Chapter 24: Confession (Part One)
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Since the day trip to Hundred Orchard, Jian Ningxuan’s attitude towards An Bu became much more casual. They no longer deliberately avoided physical contact, and although they weren’t a couple, they seemed more harmonious than any couple. Jian Ningxuan felt that An Bu liked him, and he, who had never fantasized about love, quietly began to anticipate her confession.
An Bu had no idea about Jian Ningxuan’s thoughts. Although she flirted with him daily, taking care of him meticulously, it was all for the sake of color and vitality. It was like how she, unable to enjoy food, still tirelessly studied delicacies; how she, unable to distinguish colors, adorned her surroundings with vibrant hues; she had no emotions, yet she tried hard to appear full of emotions.
This was her obsession, the determination to live like a normal person. Relying on this determination, she had persisted until now. Once she gave up, she would completely become an inanimate object.
Jian Ningxuan’s anticipated confession might never happen in this lifetime.
“Mr. Jian, I’m going out,” An Bu called to the man in the living room while changing her shoes.
“It’s so late, and you’re still going out?” Jian Ningxuan walked over, frowning as he looked at her.
“Yeah, I took a temporary part-time job as a delivery driver these days,” An Bu explained.
“Do you need money badly?” Jian Ningxuan never interfered with her work, but going out alone at eleven or twelve at night was unsafe for a girl. “If you need money, just tell me. You can use my credit card freely.”
“It’s not about money. I just like experiencing life,” An Bu smiled. “Don’t worry; I’ve learned self-defense techniques. Dealing with three to five ordinary people is a piece of cake.”
Jian Ningxuan: “…” I feel like I need a formidable martial arts coach.
After bidding farewell to the worried Jian Ningxuan, An Bu rode her newly bought motorcycle and headed to the delivery location.
Left at home, Jian Ningxuan opened the phone’s positioning system, analyzing financial data while keeping an eye on her movements.
Nowadays, more and more people become homebodies, and their sleeping time gets later. They don’t want to go out or do things themselves, so most of them choose to order takeout. Sometimes, when the delivery drivers are too busy, the food delivery companies will hire temporary delivery drivers.
This part-time job was nothing new for An Bu; she had done it many times and was already familiar with the routine.
With over a dozen orders in hand, An Bu followed the delivery route, delivering each of them to the buyers. Along the way, she also picked up a few scattered orders. Going back and forth, she unknowingly spent two hours.
Carrying the last delivery, An Bu took the elevator to the 6th floor of an apartment building. Ding-dong, the elevator door opened, and outside, three men and a woman were waiting for the elevator. An Bu stepped out of the elevator, passing by them.
In front of her was a slightly narrow corridor, dimly lit and silent, with only the gentle sound of An Bu’s footsteps.
The buyer for this delivery lived in 605. However, An Bu stopped at the door of 604, not 605. On the tightly closed door of 604, there lingered a thick ink-like aura of death, not a premonition of death but a genuine death aura.
There were at least two dead bodies in that room.
An Bu took a step forward, pressed the doorbell of 604, and shouted, “Hello, I’m the delivery person. Your order is here.”
Then, she knocked on the door. As her fingers touched the door, it creaked open a crack.
An Bu took a cautious look inside, then quickly stepped back, pulled out her phone, and dialed the emergency number.
“Hello, please send someone over quickly. I see a dead body… Address? The address is Room 604, XX Apartment building…” Her voice simulated panic in a realistic manner.
Ten minutes later, the police arrived. An Bu pointed to 604 and said, “It’s here.”
Three or four police officers cautiously pushed open the door, leaving a young police officer to take An Bu’s statement.
“You delivered food to them, found the door open, and then saw the dead bodies on the floor?” The police officer asked while registering her identity.
“Yes,” An Bu answered truthfully.
“Did you go into the room?”
An Bu shook her head. “No, I saw the dead bodies and called the police.”
“How did you know they were already dead if you didn’t go in?”
An Bu said, “…Their bodies were dismembered. Can they still be alive?”
