Chapter 31
In the blinding red and blue light of the police lights, Shi Ye supported Qi Jin, feeling like a suspicious person who had just finished collecting junk and then staged an accident with a police car—the kind who was barefoot and wearing childish cat-head pajamas.
The approaching policeman was a young man. Upon seeing the two of them, he nearly lost control of his expression. His gaze swept back and forth between Qi Jin's forehead injury, Shi Ye's bare feet and pajamas, before finally clearing his throat: "You two... are you involved in the accident?"
“No, she isn’t.” Qi Jin spoke immediately, her voice weak but clear. “She came to find me.” She tried to shield Shi Ye behind her, but the movement aggravated her wound, and her brows furrowed almost imperceptibly.
Shi Ye ignored her and told the police directly, "She's my friend. She was driving through the area earlier and had a minor accident. That overturned car outside..."
“That’s not mine,” Qi Jin interrupted, speaking faster. “My car’s brakes failed, and I crashed into the green belt. Then someone chased me in a car, and I hid in an alley. The car chasing me crashed into a telephone pole; it must have been the one outside.”
The police officer's expression turned serious, and he took out his notebook: "Exact location? Do you remember the license plate?"
Qi Jin gave the name of an intersection and the approximate location, but shook his head: "The car chasing me didn't have its headlights on, and it was too far away to see the license plate clearly. My car is still stuck in the green belt, a black Mercedes, and the license plate is..."
She fluently recited her license plate number. The police officer wrote it down while communicating with his colleagues via walkie-talkie, instructing them to check the location she mentioned.
Another policewoman approached. She glanced at Qi Jin's forehead injury and then at Shi Ye's dirty feet: "Should we call an ambulance first?"
“No need,” Qi Jin said. “It’s just a scratch. We can take a statement first.”
The policewoman nodded and pointed to a police car with its door open next to her: "Let's get in the car first, it's windy here. This gentleman..." She looked at Shi Ye.
“I’m with her.” Shi Ye held onto Qi Jin without letting go.
The policewoman didn't object and gestured for them to get in the car. The back seat of the police car was fairly spacious, but it was filled with the smell of disinfectant and old leather. Qi Jin was helped into the car by Shi Ye, and Shi Ye squeezed in after him, closing the door behind him to block out some of the flashing police lights and noise outside.
In the cramped space, the two were very close. Shi Ye could feel that Qi Jin's body was still trembling slightly, whether from the cold, pain, or lingering fear, she didn't know. Her black T-shirt blended almost into the shadows in the dim light of the car, with only the bleeding abrasion on her forehead and her pale face standing out starkly.
The policewoman, sitting in the passenger seat, turned around, turned on the recorder, and began her routine questioning: "Name? Age? Occupation? Please describe in detail what happened tonight."
Qi Jin answered the first few questions clearly and logically, then recounted the events again. Her tone was calm, but Shi Ye noticed that her hands, resting on her knees, had fingers unconsciously curling up.
"When was the brake failure discovered?" the policewoman asked.
"When I was almost at the Jinxiu Road intersection, there was no resistance when I stepped on the gas, and there were no warning lights on the dashboard," Qi Jin said. "The steering wheel locked up almost simultaneously, and I managed to steer towards the green belt. After I hit it, the airbags deployed."
Is the car regularly maintained? Has there been any unusual activity recently?
"It was just serviced last week. There were no problems before."
The policewoman took notes and then asked, "You said someone was chasing you in a car. Are you sure it was intentional? Is it possible that the other person was driving under the influence or was fatigued, and accidentally drove towards you?"
Qi Jin paused for a moment. "I'm not sure. But the car started accelerating from the intersection, and after I ran into the alley, it clearly changed direction and chased after me until it crashed into the telephone pole." She paused, then added, "My phone lost signal immediately after the accident, so I couldn't call the police."
The policewoman nodded thoughtfully and looked at Shi Ye: "Miss, how did you find her?"
Shi Ye had already prepared his explanation: "She was at my house before, and after she left, I was a little worried, so I called her but she didn't answer. Later, I saw a news report about an accident here, so I came to check it out." This explanation was half true and half false, but it sounded reasonable.
How did you know she was in this alley?
“I… guessed.” Shi Ye said without changing his expression, “The intersection was blocked, and I saw that the alley next to it was dark, so I wondered if she might have hidden inside.”
The policewoman looked at her for two seconds, then stopped asking questions and said, "We need to check your vehicle to confirm the brakes and steering wheel. Also, the situation with the vehicle that rear-ended you is under investigation; the driver was injured and has been taken to the hospital. After the initial on-site processing is completed, you may need to go to the station to give a more detailed statement."
Qi Jin nodded: "Okay."
The policewoman gave a few more instructions, then got out of the car to attend to her duties. The car door closed, leaving only the two of them inside.
