Chapter 107 Good People Get Good Fortune

Chen Zhenzhu never understood.

In the replay of the surveillance footage, why did the murderer suddenly cut off the victim's head after hearing the "thump thump thump" sound?

Now I suddenly understand.

He was venting his anger.

The skull buried under the floorboards kept striking the wooden planks, constantly stimulating his nerves.

On the rainy night of the murder, he was provoked again, and in a fit of rage, he committed a heinous act.

The officers at the local police station had never seen such a horrific scene before; four or five of them ran out and vomited in the rain.

Some locals from Wuxian County understood the reason why the well water in every household smelled so foul almost the instant the bones emerged.

The Bodhisattva Water turned into water for rotting corpses.

"Bring the abbot over for identification." Shen Zhenzhu put on gloves and prepared to go forward to retrieve the bones.

Gu Yanzheng pressed down on her shoulder, took off her gloves and put them on his own: "I'll retrieve them, you cooperate from the side."

“Okay.” Shen Zhenzhu knelt on one knee by the well, facing the overwhelming stench and the mournful spirits.

One skeleton after another was scooped up by Gu Yanzheng, while the abbot and the woman he had brought with him watched this horrifying scene with blank expressions.

The woman knelt on the ground, clutching her abdomen, her knees buckling. She looked up at the abbot and murmured, "Ah Jun, tell them you didn't kill these people. Tell them quickly!"

The abbot remained silent, a stark contrast to his gentle and considerate demeanor during their passionate encounter. His eyes were red-rimmed, and he glared at Chen Zhenzhu as if he wanted to devour her whole.

"So you were a police officer. You lied to me. You were a police officer all along."

Zhao Qiqi pressed down on his head, forcing him to squat obediently in place: "Did you kill him? Let me tell you, even if you try to deny it, there's no way to change it. We've already found the murder weapon."

When the abbot saw Zhao Qiqi pointing at the incense table, he gasped for breath, closed his eyes, and grinned smugly.

Seeing that he didn't answer, Chen Zhenzhu didn't waste any more time.

Gu Yanzheng retrieved all six skeletons from the well in one go and placed them neatly under the seat of the Bodhisattva of Sending Off the Unicorn, a scene that was both ironic and tragic.

Shen Zhenzhu glanced at the six almost completely decayed skeletons, walked up to the abbot, and said condescendingly, "Where are you hiding the other three girls?"

The abbot slowly raised his head. The woman beside him was in pain and fear. He even had the leisure to pat the back of her hand: "I'm sorry."

The woman looked up in astonishment and heard "Ah Jun" say to Chen Zhenzhu, "They're all inside. I killed them all."

Shen Zhenzhu crossed her arms and looked down at his expression, a hint of surprise flashing in her eyes. After a brief half-second, she whispered, "These six skeletons are weathered, with yellowed bone surfaces, fine cracks in the cortex, and only dried tendon fragments remaining in the soft tissue, with some areas containing adipocere fat. There is calcium deposited from well water between the bones, and the medullary cavity at the fracture sites is dry, with no fresh blood remaining. Do you know what this means?"

Shen Zhenzhu's string of technical terms made it clear to the abbot that she couldn't fool him, but he still smiled kindly and said, "It means your investigative skills are quite high."

Shen Zhenzhu, hands on her hips, looked down at him and said, "That means you're lying. Those three girls have been missing for no more than two weeks; there's no way they could be among the bones. Where are they?!"

The abbot looked up over the crowd scrutinizing him. The usual order of things, where he stood and others knelt in worship, had turned upside down today.

His gaze slowly shifted to the face of the Yaksha who was punishing evil, and he smiled dismissively, saying, "They were steadfast and unyielding, unwilling to seduce me. Perhaps they all jumped into the river to protect their purity."

The evil spirits beneath the feet of the Arhat who punishes evil are powerless to struggle, and the abbot adopts an attitude of answering any question.

