At dawn, Lin Qingye drove her back to school.

At this hour, the campus was still quiet, with almost no one on the roads.

She said goodbye to Lin Qingye and returned to her dormitory.

Jiang Yue had just gotten up. Seeing her, she was startled. Zhao Qian was still sleeping, so she lowered her voice: “Ah Nan, why are you back so early? Did you take the subway?”

She had assumed Xu Zhinan went home the previous day.

“No, someone drove me back.”

“Lin Qingye?”

“Mm.”

Xu Zhinan put down her bag and went to the bathroom to wash her face. Jiang Yue quickly followed with her toiletry cup. The more she thought about it outside, the more strange it seemed—Lin Qingye bringing her back so early in the morning, then… what about last night?

“Ah Nan,” Jiang Yue asked carefully, “were you with Lin Qingye last night?”

Xu Zhinan didn’t hide it: “Mm.”

“…Oh.” She was utterly shocked but tried desperately to react normally, which made her look quite comical.

Xu Zhinan noticed her expression, paused briefly, and realized what she was misunderstanding. She quickly added: “It’s not what you’re thinking! I had a fever yesterday, and he accompanied me to the hospital; that’s all. After the injection, it was already very late, so I didn’t come back to disturb your sleep.”

Jiang Yue visibly relaxed: “Why did you suddenly get a fever?” She shook the water from her hands and felt Xu Zhinan’s forehead. “You’re not hot now. Has it gone down?”

“Mm, I’ve probably just been too busy lately. It’s nothing serious.”

Jiang Yue nodded and squeezed toothpaste onto her brush: “So you and Lin Qingye aren’t together yet?”

Xu Zhinan recalled Lin Qingye speaking to her at sunrise, the dazzling youth with vibrant clothes and an impressive presence. She lowered her eyes, her lips curving into a smile: “Not yet.”

“Yet you’re smiling so sweetly.” Jiang Yue rarely teased, clearly not believing her words.

Xu Zhinan was startled and looked up at herself in the mirror.

The young girl’s face was dotted with water droplets, her lips red and teeth white. Hearing Jiang Yue’s words, she instinctively tried to flatten her smile, but joy still bubbled from her eyes, clear and fresh, like rippling spring water.

“Yue Yue,” Xu Zhinan said honestly, “I’ve realized I still like him very much.”

“Then why don’t you accept him? He’s been pursuing you for quite a while, hasn’t he?”

“I want to wait until some things are resolved before we properly get together. I want to be good to him and make sure he’s always happy.”

“What things?”

Xu Zhinan shook her head without elaborating.

Jiang Yue didn’t think too much of it. After finishing her morning routine, she immediately headed out to the library.

Xu Zhinan had only slept briefly during her injection the night before. Now back in the dorm, sleepiness gradually overtook her. She took a nap and went to the tattoo shop afterward.

That afternoon, she had an appointment with a previous client, a girl who had gotten a tattoo on her arm before and now wanted one on her thigh.

The client sat on the work bed, numbed with anesthetic so it wasn’t painful. She played with her phone while chatting with Xu Zhinan: “How much does a tattoo like this cost now?”

“Same as before.”

“No price increase? Didn’t you win the championship?”

“Mm, the tattoo prices haven’t increased, but design fees have.” Xu Zhinan smiled. “Though they might increase after a while.”

“I’m quite lucky then, catching you before the price hike. But you should raise your prices. I went to that place on Qingfeng Road last time, and their work was just average, but their prices compared to yours…”

Halfway through her sentence, she suddenly stopped, staring at her phone and cursing.

Xu Zhinan pulled down her mask slightly and looked up: “What’s wrong?”

“A cleaning staff found a dead girl in a room at the five-star hotel on the next street. It’s terrifying! This must be a murder case, right? It’s so close to here—I’ve even stayed at that hotel before. I’ll never dare stay there again.”

Xu Zhinan paused: “Did they say how she died?”

“Not yet. Just that the police are investigating, and the hotel has been sealed off.”

Xu Zhinan didn’t say anything, lost in thought.

The client waved a hand in front of her eyes: “Ah Nan?”

She came back to herself, apologized, and continued with the tattoo.

