Chapter 20

Chapter 20: Ominous Joy (20)

Xu Xiu was considered a semi-intellectual. He used to teach at a vocational school he set up at a glass factory. Now, after suffering the pain of losing his wife and daughter, he lived in a village within the city, making a living by selling breakfast at a stall. Yet, he still carried a calm demeanor. It seemed as though he had embraced all the hardships into his life, using the remaining time to wear them down.

He said, Xiao Xiao had visited him twice, both times during holidays. She drove to see him, bringing many tonics and small home appliances. She claimed to be a student from the vocational school, having attended his class. Now, she worked in the city and stopped by to say hello.

Xu Xiu reluctantly accepted, and now, as he took the things out one by one, he sighed and smiled. “Xiao Xiao said she was my student, but I didn’t have any students that young. I kept thinking about who she was, then I remembered.”

“She was the little girl who used to come to visit my daughter many times when she was young.” When talking about his daughter, Xu Xiu’s eyes softened. “She came to see me because of our Qiao’er. She didn’t want to mention Qiao’er, she didn’t want me to remember the sad things.”

In Zhou Ping Town, the traditional preference for boys over girls only began to improve in recent years—but girls were still not expected the same way boys were. Xu Qiao and Xiao Xiao were both daughters, yet their fates were completely different. Xu Xiu and his wife had received decent education, and they held progressive views. Their daughter was their precious treasure, while neighbors indirectly suggested that they should try for a son while they were still young and delay registering their daughter for household registration, letting relatives help raise her.

In those years, many families did the same.

But Xu Xiu and his wife refused. His wife said, “We only have Qiao’er, what’s wrong with having a daughter? She’s such a lovely little fur coat!”

When Xu Qiao was four, Xiao Xiao was born. She was their third daughter, and from the moment she was born, the family was shrouded in a heavy atmosphere of grief. The elders didn’t like her, especially her grandmother, who thought Xiao Xiao had taken away her favorite grandson.

Xiao Xiao could only wear the clothes handed down by her older sisters. Her poor sisters weren’t treated well either, and their clothes were patched and repatched. With the addition of a brother, all the love and attention went to him, while Xiao Xiao stood in the shadowy corner, never able to step into the circle of light.

In the past, few families praised their own children, and children like Xiao Xiao, who were born to be disliked, could never receive a fair evaluation. Her family always told her she was ugly, a bad omen, a “broom star.” She was so young, and whatever others said, she believed it—thinking she was both ugly and unpleasant.

When she was in elementary school, she had no friends. She walked with her head down, like a speck of dust in the classroom.

One day, Xu Qiao brought this speck of dust home. Xu Xiu and his wife were surprised. “What happened here?”

Xu Qiao was furious and loudly said that Xiao Xiao had been bullied at school.

At that time, Xu Qiao was already a leader in her fifth-grade class, while Xiao Xiao was only in first grade, practically invisible in class, let alone at the school. Xu Qiao didn’t even know there was such a pitiful child in first grade.

The school organized a “learning from revolutionary martyrs” event, which meant no classes, and the teacher took the students to sweep the grounds around the vocational school and factory. Xu Qiao was supposed to go too, but she, along with a few classmates, had to attend a math competition. Back then, there was no concept of reducing student workload, and even elementary school students participated in Olympiad competitions.

After finishing a few problems in the classroom, Xu Qiao became restless. She was the class monitor, and while everyone else went to learn from martyrs, she was staying here slacking off. How could she let this happen?

When the teacher went to the bathroom, she grabbed her schoolbag and ran, even taking a broom from downstairs.

But the event wasn’t as she imagined. She thought everyone would be working hard, but once they left the school gate, the students acted like sheep released from a pen, running wild and disappearing. Only in the places the teachers were watching did the students continue working hard, sweeping the ground.

Xu Qiao tried to catch up with her classmates, but she couldn’t find anyone after walking through the vocational school and the factory. Just as she was about to give up and return to the classroom to continue solving problems, she heard malicious laughter behind a factory building.

She dragged the broom over and saw a group of fifth-grade boys huddled around something. They were not from her class but often bullied the girls in her class, and every time Xu Qiao saw them, she would scold them.

“What are you doing here?” Xu Qiao raised the broom.

The boys immediately scattered. Xu Qiao saw a girl sitting on the ground. She was too small and still wearing the lower-grade school uniform. Xu Qiao’s blood rushed to her head. “Do you have no shame? A group of boys bullying a lower-grade girl?”

