Murderer?

Old Sun was in his thirties and wore thick black-framed glasses. He was unremarkable-looking, and he usually spoke at an unhurried pace. When he smiled, he looked simple and good-natured, giving people the impression that he was mild-mannered.

His principle in dealing with people had always been to keep his head down and work hard. He was nothing like some people who liked to shout about everything but never did a thing.

When Jiang Yue arrived at school, Old Sun had only just put down his rice bowl.

Seeing his prized student put Old Sun in a noticeably good mood.

"Before lunch, not long after you called me back, a section chief surnamed Luo from a government department came to the school to ask about you. He looked through your student records and talked with me, too. I asked what it was about, but he didn't say."

"You haven't gotten into trouble, have you?" Old Sun asked, though he trusted Jiang Yue completely.

This student was a top-notch prospect whom the best universities were fighting to recruit. How could he possibly have done anything illegal?

"Nothing's wrong. I only met him this morning," Jiang Yue said, not wanting to go into detail. He changed the subject. "Why did they suddenly schedule a physical examination for this afternoon?"

Graduating students had to take the college entrance exam, so a physical examination was mandatory.

But announcing it at the last minute was clearly irregular. Some boarders had gone home to remote villages for the holiday. How could they possibly make it back in time?

Old Sun sighed and led Jiang Yue into the inner room. "Jiang Yue, I saw the video in the group chat yesterday, too. I heard that the top officials in Great Zhang Country have been holding meetings for three days straight. They're discussing something important."

"What is it?"

"I'm not sure. But the directive passed down from the very top is that all students currently in school must complete physical examinations in batches within three days."

"So we're the first batch?"

"Mm! Only a third of our class is taking the physical this afternoon. The other two-thirds will get theirs tomorrow."

"Jiang Yue, this examination came out of nowhere. I can't help thinking it might be connected to something big. So take it seriously, and don't let your guard down. Maybe the government has suddenly organized these examinations to identify promising students and train them for special roles?"

That was only Old Sun's personal speculation. As a bookish teacher, he couldn't really make heads or tails of what was going on.

Still, it couldn't hurt to take it seriously.

Since Old Sun had said so, Jiang Yue had to keep a respectful attitude, whether or not he agreed.

By the time he reached the classroom, quite a few of the students who'd been told to take the physical that afternoon had already arrived.

At around one-thirty, Old Sun entered the classroom. Everyone was there except Du Yifeng.

Han Jingjing was among them, but Jiang Yue's three roommates weren't in this batch.

To Jiang Yue's surprise, Li Yue was there, too. He had no idea how she'd managed to get from her hometown to Star City.

They'd been told to arrive before two. Until everyone was present, Old Sun couldn't address them. He clasped his hands behind his back and strolled out of the classroom at an unhurried pace, then leisurely smoked a cigarette in the corridor.

Du Yifeng didn't show up until one or two minutes before two. Wearing a pair of flashy oversized sunglasses, he slung a backpack printed with an alternative-style design over one shoulder and dashed into the classroom like a gust of wind.

After years of dealing with Du Yifeng's behavior, Old Sun was completely immune. He didn't want to waste so much as a punctuation mark on him.

"Everyone's here, so I'll say a few words. We'll leave together for the physical examination and stick together the whole time. No one is to make special arrangements or leave the group. We haven't been told where the examination will take place yet. When it's our turn, the bus will take us there."

The students erupted in an uproar.

It was just a physical examination. It would be at a hospital or a medical examination center. Where else could it be?

Why make it so mysterious?

Young people this age were bound to be a little rebellious. Hearing Old Sun make it sound so secretive, they all started heckling and protesting the arrangement.

Jiang Yue didn't join in. He felt his phone vibrate a few times in his pocket, so he took it out to check.

"Han Jingjing: My brilliant big brother, take me to a movie after the physical! Whoever says no is a puppy!"

Jiang Yue didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He put his phone away, intending not to reply just yet.

Before he could slip it back into his pocket, he heard Han Jingjing, sitting not far away at the next desk, clear her throat several times.

Jiang Yue turned his head. Han Jingjing was lying on her desk, half her face buried in the crook of her arm. She scrunched up her delicate nose and made faces at him, while secretly forming half a heart with one hand under the desk.

