Chapter X

Dong Chenghai did not visit his home, but agreed with him to meet at 15:00 yesterday afternoon at a café called Left Bank near Myeongcheon University.

When Zhou Xiaobo arrived at the Left Bank Cafe, there were still five minutes before 15:00, and when he opened the glass door of the café, he saw two police officers in police uniforms sitting on the left side of the first floor by the street, and immediately realized that it should be Dong Chenghai who contacted him in the morning. Dong Chenghai arrived about 10 minutes earlier than Zhou Xiaobo.

Dong Chenghai is still with Ouyang Yunxi, but he didn't bring Xiaolin with him this time, so the work of making notes naturally became Ouyang Yunxi's work.

Zhou Xiaobo walked over, stopped at Dong Chenghai's table, looked at Dong Chenghai, and then looked at Ouyang Yunxi, who was playing with the signature pen, and nodded slightly apologetically.

"I'm sorry I'm late." After Zhou Xiaobo sat down, he immediately said politely.

"You're not late, we're early." Dong Chenghai said.

"Yes, Professor Zhou, it's not 15:00 yet." Ouyang Yunxi looked at the watch on his left wrist and said with a smile to Zhou Xiaobo.

It's not that Ouyang Yunxi doesn't know that Zhou Xiaobo is just an "associate professor", it's just that the title "Associate Professor Zhou" is too awkward, and it sounds a bit like a deliberate reminder, so she decided to call him "Professor Zhou". For this conversation with Zhou Xiaobo, Ouyang Yunxi still made some preparations, checked Zhou Xiaobo's resume, and knew that Zhou Xiaobo had stayed in the Department of Philosophy of Mingchuan University for more than ten years, but he was still an associate professor.

"I'm not 'Professor Zhou', I'm just an associate professor, you can just call me Zhou Xiaobo, I'm really embarrassed to call me 'Teacher Zhou' and I'm very satisfied." Zhou Xiaobo did not shy away from correcting the way.

Ouyang Yunxi's face immediately turned red, and Zhou Xiaobo's correction made Ouyang Yunxi realize that he could call him "Professor Zhou" The original intention was to avoid giving him a reminder that he was just an associate professor, but this avoidance became another deliberate hint.

Ouyang Yunxi could only smile awkwardly, and then asked Zhou Xiaobo, "Teacher Zhou, what do you want to drink?" ”

"A glass of boiled water is all it takes." Zhou Xiaobo also smiled slightly.

Ouyang Yunxi beckoned to the waiter and asked for a cup of boiled water.

"Teacher Zhou, the main reason for occupying your time today is to learn about Sima Yuanying's situation with you. We believe that you also know something about the case in Yellowstone Beach, and we hope that you will cooperate with our work. Dong Chenghai said politely.

"Officer Dong is polite, and it is my obligation to cooperate with the police investigation. If you want to know anything, just ask, and I will tell you what I know. Zhou Xiaobo glanced at Ouyang Yunxi, who had already started to make a record, and said to Dong Chenghai.

"May I ask Mr. Zhou, what do you think of Sima Yuanying?" After listening to Zhou Xiaobo's words, Dong Chenghai did not shy away from getting straight to the point.

"Yuan Ying has a withdrawn personality, does not like to talk, and is simple and monotonous in communication. Have a strong sense of independence and assertiveness. Most people are trying to fit in with this society, but he, on the contrary, has been trying to live in his own world, neither disturbing this society nor wanting to be disturbed by this society. He has strong academic ability, solid theoretical knowledge, very active thinking, and a unique perspective, from this point of view, he is not like a student, and there is not much difference between him and scholars in academic ability, and even stronger than some scholars. Speaking of his evaluation of Sima Yuanying, Zhou Xiaobo said calmly, revealing his unconcealable recognition and love for Sima Yuanying.

Ouyang Yunxi raised her head and opened her mouth to say something, but because her job today was to make notes, she could only lower her head slightly unwillingly and continue to write.

"Aren't students who are very independent and assertive give the impression that they are generally disobedient and problematic?" Dong Chenghai asked tentatively.

"In my opinion, the so-called 'opinion' of problem students is not 'opinion', but willfulness. They do not hold on to opinions or ideas in the true sense of the word, but are essentially a desire for free will or the will to live. It is a kind of freewheeling that lacks self-discipline in the absence of self-awareness, and their 'assertiveness' is to serve the satisfaction of their own desires. Won Young's 'opinion' is the real 'opinion', he insists on his own view of the world, and tries to convince himself that his view of the world is reasonable and proven. This kind of 'assertiveness' is based on the background of self-awareness and self-discipline, and is finally persuaded by one's own countless rational reasoning that there is no reason not to insist. Fundamentally, this is not in the service of self-desires, but in the service of self-awareness of the world. In fact, 'independent consciousness' and 'assertiveness' are precisely the prerequisites for understanding the world. For example, Galileo's idea that the speed of falling objects has nothing to do with the mass of the object shocked the physics that Aristotle was the authority of the time, and for example, Hume's radical skepticism completely shook all philosophical theories and even all human knowledge in Europe before the 18th century. Zhou Xiaobo appeared to be trying to defend himself, and it was clear that he was disgusted by Dong Chenghai's grouping of Sima Yuanying and problem students together.

"Teacher Zhou, although I don't understand what you said, I probably understand the meaning, do you mean to say that Sima Yuanying is a philosophical genius?" Dong Chenghai tried his best to understand what Zhou Xiaobo said, and he could only smile helplessly after finding that it was impossible.

"I'm sorry, I had another occupational disease, and I thought it was in class." Zhou Xiaobo took a sip and smiled.

