63. A torrential rainstorm hits the village on night.

In the evening, everyone except Huo Xu gathered around the fireplace in the hall to warm themselves.

They moved the sofa closer to the fireplace, then went upstairs to get blankets, and each of them leaned against the sofa.

Fang Chengjin was still sitting alone in the rocking chair. He looked out at the heavy rain, his fingers stroking the armrests of the chair, moving them forward and backward, his fingertips tapping and then hesitating for two or three seconds before stopping.

A-K took a small blanket and covered his back. "Professor Fang, don't catch a cold."

As he spoke, he pulled over another rocking chair and sat down beside him, holding a hand warmer in his arms.

The butler was tied to the front desk in the living room, unable to move, pitiful and helpless. Only Ah K draped a blanket over him to warm him up.

Ah K had delicate features, and his eyes reflected the shadows of the torrential rain. His eyes curved slightly as he said, "Professor Fang, what do you think will happen tonight?"

Fang Chengjin slightly raised his eyelids. "Wait."

Ah K's smile was ambiguous, and he remained silent.

As time passed, the whispers that had been filling the hall gradually subsided, and eventually the entire hall became quiet, save for the sound of yawns. Although people were tired, many dared not fall asleep immediately.

As the night deepened, Fang Cheng gazed intently at the rainy night outside the window, his mind perfectly clear.

The aroma of coffee filled the air as Tang Tiantian and Ye Xiao made coffee to keep themselves from falling asleep.

The aroma of coffee was mixed with some fruity notes, which reminded Fang Chengjin of Zhou Yun.

Her lily scent also contains a hint of sweet fruitiness.

Zhou Yun, where are you now?

As Fang Chengjin pondered this, time slipped by unnoticed until three in the morning when the clock in the hall struck again, finally bringing him back to his senses from his reverie.

He moved his body slightly with difficulty, like a statue that hadn't been moved in a long time. He turned his head to look at the others in the hall. Everyone was drowsy and had their eyes closed. Even Ah K next to him had his head down and was not moving.

Fang Chengjin gently got up and glanced at Liang Mei, who was wrapped in a blanket and fast asleep.

He went up to the second and third floors, then directly to the fourth floor, and arrived at the door of room number one on the fourth floor.

This is the room where Lei Batian and Liang Mei live.

Liang Mei was downstairs at that moment, while Fang Chengjin touched the spare room key in his pocket.

Take it out, give it a gentle swipe, and the door opens.

The dim yellow light in the corridor flickered, and the door closed gently.

Fang Cheng moved his nose slightly; it had cleared up for a moment, and he could smell the faint scents.

Not knowing how much longer his sense of smell would last, he took advantage of this lull to check Lei Batian's room.

Lei Batian's death scene was not the fountain outside. That day, he saw the fourth-floor window wide open, and it was clear that Lei Batian had fallen directly to his death.

He looked around the room in front of him; the decoration and layout were exactly the same as the one downstairs.

But the room was too messy. Clothes were scattered on the floor, and the table was covered with medicine boxes, fruit plates, drinks, and half-open cosmetics.

Fang Cheng sniffed the smell, then his gaze fell on the trash can beside the bed. He squatted down, emptied the contents of the trash can, and picked up a plastic shell.

This was a packet of pills for lowering high blood pressure; he put it in his nose and sniffed it.

A faint aroma of bitter almonds wafted out.

This bag contained a sleeping pill.

As I was pondering this, a noise suddenly came from downstairs. Even on the fourth floor, the noise could be felt in the quiet environment.

Fang Cheng carefully stuffed the packaging bag into his pocket, then put the other things back into the trash can, straightened the trash can, and hurriedly opened the door. It was pitch black outside.

There were some lights in the corridor just now, but now there are none at all.

Someone downstairs shouted, "Why are the lights off!"

Is it a power outage? Or did someone tamper with the circuit breaker?

Fang Chengjin's mind flashed with speculation. As he thought about it, he hurried downstairs. Although it was pitch black, he was still able to feel his way down the stairs by intuition.

When he went down to the lobby on the first floor, the lights came on again in an instant.

Unfortunately, Liang Mei saw Fang Chengjin standing at the entrance of the building, her eyes filled with fierceness: "Professor Fang, where have you been?"

Everyone looked over.

Fang Cheng, without batting an eye, walked up to them and said, "I'm going to the toilet. You all know that everyone has to go to the bathroom sometimes."

Liang Mei frowned: "There's a restroom in the lobby, why did you go upstairs?"

Fang Chengjin calmly replied, "I have OCD and I'm not used to using public restrooms."

Liang Mei didn't believe it, but she didn't ask any more questions; her eyes, however, were full of doubt.

A-K stepped in: "Alright, Professor Fang, come back quickly, or don't wander around."

Tang Tiantian suddenly spoke up: "It's already four o'clock in the evening, and nothing has happened. I want to go back to my room to rest."

Director Chen scratched the back of his head. "Let's not talk nonsense. The night isn't over yet. Let's all make do and stay together."

