But this time the police came much faster than I expected, and they knocked on my door on the afternoon of the day after Ellie's death.

They told me that they had been looking for Elena, to be precise, to arrest her, because her real identity was that of a fugitive with a criminal record at the police station. They also showed me a picture of Elena, which was so uglier than she was that it took me a while to recognize her as Ellie.

They said that Elena was a dangerous drug dealer, that I had been seen in a bar and that I had been very close to her, that they thought I had some private contact with her, and that they wanted me to actively cooperate with the investigation.

It was a complete surprise to me, but I did not show any surprise or panic, I looked at the police very calmly, and with a duly puzzled expression, I asked them who Elena was.

They were obviously very unhappy with my behavior, and just as they were about to give me some ideological education, my landlord, Mr. Kun, came out of his house.

He looked at me and the policemen who surrounded me in astonishment, and asked the police what had happened with a serious expression, and he wondered if I had been robbed of all my belongings but did not explain to him that he had paid for most of the things in my house.

He was so chattering and startled that the police had to put my interrogation aside to comfort a chattering and worried Mr. Kun, who told him that they were only here because I had a girlfriend who was a drug dealer.

Knowing the truth, Kun immediately said to the police in a resolute and irrefutable tone: "Not long ago, the lover of my infatuated tenant just died, can't you see that he is now emaciated and fragile, I have to say that your suspicion that his idea of dating Elena is actually ridiculously wrong. ”

Mr. Kun, a lawyer by profession, had a lot of dealings with the police, and he knew how they were being tracked down and how many of the people they had later acquitted were brought to court. Sometimes he is friends with the police, and sometimes he is an incompatible enemy.

At this moment, I suddenly felt that Mr. Kun was indeed a very good and respectable lawyer. I was touched by his integrity and kindness.

The police chief, a man whose name was Mike on his police ID, suddenly turned his face and asked, "I heard that Mr. Tang resigned yesterday?" "His gaze was sharp and calm, and I could tell from the glint in his eyes that he was a man who followed his heart and was not disturbed in the slightest by the outside world. Such a person is the most difficult to deal with, especially if he thinks he has found a clue and is focused on me.

"Yes, I don't think I'm in the right mood right now to continue working, and I'll probably rest at home for a while." I replied, lowering my eyes to reveal my haggardness, acquiescing to Kun's explanation of my state.

"There are allegations that you went in and out of the tavern the night before yesterday with the fugitive drug dealer Elena and returned to your lodgings together in a very intimate manner, and you handed in your resignation the next day." Mike stared at me without blinking, and said in a coherent manner, "Elena is still out of the police's sights, and we think there may be some connection between what happened." So – can we do an inspection of your house? ”

"My tenant is not a vicious person who does not distinguish between right and wrong." Mr. Kun was a little upset with me: "Your suspicions are completely slanderous, and I don't think they are reasonable at all......"

"There are neither drug dealers nor drugs in my room." I said to Mike, eyes looking him in the eye, I could see the burning gaze in his eyes, he was suspicious of me, but he wouldn't get any proof. "You can search as you please, but I hope you will apologize to me for these unreasonable questioning and disrespectful behavior after this."

Mike said to me, "If that's the case, of course we'll apologize." With that, he waved his hand to the team members next to him, motioning for them to enter the house and search.

I turned sideways and let them squeeze into the room like sardines. Kun also came in, and I knew he wanted to see the cops deflated.

"I understand you." Kun stood next to me and whispered to me in a voice that only the two of us could hear, and I knew he was trying to comfort me.

"Thank you." I thanked him without much care, and my mind and my eyes were entirely on the police officer who searched the room. They searched carefully and meticulously, but Ellie's all was stored in the refrigerator, wrapped in a thick layer of frost, leaving no trace in the room.

All the officers had searched and they came to the door in disgrace, shaking their heads at each other, while Mike remained in the kitchen.

I walked into the kitchen and found him slowly checking the contents of the fridge one by one, his hand picking up Ellie's frozen buttocks.

