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Xu Li was originally from Yangzhou.
Later, due to Xu Zhengbei's job change, she went to Linpu with him.
Living in Yangcheng was a long time ago, so if Xu Zhengbei hadn't mentioned it when she grew up, Xu Li wouldn't have any memories of Yangcheng at all.
Perhaps it was because he had lived in Yangcheng that Xu Li came to Yangcheng later.
When Xu Li was very young, her mother passed away. She didn't have much of an impression of her mother, and her memories were almost completely buried. She only knew that Xu Zhengbei said his wife was a beautiful and kind person. All her impressions and memories of her mother came from Xu Zhengbei. From his words, Xu Li knew that he loved her mother very much.
Xu Li's mother was diagnosed with an illness during her pregnancy. Normally, she would have been fine, taking her medicine and receiving treatment as needed. However, during her pregnancy, she became thinner and thinner every day, and giving birth took a huge toll on her. She passed away not long after giving birth to Xu Li.
Therefore, in Xu Li's life, her father was almost her everything.
Xu Zhengbei was busy with work and the nature of his job meant that he didn't spend enough time with Xu Li during her childhood.
He was a good policeman, but not a good father.
But in Xu Li's eyes, she never blamed him.
She knew that Xu Zhengbei would stay up all night to come back just to make her breakfast, and she also knew that Xu Zhengbei would privately ask the teacher about her situation...
Time is scarce, and Xu Zhengbei is mostly not good with words, but he does his best to give Xu Li a better life.
Because of her family situation, Xu Li matured very quickly from a young age. Every day after school, while other children would make plans to go out and play, Xu Li would obediently stay home, finish her homework, and wait for her father to come home. Sometimes Xu Zhengbei would take time to pick Xu Li up from school; those were rare moments of happiness for her. Sometimes, Xu Zhengbei would even be on a mission and pick Xu Li up in his police car. At those times, Xu Li felt very proud to get into the police car amidst the stares of others…
In this environment, Xu Li grew up day by day and became a girl with excellent grades, sensible and cheerful personality.
Xu Li met Duan Ruiming for the first time in her second year of high school.
One day after school, Xu Zhengbei, who had promised to pick up Xu Li, received a last-minute assignment and asked Duan Ruiming to pick her up instead of waiting there alone.
The person was found, but it was a long and complicated process. Xu Li had been taught since childhood not to trust strangers easily, and because of Xu Zhengbei's work, she was even more cautious about such matters. Therefore, their first meeting was not pleasant. Xu Li thought he was a fraudulent human trafficker, while Duan Ruiming thought she was a rebellious child who was not up to discipline.
Duan Ruiming was practically Xu Zhengbei's apprentice. That year, Duan Ruiming had just graduated from the police academy, full of enthusiasm and eager to speak for the people. Xu Zhengbei was the one who mentored him when he first joined the academy.
As time went on, the two became acquainted because of Xu Zhengbei. Duan Ruiming would talk to Xu Li about things at university, and Xu Li would always listen attentively...
The two always got along very well, and sometimes Xu Zhengbei would remark that they were like siblings when he saw them playing around.
What happened next was Xu Zhengbei's sacrifice.
The incident was actually related to a case. At the time, Xu Zhengbei was investigating a missing person case and was watching surveillance footage day and night. At that time, Xu Zhengbei noticed something suspicious in the surveillance footage, so he changed into plainclothes and lay in wait at the intersection. The suspect was too vigilant and was also familiar with the surrounding environment, so he set a trap and committed the crime by taking advantage of the blind spots of the surveillance cameras. So no one knows what exactly happened in between. In fact, Xu Zhengbei's body was not found until a few days later in the suburbs.
That year, Xu Li was a senior in high school, with less than half a month until the college entrance examination.
Actually, they initially wanted to keep it from Xu Li, at least until after the college entrance exam, but in the end, things still didn't stay hidden.
During that time, Xu Li was very depressed, like a soulless corpse. She was also very upset about Xu Zhengbei's matter and had already opened a case for investigation. Duan Ruiming had also been paying close attention to Xu Li's situation.
But then, right after the college entrance exam, Xu Li disappeared.
At first, Duan Ruiming thought it was related to the missing persons case that Xu Zhengbei had investigated before his death, and that it was a malicious revenge by the suspect. Later, when he was sorting through his things, he discovered that Xu Li's account had purchased train tickets to Yangzhou.
