The words of Mu Rongyun echoed in her ears. Was she too stubborn? Liu Wei had already confessed; perhaps closing the case like this would be better. If Lin Zhifang were here, this fact wouldn't need to be changed at all.

She sent the pictures from her phone to the computer. Ah San's body parts were hidden in three places: the room, the jar, and the latrine. She placed these images on one page. The blood seen in the room was the most, almost staining the firewood red. Only a circle of bloodstains was seen on the jar's rim, and Director Zhao didn't dump it out to check inside. As for the latrine...

Wu Shuang suddenly frowned at her train of thought. Director Zhao had only taken her to the room, and she hadn't checked the other two places personally. Then the old man started talking about Ah San's story, followed by Mu Rongyun's arrival. It didn't seem wrong at first, but thinking carefully now, the rhythm felt peculiar.

When she first met Director Zhao, he wasn't talkative and only knew Ah San as a hooligan. They went to that chicken shop and were quite familiar with the madam there, as he mentioned a small room. But this time, Director Zhao seemed noticeably different, warm and unusually talkative, and more importantly...

"That's it!" Wu Shuang exclaimed to herself. She realized what was off: Director Zhao's walking posture. He never once had his hands behind his back, nor did he sip alcohol before tea. Could it be that the person she met twice wasn't the same one? If so, who was the real one?

Wu Shuang let out a low hum. Why did it feel like the previous mask was being replayed? Scrolling through the video, beneath the footage were swiftly moving cars, with flashing lights occasionally flickering. The photo Xiao Sun provided was taken from this video, and from this angle, it was the clearest.

Under the windshield, only two noses and mouths were exposed, and judging by the skeletal structure, they didn't look Chinese. Wu Shuang exhaled at the screen; her eyelids felt a bit sore and drooped together. The quiet office subdued her after a sleepless night.

In her dreams, she felt uneasy. She was running, panting, panicked, but she didn't know if the person running was herself. It seemed she saw someone else, yet felt like herself. It was chaotic and blurry.

Her feet stepped onto sandy ground, causing a sinking drag sensation. She seemed to be shouting, her mouth felt sour, yet no sound came out, except for breathing; no other sounds were heard, not even the natural sound of the wind in the air.

She seemed to fall, felt like her whole body was engulfed in the sand. She reached her hands out, grasping wildly in the air. Cold air entered her lungs through her mouth, causing her to cough continuously.

A warm current passed from between her fingers into her heart, dispelling the chill within. Wu Shuang slowly opened her eyes, and a handsome face enlarged before her, with her reflection in those pitch-black eyes.

"Mu Rongyun?" The three words emerged from her delicate red lips, causing the owner of those black eyes to frown, the concern in their eyes gradually cooling.

"Mu Rongyun?" Xiao Lin's voice sank from Wu Shuang's warmed heart into deeper coldness.

"Why is it you?" Wu Shuang blinked her eyes, the soreness from her hands confirming her dream, while Xiao Lin's big hands still held hers. "I... why are you here?"

"That's something to ask about the message you sent." Xiao Lin had no intention of letting go of her, his pitch-black eyes staring like an eagle at its prey, not allowing her to escape. "You were with Mu Rongyun all night last night?"

"Yes." Wu Shuang didn't know why Xiao Lin was angry. At the first glance, those eyes looked exactly like Mu Rongyun's.

"So you mistook me for him?"

"No!"

"No? Did I just imagine things?" Xiao Lin released Wu Shuang and walked behind her, his gaze falling on her screen. "Why did you send me such a message?" One hand supported on the table, encircling Wu Shuang within the bend of his arms.

"I..." She couldn't answer Xiao Lin's question, feeling conflicted and wanting to find a hole to crawl into. "Why are you here?"

"If I say it's because of that message?" An ambiguous atmosphere rose between the two. Xiao Lin drove past the City Police Department entrance, intending just to check in, but unexpectedly encountered Wu Shuang struggling in a nightmare.

Forgetful about turning on his phone, when he received Wu Shuang's inexplicable message that day, he experienced a momentary lapse, and after settling Hong An, he came here.

"I didn't mean anything by it. I heard your conversation that day and wanted to..."

"You're probing me?"

"Why would I need to probe you?" Wu Shuang couldn't help but be annoyed by Xiao Lin's tone. Did this man have to be so conceited?

Xiao Lin chuckled twice. "I was only joking with you. I haven't seen you in a long time; why have you become so sensitive?" Ceasing to tease Wu Shuang, Xiao Lin returned to sit in the chair opposite her. "Is there a new case?"

