When Ding Baoshu returned from the restroom, he saw Yi Jiayi waiting outside the hospital room and asked curiously, “Aren’t you going in?”
“There are Uncle Jiu and Brother Jiaming inside, they can handle it. I’ll take you home,” Yi Jiayi replied as she led Ding Baoshu outside. When they reached the ground floor, she asked him curiously, “How did you convince her?”
“Well,” Ding Baoshu began, “I told her about how I’ve been on my own since I was little, with both parents gone. My brother took on the responsibility of supporting our family very early, so he dropped out of school to make money any way he could. He wasn’t afraid of getting beaten or hurt.”
“One time, someone broke his finger, and he wouldn’t spend money on a clinic. He just tied it up with a stick, bit down on some painkillers, and slept through the pain. He had a fever for two days but eventually pulled through. Even though his pinky ended up crooked, it didn’t stop him from fighting.”
“A few years passed, and my brother told me he was in love and planning to marry, so he started looking for legitimate work. He went from shop to shop, job to job, slowly building a good reputation until people were willing to hire him for weekly work.”
“After he disappeared, I didn’t believe he had just left Grandma and me. I went to the police station every week to report it. Nobody believed me, but I didn’t care. Eventually, I was proven right—my brother hadn’t left us; he was just gone…”
Ding Baoshu paused there.
Yi Jiayi took a deep breath and continued, “Until his last moment, your brother never gave up. He fought back with all his might, like a tiger cornered by hunters. The killers said that for a long time after the murder, they had nightmares where your brother came back as a fierce ghost to haunt them. Even though they killed your brother, they were still afraid of him. And no matter how they attacked him, how much they tried to break him, he never gave up protecting his girlfriend. To everyone around him, he was a true man.”
“Really?” Ding Baoshu looked up, his eyes bright.
The boy who liked to act mature had, in that moment, shed his tough exterior and reverted to an innocent child.
“Yes,” Yi Jiayi nodded firmly.
Ding Baoshu smiled too, his eyes shimmering with a sadness, yet his expression was radiant.
“Then I also told Sister Shanrong about my work at Yi’s Shop, and said she could come eat there sometime. I told her about the delicious roast pigeon, seafood congee, siomai, eight-treasure duck, pig’s trotters soup, chicken feet with sea coconut and conch, beef stir-fried with rice noodles, fried pork chop, BBQ rice, and wonton noodles… I’ve tried them all at Yi’s,” Ding Baoshu swallowed, continuing eagerly.
“And the milk tea, Yi’s Iced Delight, ginger milk, and the ice jelly that Brother Sun Xin makes with all sorts of fruit and nuts… She said she’s tried the Yi’s Iced Delight and really liked it.”
Yi Jiayi couldn’t help but chuckle, “Did you recite the menu to tempt her into agreeing to testify?”
“No,” Ding Baoshu stated resolutely.
“I talked alone for quite a while, and she didn’t say anything. After I finished, she finally admitted she was very scared. She became numb after being hit for several days, but she was really afraid of dying.”
“When the killer had her, she kept thinking of pleasant things, tasty and drinkable treats. She quietly encouraged herself that if she got out, she could eat them…”
“In these past few days at the hospital, she kept doubting if she really had escaped. She was terrified that Zhang Dafu would suddenly climb through the window and take her away again.”
“She said she was kidnapped while helping the grandma pick oranges. While that bad man was hitting her, the grandma was sitting just outside the open door, snipping the stems of oranges over a broken basket.”
“She swore she would never eat oranges for the rest of her life.”
Yi Jiayi pursed her lips and gently rubbed Ding Baoshu’s nape.
“She also said that the bad man initially intended to beat her, starve her, until she was almost gone, and then kill her. He would describe to her daily how he planned to torture her until he killed her, cut her open… But she never cursed him or fought back. Instead, she would cry and beg him, talk to him about the latest popular TV dramas, about life, about many things. The bad man said no one had ever talked to him or listened to him like that, so he didn’t kill her. He even fed her and shared his life with her, later even discussing how he had killed others, each one, how he disposed of and buried them… She said she knows a lot, enough to ensure that the big villain gets what he deserves.”
Ding Baoshu looked up, met Yi Jiayi’s eyes, and sighed like an old soul, continuing:
“She asked me, did my teachers ever teach us to do good deeds, to help the elderly and the weak? I said yes. She said her teachers did too. But, the teachers never taught how to guard against bad people, how to protect one’s kindness. She said at first she hated her teachers, but then she realized that even they couldn’t imagine that people could be so evil. We simply can’t guard against dangers we can’t imagine or see. But if that’s the case, how are we supposed to feel safe living in this city?”
“What did you answer?”
“I didn’t answer. I only said that if all bad people received the punishment they deserved, other bad ones would see and be too scared to do evil.” Ding Baoshu looked up at her, “With such questions, even adults like you don’t have the answers, how would I know?”
Yi Jiayi couldn’t help but smile, then suddenly pulled Ding Baoshu towards a nearby shop and bought him an ice cream.
“Why are you treating me to this?” he asked, somewhat embarrassed.
Yi Jiayi didn’t reply but bought two egg waffles at the entrance of the alley ahead, giving them to him: “One for you to eat, and one for your grandma. You could try putting some cold ice cream on the hot egg waffle. It tastes really good too!”