“I know where the river is.” A local agent returned after vomiting, his face pale, but he still insisted on saying, “It’s not far to the north. That river goes straight to Yibei, and then flows into the sea at Liancheng.”

No matter how horrific the scene was, it couldn't stop the agents' determination to find the victims.

They thought the well was where they were hiding, and Lu Ye, Zhao Qiqi and the others were extremely anxious. However, the river was swift, and if they jumped in together, they would probably die.

"He jumped next to the small mountain god temple facing north." The abbot said nonchalantly, "It would have been better if he had died in the well, at least he would have had a complete corpse."

Speaking of the complete corpse, Chen Zhenzhu continued her interrogation: "Where did you hide the head of the murdered headless female corpse?"

The abbot paused for a moment, then uttered "Amitabha," his unhurried attitude making Lu Ye want to punch him!

"They were thrown into the river too."

"Ah Jun...you, how could you kill someone? No one could have killed someone, it couldn't be you." The disheveled woman, wrapped in a blanket, collapsed to the ground, unable to believe her ears.

"He couldn't have killed anyone? Then what's in front of you? Let me tell you, he not only killed these people, he's also the murderer who murdered an entire family twenty years ago and has been on the run." Xiaobai looked at the woman with exasperation, threw the clothes he had found at her, and said, "Go and put these on."

The woman's joyful dreams of the first half of the night were brutally shattered by the uninvited arrival of the police. Supported by two female officers, she was led behind the incense table, her movements sluggish as she dressed: "Give me...give me a birth control pill, please give me one, I can't have his child..."

"Brother Ye, go with a few people to search around the small land temple. Be careful and don't get too close to the cliff." Chen Zhenzhu had seen the course of that river on the map and could imagine how the continuous heavy rain would drive the river crazy.

“Brother Aqi, you take your men and search downstream from the foot of the mountain. Be careful as well.”

Shen Zhenzhu looked at the abbot who had been taken away and asked him, "What is your name?"

"Life is but a dream, all fleeting clouds." The abbot's arm ached from the twisting. He was hunched over as he was handcuffed behind his back. He stared at Chen Zhenzhu and said, "This time I misjudged you."

He didn't talk, and Shen Zhenzhu didn't force him. This wasn't a good place for interrogation; he would confess sooner or later.

The camera flashes continued to blink, making the six skeletons appear even more horrifying under the light.

"I killed them." As if guessing the question Chen Zhenzhu was going to ask, the abbot turned back to look at the skeletons before leaving, a smile on his lips that was hard to decipher: "I confess."

Shen Zhenzhu watched him leave, while Xiaobai shook Shen Zhenzhu's arm and said, "That's great, Sister Zhenzhu! He has confessed. Now all we have to do is find them and we'll be all set."

“I’ll go check the meditation room to make sure there are no other victims.” Shen Zhenzhu said goodbye to Gu Yanzheng and was about to leave when Gu Yanzheng called out to her, “Let’s see if you can find any contact information for the ‘soulmate’.”

"Mm." Shen Zhenzhu nodded and quickly left the Hall of the Bodhisattva Songlin.

Gu Yanzheng stared at her retreating figure, lost in thought.

The smell of rain, mist, and dust in the corridors was much better than the stench inside the palace.

As I passed by the flower field, I saw the pure white calla lilies lying haphazardly in the mud, trampled and heartbreaking.

Occasionally, one could see the search agents in the corridor, and Chen Zhenzhu nodded to each of them.

Some groups of three or four gathered together, having been placed elsewhere and unable to enter the Bodhisattva Hall to witness the horrifying sight of the floating bones in the well, discussing the course of the case based on hearsay.

Gu Weiyong saluted Shen Zhenzhu upon seeing her, but Shen Zhenzhu frowned and asked, "Why are you here?"

Han Xiaojun, who was standing nearby, reported, "We don't have enough people to search for the victims on the cliff, so we've been brought up here to help."

