nightingale
"Yes, after taking the college entrance exam, I went to an ordinary university. In my spare time, I happened to open a book. I saw the familiar wording, the familiar plot and imagery, and I was sure it was her." Cen Yun rekindled his hope. "I began to secretly observe her movements. For this purpose, I specially registered a VB account to maintain a distance from her, a reader but not too close to her."
“But, I saw another person in this relationship.”
The expression on her face suddenly turned ugly, "I saw Xia Yiru."
A person with the ID "Fermentation Margin" is also closely connected with Meng Jia.
"At first, I didn't know who this 'fermentation margin' was, but their interactions under the blog posts were visible to everyone. One time, Xia Yiru posted an autograph and travel postcard Meng Jia had sent her, and I asked her if they were close. Xia Yiru boasted and told me a lot about their relationship."
"It was at that moment that I truly felt that Meng Jia and I were no longer in the same world."
Chen An asked, "When did you discover that this 'fermentation margin' belonged to Xia Yiru?"
Cen Yun said: "I haven't really delved into the underlying meaning of this ID. Compared to her, I care more about Meng Jia being framed, surrounded by negative news and rumors."
"The publication of 'The Legend of Liuguang' embroiled her in a plagiarism scandal involving Wu Danyun. The plagiarist then turned the tables on her and sued her in court. After six months of litigation, Wu Danyun was ultimately found not guilty!"
"This incident dealt a heavy blow to Meng Jia, and the online bullying from Wu Danyun's fans made her even more miserable. Not long after, she was diagnosed with severe depression. I was afraid she might do something stupid, so I asked around for her whereabouts. When I found her, she looked haggard. I stayed with her for a few days, and she told me so much, from the abandoned railway tracks to how I appeared before her when she opened the door."
She choked up several times, swallowed her tears and continued, "I was ready to take care of her, but she took her own life within the ten minutes I was out."
Salty tears fell on the table. "Before, I was afraid of dragging her down, and now she is afraid of dragging me down. In the end, neither she nor I have the courage to accompany anyone to the end."
After she finished speaking, the interrogation room was silent for a long time. Cheng Xiaoxiang took off his glasses and wiped his eyes after hearing this story, but the people around him did not react. He glanced sideways and saw that Chen An looked normal, remained silent, and waited for her to finish speaking.
After a while, Cen Yun's mood changed from sadness to indignation. She clenched her fists tightly and looked at them stubbornly with her red eyes from crying.
"I just can't accept this! This isn't fair! Why do the plagiarists live so carefree and free, and why do they get to enjoy such a glorious life, while the original authors can only die in a cold bathtub!"
Her cuffed wrists had limited range of motion, but she still pounded the table. "I went to great lengths to get close to Wu Danyun. Even when she hit me, scolded me, and humiliated me, I didn't back down. I had planned on killing her!"
"It was also during this time that I discovered the true identity of that ID." She laughed disdainfully, "Xia Yiru is also a selfish person. She kept saying that she loved Wu Danyun, but she ignored Wu Danyun's feelings and got involved with other men. She treated Wu Danyun as her own property, carefully keeping her captive while being distant from her. The two of them are the culprits who killed Meng Jia! I will only be able to do justice to Meng Jia if I kill them!"
Unlike Cen Yun's mood swings, Chen An looked at her with only scrutiny from beginning to end.
"Tell me about your modus operandi."
Cen Yun's expression changed, and he smiled slyly. "What modus operandi, officer? I didn't kill anyone, so where does the modus operandi come from? Did I really kill them just because I said I would? Hahahaha, how hilarious."
Cheng Xiaoxiang said: "The tube of reagent you just used can also be considered as evidence."
Cen Yun said, "So what? I only used that tube of reagent to kill Xia Yiru. It doesn't mean that Wu Danyun's death has anything to do with me."
Chen An was silent for a moment, then said, "Your story is very good, but it's not the truth."
Cen Yun frowned, "What nonsense are you talking about."
Chen An crossed his hands on the table and leaned forward. "You do have the Thorn Birds account, but you recognized her at the wrong time. After graduating from a private university, you started working. Your salary wasn't high, but you lived a good life. You were promoted to a supervisor position within a year and a half, but then something unexpected happened."
Cen Yun's thumb unconsciously pressed inward on the middle part of her index finger. It seemed that this person wanted to reveal what she feared most.
