Call the police
Daylight streamed in through the cracks in the curtains, carrying the chilly, bluish-white hue of early spring mornings. Li Huaizhou was awakened by the pain of the indentation on his wrist. He moved his fingers, but his knuckles were stiff, as if frozen. Beside him, Wen Juzhi was fast asleep, his breath still reeking of alcohol. His warm breath lingered on the back of his neck, sending a shiver down his spine.
He didn't dare move, his body frozen in place, listening to Wen Juzhi's even breathing until the sky outside the window gradually brightened, turning from light blue to light gray. Wen Juzhi turned over, his arm slipping from his waist. Li Huaizhou took the opportunity to slowly sit up, his movements as light as a feather, afraid to wake the person behind him.
The bed made a slight creaking sound. He paused and looked back at Wen Juzhi. The man had a frown on his face, but fortunately he was not awake. Li Huaizhuo's stomach churned. He clenched his fists, his nails digging deep into his palms, and only then did he suppress the feeling of nausea.
He dragged his legs out of bed, his feet hitting the cool floor. The chill ran up his soles, clearing his foggy mind a bit. His school uniform jacket had fallen on the carpet beside the bed. He bent down to pick it up, casually pulling it on, zipping it up to the top, wrapping himself up tightly. The collar rubbed against the red mark on his neck, causing him to gasp in pain. Only then did he remember to reach for his phone on the bedside table.
The screen lit up, displaying "6:32" with a few bars of weak signal. Li Huaizhou stared at the time in silence for a long time, until the screen automatically dimmed, revealing his own face. His eyes were still red, his face as pale as paper, but deep in his eyes a fire still lingered.
He walked to the bathroom door and pushed it open. The mirror was covered with a thin layer of mist. He reached out and wiped it, revealing a clear area. The boy in the mirror was wearing a loose school uniform jacket, the hem covering his thighs. The exposed calves still had red marks from last night's scratching, one on top of another, like ugly scars. He raised his hand to unzip his shirt and slid his collar down. The bruises on his collarbone, the scratches on his waist, and the marks on his back from Wen Juzhi's nails were all exposed in the mirror.
So disgusting... When his fingertips touched the marks, he pulled back as if he had been burned, and the nausea in his stomach surged up again. He turned on the faucet and splashed cold water on his face. The cold water made him shiver, but it did not extinguish the fire in his heart.
The look in the mirror gradually darkened, from the initial numbness to a kind of almost dead coldness. He turned off the faucet, without looking at the person in the mirror, and turned to walk downstairs. The handrail of the stairs was made of wood and was polished smooth. He walked down step by step holding the handrail. The sound of his footsteps echoed in the empty bar, especially clearly. There was a small light on the bar downstairs. The warm yellow light hit the bottles behind the bar, reflecting fragmented light. Li Huaizhou did not go to the bar, but went straight to the kitchen. The kitchen door was closed.
He stood at the kitchen door, stunned for a long time. He seemed to still see Xie Mo wearing his school uniform, standing in front of the stove frying eggs. When the oil splashed on his hands, he would frown and hide behind, but still stubbornly put the fried golden eggs into his bowl.
Those images were so clear, as if they happened yesterday. Li Huaizhou's throat tightened. He walked to the stove and stroked his fingers along the cold edge of the pot, as if he could still feel the residual temperature.
His eyes grew cold again, and he turned and walked towards the locker. The door creaked open, revealing some cutlery and condiments, with a kitchen knife hidden at the very back. Wen Juzhi used the knife to cut fruit. The blade was slightly rusty, and the handle was black, polished to a shine. Li Huaizhou reached out and took the knife out. The cool metal felt as it passed from his fingertips to his palm, causing his fingers to tremble slightly.
Without hesitation, he turned around and walked upstairs, clutching the kitchen knife. His steps were steady, without any pause, and even his breathing was light. When he passed by the bar, he caught a glimpse of a man sitting at the front desk, Chen Shuo. Chen Shuo was the bartender, had worked there for three years, and knew a lot about Wen Juzhi. Chen Shuo was playing a game with his head down, the light from the screen reflected on his face. Hearing the footsteps, he looked up, and when he saw the kitchen knife in Li Huaizhou's hand, the game controller fell to the bar with a "pop". He froze, his eyes wide open, but he didn't dare to stand up to stop it.