"Don't touch anything inside, and don't spread rumors," Chen Zhenzhu instructed, then walked to the end of the corridor, turned the corner, and entered the abbot's meditation room.

It was still the disheveled and chaotic state before his arrest.

The outer room has a wooden couch for guests, an arched display shelf for fake antique vases, and a wall of scriptures.

Chen Zhenzhu put on gloves and rummaged through the desk. She noticed that the writing implements she usually used for calligraphy practice showed signs of frequent use, and there were scriptures copied by the abbot on the stack of Xuan paper on her left.

Chen Zhenzhu rummaged through the drawer and found a long strip of painkillers, estimated to be more than fifty pills. Several pills were empty from the bag, indicating he likely took them regularly. This corroborated his testimony that he had rheumatism.

She walked into the inner room and found that the abbot's bed was unusually large, at least two meters wide.

Chen Zhenzhu disdainfully lifted the quilt and pressed the pillow, discovering a hard object inside.

"It's a savings book!" Xiaobai suddenly spoke from behind. Chen Zhenzhu almost spilled the rice husks from her pillow all over the floor. Xiaobai reached out and scooped them up, and the two quickly put them on the bed.

"Ones, tens, hundreds, thousands, ten thousands, hundred thousands... He actually has 150,000!" Xiaobai counted again in shock, really thinking he had miscounted.

In 1993, when the average wage in Liancheng was just over 300 yuan, this abbot already had six-figure savings, equivalent to what ordinary people could save for forty years without eating or drinking.

"No wonder he still wants to expand and become stronger. He's made so much money in such a short time. He might as well become a god of wealth instead of a monk." Xiao Bai felt the passbook was burning hot, so he took out the evidence bag and quickly stuffed it in.

Chen Zhenzhu searched through the contents for a long time but found no contact information for the "destined one." Either the "destined one" was contacting her unilaterally, or there were only six or seven such people at present, whom she could simply memorize.

"Xiaobai." Gu Yanzheng called for her help from outside. Xiaobai ran out, leaving Chen Zhenzhu alone here.

She used a feather duster to poke under the bed and pulled out a pair of old cloth shoes. The right shoe was a little worn, and the sole was tilted.

Shen Zhenzhu glanced at it, kicked it aside, and continued searching under the bed. Unfortunately, she found nothing else under the bed.

She went to the outer room and saw the thick stack of handwritten Buddhist scriptures on the table again, and her brows furrowed.

The skeletons were still placed inside the Bodhisattva Hall. Because the smell was so pungent, Gu Yanzheng had the windows opened to let in some fresh air.

"We haven't found any clues matching the suspect's identity. It seems we'll have to rely on the suspect's confession to determine his identity." Shen Zhenzhu said to Gu Yanzheng as usual after returning.

Gu Yanzheng nodded slightly, but did not tell her what to do next, leaving everything to Chen Zhenzhu to do on her own.

According to Director Liu, Shen Zhenzhu may soon lead the entire Major Crimes Unit to solve cases on her own, and he, as the deputy director, will probably have to move to a different position.

Shen Zhenzhu could vaguely guess what her superiors meant: to give her more experience so that she could eventually take on a significant role.

But what she didn't know was that Gu Yanzheng's inaction in his position over the past few years might have been a way of waiting for someone to take over the Major Crimes Unit, allowing him to leave without any worries.

Chen Zhenzhu looked down at the six skeletons, occasionally squatting down to conduct a detailed examination. Without a senior professional forensic doctor like Qin An by her side, she had to investigate everything herself, which added a lot of work to her.

After cleaning up the scene, Gu Yanzheng called Director Liu to report.

Shen Zhenzhu then squatted down in front of the six skeletons, watching each one's last "heavenly eye recollection" before their deaths.

