Volume One: First Scroll
Lingering Attachment
“Does Captain Song cherish talent, or is she simply attached to me?”
“He Miao ah…” After expressing the purpose of his visit to He Miao’s homeroom teacher, the village teacher, past fifty1, took off his reading glasses, furrowed his brow, and thought for quite a while before saying, “A pretty good kid, decent grades, lived quite frugally, honest and trustworthy, loved to work…”
Whether this teacher had written too many end-of-term evaluations or what, the words that came out felt like a template-like recitation, lacking any points worth particular attention.
Song Yuhang took notes: “Do you know much about her family situation?”
“I know a little bit2. I heard her family circumstances weren’t great. Several times the school held parent-teacher conferences, her family didn’t come. For the last conference in the third year of junior high, her maternal aunt did come, but as soon as she arrived, she said she wanted to withdraw her from school. This was right before the high school entrance exams3, you know. We tried to persuade them, but it was no use.”
She looked up at the male teacher: “So, did she withdraw in the end?”
“Her aunt wanted her to, but the kid had a stubborn streak. She insisted she wanted to continue studying, said she’d figure out the tuition and exam registration fees herself.”
“And then?”
A trace of embarrassment appeared on the male teacher’s face: “After that, we didn’t know.”
“How long ago was this?”
“About three months ago, I think.”
“Did she have any classmates she was particularly close with?”
“She didn’t talk much, maybe felt a bit insecure, after all…”
Song Yuhang nodded in understanding: “Could you please take me to her classroom for a look?”
“Okay, please come this way.”
The school wasn’t large, just three floors in total. From top to bottom were the upper to lower grades, five classes per grade. The desks in each classroom were packed densely, the last row pushed right up against the back wall.
The homeroom teacher led her to the third floor and pushed open the door to the fifth classroom. It was currently break time, and her appearance immediately caused a commotion.
“Police, police, hey! Did He Miao really die?”
“I heard it was a horrible death, it was even on the news! Didn’t you guys see?”
“Tsk, with her family situation, if it were me, I’d kill myself too.”
…
Song Yuhang’s expression remained unchanged as she walked to the desk the homeroom teacher pointed out. A dazzling array of books was piled on the desk. She casually picked up a few books and flipped through them—textbooks, exercise books. She seemed to really like drawing; almost every book had sketches in it.
Song Yuhang briefly flipped through several; the most frequent subjects were animals like whales and dolphins.
She seemed to have a special fondness for the sea, yet her family had never mentioned it.
Song Yuhang took out her phone and photographed the drawings done in pen.
“Is Captain Song back yet?” Early in the morning, Lin Yan’s entrance into the office immediately caused a stir of surprise.
Zhang Jinhai, holding a teacup, was just about to enter his own office. He glanced at her, still hesitant: “Forensic Doctor Lin, are you alright? You suddenly fainted yesterday, it looked quite serious. Captain Song’s face went white with fright, she just picked you up and ran straight to the hospital. Work is important, but your health matters more.”
Face went white with fright and picked her up and ran straight to the hospital?
Neither sounded like something Song Yuhang would do.
Lin Yan paused for a moment, then gave a slight nod: “I’m fine now.”
Just then, a colleague stood up and said: “Captain Song went to He Miao’s home, she hasn’t returned yet.”
Lin Yan, holding her jacket, pivoted and headed towards the pathology lab: “Alright then, I’ll go see if the DNA comparison results are out.”
The technician entered the comparison results into the database. After searching, it displayed “None.”
Lin Yan rubbed the space between her eyebrows. She had thought this would be a lead, but it turned out to be another dead end.
A colleague beside her seemed hesitant to speak: “With all due respect, Forensic Doctor Lin, even if that young girl had thoughts of suicide4 because of pregnancy, that can only be considered an indirect cause of death. Besides, if she was forced, at most they could only be sentenced to three to five years. If not, then really…”
The words “there’s nothing we can do” hadn’t even left his mouth when Lin Yan’s cold gaze swept over. Lin Yan wasn’t like Song Yuhang; she usually wore a careless, almost roguish expression. When she suddenly became serious like this, it was rather intimidating.
The technician was stung by this look and couldn’t speak. Lin Yan’s thin lips curved into an extremely sarcastic smile.
“Do you know why Jiangcheng City’s homicide clearance rate never ranks high nationally? It’s precisely because there’s scum like you in the police and judicial ranks5. A fifteen-year-old girl in the prime of her life dies tragically, and instead of thinking about investigating the cause and bringing the suspect to justice6, you spend all day thinking about how to take the easy way out. How did the taxpayers’ money end up raising trash like you, worse than pigs and dogs.”
