Chapter 328: Seven Years of Running Away

2022-05-20

Lü Xiangyang nodded, glancing at me with something on his mind, but in the end he said nothing. After bidding us farewell, he left. As he walked away, I caught him muttering to himself, “This is one of the top schools in Dongxing City, and yet things like this still happen.”

I could only shake my head helplessly as I watched Lü Xiangyang’s back. He was sharp—his words weren’t just about the boy being bullied, but also about his sister, Lü Zhiqiu, being killed. High-level schools only mean high IQ, but good and evil have never been judged by intelligence.

Eventually, Lü Xiangyang’s figure disappeared from our sight, and in the end, I never brought up the murder case with him.

Zhao Mingkun looked at me, his expression calm. “So, have you made your choice? Are you going to let Lü Xiangyang off the hook?”

I tugged at my hair, answering slowly, “I guess so. Honestly, based on the evidence we have, it’s enough to put him away. And once we start questioning him, I don’t think a seventeen-year-old kid could handle the pressure for long.”

“I’m not so sure,” Zhao Mingkun shot back.

I said, “The only reason Lü Xiangyang appears so confident is because no one suspects he has anything to do with this. But if we expose that, he might not stay so calm. Even so, at most he’s only guilty of instigating, and when it all happened, he wasn’t even an adult yet. He’d only serve a short sentence.”

After a moment, I went on, “He’d only do a short stint, but the impact would follow him for life. True, he pushed Jiang Xiaochun too far, but Jiang Xiaochun made her own choices—if a phone message alone could make her kill so many people, the blame doesn’t rest on him alone.”

“So, what now?” I said. “Rather than making him carry that burden, maybe it’s better if everyone just lets this go. Maybe under his sister’s guidance, Lü Xiangyang picked up a lot more than we think.”

“That little scene earlier helped you make up your mind, didn’t it?” Zhao Mingkun asked.

I nodded slowly. “Yeah.”

Zhao Mingkun pressed on. “Or are you just afraid Lü Xiangyang might turn into the next Wu Zui?”

I replied, “It’s possible. Seventeen, and he’s already pulled off something this airtight. If more pressure comes from the outside world, he might really become the next Wu Zui. Maybe it’s better to just leave it here. What do you think?”

Zhao Mingkun shrugged. “Doesn’t matter to me. As long as your conscience is clear, do as you please.”

After a long pause, I let out a heavy sigh. “Then that’s it. But at least we have the evidence. If Lü Xiangyang ever tries to pull something like this again, I won’t go easy on him.”

“Fair enough,” Zhao Mingkun said. “If someone does wrong, even if it’s delayed, justice comes in the end. Isn’t that what you think too?”

I glanced at Zhao Mingkun, understanding that he was actually talking about her. I still didn’t have an answer.

When that time comes, what will I do?

Just then, my phone suddenly rang. I checked the screen—it was Gu Chen. Gu Chen never called just to chat. Every call meant he’d found something.

“Gu Chen, did you find anything?” I asked.

It took a while for Gu Chen’s voice to come through. “I wanted to tell you—after hearing your explanation, I’ve got most of Lü Zhiqiu’s case figured out. I know the killer came back to avenge her, to kill anyone who might’ve had a hand in her death.”

“Exactly,” I said as I started heading back. “That’s right, the killer took out a total of twenty-two people.”

“But what if I told you,” Gu Chen’s voice dropped, “that not one of those twenty-two people actually killed Lü Zhiqiu?”

Even though I’d suspected as much from the start, hearing it from Gu Chen still shook me. I never truly wanted that suspicion to be confirmed. It just feels far too cruel to everyone involved.

Of those twenty-two people, plenty might’ve wanted Lü Zhiqiu dead, but not a single one chose to actually do it. These were all smart people, and smart people know that murder means a death sentence. However enviable Lü Zhiqiu’s life was, it wasn’t worth taking someone else’s.

I stopped in my tracks, body breaking out in a cold sweat.

