Overly Intense [Criminal Investigation] 175

Chapter 175: Overly Intense

The hearing had ended in the evening. The provincial leaders had specially come to Fengjiang for the case. Shen Yiyi was forced to stay and socialize. Fortunately, Qin Luo was there to accompany the tearful Shen Qinwen home.

When Shen Yiyi got home, Qin Luo was in the kitchen, wearing an apron and cooking. Her father was sitting on the sofa alone, in a daze.

The truth had come, and the atmosphere was oppressive. Shen Yiyi had not expected her ability to accept it to be better than she had imagined, especially when she looked at the back in the kitchen through the glass. It seemed that as long as Qin Luo and her father were there, she could be comforted.

But Qin Luo was just helping to cook. She had served three dishes on the table and had said goodbye to Shen’s father, saying that she had to catch a flight to Xiamen to record a local TV station’s Spring Festival gala and did not have time to eat with the father and daughter. Shen Yiyi had not heard that Qin Luo had this itinerary. Seeing her pick up her trench coat and was about to go out, she became nervous.

“Are you coming back in a few days?”
“It’s not decided yet.”

Qin Luo’s tone was not cold, and it was the same as her usual tone when she spoke to others. But Shen Yiyi could hear the difference, so she picked up her coat and followed Qin Luo. “I’ll take you downstairs.”

When she had closed the door, the person was already far away. Shen Yiyi had to take a few steps to catch up and hold Qin Luo’s wrist.

The dark corner of the stairs, the cold wind was blowing in from the window that had not been repaired for more than a decade. Seeing that Shen Yiyi had not yet had time to put on her coat, Qin Luo consciously stopped. “You should put on your clothes first.”

Shen Yiyi couldn’t be bothered with the cold. “Why are you suddenly going to a program recording?”

They had spent the Spring Festival together for several years. A few days ago, Jiang Yan had prepared the New Year’s Eve dinner menu for her to choose from. She had also thought that Qin Luo would definitely come home for the Spring Festival, and that they could have a good communication then, and the relationship crisis could be smoothly resolved. But Shen Yiyi had not expected Qin Luo’s schedule to be so full that she would not even leave her a chance.

“The itinerary was decided a long time ago.” Qin Luo was still afraid that she would be cold and reached out to put the coat on Shen Yiyi. “If you want to keep an eye on my movements, you can see the announcement on Weibo and the official account. This is clearly information that you can easily grasp.”

Qin Luo did not help her with the zipper as she usually did and instead turned and went downstairs.

“How long are you going to be angry?”

Shen Yiyi did not stop her and watched her go down the stairs, about to disappear around the corner. She knew that Qin Luo had work to do, just like her when she was escaping. She could not find an excuse to keep her, and she could only ask this simple question, hoping that Qin Luo would give her a solution, and she would definitely follow the standard answer step by step.

But Qin Luo just said, “You should go back quickly.”

***

Ever since the case hearing had ended, Shen’s father had also entered a state of depression. He would not eat, would not speak, and would sit by the bed, sorting through his wife’s belongings all day.

Perhaps it was Shen’s father’s vicarious grief that had taken effect. Shen Yiyi, in order to take care of her father, had become much more active and optimistic. She would go to the market every morning to buy groceries, and would also bring some for Jiang Yan on the way. Shen Yiyi had also prepared the New Year’s goods for the family in advance, and she had even gone to the hospital to pick up and drop off her cousin who was on dialysis at a fixed time.

Only when it came to Qin Luo, Shen Yiyi was a little powerless. The calls she had made had been answered every time, but they had been hung up in a hurry every time. The two of them were a little awkward, which made her feel uncomfortable all over.

The case had progressed smoothly, and she had to thank the people who had helped. Shen Yiyi had bought a lot of Fengjiang specialties to mail to Lu Shimao, but after asking for her address on WeChat several times, Lu Shimao had not replied.

A year had passed, and this time Shen Yiyi had not forgotten to send New Year’s greetings in advance. She had specially chosen a night when she was resting to call Little Lu.

“Are you still not coming back this year?”
“I’ll be back at school in about August.” The other end of the line was very lively, and Lu Shimao was almost shouting. “What’s up?”