The technician’s face flushed red, and he shot up from his seat: “I… I was just stating the facts! Why are you… why are you making personal attacks?”
“So what if I made a personal attack? Not happy?” Lin Yan watched his fists clench tightly, her smile widening.
“It’s good that you’re not happy. Either get me removed from this position, or resign yourself.”
Lin Yan lightly patted his shoulder, stepped closer, and whispered, leaving before he could react.
Lin Yan returned to her office, hung her uniform jacket on the hanger, changed into casual clothes, took a mechanical baton from the drawer and tucked it into the back of her waistband, took out a bottle of chewing gum, poured two pieces into her palm, tossed them into her mouth, and chewed as she sauntered out the main gate of the city bureau.
Her supercar7 could only make it to the entrance of the alley. Any further in, and it immediately scraped against the walls on both sides, emitting a teeth-grinding sound8. Lin Yan turned the steering wheel, reversing, her heart aching as she looked at the side mirror that had been pushed askew.
F%ck, ever since starting work at the Jiangcheng City bureau, she had stopped taking private autopsy commissions. Her income had plummeted; she was living off her stock market earnings. And this was a new car she had just picked up not long ago.
After backing out of the alley, she drove around the West City District again and found that the parking lot near the incident site, Green Building, wasn’t fully constructed yet. A bumpy little path, also impassable for cars.
Lin Yan parked the car on the periphery, felt for the mechanical baton at her waist to make sure it was still there, pushed open the car door, got out, and proceeded on foot.
“Hello, have you seen this girl?”
“No, haven’t seen her.”
“Thank you.”
Song Yuhang put the photo away, glanced at the map, and headed towards the next shop.
The alleys in West City were deep, hiding many massage parlors, dance halls, barbecue stalls, etc., that only opened late at night. These were the witnesses most likely to have seen He Miao before her death.
There were only two routes from the West City alleys to Green Building. One was a straight line, 1.5km9. The other wound through streets and alleys, roughly the same distance but with houses of varying heights along the way and a small ditch by the roadside; the scenery was quite nice, and on holidays, some artsy youths10 would come here for photo shoots.
A person determined to die probably wouldn’t be in the mood to appreciate the scenery along the way. Song Yuhang turned on her heel and headed down the other path.
“Seen this person?” Lin Yan held the photo out to a homeless man sitting on the ground, picking up cigarette butts others had discarded and smoking them.
A fragrant scent wafted over. The homeless man looked up at her, his eyes practically glowing green11, flashing with greed and lewdness.
It had been a long time since he had touched a woman.
The homeless man licked his lips, reached out as if to take the photo, but went straight for her wrist. No one saw how she moved; the mechanical baton was already pressed against his throat.
“Just talk, why get handsy?”
Lin Yan’s eyes darkened slightly, a trace of killing intent flickering within them.
The man wanted to say something more, but she jabbed him directly with the baton. The throat is a vital point; the homeless man collapsed onto the ground, wanting to cry out from the intense pain but finding his voice hoarse, unable to make a sound no matter how hard he tried.
“Ahhh… ahhh…” The man knelt on the ground, clutching his throat, one hand reaching out towards her futilely, his face contorted in pain.
Lin Yan kicked him over: “If you don’t want to talk, then don’t.”
Not far away, a young scavenger girl witnessed everything, her face pale with fright, hastily backing away.
Lin Yan’s cold gaze swept towards her. A scalp-numbing sensation, like being targeted by a predator, urged the girl to turn and run.
Lin Yan retracted the mechanical baton and followed, stepping forward.
She wasn’t hurried, because she knew it was a dead end ahead.
The little girl carried a basket on her back, filled with some plastic bottles. When she suddenly saw the two-meter-high wall in front of her, she almost cried out.
Footsteps approached from behind.
The little girl turned around, enveloped in Lin Yan’s shadow, her face pale, retreating step by step. When that fragrant scent hit her face, she shut her eyes tightly, covering her face with her hands: “Don’t hit me, don’t hit me, I… I’ve seen her…”
The person before her let out a soft scoff, reaching out nonchalantly to pluck a small flower stuck near her temple.
The little girl looked up and saw her gently blow the petals from her palm towards the ground. Her posture, her appearance, her expression were so beautiful, more beautiful than anyone she had seen on TV.
She stared, momentarily dazed, until Lin Yan’s voice sounded: “You said you’ve seen her. When?”
Only then did she manage to compose herself, meeting her gaze, only to find this person had eyes full of charm12, the mischievous kind. Her mouth seemed to be smiling even when she spoke, and when she smiled, it was like she was seducing someone.
The little girl didn’t know where to look, so she lowered her head, staring at her own cloth shoes with toes poking out, shifting her body uneasily towards the wall, her voice like a mosquito’s buzz.
