Ji Xiaoou fell ill when he went home, with a high fever, burning his mouth full of nonsense, and was sent to the hospital by his parents overnight.

For the first time in his life, Ji Xiaoou spent a bleak Spring Festival in the hospital. The inside and outside of the ward were empty, and probably the rest of the people went home for the New Year unless they had to stay in the hospital for illness as a last resort. On the second day of junior high school, she subsided her fever, drank a bowl of millet porridge, and finally had the strength to sit up. The first request she made to her parents who came to visit was: "Dad, borrow me your laptop." ”

Seeing that her daughter began to heal, Zhao Yamin mentioned that the heart in her throat and eyes finally returned to its original position, and her nature, which had been restrained for many days, revealed her original form again, and threw a stack of funeral bills in front of Ji Xiaoou - this was discovered when she helped Ji Xiaoou wash her clothes, and started a routine family education time.

"I said why can't I see your figure every day before the holiday, I was busy with this! Who is this? Do you have to pay for someone who dies? I'm going to lose it one day, do you have this filial piety? Yes? On the 29th, Xiaoyun came to me and said that everyone was waiting for the salary red envelope to go home for the New Year, and I checked your bank account. In the end, I had to pay them a few salaries. Tell me, other people's children have tens of millions of filial piety to their parents during the Spring Festival, what am I raising you for? Do I owe you all my life? ”

Of course, Ji Zhaolin understood what was going on, although he thought that Ji Xiaoou was a little stupid, but since he promised his daughter to keep it a secret, he couldn't go back on his word and ruin the image of a loving father, so he had to persuade his wife bitterly: "Okay, okay, Xiaoou is still sick, you don't have to say a word." ”

Ji Xiaoou knew that he was at a loss, and he impulsively agreed to pay for Zhan Yu's funeral, but he did not consider the normal expenses of the beauty shop. So she lowered her head, let her mother chatter, just pretended not to hear anything, and concentrated on using the computer to search for information about Zhan Yu's case. Ji Zhaolin's computer uses a wireless network card to access the Internet, the speed is very slow, it takes dozens of seconds to open a web page, or it can't be opened at all, Ji Xiaoou's restlessness is grinded into flames.

Zhao Yamin sat for a while, saw that Ji Xiaoou was always wilting, and went in and out of her left ear and right ear for her words, understanding that her daughter was recovering from a serious illness, she finally opened her net and followed Ji Zhaolin home. Before leaving, he did not forget to forcibly take away the laptop and told her to look at the computer less and rest more.

Ji Xiaoou was the only one left in the ward, she closed her eyes and lay down for a while, sat up upset, and called Fang Niya, begging her to bring a few newspapers from the last few days.

It took more than an hour for Funia to arrive, carrying a large black leather bag containing newspapers, magazines, fruit and snacks, as well as her own iPad. Seeing her, Ji Xiaoou seemed to see a real relative, and was speechless by her carefulness and thoughtfulness. But Fanya's mood was not very high, her face was yellow as if she had had been seriously ill, there were obvious bags under her eyes, and the eye bubbles were slightly swollen, as if she had cried last night.

Ji Xiaoou stretched out his fingers and rubbed her brow: "What's wrong?" Why is there no joy at all for the New Year? Did your parents-in-law come to celebrate the New Year and quarrel with them? ”

Fanya shook her head, "No. It's a very disgusting thing, so disgusting that I don't even know how to say it, don't ask yet, I'll tell you when I'm in a better mood. ”

Ji Xiaoou patted the back of her hand: "Okay, Sister Niya." ”

Fang Niya lowered her head and sniffled, and suddenly said, "Zhan Yu's matter, I just saw it on the Internet. After looking at his photo, I knew that his name was Zhan Yu. Such a good-looking child, why is he so dead? ”

Ji Xiaoou was originally reclining on the pillow, but when he heard this, his upper body straightened like a spring: "What are you talking about on the Internet now?" ”

"Everything is said, it's all messed up, I really can't say a sentence or two. Xiaoou, why are you even being dragged in? Although they didn't name names, those backgrounds, at first glance, are you. ”

Ji Xiaoou was stunned for a moment: "What are you talking about me?" ”

"Say that you are rigorous, say that you and Zhan Yu, hey, I still don't want to relay it, you can read it on the Internet yourself. You're so unlucky, how did you get into this kind of? Zhan Yu just mentioned it, I told you, this kid is full of stories, complicated, you still don't believe it, what's the matter, I'm not wrong, right? ”

Ji Xiaoou tugged at the corners of his mouth, smiled bitterly, and couldn't say a word.

"And that rigor, now his photos are everywhere on the Internet, counting from his grandfather's generation, three generations of family history have been searched out by human flesh, you say, with his net worth and conditions, it doesn't matter if he is a man or a woman, who does he want to get his hands on? Why are you so desperate, Zhan Yu can't do it? Forget about killing, and break the corpse! Tell me, are they people with different sexual orientations and different ways of thinking than us? ”

Ji Xiaoou still didn't speak, just closed his eyes tiredly.

"Xiaoou, what's wrong with you?"

Ji Xiaoou spoke, her voice revealing infinite exhaustion: "I'm a little tired." ”

Fang Niya stood up playfully: "I just have something to do, so I won't accompany you, you can use the iPad first, if you want to surf the Internet, just find a place with Wifi when you go out." But you can take it easy when you watch it, and don't get angry. The Internet is like that, there are all kinds of birds, and if you don't go online, you don't know that there are so many stupid × and perverts in the world. ”

Waiting for Fang Nia to leave, Ji Xiaoou held the iPad, took advantage of the nurse on duty not paying attention, slipped out of the ward, and found a KFC near the hospital. It was the Spring Festival, and there were few people, so she ordered a cup of hot black tea and a french fries, and found a corner to sit down. The main purpose of her trip was to rub off on the free Wi-Fi in the store.

