Dark Light Chaser.

Chapter 197 Different Endings
Leave the captain's office.

The messenger happened to run into Kim An-pean after he had taken the photo.

Jin Ping'an glanced at the paper bag in the messenger's hand and asked, "What's this?"

"The legacy of the Ansien family."

The messenger had no intention of hiding anything. Besides, Jin Ping'an was a member of the criminal investigation team, and he could easily find out about this by asking around. There was no way to hide it from him.

Jin Ping'an, who was already in a low mood, became even more gloomy after hearing the name An Si'en.

After all, he had seen the video message from Ansien's mother, as well as the video of Ansien's suicide and her suicide note.

This had a significant impact on him at the time.

The thought that An Sien's life was also ruined by the persecution of Hu Yingshao's men made her feel terrible.

Anger rose in Jin Ping'an's heart, but soon it all turned into resentment.

Because Hu Yingshao is already dead.

He had manipulated people while he was alive, and after finally obtaining evidence to put this guy to trial, he died on the spot without uttering a sound.

He died before he could face any trial.

It's like you've spent four or five hours whittling down a world boss until it's down to its last sliver of health, and just when you're about to take it down, it disappears into thin air because its respawn time has expired.

This result can instantly raise your blood pressure.

Just as Jin Ping'an was still thinking about what to say to the messenger next, his phone suddenly rang.

He glanced at the caller ID and his heart skipped a beat.

Because this number is not a personal number, but a hospital landline.

Upon answering the phone, Jin Ping'an's face trembled violently, like a wet dough thrown into a hot oil pan.

He hung up the phone and looked at the messenger, his expression extremely bitter: "Could you take me to the hospital?"

The messenger nodded: "No problem, I'm just passing by to return the car, I can give you a ride... I've already taken care of the kidnapping case for you, I won't be using that phone number anymore, you can delete it."

The messenger's words implied that the mission was complete, and after this trip, they would part ways.

Jin Ping'an hummed in agreement, but didn't say anything more than the usual platitudes about maintaining a closer relationship.

Based on his understanding of the messenger, once the case was solved, their interactions would end there.

The reason why we were able to find such a powerful external helper as the messenger was not only due to Ai Liang's matchmaking, but also largely due to the messenger's own experience.

If this case weren't so similar to the messenger's past experiences, who would risk their life to help investigate from Nevada for $100,000?

With the kidnapping case closed, the chances of contacting the messenger again are extremely slim.

The two arrived at the entrance of the criminal investigation team.

Jin Pingan climbed into the passenger seat and fastened his seatbelt.

After a long while, he finally composed himself and said, "Zhou Yinlian committed suicide."

Jin Ping'an turned to look at the messenger.

But this time, the messenger remained calm, showing no doubt or hesitation.

"And then?" the messenger asked.

He knew very well that if Zhou Yinlian were really dead, Jin Ping'an would never be so calm.

"...As you predicted, after she woke up, she attempted suicide with a fruit knife, but because she was too weak to move after waking up, she failed and only suffered minor injuries."

Jin Pingan turned his head and looked at the scene rushing past outside the window, lost in thought.

"I was abused by my biological parents for many years, sold to human traffickers, had my left eye gouged out by bad guys, leaving me disabled, and was almost melted by strong acid."

He was eventually saved by the hospital, but he still had to face a life of destitution, helplessness, and a future without hope.

These experiences, let alone those of a minor girl, would likely lead even an adult to take their own life immediately.

The messenger calmly analyzed Zhou Yinlian's situation.

With each word he spoke, Jin Ping'an's fist clenched tighter.

These words were like dull knives, cutting into Jin Ping'an's heart, causing him unbearable pain.

"So, you think that stopping her from committing suicide is saving her?"

Jin Ping'an lowered his head and said in a low voice, "But the hospital nurses also..."

Jin Ping'an attempted to use the good deeds of others to prove that saving people was not wrong.

"The hospital staff stopped Zhou Yinlian from committing suicide because the hospital has an obligation to be responsible for its patients. If she had died in the hospital, the hospital would have been stigmatized for negligence in care leading to death."

When we get to the hospital, guess what the first thing the attending physician or nurse will say to you is, will it be about discussing Zhou Yinlian's injuries, or about processing her discharge?

The messenger laid bare the cold, hard reality in front of Jin Ping'an, leaving him nowhere to hide.

