My older sister and Wang Jue were both staying at the First People’s Hospital. After leaving the Public Security Bureau, I hailed a taxi and rushed straight towards the First People’s Hospital. The cab dropped me right at the entrance of the surgical ward.

They weren't in the same room. Carrying the fresh flowers I’d bought along the way, I first headed toward my sister’s room. Everyone I passed on the route either had an arm in a sling, a leg in a wheelchair, or their entire head wrapped in gauze, revealing only their eyes, nose, and mouth. After spending so long in the mental institution, turning right back into a surgical ward—if it wasn't absolutely unavoidable, I never wanted to set foot in a hospital again in my life.

My sister was in Room 1513; it took me ages to find it. Peering through the glass panel on the door, I saw her lying down asleep, her leg casted and suspended in traction by straps attached to the bed frame—she looked utterly pathetic. Standing by the window was a man, seemingly admiring the view outside; he was almost certainly my sister’s new boyfriend.

I straightened the flowers, smoothed down a few petals that had gotten askew in the cab, and gently pushed the door open, stepping inside. My sister remained asleep, undisturbed by my entry. The man by the window heard the sound and turned, meeting my gaze.

Heh. That whole fantasy of retreating to a quiet country life I’d entertained back at the police station was nothing but a pipe dream. It looked like my sister and I wouldn't be returning to normal life anytime soon, because the person standing by the window was Li Xiaoshu A or B.

“Hello,” he greeted me proactively. Judging by Li Xiaoshu’s demeanor and speech, he was far more refined than the one from yesterday; surely they weren't the same person.

“Which Li Xiaoshu are you?” Being cautious, I still had to ask.

“I am Li Xiaoshu. The other one was my twin brother who passed away; our parents named him Xiaohao before he was born. I am very sorry about your sister’s situation!”

“There’s nothing to apologize for. No matter who you two are, all we need is for you to disappear from our lives. We want a normal life.” I finally said the words I’d held in my heart for so long. “Right now, the most important thing for us is to get back to how things were before, and let time heal the damage you two brothers inflicted upon us.”

“I am also deeply uneasy about dragging you into all this. Everything I am doing now is aimed at getting you back to your old lives, but some difficulties have yet to be overcome.”

“Huh? Difficulties?” I couldn't quite grasp what Li Xiaoshu meant. Was he still harboring resentment because I helped Li Xiaohao obtain the stamp album, and now he sought revenge against us?

“Yes, your sister’s Gu spell has not been broken yet!” he said, looking at me, speaking with extreme caution.

“OMG!” I didn't know what to say. My sister and I probably owed these two brothers money in a past life, and they’d come back now to collect the debt.

“After I saw you at the mental hospital last time, I sent your sister home and gave her a medicine to keep her mind clear every day. Later, for some unknown reason, she left her residence and went to your hometown, where she ran into Wang Jue, and they got into a car accident on the way back…”

“That car accident was arranged by your twin brother,” I interrupted before he could finish. Just recalling the scene from the video made me intensely uncomfortable.

“Yes. After the accident, your sister never woke up. The doctors ran numerous tests, but the results always showed no significant abnormality in her brain. I suspect it’s the Gu.”