She felt she was being too sensitive. Her father’s case involved kidnapping, which probably had no connection to this.

But she still felt uneasy and kept thinking about it throughout the tattooing process.

After finishing the tattoo and seeing the client off, Xu Zhinan received a call from Fang Houyu asking her to come to the police station.

The police station was busy with the case of the girl’s death at the hotel. Multiple media outlets had already reported it, creating immense public pressure to solve the case.

Fang Houyu was crossing the hall with a large stack of documents when he saw Xu Zhinan. He paused, handed the documents to someone else, and waved to her: “Come, Ah Nan.”

Xu Zhinan followed him into an inner room: “Uncle Fang, is there new progress in my father’s case?”

“We only have suspicions.” Fang Houyu pulled out a chair and turned on the computer. “Take a look at this video. It’s from the hallway surveillance at the hotel.”

He played the video. Ten seconds in, a man appeared wearing a hat, head down, dressed in ordinary clothes with no distinguishing features. His face wasn’t visible.

Fang Houyu paused the video and enlarged the image.

Beneath the short sleeve, one-third of a tattoo was visible.

“Look at this. Is it the one?”

Xu Zhinan’s pupils contracted slightly. She bent down to look carefully and after a long silence said: “…It seems like it.”

“We compared it with the tattoo style in the previous records. It’s very similar, but since only the lower part is showing and the surveillance pixels aren’t very high, we can’t be 100% certain.”

Xu Zhinan’s heart was racing. She was too familiar with this tattoo, every line and detail deeply etched in her mind.

“Totem tattoos are different from other tattoos. Although they’re made of lines, it’s unlikely that one-third would be completely identical. Plus, that design is quite intricate, and the combination of fire and snake is rather rare.” Xu Zhinan paused, staring intently at the screen, and said softly, “Uncle Fang, I think this might be the killer.”

Fang Houyu also stared at the screen without saying anything.

“How did you discover this video?”

“We found it by chance while investigating the death of the girl at the hotel.”

“That girl… was she also killed by him?”

“We can’t confirm yet. We’re still determining whether it was suicide or homicide. This is just something we discovered during our investigation, which is why I called you to take a look. You met the tattoo artist who gave him the tattoo yesterday. Do you know if he’s in Yan City or elsewhere now?”

Xu Zhinan shook her head.

Fang Houyu looked at her expression and sighed, patting her shoulder: “Alright, I just wanted to confirm. Don’t think too much about it.”

“Mm, thank you, Uncle Fang.”

Xu Zhinan didn’t stay long. Everyone was busy, so she quickly left the police station.

The sun was setting as she stood on the steps, watching the passersby on the opposite road, feeling somewhat tired.

Her phone vibrated. Jiang Yue had sent a message.

[Yue Yue: Ah Nan, are you at the shop? Could you help me buy a book from the bookstore on your way?]

[Yue Yue: I couldn’t find the version I need online. I need it for an online class tomorrow, and I’m worried I won’t get it in time.]

She also sent a picture.

[Yue Yue: This version.]

Xu Zhinan looked at it and replied with “Okay.”

There was a bookstore nearby.

Xu Zhinan walked there and showed the photo to a staff member, who led her to the book and picked one up: “See if this is it.”

Xu Zhinan compared it carefully: “Yes, thank you.”

She used to love reading books, mostly leisure reading. Her parents never restricted her, and her bedroom bookshelf was filled with books. Since starting university, she hadn’t read as much.

Since she was already at the bookstore, Xu Zhinan browsed a bit more and picked out two books for herself.

After selecting them, she was about to pay when her gaze suddenly froze on a man not far away.

Gray clothes, gray pants, short hair, ordinary appearance, looking to be in his forties or fifties.

Xu Zhinan had never seen his face directly, but she suddenly felt that the person before her overlapped with the one glimpsed in the hotel surveillance.

Her fingers tightly gripped the books as she tried to steady her steps and walk toward him.

Getting closer, Xu Zhinan moved to his right side and finally saw the tattoo on his right arm, half-hidden by his sleeve.

In that moment, she couldn’t tell if her heart had stopped or was racing wildly. There was an instant of ringing in her ears, her mind blank yet somehow utterly focused.

