Twisted Feelings

Luo Ningsang, who had been waiting by the entrance, spotted the familiar figure and rushed forward to drape his coat over him as he got out. "Why didn't you wear more?" he complained.

Shen Yu had a headache from dealing with them. "Brother, it's twenty-one degrees today. It's hot."

"Xiao Yu's here?"

"Come inside and sit down. What did the doctor say? There won't be any lasting effects, will there?"

"Hey, go get him some hot water."

Once he entered, the officers who had witnessed the hostage-taking were even more on edge, each more so than the last. No one could help feeling sorry for the blue-haired young man, who looked as though a gust of wind could blow him away. He looked terribly frail, yet the ruthlessness that showed through from his very bones drew everyone there to him. After all, everyone who joined the Police Bureau had a dream of being a hero.

Once inside, Shen Yu was finally allowed to take off his hat. Lu Yanjin gathered the little braids on either side of his head and tied them together with his loose hair. From a distance, it looked as though he were wearing a crown of vines and flowers.

Shen Yu accepted everyone's kindness and went with Luo Ningsang and the others to the Criminal Investigation Unit's office, shutting the door to block out the noise outside.

Xu Shenzheng had just placed the clothes Shen Yu had taken off on the sofa when he saw Shen Yu pull Luo Ningsang over. Luo Ningsang turned sideways and lowered his head slightly as the young man before him narrowed his eyes slyly and whispered something in his ear.

Lu Yanjin pulled up the blinds.

Sunlight streamed through the gaps and fell on the two of them, coating them in a warm golden glow.

The weather was clear, and the people were just right.

Then the young man suddenly turned around and waved at him. "Brother Zheng, come here! I have something for you to do!"

Xu Shenzheng smiled. "Coming."

The interrogation room.

Sitting here yet again, Ji Jingxing was already growing impatient. His lengthy detention had left him in poor spirits. Looking at the camera aimed at him, he spoke with barely suppressed anger. "I've told you, I killed him. Can't you hurry up and sentence me? Do I have to listen to the person my dad sent babble on and on?"

"Sure."

Startled to hear an answer, Ji Jingxing looked up at the person pushing the door open.

That unmistakable blue hair and blue eyes.

A name from a long time ago surfaced in his mind.

"...Shen Yu?"

In a good mood, Shen Yu greeted him. "That's right, it's me."

Lu Yanjin followed him in, thoughtfully pulled out a chair for him, put a cushion on it, and placed the thermos where he could easily reach it. Only then did he sit down.

Ji Jingxing noticed what he was doing and the corner of his mouth twitched, but Shen Yu soon drew his attention away. "What are you doing here?"

"Take a guess?"

"Don't tell me they sent you to talk me around?"

Shen Yu took out the credentials Luo Ningsang had arranged for him as a case consultant. "Give it up, Ji-san. You're surrounded."

Ji Jingxing: "..."

Ji Jingxing: "I've admitted all along that I killed him, haven't I? You're the ones who won't let it go."

"So I'm here to correct their mistake. You're in big trouble, Ji-san." Shen Yu sat up straight and spoke in a solemn, deliberate manner.

"Go on, how many years?" Ji Jingxing relaxed instead. For every day the case remained unresolved, he spent another day in fear.

Shen Yu looked at him in surprise. "How many years? No, no, no."

Ji Jingxing watched the young man hold up a finger and wag it back and forth.

"It's the death penalty. Off you go to get shot."

"How is that possible?" Ji Jingxing's eyes widened.

"Are you questioning the fairness of the Police Bureau's investigation?" Shen Yu seized the moment to slap the table, nearly making himself lose his composure. Pain shot through his palm. Ow, I forgot it hasn't healed yet.

Lu Yanjin gave him a disapproving look, pulled his hand over, and rubbed it for him.

Ji Jingxing had no time to pay attention to the two of them. His mind was filled with the fear that he was going to die. At the end of the day, he was only a seventeen-year-old kid. "That's impossible! I looked up the criminal law. I'm still a minor, so the maximum sentence is life imprisonment! And there's my dad. He can't just leave me to it. How could he stand by and watch his son die?"

