I See Murders Before They Happen

Chapter 95: Chapter 93: Celebrating the New Year

Su Miaoyi’s check-up confirmed she was fine, so she was discharged from the hospital that same night.

Shen Yanzhou drove her back to Weiyang Palace and asked her again where she was spending the New Year.

Su Miaoyi didn’t know why he wanted to know where she was spending the New Year, but she answered anyway. "I’m going with my aunt and uncle back to Qingyou District. We have an old family house there, and some other relatives. We’ll all celebrate together."

Qingyou District was on the very outskirts of Jinghai, quite a long way away.

"Do you go back every year?" Shen Yanzhou asked.

Su Miaoyi thought for a moment. "When my grandparents were still alive, we’d occasionally bring them into the city to celebrate. After they passed away, we all started going back to the old house every year. No one lives there anymore, so we just gather for the New Year. It’s a way of remembering them, I suppose."

Shen Yanzhou parked the car, and Su Miaoyi got out.

She was wearing the down jacket Shen Yanzhou had bought for her. It was a perfect fit.

Her old, feather-shedding jacket was still in Zhuang Yanzheng’s office.

Shen Yanzhou got out of the car as well. "When are you leaving?"

"Probably tomorrow afternoon," Su Miaoyi said. "I’ll figure it out when I wake up. As long as I get there in time for dinner, it’s fine. Otherwise, I’ll just end up playing with the kids the whole time. One or two is manageable, but do you have any idea what it’s like to be swarmed by four or five—or seven or eight—kids?"

"Can’t say I do," Shen Yanzhou said. "Just give them a few phones or tablets and they’re usually pretty quiet."

Su Miaoyi was speechless.

Shen Yanzhou chuckled and held out the car keys to her. "Take the car. It might be hard to get a ride tomorrow."

Su Miaoyi stared at the large double ’R’ on the key fob and didn’t take it. She looked up at Shen Yanzhou. "If I drive this home, my relatives will think the Ji Family has taken me back."

Shen Yanzhou just looked at her.

"I’ll be able to get a ride," Su Miaoyi insisted.

Shen Yanzhou tossed the keys directly into her purse anyway. "Just take it. Keep it in case of an emergency."

"I don’t need it." Su Miaoyi reached into her purse.

Shen Yanzhou stopped her, his hand on her arm. "If you don’t end up using it, just think of it as you holding onto the keys for me."

Su Miaoyi still tried to take the keys out.

Shen Yanzhou said two soft words: "Just listen."

Su Miaoyi instinctively let go of the keys.

Shen Yanzhou released her arm.

Su Miaoyi got into the elevator from the parking garage. Shen Yanzhou didn’t follow; a driver was there to take him home.

He waited until he saw her elevator begin to ascend before he left.

Standing in the elevator, Su Miaoyi watched the numbers on the display climb. After a moment’s daze, a question popped into her head.

’Why did I just listen when he told me to?’

Feeling thoroughly puzzled, Su Miaoyi got out of the elevator and went back to her apartment.

Once she got back to her place, she started rummaging through all of her belongings again.

She had no memory of going to Jiangcheng.

She didn’t know which purse she had taken or what clothes she had worn, so her only option was to search through everything.

Still, she found nothing.

She even checked the hidden compartments and linings. Nothing.

She searched until midnight. After showering and washing her hair, she lay down on her bed, planning to go over what Cao Hong had said. But unexpectedly, the moment she closed her eyes, she was fast asleep.

...

Early on the morning of New Year’s Eve, Shen Yanzhou rose, gathered fresh flowers, incense, and candles, and drove his parents to the cemetery.

It was tradition to visit graves and pay respects on the morning of New Year’s Eve.

When Shen Yanzhou and his parents arrived, Qin Chengyuan and Shen Shilan had already been there for some time.

The incense sticks in front of the gravestone had nearly burned down to ash.

"Aunt, Uncle," Shen Yanzhou called out to them.

Shen Shilan quickly wiped away a tear and turned to face them. "Jun, Ye, Yanzhou."