Shen Yiyi was sitting on a stool, lonely. The moon before the Lunar New Year’s Eve would always disappear, or it would appear as a thin crescent. For the calendar observation, this was the end of the lunar cycle, called the new moon day. And with the arrival of the first day of the new year, people would welcome the new moon, which was the so-called bidding farewell to the old and welcoming the new.

She had loved to sit here and watch the moon when she was a child. As long as she looked up at the starry sky, the smallness of humans could become an excuse, which would make her forget her troubles.

“It’s nothing.” Shen Yiyi said quietly, “I just wanted to call you.”

Lu Shimao said, “Huh,” and then clicked her tongue. She knew the work intensity of the identification center. How could a busy person call for no reason? Just as she was about to ask what had happened, the other end of the line asked,

“Can you see a lot of stars in Xinjiang?”
“Of course you can.” Lu Shimao was excited at this. “Let me tell you, I even saw a meteor shower when I was squatting for goods in December. If it weren’t for the fact that I’m squatting on a case every day and have no time, I would have bought a telescope and would be squatting in my dorm to watch the nebula every day. That huge expanse…”

At this, Lu Shimao was choked. The person on the other end of the line was in the same category as Xue Tong. They were cosmic insulators who did not love to look at the stars at all. Even if she had told them, they would not have understood the romance of the stars.

Lu Shimao gave up. “Sister Shen, just say it. What’s up?”

“You didn’t give me your address. I’ll mail you some specialties.”
“Didn’t I tell you? Xinjiang doesn’t have free shipping.” But after Lu Shimao had said this, she thought for a moment. Sister Shen had insisted on sending them, and it would be impolite not to accept them. “How about this? You can just leave the things at Cloud Top. I’ll have the butler go and get them.”

“Cloud Top.” Shen Yiyi smiled at the thought of Cloud Top. It was another matter whether she could even get into Cloud Top. “Forget it. You can give me your parents’ address. I’ll just mail it to them.”

There was a hidden meaning in her words! It needed to be deciphered!

Lu Shimao’s keen radar sounded an alarm again. “Did you have a fight with Sister Qin… did she blacklist you again?”

…
“No.” Shen Yiyi’s gaze finally left the moon and moved to her lonely little bed. The two pillows and two blankets had been specially bought by her father last year. Ever since there had been a clue in her mother’s case, they had not slept well in the same bed.

Sister Shen’s words were weak. It was clear that they had had a fight.

But Lu Shimao did not like to overstep her bounds and still maintained a sense of propriety with her friends. If the other did not want to talk, she would not ask. She would only help when there was a difficulty.

So she changed the subject. “Is the case about to be closed?”
“Yes, the discussion ended a few days ago.” Shen Yiyi took a deep breath and, after holding it for a long time, said, “I’ve never had a chance to say thank you. I always feel that a direct thank you is too deliberate and distant, but I still want to say it.”

“Thank you, Little Lu.”

From her tone, you could hear Shen Yiyi’s fatigue. It gave people the illusion that her metabolism had been hollowed out. She was no longer a warm-blooded animal, but had a severe loss of temperature. If the sun did not appear soon, she would die.

Lu Shimao was silent for a long time.
She did not like to make friends, and one of the factors was that she did not know how to comfort people, and she also hated comforting people.

But the reason why Shen Yiyi could become friends with her was that they were very similar, like two vacuum bubbles. When they were confused, they would hide in the bubble, and silence would make the bubble blank. Once it was accidentally broken, it would be broken. They would not use emotions to do things with each other. It was always a direct transaction. For example, after helping, they would be too embarrassed to say thank you, so much so that when the other asked for an address, she would be too embarrassed to give it to them for a long time.

“Do you want to come and play with me?”
“It’s snowing in Xinjiang now. It’s very beautiful.” Lu Shimao took the initiative to send an invitation. “You can come and ski with Sister Qin, and then you can give me the specialties in person.”

Shen Yiyi did not immediately refuse.

“You can relax after the case is over. A change of environment to rest and relax might make you feel better.” Lu Shimao sincerely invited her again. “There are not many tourists in Xinjiang now.”

“I can.” Shen Yiyi’s stiff shoulders and neck relaxed. A goal appeared in the black fog that had opened up before her eyes, not work, not feelings, a goal that could divert her attention.

