoulders, kissing his face, biting his throat, gripping his ankles. Even with his eyes wide open, Pei Cangyu could see nothing. Bai Shi was incredibly violent tonight. Pei Cangyu lay prone on the bed, his waist arched at a supple angle, being driven into the mattress. When Bai Shi touched his hair, it was as if he were handling a precious jade, yet when he pried his legs apart and pressed into his back, splitting him open from the inside out, he was as vicious as if he wanted to kill him. When Bai Shi lowered his head to kiss him, Pei Cangyu saw his beautiful face, his white teeth grazing the soft flesh of his cheek until he drew blood.
***
Bai Shi sat up. Pei Cangyu had fallen asleep behind him, or perhaps he had passed out. Ten minutes ago, Pei Cangyu had been calling out incoherently, his arms locked around Bai Shi’s neck, babbling for Bai Shi to kiss him. His cries had been too loud, so Bai Shi had covered his mouth. Eventually, Pei Cangyu had lost consciousness.
Bai Shi stood up and took another look at the house across the street. The street was mostly deserted now. He turned to look at Pei Cangyu’s sleeping face, then stood up and dressed.
He took a flashlight, pulled up his hood, circled through the backyard, and headed across the street.
Over the past few days, the memory of that crime scene had left Bai Shi feeling uneasy. He had to know exactly what had made him decide that something was wrong.
He circled the house. A police car was parked at the entrance; it seemed an officer was on duty tonight. Bai Shi walked along the windows and noticed that the two windows on the east side were relatively clean. He judged that the officer must be sleeping on that side, so he went to the west side and climbed through a window there.
He moved with extreme care, heading straight for the second floor.
The door to the room where the murder occurred was sealed with tape, and two cordons were stretched across the hallway.
Bai Shi tucked the flashlight into his pocket and looked downstairs. Sensing no movement, he put on gloves and prepared to peel back the seal.
It was then he noticed that the edges of the seal were already loose. He gave it a tug, and the entire strip fell away easily; it wasn't the kind of seal that was stuck fast at every inch.
And then Bai Shi discovered something else.
There was someone inside.
He pushed the door open gently. As it swung wide, the room appeared just as it had been. The curtains weren't drawn, but the window was closed, and the bright moonlight illuminated a large portion of the room.
Bai Shi stepped over the cordon and closed the door behind him.
He had only taken two steps when he felt a rush of wind from behind. He spun around instantly, instinctively catching the attacker’s striking hand. Taking a step back, he dragged the person into the moonlight, and they recognized each other.
Prophice was also stunned. "It's you."
Bai Shi recognized him, but he punched him anyway.
Prophice clutched his face and stumbled back. Not wanting to shout, he suppressed his voice, holding his nose. "Are you crazy? Couldn't you see?"
Bai Shi ignored him, pacing through the room on his own.
Prophice went to the door, listened for any movement outside, and then leaned back in. "What are you doing here?"
Bai Shi looked at him. "Who killed him?"
Prophice shook his head. "I'm not sure."
"What was the cause of death?"
"Hemorrhage."
Bai Shi paused. "The knife in the chest?"
Prophice nodded.
Bai Shi looked away, his expression becoming much more serious. After a moment’s thought, he asked, "Are you sure?"
Prophice blinked. "Actually..." He trailed off. "What is it? Why are you so tense?"
"To cleanly and efficiently take down a well-built adult male without alerting the people downstairs and without a struggle... do you know what kind of skill that requires?"
Prophice licked his lips, looking nervous. "Is it more sinister than a professional killer like you?"
Bai Shi glanced at him, deciding not to take offense. "It’s not a matter of being sinister. It’s a matter of being a master."
"There are masters like that? Do you know any?"
Bai Shi looked at him as if he were an idiot. "I'm saying there *aren't* people that skilled. So, is there another theory among the police? There must be."
