Chapter 333: The Girl in the Hollow

May 26th, the sky opened up and poured down a torrential rain. It was as if the heavens themselves were in a foul mood. Sheets of rain drenched the world for nearly an hour, followed by a relentless drizzle that darkened the land. Water filled every hollow and low point, even backing up through the sewers. Pools formed beneath bridge underpasses, making those roads impassable.

Zhi Li Village, tucked away in the far northwest corner of Dongxing City, was no exception. Though technically governed by Dongxing City, it was practically on the outskirts—closer to other towns than to the city center. This made it a neglected place, its development lagging behind.

The downpour turned the dirt roads to muddy stretches. With the weather so miserable, no one ventured out. Everyone huddled indoors, passing the time with mahjong and chess. By seven that evening, five-year-old Gu Hui still hadn’t come home. The villagers braved the rain to search well into the night, but there was no trace of her anywhere.

Kids here were little wild things, always running around the village. Families never worried—everyone knew everyone, and outsiders rarely came. Usually, a parent only needed to shout a few times for their child to come running home. But this time, Gu Hui didn’t return.

No one knew when she’d left or whom she’d gone to play with. When the other children were asked, they all said they hadn’t been with Gu Hui that afternoon. Most stayed indoors, since it had been raining. Maybe a few had gone out, but the adults hadn’t paid them much mind.

After searching the whole night, Gu Hui’s family finally called the police the next day. An official case was opened and the hunt began in earnest, with people scouring the village and even the mountains. Still, not a hint of a lead turned up. There were no security cameras in the village, and no one even knew when Gu Hui had gone missing, let alone who might’ve seen her last.

Some suspected she was kidnapped. But with the roads choked with mud, there was no way a car could get into Zhi Li Village. Anyone visiting would have to leave their car on the paved road and hike two hours just to get there.

On May 27th, searchers arrived in Zhi Li Village but found not a single trace of Gu Hui. By dusk, they had no choice but to call the search for the day. Just as they turned to leave, someone with sharp eyes spotted something unusual on a muddy path—a patch of black, thread-like strands floating on the surface of a rain-filled hollow.

It was still drizzling, raindrops sending ripples across the puddle. The black strands undulated gently across the water’s surface. The group moved closer to look, only to discover the strands were fragile tufts of black hair.

“Who would toss hair into a puddle like this?” one young man wondered aloud. He crouched down and reached in, trying to scoop up some of it. But as he grasped for the hair, he found it wouldn’t budge—something held it fast under the water.

He tried pulling a few times, but the hair felt like it was rooted in the puddle itself.

Curiosity got the better of him. He followed the strands deeper and, an instant later, shrieked and stumbled backwards. He crashed flat onto the muddy road, his skin and clothes smeared with muck. Everyone could see the terror etched on his face. For a long time, he couldn’t get a word out.

Finally, choking out the words, he said, “There’s… there’s a face in the puddle…”

Everyone froze, staring at the glassy water and its dancing ripples. It was a small puddle, less than a half-meter across. What had he touched? What lurked beneath that calm surface?

Some had already guessed, but nobody spoke. The rain seemed to seep straight into everyone’s chest, cold and unshakable.

At last, an elderly man broke the silence. He ordered the children to leave and had the villagers fetch scoops and hoes. Anyone paying close attention already understood, but the old man moved with grim efficiency. He carefully ladled water from the hollow, and after just two scoops, everyone saw what lay beneath.

Hair didn’t grow from the mud, but from a human head. Looking down from above, they saw a jet-black head wedged in the pit. In the water, the hair drifted free, but once most of the water was gone, it lay slick against a pallid face. Through the strands peeking out, they could tell it was a child. Pushing the hair aside revealed a little girl.

That was how they found Gu Hui.

There was more—they realized it wasn’t just a head. The neck was intact, and there wasn’t any blood. With water still filling the narrow space, it was impossible to see any further down; the scoops couldn’t reach. Only by draining the pit completely would they learn the rest.

One thing was clear: Gu Hui was gone.

Her face, left in the icy water too long, had swollen terribly. Deep wrinkles marred her features, and her skin was bone white, like winter snow. Her eyes, swollen shut, looked like copper bells. For a body to end up like this, she must have been soaking for some time.

“Dig her out,” someone said without hesitation. “She must’ve slipped and fallen in. The pit’s deeper than she is tall, and there’s barely enough room to move. If a girl that small fell in, there’s nowhere to push off from—no way to climb out. All she could do was wait in vain.”

After a pause, the speaker added, “It was pouring that day, no one was out, and even if she tried calling for help, the rain would’ve drowned her voice. Trapped in the water, she wouldn’t have been able to cry out. That’s how she drowned.”

“If that’s the case, let’s just pull her out,” a young villager suggested.

“Her body’s been soaking too long. She’s swollen and decomposed. Getting her out in one piece won’t be easy,” the first man replied. “Better to dig and see what’s really going on.”

Fearing they’d damage the body, the villagers dug with extreme care. It took nearly two hours before they finally freed her. The moment she was pulled out, everyone was stunned. The corpse was so bloated she barely looked human—no one would have recognized this five-year-old girl if not for her clothing.

Gu Hui’s parents were working far away and couldn’t come back in time. Her grandmother collapsed the instant she saw the body, and never woke again.

With no resources for an autopsy in the village, the body was bundled in a sack and sent to the funeral home that night.

On May 28th, the autopsy revealed water in the girl’s lungs—cause of death: drowning. There weren’t any other injuries or torn clothing, suggesting there’d been no struggle before she died.

Multiple checks of the pit found it to be about thirty centimeters across, irregularly shaped, wide at the top and narrowing lower down—at its pinch point, only as wide as an adult’s thigh. Gu Hui must have slipped in by accident. In such a cramped space, she couldn’t even move her arms, let alone turn around or climb out.

After extensive investigation and evidence gathering, the initial assessment was accidental death. But the inquiry wasn’t over yet, and no one could say for sure what the final conclusion would be. For now, few resources were devoted to the case, as it was deemed accidental.

By May 30th, there was still no progress. Gu Hui’s father, Gu Zhi, was convinced his daughter had been murdered and not killed by a simple fall. He had some suspects in mind, but without any evidence, his claims couldn’t be taken seriously.

At this point, Gu Zhi remembered his cousin, Gu Chen, and asked him to investigate and uncover the truth. Though Gu Chen no longer worked in the field, he agreed. He and Gu Zhi had grown up as close as brothers, sharing everything.

Later, Gu Chen went off to university, while Gu Zhi stayed in the countryside to start a family early.

Gu Chen was born for detective work more than chasing criminals, so he turned to me for help. The only problem—I might not be able to help, thanks to Zhao Mingkun holding me captive.

Still, I managed to learn the details of the case.

On the phone, I told Gu Chen I could go to the village, but Zhao Mingkun knew too much about my secret. I’d have to return to her afterwards. She had her own matters anyway, and this break would give her time to look into the Wu Zui case while I dealt with this one.

So Gu Chen drove to pick me up and take me to Zhi Li Village.

As we rode, I finally got to see Gu Chen again. With his deep frown and tired eyes, it was clear how seriously he took this—after all, the dead girl was his own family.

Outside, the rain started picking up again. It looked like this storm would last a long time.