“But I don’t know if Qin Luo will want to go.”
“Oh my.” Lu Shimao felt that how could there be such an old-fashioned person in the world. “Just buy the tickets. Book a beautiful king-size bed room, a ski resort package, and after you’ve made the itinerary, just say let’s go.”

“She’s very busy.”
Lu Shimao did not believe that there was anyone in this world who could be busier than Xue Tong. Wasn’t she still taken to Hangzhou to eat fish when she had said so, and to the northeast when she had said so? “What’s there to be busy with during the Spring Festival? She’s not a police officer. Don’t capitalists love to rest the most?”

…
“It’s settled then. Let me know when you’ve bought the tickets. I’ll make time to pick you up.”

Shen Yiyi held her phone, thought for a moment, and stood up to knock on her father’s door.

Shen’s father was even more depressed than her. On the bedside table was an old photo album, and on the bed was a wedding photo. He was looking at his mother’s photo albums on the left and right, but there were no photos of his mother’s performance.

“After the Spring Festival, I’ll take you out for a walk.”
Shen’s father was lying flat, his voice hoarse. “You can go with Qin Luo.”
“Let’s go together.”

Shen Yiyi stood at the door, far from her father. The father and daughter had always maintained this distance since her mother’s death. They were always used to standing at the door. Perhaps it was because of their gender, or perhaps it was because of their personality. They were playing the role of father and daughter intimately, but they were always like a suspension bridge.

“Let’s go on a trip together.”

Shen Yiyi slowly walked to the bedside, sat next to the photo album, and helped her father close those group photos. “While I have a vacation, and you’re still healthy, let’s go on a trip together.”

To do the things that they had not been able to do as a child, to go on a trip, to go shopping, or to watch a movie would also be nice. Those things that a family should do should be squeezed out of time to be completed.

“Let’s ask Auntie Jiang to come with us.” Shen Yiyi looked down and used Lu Shimao’s rhetoric to persuade her father. “Let’s go skiing. There are not many tourists in Xinjiang now, and Qin Luo should also have time during her vacation.”

Shen’s father was silent.
“Otherwise, if you get sick next time, I’ll regret it.” Shen Yiyi looked down. “I’ve thought about it. It seems that I’ve never gone on a trip with you at this age.”

“Okay.”

Shen’s father sat up from the bed. He arranged the scattered photo albums on the bed. He was also old, and he had not yet enjoyed a happy time with his daughter. “We’ll go after the Spring Festival.”

Her father’s agreement made Shen Yiyi see a glimmer of hope.

Without any hesitation, Shen Yiyi picked up the phone and stood up. She decided to call Jiang Yan next. As long as she could persuade Jiang’s mom, Qin Luo would definitely agree.
But what time would be better?
Would Qin Luo have any plans for the Spring Festival?

Shen Yiyi was distracted by the plan. She sat on the living room sofa and looked at Weibo and the official account. She remembered that when Qin Luo had gone downstairs, she had said that as long as she paid close attention, she would know her movements.

Ever since she had gotten together with Qin Luo, she had not opened Weibo in a long time.
How come it was so messy after not being online for so long? Who was this person with purple hair? She took a closer look. It was You Ning. Who was the person in her arms?

Shen Yiyi frowned and enlarged the photo with her fingers.
Oh, it was another internet celebrity.
For some reason, her back was very straight, and she even let out a sigh of relief.

She had already forgotten how long it had been since she had seriously paid attention to Qin Luo’s movements. She also did not understand why she would automatically relax after she had gotten her. The regret of having browsed You Ning’s homepage eight hundred times a day had once again stirred in her chest. She had forgotten that love was not a silent exhibit.

It would flow.
It would flow from the darkness into the faint light, it would turn a corner, it would flow back, and it would never wait.

Shen Yiyi did not want to flip through the posts and quickly opened WeChat to leave a message for Qin Luo.

“I miss you so much.”
“If you’re very busy, I can fly to Xiamen.”
“Of course, I can also bring your mom and my dad.”

The purple-haired You Ning had too much of an impact on Shen Yiyi. Shen Yiyi’s tension was at its peak. She regretted her neglect of Qin Luo in her life.
The clearer the scene of the reckoning, the more she regretted it.

“I don’t want to lose you.”
“Can I come and find you?”