Due to the Spring Festival, the number of visits to the Internet was much less than usual, but Ji Xiaoou still easily found a few posts she was looking for in the large forums she frequented. One of the most popular posts, titled "The Truth of the 12.29 Corpse Crushing Case", was once at the top of the homepage, with hundreds of thousands of clicks and more than 10,000 comments. She opened the original post, only browsed more than 20 pages, and she couldn't stand it anymore, snapped the iPad on the desktop, only to feel that the root of the tooth was sore for a while, and it was because of the tension just now that the teeth were clenched too tightly.

For hot events, the comments on the Internet always show a distinct characteristic. When I encountered similar things before, I didn't care who was right and who was wrong, just to watch the excitement, once the same encounter befell him, in the face of those irresponsible remarks, or even vicious personal attacks, Ji Xiaoou understood what cyber violence is and what is pain.

In those hot posts, Zhan Yu's identity as a male public relations man in a same-sex bar was completely exposed, and someone even uploaded a photo of him laughing and making love with same-sex customers in the "Don't Tell Mom" bar. Zhan Yu in the photo is frivolous, completely shattering the image of a self-improving college student created for him by his classmates before the Spring Festival holiday. So the comments that followed under the photo, those netizens who felt that they had been deceived into sympathy, almost all of them scolded, and the dirty words were unbearable.

As for rigor, in this post, the powerful doxing picks him up even more thoroughly. Not only was his own information fully disclosed, but even his father's name and official position were revealed. Under the patchwork of fragmented information, he is like a modern version of Gao Yanei: clever and robbing, corrupt and corrupt, lustful and greedy, and distorted personality.

In the emotional drama in which the victim and the murder suspect are entangled by netizens, Ji Xiaoou also plays a role. An ID claiming to be an insider appears in the middle and drags her into the quagmire. The name of this ID is also called "Messenger of Justice", and the author of the article that Ji Xiaoou saw on Lin Haipeng's mobile phone looks like a person. In his description, Ji Xiaoou is called Ms. J, a woman who worships money and is lustful when she steps on two boats, and she walks between two men without shame. So naturally, netizens scolded and went straight to the lower half of her body and genitals, with a bitter hatred between the lines, and some people clamored for doxing her and posted her photos to show the public.

In the face of such absurd accusations and attacks, Ji Xiaoou was so angry that her hands and feet were cold, she didn't know what kind of enmity this person with the online name "Messenger of Justice" had against her, and she wanted to make up stories to slander her like this? She couldn't control her impulse to log in and clarify the truth, but the moment she needed to press the send button after typing out a large paragraph of text, she hesitated again. With nearly ten years of experience in messing with the Internet, she understands that where there is no reason on the Internet, this kind of thing will only get darker and darker. The more she talks, the more personal information will be exposed, for fear of being burned, and like in previous similar cases, the final situation will be completely out of control: the real world of the person concerned will be destroyed to the ground, and those IDs on the Internet who are afraid of the world will not be chaotic, and changing the screen name can erase all traces of the past, and start over again as pure as a newborn baby.

While the anger burned, there was also a fear that gradually entrenched in her heart. Lying on the hospital bed in the past few days, recalling the bits and pieces after meeting Rigor Rigor , she can't believe that a person as simple and direct as Rigor and a cold-hearted person can make such an inhumane move, even if she is always worried about Zhan Yu's last appearance in Rigor Rigue's residence, she can't draw an equal sign between Rigor and a murderer. I saw that some people frequently questioned in the post, why the Public Security Bureau has not been able to formally arrest Rigor for a long time, is it because his father is a military cadre, so the officials protect each other? Thinking of the online article she saw on Lin Haipeng's mobile phone a few years ago, she felt that there seemed to be an obvious guiding tendency in these seemingly loose online remarks, to forcibly tie up the Zhan Yu case and the judicial shady, as if to deliberately strengthen the society's hatred of the second generation of officials, and push rigor as a typical example of the second generation of officials into the whirlpool of public opinion. If she was right, then who, or what force, was it that was going to kill him?

Ji Xiaoou sat for a long time, his mind was like a pot of boiling water, repeatedly tormenting those words that pierced people's lungs. In the back of her mind, there was a disturbing impression, an indescribable confused bump. She thinks it's the arrest that annoys her, because such unexpected events are always upsetting. Seeing that it was already dark outside the window, and fearing that the nurse would find out the blame, she returned to the ward, but her heart was always full of an inexplicable uneasiness.

She tossed and turned that night, and couldn't sleep anyway. Since seeing Zhan Yu say goodbye in a dream on the day of cremation, coupled with a few days of high fever and lethargy, whether she wants to or not, his shadow is like a fading paper cut, and it has finally faded day by day in her heart. But rigor doesn't. As long as you close your eyes, you can see the rigor. At first, it was only partial and flat, but his unruly short hair, thick black eyebrows, straight nose, and angular lips gradually merged, curvature and contour, and finally merged into a familiar but unfamiliar face.

She looked at him in the dark, met his dark and shining eyes, and asked over and over again, "Have you killed Zhan Yu yet?" ”

But each time he didn't answer, his lips pursed tightly, and there was only sadness and pain in his black pupils.

After staying up until two o'clock, she got up and asked the nurse for sleeping pills, but was reprimanded by the nurse on duty and rushed back to the ward, and then she almost lost sleep with her eyes open until dawn.

It's the same insomnia at night, and the rigor in the detention center. For the first time in his life, he spent an unforgettable Spring Festival in the detention center.