The young police officer blushed, cleared his throat, and continued, “When you arrived, did you see anyone suspicious?”
An Bu was about to respond when suddenly a heart-wrenching song played from her phone: “The loneliest story is that I am alive, and you are already dead; the saddest ending is that I am dead, and you are still alive…”
An unexpected heartbreaking song suddenly played from An Bu’s phone: “The loneliest story is that I’m alive, and you’re already dead; the saddest ending is that I’m dead, and you’re still alive…”
The police officer: “…”
“Sorry,” An Bu quickly pressed the answer key. “Hello, sorry…”
“What’s going on? Where’s my food?! Seriously, making a ruckus in the middle of the night. Can’t a person enjoy some private time?” After a roar, the door of 605 suddenly opened, and a man with a phone in hand and a stubble-covered face came out.
“Huh?” Seeing the people in the corridor, the man froze for a few seconds, then exclaimed in horror, “Uncle Police, is it illegal to mast*rbate at home?”
The police officer: “…”
An Bu: “… This guy is a comedian…”
After exchanging words for a while, An Bu “realized” that she had delivered to the wrong door. The food in her hands was not for 604 but for 605.
“Sorry, sorry, my mistake.” She handed the food to the man.
“Never mind. Murders have happened, who cares about these things?” The stubbled man took the food, glanced at the adjacent room, and said, “You’re really unlucky. Just delivering food can bring a bunch of dead bodies.”
Where did the “bunch” come from? Don’t casually escalate the case, okay?
The young police officer felt a bit exhausted. He said to the stubbled man, “Wait here for a moment. My colleagues and I will come to talk to you later.”
The stubbled man raised his food, “Mind if I eat while waiting?”
“…Go ahead.”
Then, the young police officer turned to An Bu, continuing the previous question, “When you went upstairs, did you see anyone?”
“Yes, I was at the elevator on the 6th floor and encountered four people, three men and one woman,” An Bu answered truthfully.
“Oh?” The young police officer perked up. “Were they together? Any distinctive features?”
An Bu thought for a moment and replied, “One of the couples seemed to be in their mid-twenties. The guy had curly hair like instant noodles, thick eye makeup, and a skull necklace with gemstones around his neck.”
“I know!” The stubbled man, who was squatting at the door eating, mumbled, “He’s Huang Shiren from Room 606.”
An Bu: Huang “Shiren”…
The young police officer silently recorded the information.
An Bu continued, “The girl had many braids on her head, looking like a watermelon. She had a nose ring, and there was a decorative small knife hanging on her waist…”
“I know.” The stubbled man, holding chopsticks, raised his right hand again and interrupted, “She’s Huang Shiren’s third girlfriend, named Su San.”
The young police officer recorded while muttering, “Do you know everything about their relationships? Are you peeping every day?”
An Bu continued, “Following behind this couple was a middle-aged man around fifty, about 170 cm tall, sparse hair, wearing a down jacket on top and beach shorts on the bottom…”
The young police officer: Have you encountered all the weirdos in the world?
“…Wearing a pair of Fendi leather shoes…”
The young police officer: My god, even he can’t afford such designer shoes!
“…With leg hair about five centimeters long, as dense as the primitive forests of the Kaxixili origin forest.”
The young police officer: “…You don’t have to use metaphors.”
Saying that, he looked at the stubbled man, expecting him to voluntarily disclose the identity of the person. With such distinctive features, he couldn’t possibly be unaware, right?
However, he was disappointed. The stubbled man clicked his tongue and said, “This guy is obviously mentally ill. There are no mentally ill people in our apartment building.”
The young police officer swiftly jotted down: It seems this person is highly suspicious. Committing murder and dismemberment is not something a normal person can do.
“Lastly,” An Bu continued narrating, “I didn’t get a clear look at his face. He was wearing a baseball cap, sports attire, head down, hands in pockets, a round earring on his left ear, and a partial tattoo resembling a trident visible on the right side of his neck.”
The young police officer: Did you memorize all these details at just a glance? Are people nowadays so observant? As a police officer, he felt overwhelmed.
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