"The one tied up in the courtyard is still alive. Other than two dislocated joints, he has no other major injuries. He totally just passed out from fright. Also, other than the line on his neck, there are seven other red lines on his body, all of them very fine blood marks. We don't know what was used to make the cuts, the wounds are very shallow, just barely breaking the skin and letting a bit of blood seep out." As Yu Yan spoke, he shivered. "The line on his neck was exactly the same as the red line the suspect drew on Nie Ke's neck. The few red lines on his body are practically symmetrical. From far, it looked like this person was cut into a few pieces. Master Lan, where did you get this cheat code from? It's too terrifying."

Yu Lanchuan hadn't yet thought of how he was going to shoulder the blame and Officer Yu was already excluding him from the list of suspects. He glanced at Yu Yan rather gloomily. "Why couldn't I have done it myself?"

"You?" Yu Yan's eyes widened in astonishment. "Four… Five people! Stop fooling around. My good sir, you treasure your life like a cat that has once gotten a terminal illness. Since young, it has always been other people fighting while you went and told the teacher. How you were at seven years old determines how you are now. It's impossible."

Yu Lanchuan, "..."

Yu Yan became serious. "Do you not know, or can you not say?"

Yu Lanchuan asked, "Is there a difference?"

"If you can't say, then it means that you know the person. I believe in your morals and how much you treasure your life, you won't have anything to do with crazy murderers," Yu Yan said. "If even you do not know, then this person who appeared in our area of jurisdiction today will make it rather hard for us to sleep at night."

Yu Lanchuan paused, then waved at Yu Yan. "About what happened today, just treat it as I saw something wrong going on and put it right. When my younger brother passed by this area last Monday, he saw Xiang Xiaoman and one of those people talking. That's why I came here to try my luck."

"All right, Alliance Leader. If you give me your word, I have no worries." Yu Yan understood his meaning. Then, he sighed. "These few people are quite the dangerous fugitives. They've all gone through professional training, they can climb up buildings freehanded and also carry around so many regulated weapons. To think they were defeated by one person with just their bare hands, and that person had even controlled their strength well enough not to cause any deaths… Master Lan, are they really still such experts in the world?"

Yu Lanchuan said, "The less you've seen, the easier you're impressed."

"No, it's not that," Yu Yan said. "Let's take you for example. Regardless of which sect you're from, your main occupation is study and work. Back then, if practising the sword and fist techniques interrupted your graduation project, you would have stopped practising, right? This is not a skill that can feed you unless you become a martial arts athlete. Otherwise, with how fierce the competition in society is, who would spend so much energy to study things like this?"

It was said that in ancient times, the main occupation of heroes was to "be chivalrous and uphold justice" but this career had long since lost all future prospects. This was because the business of collecting protection fees was conducted by prohibited underground societies. If one did not "uphold justice" properly, it was also easy to break the law. Studies were intense, work was time-consuming; to lose oneself in martial arts was evidently not an economical choice. Inversely, it was those burglary rings and members of the violent criminal class that had nothing proper to occupy themselves with every day and specialised in destruction who would diligently increase their level and have some real skills on them.

Then, what about Gan Qing?

Yu Lanchuan was lost in his thoughts.

Drawing lines on a person to break down their body into parts was definitely not something done by martial arts athletes. Where did her skills come from? What did she do in the past? Why was she hunkering down in a small accessories shop to pass her days?

Of course, this was just Yu Lanchuan's biased view as an "academic tyrant" and "elite". For people like him, "plans" and "checklists" were the cornerstone of their souls. Each and every one of them had a very clear career progression plan and very strictly disciplined management of themselves. In their eyes, those who did not have a career, who went everywhere to run errands for others, who had no decisions for the future, all belonged to the category of "deadbeats".

In actual fact, Gan Qing was not a deadbeat. As a witch, she worked very hard to sway her customers into buying things.

Gan Qing broke that "Wan Mu Chun" wooden tablet without leaving a trace, let the alliance leader shoulder the blame, then changed her clothes and went to work as though nothing had happened. To Boss Meng, her explanation was that she had gone to replenish the shop's stock. At night, she sewed up the torn belt herself, then cleverly cut up the coat that could not be saved anymore and transformed it into a bag. The next day, her personal life and work life went back to normal. She took none of it to heart, and waited in anticipation of warmer weather and her salary.

Looking at how every day was colder than the last, accessories made of metal and gemstones were not so easy to sell anymore. She had already prepared a batch of astrological sign scarves and gloves, as well as fortune-changing lucky charms. The sales revenue did not fall and instead, increased. The fortune-changing lucky charms were selling especially well. They were actually just a small embroidered pouch that cost 2.50 yuan each. Inside, they were stuffed with a colourful patterned talisman that she had randomly drawn herself with watercolours. She sold them at 20 yuan each. It was the same as reblogging the lucky carp on Weibo anyway, if one believed in it, it would come true.

