Chapter Thirty: Silence

“Even if, as you say, there were problems with the coffee fruit and Fangtou himself was questionable, why would Zhang Dong blame you for Fangtou being arrested? Did he ever explain that to you?” Yan Xue asked, her tone puzzled. By this point in Lin Zhen’s account, both Yan Xue and the others had a clear idea of what kind of character Fangtou was. They found it odd—someone like Fangtou must have had contact with many people in his daily life. Even if not every customer at that shop was a buyer, the fact that he used it as his base meant he couldn’t have had only a handful of regulars like Zhang Dong and Lin Zhen for long periods.

So why, despite a lapse of time, would Zhang Dong insist that it was Lin Zhen who exposed Fangtou’s identity?

“I asked him,” Lin Zhen replied, “but he never told me the real reason. He just kept saying that people like them know everything, and that the whole thing was supposed to be very low-key and secret. Even that night, when he went to buy from Fangtou, he did it quietly. I was right there and saw exactly how he made contact and negotiated the buy. Why would I go blabbing about it?

“Of course I couldn’t accept being accused like that! We had a huge fight. I told him he’d lied to me! He knew full well the stuff was illegal but still tricked me into trying it with him. What if I’d gotten hooked that first time and couldn’t get out? He’d ruin my life!

“He told me that was impossible, that he’d tried it himself first and only brought me after he was sure it was fine. I said I got a headache the next day and had to take painkillers—and though the headache went away, I still felt listless for several days! When he saw me say that, he didn’t dare argue, just kept blaming me for being a loudmouth. He went on and on until I was completely fed up, so I threatened him…”

“How did you threaten him?” came the question.

“I told him I didn’t care whether Fangtou got arrested or not. He’d never said back then that I couldn’t tell anyone about the coffee fruit, so if anyone was to blame, it was him! And if he kept pestering me, nagging and blaming, I’d go to the police and report him! I said not only was he covering up, he’d bought and used the stuff himself!

“When he heard that, he got angry, but I think he was scared I might actually do it, so he just cursed a bit and left. That was basically the end of us. As he was leaving, he told me to be careful, not to run my mouth out of spite, because there were people and things involved that I couldn’t handle just because I was angry. He said those people were capable of anything—if they really got mad, wiping out my entire family wasn’t impossible.

“To be honest, I didn’t take his words seriously at all. I thought he was just trying to scare me! I even shouted back at him, told him not to try that on me—I’m not that easily intimidated! He just pointed at me, looking fierce, and left. After that, we never spoke again.”

“You mean, he bore a grudge because you threatened to report him?”

“What difference does it make if he’s angry? Am I supposed to be scared of him?” Lin Zhen didn’t seem to think much of Zhang Dong. “After that, for a while, I often had the feeling someone was following me when I went out at night. It made me so nervous—I kept looking back like a crazy person, but I never caught anyone for sure.

“And my phone would get weird calls, numbers I couldn’t trace. The more I thought about it, the more uneasy I felt. I don’t have many people in my life, let alone enemies, so who could bother with all this if not for what Zhang Dong said? The most likely explanation was that the people behind Fangtou were afraid I’d mess things up and wanted to scare me!

“That’s when I’d already gotten to know Bai Yueni, so I asked her, just as a trial, if she’d be willing to swap identities with me for a few months, like a fun game. She agreed right away—I never forced her! And I absolutely didn’t mean for her to be my scapegoat or anything!

“I may not be much, not good at school, not very capable, but I’m not so heartless as to drag someone into danger or treat another person’s life as a joke!”

“If you weren’t trying to shift the danger onto Bai Yueni, then why swap identities with someone who looks so much like you? Don’t you see how unconvincing that sounds?”

“I don’t! I’m telling you the truth—believe it or not!” Lin Zhen’s temper started to flare. “The only reason I swapped with Bai Yueni was so she could be a decoy for me from a distance! No matter how much we look alike, we’re not identical twins—and even twins don’t look exactly the same. People who know us can tell us apart, let alone two people with no real connection like me and Bai Yueni!

“My idea was, if I ran away alone and those people behind Fangtou were already watching me, they’d notice I was gone right away and come after me—I’d be finished! But with Bai Yueni as a smokescreen, it would be much easier. I could slip away without anyone realizing, and if people saw someone still coming and going at my house, they wouldn’t be suspicious. When the people behind Fangtou finally caught up to Bai Yueni, if they looked closely, they’d see she wasn’t me, and by then I’d be long gone.”

“When you used Bai Yueni’s ID to check into hotels, did you have any problems?” Yan Xue asked.

“Not at all. Why?”

“If you could use Bai Yueni’s ID at hotels and no one suspected you weren’t her, why are you so sure others would be able to tell that Bai Yueni was pretending to be you?”