“Xu, Xu Qiao, why is it you again?” The boys were numerous, but they didn’t dare confront Xu Qiao. There was a rumor in fifth grade that Xu Qiao was the principal’s informant, and they couldn’t afford to offend her.

The group of boys ran off, and Xu Qiao chased them for a while. If not for remembering the lonely girl left behind, she would have chased them all the way to school and had them punished.

“Hey, did they hit you? Can you stand up?” Xu Qiao leaned the broom against the wall and reached her hand out to the girl.

The girl looked up at her. Her face was dusty, her hair was cut too short, very plain, and her eyes were full of fear and wariness. But Xu Qiao thought this little sister was actually quite pretty.

The boys hadn’t used violence, so it was probably just verbal abuse. Xu Qiao had seen this kind of behavior many times. Boys at this age were disgusting—pretending to be good boys but still taking advantage of girls with their words.

Xu Qiao helped the girl up and patted the dust off her uniform. “Hey, your uniform is full of dust. Take it off and shake it out.”

But the girl suddenly backed away, clutching her clothes tightly and refusing.

Xu Qiao found it strange. It was already March, and the temperature was rising. Many people had stopped wearing their uniforms. Why wouldn’t she take it off?

The girl’s eyes turned red. “Inside... ugly.”

Xu Qiao caught a glimpse of the corner of the girl’s shirt inside her uniform. It was sewn together with needle and thread. Xu Qiao didn’t bring up the uniform again and asked, “What’s your name? Why did they block you?”

The girl stared at Xu Qiao. She had already known Xu Qiao for a long time—she was the sister who always stood at the flag-raising platform, with a ponytail and a school uniform that was always neat and clean. The white shirt beneath her uniform had no stains. The girl had thought many times, if only she could be as pretty as her.

Behind the factory building, where no one else passed by, Xiao Xiao finally spoke about her unhappiness. She had never worn pretty clothes. There were too many children in her family, and classmates started mocking her family for having too many children when she was in first grade. To make it easier to manage, her mother gave her a short haircut, which made her an even bigger target for mockery. No one played with her, and she thought she was ugly, so she kept her distance from her classmates. Unless it was necessary, she wouldn’t look up. She thought if she did this, people wouldn’t see her and stop mocking her. But more and more boys came to bully her, pushing her shoulders, calling her poor and ugly.

Xu Qiao was furious. “You’re not ugly at all! They’re all pigs!”

Xu Qiao pulled Xiao Xiao up and walked towards the factory area. Xiao Xiao was startled, wiping her tears as she said, “Sister, where are you taking me?”

“To my house! I’m going to dress you up!” Xu Qiao replied.

At this time, the workers were still working, and the students were scattered, but the residential area was relatively empty. Although the Xu family wasn't wealthy, Xu Qiao had her own room. Her mother had decorated it with warm wallpaper, and there were little rabbits placed on her small bed.

It was the first time Xiao Xiao saw such a room, and she was so surprised that she started trembling. “Sister, is this your room?”

Xu Qiao, being several years older than Xiao Xiao, was very clear about the town's preference for boys over girls. From Xiao Xiao’s reaction and the things she had mentioned before, Xu Qiao understood that Xiao Xiao probably didn’t have her own room at home, or perhaps she didn’t even have her own bed.

Xu Qiao took the little rabbit and stuffed it into Xiao Xiao's arms. “I’m going to change you now, go wash your face, this little rabbit is for you!”

After washing off the dust from her face, Xiao Xiao revealed a face that still had a bit of baby fat. It was a bit warm inside, and she was sweating on her forehead.

Xu Qiao took out one of her skirts. “I’ve grown, I can’t wear this anymore. You try it on.”

Xiao Xiao lowered her head, feeling awkward. “Underneath, I…”

Xu Qiao suddenly unbuttoned her school uniform and revealed a T-shirt with a hole in it. “I also wear torn clothes, what’s wrong with that?”

Xiao Xiao was surprised. “Aren’t you wearing a white shirt?”

The T-shirt was what Xu Qiao had secretly changed into earlier. “You saw wrong, I often wear torn clothes underneath my school uniform. Can’t waste them, right?”

Xiao Xiao finally smiled and awkwardly unbuttoned her school uniform.

Seeing the clothes she was wearing underneath, Xu Qiao felt a pang of sadness. She quickly urged Xiao Xiao to put on the skirt and used her own hairpins and hair flowers to decorate Xiao Xiao.

