Memory Lost (美人为馅): Chapter 67

Chapter 67: Typical Case Part 2

It’s already past 8pm when Han Chen’s car makes it home.

Jin Xi has been quiet throughout the whole ride and Han Chen has left her be.  The car stops still.  She pushes open the door and hops out of it, “I’m going to go buy some things.  You can go up first.”

Han Chen is holding the keyring with his pinky as he walks to her.  He lowers his head to look at her, “Where are you going?”

Jin Xi looks up and smiles, “Just the small supermarket ahead.”

“I’ll go with you.”

“There’s no need,” Jin Xi says feeling awkward, “I’m getting some feminine hygiene products.  What are you coming for?  It’ll make me uncomfortable.  Please don’t come.  Hurry and go home to take a shower.”

Han Chen stops his footsteps and watches her leave quickly.

He stuffs his hands into his pockets and smiles.

She has only been living at his place for a few days and she has already been leaving her “feminine hygiene products” all over the place.  But now she’s being shy about buying them?

The moment Jin Xi enters the small supermarket, she goes straight to the cigarettes and wine counter.  The representative greets her politely, “What would you like?”

Jin Xi’s eyes are glowing staring at the cigarettes on the shelves.  She swallows and points, “Give me a box of Yuxi.”  She wants to smoke a good pack today.

Just as she is fetching her wallet, a hand reaches over suddenly and grabs onto hers.

“She doesn’t want it anymore, thank you.”

Jin Xi is in shock.  She turns around and sees Han Chen, who has snuck up behind her.  His eyes are dark.  He’s still grabbing onto her wrist with one hand while pressing on the countertop with the other.  He’s not saying anything.  He’s just looking at her quietly like this.

Jin Xi feels a bit of guilt from being caught.  She follows him out of the supermarket with him holding her hand.

“Han Chen, I just want to smoke one, can’t I?” she sways his arm.

“No,” he answers frankly without turning his head.

“Hmph!”

After a while, they walk into the courtyard area of the apartment building.  Han Chen pulls her along to sit on a bench and looks at her sideways.

Jin Xi crosses her arms and stares back at him, “Do you really have no urge to smoke?  You’ve never had one behind my back?”  His smoking addiction is worse than hers.  But for the past few days, whenever she sees other investigators having a smoke, she craves for one so badly, yet he still looks fine.

In the night sky, Han Chen’s eyes are especially dark.

“I do,” he answers, “But I will definitely do everything that I promised you.”

His words make Jin Xi feel ashamed of herself, but at least her craving seems to have gone down a bit.  On the other hand, she still feels irritated.  She raises her hand to the back of her head and ruffles her hair.  She looks at him with a pitiful expression, “But I really feel depressed.”

Han Chen stares at her and then lets out a laugh.  He reaches out his arms and embraces her.

Jin Xi asks, “What are you laughing about?”

“Nothing.”

Nothing.  It’s just that every now and then when she looks up, his every frown and every smile are too lively, but they’re all real and not images from her dreams.

Jin Xi thinks for a moment and says, “Have you heard of the serial killing case where families were murdered in the Daxing district of Beijing two years ago?”

Han Chen puts his arm around her shoulders and leans against the back of the bench, “Yes.”

The Daxing district’s Familicide serial killer was someone who had severe mental illness.  In one night, two families were murdered.  The crime scenes were chaotic, gruesome, and illogical.

Jin Xi says, “Professor Bo Jin Yan, who was in charge of the case, only spent one day and night to catch the perpetrator.  It’s because the perpetrator was a very typical serial killer who did not have the ‘ability to have organized thoughts.’  The killer was insane, had relatively low IQ, inability to drive a motorized vehicle and abandoned the bodies casually.  I read in the report that Professor Bo also deemed it a typical and simple ‘textbook case example.’”

She turns to the side to look at Han Chen, “If that was a typical case involving a killer with the inability to organize, the case we have at hand seems to be a typical ‘organized’ case on the surface level.  The characteristics shown from the crime scene and the suspect are exactly like what you would read in a textbook: highly intelligent, attractive, abusing and torturing the victims for a long period of time, lack of central organization, impulsive and easy to be angry, shallow emotions……”  She presses her hand onto her forehead feeling irritated, “But, although it’s a typical criminal psychology profile, what we’re facing is clearly much more complex……”

Just as she’s murmuring, Han Chen pulls her hand to have her stand up.

“Let’s go.”

“Where are we going?”

“Let’s take a walk outside.”

Jin Xi is surprised that Han Chen has taken her to the provincial police academy to “take a walk.”

It’s not far from the station or Han Chen’s place.  It only took them ten minutes to get here.  The school is especially quiet at night; only a few lights are still lit.  Han Chen shows his police badge and the guard at the gate lets him through.  From the looks of it, he seems to come quite often.