Xu Zhinan lowered her eyes to look at the book in front of the man—a cookbook.

She clenched her jaw and reached out to pick up the cookbook in front of him. The man beside her turned his head to look at her. His voice was very gentle as he said: “It’s rare to see young girls like you who love cooking these days. I hear it’s trendy for men to cook now.”

The man had a faint smile, peaceful and ordinary, making it difficult to connect him with the case.

Xu Zhinan’s fingertips unconsciously pressed into her palm.

She recalled what Lu Xihe’s master had mentioned—he wasn’t a local Yan City accent, sounding somewhat like an ethnic minority.

After so many years, Xu Zhinan wasn’t sure if he had stayed in Yan City all this time, and his accent may have faded. Even if she couldn’t tell if he was from an ethnic minority, she could sense that his accent wasn’t entirely local. He wasn’t from Yan City.

“Mm, in my family, my dad does the cooking,” Xu Zhinan said, trying to appear calm. “Do you cook at home, uncle?”

“Yes, that’s why I’m buying a cookbook to learn.” He picked up a new one.

Xu Zhinan quietly observed the tattoo on his arm: “Uncle, that tattoo of yours looks quite nice.”

“You know about these things?”

“I’m a tattoo artist.”

The man raised his eyebrows in slight surprise: “A tattoo artist? You don’t look like one.”

“Can I see what it looks like in full?”

The man didn’t roll up his sleeve. He smiled and said: “There’s nothing special to see. It’s quite old. I got it when I was young and foolish. I was thinking of having it removed, but then I thought at my age, there’s not much point.”

Even without seeing the complete tattoo, this close-up observation was enough for Xu Zhinan to be almost certain this was the fire and snake totem design.

She didn’t insist further, fearing that appearing too interested would raise suspicions. She quickly paid for her books and left.

At the entrance, the man hadn’t come out yet. Xu Zhinan called Fang Houyu and told him about this.

“You’re next to him right now?!” Fang Houyu jumped to his feet. “Don’t get close to him, Ah Nan. Nothing is clear yet. Take care of your safety.”

“I’ve already left,” Xu Zhinan said. “He’s still in the Xingcheng Bookstore.”

“Alright, we’ll dispatch officers immediately.”

With the man appearing in the hotel surveillance footage, Fang Houyu had reason to bring him in for questioning.

The police station wasn’t far from Xingcheng Bookstore, so the response was quick. Xu Zhinan didn’t linger. As she entered the subway station, she heard police sirens, and then a car stopped outside the bookstore.

On the subway, Xu Zhinan’s legs suddenly felt weak, belatedly. Fortunately, there was an empty seat, so she didn’t appear too distressed.

She had often imagined what her father’s killer would look like, always associating him with terms like “vicious” or “hideous.” She had never considered that the killer might be a very ordinary person, almost indistinguishable in a crowd, like a drop in the ocean.

If that man was…

Xu Zhinan could hardly imagine how such a person—a man who would go to a bookstore to buy a cookbook—could be connected to a kidnapping case, or how he could set a fire out of fear of exposure, and then cruelly stab a knife into her father’s abdomen when that failed.

Her mind was in chaos until the girl sitting next to her on the subway tapped her: “Sister, your phone.”

Xu Zhinan realized her phone had been ringing for a while; she hadn’t noticed.

She apologized softly to the girl and dug out her phone from her bag. It was Lin Qingye calling: “Are you still feverish?”

“I don’t think so. I don’t feel unwell anymore.”

“At the shop?”

“No, I just went to Uncle Fang’s.”

With so many people around, she didn’t explicitly say she went to the police station.

Lin Qingye paused: “Why did you go there?”

“Let’s talk when we meet.”

Lin Qingye was at Chuanqi Entertainment. After “I Come for Music” ended, he had fully dedicated himself to producing his new album. Today, Wang Qi had called him in to shoot the album cover.

The font design was also ready—two characters: “Nan Nan.”

He took a series of photos, finally selecting one and adding the designed font. With the basic design confirmed, it only needed some final adjustments.

Since having a goal, the album production had progressed much faster. As one person acting as an entire production team, Wang Qi had never seen a singer who needed so little management when making an album.

