Page 5

"No, I just..." Xun Yin's mind was a complete muddle, and for a moment he had no idea what to say. Fortunately, Pei Qingyu seemed especially easygoing today.

"All right, all right. A-Xun's grown up and doesn't want to stay with his captain anymore." Leaning against the wall, Pei Qingyu looked up and smiled. "Go on. It gives me a chance to slack off, too."

Xun Yin nodded. The fluorescent lights in the corridor shone on Pei Qingyu's face, abruptly throwing his captain's exhaustion and discomfort into stark relief. He suddenly noticed something amiss-ever since he had come down to the forensic examination room, Pei Qingyu had stayed against the wall without moving.

Xun Yin frowned. He was just about to speak when the door to the forensic examination room suddenly opened.

"Mentor, here's the autopsy report." Su Xiaochen hurried out without even taking off his mask. Handing over the report, he asked worriedly, "Mentor, is your heart still bothering you? Did you suddenly faint just now because it was too cold in there? Is your chest still tight?"

"Faint? Captain, didn't you just say you came out yourself because it was cold?"

"I..."

Pei Qingyu hadn't expected his apprentice to expose his lie the moment he came out. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Xun Yin, who had already turned to leave, come back. Anxious, he was about to speak, only to suddenly choke and break into a string of coughs.

That made Su Xiaochen even more anxious. Completely missing Pei Qingyu's meaningful glances, he continued, "No, Brother Xun. Mentor's face was pale from the moment we entered the autopsy room. I asked if he wasn't feeling well, but he said he was fine. Then, while putting on his sterile gown, he just went limp and collapsed."

Seeing that Xun Yin seemed to have misunderstood something else, Su Xiaochen turned to Pei Qingyu. "Mentor, are you still dizzy? Don't go out on fieldwork with Brother Xun."

"I'm not dizzy." Pei Qingyu waved a hand, exasperated. "I've been away for six months, and now every last one of you is trying to boss me around. If you're done with the autopsy, hurry up and help Xiao Yu with the investigation. Stop hovering in front of me."

Once Su Xiaochen reluctantly left, Pei Qingyu let out a long breath. He was bracing himself against the wall to stand a little straighter when a sudden wave of dizziness swept over him.

"Mm..."

His vision abruptly went black. By the time Pei Qingyu came to his senses, Xun Yin had already caught him securely.

"Not dizzy?"

"Only just then." Pei Qingyu rubbed his temples and spoke cautiously as he looked at Xun Yin's thunderous expression. "See? Wasn't I fine a moment ago?"

"Then why were you standing against the wall the whole time?" Xun Yin's voice suddenly rose, an undercurrent of anger in it. "I remember, you clearly... clearly wouldn't even lean against a wall when you injured your leg on a mission before."

Pei Qingyu rested against his chest without speaking. Xun Yin took a deep breath, calming down a little, and said slowly, "Was it because you were too dizzy to stand?"

"Yes." Pei Qingyu nodded, his fingers clenched so tightly they had gone pale.

"Then could we go to the hospital in a bit?" Xun Yin was only angry because it hurt too much to see him like this. Now, seeing Pei Qingyu keep his head lowered without speaking, he felt a little apprehensive. "Just to get you checked..."

"I'll go if you let me come on fieldwork with you." Pei Qingyu looked up. His face was pale, but there wasn't a trace of sadness on it; there was even a hint of a smile in his eyes. "Deal?"

"...All right."

"Go upstairs and get the files. We agreed-the hospital comes after fieldwork." Feeling Xun Yin stiffen, Pei Qingyu slowly straightened out of his arms and ruffled the youngster's hair.

"Stop spending all your time scheming against your captain."

Lin Zhou lived in the suburbs, and the drive alone took over an hour.

"Doesn't IT pay well? Why didn't he buy a place downtown?" Pei Qingyu got out of the car coughing. He was prone to carsickness to begin with, but he had taken advantage of Xun Yin being too busy driving to keep an eye on him and started leafing through Lin Zhou's autopsy report in the car.

Now Pei Qingyu felt waves of discomfort in his stomach. Xun Yin held out a hand, and Pei Qingyu obediently handed over the report, then took the bottle of water offered to him and began to drink.

It was an old residential complex, and Lin Zhou's apartment was on the top floor. Pei Qingyu said nothing, but Xun Yin watched his face grow paler and paler, his breathing becoming increasingly labored.

"Captain, did the autopsy ultimately confirm a gunshot wound as the cause of death?" Xun Yin suddenly stopped and softly asked Pei Qingyu behind him.

"The report does indicate a gunshot wound. The cause of death was organ rupture and excessive blood loss. One interesting point is that no bullet was found in his body." Pei Qingyu took the opportunity to stop, holding on to Xun Yin as he caught his breath, then raised an eyebrow and smiled.

"Was it dug out beforehand?" Xun Yin asked with a frown.

"No. Look at this photo. The skin around the wound is smooth, without any signs of damage. The wound's diameter is very small. It wasn't damaged and then reconstructed."

Pei Qingyu frowned as well. Most murders were impulsive, straightforward and brutal; something planned this meticulously was truly rare. Holding on to Xun Yin's hand, he climbed another flight of stairs and said, "All right, don't think I don't know you've already read through it. I'm not so frail that I need a break just to climb some stairs. Come on."

"Mm," Xun Yin answered glumly, but he didn't let go of the hand Pei Qingyu had offered him.

Meanwhile, Song Ranran and the others had questioned several restaurant owners. All of them said Lin Zhou was a regular, but he didn't like chatting with them. Whenever he came, he would order a huge amount of food and leave as soon as he finished.

"You know, at places like ours, of course we try to get friendly with the regulars. For one thing, it helps us keep our customers. For another, the customers are happy to get to know us, too. After all, once we're familiar with each other, they'll get a discount now and then. But this guy always huddled in that corner to eat. Whatever we tried talking to him about, he wouldn't respond."

"Could it be that he wasn't short of money?" Song Ranran asked curiously.

"If he wasn't short of money, why wouldn't he go to a big restaurant? Why come to little places like ours?"

"Then did he come here on a particular day every week?"

"Yes, usually every Wednesday. But half a year ago, he stopped coming for three whole months. I thought he'd gotten tired of the food, but then, three months later, he came back."