Chen Xuanqiu pushed open the police station’s glass door, breathing heavily. With mechanical steps, she shuffled toward the chairs in the lobby. Utterly exhausted in both body and mind, she was already at her limit, sustained only by an overwhelming will to survive.
“Keep going, Chen Xuanqiu, only a few meters left.”
Chen Xuanqiu, her eyes vacant, dragged her feet towards the row of chairs, moving like a zombie.
“Little girl, what’s wrong?”
The voice of the officer on duty drifted from behind the reception desk; it sounded like a young man.
Chen Xuanqiu no longer had the strength to even move her eyes. She reached the chairs and collapsed like a pile of mud. The moment her taut nerves relaxed, an overwhelming wave of exhaustion swallowed her consciousness, and her vision swam before she fainted.
****
The Chen family residence in Donghui City.
After nearly two months of waiting, the family of three seemed to have accepted their reality, and the atmosphere at breakfast was relatively normal.
“Darling, have you signed the contract with the Fu family?”
Melissa suddenly asked.
“I signed it yesterday. After all this time, they only agreed to a one-year contract, almost like a token of consolation.”
Chen Degao chuckled self-deprecatingly.
“Darling, try to see it positively. After all, it’s Qiu’s hard work, and something is better than nothing.”
Melissa comforted him.
“Indeed. That’s why I didn’t argue with Fu Fawu. But he never dreamed that my daughter is still safe and sound at home. Once we find other partners, we’ll see who ends up begging whom.”
Chen Degao glanced confidently at his daughter beside him.
“Our daughter is indeed safe, but our son… our son, he…”
Melissa took a deep, shaky breath.
Hearing her mother’s words, Chen Xuanzhu, who had barely eaten a few bites, silently put down her chopsticks and turned to leave the kitchen.
“Melissa, I know you’re hurting. But we should try our best not to mention her brother in front of our daughter from now on. You know she’s been wracked with guilt over this, and you wouldn’t want her to live her entire life burdened by it, would you?”
Chen Degao quickly urged his wife.
“I’m sorry, I couldn’t control my emotions for a moment. When I think about how we didn’t care enough for him before, I just…”
Melissa frantically wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes.
“It’s alright, it’s all in the past.”
Chen Degao stroked his wife’s dark golden hair, a look of remorse clouding his face. Due to his son’s appearance and personality, he had never truly acknowledged him. Now, it was too late to make amends.
“I’ve been seriously considering things lately. Little Qiu is likely not coming back, but our lives must go on. Especially our daughter; she’s still young and can’t live her life in a daze like this.”
Chen Degao said after a long silence.
“So, what are your plans, darling?”
Melissa asked thoughtfully.
“Once we have time this weekend, we’ll go to the police station to report the true situation and let Xiao Zhu resume her identity.”
Chen Degao gritted his teeth slightly as he made his decision.
“But… but wouldn’t the Fu family be angry if we did that?”
Melissa seemed hesitant.
“It doesn’t matter; the contract has already been signed anyway. Considering the Fu family’s current attitude, even if we keep quiet, they certainly won’t cooperate with us in the future. Given that, why should we tie ourselves in knots?”
Chen Degao explained, then added: “Besides, while the company is important, it’s nothing compared to our daughter. I don’t want her to live her entire life pretending to be Xiao Qiu.”
Melissa fell into deep thought. Though she said nothing aloud, her heart remained unsettled for a long time. She understood that this would be a tacit admission that their son was gone.
“If that’s the case, shouldn’t we erect a memorial for him? He was sixteen this year; in a few more years, he would have found a girlfriend. We didn’t take good care of him when he was alive, so we can’t let him be without a resting place after death, can we? But the problem is, we haven’t even found his remains. What do you think we should do?”
As Melissa spoke, she painfully closed her eyes once more.
“Melissa, don’t overthink it. I’ll take care of these matters.”
Chen Degao sighed.
****
Chen Xuanqiu gradually regained a sliver of consciousness. Then, she heard the wails of a woman. The cries were soul-rending, as if the woman was enduring countless tortures.
“Doctor… my stomach hurts so much… save me…”
“You’re lying to me, aren’t you? If I really have a terminal illness, please just tell me directly. I’ll go home, I won’t trouble you.”
“You’re all liars! I clearly have cancer, yet you’ve been hiding it from me.”
****
Chen Xuanqiu suddenly snapped awake. The wailing ceased abruptly. Her eyes met a pristine white ceiling, and the strong scent of medicine wafted into her nostrils.
