The throbbing pain behind my head grew steadily clearer, constantly irritating my nerves. Slowly, I opened my eyes, allowing light to stream in. Once my vision fully adjusted, a strange face appeared before me.
Instinctively, I tried to pull back, but a cautious scan of my surroundings revealed I was still in the temporary shelter from before. Little Cuo and Zhang Jiewei were both gathered around me.
“Brother Lei, you’re finally awake! If you hadn't woken up, we’d have had to send you to the hospital!” Seeing me stir, Little Cuo’s mouth immediately started running again.
“What happened?” I touched the back of my head, only remembering that I had been chasing someone just before everything went blank.
“You were attacked by a thug just now. Luckily, I happened to be passing by, otherwise…” The strange man in front of me spoke softly, his voice surprisingly comforting.
“Yeah, yeah! Otherwise, who knows what might have happened!” Little Cuo chirped on incessantly, sounding almost like a gossiping woman.
“What about the thug?” I rubbed the back of my head, sitting up as I asked.
“What do you think? They definitely ran off!” Little Cuo interjected again.
I shot Little Cuo a look, then turned to the stranger. “Hello, my name is Wang Lei, I’m a criminal police officer from Anyin City. May I ask who you are?”
“Chen Yujia. The Yu from Huanyu Tianxia, the Jia from Jiāyán Yìxíng. I’m a psychological counselor.” The strange man replied with great elegance.
I took a careful look at this Chen Yujia. He had neat, short hair, a clean and handsome face, and was dressed impeccably in a suit, emanating a strong scholarly air. Although his sudden appearance raised some questions for me, personally, I quite liked this type of man. Of course, my… orientation… was definitely fine! It was just that I enjoyed interacting with people like him.
“Did you get a clear look at the attacker?” I probed cautiously.
“I didn't see the specific features; I was a bit far away. I shouted a few times, and when the person saw someone approaching, they fled out the other intersection. Seeing that it was just a woman, and you were already on the ground, I didn't pursue,” Chen Yujia said unhurriedly, his tone gentle.
“A woman.” I wasn’t surprised by this answer. Recalling the person I was chasing earlier, it should also have been a woman, one wearing high heels. That meant she likely just tossed Ouyang Min’s phone into that car, but didn't board it herself, choosing instead to hide nearby to ambush me.
“Yes, it was a woman,” Chen Yujia confirmed again.
“What on earth happened, Brother Lei? How did a woman attack you? Which woman was targeting you? If anyone, they should be going after someone as handsome and dashing as me!”
Even at a time like this, Little Cuo still had the presence of mind to joke. It seems I really can’t keep up with his thought processes.
“The only thing I’m certain of is that the person I was chasing was also a woman,” I stated, then scanned the entire temporary shelter.
It was very late now. Although the temporary shelter had lights on, many people were already asleep; only the staff members were truly active.
“Ask the staff to help check everyone here and see who has left,” I said to Zhang Jiewei, who had been silent until now.
“No need,” Zhang Jiewei responded flatly.
Little Cuo and I both looked puzzled, wondering why Zhang Jiewei would suddenly say such a thing.
“I know who is missing from this place,” Zhang Jiewei spoke again, his gaze shifting to another direction.
Following the direction of his look, we indeed spotted something different: the workstation where the hotel beauty had been sitting was now occupied by a man!
“Sun Xiaomeng has left?” I exclaimed in surprise, quickly getting up and walking toward that spot.
“Hello, how may I help you?” The staff member’s attitude was very friendly, even though he was quite a burly man.
“I need to find a staff member here. I asked her to do something for me earlier, but I don’t see her now,” I lied casually.
“What is her name? I can help you look for her,” the staff member maintained his good demeanor.
“Sun Xiaomeng.”
“Sun Xiaomeng?” the staff member asked again. “Are you sure it’s Sun Xiaomeng?”
“Positive.” How could I not be sure? I had only met her not long ago.
“She hasn’t worked here for a long time. Have you not visited her in quite a while?” the staff member replied certainly.