"Oh, that." Shen Yu smiled wickedly. "I remember your birthday's a week away, right? We'll just wait until after your birthday to sentence you. Then you'll be an adult, won't you? Perfect."

"Even if your dad wants to help, he won't be able to. Unless you didn't kill him, you'd better just sit tight and wait to be sent on your way. Enjoy the days you have left."

Shen Yu spoke with a hint of regret.

"You won't get to experience them again."

Clatter.

Ji Jingxing stood up straight. His handcuffs restricted his movements, and the table bolted to the floor was hard to budge. He couldn't die. Once he was dead, he'd have nothing. He opened his mouth.

Shen Yu's words echoed in his mind.

Unless... you didn't kill him.

Ji Jingxing closed his eyes for a moment, then recanted his confession. "It was Bai Xiaofan."

Shen Yu raised an eyebrow at him.

"I was forced into it. He told me all of this."

"Then why did you take the blame for him? As far as I know, you don't lack money, and he doesn't have anything on you. Other than your poor grades, there's nothing else."

Ji Jingxing fell silent.

Shen Yu looked at him and went on, "Bai Xiaofan has an alibi. He stayed at the bar all evening, and the surveillance footage shows he never left. You were the only one who left partway through."

Shen Yu had naturally made that up.

If they really had such conclusive evidence, the case would have been closed long ago. Why would it have dragged on until now?

Moreover, because of Bai Xiaofan's brazen behavior, most people thought he was the killer and paid much less attention to Ji Jingxing.

"I've been wondering why you killed Jiang Lian when you'd barely even met him."

Ji Jingxing instinctively objected. "I didn't kill him."

Shen Yu pointed at the photos of the crime scene. "I admit, you imitated him very well. You knew Bai Xiaofan liked to torture small animals to death, then take their organs out and rearrange them outside their bodies. At first, even I was fooled."

His tone changed. "But Bai Xiaofan has dissected so many animals that he must know something about the human body."

The thought of the things in the laboratory made Shen Yu feel a little sick.

"He couldn't have made such a basic mistake as getting the locations of the organs wrong, unless someone deliberately imitated him. You probably read up on human organs beforehand, but you can't learn everything about that sort of thing overnight. So... you're the only one who could be the real killer."

Ji Jingxing's palms broke out in a cold sweat.

"And as for why you killed Jiang Lian, I'm guessing it was because of your ridiculous feelings."

"You wanted Bai Xiaofan to pay attention only to you."

Shen Yu watched Ji Jingxing's expression and naturally didn't miss the moment his cheek twitched, though Ji Jingxing quickly suppressed it. He protested stiffly, "...No, I didn't."

"You wanted Bai Xiaofan's attention, like a neglected child trying to attract a busy adult's. Your dad was busy with work and neglected you, so you had nowhere to direct your feelings. Bai Xiaofan spent time with you, so naturally you directed them at him."

"So when you saw Bai Xiaofan take an interest in Jiang Lian, you took some people to corner Jiang Lian, only for Bai Xiaofan to slap you. Watching Bai Xiaofan defend Jiang Lian made you angry, but there was nothing you could do."

"So a plan took shape in your mind: get rid of Jiang Lian and hinder Bai Xiaofan with the case at the same time. Taking the blame for him would leave an even deeper impression on him. You'd worked out that you wouldn't die anyway; at worst, you'd have a criminal record and a life sentence. You also knew your dad and Bai Xiaofan wouldn't just sit back and do nothing. If they pulled some strings, you might even get out again."

Shen Yu picked up his thermos and took a sip of warm water. He had talked so much that his mouth was a little dry. But why had he gotten a goji berry in his mouth? He quietly spat it out and met Lu Yanjin's helpless gaze.

"Ahem..." Shen Yu cleared his throat twice. "But you didn't expect Bai Xiaofan to really ignore you completely. Even so, you kept going with the plan, deluding yourself that he'd appreciate it."

"But you still regretted it. Otherwise, you wouldn't have pinned it on him when your life was threatened."

"Am I right, Ji Jingxing?"