"A patient with suicidal tendencies is someone that no hospital, including mental hospitals, would want to admit."

When people fall into despair, they will think the worst about everything.

Zhou Yinlian was still young, and she never imagined that her extreme behavior would lead the hospital to want to kick her out.

Having grown accustomed to hardship, she could only conclude that she couldn't afford the hospital fees and that the hospital didn't want to waste resources on her, which only made her more desperate.

However… thinking about it carefully, the two reasons are not that different.”

Finally, the messenger chuckled.

That sneer pierced Jin Ping'an's heart.

"If... I mean if, you knew beforehand that Ansien wanted to commit suicide, would you have tried to stop her?"

Jin Ping'an asked the same question he hadn't been able to get an answer from Ai Liang.

Ai Liang didn't answer him at first; he wanted to see how the messenger would respond.

However, the messenger's answer was even more indifferent and heartless than Ai Liang's indifference: "Even if I knew in advance that she wanted to commit suicide, I would not interfere with her choice."

That was her own decision, and I might offer a few words of advice out of consideration for our past acquaintance.

If you interfere with other people's choices, be prepared to take responsibility.

People who impulsively contemplate suicide may still be saved.

But please don't save someone who has suffered greatly and wants to end it all, then just walk away thinking you've done a good deed.

Doing so will only subject others to the pain and despair of struggle once more.

After listening to the messenger's insights, Jin Ping'an's expression changed several times.

"Are we just supposed to watch her walk down the path of self-destruction?"

The messenger looked straight ahead, not even glancing at Jin Ping'an: "Don't flatter yourself. That's her life, not yours. You're just a policeman."

Even if I'm just a policeman...

"Ultimately, do you want to save Zhou Yinlian for your own satisfaction, or for her future?"

The question that the messenger had asked through Ai Liang before was once again placed before Jin Ping'an.

This time, however, he gave a clear response.

"Both!"

This time, Jin Ping'an did not run away. He chose to face his own heart. His next words were less a reply to the messenger and more like a speech to himself.

"I want to help Zhou Yinlian out of despair, but I also want to satisfy my own heroic fantasies, so I won't let her commit suicide!"

"Is that so?" the messenger replied casually.

His face showed no emotion.

………………

The hospital has arrived.

After parking the car, Jin Ping'an, accompanied by the messenger, arrived at Zhou Yinlian's hospital room.

As soon as the door opened, a nurse had just finished bandaging Zhou Yinlian's wound.

"Are you alright?" Jin Ping'an asked the nurse in a low voice.

The nurse glanced at Zhou Yinlian, shook her head slightly, pointed to the door, and gestured for them to go outside to talk.

Zhou Yinlian seemed not to see anyone coming, remaining motionless like a doll, staring blankly at the ceiling of the ward.

In his exposed right eye, there was no sign of life, only a chilling deathly aura.

After the bandaging was completed, the nurse gave Zhou Yinlian a sedative injection.

To prevent the girl from thinking about cutting her wrists again once the medication wears off.

After tidying up the medical supplies, the nurse covered Zhou Yinlian with a blanket and watched her slowly fall asleep under the effects of the sedative.

The nurse led Jin Ping'an out of the ward, mainly because she was worried that Zhou Yinlian hadn't completely fallen asleep and that there were some things that were inconvenient for the person involved to hear.

"Although I don't know what this little girl has been through, I still hope that when she wakes up, you can give her some guidance and comfort..."

Besides, her inflammation has subsided, and there's no need to waste money continuing her hospitalization.

Zhou Yinlian's eye surgery was performed very cleanly, and after the inflammation subsided, it will not have a significant impact on her health.

The nurse's desire for Zhou Yinlian to be discharged was expressed rather tactfully, but it was also true.

"I'm very sorry to have troubled you. I will take her to complete the discharge procedures tomorrow and will not make things difficult for the hospital."

Jin Ping'an did not explain Zhou Yinlian's background to the nurse in order to gain her sympathy.

Or they might question why the hospital is so cold-blooded.

Having gone through so much, Jin Ping'an is no longer like before, judging people by appearances.

This hot-blooded young man has eventually grown up.

The messenger leaned against the doorway, his eyes gleaming.

After the nurse left, Jin Ping'an sat down next to the messenger.

The two of them stood and sat quietly, watching the medical staff and patients' families coming and going in the corridor.