On Chinese New Year's Eve, which happened to be the time when his seven-day criminal detention expired, he was taken out of the cell early in the morning, everyone thought he was going to be released, and he himself thought that he had finally survived, and solemnly said goodbye to everyone, leaving the bedding, shoes, cigarettes and other messy things bought in the detention center to the prisoners in the same room, and he himself wore the coat without buttons, and easily stepped out of the iron door. This time, however, he was not able to get out of the detention center, but was taken to the interrogation room and signed an arrest warrant.

After reading the arrest warrant for a long time, I suddenly felt that the plot of this play was completely illogical, ridiculous, ridiculous! It's ridiculous! But laughter can't be laughed at any time.

He knew that arrest warrants for criminal cases were not issued arbitrarily and required approval at both the municipal and prosecutor's office levels. The fact that his arrest was approved proves that the task force has found crucial evidence. But in reality, he has never killed anyone at all, what evidence can make the procuratorate agree to approve the arrest?

In the past seven days, no one in the special case team has contacted him, and the arrest warrants were also sent to two young criminal policemen whom they had never met. No matter how angry or roaring rigorously they were, the two of them were expressionless and let him vent at will.

Rigor felt the tremendous pressure he had never experienced, even in the survival training more than ten years ago, he had never experienced the fear he had never experienced in the wilderness on all sides, without water, food and rescue. Since he entered the detention center, he has been strictly isolated from the outside world, and he still does not know what is happening outside. It was as if he had been thrown into a huge black hole, and all his voices and efforts were absorbed cleanly, and he could not hear a single response. For the first time, he realized how small the power of the individual is in the face of a powerful state apparatus, and that no matter who you are, no matter what background you have, you will be smashed to pieces in front of this iron wall.

Thinking about this, he finally calmed down, obediently signed his name on the arrest warrant, and asked, "When can I see a lawyer?" ”

The detective replied coldly: "I will notify you when I can see it." ”

They all thought that they would never see Rigor again, and he returned as he was, much to the surprise of the people in his cell, as if he had seen aliens. Especially Li Guojian, his eyes are straight, and his mouth is so open that he can almost stuff a double yolk egg. Rigor went up and slapped him on the back of the head: "What stupid are you doing?" It's Lao Tzu who is back. ”

"Brother Jin, what's going on? Didn't you say you were going home for the New Year? ”

"Ye is not that blessed, this time it is a formal arrest. But you boys are blessed to be able to eat big again. ”

Li Guojian scratched the back of his head, laughed awkwardly twice, and did not answer.

During the seven days of rigorous criminal detention, in addition to the 30,000 yuan sent by family members, some friends who learned the news also came to the detention center one after another. Strict is popular, and there are many people who come to see him, but in three days, the balance in his personal account has reached the upper limit of 300,000 yuan, and there is no way to charge it again, but the people who send money are still endless, and the detention center has to notify Rigorous's family to withdraw some of the money in his account. As soon as it was withdrawn here, there was an influx of new money over there. So in the past few days, in the sixth cell where Rigor is located, everyone has been helping Rigor spend money. Although there are not many places in the detention center where you can spend money, except for the small supermarket. Small supermarkets have a limited variety of goods, but cigarettes, instant noodles and ham sausages are sufficient, as are bagged roast duck and other foods to improve the diet. Every morning, noon, and evening meals, someone would bring over the food from the cadre's canteen for Rigor Li, and everyone in the cell could get some tooth sacrifices as long as they didn't make trouble. This is even more exciting for people who eat three meals a day in the normal food of the detention center, which lacks salt and oil. The police officers who led the group were also very polite to him, much more polite than when he first came in, obviously someone outside had specially taken care of him. In just seven days, Rigor became the veritable boss in Cell No. 6, and Li Guojian became his follower instead.

Seeing Rigor return to cell No. 6, many people breathed a sigh of relief in their hearts. This tone contains not only the expectation of material comfort, but also the trust in rigor himself. Although he came in on suspicion of murder, he did not have a trace of violence in the world, as long as he did not mess with him, he treated everyone in the cell equally, and after he came, Li Guojian and they were not allowed to inflict corporal punishment on anyone, let alone bully the new suspects.

The others were secretly happy in their hearts, but they were a little uncomfortable in their hearts. Smoking a few cigarettes on the bunk, he gradually eased up and began to accept his current situation. At worst, he will be able to see a lawyer and communicate with his family after the arrest is approved, and no matter what, it will be better than the current situation.

Thinking about it, his face turned cloudy, and his almost knotted eyebrows were stretched. Seeing that his color was a little dark, Li Guojian took the opportunity to step forward, lowered his voice and said, "Brother Jin, I want to ask you something." ”

"Say."

"Did you really kill someone?"

Rigorous glanced at him: "What do you think?" ”

"I don't believe it."

"Isn't that the end of it?" Rigor smiled bitterly, "I don't believe it either." ”

"Have you found a lawyer at home?"

