"You live here?" Xue Se hated people who dawdled more than anything. He fished a ring of keys out of Li Zhi's pocket and tried several before opening the Rental Unit's door.
"Get inside!"
The Rental Unit was small and as filthy as a garbage dump, hardly looking fit for human habitation. Once he returned, however, Li Zhi visibly calmed down. Grinning foolishly, he placed Li Shou's Posthumous Photograph on the only clean table, then wiped the fruit he had found several times and set it beside the photograph.
Xue Se left Li Zhi alone. With his brow deeply furrowed, he searched the room for useful clues.
Kicking the scattered rubbish aside, Xue Se found Li Zhi's rental records in a corner. They were kept in an old-fashioned ledger listing the monthly water, electricity, and cleaning fees. Flipping back through it, Xue Se discovered that Li Zhi had lived here for at least a year. Tucked inside was a photograph taken when Li Zhi first moved in: a cheerful young man with a muscular build, brimming with vitality.
"How did a perfectly healthy young man end up half dead?" Old Ma came over as well, astonished by the change in Li Zhi.
Li Zhi had moved into the Time of Death Complex to find someone. Judging by the outcome, he had failed to find that person and ended up sacrificing himself instead.
Watching Li Zhi pay his respects to the Posthumous Photograph, Xue Se felt puzzled. It seemed more as though Li Zhi had entered the complex to collect rubbish. He had amassed an entire roomful of junk, including things he would never use in his life, such as several tattered pieces of red women's clothing and the Old Lady's bound-foot shoes.
Once he had finished paying his respects, Li