Unfortunately, Xiao Xiao’s hair was too short to tie up, at most she could only clip in a hairpin, not a hair flower.

But unexpectedly, Xiao Xiao was very happy. She spun clumsily in front of the mirror, trying to twirl the skirt like the fairies on TV.

“It’s my first time wearing a skirt.” Xiao Xiao’s eyes sparkled, like two little stars. “Sister, this skirt is so pretty!”

Xu Qiao said, “Xiao Xiao, you’re very pretty too. Don’t listen to what others say about you, look in the mirror. What a cute little girl you are.”

Xu Xiu and his wife came back, and his wife was surprised. “Qiao’er, did you dress up this doll?”

Xiao Xiao’s face turned red with embarrassment. “Sister, I want to go home.”

Xu Qiao wanted her to put the skirt back on, since she couldn’t wear it herself anymore, but Xiao Xiao shook her head, saying she’d be scolded if she went home like that.

Xiao Xiao changed back into her worn-out clothes and carefully placed the little rabbit back on the bed. “Sister, thank you.”

Xu Qiao patted her head. “Then, how about this? If you have time, come find me. We’ll secretly dress you up!”

Xiao Xiao smiled sweetly. “Mm!”

After Xiao Xiao went back, Xu Qiao told her parents about what had happened today and asked if they could allow Xiao Xiao to become part of the Xu family. Xu Xiu joked, “You’re about to bankrupt us!”

Later, Xiao Xiao visited Xu Qiao’s house a few more times, always when no one was paying attention. It was as if she had grown up at Xu’s house, no longer always looking down. Her hair gradually grew longer, and she wore the pretty hairpins Xu Qiao gave her. Even though she still wore patched clothes under her school uniform, she was brave enough to take it off when it got too hot. She began to smile at others and talk to them. When her hair finally grew long enough to be tied up, she would tie it in a high ponytail, just like Xu Qiao.

Xu Xiu no longer remembered when Xiao Xiao last came to the house. Occasionally, he heard that Xiao Xiao’s family was arguing, saying she was rebellious and disobedient. But he thought that was fine—why should a daughter have to obey improper discipline just because she was a girl?

The more Xu Xiu recalled, the more pity filled his expression. Sui Xing thought he must have remembered more things—about his daughter, his wife, and the happy times his kind-hearted wife and daughter had brought him.

But Sui Xing had to interrupt him and ask about the tragic events that happened later.

Xu Xiu took out a cigarette pack. He was smoking very cheap cigarettes. “I’ll go smoke one on the balcony, sorry about that, Officer Sui.”

Sui Xing joined him on the balcony and asked for a cigarette too.

Xu Xiu smiled wryly. “You police officers have it tough, a lot of pressure, right?”

Sui Xing’s smoking posture was quite skilled. “No matter which profession, the pressure is always there. We’re no different.”

Xu Xiu shook his head. “You girls should avoid smoking too much. It’s bad for your health.”

Sui Xing clamped the cigarette between her fingers and suddenly felt a bit of warmth in her eyes.

Xu Xiu said, “Xu Qiao got into the county high school by herself and was in the experimental class. The teaching method at the county high school was basically like cramming ducks; it was nothing like the key schools in the city that had quality activities.”

Since the first year of high school, Xu Qiao only had one day off each week, and by the second year, it was reduced to half a day. She couldn’t go home every week, so Xu Xiu and his wife took turns going to the county city on weekends to bring her soup.

Sui Xing asked if any of her middle school classmates came to visit her. Xu Xiu thought for a moment and then shook his head. “I don’t think so. A few of her middle school classmates also went to the county high school, but not in the same class.”

Sui Xing asked again if Xu Qiao had ever mentioned encountering any bad experiences at school. Xu Xiu asked, “Officer Sui, have you discovered something?”

Sui Xing replied, “There are some leads, so I came to confirm with you, but I can’t go into details for now.”

Xu Xiu restrained his emotions and recalled again, “She only said the pressure from the college entrance exams was heavy, but she didn’t mention anything else.”

In Xu Xiu’s memory, up until his wife fell ill, Xu Qiao was an optimistic and carefree girl. Even when large medical expenses were required, Xu Qiao believed she could earn enough money.

Tears welled up in Xu Xiu’s eyes, “I was the one who dragged her down. If I were capable, she wouldn’t have to go out and work, and she wouldn’t have encountered bad people.”

