Chapter 878: Mary Wei’s Recollection

It was almost noon when the three of them finally managed to bring Liang Zuoming’s body to Pengsijue. Lin Dongxue told Chen Shi to go eat, but he shook his head, “I have some things to do, I’ll come back in the afternoon.”

“You have to eat even if you have things to do. Let’s go out for a nice meal, my treat! We’ve been living like zombies these past few days. Finding Tao Yueyue is important, but it doesn’t mean we should sacrifice our lives. You always say that being happy today is important, and you haven’t smiled all morning. I’m worried about you.”

Chen Shi forced a smile, “In your view, grilled fish cures all ailments?”

Lin Dongxue also smiled, “You can eat something else if you want, it’s my treat!”

“Grilled fish it is, then!”

They went to a familiar grilled fish restaurant. As the sizzling, chili-drenched fish was brought to the table, Chen Shi couldn’t even remember what he had for lunch yesterday. Indeed, the past few days had been a whirlwind of being played by Zhou Xiao and Ling Shuang. Now, sitting in the clean, bright restaurant, watching other tables’ customers chatting and laughing, it all felt a bit alien.

“Eat well, sleep well, and you’ll have the energy. Without energy, you won’t be able to function!” Lin Dongxue said as she picked a piece of fish for Chen Shi.

“I was thinking, if what’s written in that diary is true, would Tao Yueyue’s actions be considered attempted crime? Could her sentence be reduced?”

“Let’s talk about something else…”

“I can’t think about anything else right now.”

“How about you review the grilled fish?”

Chen Shi took a bite and said, “It’s good.”

Lin Dongxue, with her head down, said, “The fish skin is crispy, the meat tender, and the chili seasoning is just right…” Her voice trailed off as she wiped away a tear.

“Are you thinking about your brother?”

“I’m fine, let’s keep eating. It’s been a long time since I had grilled fish.” Lin Dongxue tried to appear cheerful, avoiding the topic. Chen Shi understood her mood was heavy, especially with Lin Qiupu lying severely injured in the hospital, the doctors hinting he might become a vegetative state.

Both of them were weighed down by their troubles, but wallowing in sadness wouldn’t help. They had to eat the grilled fish, and they had to laugh when they could.

“How about some beer to go with the fish?”

“In your dreams!”

After a good meal, they both felt a bit better. In the afternoon, they went about their separate tasks. Lin Dongxue and Xiao Li went to the scene for investigation, met with traffic police, and visited Tao Yueyue’s good friend, Mary Wei.

Tao Yueyue had been missing for three days. Mary Wei thought she was sick, as her messages and calls had gone unanswered. When she heard the word “missing” from Lin Dongxue, she was shocked, “Missing? Why would she be missing? The high school entrance exam is coming up, but that’s not important. It’s dangerous for her to be out alone for three days. My dad said there’s a killer on the loose in the city these days!”

“Calm down, we are here to investigate the matter.”

“Oh, okay.”

“Tao Yueyue didn’t come to school on May 29th, right?”

Mary Wei counted the days on her fingers, “Yes, it was a Friday. The homeroom teacher asked me why she didn’t come. I said, ‘Maybe she’s not feeling well,’ because she asked me to accompany her to buy sanitary pads the day before. I thought her period came.”

“Did the homeroom teacher notify her parents?”

“Uh, you should ask the teacher.”

“Did she exhibit any unusual behavior before she disappeared?”

This question was too broad for Mary Wei to answer immediately. Lin Dongxue rephrased it, “You have a little kitten on your way home from school, right?”

“Wow, you know about that? Yes, it was an adorable kitten. That day, some maniac… someone decapitated it. I almost fainted. I’ll show you the kitten’s photo. What kind of person could do such a thing? He must be a psychopath! Yueyue said something about fire-starting, bed-wetting, and animal cruelty. What’s that standard again?”

“The triad of sociopathic behavior?”

“Yes, that’s it. Yueyue also thought that person must have an antisocial personality disorder!”

Lin Dongxue interrupted her, “Do you know who did it?”

“If I knew who did it!” Mary Wei said dramatically, “I’d… I’d get a voodoo doll, write his birthdate on it, and curse him to get hit by a car!”

Lin Dongxue fleetingly thought that this “wish” had already come true.

It was evident that this girl was as indignant about the cat incident as Tao Yueyue. A cat, a dog, or a fictional character—people’s feelings towards these things are hard to quantify, leading to value conflicts. For dog lovers, the suffering of their pets is no small matter, but outsiders might not understand, saying, “It’s just a dog.”

“What day was the kitten decapitated?”

Mary Wei counted on her fingers and answered, “I think it was a Tuesday.”

Lin Dongxue noted it down in her notebook and asked more details. Although Mary Wei’s account had some discrepancies, it was generally consistent with Tao Yueyue’s diary.

A part of Tao Yueyue’s story had been verified, which made Lin Dongxue a bit worried.

“Do you know a male classmate died in a car accident? Do you know about this?” Lin Dongxue finally brought up the topic.

Mary Wei suddenly started twirling around, leaving Lin Dongxue and Xiao Li puzzled, “What are you doing?”

“Allow me to express my joy through dance.”

“The deceased was your classmate?” Xiao Li said.

“Liang Zuoming was a scumbag. A total scumbag! Officer, ask anyone in our class about him. I guarantee you’ll only get two answers. One group will say, ‘Oh, I didn’t know him well,’ those are his cronies. The other group will say, ‘He deserved to die,’ those are the ones he bullied. He was a bully; even the teachers didn’t want to deal with him. Our class was even discussing whether to give a banner to the driver who hit Liang Zuoming, with supportive messages on it. By the way, will the righteous driver be sentenced?”

Lin Dongxue was amused by the girl’s vivid performance and said, “The traffic police said he didn’t break any traffic laws. Liang Zuoming suddenly fell in front of his car, but…”

Before Lin Dongxue could finish, Mary Wei ran back to the classroom and shouted, “The police said the driver who hit Liang Zuoming won’t be held responsible!”

The classroom erupted in cheers. Lin Dongxue smiled wryly, realizing her words had been misinterpreted.

Mary Wei came back, her face beaming, “Did you hear that, officer? That’s the voice of the people. He really deserved to die! No one feels sorry for him.”

“We’re not here to discuss Liang Zuoming’s character. By the way, were you on that street at the time?”

“Yes.”

“Was Tao Yueyue with you?”

“Yes…” Mary Wei’s expression changed, as if she had just realized something, “I know what you’re asking. When Liang Zuoming was hit, Yueyue suddenly became very anxious and strange. She ran over, shouting ‘Liang Zuoming, stop!’… No, she started running a few seconds before the accident happened!”

Lin Dongxue felt a chill in her heart. Had this really happened?