Rigor shook his head: "I don't know." I stayed here for seven days, and no news from outside came in at all. ”

Li Guojian said: "Well, it's okay to be arrested, I can finally see a lawyer." Brother Jin, you have to think widely, it really can't be fake, and it can't be fake. ”

Rigorously snorted: "You don't have to comfort me, Lao Tzu is not afraid of this." Let me ask you, how long does it take from the approval of the arrest to the first trial? ”

"It's hard to say, look at the case. The short one or two months, the long two years. If you look at cell No. 4, there is an economic case, and the case materials submitted by the Public Security Bureau have been rejected twice by the procuratorate, and they can neither be sentenced nor released, and they have been in custody for more than two years. ”

Rigor was silent, half-closed his eyes and touched the beard on his chin and cheeks, and after touching it for a long time, Li Guojian suspected that he was asleep, but he suddenly opened his eyes: "Where can I get a razor?" The unshaven beard all day long has affected the image of buddies too much. ”

Li Guojian smiled: "Brother Jin, there is no flower girl here, no one will look at you no matter how beautiful you are." ”

Rigorous face: "Why do you talk so much?" ”

Li Guojian hurriedly smiled: "Okay, okay, I'll find a way to go." ”

Once you understand that you can learn to be at ease with what happens in this environment, the optimist gene in your rigorous body begins to prevail. He had to have some fun to pass the time in order to continue every anxious day. He sat up and looked left and right. It was the morning study time, and everyone sat cross-legged on the bunk according to Li Guojian's instructions, and most of them closed their eyes, saying that they were silently reciting the "Detention Center Regulations", but in fact, they were taking a nap to make up for sleep. Only on the floor directly in front of him, a boy of eighteen or nineteen years old sat against the wall, holding a thick book and reading it intently. It is said that books are not allowed in the detention center, with the only exception being law books. Rigor reached out and took the book, and sure enough, it was a "Encyclopedia of Laws".

Facing the boy's frightened eyes, he closed the book and patted it in the palm of his hand: "Can you see it?" ”

The boy's voice was as low as a mosquito's humming: "I don't understand." ”

"And what do you see?"

"Let's see how many years I can sentence."

"What did you do? Tell me, I'll help you see how it will be judged. ”

Rigor came interest. The boy was sent to cell No. 6 in the middle of the night before night, when the police only said that he would be given another cell, and no one would get up in the middle of the night to make room for him, and he had no place to sleep, so he squatted in the corner of the wall all night. I didn't have time to ask him why he came in and why he changed cells.

At this moment, the boy's head was so low that he almost got under the plank: "I killed my mother." ”

"What?"

"I killed my mother."

"Your own mother?"

"Hmm."

His voice was louder than just now, not only rigorous, but even a few people in the neighborhood could understand it. Even if these people are not good people, they all belong to the scum of humanity in the eyes of the rigorous, and they are also stunned by this sentence.

stared at him rigorously, and couldn't stagger his gaze for a while. The boy wore an old padded jacket that didn't fit well, and underneath it was a pair of shabby police pants with long legs that were rolled up several times. The padded jacket was too thick, and the heating in the cell was so good that it was so hot that his collar was wide open, revealing two jagged collarbones. Look at the boy's two thin wrists stretched out from the torn sleeves, he can't believe that such a weak pair of hands has the strength to kill!

"Why did you kill your mother?" He couldn't contain his curiosity.

He was not the only one who was curious, Li Guojian and several people surrounded him and asked, "Yes, why did you kill your mother?" ”

"I'm ......," the boy shuddered, his two black tadpole-like eyes rolling in terror.

Rigor hurriedly reassured him: "If you are afraid, I won't beat you, you will tell the truth." ”

"She's sorry for my dad." The boy finally said.

"What about your dad?"

"It's gone. I was gone when I was eight years old, and I was by her. ”

Cheng Cheng exchanged glances with a few people around him, and asked him again, "Then how old are you?" ”

"Eighteen. My birthday in January. ”

Before he knew it, there was already a circle of people around the boy, all of whom were hanging like an invisible thread around their necks, stretching out long. Hearing this, they all let out a long-legged "oh-". The people living in cell No. 6, except for Rigor and this boy, are basically habitual offenders who have been in and out a few times, even if they don't understand the law, they have never eaten pork and seen pigs run, and almost everyone understands that this boy's life has entered a countdown state.

The boy raised his face and asked hopefully, "Big brother, did you say that the death sentence would be suspended?" ”

No one spoke. It took a long time before asking, "Did you turn yourself in?" ”

"It's not. The police found me at my grandfather's house. ”

Rigor shook his head: "That's going to be difficult." ”

"But she's damned!" The boy jumped up suddenly, his originally pale face turned red, and he actually stuck his neck and shouted at the strict hiss who was a head taller than him, "She was angry with my father, and she made my grandfather half paralyzed, she should be damned!" It's long overdue! Why do I have to die? ”

Rigor was pinched by someone, it was a pair of hands that had killed the life of a relative, and the tiger's mouth was stuck in his throat, but he didn't even bother to move his fingers, just looked at him quietly. But Li Guojian couldn't help it, so he came up and grabbed the boy and punched him, causing him to fall to the ground and blood flowing from his mouth and nose. was about to kick it, but was stopped by rigorous: "Stop, stop fighting!" ”

At this moment, the door of the cell was opened, and a police officer stood at the door and shouted, "0382." ”

No one agreed.

The police officer's voice suddenly tripled: "0382? ”

Rigor suddenly woke up, and the police shouted his prison number, the number printed on his vest: 0382. He quickly stood up and answered, "Here." ”

After only a week in the detention center, he has transitioned from initial disgust and resistance to a sense of taking this way of responding for granted, which shows how adaptable human beings are.

The police officer was obviously relieved: "Why didn't you agree earlier?" I thought you ran away. ”

Rigorous's eyes suddenly lit up: "Ouch, prison escape is still popular here?" Is there a precedent for success before? ”

The police officer sank his face: "Don't be poor!" Don't forget what this place is. He threw a package to Rigor and said, "You sent it from your house, put it away." ”

This is a detention center policeman in his early thirties, with a fair complexion and a round face, with a typical baby face. In a place like a detention center, it is basically a tragedy to have such a kind face. In order to improve his image and establish enough prestige among the suspects, he had to keep his face black all day long, so that he could appear a little urban.