In the dim, damp room, the tall, imposing killer was more terrifying than a demon. He subdued them with overwhelming force, violently assaulting them in the same place and in the same manner over a period of three months.

He returned to the same spot not long after he left, and the shadows and light shone on the murderer's profile—it was the abbot who had already confessed.

During the day, people line up inside the Hall of the Bodhisattva Sending the Unicorn to get Bodhisattva Water, as if the Bodhisattva Water could cure all diseases and make people pregnant for ten months immediately after drinking it.

Unfortunately, Wuxian County has experienced a lack of rainfall in recent years, resulting in a shortage of water in ancient wells. As a result, people often fight over the water from the Bodhisattva statue where the Qilin Bodhisattva is seated.

Qilin Mountain has been designated as a scenic area, and staff frequently patrol the mountain. Worshippers often wander around the temples, and some, particularly those who don't follow the rules, almost discovered a vault where corpses were hidden.

"The newly recruited monks are idle and petty thieves; we can't let them see the corpses." The old monk, with a cigarette dangling from his lips, muttered and cursed, "How could so many be killed? Didn't we agree not to kill anyone? The weather is getting hotter and hotter; today, a pilgrim even asked me if there were dead rats in the temple."

The abbot closed his eyes, thought for a moment, and made a decision: "There will be no next time. Put all of these into the well and seal it up. I guarantee no one will find out."

The old monk pondered this carefully. The well was unfathomably deep. Perhaps if he threw it in, it would drift straight to the sea along the groundwater, disappearing without a trace. Who would then be able to find out that it was his son who did it?

Without hesitation, the father and son worked through the night, throwing all the corpses into the ancient well...

......

......

The deaths of six young women are regrettable, and the Heavenly Eye's retrospective analysis did not yield any useful information about them for Shen Zhenzhu.

However, as Shen Zhenzhu's gaze swept over the ancient well from which muddy water continuously gushed forth, she couldn't help but sigh that Heaven had eyes. After they were thrown into the well, a torrential downpour and thunderstorms struck, causing the accumulated water to seep into the ground, bringing spring back to life to the ancient well, which then caused the skulls to strike and cry out for justice.

"Sister Pearl, Director Liu called to congratulate us on solving the case." Xiao Bai came over happily, but seeing the six skeletons made her feel uneasy. She put her hands together, bowed, and then turned to Chen Zhenzhu and said, "Go answer the phone quickly."

"Okay." Shen Zhenzhu went out to find Gu Yanzheng, and Xiaobai sensed something was wrong from her back.

"What are you spacing out for?" Lu Ye searched around the cliff edge, then returned to look for tools. He saw Xiao Bai standing motionless in front of the skeletons and flicked her shoulder with his finger.

"Last time, when you solved a big case, Sister Pearl was so happy and proud. This time, although there are still three victims who haven't been found, it can still be considered a case solved. Why do I see that Sister Pearl isn't happy at all?"

Lu Ye pinched his chin, thinking of Shen Zhenzhu's smug look every time she solved a case, and felt that he was a little lacking: "Did you get sick from the rain? Having lice on your head can also affect your intelligence."

"You're the one with lice on your head." Xiaobai knew he was joking to tease her, and seeing Chen Zhenzhu's sullen mood, she couldn't be happy either.

"I still need to look around the other side of the cliff. If Sister Pearl calls me later, please tell her." Lu Ye left these words, with a rope around his shoulder, ready to go.

"Hey, be careful, Brother Ye." Seeing his heroic posture, Xiao Bai was really afraid that he would hang himself on the cliff while trying to save someone.

"Okay, Archie will meet me later, don't worry." Lu Ye waved his hand and left gracefully.

When Shen Zhenzhu answered Director Liu's call, he was very pleased that the discovery of the six skeletons meant the case was about to be solved. He encouraged and praised her on the phone.

If it were the previous Chen Zhenzhu, she would probably be holding her head high with pride. But this time, after hanging up the phone with the leader's words of comfort, she still felt preoccupied.