Li Huaizhou ignored him and continued to walk upstairs. Chen Shuo looked at his back, his Adam's apple moved, and finally spoke, his voice trembling: "Don't kill him, the gain will not make up for the loss." He had been here for three years and had seen how Wen Juzhi treated Li Huaizhou, the cries in the middle of the night, and the injuries on Li Huaizhou's body in the early morning. He had seen it all.
Li Huaizhou paused. He looked back at Chen Shu, his eyes showing no emotion, neither surprise nor gratitude, he just looked at him calmly, and then continued to walk upstairs. Chen Shu was right, he would not be so stupid as to kill Wen Juzhi with a single blow, that would be too easy for him.
When he reached the door of the second-floor bedroom, he could hear the sound of someone getting dressed. He took a deep breath and pushed the door open. Wen Juzhi was standing by the bed buttoning his shirt. When he saw him come in, his movements paused, and a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes. He probably didn't expect him to come back with a kitchen knife.
Wen Juzhi reacted quickly, a mocking smile on his lips: "Hey, what are you doing? Want to kill me?" As he spoke, he continued to button his clothes, his tone full of disdain, as if he was sure that Li Huaizhou would not dare to do anything to him.
Li Huaizhou said nothing. He walked to the door and closed it behind him, blocking Wen Juzhi's way out. He leaned against the door, the kitchen knife hanging at his side, and looked at Wen Juzhi calmly: "Why don't you make a guess."
"I guess you don't dare." After buttoning the last button, Wen Juzhi walked up to him and looked down at him. "Li Huaizhuo, you have followed me for so many years, and you don't know my temper? Do you think you can get away?" There was a threat in his tone, but there was a trace of imperceptible panic in his eyes. Li Huaizhuo's appearance today was too abnormal. He was as calm as a bottomless pool of water, which made him feel uneasy.
"Then do you dare to bet?" Li Huaizhou suddenly smiled, the corners of his mouth slightly raised, but there was no smile in his eyes, only a cold and sinister look. "Bet whether I dare to touch you, bet whether you can walk out of here today."
Wen Juzhi's face darkened. He took a step forward and wanted to push Li Huaizhuo: "The dog is biting its master? Who do you think you are? You want to get rid of me by killing me? Do you dare? I bet you don't even have the strength now." As he said that, he reached out to grab Li Huaizhuo's wrist, trying to take the kitchen knife from his hand.
Li Huaizhou dodged sideways, preventing him from touching him. He looked out the window, and the wall at the entrance of the alley was in his sight - there was still a large dark bloodstain on the wall, Xie Mo's blood... In the early morning light, it was particularly dazzling.
Li Huaizhou's eyes instantly became fierce. Without hesitation, he raised the kitchen knife and chopped it down at Wen Juzhi's arm. The kitchen knife was a little rusty, but still sharp. Wen Juzhi had no time to dodge, and the blade cut into his arm. Blood instantly gushed out, dripping down his arm and onto the floor, making a "tick-tick" sound. "You're fucking crazy!" Wen Juzhi screamed in pain, took a few steps back, covering his bleeding arm, his eyes full of shock and fear, "Li Huaizhou, you actually dared to cut me!"
Li Huaizhou casually threw the kitchen knife to the ground. With a clang, the blade hit the floor, sending up a spark. He walked towards Wen Juzhi, his eyes filled with a cold smile. "Don't you think we're the same? You're crazy, but I can do it too."
Before Wen Juzhi could react, Li Huaizhou grabbed his neck and pushed him hard against the wall. The back of Wen Juzhi's head hit the wall with a dull thud. He grimaced in pain, but he couldn't breathe because his neck was being pinched. His face gradually turned red, and the wound on his arm was still bleeding, staining his shirt red.
"Should I stab you seventeen times?"
At this moment, the sound of sirens came from the alley, getting closer and closer, becoming clearer and clearer. Wen Juzhi's eyes lit up instantly. He struggled to shout for help, but Li Huaizhou pinched him even tighter, and he couldn't even make a sound.
Li Huaizhou knew that he couldn't really hack him to death. Before he went downstairs to get the kitchen knife, he called Shen Qitang. After the call was connected, he only said five words: "Come to Neon, call the police." He didn't know if Shen Qitang would really call the police. He didn't know if Shen Qitang would find him dirty or disgusting after knowing that he had been raped by Wen Juzhi for five years. Or whether he would really call the police after just saying such a few careless words.