Quietly, I said, “Keep going.”

Gu Chen continued, “This morning, Rob finally came to collect the letter. I didn’t hesitate—I took him down right away. When he saw me, he didn’t even try to run. He just got on his knees.”

“He knelt down to you?” I asked, surprised.

Gu Chen nodded. “Yeah, Rob dropped to his knees right there. The first thing he said was, ‘You finally came.’”

With Gu Chen’s account, the truth behind the case came flooding out at last.

On that night seven years ago—after Yang Licheng and Wang Yikai left, but before Liang Mei did anything—someone else had come to the site. The person Xu Man saw wasn’t anyone else. It was Rob. He didn’t come to kill; Rob just wanted to steal something.

Back then, Rob had just been fired by the labor boss. He knew the iron at the construction site could be sold for cash, so he decided to swipe some and sell it for scrap. Even though it wasn’t much money, it would get him through the day. But when Rob crept into the site, he saw someone else there.

He never expected he’d run into Lü Zhiqiu. Rob didn’t know why she was there, and after glancing around and seeing the coast was clear, he hesitated for a few seconds—mainly because he’d spotted a pregnant woman at the entrance.

But Rob also understood that if he didn’t act now, he may never get another chance.

So he grabbed a brick and smashed it down on Lü Zhiqiu’s head. Just like that, her skull caved in. Rob wiped the blood from himself with his shirt, wrapped the brick in her clothing, and hurried off.

As he fled, Rob noticed a man walking toward the site. Rob didn’t recognize him, but I figured that man was probably Hu Pei. Rob said Hu Pei probably never noticed him—he managed to slip away in the darkness.

As Rob sneaked out, he ran into Xu Man waiting outside. Xu Man looked at him, and he looked back—knowing that she would be questioned once Lü Zhiqiu’s death was discovered. She was a witness, but Rob had no time to silence her.

If Hu Pei found Lü Zhiqiu’s corpse, he might come after Rob, and if that happened, Rob could’ve been caught right then and there. He ignored Xu Man and made a run for it.

I frowned. While Rob ran, Liang Mei must have dismembered the body, with Hu Pei hiding behind a column, too scared to come out.

With no one else in sight, Xu Man finally left on her own.

That was how things unfolded seven years ago—everything came into focus at last. As for the others, yes, they all saw Lü Zhiqiu that night. Maybe for a moment, each of them wanted her dead. But in the end, none of them went through with it. The murderer was Rob—a guy who barely knew Lü Zhiqiu.

And then comes the old, familiar tale. Rob killed someone. Someone had seen him, so he knew it was only a matter of time before he got caught. He fled home that very night.

But there were too many distractions, so the truth stayed buried. No one even realized Xu Man had been at the construction site—that meant nobody ever investigated her. The one person outside the main case, holding the most clues, slipped away unnoticed.

Rob went home, convinced arrest was just around the corner. He withdrew all his savings, gave them to his mother, and explained things as best he could—asking Aunt Wu to take care of herself.

But after three or four days with no news, Rob wondered if maybe things had changed. As time went by and no one came for him, he decided to make a run for it. And so began his seven years on the run.

At first, Rob could only manage a week in any city before leaving. Later, he settled into a routine—spending a month in one city, working odd jobs and sending most of his earnings back to his mother, keeping only enough for his next move.

Every time he got a letter from his mother, Rob would pick up and leave for another city.

Over seven years, Rob wandered everywhere, but never slept with peace of mind. At the slightest sound at night, he’d wake up drenched in cold sweat. If a dishonest boss docked his pay, he couldn’t ask anyone for help.

Even though Rob lived on this land, he felt rootless—a drifter doomed to wander, forever unable to come home.

When Gu Chen asked if he’d do things differently if he could go back, Rob said he would never have killed.

Seven years without a single good night’s sleep. No way home. Always living in fear.

That’s why he knelt before Gu Chen—because now, he could finally get a full night’s rest.

He could finally stop worrying about being caught.