Prophice studied Bai Shi and nodded. "Because of the massive hemorrhage, many naturally assumed it was caused by the wound—meaning he died from the knife in his chest. But on the other hand, the hemorrhage was at the heart. Some believe that the heart had already stopped beating before the bleeding occurred, though the timing would have been very close. At the very least, the knife was driven in before the heart completely stopped, because the blood splatter patterns indicate the heart was still capable of pumping blood at the time. That’s why there was so much blood..."
"If that’s the case, assuming he had a heart condition, anyone who came here while he was having an attack could have killed him?"
Prophice nodded.
"Did he have a heart condition?"
"He did."
"And the police don't know? He should have had medication on him."
Prophice glanced at him and shook his head. "In fact, as a hardline leader, having a 'heart condition' is very bad for campaign strategy."
Bai Shi grew impatient.
"So he never had an official record of heart disease. I introduced him to a suitable doctor, and naturally, he rewarded me for it," Prophice explained. "As for the medicine, it was kept in this room. He always needed to take it before doing... those things."
"Those things?"
Prophice took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. "I think I know who the killer is."
"Who?"
"Vanessa."
Bai Shi narrowed his eyes.
"You guessed correctly; he did have a relationship with her. He found the girl when he was working on a community outreach project in the city. Later, her foster parents didn't want to keep her, and she had nowhere to go. He was afraid she would talk, so he was planning to 'handle' the problem. It just so happened that my wife and daughter had passed away then, so he conveniently pushed her onto me. On one hand, it solved his urgent problem; on the other, the girl gave me a sense of security, so people wouldn't suspect me of murdering my family. Oh, right, I didn't tell you before—my wife had a massive insurance policy, and the only beneficiary was Vanessa."
Bai Shi stared at him for a while, then suddenly laughed. "Despicable."
Prophice shrugged. "Getting ahead isn't easy."
Bai Shi waved him off. "So he came up that night to use your daughter. But the girl hid his medicine, causing him to have a heart attack, and then Vanessa stabbed him in the chest?"
Prophice nodded. "I'm afraid so."
Bai Shi was silent for a long time. He walked over to a chair and stared at it.
"Is something wrong?"
"What kind of knife was it?"
"A common, slender kitchen knife. She probably bought it secretly."
"Have you told the police this theory?"
"No." Prophice looked at Bai Shi. "Do you think a 'father' should report his 'daughter'?" He paused. "But they’re investigating the origin of the knife. Sooner or later, they’ll find out she bought one at the corner store."
Hearing this, Bai Shi turned to look at Prophice.
"So," Bai Shi changed the subject, "what are you doing here tonight?"
Prophice fell silent. After a long while, he said, "It has nothing to do with this matter."
Bai Shi stared him down. "I suggest you tell me, so I can judge whether or not you're a danger to me."
Prophice looked at him, gritted his teeth, and turned back. "Believe me, it has nothing to do with it."
Bai Shi ignored him and walked toward the bookshelf. "You were rummaging through this just now. Let's see what's here."
Prophice quickly followed. Bai Shi flipped through the few remaining books on the shelf. "What is it? Nude photos? Blackmail? Correspondence?..."
Prophice slammed his hand down on Bai Shi’s arm, his face pale. "It's a project proposal."
"What?"
"The proposal for the redevelopment of this street. Back then, moving the entire street back for no reason made both of us a lot of money." Prophice lowered his hand. "The receipts and the proposal were in a hidden compartment. I was worried they would keep searching, so I decided to come get them. I knocked out the young cop downstairs; I only dared to come today. Satisfied?"
Bai Shi pulled his hand back and gave a small smile. "You really are willing to go through fire and water for your career."
Prophice took a step forward. "What are you doing here tonight?"
Bai Shi looked at him for a moment, seemingly hesitating. Finally, he spoke. "I kept feeling like something about this scene was wrong."
"What?"
Bai Shi stared at the tabletop. "Were there two glasses here at the time?"
Prophice looked over as well. "Were there?"
"Does Vanessa drink?"
***