"Han Jingjing, what's wrong? Are you feeling unwell? Will it affect your physical?" Old Sun asked with concern.

"Reporting to you, Teacher Sun, I'm as fit as a fiddle!"

"Good. Sit and rest for a while."

There probably wasn't much else to say about the physical. Maybe his nicotine craving had kicked in, because Old Sun patted his pockets, getting ready to go smoke another cigarette in the corridor.

Before he could step down from the platform, several figures approached from the corridor and stopped outside their classroom. They were all in uniform.

The person walking in the middle was Officer Han.

Jiang Yue was surprised, thinking Officer Han had come to see him. Before he could say a word, Officer Han fixed his gaze on Homeroom Teacher Sun Bin.

"Are you Sun Bin?"

Old Sun was baffled. "Yes. What's this about?"

"Police!" Officer Han was always brisk and efficient on the job. He flashed his badge. "We're investigating a murder. We need you to come in and answer some questions."

Old Sun was utterly confused. A murder? They wanted him to answer questions? What could a teacher like him possibly know?

Before Old Sun could react, two officers behind Officer Han stepped forward. One twisted Old Sun's arms behind his back, and with a cold click, the handcuffs snapped shut around his wrists.

"What are you doing?" Old Sun was an honest middle-school teacher who had never been through anything like this. He was completely stunned and began struggling violently.

"I suggest you cooperate. 'We need you to come in' is just a polite way of putting it. You know what you've done. At least have the decency to save face in front of your students," Officer Han said coldly.

He waved a hand. "Take him away!"

Old Sun was a frail scholar. One officer alone would have been more than enough to overpower him, let alone several. He was led out of the classroom without a chance.

The classroom erupted.

Their homeroom teacher had been handcuffed and taken away by the police right in front of them.

It was the kind of major incident that might not happen even once in the decades since Yangfan Middle School was founded.

Most of the students were dumbstruck. They were trembling, their faces pale, and had no idea what to do.

The more mature students, like Du Yifeng, were surprised but oddly calm. He even ran out into the corridor to watch, as though the person involved had nothing to do with him.

Han Jingjing opened her mouth several times as if she wanted to stand up, but when she looked at Officer Han, she held back.

Jiang Yue didn't know what was going on. He was worried for Old Sun, but didn't rush forward.

The police had their procedures. Even if Old Sun were more wronged than Dou E, he would still have to go with them for now.

As soon as the police left, a deputy director surnamed Shao from the school walked into the classroom.

"Everyone, settle down. The police will get to the bottom of whatever Teacher Sun is involved in. I'll be taking over your class for now. This afternoon's physical is important, so don't let this weigh on you. Your future is your own. Teacher Sun's personal actions have nothing to do with any of you."

It was a little cold-blooded, but it was the truth.

Jiang Yue wasn't in the mood to listen to him drone on. He asked to go to the restroom, then slipped out of the classroom.

He found a quiet spot and couldn't resist taking out his phone to call Officer Han.

"Little Jiang, I saw you in the classroom just now. I'm sorry about this, but the law is the law. This is a serious matter. No one can get him off the hook by pulling strings."

"Officer Han, we've been through life and death together. If my teacher really broke the law, I wouldn't have the nerve to ask you to go easy on him. Besides, neither you nor I get to decide this. Can I ask what happened?"

"You don't know? A girl in your New Moon Bay neighborhood was raped and murdered at home at around ten this morning. We reviewed the surveillance footage from the scene, and our preliminary investigation suggests your teacher is a major suspect! We've already rushed various samples in for testing—palm prints, fingerprints, hair, bodily fluids, and so on. Once we compare the DNA, we'll know for sure."

By rights, those were details of an ongoing case and absolutely couldn't be disclosed to someone unrelated. But since it was Jiang Yue on the other end of the phone, Officer Han made an exception.

He'd already said enough to risk violating regulations. After exchanging a few polite words, Officer Han promised to tell Jiang Yue as soon as the results came in, then hurriedly hung up.

The murder in the neighborhood?

Old Sun, that honest, decent man, was the killer?

How could it sound so utterly absurd? Old Sun's hands shook even when he killed a chicken. His wife had complained about it plenty of times.

Him? A murderer? Jiang Yue couldn't make the connection at all.