Her basic salary was 1,500 yuan a month. The rest was a percentage of her monthly sales. Her commission in November was higher than her basic pay. After transferring her rent to her landlord Madam Zhang Meizhen, she still had 3,000 left.

"I'm rich!" Gan Qing sent Boss Meng a red packet worth fifty yuan to pay him back. "Uncle Meng, I won't be freeloading at your place today!"

"Where are you going to eat? Spending money frivolously again! When can you live your days properly!" Meng Tianyi walked out with a sigh. "You spend frivolously the moment you get paid, just a bit of money and you go crazy! At the end of the month, you'll be so poor again that you'll come to me for food. Ai, I told you to get social insurance somewhere, have you done it?"

Gan Qing took a long winding stretch of the body and brushed him off. "I will next month. Let me save a bit of money first or I'll be short of cash."

"Last month you said this month, this month you say next month! Greedy and lazy! Since when are you not short of cash!"

The words went in one ear and out the other. Gan Qing prepared to slip off.

Boss Meng called her back, taking out a large bag of old books from inside the shop. "Wait a bit. One of my old brothers' kids just finished taking the exams for self-taught students. I asked him for the books. Take them home and study them. While you're young and your memory is still good, go take the exams too."

Gan Qing took the books and both her hands immediately sank under the weight. She didn't feel like she could disappoint Boss Meng's good intentions, so she could only hold her nose and take them away.

Meng Tianyi said, "You need to be serious!"

Carrying the books, Gan Qing waved at him feebly.

She left Mudpool Backlane and got on a bus. She fished out a book from the bag and flipped through it, then stuffed it back in without much interest. Boss Meng's friend might not pass the exam—only the pages at the front showed signs of having been opened, the ones at the back were spotless.

The "greedy and lazy" Gan Qing didn't find a place to have a good meal. She didn't even eat at all. She took the bus all the way to the final stop, then got down and bought rice, flour, meat and a large bottle of oil. She walked along a very long stretch of road and arrived at an old neighbourhood at the outskirts.

Those items altogether weighed tens of pounds. On top of that, there was the large bag of books added by Boss Meng. By the time she reached the entrance of the small neighbourhood, Gan Qing was already panting a little, breaking out into a sweat in the cold wind. Her right hand was shaking so hard she could not hold on to the things. She put down the heavy items, blew on her palms where the blood was not circulating well, and ate a piece of chocolate.

During the morning rush hour every day, looking at the sardine-packed people above and below the ground, one would feel that Yanning's population size was bursting at its seams. But there were so many secluded places here where not even a stray cat could be seen when taking a night walk. Desolate and silent, so much so that when another person occasionally passed by, both parties would be equally startled.

From not far away, someone waved a flashlight for a bit. Gan Qing lifted her head. A few seconds later, there was the sound of footsteps, a little draggy. A withered and thin old lady walked over. When she saw Gan Qing, she said rather cautiously, "Y-You're here?"

Gan Qing let out a mm. She bent down and picked up the things. "Didn't you say the last time that you were out of oil?"

Seeing that she was carrying so many things, the old lady tried to come forward to help. Gan Qing raised an arm to keep her away and said coldly. "No need."

The old lady's leg was a little stiff. With much effort, she followed Gan Qing, smiled at her, and clumsily tried to find something to talk about. But she didn't know how to make conversation and everything she said sounded foolish and stammered. She talked on her own for a while, then seeing that Gan Qing had no intentions of paying her any attention, she closed her mouth in embarrassment.

The old lady's home was on the first floor, small and cramped. The inside of the house was pitch black, probably to save electricity. Now that a visitor was here, she hastily switched on the light. The poor quality incandescent bulb flickered without pause, colouring the furnishings in the house with dismal hue. There were dripping sounds coming from the kitchen and the toilet. Water dripped down from the faucets to be caught by plastic pails underneath. By collecting the water in this way, the water meter would not tick and she could save on the water bill. It was just that listening to the sound made a person feel agitated.

There was a rundown wooden dining table in the hall. One of the legs was a section shorter than the others and was propped up by a wooden block. On the table was a thermos flask and a row of small medicine bottles. There was also a bowl of half-eaten vegetable congee and a small plate of pickled radish.

"I cooked a bit for myself," the old lady said cautiously. "Have… Have you eaten? Do you want a bowl of congee?"

Gan Qing glanced at the kitchen. There were still a few wilted vegetable leaves on the chopping board. "You collected the scraps from the vegetable market?"

