Jing Shu pulled up the phone surveillance, her fingers dancing across the screen, and found no trace of Lin Yi anywhere. He clearly had a strong anti surveillance sense, his movements calculated to avoid every digital eye. It would be hard to dig up anything from the flickering data.
What she did see was that an hour ago, Grandma Jing and Zijin had gone out together. Every afternoon they cleaned the old house, the dust motes dancing in the shafts of light as they swept and tidied, but this was usually when Grandma Jing cooked. Otherwise, what would the family eat at night? Besides, cleaning that place took ten minutes at most.
There's a good chance they ran into Lin Yi while cleaning, then couldn't leave. And what Grandma Jing had just said on the phone might've been forced.
She took a long breath, the cool air filling her lungs, closed her eyes for a heartbeat, and said, "Take me with you. I think my grandma might be in Lin Yi's hands."
The scene at Qian Duoduo's castle was a wreck, the grand structure scarred by fire and the air smelling of sulfur and wet concrete. After being bombarded one sidedly, they're scrambling to handle the aftermath. In order to catch the culprit as quickly as possible, he even provided a helicopter, its rotors already beginning their thunderous roar.
Su Xiangnan, after finishing casualty counts on his side, left with Su Mali, his face a grim mask. He had lost more than a hundred gas cylinders, many of which exploded accidentally. He had never intended to blow up Xishan, but the buried explosives had set off some of the tanks, causing worse secondary damage.
In the apocalypse, energy's priceless. He now hated Lin Yi to the bone, the fury burning in his chest.
Jing Shu boarded the helicopter with Yang Yang and six special forces soldiers, heading straight for Banana Community as the vibration of the floor thrummed through her boots. Li Yuetian, who had been on standby, led more than a hundred people to her villa.
She couldn't calm down, her mind spinning through a hundred scenarios. She even considered using the new ability of her Rubik's Cube Space to cast an illusion on Lin Yi and rescue Grandma Jing. Thinking that way made her feel a little better, a small spark of hope in the dark. The timing of this Rubik's Cube Space upgrade couldn't've been more perfect.
Fortunately, helicopters're fast. In a straight line it took only five minutes to reach Banana Community. By then, her villa and Building No. 25're under a tight perimeter; not even a fly could get out through the cordons of armed men.
The helicopter and the large police presence set the entire community buzzing, shadows moving behind darkened windows. Watching a spectacle's a very Chinese habit. Only when Li Yuetian announced through a loudspeaker that a serial killer had fled into the community and everyone had to go home to await inspection did the crowd scatter in fear.
After disembarking, Yang Yang's team split up to sweep Building No. 25 door to door, the metal of their weapons gleaming. Li Yuetian led a search around the perimeter, while Captain Wang spread a broader net around the neighboring blocks.
It's the apocalypse. Surveillance wasn't what it had been, but major routes still'd cameras. On the way, Jing Shu asked Yang Yang about Lin Yi.
"With so many of you guarding him back then, how did Lin Yi escape alone?"
Yang Yang's baffled too, his brow furrowing as he remembered. "This person is very strange. Maybe after the plan went through that day, everyone relaxed. I don't know why I suggested we've a drink. When I woke up, he was gone. But I checked before drinking; he was triple cuffed in a sealed room that needed three keys. It's not like I got drunk and opened it myself, right?"
Jing Shu fell silent. If they let Lin Yi slip once, he could wriggle away like a loach and never be found again.
She first rushed back to her own villa. Grandpa Jing panicked the moment he saw the wound on her face, his features twisting with worry. She gave him a few quick words of comfort and was about to dash toward Building No. 25 when Grandma Jing and Zijin came in through the door.
Jing Shu froze, her pulse leaping.
She heard Grandma Jing say to Zijin, "No idea what's going on outside. Why're there so many police? It must be something big."
"I heard they're arresting a murderer."
"Grandma? Why're you only getting back now?" Jing Shu looked them over with suspicion, her eyes scanning their every movement. There's no way they could've been turned into skins in half an hour.
Seeing her injury, Grandma Jing's heart ached. "Child, what did you get into this time? How are you hurt again? Zijin and I were sorting out the damp things today, so it took us longer."
"What about Lin Yi?" Jing Shu ran her hands quickly over Grandma Jing and Zijin to make sure they're themselves before she relaxed, her fingers feeling the familiar warmth of their skin. Zijin lowered her head shyly. Jing Shu seemed very domineering today.
"You should call him Brother Lin from now on," Grandma Jing said. "He left already. He drove out of the province. He said he is moving away and won't be able to drop by often anymore. What a child." She sighed.
Jing Shu looked to Zijin. Zijin had her head bowed but nodded. "That's what he said. We watched him drive off. He did seem in a hurry."
At least he hadn't harmed Grandma Jing. She could finally breathe, the weight lifting from her chest. Still, something felt off. After settling Grandma Jing and Zijin, she hurried to Lin Yi's place.
His unit's right across from Grandma Jing's. The entire building's surrounded. Two person search teams're working floor by floor. Several people're inside Lin Yi's apartment collecting every trace they could find and hauling things out.
By the time Jing Shu arrived, the place's almost empty, the bare rooms echoing. The last cabinet was being carried away.
Yang Yang crouched in the bare living room, staring at the floor.
"It's strange. He didn't lay a hand on my grandma," Jing Shu muttered, frowning at the empty walls.
"He ran. We'll never catch him now. Next time he shows up, it'll be another bloodbath. This time's luck. You broke his setup. What about next time? Where'll he strike?" Yang Yang slammed his fist into the wall. A dull thud echoed. Blood streamed down his knuckles, staining the white plaster.
"Yeah." Jing Shu stared at the wall. Something flickered through her mind, then blazed into clarity.
"Captain Yang, we'll move the rest back to the station. If you need anything, shout from outside. The brothers're canvassing the area."
Yang Yang waved a hand. "Go. I'll stay a bit longer."
The door shut with a bang as the last officer left.
"Damn it. Ten minutes. Where could he go?"
"No. He didn't run. He doesn't need to run. Why did he? Compared to the dangers outside, this is the safest place." Jing Shu's eyes shone with a sharp light.
She thought she finally understood Lin Yi's special ability.
"What did you mean?" Yang Yang's frown deepened.
"Lin Yi. Zero. He is still in this apartment." Jing Shu slammed her fist against the wall, the sound sharp.
Thud, thud, thud.
Yang Yang's confusion only deepened. What did she mean?