Chapter 238: A Team Torn Apart

2022-05-20

Being falsely accused is suffocating. I know I didn’t do those things.

But as soon as I said that, whispers started all around me. Words like ‘monster in disguise’, ‘never judge a book by its cover’, and ‘scum’ drifted into my ears. My head throbbed, the world spun, and for a moment I even began to wonder if I really was the killer.

Desperate, I clutched at my hair, pulling until my scalp tingled in pain. I’ve never told anyone about this habit, or why I do it—using the pain on my skin to cover up the ache in my head. Whenever the headache starts, this is what I do.

But now, it doesn’t seem to help at all.

Maybe… Maybe I did all this during one of my episodes? Like a killer with multiple personalities—could there be another Wu Meng inside of me? I can’t face the idea of guilt delusion. Maybe I’ve just chosen not to remember what I did during an attack?

Am I guilty? Did I kill someone?

“Order in the court!” Gradually, the room fell silent.

“Prosecutor, please continue.”

The witness stepped down, and the prosecutor went on, “Even if you say you acted to save someone, we could interpret your actions as the result of your guilt delusion. When suspicion and anxiety take over, the simplest way to ease the pain is to eliminate the person making you anxious, isn’t it?”

“Yes!” I blurted out, then immediately realized and quickly corrected myself. “No! In that situation, it was just a tactic to get the killer talking. The issue is, after the killer either gave up the address or didn’t, what did I do next? Isn’t that what matters?”

The prosecutor replied, “Yes, but the killer chose to talk. What if they hadn’t? Would you have killed them instead?”

I said, “I couldn’t let anything happen to Guan Zengbin. She’s part of my team, don’t you get it?”

“Answer the question!” The prosecutor pressed. “If the killer refused, would you kill them?”

“We’re like a family, can’t you understand?” I yelled back.

“Would you kill?” The prosecutor’s voice came again, firm and cold.

“I would ki—”

Before I could finish, my usually silent lawyer spoke, “Objection! The prosecutor has no right to speculate and direct my client’s emotions with hypotheticals. This is a court of evidence, not an arena for assumptions.”

“Objection sustained. Prosecutor, please refrain from coercive questioning.” The judge nodded.

“Very well. Even just from those threatening words, it’s fair to say the suspect, Wu Meng, might exhibit extreme actions in certain circumstances.” The prosecutor glanced at their file. “I have a key witness who can prove the suspect has acted out of line before.”

“Bring them in.”

I frowned, clueless as to who could confirm I’d done anything extreme. But—

But when I heard the name, so familiar yet so distant, I couldn’t believe my ears. Only when I saw them walk up did I know I’d heard right and my eyes weren’t lying.

Standing at the witness stand was Xiao Liu.

My mouth hung open—words caught in my throat. My whole body shook. I never would have guessed Xiao Liu would testify today. Yet here he was—the prosecutor’s star witness.

That day, underground, Xiao Liu really did see everything.

“What did you witness?” the prosecutor asked. “You can tell us now.”

Xiao Liu looked at me, his face blank but his gaze full of things he wanted to say. He gently ran his fingers along the rail in front of him, glancing around the silent courtroom. Everyone held their breath, waiting for Xiao Liu’s crucial testimony. Time itself seemed to freeze—a suffocating kind of silence.

He cleared his throat, then bowed his head, avoiding my eyes. “During the attempt to capture the suspect, after they’d surrendered and put down their weapon, I saw the accused raise a sharp piece of broken glass and stab at the suspect’s neck. If I hadn’t stopped them in time, the suspect would be dead right now.”

Dead silence. You could’ve heard a pin drop.

“Is what the witness said true?” the judge asked.

I looked at Xiao Liu, but he wouldn’t look at me, staring down at the floor instead. I couldn’t tell what was going on in his head or what he felt about me. All I felt was betrayal, cold and sinking—like falling through ice.

“You’re trying to get me killed!” I said to Xiao Liu. My voice wasn’t loud, but it reached him crystal clear.

Xiao Liu lifted his head, and I saw tears in his eyes. “Me, trying to get you killed? If I didn’t speak up, that’s what would’ve killed you! Wu Meng, I’ve been watching you for ages. Your guilt delusion is on the verge of coming back. You need to get treatment at the psychiatric hospital. Otherwise, I’m terrified one day I’ll find you dead somewhere—you get it? You’ll either kill someone, or get killed yourself. At least if it’s the first, I can still do something!”