After things quieted down, the atmosphere became a little awkward. Qi Jin leaned back in her chair, closed her eyes, and her long eyelashes cast a small shadow beneath them. Shi Ye looked at her tired profile, then looked down at his own feet, which were covered in dust and unidentified stains, and belatedly felt a pang of embarrassment and...heartache?
When the word came out, Shi Ye herself was taken aback. Heartache? She felt heartache for Qi Jin? Not the feigned concern required by the mission, but... a genuine feeling of her heart tightening slightly somewhere.
"System," she murmured to herself, "this feeling I'm experiencing... is it a physiological reaction, or...?"
“Emotional simulation module… in disarray… unable to accurately analyze the source of the host’s emotions…” The system’s voice was mixed with the crackling sound of electricity, but it was more stable than before. “However, according to physiological indicators… the host’s heart rate is increasing and cortisol levels are rising, which is consistent with the physiological manifestations of ‘worry’ and ‘fear’.”
Oh, so it's just a physiological reaction. Shi Ye breathed a sigh of relief, but then felt that the relief was a bit inexplicable.
Qi Jin suddenly spoke, his voice very soft: "Thank you."
Shi Ye looked at her. Qi Jin still had his eyes closed, as if he was extremely tired.
"What are you thanking me for?" Shi Ye asked.
“Come find me,” Qi Jin said, pausing for a moment, “and… help me up.”
Shi Ye remained silent. She didn't know what to say. Should she say, "No need to thank me, I was just afraid my mission would be completely ruined if you died"? Or should she say, "I didn't do anything, I just ran barefoot for half a block"?
She chose to remain silent.
Qi Jin didn't speak again. Only the two of them breathing softly inside the car, along with the faint sounds of commands and vehicles moving outside.
About ten minutes later, the policewoman returned and knocked on the car window. Shi Ye rolled down the window.
"Ms. Qi, your car has been found; it's indeed stuck in the median. A preliminary inspection reveals the brake lines were deliberately slashed, very discreetly. The steering wheel lock-up issue is also under investigation." The policewoman's expression was serious. "This is very likely a case of sabotage leading to a traffic accident, and given the subsequent collision, it's quite serious. Our superiors advise that you be careful until the investigation is complete."
Qi Jin opened his eyes and nodded: "I understand. Do I need to go to the station now?"
“The on-site investigation will take more time. You can go back first, keep your phones on, and come back to the station tomorrow morning to give your formal statements,” the policewoman said, glancing at Shi Ye. “Do you need me to take you home?”
Qi Jin looked at Shi Ye: "You..."
"I'll take a taxi," Shi Ye said immediately. Given her current appearance, she really didn't want to be seen parading around in a police car again.
Qi Jin frowned: "It's hard to get a taxi here at this time. And your feet..." Her gaze fell on Shi Ye's dirty, even slightly bruised feet.
"I'll have the driver pick me up." Qi Jin took out her phone; the screen lit up, but the signal bars were empty. She tried again, her brows furrowing even more. "Still no signal."
Shi Ye also took out his phone. The two strange warning messages on the screen had disappeared, and the normal lock screen interface had been restored. The signal... actually had one bar.
"I'll give it a try." She opened the ride-hailing app, and as expected, the interface froze and the map wouldn't load.
“It seems the communication base stations in this area may have been affected by the accident,” the policewoman said. “How about this, I’ll have a colleague drive you in a civilian-plated car to a place where you can easily hail a taxi or go straight home.”
The suggestion was reasonable. Qi Jin and Shi Ye both agreed.
An undercover police officer picked them up in an ordinary black sedan. Qi Jin gave them his apartment address, then looked at Shi Ye: "Shall I take you home first?"
Shi Ye thought for a moment: "Take care of your injury first. I... don't have any medicine." Besides, she didn't want to go back to that empty room alone, which had just experienced system glitches and panic.
Qi Jin did not object.
The drive wasn't long; they arrived at Qi Jin's apartment building in twenty minutes. The plainclothes police officers left only after confirming that they had safely gone upstairs.
Qi Jin's apartment was on the top floor, with a fingerprint lock. The door opened, revealing a modern minimalist style that Shi Ye was familiar with—cold and deserted, lacking any warmth or human touch.
Qi Jin went straight to the storage cabinet in the living room and took out a home medicine kit. She skillfully took out iodine, cotton swabs, and bandages, walked to the sofa, sat down, and prepared to treat the wound on her forehead herself, facing the reflection of the living room's floor-to-ceiling windows.
The movements were a bit awkward, and the cotton swabs were misaligned several times.
Shi Ye couldn't stand it anymore. She walked over and took the cotton swabs and iodine bottle from Qi Jin's hand. "Let me do it."
Qi Jin paused for a moment, then looked up at her. Shi Ye didn't look at her, unscrewed the cap of the iodine bottle, dipped a cotton swab in it, bent down, and approached the wound on Qi Jin's forehead.