From here, Xu Xiu’s story became identical to the records from the Chenwan District police station. Back then, he was always working, too busy to pay attention to what Xu Qiao was facing in college. He didn’t know his daughter was being mistreated by someone. It wasn’t until after she went missing and the police began their investigation that he found out Xu Qiao had been insulted for a long time, and he couldn’t do anything.

When Sui Xing relayed Xu Xiu’s situation to Hai Shu, Wen Xu also gathered some crucial information from the county high school.

The teachers at the county high school, like those at Zhou Ping Middle School, remembered Xu Qiao well and expressed regret over her tragic outcome.

Both of Xu Qiao’s homeroom teachers were certain that she had never been in a romantic relationship in high school and had no ambiguous relationships with any boys.

“Our school is strict about early relationships. If Xu Qiao had a close relationship with any boy, as the homeroom teacher, I would have known immediately!”

Wen Xu quickly asked, “What if it wasn’t a student from your school? Did any outside school students visit Xu Qiao? Like on weekends?”

The homeroom teacher remained certain, “We barely had weekends, students only went out Sunday afternoon to buy some things. But they didn’t go far; they usually just ate some snacks on the street outside the school.”

Seeing that they were getting nowhere, the discipline director who had come to ask about the situation suddenly remembered, “Now that you mention it, there was a boy who came from the city, he was from a key city school, I caught him a few times!”

Wen Xu asked, “What happened?”

The discipline director recalled that aside from the key class, the other classes in their school were harder to manage. Students often went out and caused trouble, and there were even cross-school fights and relationships happening. Whenever they discovered an outsider loitering near the school, they would chase them away.

But one particular boy was odd. He didn’t look like a local, and he didn’t come with friends. On weekends, he would be out by himself, just standing around. No one knew who he was waiting for.

The discipline director saw him several times and thought something was off. He wanted to catch him and question him, but the boy ran too quickly, and the discipline director never caught him.

Later, when the discipline director went to the city for a meeting, it was held at the Third Experimental School in Huayong City. There, he saw the boy who had been loitering near their school.

The Third Experimental School was where Guang Jun attended!

Wen Xu immediately took out a photo of Guang Jun to show the discipline director, but the director couldn’t remember clearly anymore.

One lead after another began to converge in front of Hai Shu, and an old puzzle was slowly coming together. Perhaps Guang Jun’s obsession with Xu Qiao had a gradual escalation. In middle school, they were in the same grade, and Guang Jun likely had special feelings for her, but it never affected her life.

In high school, Guang Jun’s mindset gradually changed, and he became desperate to see Xu Qiao. He lied to both the school and her family. But when he came to the county, he only observed from a distance—at that time, he still didn’t dare show himself in front of Xu Qiao.

After entering college, Guang Jun was no longer content with just watching. He began to approach Xu Qiao. Perhaps because they were both from Zhou Ping Town, Xu Qiao saw him as a fellow townsman. But over time, his actions or words must have made Xu Qiao say to her roommate Xiao Qing, “Annoying fellow townsman.”

Xu Qiao didn’t want to have too much contact with him, but he wouldn’t let go. With Xu’s mother’s illness, Xu Qiao had to work day and night, even becoming a model and working at a club. Some hidden emotions in Guang Jun were completely stirred.

The car the students saw was his, and he drove Xu Qiao to the point of no return…

Hai Shu closed her eyes and gently clenched her fist. But where was the evidence? If there was no evidence, it would all just be a detective story.

“Officer Hai, what’s the situation? Can I go home now?” Guang Jun glared at Hai Shu, his tone showing a hint of gritted teeth.

Hai Shu moved her chair back and sat down. “Don’t be in a hurry. I have a few more questions for you.”

“Tch, you guys are just being unreasonable!”

“Who said we have to catch the murderer of your good brother, Yu Zi? What? Isn’t he your good brother? Why is it so hard for you to cooperate?”

Guang Jun froze for a moment, quickly looking away. “I didn’t say I wouldn’t cooperate! But why are you investigating Yu Zi? What does that have to do with Xu… Xu Qiao?”

Hai Shu said, “You took a lot of sick days in high school. Was it to go to the county high school to see Xu Qiao?”

Guang Jun’s neck muscles tensed, “How is that possible? That’s just your imagination!”

Hai Shu said, “Someone saw someone who looked just like you. Why were you watching Xu Qiao?”