It turned out he was just teasing her; Wu Shuang felt a hint of bitterness sweep across her heart. "Yes, there's an unreasonable traffic accident. Two suspected foreign citizens died in a garage. The perpetrator initially accused a hooligan named Ah San of paying him to cause a murder on the highway, but in the second statement, he recanted the previous testimony, taking full responsibility for all crimes."

"Oh? Such a thing?" Xiao Lin lit a cigarette, resting his feet on a nearby planter stand.

"In the testimony, that hooligan named Ah San is already deceased, his body dismembered and abandoned at the old brick kiln. Yesterday, I spent the night with Mu Rongyun in the North District's guest house."

"The person who hired the murder died, and the perpetrator takes full responsibility?" Xiao Lin summarized everything in one sentence. "You're taking it so seriously, you must have a different perspective on this case."

"Yes, I went to the crime scene this morning, which is the brick kiln. From the scene, it doesn't seem to be the primary crime scene."

"What else?"

"Personally, I think there's something wrong with the director of the North District Police Station. On the day Ah San died, he mentioned a woman's murder case, but to this day, there hasn't been any report of a female corpse found."

"Spent the whole night in the same room with Mu Rongyun?"

"Don't get the wrong idea, we did nothing. He slept on the floor, I slept on the bed." Wu Shuang hurriedly explained, hearing Xiao Lin's teasing tone.

"I wasn't thinking anything, you seductive woman." Xiao Lin laughed heartily, noticing Wu Shuang's slightly red face. He realized it's been a long time since he teased her, making it much more amusing.

"What did you call me?"

"Nothing. Since you have nothing going on, I'll be leaving now." Xiao Lin stood up from the chair. He came to see how Wu Shuang was doing, seeing that Mu Rongyun was so close to her, might he be planning something? After his first appearance, Fourth Lord vanished without a trace, and the old man seemed to have disappeared as well, showing no interest in him.

"Wait, Xiao Lin," Wu Shuang stood up after him, calling out to him. "Was your argument with Mu Rongyun that day real?"

"You mean the matter of him being my enemy?" Xiao Lin didn't shy away from the question. "It's true."

"Between you two..."

"You seem very concerned about the issues between him and me. If one day, it comes to a situation where one of us must die, who would you hope it to be?" Having been asked the same question by two people in one day, Wu Shuang let out a groan, feeling herself being swept into a perplexing whirlpool.

"I wouldn't choose anyone. What relation do you both have with me?"

"Then why bother asking more?" Xiao Lin glared playfully at Wu Shuang. "I have no hostility towards Mu Rongyun as a person; it's only about circumstances."

"But..."

"There's no 'but.' It's a matter of principle. Although I don't know what happened between you and him last night, your change in perception towards him is obvious. I won't change anything just because you're my friend; this concerns my family, my relatives."

"Perhaps, he is your relative too?" Wu Shuang spoke softly, but loud enough for Xiao Lin to hear.

"What do you mean?"

"You've just heard it too, I mistook you for Mu Rongyun. You two don't actually resemble each other, but you have identical eyes."

"There are many identical things in this world. Don't overthink it." Xiao Lin lightly flicked Wu Shuang's forehead. "In short, stay out of our affairs. I never planned to let anyone else know, and your eavesdropping was accidental, but that doesn't mean you can join in."

"But haven't we always worked well together, from the Poison Dragon Gang to..."

"That's a different matter. This time, I don't need your involvement."

"Are you worried about me?"

Faced with Wu Shuang's unusually direct question, Xiao Lin just brushed it off with a smile. "I worry about everyone around me; this time isn't suitable for your participation."

Walking out of the building, Xiao Lin was somewhat regretful. He did come over because of his concerns but hadn't expected it to turn out this way. Was Wu Shuang trying to express something, telling him there is a closer connection between Mu Rongyun and him? Laughable. Or is it that Mu Rongyun intentionally set this maze through Wu Shuang?

Mu Rongyun is a cunning opponent, always creating illusions that lie between truth and deception, catching people by surprise and trapping them. Wu Shuang had already fallen into such a trap, making it difficult to extricate herself. Realizing this, Xiao Lin's urge to eliminate Mu Rongyun became even stronger.

The silver QQ drove away from the big iron gate. A figure standing on the third floor lowered the curtains, fading completely into the dark room, with what appeared to be a faint smile. Was he smiling?

A red dot lit up in the darkness; he was smoking, and the curve at the corner of his lips caused the cigarette to curl upward. (To be continued. If you like this work, please visit Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your votes and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)

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