The distance suddenly closed to a great distance. So close that Shi Ye could see the fine downy hairs on Qi Jin's skin, smell the faint scent of blood and... a very faint, cedar-like, chilling aroma emanating from her. Qi Jin's breathing seemed to pause for a moment, then became even slower.
Shi Ye cleared her mind of distractions and focused on disinfecting the wound. The wound wasn't deep, but the edges were a bit dirty. She carefully wiped it with a cotton swab, trying to be as gentle as possible.
Qi Jin remained motionless, his face tilted back, his eyes fixed on her. His gaze was so intense that Shi Ye could almost feel its warmth.
"Tell me if it hurts," Shi Ye whispered.
"It doesn't hurt," Qi Jin replied softly.
After disinfecting and applying a band-aid, Shi Ye straightened up, took a step back, and realized her fingers were trembling slightly. She threw the used cotton swab into the trash can and turned to wash her hands.
My wrist was suddenly gently grasped.
Qi Jin's fingers were slightly cool, and his grip was very light, almost a mere, indirect circle. Shi Ye stopped and turned around.
Qi Jin looked at her, his eyes filled with complex emotions, as if something was churning within them, only to be forcibly suppressed. She opened her mouth, as if to say something, but in the end only asked, "Your foot... needs some treatment."
Shi Ye looked down and then remembered his bare, dirty feet. Sure enough, there were several small cuts on the soles of his feet, covered in dust and blood, looking quite pitiful.
“The bathroom is over there,” Qi Jin released his hand and pointed in a direction. “There are new towels and slippers. The first-aid kit has saline solution and dressings.”
Shi Ye grunted in response and walked stiffly toward the bathroom.
After closing the bathroom door, she leaned against it and let out a long breath. Her heart was still beating irregularly, whether from the near-death experience or from Qi Jin's hesitant gaze and that almost imperceptible touch.
She turned on the tap and splashed cold water on her face. The figure in the mirror was pale, with disheveled hair, wrinkled pajamas, and a speck of dust on her forehead.
I was in a complete mess.
She knelt down and began treating the wound on her foot. The cold saline solution stung as it washed over the wound. She gritted her teeth, quickly cleaned it, and applied a dressing. Qi Jin's bathroom was large and clean, filled with the same faint cedar scent as her.
When she finished getting ready and came out wearing the men's slippers (?) that Qi Jin had prepared, which were obviously several sizes too big, Qi Jin was no longer in the living room.
The kitchen light was on, and there were faint noises coming from inside.
Shi Ye walked over and saw Qi Jin with his back to her, heating something in a small pot. It seemed to be... the soup she had brought over that night? The cartoon thermos was on the counter.
"Warm it up, have some drinks, and then go back." Qi Jin didn't turn around, his voice steady, "To ward off the chill."
Shi Ye watched her retreating figure. Qi Jin had changed into a loose gray loungewear set, her hair loosely falling down, and a small corner of the band-aid on her forehead was sticking up. In this state, Qi Jin had shed all her usual sharpness and aloofness, appearing somewhat...soft.
It also seems more realistic.
It's real; he gets hurt, he gets embarrassed, he crashes into a wall because he can't ride a shared bike well, and he also heats up a bowl of soup for her in the kitchen late at night.
Shi Ye leaned against the kitchen door frame and suddenly spoke: "Qi Jin."
"Um?"
"Someone tampered with your brakes, chased your car, and your cell phone signal was interrupted..." Shi Ye said slowly, "Do you think it was Qin Ming?"
Qi Jin turned off the stove, turned around, and leaned against the counter. Warm yellow light shone down from above, casting a soft shadow on her eyes.
“He’s the prime suspect,” Qi Jin said. “I attacked him from the ground up, and he hates me to the core. Besides, he has the ability to do it.”
"So what would you do?"
Qi Jin looked at her, his gaze deep: "I will make him pay the price."
His tone was calm, yet carried an undeniable chill.
Shi Ye nodded and didn't ask any more questions. She knew Qi Jin had this ability. But she also knew that what if all of this wasn't just Qin Ming's retaliation, but part of the world's collapse? What if next time, it wasn't a brake failure, but an even more bizarre and unpredictable "accident"?
The system remained silent in her mind, but the sense of unease that was brewing was growing clearer and clearer.
The soup was ready. Qi Jin ladled out a bowl and handed it to Shi Ye.
Shi Ye took the bowl; it was still warm. She took a sip; it still had a light and sweet taste.
Neither of them spoke again. Only a floor lamp was on in the dimly lit living room. They sat across a bar counter; one slowly sipped her soup, while the other quietly gazed at the city lights outside the window.
In the distance, the flashing lights of the police cars had long since disappeared. Night had once again swallowed the chaotic intersection.
But some things are different now.
Shi Ye knew that from the moment she rushed barefoot out of the house, from the moment she found Qi Jin in the alley, from the moment she took this bowl of soup—
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