Chapter 35

Ever since she parted from Chi Shen, Qiao Zhenzhen had been on edge. After sitting on the sofa for what felt like ages, she suddenly remembered that when she and Chi Shen left school they were both only carrying backpacks, and throughout the meal neither of them had taken anything out.
The backpack was still on the sofa, what could he have left at the restaurant? The more she thought about it, the more uneasy Qiao Zhenzhen became. Recalling the fleeting glimpse of Zhao Lianqiao from earlier, she lost her composure and, without another thought, rushed downstairs to look.
By the time she hesitated, Chi Shen had already vanished. She searched the neighborhood, and finding no sign of him she phoned the restaurant, only to be told that no high-school student had returned to retrieve anything.
In that moment she was certain the person she had seen was Zhao Lianqiao, and that Chi Shen's supposed trip back to the restaurant had been nothing more than an excuse to be alone with Zhao Lianqiao.
…What did he want with Zhao Lianqiao? Panic tightened around Qiao Zhenzhen. She wanted to ask someone, but the heavy rain kept everyone indoors, there was no one to question in the complex, so she had to leave and search outside.
She had intended to follow the route Zhao Lianqiao would take home, when suddenly at an intersection she spotted the doll that always hung from Zhao's backpack. Her heart dropped and she followed that path. After walking for a while she unwittingly came upon an unfinished building. The moment she noticed a smashed phone on the ground, she heard a scream from the roof and saw Zhao tumbling downward.
And now time had stopped; the world had fallen utterly still.
Qiao Zhenzhen stumbled up the stairs, wishing she could be there in an instant; her legs betrayed her, and it took ages before she could barely clamber to the fifteenth floor. She didn't pause on the roof, racing against every second, she lunged to the edge and hauled back Zhao, who was already halfway over.
She checked Zhao thoroughly and found that aside from a swollen ankle and a few grazes on her hands, she seemed fine. Qiao Zhenzhen exhaled in relief, then turned and noticed a faint wound on Chi Shen's face, frowning. "Did he leave any blood anywhere?"
"No," Xiao Ba replied. "With this rain, forget bloodstains, fingerprints would be washed clean, too."
Qiao Zhenzhen finally relaxed a little, then asked, "Are there any surveillance cameras nearby?"
A decade ago CCTV wasn't everywhere, especially not in Chi Shen's old residential complex, there were no cameras there. The road from the complex to here was rarely used, and the only camera along it was broken.
What she didn't know now was whether any cameras around this building had captured Zhao's fall.
Xiao Ba was silent for a moment, then answered, "No cameras detected nearby."
Qiao Zhenzhen exhaled and stared at the two frozen figures, trying to think what to do next.
Given Zhao Lianqiao's nature, she'd certainly call the police. What should she do, take Chi Shen away from here to a place with cameras to prove they couldn't have both been at the unfinished building at the same time?
No, she had too little time, and she'd already used some of it. There wasn't time for that.
Then the only option was to find a way to stop Zhao Lianqiao from calling the police.
Qiao Zhenzhen stared at Zhao Lianqiao for a long moment, snapped her fingers, and let time start moving again.
"Ah!" Zhao screamed, clutching her face as she fell in terror.
Chi Shen was the first to see Qiao Zhenzhen appear out of nowhere; stunned, he went cold all over and his face drained of color.
Zhao Lianqiao had screamed for a long time, but the expected pain never came. She forced her eyes open, was momentarily stunned to see Qiao Zhenzhen, and then realized she wasn't dead.
"Zhao Lianqiao, you were going to push Chi Shen off the roof!" Qiao Zhenzhen snapped.
A flicker of shock passed through Chi Shen's eyes.
Still bewildered about why she'd fallen yet found herself back on the roof, Zhao Lianqiao was stunned by the accusation and looked at Qiao Zhenzhen in bafflement.
Qiao Zhenzhen scoffed coldly. "Luckily I arrived in time, otherwise would you have succeeded? Do you know murder is a crime?!"
Zhao continued staring, and after a moment finally snapped back, trembling with anger. "You're lying... you're lying..."
"Yes, I'm lying," Qiao Zhenzhen said calmly. "If you call the police, this will be my testimony: there are no cameras nearby, no one knows how you and Chi Shen ended up here. But plenty of people can testify that you don't like Chi Shen."
"Qiao Zhenzhen, Zhenzhen..." Zhao ground her teeth.
Qiao Zhenzhen looked at her coldly. "If you don't want the tables turned on you, you'd better shut your mouth. Your phone's been soaked in the rain, no fingerprints will remain. You have neither witnesses nor evidence; Chi Shen, however, has witnesses. Sure, you could claim we worked together, but what's the motive?"
She stepped closer, watching Zhao Lianqiao coolly. "What's my motive? And what's yours? If the police get involved that's the first thing they'll investigate, who do you think that will advantage in the end?"
