On the balcony of the room, there was a pot of lily of the valley. A few thin, green stems hung clusters of white, lantern-like flowers. When the wind blew, the lantern flowers swayed gently, as if one could hear crisp, pleasant “ding-ling, ding-ling” sounds.
Who would have guessed that such a pitiable and lovely flower is poisonous in its entirety, with a toxicity so potent that it is enough to kill a human?
Luo Sui used to love lily of the valley, but at some point, she began to avoid it and loathe it. The lovely flowers that were originally placed on the balcony began to bear fruit, and the flowers withered, turning into shapes like hanging bells. Those clusters of white flowers seemed like the souls of the dead hanging there—white as bones, white as cold sorrow—summoning Luo Sui’s gaze as if calling for spirits.
She disposed of the pot of lily of the valley.
With her own hands, she stuffed it into a bag; with her own hands, she threw it into the trash. When she tossed it into the bin, the bag tore open, revealing the still-vibrant flowers lying there as if unable to close their eyes in death, drifting into Luo Sui’s dreams.
Reality bled into her dreams.
Waking up in a start in the middle of the night once again, Luo Sui stared with wide eyes at the pitch-black ceiling flickering with static.
As she watched, a deeper darkness emerged from within the blackness.
It was the shadow of the flowers.
The shadow of the flowers stood silently and leisurely on the ceiling.
Just like the person she had killed.
I did a bad thing. A very, very bad thing.
A thing that, if anyone found out, would certainly never be forgiven.
She shivered under the covers, closed her eyes, and slowly curled up, shrinking into herself, feeling the tears almost overflowing from beneath her closed lids… much like her heart, which was almost swallowed by the darkness.
Guarding a secret is like cradling a bundle of thorns.
Perhaps it was that Luo Sui, tormented, could not resist the temptation to unburden herself; or perhaps A’Kun saw something in her strained smiles and probed and enticed her.
A’Kun knew her secret.
The eyes that had been watching her in the darkness solidified, focusing into A’Kun’s eyes. The faint shadow of the flowers also descended from the ceiling, landing quietly beside A’Kun.
It smiled faintly, and together with A’Kun, watched her and laughed.
Luo Sui trembled uncontrollably.
The secret that would never be forgiven had been discovered. By A’Kun—by this man who had saved her, who cared for her. They had become suddenly intimate in an incredibly short period. He was her only friend outside of her colleagues, the only person with whom she could share some aspects of her life…
A’Kun knew—
Knew, knew, knew—
Knew—
“Luo Sui,” A’Kun called her.
They were in the swimming pool of a hotel villa.
The villa was built halfway up a mountain, far from human traffic. Looking out, beyond the infinity pool they were in, there was only lush forest. They were lying on two single-person inflatable rafts, drifting above the pool, bathing in the sunlight.
The ripples reflected the sun, shimmering and swaying beneath them. This weather—bright sun and quiet forest—should have brought a sense of comfort and openness, but A’Kun beside her looked listless, as if dizzy and lightheaded.
Luo Sui knew why.
A’Kun had told her long ago that he was afraid of water. As soon as he touched water, he felt dizzy and couldn’t move; he even suffered from strong seasickness. Although he had checked it at a hospital, listening to a pile of medical jargon and taking a pile of medicine had done nothing.
Since he gets seasick, why go to a swimming pool and lie on an air mattress? Luo Sui had asked A’Kun.
Because human survival cannot be separated from water, A’Kun had replied, then he smiled and told Luo Sui, I’m a grown man going out alone with you; choosing a place where I have no fighting strength is the only way to make you feel at ease, right?
Luo Sui had burst into laughter when A’Kun said this.
How humorous, she teased him. In truth, A’Kun had never had any lethality in Luo Sui’s eyes. From the moment he lifted the lid that was blocking her and pulled her out as she hid inside crying, this man had been an incredibly dear person to her. She could not raise any defenses against A’Kun.
…It should have been that way.
Luo Sui looked at A’Kun again. A layer of clouds obscured the sun, and the shadow it cast became a gloom in Luo Sui’s heart.
But A’Kun knows my secret.
What will A’Kun do?
Will A’Kun keep my secret? Will A’Kun distance himself from me because of this secret? Will A’Kun reveal my secret? Will A’Kun use my secret to blackmail me?
Question after question appeared in Luo Sui’s brain in turn. Luo Sui looked at it again.
The shadow of the flowers.
It floated leisurely on the water, climbed onto the air mattress, and finally attached itself to A’Kun. A’Kun smiled at her again.
Luo Sui was terrified.
Luo Sui had clearly killed it and discarded it, yet it had begun to be everywhere. As if, once it shed its physical form, it had become invincible!
“Luo Sui,” A’Kun called her, “you seem a bit distracted.”
“I… I’m not, I’m fine.”
“Is there something you want to tell me?”
“I don’t!” Luo Sui denied.
“Is that so? But I have something to tell you,” A’Kun said.
“What…?”
“I saw it,” A’Kun said calmly.
Luo Sui looked at A’Kun blankly.
A’Kun still had a smile on his face, and that smile—that terrifying smile was not her imagination after all.