Rigor took the package and said to him with a smile: "Wang discipline, relax during the New Year, don't keep your face strained, how tired you are!" ”

The king ignored him, and was about to turn around and go out, when he suddenly saw the boy cowering by the wall with a bloody face, and frowned: "What's the matter with his face?" 0316, who did this? ”

0316 is Li Guojian's prison number. He secretly glanced at Rigor and said in a low voice: "He fell by himself, and no one touched him." ”

Wang Guan's brows furrowed again: "Then let him be careful in the future." He was transferred to your cell because your cell was more upright. After the second trial of his case, it's only a matter of the past few days, don't you make trouble for me, do you hear? ”

Li Guojian said: "I heard it. Wang discipline, you can rest assured. ”

Wang Guan glared at him, took two steps to the door, seemed to remember something, and then retreated, and said to Li Guojian, "Which of you can even his clothes?" His own clothes were soaked in blood when he came in. It's not a problem to wear that torn padded jacket all the time, it's so hot in this room, don't cover up the problem. ”

Li Guojian asked: "No one in his family sent two pieces of clothes?" ”

The king said, "Who will send it?" His mother died, and there was only one grandfather left in the family who was paralyzed on the bed, and the old man used to make a living by picking up garbage, and he was even poorer in bed than even having food for the next night. ”

"Oh, got it." Li Guojian prolonged his voice in agreement, but he put on an obviously unhappy look on his face. Rigor looked back at the boy, took off his cashmere sweater without saying a word, walked over and handed it to him.

It was a real Kashmiri cashmere sweater, worth $2,000, and he took it off, without regret, "Put it on!" His tone was unmistakable, "You sleep next to me tonight." ”

The position next to him was originally built by Li Guojian. These are the two closest to the iron gates, with the largest space and the best air circulation. Li Guojian was just about to open his mouth to object, but he turned his head sideways and glared at him fiercely, he didn't dare to speak out.

When he went to bed at night, the boy lay beside him and kept stroking the cashmere sweater on his body, "It's so light, it's soft, it's so warm, if only I could buy one for my grandfather." ”

Rigor stared at the ceiling with wide eyes, and there was a strange water stain on the top of his head, like a weeping human face. He was thinking about his own thoughts. A package from home, containing a few new sets of underwear and a few pairs of trousers. All the metal buckles or hooks on the trousers were carefully removed and replaced with plastic buttons. The way of sewing the buttons, at a glance, you can tell that it was sewn by the mother herself. The button of the four eyes, she will only sew two "one" characters, instead of the regular "ten" characters. Even without these buttons, only his mother could remember details like underwear. At this moment, he was really worried about his mother's high blood pressure, whether it would be stimulated to worsen again because of the news of his arrest.

The boy turned his face, his lips almost pressed against his ear chakra, and the heat in his mouth sprayed directly into his ears and eyes: "My grandfather hurts me the most." ”

Rigor was interrupted by the itch in his ears, and he leaned impatiently to the side, pulling himself a few centimeters away from the boy. Although he sympathized with the boy, this seemingly weak boy, after all, owed a life debt, which made him a little difficult to accept.

The boy didn't pay attention to his actions, but still poured out his thoughts affectionately into his ear: "After my father died, that woman didn't care much about me. If you want to stuff me with some money, if you can't remember it, you can leave me at home for three or four days, and it doesn't matter if I can eat or not. One time I was so hungry that I jumped into my neighbor's kitchen to steal something to eat, and when I was caught and beaten, my grandfather took me back. The money my grandfather earned from picking up garbage was not enough for the two of us to eat, and I couldn't go to school anymore, so I had to go home to help my grandfather. ”

Rigorous's mind was completely disturbed, and he didn't know how to deal with such an eighteen-year-old murderer. Hearing this, he interjected: "Then you...... How did you get your hands on killing your mother? ”

"Grandpa's house was demolished, she went to tell her grandfather that my father is an only son, and she has never remarried, so she also has the right to inherit my father's share of the house, and when grandpa dies, grandpa's share will also belong to her. Grandpa was so angry that he was paralyzed on the bed with a cerebral hemorrhage, she also forced his grandfather to make a will, but grandpa refused, so she scolded grandpa for being old and immortal...... And he cut it down...... Really, my eyes were black and I couldn't remember anything, brother, I really don't want to die......"

Rigor sighed: "What's your name?" ”

“0379。”

"No, I ask your name."

"Marlin."

"Got it, go to sleep."

Perhaps because of his youth, even if he was involved in a bloody case, even if he feared his fate in the near future, once he was given a space where he could stretch out his limbs, Marin quickly fell asleep.

Rigorous can't sleep. The young and even breathing around him reminded him of Zhan Yu for some reason. The background of the past 30 years does not help him understand their world and necessity. But in Marin's body, he seems to see something in common - that is, poverty.

Poverty can indeed bring people the urge to struggle, but more often than not, it is restlessness and struggle, depression and suffocation, and poverty can completely complete the happy fragment of a person's life. It is indeed a misfortune to be born poor, but whether the subsequent life is black or white depends on whether the person finally releases the gods and Buddhas or the devil in their hearts. Many times it is just a thought, lost on the edge of struggle, and in order to prove his own dignity, he falls into the abyss...... Now he only regrets that his attitude towards Zhan Yu was too bad at the beginning. If he had been a little more patient with Zhan Yu, or had given him a hand in the end, Zhan Yu's tragedy might have been avoided, and he himself would have been able to avoid this unexpected disaster.