“By the way, there’s a music-oriented variety show that’s been emailing the company several times, hoping you’ll participate,” Wang Qi said. “Are you interested?”

“Music-oriented?”

“It’s essentially a variety show, but with music performance as the theme. You sing, play some games—it would be good for promoting your upcoming album.”

Lin Qingye fundamentally disliked recording such variety shows and frowned slightly, but eventually nodded: “Fine, let’s schedule it, preferably to coincide with the album release.”

“I know that.” Wang Qi lit a cigarette and asked, “Want to grab dinner together?”

Lin Qingye shook the phone in his hand: “I have something to do. I’ll go first.”

As soon as Xu Zhinan exited the subway station, she saw Lin Qingye’s car parked across the road. The green light at the crosswalk turned on, and she ran across.

“What do you want to eat?” Lin Qingye asked.

“Anything is fine.”

Lin Qingye thought it over. Going out to eat wasn’t very safe; if someone took photos, it would only create more trouble for Xu Zhinan. But always ordering takeout didn’t seem good either.

“How about we go to my studio? Shi Si and the others recently filled the refrigerator when they came over.”

Xu Zhinan naturally had no objection: “Sounds good.”

It wasn’t far from the studio, just a one-way street they needed to detour around. They arrived at the studio entrance in five minutes.

Xu Zhinan hadn’t been here in a long time.

Neither had Lin Qingye. In the past, when he still worked at the bar, their group often went to the studio for late-night snacks after performances. If he drank too much, Lin Qingye would simply sleep there.

He unlocked the door and went in.

It was much cleaner than when he used to visit regularly. The cushions were neatly arranged on the sofa, and the blanket was folded into a square. Shi Si and the others had probably tidied up before leaving.

Lin Qingye took her bag and placed it on the sofa, poured her a glass of warm water, then walked to the refrigerator and took out a bottle of cold water, gulping down half of it before asking: “What would you like to eat?”

“Anything is fine.” Xu Zhinan paused. “Are you going to cook?”

“Mm.” He laughed. “Dare to try it?”

“…”

Xu Zhinan watched as he picked through a pile of ingredients from the refrigerator and carried them into the kitchen.

The studio facilities were basic, not as grand as his apartment. The kitchen was very ordinary, with a ceramic-tiled counter and an old-fashioned faucet at the sink.

He took out a basin, dumped the ingredients in, stood at the sink, and turned on the faucet.

Xu Zhinan stepped forward: “Let me do it.”

Lin Qingye grabbed her shoulders and moved her aside: “No need. I’ll do it.”

Xu Zhinan watched him wash the ingredients and looked at the barely-used kitchen, unable to resist asking: “Do you know how to cook?”

“No, but I’ll try.” He smiled, admitting frankly. “Are you hungry?”

“It’s okay, not very hungry.”

“Then worst case, we can order takeout later.”

“…”

This was Lin Qingye’s first serious attempt at cooking. He had never done it before and searched for a few recipes on his phone.

Fortunately, the refrigerator was well-stocked with ingredients. Ji Yan had cooked here before, so all the necessary items were available.

Xu Zhinan stood by and watched.

His hands were beautiful, holding a knife to cut vegetables, the blade pressing down repeatedly.

He looked focused, his long fingertips poised, his forehead fringe falling as he asked softly: “Why did you go to the police station today?”

Xu Zhinan told him everything that had happened that day, speaking slowly without obvious emotion.

After listening, Lin Qingye’s knife tip paused, then made the final cut. He put the ingredients into the heated oil pan. The water hadn’t been fully drained, causing the oil to sizzle and splatter.

He covered the pan with a lid, leaned against the counter, and asked: “Are you sure that man is the one?”

“I don’t know,” she shook her head slightly, looking at the tip of her shoes. “It’s possible he just has the same tattoo.”

Although the totem design was created by Lu Xihe, some tattoo artists might steal others’ designs, and some clients unfamiliar with tattooing might simply show a photo of someone else’s tattoo and request an identical one.

But she couldn’t help feeling anxious.

For so many years, she hadn’t even seen a similar tattoo. Now that she had finally seen one exactly like it, it was impossible not to overthink.

At that moment, Fang Houyu called.

