twilight
"Miss, we have searched the surrounding area repeatedly. Apart from the bloodstains left in the house and the footprints of a third person, we have no other clues at the moment."
"Because of the shooting that occurred in the suburbs that night, there was Zhou Min's blood and a third person's footprints at the scene. The Investigation Bureau is also searching for the two people and said they will notify us as soon as they have any information."
"I understand. Expand the area and continue searching. We must catch him before the Investigation Bureau does."
Zhou Qiting hung up the phone and put it back on the bedside table. He passed over the semi-liquid food that he had just taken a few bites of and had already gone cold, and directly picked up the medicine and water prepared by the servant and swallowed them.
If her mother hadn't watched her eat for a while before leaving, she wouldn't have been able to eat anything.
In just one day yesterday, private doctors and nurses went in and out of the VIP ward, giving her a comprehensive physical examination, and a psychologist also came over to do a psychological assessment whenever he had the chance.
She knew that her mother must have been very worried during the time she was kidnapped, so she patiently let her mother make her arrangements.
She also knew clearly that during the three days of being kidnapped by Zhou Min, except for the sudden high fever caused by her hunger strike, she did not suffer any hardship at all. On the contrary, Zhou Min did not fight back or retaliate when he hit her or scolded her. He really did not seem like a perverted murderer.
Maybe things are not as simple as they seem, Zhou Qiting fell into memories.
That night, after Zhou Yiting's fever subsided, she heard a noise at the door and stood behind it, only to see the man who had kidnapped her coming back in a miserable state after being out for a long time.
When she saw the other person's miserable condition, Zhou Qiting felt a sudden surge of pity and long-lasting hatred in her heart. Both held one end and kept pulling at her heart, almost tearing her apart, leaving her no time to think more.
Seeing the pleading and longing in Zhou Min's eyes, and her trembling open hands, Zhou Qiting didn't know what was wrong with him at that time, and just wanted to hold her in his arms.
But the cold embrace and the weight on her shoulders instantly brought her back to her senses, starkly reminding her that this man was Zhou Min, the Zhou Min who took human life lightly.
How could I pity such a person?
These are the retributions she deserves.
So Zhou Qiting personally intensified the retribution, venting his overflowing hatred. But after seeing her fall, he didn't feel the slightest bit of relief, instead, pain spread from his chest.
Why?
When she turned around, mist suddenly filled her eyes. She felt like she was falling as she resolutely moved forward to find help. She panicked and realized that she didn't want to lose this person.
Zhou Min, you can't die so easily.
Why don't you just stay where you are and wait for me?
Zhou Qiting had no way of telling whether he was more worried or wanted more for revenge when he led his men back and found that Zhou Min had disappeared.
She only knew that there was a vague sense of foreboding urging her to find the person quickly.
So Zhou Qiting ignored his mother's obstruction and sent a large number of people to look for him. He wanted to see him alive, dead or alive. No, Zhou Min would not be allowed to die.
If Zhou Min were to die, it would be at her hands.
But two days passed and Zhou Min's whereabouts were still not found. When he thought of that pale face soaked with sweat and tears and that almost desperate look in his eyes, the ominous premonition almost turned into reality, weighing heavily on his heart, making Zhou Yiting unable to rest for a moment.
Time passed minute by minute, and the sound of slow footsteps sounded mechanically and repeatedly in the room, until the short ring of the phone brought her back from her heavy thoughts.
Zhou Yiting felt a tightness in his heart when he heard what the person on the other end of the phone said.
-
In order to prevent Chen Shu from noticing something was wrong and coming back, Zhou Min, after confirming that she could still move, packed up the personal belongings that Chen Shu had taken away when he treated her wounds and left the temporary base.
The wound had only just stopped bleeding when she was unconscious, but after the stretching, it began to bleed again. This time it was a penetrating wound, but fortunately the bullet hadn't been lodged inside. Chen Shu gave her a simple suture and bandage, but the excessive blood loss left her unconscious for two days before she woke up.
Although they had received necessary first aid training so that they could save themselves or their partners in an emergency, the base was limited after all, and the killers were not professional doctors. They could only save their lives temporarily, and whether they could survive depended on their luck.
Zhou Min has always had bad luck.
She had been shot before, and the pain was comparable, but her body was not as weak as it was now. She guessed that this time her internal organs must have been injured, which made it difficult for her to even walk.
Zhou Min lowered the brim of his black baseball cap, hiding his pale face in the shadows, and walked laboriously and slowly in the alleyway submerged in the darkness.
She was unconscious when Chen Shu took her away, leaving many of her belongings behind in the house, which must have been turned upside down by the Investigation Bureau. She wasn't wearing any makeup, not even spare contact lenses. Anyone passing by and glancing at her would likely spot her as the Investigation Bureau's most wanted criminal.