Guang Jun smiled. “Look like me? Come on, Officer Hai. Just because someone looks like me, it’s me? Whoever said that, please bring them here for a confrontation!”

Hai Shu knew that this wasn’t evidence, just a lead. She wanted to test Guang Jun’s reaction, and clearly, he was already well-prepared. Compared to when she last mentioned Xu Qiao, Guang Jun was much calmer now.

“Let’s talk about something else,” Hai Shu said. “How did you and Yin Canxi get together?”

Guang Jun observed Hai Shu suspiciously and said, “I remember you asked me this question before. I fell in love with her at first sight. She’s the kind of woman I admire.”

Hai Shu: “Oh? What kind of woman?”

Guang Jun seemed unwilling to answer, but not wanting to get into another conflict with the police, he replied dismissively, “A woman who dares to work hard in the big city, has a career, and doesn’t want to rely on her husband’s family.”

Hai Shu: “Is that all?”

Guang Jun glared, “What else do you expect? I’m asking you, Officer Hai, how do you investigate cases? Don’t tell me the criminal police also deal with matters between husbands and wives?”

Hai Shu smiled, “Yin Canxi looks a lot like the woman you remember, doesn’t she?”

Guang Jun immediately froze.

Hai Shu continued, “They’re both beautiful, but not in the same way. However, there’s one thing: you saw in Yin Canxi’s face the woman who’s long gone, and that is…” Hai Shu leaned forward, lowering her voice as if singing a ballad, “They both have their eyes at the corners slightly raised, very long. When Yin Canxi tied her hair into a high ponytail, you might have seen that woman who had already withered.”

After a moment of trembling, Guang Jun suddenly snapped out of it, “I don’t understand what you’re talking about.”

Hai Shu suddenly pulled out two photos. On the left was Yin Canxi, on the right was Xu Qiao. Xu Qiao wasn’t wearing any makeup, and her eye corners were naturally upturned, while Yin Canxi’s eyes had been enhanced with makeup to match Xu Qiao’s perfectly.

The sound of Guang Jun taking a sharp breath could be heard in the interrogation room.

Hai Shu said, “When you fell for Yin Canxi at first sight, she had this makeup, didn’t she? Aren’t her eyes very similar to Xu Qiao’s?”

Guang Jun regained his composure, “You police are really good at imagining things. I never thought my wife resembled anyone.”

Hai Shu nodded, following Guang Jun’s line of thinking: “Right, Yin Canxi’s eyes aren’t like Xu Qiao’s. She’s just good at makeup. She can do this, she can do others too.”

Guang Jun snorted, “I like her for how she really looks.”

“But I noticed something,” Hai Shu continued, “On your wedding day, she wore the same eye makeup. Did you ask for that?”

Guang Jun opened his mouth but didn’t say anything. He seemed stuck, and finally, after Hai Shu’s lead, he thought of something else.

“Oh, by the way, I have another clue to tell you,” Hai Shu said. “We found out that Yin Canxi not only knew Xu Qiao, but had a close relationship with Xu’s family when they were young. Yin Canxi wasn’t well-dressed as a child. She likely developed her current sense of beauty thanks to Xu Qiao’s help back then. Isn’t that quite the coincidence?”

Guang Jun’s lips trembled, cold sweat dripping down. His mind was likely racing with confused and absurd thoughts, and even his eyes were shaking.

“Xi Xi… she… knows Xu Qiao?”

Hai Shu said, “Yes, she does. She’s Xu Qiao’s good sister, though not by blood.”

A sharp, piercing scream rang out, and Hai Shu couldn’t help but frown. Guang Jun suddenly planted his feet on the ground, and the chair screeched as he jerked backward. He shook his head, fear written all over his face, “Impossible!”

“Impossible? What’s impossible?” Hai Shu asked. “Is it impossible that Yin Canxi knew Xu Qiao? Or… do you think Yin Canxi didn’t approach you because of Xu Qiao?”

Guang Jun screamed, unable to disguise his panic, “What have you found out? Yin Canxi, Yin Canxi, is she the killer? Did she kill Yu Zi? No, no…”

Hai Shu looked at this vile, cowardly, and foolish man, suppressing her disgust. She followed his train of thought, “Well, that depends on what you did to Xu Qiao back then. I don’t know any of this, Mr. Guang. What I do know is, she didn’t really want to become your wife. Now, what are you planning to do? Stay in our police’s sights? Or go back?”