"You are sick, and it's a very difficult disease to cure." Chen An deliberately stopped here and watched her swallowing.
"You need money, but how can you, having just graduated two years ago, afford so much for treatment?" Chen An's voice was clear, and his remarks sounded like a late-night radio host telling a story. "You recognized her during their lawsuit. Wu Danyun was already a popular author at the time, and her influence was immense. You saw Meng Jia interacting with Wu Danyun and recognized her."
"You approached her, hoping she could pay for your treatment, but Meng Jia refused, saying she was busy with a lawsuit and didn't have any extra money. You were furious, so..."
Before he could finish, Cen Yun couldn't sit still anymore, "Stop talking!"
"I didn't ask for her money! I didn't!" Cen Yun was so angry that his face turned red. "I did look for her, but I didn't do anything. I just..."
"You just persuaded her to sell the rights, right?"
The sound from the other side suddenly fell silent. She felt as if she was frozen in place and could only watch Chen An speak.
"You told her that going against capital would end badly, and told her to quickly sell all the copyrights she had at a low price, otherwise she wouldn't be able to sell them anymore," Chen An said. "Meng Jia didn't agree. You stayed with her for a while, and she refused to give in despite your constant persuasion. In the end, you had no choice but to swallow your pride and tell her you were sick, using this as a threat to force her to sell the copyrights. You had a big argument that day, and she committed suicide after we got back, right?"
Each of his questions was so sharp that she couldn't say 'yes' or 'no' either.
"You said Xia Yiru was selfish and that she took advantage of Wu Danyun, but you also went from initially caring for her to taking advantage of her, didn't you?"
Cen Yun suddenly collapsed. Even with his head lowered and his mouth open, gulping for air, he couldn't relieve the pain emanating from his heart. An incomplete sob emanated from his throat, and the faint smell of blood filled his mouth.
Chen An seized the opportunity and added, "I really want to know when you woke up."
Wake up? Why "wake up"?
Her heart was hit hard, and she had no way to vent the pain.
"Meng Jia didn't want to sell the copyright, nor did she want to be entangled in writing anymore. After she quit the internet, she looked for many part-time jobs online." She looked up and smiled bitterly. "It makes sense. She was sick herself, but she still struggled to find a job and promised to treat me."
"The day I left, I had a huge argument with her. It was simply about different perspectives. I valued money, while she valued relationships. She couldn't bear to leave her 'sons,' while I couldn't bear to leave my promising life just beginning." She said dejectedly, "We had no family, only each other. After the argument, I didn't even realize she was having a depression attack. When I came back, she had already committed suicide by slitting her wrists in the bathtub."
“I saw that email a long time ago…”
[Xiao Yun, I’m Jia Jia.]
After not seeing each other for so many years, I didn't expect that our next meeting would end like this. The scene of you taking me away when I was fourteen is still in my mind, but now we have both changed beyond recognition.
I started editing this email a long time ago. I'm not afraid of you laughing at me, but I edited it so many times but never dared to press the send button. I don't know if you will receive it.
After leaving you, I didn't go to school. Instead, I found a part-time job and read and wrote. I always typed late at night, but every dawn I would sigh what it would be like if you were still by my side.
Now that I think about it, there was actually nothing to argue about. If we had both given in a little, perhaps we wouldn't have wasted so many years.
I'm so happy to see you again. Seeing your pale face makes me more anxious than anyone else, but please forgive my selfishness. I really can't give up the people in that dimension. I can work hard to make money and stay with you, but I can't "sell" them.
I don’t know when my illness will flare up, and I don’t know if you will be able to stop me as usual when it does.
There's a card in the drawer, which contains my meager income over the years. The secret number is 19980714. Take it if you need it.
"I held her funeral. It was pouring rain when I came back. I saw the email, lying quietly on my computer desktop. My mind cleared in an instant, and I fell to the ground and cried uncontrollably." Cen Yun shed tears. "I'm not afraid of you arresting me at all. I'm going to die anyway. It's worth it to trade my life for Xia Yiru and Wu Danyun's!"
"I just want to tell the truth to the world and buy a grave for her and me."
Chen An asked, "If you kill her, you will get the money?"
"Um."
Her affirmative answer made Chen An smell something unusual.
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