The beef seller saw her looking and called out. “Spiced beef miss Best quality Everyone says so.”
Xu Jiu stepped closer. “How much”
“Thirteen yuan a Jin Shall I cut you a portion” He weighed quickly. “A bit extra Fifteen yuan and twenty cents Is that all right”
“Fine.” She paid. “Business is good here”
“Excellent Flavor and location Who can resist”
“How much did you sell yesterday”
“Easily eighteen maybe twenty Jin.”
The malted milk seller laughed. “Do not exaggerate You have not twenty Jin in the freezer.”
“All right all right Three Jin actually Beef is expensive Few buy it.”
Xu Jiu saw they were friendly. “Did anyone buy both spiced beef and malted milk yesterday”
The malted milk seller thought. “One person Half a Jin of beef One tin of malted milk And a box of chocolates.”
“What did they look like”
“I did not notice clearly A mother and daughter The girl looked unwell The mother kept asking if she was all right.”
The beef seller nodded. “Now you mention it Pale face Even though it was warm they were both heavily dressed.”
Xu Jiu felt certain the girl was Chen Qingqing. Without a photo she could only describe her. “About one hundred and sixty five centimeters Tall eyes Double eyelid Mole between the eyebrows”
“That is her Pretty girl.”
A bedding seller spoke up. “Old Chen’s girl Grew up so pretty Used to come with her mother Now she studies in the city.”
Xu Jiu leaned forward. “And the woman with her”
“Did not see clearly Large sun hat Veil over her face Fashionable.”
Chen Qingqing’s mother worked outdoors her skin weathered and dressed simply. This woman did not match. Who was she Were the fingerprints on the tape hers Cameras were still rare in nineteen ninety six and she could not identify them by gait alone.
From the cooperative she went to the pharmacy. No sedatives had been sold recently. That made sense Drugging someone in plain sight was risky. The drug must have been prepared beforehand and mixed into the malted milk sweetness masking the bitter taste.
She asked the driver to take her to the village general store where everyone passed through. Elders playing cards looked up. “Whose child are you”
“I am Chen Qingqing’s classmate I came because something happened.”
“Such tragedy We do not know who harmed them.”
“She should have been at school How did she return unnoticed”
“No one saw her come Her father played cards in the morning Then this.”
“Any strangers enter the village yesterday”
“None We would have told police.”
“More than one entrance”
“Four in all Most are rough After rain only tractors motorcycles bicycles pass You came the main road The other way is hard for cars.”
Hard but possible. She handed the spiced beef to the elder. “Please accept this And tell police anything you remember.” He thanked her repeatedly.
Two entrances led toward the city. Excluding her own route one remained east of the village. The driver stopped where the paved road ended. Recent rain had left motorcycle tracks crisscrossing the mud. “Cannot go further Will get stuck.”
Xu Jiu walked forward. The ground was drying. She spotted two deep tire marks distinct from other vehicles deliberately positioned to avoid ruts. A taxi had brought Chen Qingqing and the mysterious woman by a quiet route.
She phoned Jiang Yanzhi. He answered quickly breathing heavily. “Where are you”
“At the clinic investigating.”
“You sound breathless.”
“Chased a suspect.”
“Are you hurt”
“Not at all.” He steadied. “Should you not be in class”
“Truly unhurt”
“I am fine And you”
She told him about the taxi and the back road then remembered the driver’s radio conversation. “That Yuan they mentioned Where did he go”
“Did not say.”
“Full name”
“Yuan Shuai But drinks too much.”
Jiang Yanzhi’s tone deepened. “You are in Yuqing Town”
“Returning now.”
“Travel safely.”
They arranged to meet at the taxi company. Jiang Yanzhi and Qin Shuo waited with the manager. Seeing him unharmed she ran forward. “No need to run.”
“Found the driver”
He shook his head. The manager was angry. “Yuan Shuai has not reported No message His shift partner demands compensation.”
“Yesterday’s trips”
“Not recorded We do not ask as long as the car returns.”
“Anyone go to Yuqing Town”
“None Only Yuan.”
“Drinks away his wages.” Police were searching his rented home on the outskirts.
In the jeep Jiang Yanzhi noticed mud on her shoes and wiped them clean. Qin Shuo leaned back. “This case grows complicated A doctor now A driver too.”
“What about the doctor”
“We wondered if news leaked Instead we found something else Wang Jianjun lied He wanted the child Chen Qingqing did not.”
Wang Jianjun had paid for the child. Feeling aging and childless he had persuaded the school doctor to mislead Chen Qingqing about her pregnancy then promised regular payments plus twenty thousand yuan upon birth. The doctor fled when police arrived but Jiang Yanzhi caught him. He had carried scissors and lunged. Xu Jiu examined Jiang Yanzhi’s arm closely and saw a long scratch.
“You said you were unhurt.”
“Hardly a scratch” Qin Shuo said. “Once he took a knife to the abdomen Did not let the thief escape…” He stopped seeing her eyes fill. “Do not cry Police get hurt He is fine.”
Xu Jiu broke down weeping. He need not have joined the force. He need not have died. All because of her.