Xu Li left in a hurry. There was only an empty clothes hanger in the closet. She took some documents with her, but nothing else.
Actually, at that time, Duan Ruiming had already thought about why, if he really couldn't accept the fact that Xu Zhengbei was leaving, he didn't just leave in the first place? Why did Xu Li seem to have weathered it all, only to suddenly disappear again...?
At the time, Duan Ruiming thought that Xu Li had struggled with the decision for several days and then had no choice but to run away because she couldn't accept it. Now that he thinks about it, something must have happened during those few days.
But what exactly happened remains unknown to this day. This is merely Duan Ruiming's speculation. So when he found Xu Li in Yangcheng and received a negative answer from Xu Li, he didn't think much of it. He also assumed that Xu Li would naturally return in time.
After that, another disappearance occurred in Linpu.
The missing person is named Fei Li, a senior high school student. He went missing during the college entrance examination period. Because his home is far from the examination site, his parents arranged for him to stay in a hotel near the examination site. Also, because they were afraid of disturbing him, they did not contact him during the days of the college entrance examination. They only found out that they could not contact him after the college entrance examination was over.
Duan Ruiming rubbed his temples, frowned, and let out a long sigh. He didn't know what to do...
Too many things happened in a short period of time, so the public security authorities decided to conduct a private investigation first to avoid causing unnecessary panic.
Another missing person case! How could someone disappear in broad daylight? Did they disappear on their own, or is there a third party involved? If there is a third party, what's the reason? Why would they target Fei Li?
To avoid causing panic, the investigation was conducted discreetly and covertly, but no one could provide any useful information. The general understanding was that Fei Li was a gangster who, while working as a leader, also served as a henchman, though more often as a subordinate. He was somewhat isolated in the class; most people didn't want to associate with him, and a small minority would occasionally respond politely. Xu Li was one of them. But for someone like him, this isolation didn't affect him much. He continued smoking, drinking, and fighting, doing whatever he pleased, living a fulfilling life.
As time went on, word of Fei Li's disappearance eventually leaked out. Some people in the class group started asking if they had seen him for a long time, while others said that Fei Li hadn't taken the college entrance exam. Everyone was used to it, thinking that even if he had taken the exam, he wouldn't have achieved anything significant... The class group chat was lively, and in the end, the homeroom teacher sent a message asking them to pay more attention to their college entrance exam results and which universities they wanted to apply to.
The homeroom teacher hadn't heard anything specific about Fei Li's disappearance, but what was even more troublesome than Fei Li not taking the college entrance exam was that Xu Li hadn't taken it either. The homeroom teacher knew about Xu Li's father's situation and could only express his regret. He directly contacted Duan Ruiming to ask them what their plans were. Were they planning to retake the exam?
Duan Ruiming answered the phone hurriedly and hung up after only a few words. This kind of thing really couldn't be blamed on Xu Li. It would definitely have a big impact if something like this happened before the college entrance examination. He was also very upset about what happened to Xu Zhengbei. His deep anger could only turn into helpless pain. The case still needed to be investigated, and he couldn't be heartless and listless. He kept an eye on Xu Li while investigating the case.
Duan Ruiming pulled up the surveillance footage of some of the places Fei Li had visited, which were mentioned by some of his classmates. They were nothing special, just bars and KTVs.
In the surveillance footage, Fei Li was dancing with his body twisted, drinking and walking around... nothing seemed out of the ordinary.
The provided clues yielded no further leads, the case stalled, and Fei Li's phone also disappeared, with no records remaining.
Hearing the curses from the parents outside the door, Duan Ruiming felt somewhat powerless.
This first case after leaving Duan Ruiming was a bit overwhelming for him.
Later, Duan Ruiming received a text message.
There was no signature, but Duan Ruiming knew from the words that it was Xu Li.
She must have been in Yangcheng all along, where there are memories of Xu Zhengbei. Perhaps Xu Li just misses him and wants to go back to see him.
However, after Fei Li's disappearance, Duan Ruiming felt something was wrong. His police intuition told him that there was some connection between the two.
Why did the person in the house suddenly disappear, and why did Fei Li also disappear shortly afterward?
Fei Li and Xu Li were classmates, so how could they both disappear? Did the two of them have any interaction at school?
Later, Duan Ruiming secretly investigated on his own and discovered that the two had met once at school, and it was a deliberate meeting.
Duan Ruiming didn't make a fuss or provide any information; he was the only one who knew about it.
