“It’s fine. I’ll go look for them; after all, those keys are quite important.”
The officer, however, maintained an air of nonchalance.
Consequently, Ling Yechen remained standing behind Jing Lan, her hands still bound by handcuffs.
Officer Niu then called over a middle-aged man with golden hair and a woman whose head was wrapped in a blue and red patterned headscarf, instructing them to guide the new arrivals for their medical examinations.
Jing Lan was subsequently led by the golden-haired old man into a room furnished with a simple wooden plank bed, which, by all appearances, served as a temporary sleeping quarter for a parking lot security guard.
The man scratched his head, offering a somewhat awkward smile.
“Hey there, buddy.”
Jing Lan remained silent.
“Have you been bitten by a zombie?”
“No,” Jing Lan replied.
“That’s good, that’s good. Let’s leave it at that. Officer Niu is just like that! He’s actually a very good person normally; he even helped me catch a thief once. The thief stole a piece of Cuan-style calligraphy personally inscribed by a national master from my collection, and Officer Niu recovered it for me within two hours. He also really likes my paintings.”
“So you’re a painter.”
“That’s right, I’m a postmodern artist.”
The golden-haired man playfully shook his golden locks.
“Do you know who I’m paying homage to with this?”
“Andy Warhol,” Jing Lan responded with utter disinterest.
Indeed, the man’s facial features, coupled with his golden hair, bore a striking resemblance to the world-renowned Pop artist, Andy Warhol.
Andy clapped his hands together delightedly.
“That’s right! I didn’t expect there were still people who understood art in this world. Or did your girlfriend tell you?”
“My girlfriend?”
“That little girl with the white hair. Wow, her outfit is so stylish! White hair, coupled with that haute couture garment, delicate as cicada wings…”
“That’s a cosplay outfit,” Jing Lan stated.
“Ah… ah? Well… well, at least it shows she’s very good at styling, hehe.”
The man continued to engage Jing Lan in awkward conversation. It was then that Jing Lan learned the man’s name was Cao Renshuang, a locally recognized artist.
Years ago, he had earned a considerable sum by participating in the design of a scenic area, living comfortably for a while. Afterward, he was forced to sell his paintings for paltry sums, merely to stave off the onset of poverty.
“It’s a good thing the world ended before I became completely destitute,” the man declared, pursuing his lips and shaking his head with a slight sway.
“No other mediocre artists famous for their connections are competing with me for a living anymore, nor is artificial intelligence producing grotesque body parts to disgust people. I’m truly grateful to this world; I’ve once again gained the opportunity to become a great artist.”
The man paused, then asked, “Buddy, do you think I’m crazy?”
“I only think Officer Niu is crazy. As for you, I believe you’re an artist who is normal to the point of being mediocre.”
Cao Renshuang let out a chuckle.
“Actually, he has his own experiences. It’s his experiences that make him seem so rigid.”
“Everyone has their own experiences. We also have our reasons for killing. The only difference is that I don’t see killing as something with any distinct meaning, whereas Officer Niu regards obeying the law as if it were some sacred ritual.”
“Yes, yes. It’s just a matter of changing one’s mindset. Give Old Niu some time; he’ll slowly come to terms with it.”
Cao Renshuang glanced at the clock on the wall.
“That’s all for now. Your girlfriend should be done by now. You can go out and call in that teacher from the school.”
Ling Yechen and Keke had indeed finished their physical examinations and were now standing by the door of another room.
During the examination, Ling Yechen experienced a fleeting moment of shame, for she perceived herself as male, yet a female was examining her.
As the unfamiliar female characteristics were revealed beneath her lifted clothes, Ling Yechen let out a sigh of relief. ‘What was she worried about? It was just a female examining another female.’
But then she immediately realized, ‘This body, isn’t it mine…?’
Consequently, while Keke was being examined, Ling Yechen retreated to the doorway and began excitedly fumbling over her own body.
‘Strange, even though I’ve had this new body for several days now, why do I suddenly feel such an intense preoccupation with it?’
Emerging from the room, Jing Lan waved at Ling Yechen.
“Xuening, everything alright?”
“Mm,” Ling Yechen responded, straightening up with a hint of awkwardness. The handcuffs on her wrists jingled softly.
‘What is my relationship with this girl? She’s merely a fan of mine, and she knew my deceased good brother.’
‘Beyond that? It seems like nothing at all.’
‘But why do I always feel a strange sense of déjà vu about her?’
Jing Lan suddenly recalled something, something that perhaps needed verification.
Just then, Keke also emerged from the room, currently chatting with the woman in the headscarf.
“Just as that wild boar was about to uproot the tree, my dad finally shot the beast in the head with his bow and arrow!” she exclaimed, recounting tales of her hunter father to the woman in the headscarf.
Jing Lan called out to Keke.
“Let me show you something. Do you recognize it?”
Jing Lan pulled out a small stone and presented it before Keke.
Keke, a little puzzled, leaned in for a closer look. Then, she picked up the stone with her fingers and brought it close to her eyes for examination.
“A stone. In texture… it’s a bit like corundum, white corundum.”
“Why do I feel like it’s just ordinary limestone?” Jing Lan asked, curious.
“The color is somewhat similar. If you hold it close to your eyes, you’ll see it’s actually slightly translucent. There’s a type of sapphire that, due to other metallic elements, doesn’t appear blue but rather a cloudy white, just like this. If you don’t look closely, you might mistake it for limestone. Hm, it’s essentially a sapphire, possessing some collection value. But in this day and age, collecting gemstones probably doesn’t hold much meaning anymore, does it?”
Jing Lan, however, was not interested in the stone’s collection value.
“Besides these observations? Does it possess any characteristics that a stone shouldn’t normally have?”
Keke continued to examine the stone meticulously, even running her hand over its surface.
“There are patterns.”
“Patterns?”
“Very fine patterns,” Keke remarked, gently scraping the stone’s surface with her fingernail. “They don’t seem to be designs or characters, but rather… circles?”
Perhaps Jing Lan was more adept with patterns and symbols, for Keke returned the stone to his hand. Jing Lan, using both his hands and eyes, alternately caressed it and brought it closer for examination.
“Indeed, only circles,” Jing Lan concluded. “Can such regular circles form naturally?”
“Not to my knowledge. So, is there anything special about this stone? Who gave it to you?”
Jing Lan shook his head. “A Japanese person. I can’t confirm anything special about it. I just feel like it possesses some kind of magic.”
“Speaking so vaguely isn’t like you,” Keke responded.
Consequently, Jing Lan turned to face the white-haired girl.
“Xuening, I wanted to ask you something. Back at Minzu Middle School, why were you so reckless in coming upstairs to rescue us? Of course, you genuinely helped in the end, even saving the teacher trapped in the office, so the outcome was good. But honestly, rushing up so impulsively at that moment wasn’t the act of a rational person, was it?”
Ling Yechen, who had also wanted to discuss this matter, felt uneasy about the uncontrolled state of her body.
“I really lost control then. It wasn’t emotional loss of control, but truly like going mad; it felt as if someone else’s thoughts had been implanted in my mind, compelling me to do it. In fact, even participating in the rescue wasn’t voluntary on my part. A terrifying urge suddenly arose, and I uncontrollably rushed onto the car roof.”
As Ling Yechen spoke, she felt on the verge of tears, the unknown condition of her body making her increasingly frightened.
“I have a mental illness, and I don’t know if it’s acting up again.” In a sense, this statement wasn’t entirely false. Although she had switched bodies, her mental state would more or less continue from the previous one.
Jing Lan briefly reviewed his memories, secretly sensing something amiss.
“Then, if I may ask, your hair… why is it white?”