She walked out of the kitchen and answered the phone. Fang Houyu had just finished the interrogation.

“Ah Nan, that man’s name is Su Qian,” Fang Houyu said. “We’ve ruled out the possibility that he’s the hotel case killer.”

“Why?”

“The forensic report just came in, ruling out homicide. The deceased committed suicide.” Fang Houyu continued, “Additionally, we asked to see his tattoo, and it does indeed match the one from your father’s case completely.”

Xu Zhinan pressed her lips together: “So, is he connected to that case?”

“He claims to know nothing about it. We also asked about the source of his tattoo, which matches what you previously said. He did get it from Xie An.”

Xu Zhinan was stunned, her throat tight: “Then can’t you confirm it’s him? That tattoo design was specifically created for him by Xie An.”

“We can’t be certain yet. There’s a possibility the killer got the tattoo afterward. Just having the same tattoo design isn’t enough to charge someone; we need more evidence.” Fang Houyu’s tone softened, “Ah Nan, I understand how you feel. I also want to solve Yuanwen’s case. But we must follow procedure. Su Qian is still at our station, but without an arrest warrant, we can only hold him temporarily. During this time, we’ll continue looking for other breakthroughs. Rest assured, we all hope to solve this case.”

Xu Zhinan closed her eyes and said, “Thank you.”

After hanging up, she stood still for a while before rubbing her eyes forcefully and raising her head again.

Lin Qingye was standing in the doorway, silently watching her. When their eyes met, he smiled faintly: “Let’s eat.”

The studio didn’t even have a proper dining table. He placed all the prepared dishes on the coffee table, then put the sofa cushions on the floor as seats and pulled Xu Zhinan down to sit.

Despite it being his first time cooking, the food was surprisingly good.

Xu Zhinan sat cross-legged on the cushion.

Lin Qingye pulled out two disposable chopsticks, broke them apart, and handed them to her. Then he retrieved a box of alcohol from below and opened a bottle—he hadn’t drunk for some time since deciding to focus on his singing career.

Xu Zhinan rested her head on her hand, watching his movements, then held out her cup.

Lin Qingye looked up, silently raising an eyebrow.

“Just a little bit,” Xu Zhinan said.

“What, drowning your sorrows in alcohol now?” Lin Qingye only poured herself half a cup.

“No,” she took a small sip. “I’m just thirsty.”

Lin Qingye asked: “What did he tell you on the phone?”

Xu Zhinan highlighted the key points for him.

She knew he was right. How could someone be convicted based on just a tattoo, especially when the tattoo image in the case file was already unclear?

But the case had been investigated for so long, with no clues except that tattoo. Now, so many years later, where would they find new evidence sufficient for conviction?

“Because my dad was a police officer, I loved watching crime shows as a child. I remember a foreign detective show where they had basically identified the killer and just needed the DNA test results. But when the results finally came in, the statute of limitations had expired, making them invalid.”

“I don’t know if that man is the killer, but I can’t imagine how to find new evidence. It’s been almost five years. Any evidence would have been destroyed or contaminated by now.”

“If he really is the one who killed my dad, and we’re so close yet have to release him after the detention period… I can’t accept it. Why should he go unpunished?”

Lin Qingye sat across from her, also on the floor, quietly listening. He put a few pieces of food into her bowl with his chopsticks.

She had already finished the small amount of alcohol, so Xu Zhinan picked up the bottle and poured herself another half glass. Lin Qingye let her do it without stopping her.

She spoke intermittently about many things.

Eventually, she began talking about her past with her father.

Lin Qingye had met Xu Yuanwen during Xu Zhinan’s first two years of high school. He often saw Xu Yuanwen picking her up from school.

A bright white fluorescent light hung overhead in the studio. One of the tubes had a poor connection and flickered briefly.

Lin Qingye got up, turned off that light, making the room slightly darker, and when he returned, he sat beside Xu Zhinan.

“Come here,” he said, opening his arms.

Xu Zhinan paused, looked up at him, and didn’t move: “What?”

His voice was steady as he asked back: “What do you mean?”

Xu Zhinan was silent for two seconds, then gently leaned into his embrace.

