Without giving me a chance to clarify anything, Li Yi hastily hung up, and it wasn’t until early the next morning that he called back. He hadn’t slept all night but insisted on calling; I suspect he wasn’t just eager to share the case and the gossip but also wanted to gloat.
This perpetrator was an old boyfriend of mine, surnamed Xu. He was a doctor, and we had broken up amicably after dating for a month. Li Yi had disliked him from the start, saying he had the face of a schemer. But aside from being a bit dull, our relationship hadn’t given me much to complain about; ultimately, I didn’t really like him, so I had overlooked many details.
I never imagined he would actually kill someone.
Li Yi said the case happened three years ago. The victim was a man who died in his own home from a heavy blow to the back of the head. The perpetrator’s methods were brutal yet meticulous, leaving behind very little useful evidence. Less than a year after that incident, another victim appeared; he was luckier and survived, but he had never regained consciousness. The investigation revealed that both victims were regulars at a certain bar.
Hearing Li Yi say the name of that bar made my head throb. Xu Yanzhou and I had met there, which proved the victims were all gay men.
With the same modus operandi and such specific victim identities, the police station finally decided to combine the cases. The deceased had complex social connections and had even dealt with gangs; after a long period of screening, the police finally caught the killer.
Xu Yanzhou.
Supposedly, he was very composed; even after being caught, he didn’t panic in the slightest, only requesting that the police notify his lawyer. He claimed it was a crime of passion, not premeditated. He said both victims were his lovers who had extorted large sums of money from him because he was not out of the closet and held a respectable profession; he had even been beaten and verbally abused by them. Driven beyond his limit, he grabbed a nearby weapon and, while the victim wasn’t looking, struck them hard on the back of the head.
He even provided evidence of the victims extorting him.
However, the police soon discovered inconsistencies in his testimony.
First of all, when the victims were killed, they had already broken up with Xu Yanzhou. Furthermore, according to their close friends, Xu Yanzhou had been the one dumped in both breakups. Secondly, based on the chat evidence Xu Yanzhou provided, it was discovered that the financial exchanges in both relationships were related to anniversaries and were given voluntarily by Xu Yanzhou.
Finally, and this is a crucial point, Xu Yanzhou’s parents and colleagues were all aware of his sexual orientation, so the claim that he was afraid of being outed didn’t hold up. On the contrary, both deceased victims had hidden their sexual orientation; when their families heard their relatives had been harmed by a same-sex lover, their eyes nearly popped out of their heads.
Of course, that last part was likely Li Yi adding his own color to the story.
Li Yi said that after experts in psychology and psychiatry met with Xu Yanzhou, they concluded he suffered from a certain personality disorder. He was extremely narcissistic and held deep grudges after being dumped; unable to endure the victims escaping his life and control, he had resorted to brutal violence.
Naturally, this is all speculation; the subsequent trial and sentencing will be left to the court.
After hanging up the phone, I was still reeling in shock. Xu Yanzhou turned out to be that kind of person. When he was with me, he had been so gentle and considerate, always taking on the role of an older, dependable figure I could lean on, thinking through everything for me, as though he had already decided I was the partner he would spend his life with.
In my limited romantic history, I had always felt that my time with him was the healthiest. Compared to Zhang Mingsheng, he seemed so kind and approachable in my memories.
Like a jellyfish, he had slowly squeezed into my cave, swelling until he filled my life. Was he trying to paralyze me? After I broke up with him, did he also harbor a grudge?
Did he ever think of killing me?
Or rather, did that fire at my house all those years ago have something to do with him? And just whose body was it in those flames?
Human life is so chaotic and fraught with danger; every time you meet someone new, it isn’t just a romantic encounter but a game of chance between people filled with hidden undercurrents of risk.
The loser might lose their feelings, their money, their energy, their health, or even their life.
In this world, aside from “red mushrooms” like Zhang Mingsheng, who was dangerous at a glance, there were also people like Xu Yanzhou, who was low-key and unassuming, pale on the surface, yet every bit as lethally toxic as a destroying angel mushroom.
I sat at the narrow dining table, eating the toast that Ah Hai had bought, even pairing it with jam. I hadn’t planned on eating, but as I looked at the packaging and remembered the soft texture, the more I thought about it, the hungrier my stomach growled.
I picked up a small spoon, dipped it into the jam, and spread it over and over the bread, but my hand began to shake uncontrollably. I sighed and switched to my left hand.
Just one more meal, I’d treat it as my last.
I couldn’t stay in this place for long either. While Zhang Mingsheng was still recovering these next few days, I had to seize the time to find a new place to live.
I had just taken a bite of bread when I started yawning.
Since escaping, it felt like I hadn’t had a full night’s sleep; I was constantly waking up and drifting off, and whenever I did wake, it was either three or five in the morning. My mind was alert, even a bit hyperactive, but my body couldn’t seem to keep up with the speed of my soul.
After a minute of hesitation, I set down the plate and decided to sleep again.
With a glass of warm milk in my stomach, I lay down and tucked myself in. This time, my consciousness quickly went blank.
When I opened my eyes again, I felt a dull ache in the back of my neck. As I moved my arms, I realized my posture was very strange. I wasn’t lying in bed but was sitting up leaning back into someone’s arms.
“You’re awake?” A voice sounded from just above my ear, its tone bordering on tender.
I broke into a cold sweat instantly, the hair on my arms standing on end.
I was sitting in the back seat of a car, listening to the occasional whistle of wind whipping past the windows.
Zhang Mingsheng had his arm around my waist and pulled me close. I caught the scent of his cologne mingled with the faint, pungent smell of medicine. He was stroking my hair with his palm grazing over the stubble of my buzz cut over and over again.
I jerked my head up to meet his eyes in the gloom. As the car passed through patches of light, his pupils caught the glow, turning a pale amber. He wore a smile, looking unshakeable and radiant.
He lowered his head, brushing his nose against mine. “Bb, I’ve suddenly realized I have even less patience than I thought.”
Reality finally crashed down on me. I spun my head toward the driver’s seat, my lips trembling. After a moment of stunned silence, I screamed, “Ah Hai, you lied to me!”
“Don’t shout, Officer Yu. Don’t shout,” Zhang Mingsheng cooed, cupping my cheeks and forcing my head back to face him. He said softly, “Laopo, let’s not disturb the driver. That isn’t Ah Hai. Ah Hai isn’t here; I have more important things for him to do. After all, since he gets along so well with you and is so… ‘reasonable,’ it would be such a pity to keep him by my side.”
“What did you do to Ah Hai?” I found myself shaking, my voice wavering unevenly.
“He’s still alive,” Zhang Mingsheng patted my back soothingly. “We’re all still alive.”