Not only the Investigation Bureau, but also the Zhou family is offering a huge reward for her, claiming that anyone who can provide clues about her whereabouts will receive a handsome reward.
It was surprising that there wasn't a direct bounty on her life. Zhou Min quickly glanced at the relevant information and turned off the screen. Her phone's battery was almost gone, and she needed to use it sparingly before reaching a safe place, lest she end up seriously injured and penniless.
But where else can I go?
She felt like a stray dog that everyone was chasing after.
Zhou Min suddenly remembered the day Zhou Qiting got drunk. When he asked her if she knew who she was, she said vaguely, "You are...a puppy."
It turns out the puppy was really talking about me. Zhou Min's eyes were filled with longing, and a bitter smile appeared on his dry lips.
She knew that she had brought this situation upon herself and could not blame anyone else.
After leaving the organization, he finally lived the ordinary life he had always dreamed of, but he chose to pick up the butcher knife again for money.
There are many ways to make money. Why choose the most despicable one just for the sake of speed and convenience?
If the people at the welfare home and Teacher Xiao He knew the source of the funding, they would probably be shocked.
How could I use the excuse of helping the welfare home to clear myself of the mistakes I had made?
It was Zhou Min who pushed his past self back into the abyss with his own hands, confirming his numerous crimes.
When he gave up the mission goal to save Zhou Yiting, he had clearly realized that he could not ignore her safety at all, but in the end he still had to hurt her for that obsession.
She was just ten years old back then, just like me. How could I have ever hoped that she could change the miserable conditions of the orphanage? And yet, why was I so obsessed with that promise, so extreme as to want to die with her?
In the story Zhou Min made up to describe her own injuries, did she really not blame the hostage who left traces behind? In reality, did she really not blame Zhou Qiting, who indirectly caused the criminals to take out their anger on her?
But saving people was her choice, and the root of the mistake has always been herself.
It was Zhou Min who indulged in the darkness in his heart, acted on his own will and refused to repent.
As dirty and despicable as she is, what reason does she have to live in this world now?
Zhou Min walked forward like a zombie, not knowing the end, but refusing to stop. It seemed that only in this way could the sin in his blood burn out along with his life.
Finally, she exhausted her last bit of strength and fell down next to an abandoned building.
Only after sitting down quietly did she realize that her body temperature, which had originally dropped due to blood loss, had now risen to an abnormal level.
Leaning against the mottled wall and looking at the whitening sky, she suddenly remembered that she had once told Teacher Xiao He that she would explain everything about the past to her in person.
It seems that I have to break my promise.
Since she couldn't decide her own birth, she could at least decide her own death. In a life that had always been free from her control, the last thing she could decide completely for herself shouldn't be, right?
Her eyelids gradually became heavy, but she gritted her teeth and persevered. When she took out the gun from her trouser pocket, she also took out another item she had in her pocket - the rose gold choker.
Somehow, this necklace had been kept in his pocket all this time. It was not thrown away, nor was it put away properly. He just carried it with the gun.
She picked it up from the ground with her trembling fingertips, slowly took it into her hand, and stroked the word "Zhou" engraved on it with her cold fingertips.
It is the "Zhou" of Zhou family and the "Zhou" of Zhou Qiting, but it should not be the "Zhou" of Zhou Min.
What was her original last name?
He slowly loosened his grip, letting it fall back to the ground, covered in dust.
It doesn't matter. She was born naked, so she should be free to die.
The pale sky gradually turned red, and Zhou Min recalled his childhood promise, a promise he had made himself this time—"Zhou Qiting, next time I will definitely let you see the most beautiful sunrise."
It turns out that I am also a habitual offender of breaking my promises.
Zhou Min took out his cell phone and entered the number he had always memorized.
The sun was just emerging from the horizon, and the warmth emanating from that arc of light cast a sparkle on her lifeless golden eyes.
There is morning light in front of my eyes and dusk in my eyes.
The call was connected as soon as it was made, and Zhou Min directly asked the last question of his life.
"Zhou Qiting, do you hate me?"
After a brief silence, Zhou Yiting replied in a hoarse voice on the other end of the phone: "I wish I could kill you with my own hands."
Zhou Min breathed a sigh of relief after hearing Zhou Qiting's words.
In her life built of lies and hypocrisy, at least this little hatred was real.
"It's a pity you don't have a chance." Zhou Min smiled with relief, picked up the gun with his right hand, and put the muzzle against his chin. Under the warm sun, his pale skin reflected a faint chill. The rose on the back of his hand was always full of vitality, but its owner was now rushing towards death.
"Zhou Qiting, I'm sorry."
"To express my apologies—"
"I want you to be the first to know about my death."
She put the phone down, her finger on the trigger.
Bang--
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