Fang Chengjin sat back down in the rocking chair, his hands still in his pockets. He touched the medicine bag and then took his hand out.

The little incident quickly passed, and everyone continued to stay in the hall, waiting for tomorrow to arrive.

The night is getting deeper and deeper. How long will this heavy rain last?

**

At the foot of the mountain.

Three cars were parked one after the other on the side of the road. Two sturdy tents were set up in front of the cars. Lights shone inside the tents, and the rain was pouring down, but the tents were not blown over.

Zhou Yun, Lin Long, Pan Xiaoxia, Da Huang, and the two captains sat on the ground around Lin Long. Lin Long pointed to a printed map and said, "We have received the latest news that the rain will gradually decrease tomorrow morning. It is five o'clock in the morning now. When it reaches six o'clock, we can lead the team to take the plane to search the mountains."

Then, Lin Long looked at the two captains and said, "Eric, you go first and search in the northwest direction. Mark, you fly directly northeast and over the mountains."

The two captains nodded solemnly, each carrying a helmet and wearing three stars on their uniforms.

Zhou Yun said, "I'll go with Mark."

Lin Long hesitated: "Captain Zhou, I know you care about Professor Fang, but this weather will make flying dangerous. The captain is trained, and he may not be able to take care of you."

Zhou Yun shook her head: "No, I made some special marks when I went up the mountain. If you let me go with you, I might remember how to get up the mountain, and the probability of us getting up the mountain will be higher. Besides, my physical strength was the best in my previous employer, Lin sir, don't underestimate me."

Lin Long thought for five seconds and then agreed.

"Remember, if the weather is bad, you must come back. Don't try to tough it out. Your lives are the most important thing."

"Yes, sir!"

**

Everything is in the process of waiting. The word "wait" itself has a great allure; it can give you hope or it can make you despair.

Six o'clock in the morning.

The helicopter stood at the foot of the mountain, ready to take off. After Zhou Yun put on her airplane suit, she waved to Lin Long and then boarded the co-pilot's seat without looking back.

Pan Xiaoxia's hair was blown into a mess. She stood next to Captain Lin, her hands clenched into fists from the cold, and waved at Zhou Yun's figure.

Lin Long sighed and asked Pan Xiaoxia, "Aren't you worried about Captain Zhou? After all, she used to be your boss."

Pan Xiaoxia nodded: "Inspector Lin, I trust Captain Zhou. She is the most capable female detective I have ever met, without a doubt."

The trembling female voice was filled with certainty.

Two helicopters slowly took off and flew into the sky over the wide avenue.

The rain has indeed decreased; compared to the previous torrential downpour, the rain now only makes a pitter-patter sound.

The fields on the ground looked like patches of a wet palette, with only dark brown tones, some lighter brown and some darker black. Between the ravines, the mountain peaks stood like an old giant, no longer moving an inch.

The helicopter's twin red flashing lights added a bright spot to this otherwise lifeless palette, and only those two red dots were lit.

**

It was seven o'clock in the morning, the morning of the fourth day.

The wall clock in the hall chimed again, and everyone slowly woke up on the sofa.

Tang Tiantian was the first to speak. She excitedly got up from the sofa and looked around: "We're all alright! No one's missing!"

Ye Xiao frowned: "Isn't Huo Xu still here? We need to go upstairs to confirm if he's still there."

Tang Tiantian raised her hand and said cheerfully, "I'll go!"

After saying that, he ran straight upstairs without giving anyone a chance to react.

Ye Xiao watched her retreating figure, pulled back the blanket on the sofa, and just sneered without stopping her.

Liang Mei, who was standing nearby, noticed this and muttered to herself, "This young man is so naive. His girlfriend is trying to marry into a wealthy family, and he doesn't even stop her."

Liang Mei stretched and then turned to look out the window.

Upon seeing this, a smile appeared on her tired face, which had been worn out for days.

She exclaimed, "It seems the rain has stopped!"

Everyone looked out the window.

The mountain scenery suddenly became much clearer. The fog and rain of the past few days had veiled the outside world, making it impossible to see its true face. Now, the edges and corners between the peaks are becoming more and more distinct, like a landscape painting in monochrome ink.

Fang Chengjin was actually the first to wake up. After waking up, he stared fixedly out the window and sat motionless in the rocking chair.

Liang Mei let out a sigh of relief. "I'm leaving! I'm going!"

As she spoke, she immediately walked past the front desk, intending to open the door. Upon seeing the butler tied up to one side, she stopped and added insult to injury.

"I will definitely file a complaint against your hotel when I get back!"

After saying that, Liang Mei turned around and opened the door.

The long-closed door slowly opened, and the wind and rain outside rushed in.

It smelled of earth, the scent of wind and rain, and a hint of decay, a pungent odor that seemed to emanate from nowhere.

Liang Mei ran out without looking back.

The butler weakly opened his eyes, maintaining his polite expression, and said feebly, "Don't go out, going out means death..."