Tears rolled down Xiao Liu’s cheeks, but I couldn’t tell why.

I replied, “You just want me dead. Don’t you realize Guan Zengbin is still missing? I’ve stuck with this case because if it goes to someone else, we’ll have to start from scratch. Then who will find her? You say you’re not hurting me, but you’re dooming all of us!”

“Of course I’m investigating!” Xiao Liu shouted. “I’ve never left this case—every clue you know, I know too. I’ll get Guan Zengbin back, I promise.”

The courtroom buzzed at this wild scene.

Anyone with common sense knows there’s no such thing as truly feeling someone else’s pain. You might cry your heart out, break down, scream, or let silent tears fall. Some people are silent, some watch idly, some calmly offer comfort. In the end, someone always mutters, ‘What a character.’

But the needle never pricks them.

“Order! Order!”

The more I spoke, the more riled up I got. “From the day you left Team Leader Shao, I knew you cared more about rank than people. But I never thought you’d go this far. Now that we’re all gone, there’s no one left to fight you for the position, is there? You think I want your lousy seat? Go investigate all you want!”

Xiao Liu jabbed a finger at me and after a pause, shouted back, “Wu Meng! Wu Meng! I always knew you looked down on me. I know I don’t have your talent, I know I have to play by the rules, take things step by step. But have I ever slacked off for even a second? Ever stopped for a single minute? Maybe I lack talent, but I make up for it with hard work! Is that so wrong?”

Xiao Liu was shaking all over, fists clenched, veins bulging from his hands.

“Wu Meng,” Xiao Liu pointed at me with a trembling finger. “Is it wrong? Tell me, is it wrong to claw your way up through effort, to earn everything bit by bit? But you, you all think of me as someone who’d sell my soul for a promotion!”

I wanted to argue, but no words would come.

Was Xiao Liu wrong? With hard work alone, wanting a better life—is that so wrong? He never stopped me from investigating—he just wanted to achieve his goals his own way, without tricks or shortcuts. Xiao Liu’s the hardest worker I’ve met, but the higher you climb, the more you see—this world isn’t just about hard work.

Hard work might set you ahead of eighty percent of the crowd, but that last twenty percent is brutal. Xiao Liu became a team leader so young, which is impressive. But he still isn’t satisfied.

But there’s no crime in that.

“None of you respect me—none of you!” Xiao Liu yelled. “I treated you as real friends, but none of you ever saw me as one of your own. Fine! I don’t need friends like you—get lost! From now on, we’re nothing to each other!”

My chest tightened as I fought back tears, but I couldn’t cry.

“Court’s adjourned! Take them all away!”

A couple officers led me out, and across the room Xiao Liu stormed off as well. When I joined the Special Investigation Team a year ago, I never thought things would crumble like this. I never imagined we’d part ways so soon.

Team Leader Shao will probably face tough consequences because of me. I have no clue what Mary’s up to these days. Hoping for help is pointless now. From here on, I’m on my own.

I made a quiet promise to myself, though whether it’s right or wrong, I can’t say. And I have no idea what this one choice will change.

They locked me away in an interrogation room. After a while, my lawyer came in.

We sat down across from each other. He started, “Wu Meng, Boss Mao sent me.”

“Sister Mao?” I asked.

He nodded. “That’s right. Someone named Gu Chen tracked down Boss Mao. She’s gone to bat for you, but nothing’s worked yet, you understand?”

I didn’t say a word.

He went on, “You investigators love evidence. Now you’ve got an airtight case—witnesses, physical proof—the works. I don’t know how you got into this mess, but public opinion is growing impossible to control. I advise you to confess to everything.”

“But I didn’t do it.” I locked eyes with him.

“But everyone else thinks you did.” He shook his head. “Getting you out is impossible now, but I can save your life. If you plead guilty, at worst it’s life imprisonment—maybe with the right connections, you’ll be out in under ten years. You’re just twenty, your life’s still ahead of you.”

I shook my head. “As long as I’m still sane, let me be clear—it wasn’t me. I don’t know when my mental illness will relapse, and there isn’t much time. The trial will resume this afternoon. Here’s what I want you to do…”