After the first month, it was rigorous and hard for more than ten days. On March 19, Wang Guanjiao came to cell No. 6 and informed him of a visitor. At that time, Cheng Cheng was holding a half-handled toothbrush head and was struggling to figure out how to use a strip of cloth torn from his shirt and hold it firmly to his index finger to achieve the true function of a toothbrush. After spending more than 30 days in the detention center, he did not ask much else, and he was able to make up for everything, except for food and personal hygiene, and he was extremely dissatisfied with the existing conditions. Hot water for bathing could not be supplied every day, and he returned to the habit of taking cold showers when he was in the army. But after he was demobilized, he was pampered for many years, and he was old, and he was no longer the "little thirteen" who was not yet twenty years old. When he turned on the cold faucet for the first time in the bathroom, which was only about one square meter, his long howl like a wolf could be heard in the entire corridor, which scared the police on duty enough that they thought that there was going to be a "hide and seek" incident.

At this moment, he was thinking too intently about the toothbrush, and in the face of this long-awaited opportunity to contact the outside world, he looked up with a blank eye, as if he didn't understand what the other party was talking about for a while. It wasn't until Wang Guanjiao repeated the sentence "The lawyer wants to see you" that he woke up like a dream, put on his coat and wanted to go out, but was stopped by Wang Guanjiao.

The king said, "Wait a minute, there are some prescribed procedures to be fulfilled. He carried a pair of glowing handcuffs in his hands, and the two rings struck lightly, making a pleasant metallic sound. Behind him was a police officer, holding a pair of heavy shackles.

"I'm sorry." Wang Guan said.

Waiting to be seen in the lawyer's interview room was a middle-aged man who was short and stocky and unattractive. When this person reported his name, the contempt secretly born in his rigorous heart suddenly disappeared into invisibility, and through the stainless steel railing, he sincerely said the word "long admiration". Criminal defense lawyers are recognized in the legal profession as having high risks and poor practice environment, and they can be outstanding in this area of criminal defense, basically belonging to the elite of the lawyer industry, and their business ability and contacts should not be underestimated. And this lawyer Zhou Zhongwen is the most famous criminal defense barrister in the industry, and has created a legend of resurrection several times. It is said that in ordinary cases, a barrister of Zhou's level will not come forward at all in the early stage, and the collection and sorting of materials are completed by assistants. It's rare to show up in person in the detention center as you do today.

Lawyer Zhou Zhongwen did not respond to the rigorous long admiration, but raised the watch on his wrist at the policeman behind him: "I have only been approved for an hour's meeting time, please recuse yourself according to the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Law, and my client and I should hurry up and talk." ”

His voice is not high, but with a calmness that cannot be refused, he has experienced the calmness of the big scene in the world. The policeman glanced at him, said nothing, and went out to avoid it.

Lawyer Zhou smiled at Rigor at this time: "Are you okay?" ”

Rigor raised his handcuffed hands and responded truthfully: "It's not very good." Will you feel good if you change it? ”

Lawyer Zhou looked at him and replied understandingly, "That's not very good." Then he said to the assistant-like man beside him, who had been immersed in taking notes, "Ask the question first." ”

This obviously unreasonable move made Rigor stunned for a moment. The man was wearing a white shirt and Zhou Zheng's black suit, and his head was bowed from the moment he entered, and his short layered hair was scattered on either side of her cheeks, and only the forehead and the tip of her nose could be faintly seen through the fence. He had always thought that the man was a paralegal, and he glanced at it without paying much attention to it. Looking at it at this moment, he sighed in his heart.

The man raised his head, the facial features on his face were slightly deformed due to the uncontrollable distortion, and as the mouth shape of her lips made a silent "brother", tears rolled down the corners of her eyes. This so-called assistant turned out to be his sister - Yan Shen.

Rigor immediately understood that his sister must have infiltrated the interview room in the name of a paralegal. At first sight of his relatives, he had countless words to burst out of his mouth, but he gritted his teeth and held back. Although there is no police surveillance, no one can guarantee that there is no surveillance or audio recording around. Once this matter is exposed, the lawyer who will be most affected is probably the lawyer, and the revocation of the practice license is the lightest punishment.

Yan Shen obviously understood the stakes, and understood that time was pressing, so she quickly wiped away her tears, and with a hoarse voice, she began to speak: "Your family asked me to tell you, they all believe in you, believe that you will never kill anyone, you have to persevere, take care of your body inside, be responsible for yourself, and be responsible for your family." Tell the truth what you should say, and don't talk nonsense about what you can't say, no matter what pressure you are subjected to. ”

Rigor stared at her face, smiled, nodded, and asked, "What about my mother?" Is she okay? ”

Yan Shen sniffed: "She's fine." ”

"Where's the old man?"

"He's fine, too."

Such a few short sentences, Yan Shen spoke cautiously and laboriously, trying to maintain the calmness of her facial expressions, but her eyes betrayed her. Rigor had been in the same womb as her for nine months, and had grown up under the same roof before the age of eighteen, and had long known the way she expressed her joys, sorrows, and sorrows. These two are very good, but they are actually telling him that they are very bad, at least not very good.

Rigor leaned back hard, and the plastic chair was crushed and screamed, almost shattering on the spot. He turned his face out of the window, the early spring in Beijing, it was still difficult to see green, the four o'clock afternoon daylight was exhausted, and the remaining little warmth passed through the glass window and fell on his knees. At this moment, Yan Shen felt that what she was facing was no longer the rigor who grew up together, but a completely different person. The eyebrows, nose, eyes, and mouth are still the same as before, and the brother who is so handsome that she is proud of her is that the open-minded and confident things in his eyes, and even the things that are often misunderstood as arrogant, are all gone.

She hung her head and blinked vigorously to stop the warm fluid in her sockets from flowing again.