Xia Ye stepped forward and took Shen Shilan’s hand. It was ice-cold, and she clasped it tightly between her own.

Shen Jun and Qin Chengyuan exchanged a silent look, their only greeting.

Shen Yanzhou placed the flowers before the headstone and looked at the photograph on it.

It was a picture he had taken of Qin Leyan at the party celebrating her university acceptance.

They had never taken another photo of her after that day.

She had only just come of age, the childish innocence not yet faded from her face.

Shen Yanzhou gazed at it for a while. Just as the previous sticks in the incense burner burned out, he took out three more, lit them, and placed them inside.

"Time flies. In the blink of an eye, another year has passed," Xia Ye said.

Shen Shilan nodded. "In a few more months, it will have been two years since Lele left us."

Xia Ye’s heart ached, and she couldn’t find any words to say.

Shen Shilan said, "Back then, I prayed every single day for her to come back safely, but... things rarely go the way we wish."

Xia Ye wiped her own tears, then dabbed at Shen Shilan’s. "Don’t cry. Leyan won’t be able to rest peacefully if she sees this."

Shen Shilan nodded, but the tears wouldn’t stop.

Qin Chengyuan stood to the side, staring at the gravestone in silence.

Shen Jun stood beside him. He glanced at the other man but also said nothing.

Shen Yanzhou stood up. He glanced at his mother and his aunt, his lips parting slightly as if to speak, but in the end, he said nothing. He turned his gaze back to the face on the headstone.

"Come celebrate the New Year at our house, just like last year," Xia Ye said, worried it would be too painful for the couple to be alone at home.

"We can’t." Shen Shilan wiped her eyes. "Chengyuan has to work in a little while. I’ll go with him."

"Can’t he even take a break on New Year’s Eve?" Shen Jun finally spoke up.

Qin Chengyuan looked at him. "I can rest once we’re past the next few days."

Shen Jun’s brow furrowed.

Shen Shilan added, "It’s for the best that we won’t be home. It saves us from having people drop by for ’New Year’s visits’."

They called them New Year’s greetings, but everyone always had an agenda.

"Alright," Xia Ye said. "Resting after these next few days is good, too."

Shen Shilan nodded.

The sound of more footsteps approached. Qin Chengyuan heard them first and was the first to turn.

Zhuang Yanzheng walked over, holding a bouquet of flowers. "Director."

"We’re all family here," Qin Chengyuan said.

"Uncle Qin," Zhuang Yanzheng corrected himself, then looked to Shen Jun. "Uncle Shen."

Shen Jun nodded.

He then greeted Xia Ye and Shen Shilan.

Then he placed his flowers in front of the gravestone.

Zhuang Yanzheng and Shen Yanzhou stood side by side. They exchanged a look before both turning their eyes back to the photograph on the stone, neither saying a word.

...

「Weiyang Palace.」

Su Miaoyi, curled up under the covers and hugging her pillow, suddenly jolted awake. She stared at the light on the ceiling, then reached for her phone.

She glanced at the time. It was still early.

She got up to turn off the light and made a quick trip to the bathroom.

But as she came out of the bathroom, she started sniffing the air.

She checked every plugged-in appliance in the room, then went to look around the living room and the other rooms. She even opened the front door to check outside and made sure all the windows and doors were secure.

As she came back into the bedroom, the voice in her head suddenly spoke up. "What are you doing? Auditioning to be a police dog?"

’No,’ Su Miaoyi thought back, sniffing the air again. ’Did you smell burning incense?’

"Yeah, I smell it."

’Where is that smell of burning incense coming from?’ Su Miaoyi looked around again, worried that something in the apartment might be on fire.

"I think it’s on you," the voice in her head said.

Su Miaoyi sniffed her clothes again and then took a deep whiff. "Ah, this new laundry detergent I bought smells amazing."

A sudden silence fell.

"It’s not on me," Su Miaoyi said, looking around again. "Oh well. As long as nothing’s on fire, I guess it’s fine."

With that, she lay back down on the bed, closed her eyes, and went back to sleep.

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