"Report: The search of the temple is complete. All the monks have been arrested. No other victims were found." Outside the hall, Gu Weiyong and the others stood on the corridor, waiting for Shen Zhenzhu's next instructions.

"Take ropes and tools and head to the north river to find the three victims. The river is slippery due to the rain and the cliffs are steep, so please be careful."

Chen Zhenzhu put on her raincoat and decided to put aside other thoughts and focus on the search.

Gu Yanzheng held up his raincoat for her to crawl inside, while he focused on preserving evidence and conducting an on-site investigation, wondering if Shen Zhenzhu had made any other discoveries.

But since Shen Zhenzhu didn't say anything, he didn't press her for details.

Qilin Mountain has the only river in the surrounding area, called Shengshui River. Before liberation, it was called Shenshui River, and during the ten years, it was changed to the "Sheng" in "Victory" to commemorate the victory of the eight-year War of Resistance against Japan, and it was absolutely free from any association with demons and monsters.

The Songlin Bodhisattva Temple is near the mountaintop, and further up is the lightning rod tower. After crossing the mountain peak where the lightning rod tower is located, going down leads to the valley that connects with other mountains.

Nature's artistry has cleaved the two mountains as if they were split apart, with the only way to reach Qilin Mountain is through the winding Shengshui River road, which then leads to other places.

I searched along the river twice from the steep cliff edge, and it was already dark. Fortunately, the heavy rain stopped, and the sun peeked out.

The woods were damp, with birdsong and slippery creatures moving swiftly by.

Chen Zhenzhu was drenched in sweat under her raincoat, and within ten minutes of taking it off, her arms were covered in red welts from poisonous mosquitoes. Left with no other choice, she put her raincoat back on and struggled through the woods, leaning on her cane.

Calls echoed throughout the mountains—some calling for Qiaoqiao, some for Wuxuan, and others screaming so loudly that it was impossible to make out what they were saying. All the voices reverberated through the valley, startling birds into flight.

"I feel it's best not to have too much hope. It's been 11 days already. If he jumped into the river, he might have actually been swept into the sea. If he didn't jump into the river, with all this thunder and lightning, what will he eat and drink? He might have been killed by the monks, and I just don't know where he'll be buried."

Lu Ye searched from dawn until noon, but some things still needed to be said.

Xiao Bai was so tired that she was almost exhausted. When she saw Chen Zhenzhu stop, she sat down on a rock to rest.

Shen Zhenzhu always believed that Qiaoqiao's words about "saving her sister" were true. Even after Qiaoqiao went crazy from fear, she still clung to this belief and wandered around the county town, hoping that her sisters might still have a glimmer of hope.

But then she thought about it again, and Lu Ye was right. After all these days, if the three city girls wanted to escape, they would have gone down the mountain long ago. If they couldn't go down the mountain, they might really have been killed.

These thoughts clashed and intertwined in her mind, but Chen Zhenzhu still said, "Keep looking, don't give up."

If she retreats this time, perhaps no one will ever search for them with such effort again.

Shen Zhenzhu led her people upstream again, searching from flat terrain to steep cliffs, not caring that mud and sand filled their shoes and rubbed their feet raw.

The operator in front almost tripped and fell. Chen Zhenzhu stepped forward to push him back, but she slipped and fell backward. If it weren't for a tree nearby that caught her, she would have hit her head on the stone steps, which would have been terrible.

"It's alright, it's alright, take it slow going up the mountain." Shen Zhenzhu twisted her left arm, pinched her elbow a couple of times, picked up her stick again, and started climbing the mountain.

Let's try one more time.

Shen Zhenzhu looked back and saw the exhausted operators, knowing that they had all been going up and down the mountain repeatedly and had not had an easy time.

She gritted her teeth and persevered, planning that if she still couldn't find it this time, she would go down the mountain to rest for two hours and then bring Qiaoqiao back up to try again.

