Liao Ran was sensitive to animal fur, so his wish to raise a pet could never be realized.
His first choice was a golden retriever. Basking in the brilliant summer sun on a lush green lawn, a free-spirited life bounding toward you, opening your arms to embrace it like hugging a warm stove, its enthusiastic, rough tongue sweeping across your skin in playful teasing.
That was the scene in Liao Ran’s dreams.
In reality, however, he was also woken up by the heat. The clothes across his chest were bulged up, with a head buried inside, pressing heavily on his heart. Light, fragmented kisses crawled over him like a spider, both numb and itchy.
Nervously, Liao Ran inched upward, his head hitting the bedboard, with nowhere left to retreat. He had no choice but to push against Bai Ji’s shoulder in protest: “I don’t like you doing this.”
Within a single night, he had been rejected twice. If it were the old Liao Ran, he would have climbed up on his own long ago.
Bai Ji released the soft flesh he had been holding in his mouth and impatiently stirred Liao Ran’s trouser waistband with his finger: “Get some exercise. It helps with sleep.”
“Get out of here.” Liao Ran didn’t want to understand immediately.
“This is my house, my bedroom.” Bai Ji rolled over to one side: “I’m just sleeping. I won’t touch you.”
Who would believe his words?
“You leave.” Words spoken seriously by Liao Ran carried an inherent, imposing dignity that made it very difficult to refuse.
“Fine. I’ll listen to you. But if you find yourself wanting me to come back, that won’t be my business.” Bai Ji sprang up, but instead of going to the second bedroom, he sat upright on the living room sofa, tapping his fingers rhythmically on his knees as if playing an instrument.
Ten minutes later, the tossing and turning sounds of restless groaning came from the next room.
He could feel that the agitation of the Gu worm this time was different from the past. Unlike the previous disorder, it was torturing him with a specific rhythm and precise locations.
His forehead covered in cold sweat, Liao Ran released his tight grip on the pillowcase: “Bai Ji, you stinking rascal.”
The culprit looked completely innocent: “Insomnia is a problem that must be taken seriously. I wanted to help, but you weren’t willing.”
After dragging it out for about five minutes, a resentful voice came through the wall behind Bai Ji: “Aren’t you coming in yet?”
“I didn’t hear wrong, did I? This is your permission, after all.”
Liao Ran’s vision filled with moisture. As the blurry figure drew closer, he wrapped his arms around the man’s waist. The moment he burrowed into his embrace, his surging blood came to a halt, like a soothing, clear stream washing over his feverish body and mind. The world grew quiet.
After the rapid rhythm of his breathing slowed down, he turned his back and tightly hugged his own arms.
Losing the fragrant, soft person in his arms, Bai Ji sighed behind his ear: “You throw people away after using them. Our Master Forensic Doctor is truly ruthless.”
Without any response, Liao Ran’s back trembled slightly.
When Bai Ji stood up, he saw tear tracks hanging at the corners of Liao Ran’s eyes.
At a loss for what to do for a moment, neither daring to touch him nor able to just leave him be, he scratched the back of his head: “I didn’t even do anything. Why are you acting like this?”
The sound of sobbing was grating. Bai Ji grasped his hand: “Talk to me. Just treat it as examining a corpse; you have to tell me the cause of death, otherwise I’ll die with everlasting regret.”
From birth until now, Liao Ran’s life had been smooth sailing. Spending most of his time dealing with corpses and having seen plenty of vicious murderers, he wasn’t the naive sort who believed human nature was inherently good, but he had never been directly threatened or coerced into doing anything against his will.
“You don’t respect me. You’re bullying people.”
Bai Ji was unconcerned: “This isn’t called bullying. It’s because I like you, and I want to be close to you every single moment.”
Liao Ran’s interpersonal relationships were simple. Aside from his colleagues at the police station, the only person with whom he shared an emotional connection was Fu Chong, and looking back, he also cherished every single opportunity to meet. Liao Ran knew that was because Fu Chong liked him. By extension, what Bai Ji said might possess a certain rationality.
Having convinced himself, Liao Ran turned around.
His cheeks were flushed pink like a morning-dew-kissed honey peach, moist and alluring.
Bai Ji’s breathing grew heavier. Licking his lips, he leaned up slightly and kissed the corner of Liao Ran’s eye.
As a shadow loomed over him, Liao Ran instinctively pushed against his Adam’s apple in refusal.
Bai Ji grabbed his hand, his voice raspy: “Just one kiss.”
Drowsy, Liao Ran blinked in silent consent. His eyelashes fluttered, stirring a warm breeze that awakened the blooming spring in Bai Ji’s heart.
Facts proved that there wasn’t a single truthful word in his mouth; “one kiss” was never just one.
When Liao Ran woke up, he was lying bare against the man’s arm. He picked up the pajamas scattered under the bed, but he couldn’t wear them.
A stain of filth had ruined them.
Liao Ran usually had no recreational activities; free time to him was disorderly and uncontrollable. Coupled with his reluctance to face that person all day long, he simply decided to return to the police station to cancel his leave and throw himself back into work.
“Did you change cars?”
Normally, when people changed cars, it was an upgrade. The car Liao Ran drove in this morning was clearly inferior to his previous luxury brand vehicle.
“Let’s talk about official business.” Anything related to Bai Ji made Liao Ran feel somewhat unspeakable.
Since their parting in the interrogation room last time, his temperament had grown a few degrees colder. Still, this was his normal state anyway. Qin Jiu had originally been a bit worried that he might be affected, but looking at him now, those worries were redundant.
“Here. You’ve eaten breakfast already, right?” Qin Jiu placed a file on his desk.