“No need to buy any, Brother Jiadong has already given me plenty to take home,” Ding Baoshu felt even more embarrassed.
However, as they turned out of the alley, Jiayi stopped at a small roadside stall and bought him a pretty pencil case.
“Jiayi sister, I can’t accept this…” The always too-cool kid finally relented to call her sister.
Yi Jiayi stuffed it into his hands with a smile, saying, “You did really well today, Ding Baoshu. Buying these things for you is a practical lesson to show you that good deeds really do get rewarded.”
“…” Ding Baoshu.
The two of them walked to Ding Baoshu’s home, and it was only when they were about to part ways that he awkwardly thanked her.
Watching Yi Jiayi walk away through the dark alley, Ding Baoshu thought about Wu Shanrong’s ordeal and hurried after her, saying, “Maybe I should walk you home.”
“Why? I walk you home, then you walk me home, and then I walk you home again? Are we in a TV drama? You, a little kid, with me?” Yi Jiayi turned and waved him off.
Ding Baoshu was left blushing, rooted to the spot, watching Yi Jiayi until she disappeared into the brightly lit main street before he turned back to his and his grandma’s old house.
As the night deepened, someone was walking out of their past, stepping out of the shadows, already looking forward to and awaiting the dawn under the starry sky.
…
An hour later, Liu Jiaming and Lin Wangjiu returned to the police station triumphantly, carrying the good news that Wu Shanrong would be in court to identify Zhang Dafu.
Officer You Zhaohua, upon hearing this, made no comment, only pursing his lips as he began to ponder over Yi Jiayi herself.
What exactly is this girl’s capability? Why can she make so many far-fetched ideas come true? How does she manage to capture such odd perspectives?
If she really has a knack for investigation, why does she seem so different?
As if her thought processes and methods of investigation were completely unlike those of the detectives and officers.
At the end of the shift, You Zhaohua happened to meet the jubilant Team B members heading home, so he exchanged pleasantries:
“Did your lucky star, little number eleven, score another merit?”
“Lucky star? He’s never been a lucky star,” Fang Zhenyue replied, hands in pockets, striding alongside You Zhaohua.
As the two walked together, it was almost like a competition to see whose legs were longer, who walked with more authority.
At this moment, Fang Zhenyue, in high spirits from good fortune, was clearly outdoing himself.
You Zhaohua was taken aback, then realized that Fang Zhenyue was not pleased with others attributing Yi Jiayi’s efforts and abilities to mere ‘luck’. He wanted to make some light comments to ease the atmosphere, but facing Fang Zhenyue’s serious expression, he eventually held back all jokes.
“People only see talented individuals and comment, ‘Ah, so lucky~’ ‘What a lucky star~’,” Fang Zhenyue did not let You Zhaohua off the hook, continuing mockingly, then proudly added, “But a true connoisseur sees beyond luck, recognizing unique talents such as insight, judgment, learning abilities, and so on. That’s why only I could recruit such a genius into our team. Everyone else can only watch enviously as she helps Team B solve cases.”
“Hey! Who’s drooling?” You Zhaohua protested loudly while subtly wiping the corner of his mouth.
His fingers were dry, see, he wasn’t drooling at all!
Just then, Liu Jiaming, who had just dashed downstairs after submitting a report, was too caught up in the moment and exclaimed upon seeing Fang Zhenyue, “All set! Brother Yue, with Little Eleven this lucky star here, won’t our fortune be great and every case we take on be solved?”
“Blessed indeed, and of course, every case will be cracked,” Fang Zhenyue nodded, appreciating the phrases ‘great fortune’ and ‘every case cracked.’
You Zhaohua panicked, “Hey? How come when he calls her a lucky star, you don’t scold him?”
“Lucky star is a term our team members can use, but not those from other teams,” Fang Zhenyue teased.
“Hey! What if the PR department wants to continue using the ‘lucky star’ tag for Yi Jiayi in their publications? What then?” You Zhaohua challenged.
“We’ll see when the time comes,” Fang Zhenyue said as he opened the car door, a mischievous smile on his face turned away from You Zhaohua.
“You’re just biased against me!” You Zhaohua grumbled, walking to his own car, still muttering, but as he turned, he saw Fang Zhenyue’s jeep speeding past, the fleeting glimpse capturing Fang Zhenyue’s smug smile.
“…” You Zhaohua gritted his teeth.
From now on, he was determined to call Yi Jiayi ‘lucky star,’ no matter what!
…
…
After a three-day break, Yi Jiayi returned fully recharged.
Dressed in a new outfit, new shoes, and a new hair tie, she was glowing and radiant.
Coincidentally meeting You Zhaohua in the parking lot, she greeted him warmly:
“Officer You, my brother bought fresh dace this morning. Would you like to try some traditional steamed dace for lunch?”
“Good morning, Little Eleven,” replied You Zhaohua, who had vowed just last night to always call Yi Jiayi ‘lucky star,’ then enthusiastically agreed, “Sure!”
“It’s better to eat at the restaurant, it won’t be fresh if delivered,” Yi Jiayi advised.
“Then let’s hope there are no new cases today,” You Zhaohua wished with a smile, and indeed, his wish came true.
But Team B wasn’t so lucky…
…
Translator’s Note: New case in next chapter!