"I plan to adopt Zhou Yinlian."

Jin Ping'an said abruptly.

The messenger had already seen through his thoughts: "You're probably not old enough to adopt a child yet, and besides, you're an unmarried single man who can't adopt a girl."

"Yes, I know, so I plan to register Zhou Yinlian's household registration under Le Jia's housekeeper's name."

Jin Ping'an seems to have made plans long ago.

"I plan to first send Zhou Yinlian to a sanatorium for a period of psychological counseling, and then slowly try to reach out to her and change her mind."

After she gives up her suicidal thoughts, we'll find her a private tutor through Le Jia's connections..."

The messenger leaned against the wall without saying a word, but Jin Ping'an still described his plan to him little by little.

This was both to give the messenger an explanation and to see if he had any other opinions or suggestions.

After Jin Ping'an finished speaking, he turned his gaze to the messenger, awaiting his evaluation.

"Do you plan to do this to every victim you encounter in the future?"

The messenger looked down the corridor, showing no intention of turning his head.

“I know my energy is limited, so I plan to apply to the higher authorities to establish a welfare organization, which can at least temporarily provide shelter for those helpless victims.”

Upon hearing this, the messenger looked Jin Ping'an up and down as if he were seeing him for the first time.

These words don't sound like something Jin Ping'an would say when they first met.

"Do you know how difficult it is to establish such welfare facilities?" the messenger asked.

Most cases involving the criminal investigation team are crimes of passion, revenge killings, or impulsive killings; cases like Zhou Yinlian's are rare.

If these cases involve orphans and widows, other social welfare organizations will provide emergency relief.

The welfare institutions that Jin Pingan mentioned have a large number of functions that overlap with those of other social institutions.

It simply emphasizes long-term protection, providing a means for victims who have suffered severe psychological trauma to reintegrate into society.

To be frank, this idea is very naive and will only make government agencies more cumbersome.

Moreover, no one in the old organization wants to see a new organization with overlapping functions suddenly emerge and take away their profits.

"I know, but I still want to give it a try."

Jin Ping'an clenched his fist: "Before this, Lao Tian and the others rarely let me participate in operations personally. In the past, I was only responsible for providing clues and was immersed in the smugness of assisting the police in solving murder cases."

I thought that with the ability to rewind time, there was no case I couldn't solve, but that's not the case. And in the past, I never cared what happened to the victims... until this time.

"My individual strength is ultimately limited; those social welfare organizations can solve most urgent problems."

But for people like Zhou Yinlian, they will at most just give them some basic living allowances to get rid of them, and they will not care about the victims' follow-up problems at all.

The organization I want to establish will only accept victims like Zhou Yinlian, to help them overcome their trauma.

The messenger remained noncommittal regarding Jin Ping'an's plan.

He had nothing to say in the face of this naive sense of responsibility and empathy.

You may scoff at Jin Ping'an's ideas, but please, based on basic courtesy, maintain a gentleness that won't cost you anything.

At the same time, don't show your disdain; it's better for everyone.

It's hard to acknowledge someone's efforts and perseverance; it's much easier to ridicule them.

When you laugh at others, you are also defiling your own soul.

Jin Ping'an has grown up, but he is still a teenager who has not yet entered society, which fundamentally determines that his ideas will be tinged with idealism.

The messenger's body left the wall, and he turned around, staring intently into Jin Ping'an's eyes.

"I asked you before, these people's futures have nothing to do with you, right? Is it worth going to all this trouble?"

Whether it's worth it or not, you'll only know after the fact whether you regret it or not.

However, I think it's worth it for me, after all, I'm someone who enjoys self-satisfaction.

Jin Pingan scratched the back of his head and gave his signature silly grin.

"Yeah."

The messenger gave Jin Ping'an a deep look. He had already said so much; there was no way he could persuade this stubborn man in a few words.

Jin Ping'an made his own choice.

The messenger had already received Jin Ping'an's answer, and there was no need for him to stay any longer.

"Wait a moment."

As the messenger turned to leave, Jin Ping'an called out to him, "If this organization is successfully established, I hope you can come too."

"I said, after the commission is completed..."

"Not to help as an employee."

Jin Ping'an shook his head and extended his hand to the messenger: "Instead, as a victim."

The messenger's words were all stuck in his throat, and he gave Jin Ping'an a strange look.

"I reject."

(End of this chapter)