"Was it two days ago, or does it feel more like yesterday?" Xiao Qing looked at Chen Ge, who held both hands above his head with an innocent expression, and felt a headache coming on. He had no idea how to report this to his captain.
"Yesterday? Doesn't matter. As you can see, I was tracking down a child trafficking suspect."
"Tracking down a suspect, so you broke into someone's home and smashed their water pipe with a hammer? Can you explain to me how those two things are connected?" Xiao Qing and the other officer had relaxed their guard after confirming Chen Ge's identity. They knew he wasn't a lunatic — even if his way of thinking differed somewhat from a normal person's, he still fell firmly into the chaotic-good camp.
"This is going to be hard to explain. If Captain Yan from the municipal bureau were here, he'd understand." Chen Ge first invoked Captain Yan as a shield, then shifted his tone, dropping the hardline stance from before. "But breaking other people's things is still wrong. I'll pay for the damages at full price."
He flashed the fat, middle-aged man an apologetic smile, which left the man momentarily stunned — the person standing before him now was a completely different character from the one who'd burst in moments ago.
None of the others present could begin to grasp what was going through Chen Ge's mind. A few hundred yuan in exchange for a water ghost — this was a deal with guaranteed returns.
After settling things with the fat middle-aged man, Chen Ge was escorted downstairs by the two officers.
"You said you were tracking a child trafficking suspect?" Xiao Qing had a burning desire to crack a big case, but their captain never let him join the front-line teams, always assigning him to mundane cases instead. It gnawed at him.
"That's right. A child went missing from the rehabilitation school next to the complex today. After investigating, I discovered that besides the teachers and students, there were other people inside the building. I followed the trail, and the lead went cold in this very apartment complex." Chen Ge naturally had no intention of telling the police about the water ghost. He cooked up a plausible story on the spot to wave them off.
"Was the child found?"
"She was, but the girl has a hereditary condition — intellectual disability — and on top of that she was badly frightened. I doubt she can tell us anything useful." Chen Ge slung his bag over his shoulder and walked between the two officers. "You seem pretty interested in this case?"
"More than the case, I'm interested in you." Xiao Qing took down Chen Ge's phone number. He figured that if he stuck close to Chen Ge, big cases would never be in short supply.
When Chen Ge arrived back at the rehabilitation school, he happened to see two teachers being loaded into an ambulance.
They had been found inside a bathroom stall — both soaking wet, their faces twisted as though they'd witnessed something unspeakably horrifying.
Stranger still, after examining them, the doctors found that both had large quantities of water filling their lungs and throats. Whatever they'd experienced before losing consciousness remained a mystery.
Wenwen's aunt was also at the school. The female principal and another female teacher were apologizing to her — an intruder had gotten in, and the school clearly bore some responsibility.
"This teacher and the little girl's aunt can both vouch that I'm a good person." Chen Ge walked over and stood beside them quite naturally, placing himself squarely in the position of a concerned family member.
The police asked about the sequence of events. The bespectacled female teacher provided testimony on Chen Ge's behalf, confirming that there had indeed been an intruder on the premises and that Chen Ge had broken a window to get her and the little girl out.
But to everyone's surprise, when the police tried to question Wenwen's aunt, the woman was remarkably uncooperative. She kept scratching at her own wrist and the back of her hand with her fingernails — as if the mild pain helped her fight off the fear and stay calm.
"What are you afraid of? Retaliation from the criminal? We're the police — I assure you, we'll bring the perpetrator to justice." Xiao Qing still hadn't grasped the full picture. After attempting to console Wenwen's aunt, he walked over to the little girl.
The child neither cried nor spoke. She stood alone in the shadows against the wall, and anyone who tried to pick her up would be attacked as though she'd gone feral.
"Officers, I'm sorry to trouble you, but we'd rather not pursue this any further." After a long pause, Wenwen's aunt voluntarily dropped the investigation. Her face was deathly pale, and she kept glancing back toward the interior of the rehabilitation school, as if some devil that devoured people lurked in those grim corridors.
"You're willing to let the person who hurt your child walk free?" Xiao Qing couldn't fathom her decision. "If we don't catch the perpetrator, he could target other children. This isn't just about your family — please cooperate with our investigation."
"No, really, there's no need! Wenwen, let's go." The aunt reached for the girl's hand, but to everyone's shock, the child lashed out like a startled wildcat, swiping with both hands and raking her nails across the woman's forearms, leaving long, bloody scratches.
She refused to let anyone near her, shrinking back into the shadows. Her once-cute face had turned fierce and contorted, her eyes darting, her chest heaving — she was drowning in a profound sense of insecurity.
"Wenwen? It's your auntie!" The woman tried to approach again but was stopped by the officers.
"Is she having an episode? Do you have her medication on you?" Xiao Qing was beginning to sense that this case was far more complicated than it appeared on the surface. Something unusual hung in the air.
"The medicine is at home. I'll take her back right now!" Wenwen's aunt tried to force the girl into her arms, but the police couldn't simply release a minor without clearing things up first. As tensions on both sides threatened to boil over, Chen Ge set down his backpack and walked over.
He bypassed Xiao Qing and the aunt, reached into his bag, and pulled out a bottle of shampoo.
"What are you doing?" The bizarre gesture drew the attention of the teachers and the other officer.
Chen Ge ignored them. He crouched down about a meter away from the little girl and whispered softly: "Your sister is inside this bottle. No one is hurting her. I know she must have had her reasons for doing what she did — she's just as kind as you are. You're the real victims in all of this."
Holding the shampoo bottle, Chen Ge slowly closed the distance. "You two are twins, bound as one. There should be a special connection between you. Try calling out to her — you'll get a response."
The girl, half-skeptical, raised her hand and touched one end of the shampoo bottle. Chen Ge couldn't tell whether she'd truly sensed her sister's presence — all he saw was the girl gradually calming down.
"No matter what happens, I'll be on your side. I'll help you." Chen Ge gently lifted the little girl into his arms. "It's okay now. It's okay."
Wenwen's expression returned to normal. Her small hand still gripped the end of the shampoo bottle. She seemed terrified of strangers, burying her face in Chen Ge's shoulder.
The moment Chen Ge picked Wenwen up, his black phone buzzed in his pocket.
He casually pulled it out, swiped the screen, and opened the message.
"Different choices lead to entirely different outcomes. The special visitor has departed. During this period, you made your own choice — congratulations, you have lowered the Twin Water Ghost's hostility."
"Two-star trial mission — Twin Water Ghost — triggered!"
"Before midnight tonight, proceed to Donggang Reservoir in the eastern suburbs! Mission objective: salvage 'Big Sister's' corpse — alone!"