Chapter 111

ps: The chapter order is wrong, awkward. This chapter is the last one; everyone, flip it when reading.

Chang Erbing had a flash of inspiration: "I originally came just to handle a mundane missing person case, never expecting to accidentally find traces of 【Mask】. I've struck it rich!"

Chang Erbing quickly pulled out his phone from his pocket and without hesitation dialed Li Shang's number.

As soon as the call connected, he urgently reported: "Captain Li, I found a bizarre desiccated corpse at No. 8 Middle School."

He deliberately paused, then emphasized his tone, continuing: "It's extremely similar to Director Wang's desiccated corpse!"

Li Shang's voice on the other end of the phone was initially casual, even a bit impatient, but the next second his voice suddenly rose several degrees; through the phone, Chang Erbing could feel Captain Li's excitement.

Chang Erbing immediately stood straight, responding loudly and firmly into the microphone: "Yes, Captain Li, understood. I guarantee no one will touch the scene."

Outside the door, Feng Yuhuai held her stomach with one hand, while the other unconsciously shoved into her pocket, clutching a rag doll tightly.

Feng Yuhuai's mind was in turmoil:

"No choice, the Puppet Mother was too hungry, urging too urgently, I was too rushed, and it was my first time killing, too panicked, too inexperienced, simply no time to hide the body, so I could only discard Yazi's corpse in the toilet."

"Damn it, the Patrol Bureau came too fast. The only fortunate thing is that the Puppet Mother's feeding was rough, the body was destroyed beyond recognition, equivalent to helping me clean up the traces."

Feng Yuhuai pondered while keeping her ears perked up the whole time, concentrating on eavesdropping on every word Chang Erbing said on the phone, not daring to let a single word slip.

"Huh? That constable seemed to mention a corpse too, and that corpse is very similar to Yazi's corpse?"

Feng Yuhuai was stunned. She slightly lowered her head, her pitch-black eyeballs rolling around in her sockets, as a bold yet cunning plan to absolve herself quietly hatched in her heart.

"Perhaps, I can use this..."

Chang Erbing slowly stood up, gently closed the stall door, then turned and walked toward the toilet exit.

His gaze was cold, sweeping over the onlooking teachers and students like ice, and he warned impolitely: "Everyone, please step back voluntarily. Do not enter the toilet without permission. Teacher, please make sure to restrain the students and avoid unnecessary chaos."

Guo Feng's expression was very ugly; he sternly ordered the onlooking students to return to the classroom.

Du Li was anxious, she fearfully pushed through the crowd and rushed toward the toilet door at all costs, but was firmly stopped by Chang Erbing.

"Is it Yang Tuo inside? Is it my son?" Du Li's voice trembled, her eyes filled with despair, her whole person seeming to stand on the edge of collapse.

Chang Erbing was also full of doubts in his heart; he suspected the corpse in the toilet was Yang Tuo. Otherwise, how could Yang Tuo's disappearance and the appearance of this corpse be a mere coincidence?

Relying on his professional intuition as a constable for many years, Chang Erbing had almost determined that the corpse was Yang Tuo, and the killer was very likely the 【Mask】 they had been searching for.

Chang Erbing blocked the door firmly, his tone calm as he soothed: "The corpse inside is unrecognizable; it's hard to confirm identity with the naked eye. Don't rush. The corpse inside may not be Yang Tuo."

"Yang Tuo's mother?" Feng Yuhuai had originally been preparing to leave with her classmates, but upon hearing this, her steps stopped involuntarily, and her gaze swept over Du Li several times unintentionally.

Taking a deep breath, Feng Yuhuai walked nervously but politely to Du Li's side and asked softly: "Auntie, did Yang Tuo not come home last night?"

Du Li's body swayed slightly; helplessness showed in her eyes, as if her thoughts had stopped, and she instinctively answered Feng Yuhuai's question: "Yes, Yang Tuo did not come home last night. This afternoon he told me he and a girl named Feng Yuhuai went to the Martial Arts Hall, and after that I never heard from him again."

Feng Yuhuai took a deep breath: "Auntie, I am Feng Yuhuai."

Du Li's eyes suddenly widened, staring at Feng Yuhuai without blinking.

Chang Erbing's pupils shrank slightly; his gaze was fixed on Feng Yuhuai's unusually pale face, and countless thoughts swirled into a vortex in his mind.

Then he asked in a deep voice: "Feng Yuhuai, what did you and Yang Tuo do together yesterday?"

Feng Yuhuai did not rush to answer, just slowly nodded, her eyes carrying a hint of indescribable complex emotion.

Chang Erbing's gaze seemed to pierce Feng Yuhuai's cheeks; he wanted to confirm from her expression whether she was the killer who murdered Yang Tuo, yet did not want to see through that seemingly beautiful face whether it hid a 【Mask】 that devoured people.

While questioning, Chang Erbing's hand had quietly slid to his back waist, lightly touching the gun handle.

It can only be said that because Chang Erbing had not personally experienced the thrilling night at the Black Pillar Residential Compound, had not faced the cruelty, blood, and terror of that night, did he have the courage to touch his gun.

Otherwise, Chang Erbing's first reaction at this moment would probably be to turn around and run.

Feng Yuhuai slightly frowned, as if trying hard to recall yesterday's details: "Yesterday afternoon, Yang Tuo and I went to Canglong Wuguan together. After practicing martial arts, we left there, and he accompanied me to the Fourth Hospital. Afterward, he personally sent me home, and then left."

After finishing her narration, Feng Yuhuai's tone carried a hint of concern; she looked at Du Li again and asked softly: "Did Yang Tuo not come home last night? Did something happen?"

Du Li had no time to speak before Chang Erbing coldly snorted and asked: "How do you know Yang Tuo did not return home last night?"

