Desperate people, accept the seed of my soul!

Li Rui was stunned, and his heart inexplicably skipped a beat.

"Xiaoxiao? Isn't she at work?"

"Oh? You didn't know?" The principal spoke faster. "She took leave at noon and said she'd be back soon. But it's already closing time, and I haven't seen her yet. I can't get through on the phone; it's switched off. All the children have been picked up, and we're about to close too... I was a little worried, so I thought I'd ask you first."

Shutting down?

Li Rui's fingers tightened slightly as he gripped his phone.

The cold air from the supermarket's air conditioner blew down from above, and he suddenly felt a little cold.

"The phone is off? It's probably out of battery." He seemed to be trying to convince the other person, and also trying to convince himself. "Don't worry, Principal, I'll try to contact them first and let you know as soon as I have any news."

After hanging up the phone, the inexplicable palpitation did not subside; instead, it coiled around me like vines, tightening its grip.

Su Xiao is very sensible and has never disappeared for hours without prior notice, especially on weekdays.

Li Rui quickly pushed the shopping cart aside and turned to walk towards the parking lot.

"Hey! Sir! Your things!" the cashier called from behind.

Li Rui turned a deaf ear.

He walked briskly while dialing Su Xiao's number.

"Sorry, the number you dialed is currently switched off..."

The electronic female voice was like a bucket of cold water, poured over me from head to toe.

Dial again.

"Sorry, the number you dialed is currently switched off..."

The third time, it still shut down.

This is definitely not Xiaoxiao's style.

They disappeared without a trace, their phones were switched off, and even their closest relatives and workplaces could not be found.

He opened the car door, got in, took a deep breath, and tried to suppress his unease.

He decided to go home first, hoping she had just forgotten to turn her phone on and that she was already home. He was determined to give her a good talking-to then.

Just as Li Rui was about to shift gears and drive out of the parking space, his phone vibrated again.

This time, the words "Team Leader Liao" appeared on the screen.

Li Rui's heart felt as if it were being gripped tightly by an invisible hand, and his breath stopped for a moment.

The detective's instincts kicked in annoyingly—Xiaoxiao had gone missing, and Captain Liao was calling; somehow, he connected the two things together.

He pressed the answer button, put the phone to his ear, but didn't speak first.

Liao Zhengfeng's voice came from the other end of the phone, unusually tense, even carrying a suppressed tone that Li Rui had never heard before.

"Li Rui, where are you exactly right now?"

"The Tesco supermarket parking lot in District 7." Li Rui heard his voice trembling. "Captain Liao, what happened?"

"Stay in the car and don't move." Liao Zhengfeng didn't answer his question. "Don't drive yourself. I'll come pick you up right away."

"Team Leader Liao—"

"Wait for me!" Liao Zhengfeng almost roared, interrupting him before hanging up the phone.

beep - beep - beep -

The busy signal echoed through the quiet carriage.

Li Rui held his phone, remaining motionless in that position.

The parking lot lights outside the car window lit up one after another, and the dim yellow light filtered through the glass, cutting out alternating shadows on his face.

Team Leader Liao was avoiding his question.

Team Leader Liao ordered him "not to drive himself."

Team Leader Liao will come to pick him up in person.

These three pieces of information collided wildly in Li Rui's mind, piecing together an outline that he dared not touch.

The detective's professional instincts, like a sharp scalpel, were peeling away layer by layer the composure he was forcibly maintaining.

Li Rui felt a numbing sensation spreading from his fingertips, and the phone he was holding became heavy.

He took a deep breath, trying to control his breathing, but found his heart pounding like a drum.

No.

Will not.

It might just be a coincidence.

It might be another case that requires him to return to the team urgently.

Xiaoxiao just forgot to turn her phone on, or...

He stared intently at the parking lot entrance, his eyes unblinking.

Several unfamiliar cars drove in and out, and the passage of time became blurred and long.

I don't know how much time had passed, but a familiar black SUV braked sharply and turned into the parking lot, its headlights piercing the darkness.

It's Captain Liao's car.

Li Rui's body seemed to be awakened by the light. He pushed open the car door, and his feet felt weak when they touched the ground.

He walked toward the parked SUV, each step feeling like walking on cotton.

The car door opened, and Li Rui saw Liao Zhengfeng's face.

There was no expression on his face, but Li Rui saw it—he saw the heavy feeling in Liao Zhengfeng's eyes, which he was trying hard to suppress but still managed to reveal, and he saw the slight twitching at the edge of his tightly pursed lips.

"Captain Liao! What's wrong? Xiaoxiao has gone missing. If it's not urgent, I'd like to find her first!"

Liao Zhengfeng did not answer.

He strode over, grabbed Li Rui's arm, and pulled so hard it felt like he was going to crush Li Rui's bones.

"Get in my car."

"Captain Liao? What do you know? Right?!" Li Rui shook off his hand, his eyes red.

"I told you to get in the car!"

Liao Zhengfeng roared, grabbed Li Rui by the collar, and slammed him against the car door, their faces almost touching.

"Li Rui, listen carefully to what I'm about to say—no matter what you see or hear, you must remain calm. This is an order, and also my request as your captain and your older brother!!"

Liao Zhengfeng's voice trembled, a stern tone bordering on pleading.

ask.

Team Leader Liao used the word "request".

Li Rui froze.

……

The vehicle sirens blared, and flashing red and blue lights streaked across the night.

The carriage was deathly silent.

Liao Zhengfeng pursed his lips tightly, floored the accelerator, and the speedometer needle jumped wildly.

He didn't dare look at Li Rui beside him.

Li Rui remained silent.

He just stared intently at the streetlights rushing past in front of him, his hands gripping the seatbelt tightly.

Countless fragments related to Su Xiao flashed uncontrollably through his mind, only to be forcibly suppressed by him.

He tried to concentrate on analyzing where Captain Liao might take him, but his thoughts were like a runaway horse.

The vehicle ultimately headed neither to the municipal police station nor to the hospital.

Instead, it was an abandoned amusement park, which had been cordoned off with long yellow warning tape.

A dozen or so police cars were parked there, their flashing lights creating a sea of ​​red and blue.

At the entrance of that abandoned house, several colleagues from the technical team were going in and out wearing masks and gloves, while forensic doctor Lao Liu stood at the door carrying his investigation kit, shaking his head with a solemn expression.

There are no ambulances there.

Only one black hearse remained, quietly parked in the shadows.

Li Rui's pupils dilated suddenly, and his blood froze into ice in that instant.

……

This is the outer perimeter of the abandoned amusement park in District 7.

As night fell, the red and blue flashing lights of police cars flashed wildly, casting a neurotic halo over the desolate twilight.

The light and shadow projected onto the dilapidated carousel and broken slide, stretching the rusty iron frame into a hideous, swaying ghost, like the most clumsy set in the depths of a nightmare.

The area had already been cordoned off, and more than a dozen police officers were busy inside and outside.

When they saw Li Rui get out of Liao Zhengfeng's car, everyone's eyes were burned, and they looked away instantly, but couldn't help but cast pitying glances at him out of the corner of their eyes.

In the distance, the lone swing frame creaked slowly and rhythmically in the rising evening breeze.

"Crunch—Squeak—"

"Crunch—Squeak—"

Like a series of dull sighs, or like the second hand of a countdown clock.