He made the right bet
He deliberately didn't shower in order to preserve the evidence on his body. The red marks and bruises were all proof of Wen Juzhi's violence. He knew that only when the police came and this matter became a big deal could he truly get rid of Wen Juzhi and make him pay the price.
The sirens grew closer and closer, soon reaching the bar entrance. Then came the sounds of footsteps and the police shouting. Wen Juzhi's eyes were filled with despair. He looked at Li Huaizhou, his lips moving but no sound coming out.
Not long after, the bedroom door was kicked open and several police officers in uniform rushed in. Seeing Li Huaizhou choking Wen Juzhi's neck, they immediately stepped forward to pull him apart. Li Huaizhou did not resist and let the police handcuff his wrists behind his back. When the cold handcuffs touched his skin, he breathed a sigh of relief, as if a heavy burden had been lifted off his shoulders.
Wen Juzhi collapsed on the ground, clutching his bleeding arm and gasping for breath. Seeing the police, he immediately cried out, "Comrade police, he's trying to kill me! He's slashing me! Hurry and catch him!"
Li Huaizhou didn't look at him, but just looked at the police calmly: "He s--- me."
His voice was calm, without any ripples, but it stunned the police officers present. A young police officer frowned, looked at the ambiguous marks on Li Huaizhou's exposed thigh, and then looked at the wound on Wen Juzhi's arm. Without saying anything more, he just asked his colleagues to help Wen Juzhi up and send him to the hospital.
Li Huaizhou was taken away by the police. Sitting in the police car, he watched the scenery rapidly receding outside the window, his heart at peace. There was no fear, no tension, only a sense of relief. The sky outside the car window had brightened. The sun rose from the east, and the golden light cast on the earth, dispelling the morning chill.
Arriving at the police station, he was taken in for a statement. Facing the police's questions, he answered them one by one. His mother died during childbirth, his father had been abusive and gambling for a long time and was eventually imprisoned, and his family and relatives ignored him. When he was twelve years old, he fainted on the roadside and was picked up by Wen Juzhi. Five years ago, he was raped by Wen Juzhi for the first time. He even took photos. Until last night, he described every detail clearly and his tone was still calm.
As the police listened, their expressions changed from surprise to sympathy. An older officer sighed and patted him on the shoulder. "Go back first. We'll investigate the situation. If it's true, this is self-defense and you'll be fine."
Afterwards, he was taken for a physical examination. The doctor recorded his injuries one by one and took photos for archiving. When he walked out of the infirmary, he saw Shen Qitang standing in the corridor, her face pale and her eyes wide open, obviously knowing what had happened.
Seeing Li Huaizhou coming out, Shen Qitang walked over quickly, wanting to help him, but he didn't know where to touch, so he could only ask cautiously: "Are you okay?"
Li Huaizhou shook his head and said nothing.
After leaving the police station, the early spring wind was still a bit cold, blowing on his face, making him shiver. He was only wearing a pair of shorts, with a school uniform jacket on the outside, zipped up to the top, but still felt cold. Shen Qitang looked at him like this, and her heart ached. She took off her jacket and handed it to him: "Put it on, don't catch a cold."
Li Huaizhou didn't answer, but just whispered: "Sorry, I can't help it." He knew that he had caused trouble for Shen Qitang and got her involved in this kind of thing.
Shen Qitang stuffed the coat into his hand, patted his shoulder, and said softly: "I know you are very brave, we are friends." She was a girl with a delicate mind. She knew that Li Huaizhou didn't want to talk now and didn't want to be sympathized with, so she didn't ask any more questions, but just accompanied him towards the Neon Bar.
When he returned to the bar, Chen Shu was no longer at the front desk. The bar was clean and tidy, as if nothing had happened. Shen Qitang sent Li Huaizhou to the door and said, "You should have a good rest first. Call me anytime if you need anything."
Li Huaizhou nodded, and a warm feeling filled his heart as he watched Shen Qitang leave. He pushed open the door and walked into the bar. It was empty, with only the small light on at the bar counter. The sun rose higher and higher outside the window, and the golden sunlight poured in through the window, falling on him with a faint warmth. He knew that this was just the beginning, and there were still many things to deal with. Wen Juzhi might not confess easily, and the police investigation might take a long time.
But he is no longer afraid.
He finally walked out of Wen Juzhi's shadow and finally got rid of the person who made him sick and painful. He thought of Xie Mo. He didn't know where Xie Mo was now, or whether Xie Mo was doing well, but he knew that he was going to be free.
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