Feng Yuhuai shook her head: "I don't know, I'm just guessing, because Yang Tuo didn't come to class as usual this morning, and this auntie just asked whether the corpse in the toilet was Yang Tuo, which made me involuntarily associate..."

Feng Yuhuai said carefully: "If the corpse inside is indeed Yang Tuo, then he very likely did not return home last night, but went directly to school, and then in the toilet..."

Like Feng Mu, when it came to lying, Feng Yuhuai was also a natural.

She had not thought of not telling the truth about being attacked last night and Yang Tuo "disappearing," and reporting to the Patrol Bureau.

After all, theoretically speaking, Feng Yuhuai was also a victim last night, but, no!

Because she had been parasitized by the Puppet Mother's seed, her identity could no longer be washed clean, and moreover this morning to feed the Puppet Mother, her hands were already stained with blood.

Feng Yuhuai felt guilty like a thief; she had to cover up the truth of last night. Whether it was the Black Zhensuo, the Puppet Mother, or taking the blame for Feng Mu, all had to be concealed together.

Feng Yuhuai had thought of only covering up the part about the Black Zhensuo, and telling the rest all at once, embellishing it into the story from the taxi radio where the male protagonist dies protecting the female protagonist.

But in the end, Feng Yuhuai did not do so, because that might prompt the Patrol Bureau to point the finger at Feng Mu.

Feng Yuhuai was not worried about Feng Mu; she was purely doing it for herself. Because if the Patrol Bureau learned about the "Black Hand Monster" from Feng Mu, and then arrested him, following the vine to the melon, the fact that she was rescued by the Puppet Mother's claws last night might also be exposed together.

If there was even a shred of such possibility, Feng Yuhuai dared not gamble. So even though she felt wronged, she had no choice but to cover up the matters she and Feng Mu had brought upon themselves.

Feng Yuhuai did not continue speaking, but instead covered her lips hard, making retching sounds in her throat, as if she would vomit at any moment.

Chang Erbing frowned, secretly thinking in his heart: Feng Yuhuai's reaction did not look faked, and her guess was reasonable.

He couldn't help but suspect that perhaps this case had nothing to do with this girl, and Yang Tuo indeed might have, as she said, returned to school alone after parting with her, and then suffered at the hands of 【Mask】 within the school.

After all, he could tell that Feng Yuhuai's appearance of strong physical discomfort did not look acted, and a person who had such a violent reaction upon seeing a corpse—how could they create such a horrific scene?

But he had not completely dispelled his suspicions, so he continued to ask: "What did you go to the Fourth Hospital for?"

Feng Yuhuai hesitated, then honestly answered: "My father was seriously injured while executing a mission recently and was admitted to the Fourth Hospital."

Chang Erbing seemed to realize something and asked: "Executing a mission? Your father is?"

Feng Yuhuai answered: "My father is Feng Ju, also a constable at the Patrol Bureau. Yesterday my father asked me to go to the hospital to get Bone Refining Pills, and Yang Tuo went with me. Since it was already late when we left the hospital, Yang Tuo worried about nighttime safety and insisted on sending me home. Never expected..."

Deep sorrow appeared on Feng Yuhuai's face, and two crystal-clear teardrops slid from the corners of her eyes.

Amidst her sorrow, she seemed to still hold a glimmer of hope; she turned her gaze to Chang Erbing and asked with a trembling voice: "Is that person in the toilet really Yang Tuo?"

After hearing the name Feng Ju, Chang Erbing's suspicions basically dissipated.

On one hand, Feng Ju was his colleague, and Feng Yuhuai, as a family member of the Patrol Bureau, was naturally one of their own people and should not be subjected to groundless suspicion;

On the other hand, Feng Ju had now lost an arm and was severely injured due to the 【Mask】's attack, and Feng Yuhuai, as his daughter, could not possibly be the 【Mask】 either emotionally or logically.

Chang Erbing slowly withdrew his hand from behind his waist, his explanation simple and calm: "The deceased's identity has not yet been confirmed, do not ask too many questions."

Feng Yuhuai nodded lightly, indicating understanding, her gaze once again turning toward Yang Tuo's mother, Du Li, who seemed to have already lost her soul, her eyes hollow.

Feng Yuhuai let out a light sigh, slowly walked down the stairs, and headed in the direction of the dormitory.

Returning to the dormitory, the room was empty of anyone.

Feng Yuhuai sat by her bed, and after a good while, her heartbeat only then gradually calmed. She took out a rag doll whose color was growing increasingly vivid from her pocket, and gently placed it beside her pillow.

Afterward, she walked to the restroom, turned on the faucet, letting the water flow continuously wash her hands, and by her ears there still seemed to echo Lu Yazhi's heart-rending cries.

"I'm sorry, Ya Zhi, I truly had no other choice. The Puppet Mother was hungry, I really had no way to handle it. You once said I was your best sister, that no matter what difficulty I encountered, you would help me. So, you won't blame me, right?"

Feng Yuhuai talked to herself for a long time, and when she walked out of the restroom, her eyes were still somewhat dazed.

After a while, Feng Yuhuai picked up her phone and gave Lu Yazhi a call; just as she had anticipated, no one answered on the other end.

She hung up the phone, as if Lu Yazhi were still alive, and sent her a text message: "Ya Zhi, why didn't you come to class this morning? Something big happened at school, a corpse was discovered in the restroom. I heard from the Patrol Bureau people that the corpse might be Yang Tuo..."

During her lifetime, Lu Yazhi was Feng Yuhuai's closest friend, and between the two there were almost no secrets.

Even though Lu Yazhi had already passed away, Feng Yuhuai still habitually shared the campus's "gossip" with her, as if Lu Yazhi were still by her side.

(End of Chapter)