Do not leave without saying goodbye.
The ward was peaceful and tranquil.
Xu Li was awakened by the sound of her phone vibrating. She raised her arm, which was numb, and answered the call without waking herself up. Then she tiptoed out of the ward with her phone.
When Xu Li reached the outside of the ward, she realized that the caller was Zhou Ji.
It was quiet on the other end, but actually, it was quiet on Xu Li's side as well.
"Hello?"
Zhou Ji sat in his office, looking out at the tall buildings and aimlessly counting the floors.
"Hello."
"Is he in the hospital? How is Zhou Junchang?"
"Hmm, not bad. He's been awake for a few days now, and he's recovering quite well..."
"Okay, I'll handle this from now on. You just need to take good care of Junchang..."
The conversation seemed a little strange.
Zhou Ji knew some things. Xu Li didn't know what Duan Ruiming had told Zhou Ji, but Zhou Ji knew something and could easily send someone to investigate himself. He would find out more than Zhou Junchang did.
So he should have known he was leaving.
What she just said sounded like she was being asked to take care of Zhou Junchang indefinitely.
Xu Li also realized that Zhou Ji's words had a hidden meaning; he was trying different ways to ask her questions.
In fact, Xu Li didn't know when Zhou Junchang would be able to recover and be discharged from the hospital. Every time the nurse came to change his dressing, Xu Li felt a pang of bitterness when she saw his wound.
On one hand, there's the deadline for parting; on the other, there's the person I can't let go of.
An indescribable sense of powerlessness.
Xu Li: "I'm leaving, but I don't know when yet."
Xu Li leaned against the wall, her eyes tightly closed, unwilling to accept this reality.
There was a moment of silence on the other end, then the question was asked again: "Will you come back after you go?"
Will it happen again?
Xu Li smiled, and as she smiled, two streams of tears flowed down her cheeks.
Will it happen again?
Is it still possible? Will she be able to come back from Linpu?
She didn't know either.
She didn't know what she was going to face. She had no evidence, and in the midst of the urgency, many of her memories were confused. In this situation, she had no idea what awaited her.
"Zhou Ji, you should know a lot more than anyone else. I don't even know if I can come back... or if I'll ever have a chance to come back..."
Through the slightly ajar ward door, Xu Li saw Zhou Junchang's peaceful sleeping face. She could explain to Zhou Ji while standing outside the door, but when she turned around, she didn't know how to bring it up with Zhou Junchang.
Everything happened so suddenly. Even though she knew this day would come, Xu Li still didn't expect it to be like this. So many things had happened in just a few months.
Zhou Ji: "Junchang, what do you want to say?"
When faced with a problem, Xu Li's first thought is to escape: "Can I not say anything?"
"Xu Li, don't leave without saying goodbye."
Zhou Ji's tone was somewhat serious, which surprised Xu Li.
"But... what can I do... I can't say it..."
Zhou Ji breathed a sigh of relief: "Xu Li, don't leave without saying goodbye. Really, Zhou Junchang won't like that. No matter what, don't choose to leave without saying goodbye. Say goodbye properly. Other things are unpredictable, so let nature take its course, but if you're going to say goodbye, say goodbye properly."
...
"good."
"Xu Li, remember to let me know if you have any plans in the future. If you want to come back, you're always welcome."
Upon hearing this, Xu Li burst into tears, as if she had never heard such reassuring words again since Xu Zhengbei left.
But how can I come back? Can a murderer come back without any scruples?
Xu Li recalled her first meeting with Zhou Ji. At that time, she didn't understand anything and just followed Zhou Ji without really knowing what she was doing. Now, looking back, Xu Li was really lucky to have met Zhou Ji.
Xu Li saw out of the corner of her eye that the person in the ward turned over, probably about to wake up.
Before hanging up the phone, Xu Li said one last thing: "Zhou Ji, thank you, thank you so much."
In life, you will meet many people. If you encounter someone who lends a helping hand when you are in trouble, you are luckier than anything else.
Xu Li went into the restroom, quickly washed her face, and composed herself before going back in.
Zhou Junchang was already awake, and he was moving his head to one side.
Xu Li went over and helped Zhou Junchang adjust the position of the hospital bed so that Zhou Junchang could sit up.
"You cried?"
Xu Li paused, didn't answer, and continued rocking the bed. After rocking the bed, she tucked the blankets into Zhou Jun's bed.
Zhou Junchang stared at Xu Li without moving, as if he wouldn't move unless she answered him.
Xu Li met a pair of dark, somewhat serious eyes, and finally said in a conceding tone, "No."
"You don't want to talk about it?"
Zhou Junchang was unwilling to believe it, but in reality, Xu Li's lies were quite obvious.
"Zhou Junchang, you should focus on recovering from your injuries first. As for other matters..."
"What's wrong? Why don't you want to talk about it? Or do you simply not want to tell me?"
Xu Li was speechless for a moment, unsure of my response. She was also very confused, her mind a complete mess, so thick that she couldn't think straight.
Zhou Junchang spoke calmly, but he was already somewhat angry inside.
Actually, I woke up partly because I was disturbed. I didn't hear much, but I knew that Xu Li was outside making a phone call to Zhou Ji.