Lin Qingye held her, patting her back gently, then stroked her hair: “Don’t be afraid, Ah Nan. I’m here.”

By the time they finished dinner and prepared to leave, almost two hours had passed.

Xu Zhinan had drunk quite a bit of alcohol, and her face was slightly flushed, but the alcohol content of Lin Qingye’s bottle wasn’t high, so she wasn’t drunk.

The weather had turned cool in the evenings. Lin Qingye brought a jacket from the inner room and draped it over her shoulders, then put on his mask and hat, preparing to walk her back to school.

They walked, taking the small paths.

“Cold?” Lin Qingye asked.

“It’s okay.” Xu Zhinan sniffled, not sure if it was because of the alcohol, but her ears and eye sockets felt hot.

He glanced at her, stopped while holding her wrist, then buttoned up the jacket she was wearing, zipped it up, and even pulled the hood over her head.

Walking a few more steps forward, they came across the fortune-telling stand again—that old charlatan Xu Zhinan had certified as a fraud.

Xu Zhinan’s vision was blocked by the large hood, and he didn’t notice until a voice said beside them: “You haven’t come for a long time.”

These words were directed at Lin Qingye.

He had been there twice before.

He glanced over, and the old fortune teller shook her worn bamboo container, making the sticks clatter. Then she said: “It seems you’ve taken the medicine I gave you. How is it? I told you, take it all at once, and your inner demons will disappear. The medicine works, and now your love fortune has returned. You should thank me.”

Lin Qingye: “…”

“Come.” The old fortune teller extended her hand, shaking the bamboo container again. “Young lady, draw a fortune stick too.”

“No need,” Xu Zhinan politely nodded. “Thank you, grandmother.”

The old charlatan smiled, the wrinkles on her face bunching together like the bark of an ancient tree with furrows and ravines. “You’re much more polite than this boy. He’s indeed fortunate.”

Xu Zhinan was about to walk away when she heard the woman say: “Young lady, I see you’ve encountered trouble. Why not have your fortune told? It’s not expensive—just for peace of mind. It might help your branches flourish again, bring spring to withered wood, and make it bloom once more.”

Xu Zhinan stopped and turned to look at her, finally walking to her stall.

The old fortune teller smiled leisurely and handed over the bamboo container: “Draw one.”

Xu Zhinan drew a stick and took it out.

At the end of the stick was written in red brush strokes: “Worst fortune.”

Even though she had seen this old woman sell powder packets that made people vomit and have diarrhea, and she didn’t believe in fortune telling, suddenly seeing this “worst fortune” stick still made her heart skip a beat.

Her fingers trembled, and the stick fell onto the table.

The red characters, illuminated by the light bulb, looked like fresh blood.

“Young lady, this is not a good omen.” She picked up the stick and read the text: “He Wenxiu meets with misfortune. The moon illuminates heavenly writings in a quiet place, suddenly obscured by fog and mist; be patient with an open heart until the clouds and mist disperse, then make changes for the better. This means family troubles and misfortune, disaster among household members. Pray for blessings and fortune.”

Xu Zhinan stared fixedly, saying nothing.

“Young lady, may you find hope amidst despair, turning crisis into opportunity.” The fortune teller pulled out a red paper-wrapped item from her table. “Take this, and you can surely turn danger into safety. Just 5000 yuan—spend money to ward off disaster.”

After hearing her speak, Lin Qingye let out a cold snort, his expression disdainful.

This fake fortune teller had raised her prices from 500 to 1000 yuan before, and now she was trying to scare a young girl into paying 5000 yuan.

He reached out and picked up the fortune stick from the table, tossed it up and down, then caught it and pressed his thumb firmly.

It broke.

He threw the stick, now broken in two, back onto the table: “I think this is the fastest way to break the curse.”

The old fortune teller was dumbfounded, pointing at him and stammering “you, you, you” and “I, I, I” for a while.

Lin Qingye couldn’t be bothered with her anymore. He put his arm around Xu Zhinan’s shoulders and walked away.

The old fortune teller watched their retreating figures, shaking her head: “Breaking a fortune stick brings great disrespect to fate. I fear that while the young lady’s crisis may be averted, it will transfer to the one who broke the stick.”