Chapter 28: The Ulysses Contract – 4
A stylish motorcycle sped to the school gate, and Zeng Pingyun got off, handing back the helmet.
“Senior! When does your class end? I’ll come pick you up.”
“No need. I have a club activity tonight, and I’ll be eating with my classmates afterward. Thank you.” She met his sunny smile with a calm expression. “Also, you don’t have to go out of your way to drive me here in the future. I can take the bus.”
“Don’t say that. Anytime, just give me a call, and I’ll come get you.”
She hadn’t even saved his number in her phone. Hiding this thought, she smiled. “In any case, you don’t have to go to so much trouble in the future. Thank you.” Without giving him any room for imagination, she picked up her bag and left.
“Senior! See you after school!” he shouted after her, drawing the attention of many people around them. Zeng Pingyun lowered her head, wishing she could escape the awkward situation as soon as possible.
Setting aside the unwilling ride this morning, the classes today had actually been quite pleasant.
“Hey, Pingyun, I saw you.”
During a break for brunch with her friend, Zeng Pingyun looked up. “Saw what?”
Her classmate nudged her with her elbow. “Oh, come on, don’t pretend. A handsome guy has been driving you around lately, right? Tell me, are you in a relationship?”
“Oh, you mean that guy from another school.” Just thinking about it gave her a headache. Zeng Pingyun shrugged. “I’m not with him. It’s not a relationship, and I’ve already asked him not to pick me up anymore.”
“Huh? No way.” Her classmate’s mouth dropped open. “He’s… pretty handsome, isn’t he?”
“He’s not bad, but he’s too flashy. I don’t like guys with dyed hair and earrings.”
“Oh, really? I think he’s fine. How did you meet him?”
Zeng Pingyun stopped chewing and was lost in thought.
It had been a year ago.
After finally getting into this prestigious university, as a freshman, she had only wanted to focus on her studies. Besides her outstanding academic performance, her other three “credits”—part-time job, club, and love—were completely at zero.
After joining a club in her sophomore year, she had her first mixer. She had been looking forward to it, hoping to meet a guy she could talk to—
But it had been the beginning of all her troubles.
‘I’m Lu Zhiwei, a freshman in the civil engineering department.’ She remembered it clearly. The guy had appeared before her in the restaurant with a big, sunny smile, walked straight up to her almost the moment their eyes met, and said something completely out of the blue—
‘We meet again. I’ve been waiting for this day for a long time.’
Did he mistake me for someone else? Zeng Pingyun saw how serious he was and didn’t have the heart to ask him right then. But after that mixer, she had been subjected to his ardent pursuit. At first, they had exchanged social media accounts and chat apps, which she had accepted. Then, he had started sending her messages every night, which she would sometimes reply to, but mostly just leave on read, or tell him she was busy.
He was quite good-looking, and his approach to her was considerate, but the awkwardness of not having anything in common had convinced her that they were not a good match.
But to her surprise, he hadn’t been deterred by her gentle rejection. Instead, he had become even more proactive in finding opportunities to see her—just like this morning. She had never told him her address, but he had simply informed her that he would pick her up the next morning, and when she was about to leave for school, she had found him waiting outside her house. After that, he had never stopped sending her gifts on holidays and her birthday, and constantly checking in on her.
But despite his ardent pursuit, she had never given in, and had even hinted that he deserved a better girl than her. But to her surprise, he had just said to her very seriously, “My heart only has room for you, senior.”
She had later taken the opportunity to ask him what he had meant by that first sentence. “Have we met before?” But this time, it was his turn to have amnesia. He would pretend not to know and ask her, “Did I?” He didn’t remember saying anything like that to her…
At her strong insistence, she had wanted them to remain “friends” for the time being. Although he was reluctant, he had accepted it, but he had said—
“If you ever remember how good I am, senior, please remember that I will always be here waiting for you.”
It sounded like a romantic confession, right? But at that moment, Zeng Pingyun had only felt uneasy, even a little scared. This guy’s obsession with her seemed to be a little beyond the norm…
“He’s so dedicated. Pingyun, I think he’s great. If a guy like that, who’s a little stylish and drives me around every day and checks in on me, I’d probably fall for him in a month at most… two months at most! Why don’t guys like that treat me this way? I’m pretty cute too…” She even took out a mirror to look at herself.
Zeng Pingyun was at a loss for words. “You can have him if you want. Honestly…”
“But he doesn’t like me. It feels like he’s very obsessed with you. Are you really not considering it?”
Zeng Pingyun shook her head decisively. “He’s not my type. And I’ve already returned all the things he gave me. I really don’t want to give him any more false hope.”
“Then how did you reject him?”
“I just… said we’re not a good match, that he deserves a girl who is willing to put in the effort for him…”
“Oh, that’s not going to deter him at all. How did he react?”
