Chapter 283: Bloodshed

Zhao Pingjuan and Zhang Xue stepped out of the apartment and spotted Zhou Moli. The air was thick with awkwardness. None of them could’ve guessed that after being called in one by one, all three would give exactly the same statements—and each tried to pin the blame on someone else, swearing their own innocence.

Aside from Liang Mei, who still couldn’t be reached, the three women now found themselves face to face, probably wishing they were anywhere else. They kept glancing at one another, unsure what to say. Silence lingered.

The tension finally broke when Wang Yikai’s deep frown twisted even tighter—he looked to be in real pain. Clutching his stomach, he said, “Look, if we’ve gotten this far, there’s no point being coy. If you’re all claiming you had nothing to do with it, then the only one left must be Liang Mei.”

“Liang Mei?” Zhang Xue blurted out in shock.

Zhang Xue quickly added, “That can’t be right. Liang Mei hardly ever talks, and she always asks us for advice when something comes up. She doesn’t make decisions on her own. Of all of us, she’s the least likely suspect.”

“But that night… did any of you actually see Liang Mei?” I asked. “I heard she was alone in the dormitory that night.”

At my question, Zhang Xue and Zhou Moli both fell silent too. After a while, they each shook their heads.

Zhou Moli spoke up, “I don’t think I saw Liang Mei that night.”

Zhao Pingjuan said, “Let’s call Liang Mei and ask her directly. We’re all here, might as well get Liang Mei too.”

I shrugged. “Problem is, no one’s been able to reach her. Why don’t you try?”

Zhao Pingjuan nodded, “We exchanged phone numbers at the party the other night. I’ll give it a shot.”

But still, there was no response. By now, it seemed like Liang Mei had vanished.

“Looks like we’ll have to find out what Liang Mei’s been up to,” I said, glancing over at Zhao Mingkun.

Wang Yikai’s voice trembled, “So it must’ve been Liang Mei, then. But before you start investigating, could someone take me to the hospital? My stomach hurts more and more—I don’t think I can hold out until we reach the next city.”

“Let’s go.” I looked at Wang Yikai.

He nodded and stood up, but as we walked out with Zhao Mingkun and me on either side, I noticed he could barely take a step without stumbling.

Zhao Pingjuan couldn’t help but chuckle, “Wang Yikai, why are you walking like that? Are you about to go in your pants?”

Everyone nearby cracked a smile at her comment.

Wang Yikai looked embarrassed. One hand gripped his belly in agony while the other clung tight to the armrest of the sofa. Sweat poured down his face in big drops—he looked just like a woman about to go into labor.

“Cut it out, seriously—I’m hurting bad. Let’s just get to the hospital,” Wang Yikai muttered.

“What did you eat?” I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was very wrong. Maybe he ate something bad, but this had been going on since last night and seemed only to get worse. Could it be something like gastroenteritis?

That thought had me reaching out to help steady him.

Wang Yikai was practically doubled over, looking like a curled-up lobster. As soon as my hand reached out, his own hand slipped from the sofa and he tried to grab my arm. But he had no strength left—he collapsed to the floor.

He started writhing on the ground, his whole body shaking with violent dry heaves. The women who’d been laughing earlier were now panicking. Zhao Mingkun reacted fast, crouching down right away to check on Wang Yikai.

I dropped down as well, trying to help him up.

But suddenly, Wang Yikai couldn’t hold back anymore. There was a harsh “pfft pfft” sound, but it wasn’t any foul smell that followed—just a strong reek of blood. I looked down. Fresh blood had seeped through his suit trousers, staining them crimson, and was running down his legs.

I’d never seen anything like this, even a ruptured hemorrhoid didn’t bleed like this—it was as if blood was pouring out of him.

Wang Yikai started convulsing hard and kept on retching.

“Call an ambulance! Dial 120, now!” I shouted.

Finally the others snapped out of it and hurried to call for help.

But Wang Yikai’s condition kept getting worse. Suddenly his body arched, and to my horror, a gush of blood erupted from his mouth. He clutched his belly, the pain clearly unbearable. He tried to speak, but every time he managed a word, more blood gushed out.