Following the walkway with trees on each side, the two walk slowly together.  Maybe because it’s too quiet, Jin Xi’s heart also calms down.  She keeps feeling that there’s a blurry thought in her mind, but she can’t make out what it is right now.

After being silent for this whole time, she realizes that Han Chen, who’s beside her, is also silent.  The street lamps light up his facial features clearly like a painting.  Jin Xi can’t help asking, “What are you thinking about?”

Han Chen turns his head and glances at her.

“Thinking about the future.”

“Future?”

Han Chen looks at the shadowy path ahead of them and says calmly, “When we’re old, we can be instructors at the police academy.  You can teach criminal psychology, and I’ll teach investigation skills.  That would be not bad.”

Jin Xi pauses her footsteps.

Han Chen turns around and looks at her.

Their eyes meet, but they both don’t say anything.

Jin Xi bites on her lower lip and then reveals a smile.

“Han Chen, carry me on your back.”

The speed of her mind causes Han Chen to be stunned slightly.  He then smiles quickly.  He takes out his hands from his pockets and squats in front of her, “Come on.”

Jin Xi hops onto his back smiling with her eyes squinting.  Han Chen stands up steadily carrying her on his back and then continues walking.

Jin Xi breathes onto his neck.  He tilts his head to avoid it.  Jin Xi can tell from behind that he’s smiling.  And then she feels him giving her a pinch on her behind, so she doesn’t dare to do it again.

“Hey, Han Chen,” she looks up at the stars in the sky while tapping his shoulder with her hand, “have you carried me on your back in the past?”

“I most definitely have.”

She asks curiously, “Why do you think so?”

He answers slowly, “A leopard can’t change its spots (a person can’t change who they are no matter how hard they try).”

Jin Xi spurts out laughing.  She says softly into his ear, “Who are you talking about?  Are you talking about yourself or me?”

“I’m talking about the both of us.”

The stars are twinkling above and there is only one elongated shadow on the ground.  Jin Xi leans onto his shoulders.  She can sense his pulse from his neck as she closes her eyes slowly.

“Jin Xi.”

“Hm?”

“If you believe that you’re right, then do everything you can to prove it.  You don’t need to be afraid.”

His deep voice is like the breeze in the night entering her heart.  Jin Xi presses her lips together and into a smile, “I’m not afraid.  Hey, since you’re saying that, does it mean that you believe in my judgment?”

“I only believe in evidence.  It’s okay if you’re wrong.  You still have me.”

“……Is that the way to encourage others?  I want to come down.  Stop carrying me……let go, you……”

In the same night, it’s breezy and mesmerizing on this side.  But elsewhere, the night is obscure.

Situ Yi’s mansion is located in the Eastern suburbs.  There are mountains and a lake in view, as well as other houses sparsely scattered around.  The area is very elegant and quiet.

It’s already past 1am.  Two police officers are yawning inside a black sedan while watching Situ’s home from not far away.

“After leaving the station, he’s been inside all this time,” an officer says, “and we don’t know what he’s up to.”

“He’s already proven by the lie detector test that he’s not the killer, so why does Han Chen still want us to watch him 24/7?” another officer says.

“Heh.  Although Professor Xu is famous, our Qiao Han Chen is also a well-known super detective.  Do you know whose judgment is correct?  It’s better to be prepared, right?” (“Qiao” Han Chen – nickname, making fun that Han Chen is like a brave warrior who’s handsome but unapproachable, refer to Chp 18)

The two officers sit still for another while.  They’ve been working too hard for the last couple of days, so they’re quite tired and are feeling hungry at the same time.  One of them says, “I’ll go get some food.  I saw two farm houses at the entrance.  Don’t know if they can stir fry us a dish.”

He leaves the mansion area quickly.  The two farm houses still have their doors open.  The owner hasn’t gone to bed yet and answers, “We don’t have any stir fry dishes.  We have some homemade preserved meat and rice.  I’ll take it over to you guys after it’s done steaming.”

“Okay!  Just something simple will be fine.”

Half an hour later, a youngster wearing a cap appears beside their car carrying two boxes of food.  It’s dark outside, so the two officers don’t notice anything strange.  They take the boxes, say thanks and starts gulping down the food.

The night is quiet.

Inside and outside of the mansion area is silent.

Inside of the sedan is also very quiet.  The two officers are leaning in their chairs snoring in their sleep.  It’s until morning when they are scared pale.  They stare at the two white empty boxes thrown away in the trash can beside their car and look at each other.

And in the same morning, Han Chen and Jin Xi are woken up from their dreams by their ringing phones:

“We’ve found another dead body!”