"Delete them," Zhang Shumin ordered. "Delete them all."
Feng Yulan did as she was told, but secretly used her cell phone to take photos of the most critical pages of accounts and Lao Jin's contact information. She didn't know what this would be for, but collecting evidence had become her instinct.
As night fell, the two of them had a simple dinner, each immersed in their own thoughts. While Feng Yulan was washing dishes, Zhang Shumin suddenly appeared at the kitchen door.
"Tomorrow," my mother-in-law said, her voice surprisingly gentle, "you go buy two long-distance bus tickets."
Feng Yulan's hand stopped in mid-air: "Where to?"
"Anywhere, the farther the better." Zhang Shumin's eyes drifted out the window. "We need to leave for a while."
Feng Yulan wanted to ask why, but when she saw her mother-in-law's tense jawline, she fell silent.
Maybe Zhang Shumin knew something, or maybe she just had a premonition of danger. In any case, leaving sounded good.
Before going to bed, Feng Yulan checked all the places where the evidence was hidden: the USB flash drive was put back into the underwear compartment, the mobile phone photos were backed up to the cloud, and the bloody button was sewn into the old rag doll.
She even secretly wrote down Lao Jin's phone number and saved it in the name of her supermarket colleague Ma Xiaomei - her only friend and her last resort.
Late at night, Feng Yulan was awakened by a slight noise. She tiptoed out of bed and saw Zhang Shumin standing on the balcony, talking on the phone in a very low voice.
"...everything was taken care of...the police were here...no, she didn't know..."
Feng Yulan's heart sank. Who was her mother-in-law talking to? Zhang Shuo? Or... someone even scarier?
She was about to retreat back to the room when Zhang Shumin suddenly turned around and their eyes met in the darkness. Someone was still talking on the other end of the phone, but Zhang Shumin hung up.
"Can't sleep?" asked my mother-in-law, her tone frighteningly calm.
Feng Yulan nodded, not daring to ask what had just happened.
Zhang Shumin took a few steps closer, her face like a pale mask in the moonlight. "Remember, Yulan, no matter what happens, we are unaware of it. We are just two abandoned women, understand?"
Feng Yulan nodded again, her throat too dry to speak. She suddenly realized that her mother-in-law might understand her son's career better than she thought, and also knew where the danger came from.
Back in bed, Feng Yulan stayed awake until dawn. When the first rays of sunlight shone in, she made a decision—she couldn't completely trust Zhang Shumin.
Her mother-in-law hid too many things, and she had to leave a way out for herself.
After breakfast, Feng Yulan went out under the pretext of buying a ticket, but actually went to an Internet cafe near the community.
She uploaded the photos and recordings on her phone to a newly registered email address and set a scheduled delivery date - if not canceled within three days, the evidence would be automatically sent to Officer Li.
On the way home, Feng Yulan felt like someone was following her. She looked back several times, but only saw ordinary pedestrians.
It was not until she turned into the last alley in the community that she noticed the man standing under the street light - he was wearing a black suit and his gold watch was shining in the sun.
Feng Yulan's blood froze instantly. It was the man in the video, the murderer who had killed Jason.
The man with the gold watch didn't chase after her. He just gave her a meaningful look and turned away. But that look was enough to convey the message - they were being watched.
When Feng Yulan ran home, Zhang Shumin was packing her luggage. Seeing her daughter-in-law's pale face, the mother-in-law immediately understood what had happened.
"He's here?" Zhang Shumin asked surprisingly calmly.
Feng Yulan nodded, her legs so weak that she could hardly stand.
Zhang Shumin took out a fruit knife from the drawer and put it in her small bag: "Have you bought your tickets?"
"Three o'clock in the afternoon," Feng Yulan's voice trembled.
"Okay," Zhang Shumin took a deep breath, "Now, let's wait."
The two women sat on their packed suitcases, listening to the clock tick towards an unknown fate.
Feng Yulan recalled the innocence she felt when she married into the Zhang family three years ago, the days when she had to swallow her anger, and the fear she felt when she first discovered Zhang Shuo's secret... Now, all this may be coming to an end.
But, will the ending be freedom, or a bigger nightmare?
She touched the bloody button sewn on the corner of her clothes and silently prayed that Ma Xiaomei would receive her distress signal.
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