“Not working here? How is that possible? I was just talking to her here tonight!” I was full of doubt at the staff member’s answer.
“You must be joking. I’m afraid you don’t know—Sun Xiaomeng passed away from stomach cancer a month ago. How could she still be working here? Let alone you seeing her tonight.” The staff member seemed to have found something amusing and couldn't suppress the smile on his face.
But at that moment, the three of us exchanged glances and couldn't smile at all.
“Do you have Sun Xiaomeng’s records?” I quickly asked the staff member, filled with urgency.
“I’m sorry, we have regulations against disclosing staff information.” Upon hearing my request, the staff member became somewhat guarded.
“I am an officer from the Special Investigation Division, currently handling a case. Please cooperate as much as possible,” I showed him my police ID.
As expected, that ID worked best at any time. After confirming my credentials, the staff member tapped a few keys on the keyboard and immediately pulled up Sun Xiaomeng’s file from the hotel.
“It’s all here,” the staff member said, pointing to the computer screen.
I rushed over to look, and the moment I saw the photo on the screen, the back of my neck went cold. Although the Sun Xiaomeng in the photo looked younger, there was no doubt she was the same person as the woman who claimed to be Sun Xiaomeng today!
Sun Xiaomeng, twenty-six years old, a local from Liutaihe City, grew up in the Fushan Orphanage, and started working at the Moortead Hotel in 2009. This was the only piece of information I could glean now. Staring at the phone number displayed on the screen for a long time, I finally snapped back to reality and frantically patted myself down.
“Brother Lei, what’s wrong?” Little Cuo asked softly when he noticed my strange behavior.
“She gave me a phone number earlier.” I replied while searching my body. Thankfully, I finally found the slip of paper in my right trouser pocket.
I held the slip and cross-checked it with the number on the computer. They were indeed the same!
“Thank you.” I thanked the staff member and turned to leave. Little Cuo and Zhang Jiewei hadn't looked at the screen; they simply followed behind me.
“Officer Wang, your complexion isn't right,” Chen Yujia, who had been waiting for us ahead, couldn't help but inquire upon seeing my pale face.
“Heh, maybe I just didn’t rest well,” my reply felt weak.
“Brother Lei, what’s wrong?” Little Cuo looked at me with concern, perhaps his thoughts were running deeper than I imagined.
“The two of them are the same person,” I stated calmly, but my heart was filled with unease.
“What do you mean?” Little Cuo still didn't quite grasp it.
“The Sun Xiaomeng we just met is the same person as the Sun Xiaomeng who died of stomach cancer a month ago,” Zhang Jiewei supplemented from the side.
Little Cuo looked back at me, and upon receiving my confirming nod, he too stood frozen as if petrified.
“Such a thing exists?” Chen Yujia, who had been listening quietly, was also perplexed, but he roughly understood what had stunned us.
“And the phone number she gave me just now is indeed Sun Xiaomeng’s number.” I murmured, then picked up my phone and the slip of paper with the number, preparing to dial.
“I’m sorry, the number you have dialed is currently not in service. Please check and try again.” The emotionless voice of the operator came through the receiver. I hung up; I shouldn’t have placed much hope in that number anyway.
“Brother Lei, do you think maybe…” Little Cuo started his usual superstitious rambling. I gave him the usual white eye, but his words had stirred up a thousand waves in my heart that refused to settle.
“Whatever it is, I now have extreme doubts about everything she told us before. Go back and confirm with that staff member what Sun Xiaomeng said earlier—those questions about Ouyang Min.” I suddenly realized: if Sun Xiaomeng’s appearance tonight was abnormal, did that mean everything she said about Ouyang Min was entirely unreliable?
But the answer Little Cuo returned after questioning them was not what I expected.
“The situation the staff member described is basically consistent with what that Sun Xiaomeng said before.” Little Cuo was also puzzled.
This meant that the Sun Xiaomeng who inexplicably “came back from the dead” hadn’t lied to us. Then what was her true motive? And I was now almost certain that the person I chased earlier, carrying Ouyang Min’s phone, was Sun Xiaomeng! She was the most suspicious person.