“S-seen her… We picked up trash together.”
Lin Yan stood up straight: “When was this?”
“About three months ago, I think. She showed up in the alley around four-something every day to pick up bottles, and left by six.”
“Every day?”
The girl, as if afraid she wouldn’t be believed, nodded vigorously: “Every day. Once during a typhoon, it was pouring rain, I was ready to go home, but she was still picking.”
“On May 31st, did you see her?”
The girl looked at the photo and shook her head firmly: “No, she hadn’t come for a long time.”
“About when did she stop coming?”
“About two months ago, I think.”
“Were you close with her?”
The girl probably knew about He Miao’s death; after all, it was rumored all over the streets and alleys. Now, unsure of Lin Yan’s identity and recalling the ferocity with which she had hit the man earlier, how would she dare lie? She shook her head like a rattle drum.
“N-no… not close… She didn’t talk much… We just chatted occasionally…”
“What did you talk about?”
“Talked about where the foot traffic was high, where we could find plastic bottles…” In front of the glamorous Lin Yan, the girl inevitably felt ashamed, curling her toes awkwardly, trying to hide the ones sticking out.
“Which recycling station paid higher prices…”
She was actually quite pretty, but sun and rain had made her skin rough and dark. Her clothes were large and dirty, clearly someone else’s hand-me-downs.
Lin Yan nodded, knowing she couldn’t get much more information. She stepped aside to let her pass: “Thanks.”
The girl, carrying her basket, glanced at her, only to see her gaze was clear and bright, devoid of the earlier sharpness or any pity, as if she had merely encountered a stranger, thus preserving the girl’s fragile self-esteem.
She also nodded lightly, skirted around her, and quickly walked away. As they passed each other, she felt her basket grow heavier.
She didn’t dare think too much about it and hurried away.
When she got out of the alley and wanted to take out water from her basket to drink, she found several hundred-yuan bills13 inside.
Song Yuhang looked up at the last foot-massage shop at the street corner. The shop door was wide open, but there was no one inside. She walked in and knocked on the counter.
“Anyone here?”
A middle-aged woman, gaudily dressed14, emerged from the inner room. Seeing her, the woman’s eyes immediately lit up.
“Yo, foot massage or body massage? There’s a discount on body massages.”
She even winked suggestively at Song Yuhang.
Song Yuhang shook her head: “Neither…”
The woman enthusiastically grabbed her hand: “Aiyo, don’t be shy. We offer that kind of service15 too. Anything can be done as long as you pay.”
Song Yuhang looked down at the arm grabbing hers, finding the smell of powder and perfume overpowering, feeling increasingly uncomfortable. She took a step back and produced her police ID.
“Police. I need to ask you some questions.”
“Hmph, boring.” The woman instantly let go, her interest vanished.
Cooperating with a police inquiry is a citizen’s duty, not a mandatory obligation.
Song Yuhang thought for a moment, took out a pack of cigarettes from her pocket, and offered it. She rarely smoked; there was no point keeping them.
Seeing the Soft Zhonghua16, the woman’s eyes lit up again. She took it without ceremony and lit one up.
Song Yuhang took out the photo to show her: “Have you seen her?”
The woman squinted, blowing out a smoke ring: “Seen her. Isn’t that the girl who died just a few days ago?”
“When and where did you see her?”
Song Yuhang took out a pen and paper from her bag and started taking notes.
“The night of May 31st. I had a pretty rich client. Around four-something in the morning, maybe? The guy had just left. I saw him to the door, and I saw that little girl stumbling alone this way.”
Song Yuhang caught the key point: “Alone?”
The woman nodded: “Yeah, alone. I remember clearly. This road is narrow, she even bumped into my client. My boss17 had been drinking, had a bad temper, almost started a fight. I managed to calm him down.”
“I saw she was alone and told her to hurry home, but she ignored me. It was like she was possessed, just kept walking forward. Middle of the night, it was pretty creepy.”
After finishing, the shop owner blew another smoke ring, clearly also finding it baffling18.
Song Yuhang put away her notebook, slung her bag over her shoulder, and started to leave. At the shop entrance, she turned back and said: “The perfume… is too strong.”
She couldn’t help but think of the faint floral scent that often lingered around her. She had once thought it was Lin Yan’s perfume, until that rainy night, when the rain washed everything away, and she got close to her, only then realizing it was her natural scent.
“This must be the place.” Lin Yan walked in from the bumpy parking lot, stepping carefully. The vast construction site was deserted. Police tape still cordoned off the area below the building. The ground had dried, but the bloodstains had already seeped into the dirt, leaving a dark red patch19.