“He’s still the same. I really find it so troublesome…” She ran her hands through her hair in frustration. Her phone suddenly received a message. She glanced at the screen, and was so shocked she almost dropped her sandwich.
“What’s wrong?”
The message clearly stated their location, in front of which classroom, and even which chair they were sitting on.
It had started about two or three weeks ago. She would suddenly receive strange messages from an unknown number. At first, it was just a simple greeting, and she thought it was a wrong number, so she didn’t pay it any mind. But starting this week, the messages had become her location at the time she received them, and she mostly received them on campus.
The frequency had also increased from once every two or three days to at least once a day. Although it hadn’t caused her any real trouble yet, it was definitely causing her psychological stress.
“Let me see… that’s so creepy. Who is this?” Her classmate stood up and stared at the spot where she had been sitting, then looked around. Students were coming and going, and anyone with ill intentions could have easily sent that message to Zeng Pingyun.
And because of that, the identity of the suspect, as well as their motive, was even more of a mystery.
Who was watching her? What was their purpose? Was it just a simple prank? Or…
“I don’t know who it is… I’ve tried calling back, but they don’t answer.” Zeng Pingyun quickly picked up her backpack. “Let’s go sit somewhere else.”
“Okay.”
Not far from where Zeng Pingyun was sitting, a pair of eyes was silently and surely watching them. Shortly after they left, he followed.
**
In the interrogation room of the Criminal Investigation Division, the conversation between Fang Zijun and the victim’s husband was still ongoing.
“Mr. Shen, are you familiar with your wife’s social circle? Did she have any enemies, or was she in debt?”
Shen Shiyang’s expression was pained. “My wife had a few close friends, but other than that, I’m not very clear. Enemies? Impossible… her life was so simple. She saved all the living expenses I gave her for her trips abroad. Being in debt is a joke.”
“So you’re not very familiar with her social circle?”
“Isn’t this a rape and murder case? Could it have been committed by someone we know? My wife… she was subjected to such humiliation before she died. It’s really too…” He lowered his head and choked back a sob. “Please, you have to find the killer. This depraved animal is truly despicable… sob…”
“Don’t worry. We will definitely get to the bottom of this.” Fang Zijun glanced at the camera without a trace.
In the monitoring room, Chen Huomu nodded. “Ah Wei, you can stop recording here.”
“Oh, okay.”
“Senior!” Zhou Jinglin rested a hand on the table, her eyes carefully fixed on the screen. “This recording, can I have a copy to study?”
“Of course.” He paused. “Little Zhou, I’ve noticed you’ve been muttering to yourself while listening. Did you find something?”
“I do think it’s a little strange, but it’s hard to say yet. I’ll report to you after I’ve sorted it out.”
“Okay. To be honest, ever since you met the brainy teacher, I feel like your investigation has become much more meticulous. That’s a good thing.”
Leaving the monitoring room with the file, Zhou Jinglin saw Shen Shiyang in the hallway. He was wiping his tears, and they nodded to each other when their eyes met.
‘I think I know who the killer is.’ Tang Yingli’s words from yesterday afternoon were still ringing in her ears—‘Even if her husband didn’t do it, he definitely brought it on.’
What did that mean?
In the past, Yingli would have told her the answer directly, but this time, she had been cryptic. ‘Go investigate the husband’s alibi first. You’ll definitely find something.’
An alibi— Looking at Shen Shiyang, who was now on the phone, Zhou Jinglin tightened her grip on the USB drive in her hand, her mind quickly replaying his testimony.
**
After her club activity, Zeng Pingyun, as was her habit after school, slowly walked toward the bus stop.
Ding-dong, her phone chimed with a new message. It was Lu Zhiwei. He was asking if her activity was over, and said, “I’m already near the school gate.”
She immediately changed direction. To be honest, she was getting a little tired of Lu Zhiwei’s constant hovering.
At six in the evening, the number of students had dwindled. Besides her, there was only a short, chubby guy behind her. Zeng Pingyun didn’t pay him any mind at first, but when she had made several turns and found that he was still quietly following her at the same pace, she immediately sensed that something was wrong.
Could it be, this person is…
Zeng Pingyun quietly picked up her pace until she was near another gate, where there were enough people around for her to easily call for help. She gathered her courage and turned around fiercely. “Why are you following me…”
Huh?
The chubby male student… was gone?
She took a few steps back. There were no school buildings nearby, just the trees lining the road, with plenty of places to hide.
Could it be that he had stopped following her because he had noticed the increase in passersby?
Her phone received another message. She clutched her bag, and before she could even look at it, she turned and saw the guy who shouldn’t have been there, still with a sunny smile, waving his phone, with a “gotcha” expression on his face.
“Senior! I knew you would come this way. Get in, I’ll take you home.”
Zeng Pingyun’s heart skipped a beat. In that moment, she felt as if she were being cornered, unable to move.
