The Death of the Alley Cat

"There's nothing left, really nothing! 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... My face hurts! Is my vision really not blurry?"

"No."

April 15, 2004, admitted the client to the hospital for treatment.

April 15, 2004, analyzed audio file. Audio file 03520040415(1)G.wav.

"...Crash! What was that... The desk lamp fell on the floor... Bang!"

click!

"How is it?"

"Stop bothering me, stop bothering me."

click!click!

"...Crash! What was that... Bang!"

click!

"This... sounds like footsteps. Ah Ye, did you hear it?"

"No, I just saw a blur of a shadow, very vague, I don't know if it was a cat or a person."

"Footsteps, so it was a person?"

"Let me listen again."

click!

"...Get out of the way! Ah! Bang! Ah! Ah-ow-ow-ow-ow!..."

click!

"Here, I heard a sound."

"What sound?"

"Wait a moment."

click! tap-tap-tap...click!

"...Get out of the way! Ah! Bang! ...Rustle... Rustle... Ah! Ah-ow-ow-ow-ow!..."

"I didn't hear anything."

click!click!

"...Rustle... Rustle..."

"It's just static. Mushroom, what exactly did you hear?"

"It sounded like... someone talking, and also like a cat's meow. I need to process this file further."

April 16, 2006, investigated the client's residence, no findings. Contacted the landlord. Audio file 03520060416.wav.

"Oh, those young people you're talking about. I knew they were a bit strange. The previous tenants who shared with them complained to me, saying they caught cats or something. Anyway, if it's not murder or arson, even if it is, you should call the police, not bother me, a landlord."

"Besides complaining about catching cats, did those tenants mention anything else?"

"No, that's all."

"Did any unusual incidents happen in the house? Like murders, accidents, suicides, or anything like that?"

"How could that be? My house is very clean. As for disappearances, I think people just ran off. People like them who work odd jobs, some gamble, some take out high-interest loans, some do... whatever, it's a mess, who knows who they offended outside and just skipped town."

"So, it's common for people to just leave from your place?"

"Yes, it happens quite often. The longest-term tenant was Su Zhuoqin, for five years. Fei Wen also lived here for two years. Kong Rongde was there for a shorter time, only half a year."

"When Fei Wen moved in, weren't there four other tenants besides Su Zhuoqin? They all moved out within a year and a half after Fei Wen moved in. Isn't that a bit unusual?"

"No, it's quite normal. There's a high turnover here anyway. People like Su Zhuoqin and Fei Wen are rare. Those working odd jobs, they jump from one company to another, changing jobs today and tomorrow, they don't stay in one place for long."

"Do you have the contact information for those previous tenants?"

"Let me look."

...Rustle...

"Here, I've written them all down."

"Okay, thank you."

April 17, 2006, interviewed the restaurant owner, Su Zhuoqin. Audio file 03520060417.wav.

"Su Zhuoqin? He's a very skilled cook. He's been working at our restaurant for five years, a very reliable and cheerful person. Ah, his sudden disappearance, I was quite surprised."

"Did he show any particularly unusual behavior?"

"No, no unusual behavior at all."

"Do you know about him drinking all night with someone on the evening of April 14th?"

"Oh, I was drinking with people from our shop. Several of them work in shifts, and they had a gathering the day before the 15th, since they had the day off then."

"May I ask who those people were?"

"Just Xiao Sun and a few others. Look, they're all here at the shop. I'll call them over in a bit. You can ask them anything you need to."

"Okay, thank you so much."

"Also, I wanted to ask, back in 2003, did your shop have two employees named Zhu Bin and Zhou Yanghui?"

"Let me think... '03... Hold on a moment, I'll go ask someone."

Tap, tap, tap...

"Hey, Xiao Sun, come here. Did we have a Zhu Bin and a Zhou Yanghui working here in '03?"

"Yeah! Little Bin and Yanghui. Didn't Brother Su help them find a place to rent back then? They lived together."

"If you know, then come tell these reporters."

"Huh? Tell them what? Ah, hello, hello."

"Hello, Mr. Sun."

"Hey, no need for 'Mr.'... So, what did you want to ask?"

"It's like this, we heard that Zhu Bin and Zhou Yanghui haven't returned since going back to their hometown last Spring Festival. Do you know where they went?"

"Ah? That... I don't know about that. Our shop closes for Spring Festival, so I'm not clear about their arrangements. They didn't come back after Spring Festival either. I asked Brother Su, and I even called their phones, but Brother Su didn't know, and no one answered their calls. They were just temporary workers and waiters here. They'd leave after a few months, that's how it is. When people don't show up and can't be contacted, we don't look for them."

"The boss just said that you and Su Zhuoqin were drinking all night on the 14th. Is that correct?"

"Yeah. There were supposed to be two others, but as it went on, it was just Brother Su and me."

"Did he mention anything? Or exhibit any unusual behavior?"

"Not that I recall. I did most of the talking; he didn't say much. It seemed... it seemed like things weren't going well. Oh, right, one of their roommates went missing. It was probably because of that."

"Did he ever mention the rental property or his roommates to you?"

"No, he didn't. Hmm... Never. He never brought it up. Little Bin and Yanghui didn't mention it either. Maybe the place was run-down, and they were embarrassed to talk about it."

"Okay, thank you."

"Ah, wait!"

"Hm? Did you remember something?"

"We were drinking at a roadside barbecue stall that day. A wild cat ran over and scratched Brother Su. He was probably drunk, and he suddenly grabbed a beer bottle and smashed it. I heard that Brother Su's roommates kept a cat, right? When Brother Su went missing, didn't a cat also die?"

"Yes. What happened to that wild cat?"

"It ran off."

"May I ask the location of the drinking that day?"

"Just at that intersection. A barbecue stall sets up there every night after ten."

"Okay, thank you."

April 17, 2006, Investigating Barbecue Stall. Audio File 03520060417(1).wav.

"Oh, that day, I remember. This man, he got drunk and lost his temper with a cat, smashing a beer bottle. It scared some customers away."

"What did the cat look like?"

"Huh? How would I remember that? It was dark, and... just a wild cat, right? Grayish-black, pretty ordinary."

"I saw it that day! That man smashed the cat's head!"

"You were there that day too?"

"Yeah. I was there. I was one of the customers who ran off. I didn't get to eat that day, but I came today!"

"This gentleman is a regular customer. Three chicken drumsticks and five chicken wings again, right?"

"Yeah, and add some lamb and beef, and two of those scallops too."