Chapter 39

Chapter 39 3. panic room-13

The saying goes, “What you think by day, you dream by night.” When one is physically and mentally exhausted, yet burdened with concerns, it’s often very difficult to sleep soundly.

Without even realizing he had fallen asleep, Liu Yi plunged into a chaotic and fragmented dream.

First, he dreamt of standing in front of an autopsy table. On the table lay a corpse—the man who had stolen Yu Ping’s identity, Chang Yuxing.

Liu Yi observed from a high, hovering perspective as he raised a scalpel, cut open Chang Yuxing’s chest and abdomen, and removed organs… just as he had done countless times before, with movements so practiced they had become habitual, inspecting the already cold body.

Then, he heard someone calling his name from behind. The voice was not familiar, yet not entirely strange.

Even in the dream, he recognized the speaker as the head of the Criminal Investigation Division, repeatedly asking, “Have you found any clues? Tell me where the missing boy is…”

Liu Yi grew annoyed at the incessant questioning and instinctively turned his head, intending to tell him to be quiet.

But as soon as he turned, the hand resting on the autopsy table was suddenly grabbed with great force. Reflexively twisting, he saw Chang Yuxing’s already gutted corpse sitting upright on the table, its chest and abdomen empty, staring directly at him.

Even in the dream, Liu Yi shuddered violently, almost tearing himself from the continuity of the dream.

“You think you’ve found him?”

Chang Yuxing’s cold hand clutched Liu Yi’s wrist as he spoke.

Because his neck had been slit along the midline and his trachea freed, his words came out through the gaping, muscle-lined wound, a hoarse and muffled voice like a broken bellows, yet each word struck Liu Yi like a nail.

“You won’t find him, you won’t find him…”

Curled on the sofa, Liu Yi’s brow furrowed in pain, his right hand twitching unconsciously. Instinctively, he jerked away from Chang Yuxing’s grip, trying to break free.

He successfully shook off the corpse’s hand and staggered back two steps. But in the next moment, another force suddenly grabbed his right foot. Looking down, his heart dropped. A shock like electric current shot from his toes to the top of his head.

He saw a small child, covered in blood, clutching his leg. The face was obscured by blood, but the large, black-and-white eyes, set against the gruesome red background, appeared terrifying.

“Save me…”

The child’s voice was weak as he held tightly to Liu Yi’s pant leg.

…

Liu Yi shivered, rolling off the sofa to land on the floor on his back.

He broke out in cold sweat. Even awake, he couldn’t fully recover from the shock of the final scene of the nightmare.

Luckily, he was alone in the office. Liu Yi lay flat on the floor, staring at the ceiling light, allowing himself a full minute before finally feeling he had escaped the nightmare.

He kicked away the blanket tangled around him, got up, checked his phone—6:10 a.m.—and walked to the window. Pulling aside the curtain, he saw the eastern sky already turning pale.

He stood there for a moment, yet his mind involuntarily replayed the final scene from the dream.

The bloodied boy clutching his pant leg, the face obscured by blood, pale eyelids and dark pupils…

Liu Yi pressed his hand to his temple. The familiar headache from lack of sleep and overuse of his brain lingered, like an invisible strap tightening around his forehead—not unbearable, but extremely annoying.

“Tch!”

Liu Yi clicked his tongue, walked briskly, grabbed his phone from the coffee table, and returned to the window, quickly dialing.

“Hello?”

The call connected. Qi Shanyu’s voice came from the receiver.

“Officer Qi, where are you now?”

Liu Yi asked immediately about his location.

Qi Shanyu was startled by the interrogative tone, paused a second, then answered: “I’m outside.”

“Okay. Can you come pick me up?”

Liu Yi didn’t care where “outside” was, directly stating his request. “I want to check the old Nancheng Dyeing factory site.”

&&& &&& &&&

Half an hour later, Liu Yi arrived outside the Legal Research Institute and saw Qi Shanyu—more precisely, Officer Qi and his vehicle, a police-marked motorcycle.

Qi Shanyu didn’t even turn off the engine. He tossed a helmet to Liu Yi and gestured toward the space behind him. “Get on. I’ll take you there.”

“This one?”

Liu Yi raised an eyebrow.

“Your car’s at the station, right? If we use it, we’d have to go back first.”

Qi Shanyu replied, “Besides, the old Nancheng Dyeing site is remote and the roads are rough. Driving your car would be more inconvenient.”

The reasoning was solid. Liu Yi didn’t hesitate, swung himself onto the back, and instinctively wrapped his hands around Qi Shanyu’s waist. “Okay, let’s go.”

The motorcycle weaved through streets and alleys, cutting through early morning traffic.

Qi Shanyu, clearly experienced with riding a motorcycle, maintained stability despite carrying a passenger.

Liu Yi felt Qi Shanyu’s warmth through the thin clothes—a shirt and light jacket—his high body temperature and sweat radiating clearly.

“You’re not going to ask why I want to go to the old Nancheng Dyeing site?”

Liu Yi leaned forward with the bike’s motion, pressing against Qi Shanyu’s back, feeling a faint, subtle sense of gratitude.

Unlike himself, who had rested a few hours, front-line detectives like Qi Shanyu likely hadn’t slept. Despite saying he was “outside,” he dropped everything to pick Liu Yi up at a single call—this implicit trust gave Liu Yi a long-missed flutter of emotion.

“What did you say?”

Qi Shanyu didn’t catch Liu Yi’s words and couldn’t turn around, so he raised his voice.

Liu Yi didn’t repeat the question but lightly tapped Qi Shanyu’s shoulder twice, signaling him to focus on driving.

Half an hour later, Qi Shanyu carried Liu Yi past the Third Ring elevated road.

The surrounding buildings became visibly sparser, high-rises fewer, with green patches, empty lots, and small cultivated plots. Compared to the city center six subway stations away, the contrast was stark.

The motorcycle turned onto a somewhat rough street. Liu Yi saw large trucks passing over cracked roads and small factory buildings nearby, suggesting local land had been developed for industrial use.

“We’re here.”

Qi Shanyu stopped in front of a white-walled gate. “This is the old Nancheng Dyeing factory.”

Liu Yi got off the motorcycle and saw police seals on the gate. A young auxiliary officer in uniform was stationed inside, likely assigned by superiors.

The auxiliary officer noticed them. “What are you two doing?”

Qi Shanyu showed his badge. “Since last night, any abnormalities?”

“No…” The young officer shook his head, glancing at the slightly older-looking Qi Shanyu. “The gates were locked. I’ve been watching. No one else has come.”

“Alright, let’s go in and check.”

Qi Shanyu unlocked the temporary padlock, opened the gate, and gestured for Liu Yi to enter.

They walked in, one after the other, as the auxiliary officer watched, puzzled.

The Nancheng Dyeing factory had some renown, with branches in three cities. The Xinhai City site had been vacated last year due to rent and equipment updates. The site remained empty.

Neglect had left the courtyard overgrown, lawns yellowed and dead, plants crooked, and fallen leaves covering the ground. The main building was six stories, with a nine-story building behind, likely offices.

“Where did you get this key?”

Liu Yi pointed at the key Qi Shanyu had used.

“Brother An gave it to me.”

Qi Shanyu slipped the key into his pocket. “Thanks to him, I could sneak out and bring you here.”

Liu Yi raised an eyebrow. “Officer An trusts me that much?”

Qi Shanyu smiled.

He didn’t say that Liu Yi carried a presence that inspired trust without effort, and in fact, the help Liu Yi had provided in limited collaboration had far exceeded everyone’s expectations.