The beautiful, elastic pieces of meat have been cut into plain shapes by me, wrapped in plastic wrap and frozen in the freezer, looking like they are all ordinary beef.

"Is there something wrong with my food?" I asked, my stiff tone showing the intense unhappiness in my heart at the moment. "If I continue to leave the refrigerator open like this, I'm afraid it will make my electricity bill exceed the standard this month."

Mike glanced at me, put the pieces back in the fridge, and said to me, "No problem. It's just that Mr. Tang seems to like eating meat very much. ”

"A Japanese friend sent it to me, he killed a cow he raised, said that the quality was good, and he gave me a lot, I think maybe half of it." I wasn't in a very good mood, but I still answered his questions cooperatively.

"It's enviable to have such a friend." Mike closed the door of the refrigerator, sighed, and then said to me, "It seems that we did misunderstand Mr. Tang, and I apologize for our unreasonable suspicion and reckless behavior." He held out his hand and stopped in front of me, and I held it back.

His hands were cold from the frozen meat, damp with moisture, his bones were distinct and strong, and his knuckles and palms were rough calluses. He looked at me like an eagle staring at a poisonous snake, vigilant and determined.

"Maybe it's a bit rude to say that, but if Mr. Tang can't finish this beef alone, I can work for Mr. Tang." Mike said to me in a low voice, "I still have a twenty-year-old bottle of French wine at home. As he spoke, he quietly slipped a note into my hand.

"If you have the chance." I also said to him, neither refusing nor agreeing.

After sending all the police away, I unfolded the slip of paper with a string of cell phone numbers written on it. I looked out the window and saw him on the phone looking back at the house, his gaze not very friendly, but he quickly turned around and walked away with his colleagues.

I turned around and suddenly noticed that Mr. Kun had stood beside me at some point. He was looking out the window like me, and just turned his head, he said to me with a strange expression: "Don, I think that officer is suspicious of you, and it doesn't just seem that because of the drug dealer they arrested, he even checked your clothes and shoes." ”

"Maybe he's just interested in me." I crumpled the note in my hand and threw it into the trash, but when I looked up, I saw Kun's stunned expression, and I thought for a moment before explaining to him, "I'm not gay, but I can't guarantee that others aren't, and I won't look at them in a strange light." ”

"I know." He nodded in agreement, I don't know if that's what he thinks in his heart, or if it's just to avoid embarrassment.

"Wait a minute." He said to me as if he remembered something, and ran back to his room with a bottle of red wine and two glasses. "I bought it for my birthday yesterday, and I didn't drink much alone, otherwise we'll drink it together tonight, right?"

I knew he was coming for the beef I had just mentioned, and that if I refused, I would probably arouse some unnecessary suspicion, so I had no choice but to agree, despite my reluctance.

Ellie's scent diffused in the pan of oil, the oil kept jumping and splashing in the pan, and the pieces of meat gradually turned from blood red to sauce red, and I carefully but quickly turned the steak over, quietly watching it crunch in the oil star.

Kun had already poured the wine at the table and was sitting waiting for the food to come out. He would never have thought about what the meat was tonight, and he might never have eaten it again in his life.

I served the steak to medium rare, with a hint of blood, drizzled with black pepper sauce and onion juice, garnished with ripe broccoli and tomato chunks, and it had a rich aroma like real beef.

Kun, who sat across the table, had an expectant expression on his face, and he cut the chop into small pieces with great skill and inserted it with a fork.

I stared unblinkingly at the lump of meat on his fork, and I felt the reluctance and unbearable anxiety in my heart, and it almost drove me crazy, until Kun slowly put it in his mouth, and my heart finally sank heavily into the cold abyss.

He chewed a few times, as if savoring the meat, and then said to me, "Very delicious, Don, your cooking is awesome!" ”

I pulled the corners of my mouth and raised my glass to him. "Thanks, your red wine is good." I took a gentle sip of the dark red liquid from the glass, like licking the blood that flowed from Ellie's abdomen.