“No matter what, Sun Xiaomeng is now a dead end clue. Let’s go to the police station first to check on Ouyang Min. Perhaps the dead can tell us more,” I told Zhang Jiewei and Little Cuo.
“Sun Xiaomeng is also dead…” Little Cuo mumbled to himself.
“What nonsense are you muttering about!” I glared at Little Cuo again before turning to Chen Yujia. Before I could speak, Chen Yujia cut in first: “Since you have things to attend to, I won’t keep you. I need to rush back to my office.”
“You still have business this late?” I glanced at my watch; it was past three in the morning.
“I live nearby, and my office is close too. I was preparing for a patient tomorrow when I realized I left some materials at the office. Since there was such a commotion outside with the fire, I couldn't sleep anyway, so I decided to just go to the office and wait there until morning,” Chen Yujia explained, still impeccably polite. It was a relief that Lan Meimei wasn't here, otherwise, if he managed to charm her, my loss would be truly substantial.
“Alright, we’ll be in touch if there’s a chance,” I replied with a smile, though he had saved me once. But! Even so, Lan Meimei was mine!
“Oh, here is my card. Meeting by chance is fate. If you need any help, I will certainly lend my full support,” Chen Yujia said in his scholarly manner, handing over a business card very politely.
“Thank you. We must be going now, so we won’t talk further. See you next time,” I said goodbye to Chen Yujia with a smile. The next stop was the Liutaihe City Public Security Bureau.
Zhang Jiewei was the first to get into the driver's seat. To avoid Little Cuo’s verbal barrage, I chose the passenger seat. As it turned out, my choice was extremely correct.
“What do you make of today’s events?” Zhang Jiewei, who usually kept quiet, now proactively asked about the case. Little Cuo chimed in, “Yeah, yeah, this case is getting weirder and weirder. It feels like a lot of things are getting dragged into it.”
“First, Ouyang Min’s death—I truly didn't expect that. But the person who impersonated Ouyang Min and called me earlier was a man, and the one who fled with Ouyang Min’s phone now is a woman. If this isn’t all a coincidence, then it’s certain that the culprit isn't a single person,” I analyzed slowly.
“Not one person, does that mean ghosts?” Little Cuo couldn't help but exclaim.
“Where are all these ghosts? I mean, it’s highly possible that more than one person was involved in the crime,” I clarified.
“Then what about Sun Xiaomeng today? Isn't she already dead?” Little Cuo was clearly dissatisfied with my answer, as if he had already concluded that ghosts were manipulating this case.
“Sun Xiaomeng is dead, but the person we saw today might not be Sun Xiaomeng. Although they look extremely similar, consider if someone used a disguise, or perhaps she has a twin sister,” I proposed various theories, though I knew these possibilities were slim, they couldn't be entirely dismissed.
“Brother Lei, in my opinion, you’ve watched too many TV dramas. Who could disguise themselves so perfectly? Besides, Sun Xiaomeng grew up in an orphanage, how could she have a twin sister? This isn’t some family ethics drama,” Little Cuo said with a touch of sarcasm.
“How do you know she grew up in an orphanage?” I recalled that Little Cuo definitely hadn't seen Sun Xiaomeng’s file.
“When you sent me back to interrogate that staff member, I had him pull it up for me to see again. You have to see things with your own eyes to believe them,” Little Cuo said with a grin.
“Well, you little rascal, you don’t even trust me,” I replied with a laugh.
“Well… one has to be cautious when working for our Lord Jiang,” Little Cuo maintained his slightly roguish demeanor, truly making me worry about his future.
On the way to the Liutaihe City Public Security Bureau, I was bothered by the night’s events. Ouyang Min’s death was undoubtedly a massive blow to me, and Sun Xiaomeng’s bizarre reappearance made me feel like the case was getting deeper and deeper into the fog. I was on the verge of grasping the truth, only to be maneuvered by something at the critical moment.
Was all of this merely coincidence, or was it all premeditated?