A’Kun said to her in a compassionate tone, “I saw everything you did. Luo Sui, I know all your sins. I know you are afraid that this matter will be discovered… but it was never a secret that only you knew.”
No.
No, no, no, no, no—
The sin that will never be forgiven, never be forgiven—
The woman who had crossed the line of sin raised her hand again. She held a sharp, silver blade hidden on her person, like the gloom cast by that cloud, never leaving her heart.
She raised her hand and stabbed down viciously, piercing A’Kun’s air mattress. The mattress lost its air and could no longer support the weight of a human body. A’Kun fell into the water without even a struggle.
A’Kun had easily told her his weakness; she used this weakness to easily murder A’Kun.
As long as A’Kun is dead…
This secret will be a secret again. A secret only I know.
The deep, dark blue water isolated the two between the surface and the bottom. A series of bubbles, representing the final echoes of life, floated up continuously and burst on the surface.
Luo Sui stared at the water for dozens of seconds. She was dazed, not knowing what she was thinking, only that three images appeared over and over in her mind: the shadow of the flowers, herself crying, and A’Kun opening the lid.
Finally, her hand supporting the air mattress loosened, and she tumbled into the water with it.
She rescued A’Kun. She performed CPR on him.
She finally brought him back to life.
A’Kun raised his hand, choking and coughing. She waited for this wet hand to swing at her face, to strike away everything she had risked everything to obtain, and to strike her into the terrifying shadow of that flower… yet this hand fell gently onto her face, the rough palm rubbing against her cheek.
She looked over in surprise through her tears and saw A’Kun’s gentle face.
A’Kun, having narrowly escaped death, said, “Silly girl, I don’t blame you. I never blamed you. I don’t blame you for anything you do.”
The shadow of the flowers, along with the fear that was about to choke her to death, melted away in A’Kun’s understanding gaze.
She threw herself into A’Kun’s arms and burst into loud, sobbing tears.
The evidence was conclusive; all that remained was to make the arrest.
Once Zhao Wu confirmed that the “Old Hu” in the hospital was not the real Old Hu, he immediately prepared to arrest Luo Sui for interrogation. But there was a problem with this arrest process.
They could not find Luo Sui.
They first went to the home in Qin City registered under Luo Sui’s parents’ names. They knocked on the door for a long time, but no one opened it. Zhao Wu smashed the door and broke in, but there was no one inside.
In the three-bedroom apartment, there were still many clothes in the wardrobes. In the living room, a half-packed red suitcase was tossed aside, and a computer sat on the coffee table, with a brown leather-covered notebook next to it.
Zhao Wu quickly scanned the living room and went into the interior.
Ji Xun was not in a hurry. He stood in the living room, arms crossed, looking left and right, walking here and there, before following Zhao Wu into the rooms.
The master bedroom seemed to be used by Luo Sui’s parents; the furniture and bedding looked quite mature, but it appeared no one had been in there for a long time. The furniture was covered in transparent plastic sheets. After lifting the sheets and opening the cabinets for a look, aside from a few pieces of clothing and accessories, no other personal items had been left behind.
After looking at the master bedroom, Ji Xun went to check the south-facing room.
The layout of this residential building was not particularly good. Of the three rooms, the master bedroom and one side bedroom faced south, while the other side bedroom faced north. He chose the second south-facing side bedroom, originally thinking it should have been Luo Sui’s room. But when he opened the door, it was empty—only the room remained, without even any furniture.
Luo Sui doesn’t live in this room?
Ji Xun was startled and turned to look at the third, north-facing bedroom. This time, he found Luo Sui’s bedroom. Inside, besides the bed and wardrobe, there was a small vanity next to the balcony. On the vanity were some designer perfumes and skincare cosmetics. Looking further out, there were a few empty flowerpots on the balcony; perhaps Luo Sui had once kept flowers, only to give up on them later.
As usual, after Zhao Wu and the others finished searching, Ji Xun opened the wardrobe and drawers, peering around.
He didn’t move many things. After a brief look, he returned to the living room to Huo Ranyin’s side.
Huo Ranyin asked him, “Anything inside?”
Ji Xun: “Hmm, no.”
Huo Ranyin understood: “Mm.”
But while Captain Huo understood, there were others who didn’t. The deputy captain standing nearby couldn’t help but ask, “What’s there? What’s not? Are you two solving a case or riddles? One person speaks a riddle, and the other instantly knows the answer?”
Ji Xun smiled, lifted his chin, and pointed at the nails on the white wall: “He and I were talking about the photos. This is Luo Sui’s parents’ home. How is it that there isn’t a single photo of the parents and their daughter in the house? You can’t find an album, and yet there are obvious nail marks on the walls where things were hung…”
“I checked that last night,” Zhao Wu’s voice interjected from nearby. “Luo Sui’s parents went abroad for work to Africa many years ago and were separated from their daughter for a long time. Perhaps the daughter felt resentful that her parents had left her behind, so she deliberately destroyed the photos in the house.”
“That makes sense,” Ji Xun nodded.
“Alright, let’s leave the house as it is. Let’s go to her workplace and continue the search.”
The police officers filed out. Ji Xun walked at the end. As he left, he turned his head and took one last look at the living room. The three nails still remained on the white wall, radiating the cold, sullen aura of iron.