Weeds grew wild all around. On the rooftop, a broken railing swayed in the wind. The sun was beginning to set. It was so quiet there wasn’t even the sound of birds or insects.
Maybe it was psychological, but Lin Yan rubbed her arms, suddenly feeling a bit cold.
She abruptly looked back. The way she came was empty.
Lin Yan took a few more steps. Just as she was about to reach the building entrance, she looked back again. Still empty.
Only the wind rustled the waist-high weeds.
She didn’t know why, but a faint sense of unease lingered in her mind.
She kept feeling like someone was watching her.
Although she hadn’t graduated from a police academy, she had scored high marks in tracking and counter-tracking courses when she was abroad.
Someone who could follow her in Jiangcheng City without anyone noticing20 probably hadn’t been born yet.
Thinking this, Lin Yan, refusing to believe it, took a few more steps. Her hand rested on the stair railing, seemingly about to step up, but then she whipped her head around again. In that instant, the hairs on the back of her neck stood up.
“Click—” a crisp sound, the mechanical baton was already unsheathed. She hadn’t even clearly seen her opponent before she struck out based on combat instinct.
Song Yuhang blocked the blow, saying in a muffled voice: “It’s me.”
The baton struck Song Yuhang’s hand squarely, instantly turning it purple and swelling up high.
Lin Yan retracted the mechanical baton behind her back, forcing a couple of dry laughs: “Yo, Captain Song, why do you always like standing behind people? Not very open and aboveboard.”
Song Yuhang flexed her wrist, glancing at her: “It’s you who’s too guarded.”
Although Lin Yan retracted it quickly, Song Yuhang’s eyes were sharper. Seeing the mechanical baton reminded her of the fight outside Sun Xiangming’s place that day, and the sight of Lin Yan leaping from the fifth floor with the baton. Her eyes darkened.
Regarding Lin Yan, she sometimes felt emotions even she couldn’t explain, but reason told her this person was untrustworthy, certainly not completely trustworthy.
Thinking this, her tone became somewhat cold: “What are you doing here?”
Meeting her scrutinizing gaze, Lin Yan spread her hands: “Don’t misunderstand. This deceased person has absolutely nothing to do with me. I just purely felt there were suspicious points about her death, so I came to the crime scene myself to take a look.”
The sky was gradually darkening. Standing against the light in the stairwell doorway, Song Yuhang’s expression was unclear. She started walking upstairs, the corner of her lip curling into a cold smile.
Of course, she didn’t believe Lin Yan’s explanation.
“Who knows if there’s a connection or not? After all, Forensic Doctor Lin is incredibly resourceful.”
Lin Yan pretended not to hear the sarcasm in her words, following her upstairs: “Not at all, not at all, Captain Song isn’t so bad herself.”
Most people who got into verbal spars with Lin Yan didn’t end up well. Song Yuhang wisely chose not to say more.
She walked quickly, but noticed Lin Yan, holding the railing, was still dawdling somewhat. Glancing down, she said casually: “I remember you’re supposed to be discharged from the hospital tomorrow, aren’t you?”
It would have been better if she hadn’t mentioned it. The mention immediately brought Zhang Jinhai’s words “Captain Song’s face went white with fright” and “picked her up and ran straight to the hospital” to Lin Yan’s mind.
And that night in the hospital, those ambiguous probes and conversations, felt like they had flipped another switch between the two of them. Song Yuhang had shown a tenderness never before revealed; she too had exposed a vulnerability she never had before.
This was truly terrifying.
But it didn’t matter. Day and night were a watershed for adults.
Just as Song Yuhang didn’t trust her and was wary of her, Lin Yan had never truly trusted her either.
“Ah, the doctor said I’m pretty much recovered. Lying there is just wasting medical resources. I wouldn’t want to take a bed from patients with serious conditions. Couldn’t be more considerate, right?” Lin Yan gathered her energy and walked a bit faster.
Song Yuhang subtly slowed her pace to wait for her.
They reached the fork on the second floor.
Lin Yan pointed to the left: “I’ll go this way.”
Song Yuhang angled her foot to the right: “I’ll go this way.”
As Lin Yan turned to leave, Song Yuhang looked back: “Don’t play any tricks. Things can happen once, maybe twice, but not a third or fourth time21. Whatever your reasons, you’d better not fall into my hands again.”
Lin Yan also looked back at her, her lips curving into an utterly captivating smile: “Captain Song is truly so righteous, aren’t you? If that’s the case, why don’t you go report me? Might not break bones, but at least you could get me removed from this position. Or is it—”
Lin Yan took a step closer, that faint floral scent wafting over again.
“Does Captain Song cherish talent, or is she simply attached to me?”
LP: Re-translated on March 31, 2025
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