"No, that's all! I didn't do anything else!!"
"You don't know what Su Zhuoqin and Kong Rongde did?"
"I don't know. I don't know anything... My face hurts so much! Are you sure I'm not blind?"
"You're not."
On April 15, 2004, the client was admitted to the hospital for treatment.
On April 15, 2004, audio file analyzed. Audio file 03520040415(1)G.wav.
"...Crash! What was that... The desk lamp fell on the floor... Thump!"
Click!
"How is it?"
"Quiet, quiet."
Click! Click!
"...Crash! What was that... Thump!"
Click!
"This... sounds like footsteps. A Ye, did you hear them?"
"No. I only saw a shadow at the time. It was blurry. I couldn't tell if it was a cat or a person."
"Footsteps, so it must've been a person?"
"Let me listen again."
Click!
"...Move! Ah! Thump! Ah! Aaaah!..."
Click!
"Here, I heard something."
"What?"
"Wait a second."
Click! Tap, tap, tap... Click!
"...Move! Ah! Thump!... Rustle... Rustle... Ah! Aaaah!..."
"I didn't hear anything."
Click! Click!
"...Rustle... Rustle..."
"It's just static. Mushroom, what exactly did you hear?"
"It sounded... like someone talking, but also like a cat meowing. I'll have to process the file some more."
On April 16, 2006, the client's residence was investigated. Nothing was found. The landlord was contacted. Audio file 03520060416.wav.
"Oh, you mean those young men. I knew something was off about them. The people who rented with them before complained to me, saying they caught cats and things like that. Anyway, unless they're murdering or setting fires, there's nothing I can do. If they are, they should call the police. Complaining to me, the landlord, won't help."
"Besides catching cats, did those tenants mention anything else?"
"No, nothing else."
"Has anything unusual ever happened in the house? A murder, accident, suicide, anything like that?"
"How could that happen? My house is perfectly clean. As for those disappearances, I think they just ran off. They're all migrant workers. Some gamble, some take out loan-shark loans, some get into ****—it's a mess. Who knows who they offended outside? They probably just took off."
"So it's common for people to leave without notice?"
"Yeah, it happens a lot. Su Zhuoqin was the longest tenant—five years. Fei Wen's been there two years. Kong Rongde didn't stay long, just six months."
"When Fei Wen moved in, there were four other tenants besides Su Zhuoqin, right? They all moved out within a year and a half of Fei Wen moving in. Isn't that unusual?"
"No, that's normal. There's a lot of turnover here. Tenants like Su Zhuoqin and Fei Wen are the unusual ones. Those workers switch jobs all the time. They might quit one job today and start a new one tomorrow. They don't stay in one place for long."
"Do you have the contact information for those former tenants?"
"Let me look."
...Rustle...
"Here, I wrote down all the information I have."
"Great, thank you."
On April 17, 2006, Su Zhuoqin's restaurant owner was questioned. Audio file 03520060417.wav.
"Su Zhuoqin? He's a great cook. He's worked at our restaurant for five years. Very reliable and cheerful. I was surprised when he suddenly disappeared."
"Did he ever act strangely?"
"No, nothing unusual."
"Did you know he spent the night drinking with people on the evening of April 14?"
"Oh, he was drinking with people from the restaurant. A few of them worked shifts and had the day off on the 15th, so they went drinking the night before."
"Could you tell us who they were?"
"It was Xiao Sun and the others. Here, they're all inside. I'll call them over in a bit. You can ask them."
"Great, thank you so much."
"I'd also like to ask: back in 2003, did you have two employees named Zhu Bin and Zhou Yanghui?"
"Let me think... 2003... Give me a moment. I'll ask someone."
Tap, tap, tap...
"Hey, Xiao Sun, come over here. Did we have a Zhu Bin and a Zhou Yanghui working here in 2003?"
"Yeah! Xiao Bin and Yanghui. Brother Su even helped the two of them find a place to rent. The three of them lived together."
"You know about it, so come tell these reporters."
"Huh? Tell them what? Oh, hello. Hello."
"Hello, Mr. Sun."
"Hey, don't call me Mr. Sun... So, what do you want to ask?"
"We heard that Zhu Bin and Zhou Yanghui went back to their hometown for the Lunar New Year last year and never came back. Do you know what happened to them?"
"Huh? I... I don't know. The restaurant was closed for the New Year, so I don't know what they did. They didn't come back after the holiday, either. I asked Brother Su and called them, but Brother Su didn't know, and they didn't answer their phones. They were just a kitchen helper and a waiter here. People work for a few months and then leave—that's how it goes. If they stop coming and we can't reach them, we don't go looking for them."
"The owner said you and Su Zhuoqin drank all night on the 14th. Is that right?"
"Yeah. There were supposed to be two others, but by the end, it was just Brother Su and me."
"Did he mention anything? Or act strangely?"
"Not really. I did most of the talking. He didn't say much. He seemed... seemed a little down, I guess. Maybe it was because one of his roommates had gone missing."
"Did he ever talk to you about the place he rented or his roommates?"
"No. Um... never. He never brought it up. Xiao Bin and Yanghui didn't mention it either. Maybe the place was a dump, and they were embarrassed to talk about it."
"Okay, thank you."
"Oh, right!"
"Yes? Did you remember something?"
"We were drinking at a barbecue stand by the road that night. A stray cat ran over and scratched Brother Su. He must've been pretty drunk, because he suddenly grabbed a beer bottle and threw it at the cat. I heard there was a cat at Brother Su's place. When he disappeared, wasn't there a dead cat, too?"
"Yes. What happened to the stray cat?"
"It ran off."
"Could you tell us where you were drinking that night?"
"At the intersection over there. Barbecue stands set up every night after ten."
"Okay, thank you."
On April 17, 2006, the barbecue stand was investigated. Audio file 03520060417(1).wav.
"Oh, that night. I remember. That man got drunk and lost his temper at a cat. He smashed a beer bottle, and it scared off some of my customers."
"What did the cat look like?"
"Huh? How would I remember? It was dark, and... just a stray cat, I guess? Grayish-black, pretty ordinary."
"I saw it that night. That man cracked the cat's skull!"
"You were there that night?"
"Yeah. I was there. I was the customer who ran off. I didn't get to eat that night, so I came back today."
"This fellow's a regular here. Three chicken legs and five chicken wings, right?"
"Yeah. And bring me some beef and lamb, and two of those scallops, too."