Zhao Lianqiao met her gaze and, in an instant, thought of Zhao Ying and Qiao Jian’s affair. A cold panic seized her. If she actually called the police, they’d uncover Qiao Jian’s infidelity, and following that thread they’d find out she knew, while Qiao Zhenzhen did not.
That would certainly turn out badly for her.
Qiao Zhenzhen watched the way her expression shifted and knew the threat had worked. After a moment she spoke slowly, “Tomorrow I’ll give you the money for the phone, buy a new one. Let this be the end of it. How about that?”
Zhao Lianqiao glared at her, but almost without meaning to she met Chi Shen’s eyes.
She flinched, gritted her teeth, stood up and started to leave; passing Chi Shen her legs went weak and she nearly dropped to her knees.
Qiao Zhenzhen watched her flee like the wind; she soon vanished at the stairwell, while Chi Shen stood there quietly, his face drained of color.
In the pouring rain she said coldly, “A moment ago you almost became a murderer.”
Chi Shen’s Adam’s apple bobbed; he couldn’t bring out a single word.
“…I’ve always thought you were a little withdrawn, a little extreme, not like other people. But I never imagined you could ever kill someone.” Qiao Zhenzhen looked at him steadily, sadness that wouldn’t lift in her eyes. “Was it for me? Would you cross the line of the law for my sake? Chi Shen, I can’t accept that. No matter how much I hate Zhao Lianqiao, I can’t accept what you did.”
Blood seemed to drain from Chi Shen; his muscles went rigid with terror. He tried to step closer, but as he took one step she backed away two, and behind her yawned a drop of dozens of meters, the very place where Zhao Lianqiao had nearly fallen.
“Don’t move!” he snapped, suddenly tense. “I… I’ll step back, just don’t make any sudden moves.”
Saying that, he gingerly retreated a few steps, putting some distance between them.
Qiao Zhenzhen watched him in silence, her emotions so mixed she didn’t know what to say.
Just as she was thinking how to reprimand him, she heard his hoarse voice: “I won’t do this again. Don’t be afraid of me…”
That single sentence seemed to throw her back to the day she had watched him almost die; all her anger collapsed and was replaced by a deep, lingering sorrow.
She looked at the panicked Chi Shen, and in an instant many things seemed to fall into place. “Was Qian You locked in the bathroom by you back then?”
“…Yes.”
“The last two people, were they locked in the steam room by you too?”
“…Mm.”
Qiao Zhenzhen bit her lip. “Do you know murder is a crime?”
“I know.” Chi Shen answered, voice trembling.
“Do you know they could die?” she asked again.
“I know.”
Faced with his confession, Qiao Zhenzhen felt nearly desperate. “Do you know there’s such a thing in this world called morality?”
Chi Shen stared at her. Seeing her emotions stir and fearing she might step toward the edge again, he cautiously shifted back a step. “Yes.”
“Do you have it?” Qiao Zhenzhen asked.
Chi Shen froze, looking at her blankly.
Qiao Zhenzhen clenched her fists. “Do you?”
“…I don’t know.” Chi Shen lowered his head. From his earliest memories he’d faced endless work and violence; his parents never taught him right from wrong, only shame and beatings. By the time he finally started school, he was already different from the children in his class.
They were the same age, yet where other kids made friends, argued, and mourned a dead butterfly together, he stood apart, an outsider watching their feelings spread with a coldness he couldn’t feel.
He didn’t know whether he had any morality; if he hadn’t met Qiao Zhenzhen, he might never have known he had feelings at all.
Qiao Zhenzhen looked at his fragile jawline; her chest tightened with a sour, swollen ache. After a moment she suddenly wrapped her arms around him. Chi Shen looked at her in surprise and froze.
Although both of them were cold, he felt a small flame pass from her firm embrace into him; warmth seemed to flood his whole body.
Then he felt Qiao Zhenzhen trembling.
“Zhenzhen…” he called her awkwardly.
Hearing him say her name, she finally broke into a sob. Chi Shen felt a hotness at his chest, wholly different from the rain falling around them.
Those were her tears.
“I won’t ever do it again. I won’t do this anymore,” Chi Shen panicked, his voice rough as he tried to comfort her. “Don’t cry. I know I was wrong. I, I’ll apologize to Zhao Lianqiao. I promise I’ll never hurt anyone again. Don’t cry…”
Qiao Zhenzhen sniffed, red-eyed, and looked at him. “Even if someone hurts me, you cannot break the law.”
“Okay.” Chi Shen agreed immediately.
Seeing his decisive answer, Qiao Zhenzhen felt some relief. She wiped her tears and regarded him solemnly. “Chi Shen, I don’t care what you were like before, but from today on you must be a good person. Even if you want to strike back at those who hurt you, you must not use methods that violate the law or moral decency.”
Chi Shen’s lips moved; after a moment he nodded. “Okay.”