Chen Xuanqiu, still shaken, looked around. She realized she was lying in a hospital bed, receiving an IV drip. Several other beds surrounded her, each occupied by a patient, yet she heard no one wailing.
‘That’s odd. Who was screaming just now? It sounded so heart-wrenching.’
Unable to comprehend, Chen Xuanqiu withdrew her gaze. She then noticed two unfamiliar men standing by her bedside: one in his twenties, the other in his thirties.
‘Who are they?’
Like a startled bird, Chen Xuanqiu tried to sit up. But she found her body weak and limp, utterly devoid of strength. If this hadn’t been a hospital, she surely would have cried for help.
“You’re awake. How are you feeling?”
The young man by the bed noticed her movement, opening his hazy eyes.
“I’m fine, just a bit weak. May I ask who you are?”
Chen Xuanqiu asked cautiously.
“My name is Fang… Fang Jianbo, and I’m a police officer. The one sitting on the stool is our… our Captain Kong Jialong.”
Under Chen Xuanqiu’s gaze, the young man pretended to be calm as he introduced himself, yet his voice still stammered.
The middle-aged man sitting on the stool beside him also woke up and continued: “You fainted at our police station the day before yesterday morning, so we brought you to the hospital. Do you remember?”
“I remember. Thank you.”
Chen Xuanqiu let out a long sigh of relief.
“It’s nothing; we’re police officers, after all. It’s our duty.”
Fang Jianbo rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, his cheeks flushing slightly.
“Little sister, can you tell me your name? What exactly happened? Why were you in such a sorry state?”
Although Kong Jialong was usually stern, he tried to speak in a gentle tone. He was afraid of frightening the delicate-looking girl before him.
“I…”
Chen Xuanqiu opened her mouth, intending to tell them everything. But she suddenly realized something and swallowed the words she was about to say. She had experienced too much in the past two months; some things could be told, others could not.
“What’s wrong?”
Kong Jialong frowned slightly.
“Don’t be scared. If someone bullied you, just tell us. Your police brothers will definitely help you get justice.”
Fang Jianbo thumped his chest.
“My name is Chen Xuanzhu, and I’m from Donghui City. About two months ago, I was kidnapped and then brought here by them…”
Chen Xuanqiu spoke concisely, concealing all the details. She knew those things couldn’t be revealed, or else, just as Dr. Wei had warned, she might spend the rest of her life in a laboratory. Moreover, she couldn’t betray her savior.
As for why Chen Xuanqiu claimed to be Chen Xuanzhu, she believed her parents must have given her sister’s name when reporting the kidnapping. There were two reasons: first, they wouldn’t want their efforts to be in vain, and second, since she and her sister looked identical, it wouldn’t matter whose name was reported.
‘Chen Xuanzhu? Why does that name sound so familiar?’
Kong Jialong fell into thought, then slapped his forehead a moment later. He pulled out his phone, checked something, and then exclaimed with delight: “That’s right! She really is Chen Xuanzhu, the high school girl who went missing in Donghui City two months ago.”
“Yes, I knew she looked familiar.”
Fang Jianbo, standing nearby, also said with dawning realization.
Kong Jialong couldn’t help but exclaim. Everyone knew how dangerous the world was for young girls. Based on his years of case experience, when a girl was kidnapped, it usually meant a dire outcome—either killed after being used, or imprisoned as a breeding tool. This kind of situation was a first.
“Can you tell me what happened after you were kidnapped? How did you escape?”
Kong Jialong asked curiously.
“I don’t remember.”
Chen Xuanqiu decisively chose to keep silent.
“You don’t remember? How is that possible?”
Kong Jialong’s brows furrowed deeply.
“I was drugged by them, and I’ve been in a daze all this time. I don’t even remember how I escaped.”
Chen Xuanqiu explained, mixing truth with fabrication.
“Then can you try to remember where you escaped from?”
Kong Jialong pressed, unwilling to give up.
“I have no recollection.”
Chen Xuanqiu feigned a moment of thought.
Kong Jialong reluctantly gave up questioning. Just then, his phone suddenly rang.
“What… the abandoned factory in the western suburbs… what happened… more than ten bodies…”
Kong Jialong walked to the window to answer the call, his muffled voice barely audible.
‘Western suburbs? Abandoned factory? Bodies?’
Hearing these words, an ominous premonition rose within Chen Xuanqiu, for the place she had been held was precisely an abandoned factory in the western suburbs.