"Ahem," After waiting for dozens of seconds, Zhou Zhongwen finally broke the silence and coughed, "Let's talk about the case, time is running out." ”

Rigor turned around and returned to his nonchalant expression: "Then let's start, Lawyer Zhou." ”

Zhou Zhongwen opened the folder and handed over a printed power of attorney from under the railing, "Actually, your family entrusted me two days after you were detained, but I never applied for a meeting, because before that, your case has always belonged to the investigation stage, and no one is generally allowed to meet with the suspect during the investigation stage." In fact, even now, it's hard to see you ......"

Rigorously listened attentively, his eyes fell on Zhou Zhongwen's face, and his concentration made the other party feel a stinging pain like a burning skin. There is a sentence that Zhou Zhongwen didn't say in the end, but the moment the two looked at each other, they knew the unspoken words. According to the latest provisions of the Criminal Procedure Law, the starting point of a lawyer's defense can be advanced to the investigation stage, and he or she can also apply for the recusal of the investigating organ when meeting with a suspect. Being able to apply for this separate lawyer meeting, of course, Rigor understands how much power the family has used behind the scenes, and also understands how rare and precious this opportunity to meet is.

After quickly signing the power of attorney, he raised his head and asked, "So now the investigation phase is over?" ”

Lawyer Zhou nodded: "For the time being, it's okay." After I finish submitting my defense opinions, I can enter the stage of reviewing and prosecuting. ”

Rigorous's face changed: "That is, the police have enough evidence to determine that I am the murderer?" ”

Lawyer Zhou still nodded and looked at his face: "It should be." ”

"So fast? They also acted too neatly. ”

From the moment the two began to talk, Lawyer Zhou's eyes never left his face, and at this moment, for some reason, he looked away and smiled lightly, "You're right, this is the fastest police action in the case I have been entrusted with." ”

"Why?"

"Guess what."

Yan Yan was stunned for a moment, but he didn't expect such a famous lawyer to speak in such a tone on such an occasion. He thought about it for a while, and then guessed according to the convention: "The pressure above to solve the case is too much?" ”

"That's a good guess." Lawyer Zhou nodded approvingly, "Generally speaking, it is. But this time, it's mainly because of the emergence of a new gadget - Weibo. Have you ever played Weibo before? ”

Rigor shook his head: "I don't understand, I haven't played." ”

"I don't understand, but my daughter plays with that. She said that this is a new type of online media that spreads at the speed of light and has an impact equivalent to that of a nuclear explosion. It is said that the task force had intended to apply for an extension of the period of criminal detention because the evidence was not particularly sufficient. In the past few days, they held white flags and banners at the door of the Public Security Bureau every day, and broadcast live broadcasts on Weibo every day. ”

"I don't know much about the law, but I do know that if the procuratorate can approve the arrest, at least the evidence provided by the public security bureau can justify itself," he said. Then I don't understand, apart from the fact that the victim went to my house on the night of the crime, and the two of us had a physical altercation, what other evidence can prove that I killed the person? ”

Yan Shen's pen that was recording the conversation between the two stopped, Zhou Zhongwen lowered his head and thought about it, his eyes slowly fell back to Rigorous's face, and he said: "I am your lawyer, and since the day I accepted your entrustment, we have been a community of interests. If you trust me, you have to tell me the truth no matter what I ask you. ”

"Of course."

"Then you tell me, man, did you kill it?"

Without pause, he replied rigorously and firmly: "No." ”

Zhou Zhongwen looked at him thoughtfully for a while, coughed, and then said, "Then can you tell me what happened that day?" Be detailed and try not to leave any details out. ”

I don't know how many times he has repeated this topic to the police, and he can almost recite it with rigor, but at this moment, he can only repeat this story that has been repeated countless times to the lawyer.

The ballpoint pen in Yan Shen's hand rustled on the paper, and the voice recorder on the table was also working silently, Zhou Zhongwen listened carefully and did not interrupt once. It wasn't until the end of the rigor that he lowered his head and flipped through the file in his hand, "By the way, I saw in the interrogation transcript that you mentioned a person named Liu Wei, what's going on with this person?" ”

Rigor had no choice but to repeat the past of Liu Wei and Zhan Yu again, and then said: "Before coming in, I also asked a friend to look for this guy, but after I came in, the contact was cut off, I don't know if they found it." ”

"Don't worry about this for now. Judging from the current situation, the police should have sufficient evidence in their hands. But without your confession, an important link is missing from the entire chain of evidence, and I think the task force should be very clear that even if it is submitted to the procuratorate, the procuratorate will raise objections and send it back for retrial. Speaking of this, Zhou Zhongwen suddenly stopped, his eyes drifted to the corner of the room, as if he was thinking about something, and then he smiled and said, "I suddenly understood why the police would rush to end the investigation stage when the chain of evidence was not completely closed." ”

Rigor smiled later, and Zhou Zhongwen's words also reminded him, making him think of the same question: "I also understand, it must be that the pressure to solve the murder case is too great, and they can only do this." If they are called back by the procuratorate, they can continue to supplement the evidence during this back and forth. So you see, we can't always think of people as bad, they have no choice but to do so. ”

"So you have to be mentally prepared, the task force is likely to interrogate you again during this time."

"I know."