“That’s different! At a hotel, they just glance at your ID, it’s not the same kind of scrutiny. Besides, those ID photos never look exactly like the real person—nothing strange about that! But Bai Yueni was living in my house, a real person right there. Even if we look similar in photos, in person, every movement and gesture is different—there’s no way people could get us confused!”

“Those calls you got—were they like the ones you mentioned before?”

“Of course not! If they were just regular prank calls, what would I be so scared of? This was different—there was someone on the other end, maybe using a voice changer or something, saying all sorts of terrifying things. One minute they’d threaten to kill me this way, the next, another way!

“Otherwise, I wouldn’t have been so frightened, wouldn’t be so paranoid. I even tried to find out where those weird numbers were coming from and was told people use software that changes the number every time they call. No wonder every time I blocked one, another would pop up—never-ending!

“You have no idea how hard things have been for me lately! At first, my mind was full of those ruthless characters from movies and TV, imagining them chasing me all over the world. I was terrified.

“Even after I ran, I was so depressed. I’m not the type who likes roughing it! The broken-down cars, the cheap hostels—I’ve never suffered like that in my life!

“Then you found me and told me Bai Yueni was dead—dead in my own house. I panicked completely. The thought of her dying unsettled me so much I couldn’t sleep. I never imagined Bai Yueni would die. I couldn’t stop myself from thinking, if they find out it wasn’t me who died, won’t I be in even more danger?”

Yan Xue kept her expression neutral, but inside she couldn’t help sighing.

When Lin Zhen said she’d lost sleep over Bai Yueni’s death, Yan Xue had thought perhaps she felt sorry for the innocent girl who was killed. But it turned out all Lin Zhen really cared about was her own safety.

Lin Zhen’s character truly left Yan Xue at a loss for words. She was straightforward, even naive in some ways, so one might think she was just a willful but kind-hearted girl. Yet she also displayed a selfishness and self-preservation, using little tricks when it suited her.

Perhaps this is what they call the many facets of human nature. Aside from unshakable principles on the big issues, in the small matters of life, virtues and flaws often intertwine within the same person.

That’s why the same individual can seem pure and lovable to some, yet pretentious and hypocritical to others.

Now that Lin Zhen had spoken, the situation was no longer so simple. She couldn’t stay alone in Z City any longer. After being promised full protection, she finally agreed to return honestly to W City with them, to cooperate with the investigation and stop hiding as if playing a game of hide-and-seek. This was better for her safety and would also reassure her parents.

As Lin Zhen herself said, if the police could find her again and again, what if those people could too?

Being compared with the “villains,” Yan Xue and Kang Ge weren’t sure whether to feel flattered or not, but since Lin Zhen was willing to go back, the rest didn’t matter as much.

After helping Lin Zhen pack, Kang Ge asked where she had parked the car she’d driven, then briefly discussed arrangements with Yan Xue. Yan Xue would drive Kang Ge’s car with Lin Zhen, while Kang Ge would retrieve Lin Zhen’s parents’ car and drive it back to W City. Under the circumstances, Lin Zhen couldn’t return to her parents’ business for now—not until the case was resolved.

Fortunately, the journey between W City and Z City wasn’t far. Once Lin Zhen was reassured, her mood stabilized, and by midday, the three had arrived in W City. Yan Xue took Lin Zhen straight to the police station. Soon after, Kang Ge arrived, having contacted Lin Zhen’s parents, who would come soon.

Though nothing more was required of them, the Lin parents, overwhelmed with relief at their daughter’s return, insisted on staying with her. The police understood and accommodated their request.

Kang Ge and Yan Xue barely had time for lunch before a call came—Bai Yueni’s parents were arriving. They entrusted Lin Zhen to others and hurried to the train station to meet them.

The contrast between Bai Yueni’s parents and Lin Zhen’s was stark.

First, Bai Yueni’s death was a grim certainty—there was no room for hope. With an elderly family member hospitalized, the couple had been caring for them, draining their energy and spirit. Both appeared ashen and utterly exhausted.

Secondly, even aside from emotional exhaustion, their clothing and appearance clearly showed the wide economic gap between the two families. Bai Yueni’s parents hadn’t dyed their graying hair in a long time. Their clothes were wrinkled, perhaps from the packed train journey, reflecting the hardship of their travel.

Yan Xue had imagined they might arrive wailing or in denial. Instead, they were silent. From the moment Yan Xue and Kang Ge met them at the exit, showing their badges and introducing themselves, the couple just nodded woodenly, as if that sufficed for a greeting.

Arranged in the car, they sat in silence, one gazing out the left window, one out the right, barely moving—like two mannequins in the back seat.

At the station, Kang Ge parked and they got out just as quietly, following wordlessly through procedures and finally to identify the body.

Yan Xue thought that surely, at this moment, there would be some kind of reaction. Yet nothing changed. Bai Yueni’s mother only breathed a little more rapidly upon seeing her daughter’s body, eyes glistening but never shedding tears. Apart from confirming the identification, she said nothing at all.