"Sizzle—sizzle—"

The sound of the walkie-talkie interrupted my thoughts, and Gu Yanzheng's calm voice came through: "Three victims have been found in the southwest corner of the small land temple. They are all still alive."

"Waaaaahh ...

"That's great! That's great!!"

"Thank God they're still alive after all these days!"

Cheers erupted behind Shen Zhenzhu; everyone was relieved that the victims had been found.

This not only signifies the end of a long and arduous search, but also represents a positive conclusion to the case.

Shen Zhenzhu was already very familiar with the mountain paths, so she didn't need to check a map or ask the locals. Following the directions Gu Yanzheng gave her, she appeared in front of them forty minutes later.

The three girls huddled together. They didn't cry, but ate slowly. Occasionally, when they looked up, their eyes showed a determined look and a will to survive.

A nurse from the Second Hospital was disinfecting their wounds. Gu Yanzheng told Shen Zhenzhu, "We found them at the bottom of the cliff. The three of them were hanging on the rocks of the cliff, and they would fall into the river if they were not careful. They have survived by drinking rainwater and eating tree leaves these days."

Shen Zhenzhu squatted down in front of them and saw that one of the older sisters had cute freckles just like Qiaoqiao. If her face hadn't been so dirty, they would have looked even more alike.

"Qiaoqiao is fine. She's been looking for someone to rescue you down the mountain." Shen Zhenzhu handed Wuxuan a bottle of mineral water, and seeing her shivering in the blanket, she brought another blanket to wrap her up.

Upon hearing this, the girl next to Wu Xuan gritted her teeth and cursed, "Is she stupid? We already said it's dangerous in the county too. We helped her up so she could leave Wuxian County quickly. Why won't she leave?"

Shen Zhenzhu pursed her lips and said, "She was terrified and wandered around the county town. She would run away whenever she saw someone, and she would follow us when she saw that we were police officers. She didn't abandon you to escape on her own; she always remembered that she had to save her sister and find her sister."

Wu Xuan stubbornly wiped away her tears and cursed, "She's stupid. If she gets caught, she's doomed."

On the other side, the slightly chubby girl heard that Qiaoqiao was safe and that she herself had been rescued. She cried and laughed at the same time. She pushed Wu Xuan and said, "You were willing to risk your life to save your sister. Now that she's better, you still blame her."

Shen Zhenzhu could understand Wu Xuan's feelings. If she and Shen Yuyuan were in danger and she wanted Shen Yuyuan to escape alone, but Shen Yuyuan disobeyed and was still hovering on the edge of danger, she would get angry just thinking about it.

But it is precisely their anger that better represents the depth of their emotions.

“If you hadn’t asked her to go up there, she wouldn’t have found us, and we wouldn’t have known you were missing,” Shen Zhenzhu said with a smile. “So don’t blame her; it’s a positive chain reaction.”

Wu Xuan remained silent for a moment, then looked around at the busy police officers, and only then did he feel truly saved.

She pointed to the backpack at her feet and said, "There are things in here that need to be handed over."

Gu Yanzheng walked over and unzipped the bag. He was about to take out "something" when he paused. He then simply held the backpack in front of Chen Zhenzhu and said, "Head, if I'm not mistaken, it should be the head of the headless female corpse."

Shen Zhenzhu was taken aback: "How do you have this?"

Wu Xuan still shudders at the memory of what she witnessed that day. She pressed her trembling hands and tried to speak calmly, "A little over a week ago, I came to the temple to worship the Buddha. Because the inner hall wasn't open to the public, we...we sneaked in at night. Who knew we'd witness a monk committing murder..."

Recalling that scene made her speak haltingly. The chubby girl next to her continued, "That bald monk was a scoundrel. He actually tortured the girl like that, and even cut off her head, saying he would throw the body to feed the dogs!"

