That meal cost three to four thousand yuan. When paying the bill, Jian's father and Jian's mother tasted it again and shook their heads at the same time: "Too expensive. Eating it didn't have anything special. Don't spend this wronged money next time."
"How can your daughter's filial piety be called wronged money?" The manager took out a lily from the bottle, wrapped it in glassine, and handed it to little Jian Jing, "Welcome next time."
Jian Jing looked up at him, and a trace of vigilance flashed in her eyes: "No need."
His interest grew thicker in his heart, and he handed it to Jian's mother again.
Unless she was very grateful, women who became mothers rarely received fresh flowers again. Jian's mother was a little embarrassed, but the manager had a sincere smile on his face, so she took it.
The three of them went out to take a taxi.
The manager watched them leave from the window. He saw the girl take the lily from her mother's hand, pretending to help her hold things, and then pretend to accidentally drop the lily into the trash can when throwing away the tissue.
The mother complained a few words, and she coaxed a little, easily covering it up.
"Did you see it?" The manager walked to the girl's side, bent down, and whispered in her ear, "At that time, I selected three families in total. There was a young couple more affectionate than your parents, and an old couple more loyal than your parents. But because of you, I chose them."
The girl raised her head, looking at him in shock with her still tender face.
"Yes." He nodded gently with a smile, "You killed them."
Tears gushed out, and she shook her head desperately: "No! It wasn't me!"
"It was you. Because of your vigilance, because of your provocation, I gave up on them and chose you," every word was like an invisible knife, killing without blood, "Because of you, they will die."
"No!" She took a step back and said loudly, "It wasn't me."
The curvature of the corners of his lips became more and more rich, and his tone became more certain: "It was you, look."
The scene changed instantly.
She saw her own community. He was chatting with a neighbor in disguise.
"There is a postal package here that needs them to sign for it. I don't know when they are at home. I've come several times and haven't met them," he asked the neighbor with the postal uniform he was wearing.
The neighbor glanced at his vest printed with the post office and readily said, "They moved out long ago."
"Where did they move to?"
"They said they went to study at Hexi No. 6 Middle School." The neighbor didn't remember the place, but had the instincts of a parent and firmly remembered one of the best middle schools in the province.
He pretended to understand: "No wonder they were in a hurry to move. It turned out to be for studying."
"Yeah, I met them last time, and they said they would move after August when it wasn't hot, but they suddenly moved away unexpectedly," the neighbor said knowingly, "They must check the household registration for transferring schools. It's much harder to go to school now than before."
He thanked the neighbor, turned his head, smiled at the girl standing on the side of the street, and said indescribably calmly and evilly: "You see, your family originally planned to move in August, but because of me, it was a month earlier."
Jian Jing pursed her lips tightly and held back without making a sound.
"Do you understand now? You overestimated yourself too much, thinking you could get rid of me like this." He put his hands in his pockets, leisurely and comfortable, "Big mistake, you just made me notice you, and then, I chose you."
He approached her face and smiled: "So you see, don't deny it anymore, it was you who killed your parents."
"No." She covered her ears, turned and fled, "It wasn't me, it wasn't me."
The wind blew.
The little girl's body grew taller as she ran, turning into a slender teenage girl, turning into a tall and exquisite young lady, turning into... a beauty in a rose wedding dress.
She stopped abruptly and slowly turned around.
"It wasn't me." Jian Jing woke up from her coma with tears all over her face.
Light and shadow intertwined, the cold white halo fluctuated in the darkness, unable to distinguish between reality and illusion. His figure was hidden in the shadows outside the glass house, like a lurking ghost, smiling and watching her.
She stared at him for a while, closed her eyes wearily.
*
The police took two routes. One team reviewed the cases Jian Jing had participated in to screen for possible revenge. The other team continued to investigate the guests at the ceremony that day, trying to find some clues.
Ji Feng determined that this matter had nothing to do with other cases, and insisted on finding the person.
He got the list from the organizer and checked it against the entrance surveillance to confirm each person individually.
After screening, several suspicious personnel were found.
The first thing was this: the invitation was given to a man, but the person who came to participate that day was a woman. After visiting to inquire, it was learned that the lover liked such upscale occasions and pestered the man to get an invitation.
That man had a wife and children.
When the wife heard about it, she handed over the divorce agreement without saying a word. The couple were very stiff with each other. The little lover had a clear background and watched the entire ceremony normally that day, nothing abnormal.
The second was much more suspicious.
On the day of the ceremony, there was someone who was originally supposed to come but said he didn't go.
Jiang Baiyan.
He was filming the TV series "Rose Gold" at the time.
Today's filming was on location, choosing a street lined with chinaberry trees. The golden yellow leaves on both sides shone in the sunshine. The slender jade-like youth standing under the trees had a quiet and sad expression, and his back was bleak.
Several cameras were aimed at him as he slowly walked from the end of the street by himself.
The light changed from dark to bright, the figure went from far to near, and the tree shade on his face slowly faded, revealing his face. This also symbolized that he had completed the internal struggle and climbed out of the unfathomable abyss, with his soul basking in the sunlight again.
"Cut." The director made a gesture and ended the shooting of this scene.
Jiang Baiyan broke free from the play. Before he got closer, he saw Ji Feng and Officer Gao standing to the side.