"As a lawyer, I must remind you of one thing: you must carefully check the interrogation records of the public security organs and the procuratorial organs before you can sign them, and you have the right to demand that the errors in the records be corrected. Also, you don't need to incriminate yourself, and no one can force you to incriminate yourself. ”

Rigorous understanding: "I understand. Thank you, Mr. Zhou. You don't have to worry too much, they are polite to me, and I believe there will be no scenes of torture to extract confessions. ”

"That's good. You must know that one of the more troublesome aspects of this case is that the body parts were found too late, and it is impossible for the medical examiner to make an accurate judgment on the time of the murder. So the worst thing for you now is that you can't prove that people are alive to get out of you. ”

Rigor spread his palms helplessly: "This is also the place I can't figure out the most, the person obviously walked out of my door, I watched him enter the elevator, but there is no surveillance video of him going out at the gate of the community, did he fly out with wings?" ”

"There should be other possibilities, such as the victim did not leave the community, or even walked out of the same unit at all. I believe that the police will definitely consider these possibilities and must have done corresponding investigations, but no clues related to this case have been found. ”

As he said this, the policeman guarding the door pushed the door and entered: "It's over, 0382, go back to the cell." ”

Zhou Zhongwen protested: "The time has not yet come. ”

The policeman refused to accommodate at all: "No, the time is up!" Get out of now! ”

Zhou Zhongwen had no choice but to stand up, and Yan Shen slowly stood up, his expression gloomy. Through the stainless steel fence, Cheng Cheng wanted to touch her hair, but because the police were standing nearby, his outstretched hands slowly fell again. Smiling, he said, "Go back and tell them that I'm doing well here, and I've grown at least ten pounds of meat." ”

Yan Shen didn't speak. The rigorous appearance was indeed unexpected by her. Except for his hair that has not been shaved for many days and his clothes are messy, his previous vigor has not changed at all. She nodded and shook her head, a string of tears hung down again, and she simply reached out to cover her face.

Rigor said: "You see, you are like this when you are young, and you can't stand a little thing." I still have something to ask you, how can I tell you like this? ”

Yan Shen made a voice from between his fingers: "You say." ”

"The girl who took me to the hospital last time the nail was displaced, do you remember?"

"What are you going to do?"

"What can I do now? Please pass on two sentences to her for me, the first sentence, I didn't kill people; In the second sentence, I know that I am a very popular person, but let her think about me again, get to know a good person, get married when she should get married, and have children when she should have children. ”

Yan Shen burst into tears and smiled: "I won't go, I'm afraid that people will spit on my face." ”

Yan Shen is a person who is easily remembered, derived from the superiority projected by her facial features and body. In the same growth environment, this sense of superiority is embodied in the rigor body, which is completely indifferent to the opinions of others and untamed, in her, what is revealed is a kind of arrogance that really looks down on all beings. This kind of unconscious arrogance is too aggressive, which once made Ji Xiaoou sit on pins and needles, and even made her jump out to block her pleasure when she remembered the sweet moment of rigor: If he really has a future, such a sister-in-law must be a thorn on the road of life that cannot be bypassed. So when she received a call from Yan Shen asking her to go to "a café" to talk about something, her instinctive reaction was to refuse.

"What's the matter with you? Can't you say it on the phone? ”

The cautious tone was even more impatient: "Of course there will be nothing between me and you!" I'm working for Rigor and he has something to say for you. I'll wait for you here until eleven o'clock at noon, and you can do it. ”

Ji Xiaoou was choked with a breath in his throat, and he didn't take that breath for a long time after putting down the phone. She sat in front of the window facing the street in a woolen shawl, staring blankly at the pedestrians and vehicles passing by on the road. The early spring sun shines through the large glass windows and falls on the verdant indoor potted plants, but also on her hair and body. In February, when the outside temperature was still below zero, this luxurious warmth always gave people the illusion of happiness, but she felt that the cold everywhere was pressing. Since she came out of the hospital, whether at home or in the store, she has always maintained the same posture, sitting for several hours, and not moving for half a day, which caused Zhao Yamin to muttered to Ji Zhaolin in private several times whether her daughter had depression.

Since knowing that Rigor was arrested, Ji Xiaoou has broken up all the details of her interactions with Rigor in her memories since she met Rigor and counted them one by one, she wants to use the most rational attitude to give an accurate definition of the relationship between the two, and then make a break in a correct way.

As the days passed, she found that it was almost delusional to sort out the relationship in this way. She could not convince herself of the serious killing, and she felt that the police would not arrest a person for no reason. A thousand troubles, a thousand contradictions. The decisiveness and resoluteness when she broke up with Lin Haipeng has long since gone with the passage of time, replaced by indecisiveness that she herself hates.

Because she turned over and thought about dozens of small past events that lingered in her mind, and the details of the relationship between the two flashed in front of her eyes like a movie, every minute and second of the entire acquaintance process became vivid, as if it was just yesterday.

She met Rigor on Valentine's Day last year, when she firmly believed that he was a gay, and later thought he was a jack-and-girl liar. In a year's time, those ensuing disgust, comfort, favor, pity and like, the love that can be expressed and the love that is difficult to express, separated by Zhan Yu's murder and rigorous arrest, are like seeds covered with ice and snow, forcibly suppressed budding desires, and finally the fragments of feelings that remain, only the natural attachment that has been accustomed to a year is left. However, just such a little attachment is also the last warmth in the long night. Five or six days have passed since this year's "Valentine's Day", and the several large bouquets of roses she received are still exuding a faint fragrance in the crystal vase, but no matter how big the bouquet is, in her eyes, it is also hasty and perfunctory in response to the season, compared to the Bulgarian roses that are sent for ten days at any cost, it is inevitably dwarfed - just like a person who has seen the world's stunning beauty, even if the ordinary fat powder in the world barely enters the eye, it is difficult to enter the heart.

Sitting at ten o'clock, the wrought iron wall clock on the wall, the long needle and the short needle formed a wonderful fifteen-degree angle, Ji Xiaoou stood up, took off his shawl, and changed into the down coat he wore when he went out. At the moment of Fang Cai, she ended her month-long entanglement and made a decision: seek the truth first, and then talk about anything else. Compared with her relationship with Yanyan, the truth of Zhan Yu's murder is more important. The truth is about her faith in humanity.

She decides to go on a cautious date.