Liao Ran opened the document and read it carefully: “A dismemberment case. It’s going to be difficult. Once I finish the examination, I’ll give you my report.” He stood up to put on his equipment: “If you’re in a hurry, you can watch from the side.”
Qin Jiu took half a step back: “I’ll pass. My younger sister is getting married, and I’m planning to drink her wedding wine.”
Liao Ran had already put on his gloves: “Isn’t Qin Yi still in school?”
As an older brother, he wore a helpless expression: “People of their generation are too rebellious; you can’t control them. They just graduated from college and found a boyfriend, and now they want to get married after knowing each other for only half a year. Who could be so foolish, knowing each other for such a short time and giving everything away?”
Come to think of it, he and Bai Ji had known each other for about that long too: “Can feelings develop that fast?”
“Huh?” Qin Jiu didn’t react for a moment. He and Liao Ran had a tacit understanding at work; even when they occasionally sat down to eat together, they wouldn’t talk about personal matters, let alone imagine that this eternal iceberg of a man would fall in love.
Suddenly, that name popped into his head: “That Bai Ji? I investigated his background.”
Liao Ran waved his hand to stop him from continuing.
Qin Jiu understood as well. Liao Ran had been forced into a sexual relationship while unconscious, and even though he knew Bai Ji was the suspect, there was still no solid evidence to bring him back yet.
“Do you have time after work?” Liao Ran prepared for the final step and put on his face mask.
Qin Jiu nodded.
“I want all his files.”
Liao Ran didn’t want to use work hours to talk about personal matters, but regarding that person, the more he knew, the more leverage he would have to maneuver against him.
For half a day, Liao Ran stayed with that pieced-together corpse.
The murderer was very cunning and possessed strong anti-investigation skills, knowing how to use freezing to alter the time of death, using potted plant nutrient soil to dilute the blood and remove the fishy odor, and cutting off the head and destroying the fingerprints on both hands to hide the victim’s identity.
At the task force meeting, Liao Ran presented the autopsy results.
“Doctor Liao, you mean this is an old hand?” Team One member Qian Kun chewed on his pen, catching a glimpse of the method.
“I don’t rule out that possibility. The cut edges are neat; this person seems to possess mature, professional skills. Furthermore, their logical thinking is clear, and they were extremely calm after the crime.”
“I know. The murderer’s profession could be a doctor, a butcher, or a serial killer.” Intern police officer He Yong slammed the table and sprang up, looking at Qin Jiu.
Only to see Qin Jiu covering his ears: “You kid, pipe down.”
He Yong scratched his head awkwardly: “Sorry, I got too excited. Captain, do you think what I said is right?”
Qin Jiu pondered for a moment and nodded: “I think it makes sense, your judgment is good. I’ll assign you to take charge of the preliminary screening work: starting from the dumping site, visit the surrounding residents, and focus on investigating professions that require using knives, like doctors and butchers.” Qin Jiu continued methodically organizing the work: “Also, Da Kun, you go to the archive room and pull out dismemberment cases from the past ten years to see if there are any similarities with this case, such as details involving soil.”
“Got it,” the two chorused.
“Any other additions, Doctor Liao?” Qin Jiu walked over to Liao Ran’s side.
“Plant nutrient soil contains fertilizers and minerals. Analyzing the components can yield more clues. Additionally, tracing the logistics route might reveal who the purchaser was.”
Qin Jiu nodded repeatedly: “Then I’ll follow this lead. No other problems? Everyone, go ahead and get to work.”
The emergency task force meeting ended, and the officers dispersed. Qin Jiu pulled open the chair next to Liao Ran, relaxed, and stretched. In truth, he had only recently been promoted to captain not long ago. Originally a notorious daredevil in the police force, he couldn’t be as reckless in this position and had to maintain a steady image at all times. The pressure was indescribable.
Being able to promote so quickly was also thanks to the blessing of the old partner sitting beside him; Liao Ran always managed to come up with crucial clues.
In front of him, he could briefly cast off his burdens.
“Do you know any reliable botanists to recommend? Your dad is the president of the Academy of Sciences; he should know a lot of relevant people.”
“I don’t know.” The only person Liao Ran could think of at the moment was him. However, since it involved investigating the truth of a case, he couldn’t let personal feelings interfere: “The Chinese Academy of Sciences has many botanical experts. I’ll help you ask and hand the samples over to them.”
“Settled. Let’s go, we’ll eat and chat at the same time.”
The hand reaching for his shoulder was dodged by Liao Ran.
Qin Jiu patted his hands awkwardly: “Still hate physical contact as much as ever.”
In the West District, there was a restaurant called Xiangweizhai. Aside from its exquisite dishes, it offered cellar-aged wines and had no redundant entertainment activities.
Business was booming, and anyone appearing there was nothing out of the ordinary, whether private parties or business negotiations. All were welcome alike.
The front hall accommodated individual diners, with booth seats arranged in a staggered layout, equipped with round fabric sofas and semi-enclosed partitions, surrounded above shoulder height by one-way glass domes. The space had an open view yet remained extremely private.
Qin Jiu had abstained from alcohol for a while now, and catching the aroma at that moment made his hands itch: “To celebrate your safe return, shall we open a bottle?”
Seeing that Qin Jiu’s hand was already itching for action, Liao Ran said, “That’s a poor excuse. Don’t use it next time.”
Swallowing hard, Qin Jiu gritted his teeth and ordered a few home-style dishes.
Liao Ran’s appetite was growing smaller and smaller; after taking a few bites, he stopped moving his chopsticks.
Qin Jiu shoveled half a bowl of rice into his mouth, and before he even had time to swallow it, he fished a stack of documents out of his bag.
“This is all of Bai Ji’s data from birth until his disappearance. He also has a younger biological brother, but he died not long ago. Right now, you could say he’s completely alone and helpless.”