Duan Ruiming desperately hoped his intuition wasn't so inexplicable. Why did he suspect Xu Li? Why couldn't he believe that she was a policeman's daughter? Xu Zhengbei's daughter?
Duan Ruiming had his own selfish motives, but as a police officer, he couldn't convince himself that he needed to take this step, regardless of whose perspective he was in.
Duan Ruiming had always wanted to find Xu Li and ask her in person.
If the matter is indeed related to Xu Li, then he will bring her back; if it is not, then he will still let Xu Li live a good life in Yangcheng.
At first, Duan Ruiming thought it was because of Xu Zhengbei's situation that Xu Li couldn't accept his departure and chose to run away.
Afterwards, Duan Ruiming tried to contact Xu Li but received no reply. Duan Ruiming then began to personally investigate Xu Li's payment records and phone number.
How to describe this feeling? Without evidence, relying solely on intuition is not very convincing, especially since this concerns a police officer's honor. Duan Ruiming sincerely didn't want these two things to be related.
Duan Ruiming had been secretly investigating on his own, while also trying to contact Xu Li. The calls went unanswered, and she didn't reply to his texts. Then, one day, when he finally dialed, a cold, automated voice said, "The number you have dialed is not in service..."
Duan Ruiming felt a chill run down his spine, and then decided to buy a train ticket to Yangzhou that very night.
Duan Ruiming stayed in Yangcheng for two days. He had heard Xu Zhengbei mention his home in Yangcheng before, and he had also done his own investigation. He kept watch in several nearby places and sure enough, he saw Xu Li.
Xu Li has completely changed. She is no longer the naive young girl in my memory, but a woman wearing large earrings, a tight-fitting dress, and heavy makeup, who frequents chaotic places.
Duan Ruiming was so angry he seemed about to explode, and he scolded her like a brother.
He thought Xu Li would cry and feel wronged, and then say that she missed Xu Zhengbei, but Xu Li didn't. Instead, she stood there indifferently, looking at Duan Ruiming as if she were watching a performance, acting as if nothing had happened.
Everything has changed.
Xu Li's eyes were no longer innocent and straightforward; instead, they held a hint of coldness and indifference. Duan Ruiming couldn't understand how Xu Li had changed so much in such a short time.
Xu Li ignored Duan Ruiming as if he had bumped into an insignificant stranger, giving him only a brief glance before walking away.
Duan Ruiming continued to wait for Xu Li persistently. At first, Xu Li would stand and listen to what Duan Ruiming had to say, but after a while, she got annoyed and left without even glancing at him.
The only difference was that Duan Ruiming asked Xu Li to go back, and then indirectly expressed his suspicions.
Xu Li wasn't stupid. Her eyes were bloodshot, and her voice trembled violently as she questioned him, "Why should I?"
At that time, Duan Ruiming didn't understand whether Xu Li returned to Yangcheng because she missed him or because she was running away. Maybe it was both, but he never knew whether she missed him more or ran away more.
Linpu is a place Xu Li no longer dares to set foot in. Just mentioning the name makes her feel like a million ants are devouring and tearing at her body.
Duan Ruiming was unable to bring Xu Li back, but Xu Li's reaction did not dispel his suspicions about her. So he came to Yangcheng several times afterward, hoping to make Xu Li seriously face this issue.
If Xu Zhengbei were still alive, he certainly wouldn't want to see Xu Li living such an unclear life. He would also investigate all suspicious persons in an official manner. Every time Duan Ruiming thought of this, he would feel a little better.
There are no special circumstances surrounding this case.
This is the principle that Xu Zhengbei taught him.
Even if the matter really has nothing to do with her, it's still necessary to ask her about Fei Li.
However, Xu Li has really changed, becoming completely different from before. She no longer wants to say a word to him, as if seeing him makes her feel disgusted.
He couldn't take her away, nor could he persuade her otherwise.
Last time, Fei Li's parents said they had met Xu Li, and from their description of Xu Li's reaction, Duan Ruiming felt that Xu Li was involved, because he really hoped that this matter had nothing to do with Xu Li.
If this drags on any longer, the case will escalate, and higher authorities will send more specialized personnel down, at which point he will no longer be able to conceal it.
He didn't know what he would be facing at that time.
So he thought that since it wasn't too late, he wanted to do something to be worthy of himself and Xu Zhengbei.
But things often don't go as he wishes.
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