“What’s happening to me? What’s happening…” His voice was weak, but every word was clear.

His face was twisted in panic.

“I never killed anyone, I swear. I know it was wrong when I had Luo Ding steal Lü Zhiqiu’s clothes all those years ago.” Wang Yikai latched onto my arm with a desperate grip. “But I know it was wrong. I know I made a mistake—so why? Why does Heaven want me dead so badly?”

I shook my head and squeezed his hand. “Relax, it’s just a ruptured hemorrhoid, it won’t kill you.”

But Wang Yikai’s eyes were wide, his words coming out between clenched teeth: “No, I know my own body. The pain… it hurts so much. I don’t want to die. There’s still so much I haven’t done, so many places I haven’t been.”

“I don’t want to die!” Suddenly, his eyes bulged, and he clamped down on my arm with incredible force, like he wanted to snap it in two.

But gradually, his grip weakened. Finally, his hand slipped free and hung limp at his side. Yet those eyes of his stayed wide open, staring at nothing.

His pupils dilated. We had Yang Licheng bring over a flashlight. I shone the beam into his eyes—no reaction at all. The cloudy white film starting to form around his pupils meant only one thing: Wang Yikai was dead.

I just sat down on the floor—no one said a word.

What on earth happened? We’d been with Wang Yikai since eight o’clock last night—almost fourteen, maybe fifteen hours. In all that time, he acted totally normal, never showed any symptoms.

But sometime after last night, he began to feel that dull ache, and now… it had just cost him his life. How did the killer pull this off? I couldn’t imagine what method could have killed Wang Yikai.

Maybe it was some poison with a slow release? But as far as I knew, there wasn’t any poison that could take fourteen or fifteen hours to show effects. Plus, in all that time, Wang Yikai had gone to the bathroom multiple times—if it was something he ate or drank, it should’ve been eliminated from his system. And if it wasn’t ingested, he would have died much sooner.

I’d never heard of a toxin that could make a person die this way.

Could someone have snuck in and poisoned him in the early hours? That might explain why he kept running to the bathroom last night.

Who was the killer, and how did they manage such a bizarre murder?

I stared at Wang Yikai’s body, lost for words.

Wang Yikai was supposed to fly to another city at six this afternoon, but the killer struck first. Now I could see why the killer had moved so fast. Killing thirteen people is a massive task. If anyone got suspicious and tried to leave Dongxing City, the killer might miss their chance.

The pace was frightening. Sometimes, before news of a death had even spread, the next victim was already dead. The only real way to avoid the killer might be to leave Dongxing City and come back once the killer was caught.

I looked at the stunned women around me. “Do you see now? Whether any of you were the murderer seven years ago or not, the one seeking revenge for Lü Zhiqiu won’t let you go. I still don’t know if the real killer is among you, but you all have families here in Dongxing City. It’d be tough to run. Still, if you can get away for a while, you should.”

They all nodded. Zhang Xue’s voice shook, “In that case, I’ll leave for now—I’ll go hide at my mother’s place until you catch the killer. When everything’s safe, I’ll come back.”

The other two women agreed. “Us too,” they said in unison.

Yang Licheng spoke up, “I… I’ll talk to Wang Xin and figure out what to do. If it comes to it, maybe we’ll hire bodyguards and have them watch us around the clock. You all better hurry—this is terrifying. One minute someone’s fine, and the next, they’re dying in front of us.”

Right then, the sound of an ambulance floated in through the window.

“Stay here, we’ll bring the doctors up.” I glanced at Wang Yikai’s body. “But honestly, it’s too late now. If only he’d gone to the hospital the moment the pain started, this wouldn’t have happened.”

Zhao Mingkun and I walked out of the apartment. I turned back, “If you find Wang Xin, stay with him, all right? Tell him to be careful. Once we finish looking into Liang Mei, we’ll come to Wang Xin’s place too.”

Yang Licheng nodded. “Okay, that’s all we can do for now.”