The old lady let out a soft mm.

Gan Qing took out a small stack of bills from her pocket and passed it over. "Just say if you don't have money. Do you need to go that far?"

The old lady took the money but there was no sign of happiness on her face. "I'm already being shameless just by staying alive. I'm useless, I can't do anything and always need to take medicine… Every day when I wake up in the morning, I wonder why I'm not dead yet. When I sit, I end up sitting for the whole day and I don't even have someone to talk to, I…"

As she spoke, she lowered her head and wiped her tears. "How can I keep asking for money from you? You're not my daughter… If my daughter was alive, I wouldn't be like this. My pitiful chi-"

Gan Qing cut her off with a scoff. "If your daughter didn't have a mother, she wouldn't die so young."

When the old lady heard that, she wailed in anguish. "I was the one who did that to her, I was the one who burdened her! But it was for her own good… Men earn money to support their families, they suffer outside, so if their temper is bad when they come home and they vent their anger, it's not a big deal. A pair of husband and wife arguing when they're young and occasionally hitting each other is normal… Whose life isn't like that? Just bear with it for a bit and it'll be over. She wanted to divorce but where would she find another partner? She doesn't have a job either, what was she going to eat? How would the two of us survive? ...Who would have thought that her temper… How could she go on that road of no return? She just couldn't be more accepting…"

On the back of Gan Qing's hand, a vein bulged out.

There were some people who lived under the same sky as everyone else, who grew to look like members of the same human species as everyone else, yet who knew what their brains contained. Normal people would never know what they were thinking and would never be able to communicate with them.

She couldn't beat up a trembling old lady and also couldn't be bothered to waste words on her. She looked up at a black-and-white photograph hanging on the wall. In the photo was a young lady, her features gently melancholic, smiling at her.

If it wasn't to repay your kindness, Gan Qing thought with an expressionless face as she turned to leave, I wouldn't come to see your rotten mother.

Passing through the quiet of the night, she headed back. She got down at the intersection and saw Yan Hao at the intersection in front of the laundry shop, squatting down to feed the stray cats.

Yan Hao was speaking softly to the cats. When he saw someone walking towards him, he immediately closed his mouth, his back tense like he was doing something wrong. He waited until she had walked far away before he let out a huge relieved breath.

The police had no concrete proof to link him to the burglaries. Even though sticking a paper notice on the outside of Yu Lanchuan's window had caused a disturbance to the residents, in the end, he couldn't be blamed for the entire matter. Hence, according to the Regulations on Administrative Penalties for Public Security, he was released. It could be considered a brief brush against the edges of the law.

But the matter of him being taken away by the police while wearing a strange costume had already spread around the nearby area. Rumours had wings and were capable of crossing a thousand miles in a day. At the start, there were some who said that he had stolen things. Very quickly, there were people who added seasonings to the story of him stealing things and it turned into him stealing underwear. As it spread, somehow, "stealing underwear" turned into "molesting women."

Very quickly, everyone knew that the laundry shop employee that didn't look normal was a pervert. Even the boss's business fell significantly. Yan Hao was already afraid of people; now he shrank even further into his shell. In his world, the only things left were the lonely Ayanami Rei and the stray cats.

The other related hot topic was the matter of Xiang Xiaoman's unsuccessful murder attempt on her husband. The case of Xiang Xiaoman and the mysterious criminal ring was no longer handled by the neighbourhood police station and had been handed over to the higher-ups.

However, apparently Nie Ke was magnanimous. In consideration of their child, he didn't want to pick a fight with someone who had mental health issues. It was said that someone who suffered from mental health issues did not have to bear punishments under the law. If it was proven, she would likely spend the rest of her life in a psychiatric hospital… As for why she wanted to kill her husband, who knew?

She couldn't even speak clearly.

Did a mad person need a reason?

The traffic in Yanning gradually grew sparse. This entire city was full of people who had lost their voices.

Gan Qing hadn't had dinner and her stomach felt very cold. She was very afraid of the cold and every winter was very difficult for her to endure. At least she now had heating at home. Hence, she briskly slipped into the corridor of No. 110 Courtyard, shivering as she breathed out a puff of cold air.

"Back so late?" The sound-activated light in the elevator lobby lit up.

Gan Qing looked up and realised that, unexpectedly, it was Yu Lanchuan who was there waiting for the elevator.

Yu Lanchuan gave her a solemn nod, looking every inch the elite businessman. "It has been a week, have you received your salary?"

Gan Qing, "..."

She was frozen by the cold and couldn't follow the conversation.

Hence, Yu Lanchuan went for a direct hit. "You still owe me a meal."