Sister Chen said in a low voice: "The two police officers have something to ask you."
"I'll step away for a moment," Jiang Baiyan walked to the corner away from the crew's sight, "What do you want to ask me?"
Officer Gao looked him up and down. Even as a big man, he had to admit that Jiang Baiyan looked good, completely different from the handsome Ji Feng, exuding a beautiful and refined temperament, very delicate.
Could he be the one who took Jian Jing away?
"I have something I want to ask you. Were you there on the 15th for an event you were originally supposed to attend?" Old Gao was older, usually acted nice, and asked gently.
Jiang Baiyan looked at his phone and got straight to the point: "Don't beat around the bush." His tone was very intimate, as if his youthful spirit had not yet passed, "You came to ask about Teacher Jian Jing's affairs, right?"
"Do you have any clues you can give us?" Old Gao probed.
He said: "According to the schedule, I was going to go on the 15th. I asked Director Mei for leave, but in the afternoon I filmed a scene of eating noodles and had to reshoot it many times. I got too full and vomited for half a day, so I had to go home and rest."
Sister Chen was not far away. When she heard him mention it, she hurried over to corroborate: "That's right, that's right. The director required real eating. He got too full and had to induce vomiting. It took half a day to get through it. I told him not to go and to rest at home."
"Can anyone prove it?"
Jiang Baiyan slowly shook his head: "I live alone."
Ji Feng finally spoke: "What about the invitation? The ceremony's security check required scanning the QR code. We checked everyone's number, and yours was used."
Jiang Baiyan frowned and thought for a long time, shaking his head: "Sorry, I just casually put the invitation in my bag. The bag was left in the crew van, so someone else may have taken it."
"Do you still have the invitation?" Ji Feng asked.
He said: "It should be at my house, I guess I haven't thrown it away yet."
Ji Feng stared at his face and asked slowly: "Recently, have any suspicious people appeared around you?"
"I'm an actor." Jiang Baiyan answered unhurriedly, "I meet a lot of strangers every day. I don't have the time or energy to distinguish them."
Ji Feng: "So you mean Jian Jing's disappearance has nothing to do with you?"
Jiang Baiyan asked back: "Why would I kidnap her? We have no grievances. What's the point of doing this? It has no benefit to me."
Sister Chen chimed in again: "That's right, our Bai Bai gets along very well with Teacher Jian. There's no reason to harm her. You should investigate others."
Ji Feng and Old Gao looked at each other without asking further.
After the two left, Jiang Baiyan said, "I'm going to the bathroom."
He went to a nearby coffee shop, greeted the resting crew members casually, and entered the bathroom as if nothing had happened. Then he took out his phone and made a call.
Beep—Someone answered quickly.
"What are you busy with?" His tone was sweet and affectionate, as if he was talking to his girlfriend on the phone, "Is everything going smoothly?"
"Don't worry, everything is going according to plan."
Jiang BaiYan looked up at himself in the glass mirror, the curve of his lips just right: "Is that so? When can I come over then?"
"What's the hurry, wouldn't it be better if you stayed a few more days - more convincing."
"It's been too long, I'm getting anxious." He was still speaking gently, as if afraid to disturb someone.
"Until she reaches utter despair, how can she possibly lower her defenses and accept you? Wait until I erase her memories, then I'll give her back to you."
Jiang BaiYan: "Is that so?"
"Of course, we just have some minor issues to resolve, very soon."
Jiang BaiYan let out a little sigh, looking rather helpless: "Alright then, don't deceive me. Otherwise I'll get very angry."
"You have leverage over me, what are you afraid of? As long as you help me buy some more time, we'll both get what we want in the end."
He seemed persuaded, his tone growing increasingly sweet: "Will two days be enough?"
"Good, after two days, you can be her hero, saving her just like - how she once saved you."
"It's a deal then." Jiang BaiYan hung up the phone, turned on the faucet, and wetted his fingers to mess up his hair, making it match his character in the drama even more.
The sunlight shifted, casting a small patch of gray shadow on his face.
*
The lights came on again.
Jian Jing was painfully roused from her sleep by the glaring lights.
He opened the ventilation window, then the serving hatch to deliver a loaf of bread and milk.
"I want a proper meal." She said.
"No being picky." He laughed lightly, seeming not to be angry. But Jian Jing knew he would never allow her to seize even the slightest initiative - be it for meals, using the toilet, or anything else.
He wanted to use these trivial but important matters to gradually destroy her personality.
It must have been the same last time as well.
She and "Jian Jing" went through the same suffering.
But he didn't know, the more he did this, the more determined she became. This time, she absolutely would not lose again.
She took a bite of the bread and mocked: "Hard and dry, can't even afford fresh bread?"
"Little Jing, angering me will only hurt yourself." He calmly pointed out the reality, "You need to learn to behave."
Jian Jing retorted: "Hit a sore spot? After so many years, I've made a name for myself, but what about you? Still like a sewer rat, envying others' happiness everywhere you go?"
He was furious: "What do you know?"
"I know you worship death, yet you're still alive. I know you say happiness is an illusion, but you're still jealous of others time and time again. I know..." She enunciated word for word, "You covet me, yet don't even dare to get close to me, you're afraid I'll kill you."
"You," Jian Jing looked up with a smile, "are a coward."