"How can we feed her to the dogs?" The girl on the other side was practically spitting fire. "We can't just leave such a young woman like this, with her body destroyed. The four of us discussed it and decided to steal the body and head. We were scared too, we couldn't just leave her like this."

"..." Shen Zhenzhu fell silent.

She had seen daring victims, but never one this daring.

The four of them hit it off immediately, dividing the tasks and working together, determined not to let the strange girl die quietly. Little did they know they would be discovered by a monk who came up to pee in the middle of the night, and they would have to flee...

"It's also our fault for being so useless. If I had a knife, I would have fought them to the death." Although Wu Xuan looked sickly, he still spoke of them with fierce spirit:

"We had nowhere to hide, and the monks blocked the way down the mountain, so we had no choice but to reach the edge of the cliff. We almost got discovered, but unfortunately... We wanted to bring the girl's body out, but we accidentally fell into the river and disappeared. Her head was still in the backpack. I should have thrown it into the river as well, so she wouldn't have been mutilated. Sigh, I don't know if stealing the body was a good thing or a bad thing."

"This is a good thing!" Shen Zhenzhu finally understood the key point, and she was truly amazed.

"The body was accidentally washed into the cave. After someone discovered it, they reported it to the police. We investigated and eventually found our way here."

Wu Xuan's eyes lit up: "Really?"

"Sister! Sister!" Qiaoqiao's voice came along with the rescue team's. Overjoyed, she tripped and fell. Ignoring those around her who wanted to help her up, she kicked off her shoes and rushed into Wu Xuan's arms, hugging him tightly: "I found my sister! I found my sister!"

Wu Xuan tried her best not to cry, because she felt that crying meant weakness, and the more upset she was, the less she should cry. But when she saw her weak and dazed younger sister rushing towards her, her heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled down, and the warmth of her sister's body warmed her heart.

"It's a good thing you're still alive. You're so young, you should continue to live a good life." Wu Xuan was almost ten years older than Qiao Qiao. Ignoring his own near-death state, he helped Qiao Qiao tuck a stray hair behind her ear and said with tears in his eyes, "Why didn't you run away? Do you know how dangerous it was?"

"Sister, don't cry." Qiaoqiao's eyes were bright. She had so much to say to her sister, but when her sisters lifted her up and helped her climb the cliff to find a chance to escape, she held back all her sadness and sorrow.

The chubby girl pinched Qiaoqiao's arm, laughing and crying at the same time, and said, "Didn't we agree that if anything happened, you would live well for us? You never listen to your older sisters."

Qiaoqiao tilted her head, already understanding their emotions. She desperately tried to organize her thoughts and said, "Sisters, save me, and I want to save you too."

Looking at Qiaoqiao's dazed expression, Wu Xuan asked Chen Zhenzhu with concern, "Is she...can she still get better?"

"Yes, it's much better than when it was first discovered." Chen Zhenzhu asked a psychiatrist and received a positive answer: "It will get better with time."

Wu Xuan leaned against the tree, completely ignoring the ants and mosquitoes. She closed her eyes and murmured, "It's like a nightmare. I really don't understand what happened. I thought I was going to die."

Shen Zhenzhu said, "If you hadn't been carrying the female corpse and accidentally dropped it, we wouldn't have opened an investigation into the Bodhisattva Temple. You lifted Qiaoqiao to safety, and it was through her that we discovered someone had gone missing here. Your sisterly bond is deep, and you saved each other. Ultimately, it was your kindness that saved you."

Xiao Bai and the others were also deeply moved. Looking at the darkening sky, she felt that there was a divine will at work.

Lu Ye patted Zhao Qiqi hard: "This is what they mean by good deeds being rewarded."

Everyone involved in the search was overjoyed. Gu Yanzheng looked at Shen Zhenzhu in the crowd, only to see her frown once again.

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Author's Note: ******

See you tomorrow, there's a red envelope coming! [Let me see]