I couldn't hear clearly the earlier parts, but at the very last sentence, I heard Xu Li and Zhou Ji thanking me.
Was she thanking Zhou Ji because she needed his help with something? Did Xu Li really distrust him that much? Was she unwilling to tell him anything just because he was in a hospital room? Why wouldn't she admit it even after he had asked her directly? Why was she willing to go to Zhou Ji but not to him?
After hanging up the phone, Xu Li went to the bathroom. During this time, Zhou Jun often lay in bed thinking a lot. He didn't know how to face Xu Li. Did they still have time? How much time did they have left?
Xu Li's voice trembled slightly as she opened her mouth, but she quickly regained her composure: "...Why don't you focus on recovering first?"
Normally, Xu Li would have turned and left without looking back, but now she stood there, speaking gently and patiently coaxing Zhou Junchang.
Is this the calm before parting, or is she making concessions?
Xu Li repeated herself, hoping to convince Zhou Junchang more: "Let's talk about it when you're better, okay?"
Zhou Jun looked at Xu Li, and he realized that he had become a little serious. He had never been able to control his emotions regarding their relationship, and many times he only felt that he was not himself when he looked back on it.
Zhou Junchang's mood was like a rollercoaster. Hearing Xu Li's words, his anger subsided and he calmed down a bit.
Zhou Jun often felt that his outburst was like punching cotton, but he also knew that in this situation, Xu Li would just endure it no matter what he said, and her temper was better than ever.
Will she be able to speak once she's fully recovered? Will she be able to know what Xu Li wants to say before she leaves?
Zhou Junchang awkwardly turned his head and said calmly, "I'm hungry."
"good."
Xu Li found her lunchbox and was about to get her food when Zhou Junchang stopped her again.
"I want to eat..."
What do you want to eat?
"Noodles, let's eat noodles."
Actually, Zhou Jun often wanted to say that he wanted to eat what she cooked.
The words were on the tip of my tongue, but I couldn't say them.
——
**
A few days after making that phone call to Zhou Ji, Duan Ruiming received a call from Zhou Ji.
The call came in the middle of the night. If Duan Ruiming hadn't been unable to sleep these past few days because of Xu Li, he probably wouldn't have answered the phone.
Zhou Ji said that Xu Li would go back, but there were some things that needed to be taken care of here and he would need some more time.
Duan Ruiming was actually somewhat skeptical. She thought that perhaps Xu Li was lying to him, or perhaps Zhou Ji was lying to him. She had gone to see Xu Li so many times, how could she be so easily persuaded by Zhou Ji?
Duan Ruiming asked what the matter was.
There was silence on the other end. Zhou Ji was unaware that Duan Ruiming had gotten to know Zhou Junchang during his several visits to Yangcheng, and he didn't know how to describe the relationship between Zhou Junchang and Xu Li.
"Some things and some people always need time to be arranged. Say goodbye and wait for her. She has her own plans."
It was said in a vague and ambiguous way.
Duan Ruiming: "When I looked for her before, she didn't want to come back. I don't know how she's doing over there. She works under you, so you definitely know her better than I do. Whatever the matter, I hope you can tell her to come back as soon as possible..."
The person on the other end interrupted Duan Ruiming: "Officer Duan, why are you so convinced? You have no substantial evidence, so why are you so convinced?"
What do you firmly believe in?
Is it a firm belief in distrust of Xu Li, or a strong conviction based on intuition gained from years of experience in the police force?
No matter how you look at it, it seems a bit absurd.
Duan Ruiming understood Zhou Ji's unspoken meaning: I believe Xu Li, so why don't you?
Yes, between someone you've known for a few months and someone you've known for several years, who would be more familiar with Xu Li?
Duan Ruiming had also struggled and hesitated, but as the truth was gradually uncovered, he became somewhat fearful. What if it really was true?
Afterwards, he went to Yangzhou and saw a different Xu Li. He was actually quite scared.
So from this point on, he probably didn't understand Xu Li, didn't understand her personality, didn't understand her thoughts, didn't understand her changes...
It wasn't that he didn't believe it, but he was more afraid of that one in ten thousand chance of the outcome.
Therefore, at the risk of being punished, he went against his professional ethics and did his best to think of and arrange a lot for Xu Li.
...
"beep--"
The call ended.
No one knew the turmoil that had been churning in Duan Ruiming's mind during those few minutes, and Duan Ruiming was unable to express his thoughts.
In Duan Ruiming's view, this matter was already urgent and could not be delayed any longer.
When will we be able to find out about Xu Li, and when will we be able to find out about Xu Li's relationship with me, and her relationship with Xu Zhengbei?
Nothing is certain.
The phone vibrated, and in the darkness, Duan Ruiming squinted and tapped the screen.
It was a text message.
Before clicking on it, Duan Ruiming sensed that something was amiss. The message seemed to be hinting at something, and he felt a little guilty.
Upon opening the app, the first few lines of text caused Duan Ruiming's pupils to dilate and his heart to pound.
The message read: "Hello, I am Officer Li, the officer in charge of investigating the 'Fei Li' missing person case assigned by my superiors. The specific details of the case still need to be provided by the Linpu Police Station so that we can better coordinate our work in the coming days. Thank you."
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