"It's because we're not educated, so we should really listen to your class if we have the chance." Dong Chenghai politely.

"It's not that he's not a philosophical genius, and I haven't seen any geniuses, I'm just saying that Yuan Ying has a lot of academic potential." Zhou Xiaobo did not have a result, Dong Chenghai listened to the lecture and avoided answering his last question.

"Do you know much about Sima Yuanying's interpersonal relationships?"

"Won-young doesn't have any complicated communication. Another time we used WeChat to exchange documents face-to-face, I saw his WeChat contacts, and there were only about a dozen of them in total. Aside from his family and college teachers, there are few people. As far as I know, the one who intersects with him the most in Mingda should be his roommate, as for the others, I haven't heard Yuan Ying mention other classmates, nor have I heard him from other classmates. ”

"Doesn't he have any friends?"

"Friends? Things gather by like, people are grouped, people are group animals, and making friends is naturally very similar to each other. It is rare to find someone as withdrawn as Yuan Ying, not to mention that he likes philosophy so much, and the only people who can attract him are those who like philosophy, which is even less. ”

“……”

"But I often hear him say a name, and it's not a name, it's a nickname, it's called Arctic Bird." After a while, Zhou Xiaobo said thoughtfully.

"Arctic birds?" Dong Chenghai instinctively repeated: "Are you also a student of Myeongcheon University?" ”

"Probably not. It seems that it should be a friend of his, or it may be the same philosophy lover, and I don't know the exact relationship between the two, this is his private matter, and I am too embarrassed to ask. ”

"Can you think about it carefully, for example, did Sima Yuanying mention his name, where he is from, or any other obvious characteristics and identity information? This clue can be crucial to the case. Dong Chenghai asked eagerly.

"By the way, I once asked Yuanying who the Arctic Bird was, and he teased him with me, saying that he was 'living in the smog of North China but fantasizing about living in the mist of the mountains south of the Yangtze River.'" I didn't ask much, but now that I think I should have asked more. Zhou Xiaobo said with emotion.

"North China, which lives behind the haze, fantasizes about living in the fog of the mountains south of the Yangtze River?" Dong Chenghai repeated to himself, looking at Zhou Xiaobo with sharp eyes as if he was thinking about something, "In other words, the Arctic bird should be from North China, and the haze does look like fog, 'the smoke and rain entanglement in the mountains south of the Yangtze River' will imply that it often rains in the place where the Arctic bird lives, but the smoke and rain are not entangled in fog, but haze?" ”

"I don't understand this, I don't have much ability to solve cases." Although he said this, Zhou Xiaobo still recognized Dong Chenghai's reasoning in his heart, but he would never tell the police about the information he was not sure of, no, he would not tell anyone.

"By the way, do you know the boot password of Sima Yuanying's mobile phone?" Dong Chenghai thought for a while, and then asked.

"I really don't know."

"Haven't you seen Sima Yuanying open his phone in front of you?" Dong Chenghai asked unremittingly.

"Seen, and many times. Let's not talk about whether it is a gentleman to remember the boot password of someone's mobile phone, even if I want to remember it, I can't remember it, Sima Yuanying's boot password is too complicated, I remember that his mobile phone should be iphon7, which can be unlocked with fingerprints, but I haven't seen him unlock with fingerprints, not the usual graphic unlocking, nor the common 4 or 6 digital passwords, but a bunch of numbers, there should be more than a dozen or even dozens of numbers. ”

"This person is sick, right, do you have to get such a complicated password? What's the secret so afraid of being seen? Ouyang Yunxi couldn't help but blurt out, and as soon as she said it, she realized that she had made a mistake.

Dong Chenghai glared at Ouyang Yunxi sternly, Ouyang Yunxi not only violated the professional ethics of the criminal police, but also lacked the respect that normal people should have for the deceased, although at present they were not 100% sure that the deceased was Sima Yuanying.

Zhou Xiaobo glanced at Ouyang Yunxi unhappily, and said with a little unhappiness: "This kind of thing is purely a personal habit, and others have no right to accuse and interfere." ”

"I'm sorry, Mr. Zhou, I didn't mean to." Ouyang Yunxi said guiltily.

"You didn't feel sorry for me, there is no need to apologize." Ouyang Yunxi understood that it was impossible for Zhou Xiaobo to forgive him for what he had just said, and she really didn't need to apologize, the person she needed to apologize to was Sima Yuanying. She didn't say anything more, she could only secretly pinch her thigh, which was regarded as self-punishment.

"Have you found Sima Yuanying's phone?" Zhou Xiaobo looked at Dong Chenghai and asked.

"Well, when the police searched the scene for the second time on July 20, they found that the mobile phone was soaked in the shallows at the bottom of the Yellowstone Cliff, and it was indeed an iPhone 7. Although the Apple series iphone7 has been waterproof since the beginning, it has been soaked in water for too long, and it still enters the water and cannot be turned on. At present, technicians are trying to find a way to repair it. Dong Chenghai explained.

"Oh." Zhou Xiaobo seemed to have nothing to say.

"There is another question, as far as you know, where does Sima Yuanying usually go back?" Dong Chenghai followed me again.

"The dormitory, the library, the Yellowstone Cliff, the cafeteria, and the Blue Moon Community, these communities are his most fixed locations, and the others are unknown." Dong Chenghai recalled.

"Blue Moon Community?"

"Well, that's a house he rented outside, like his personal library, but he doesn't usually spend the night there, and he only goes there to spend the night when he encounters difficult problems or unavoidable reasoning problems, and thinks quietly."

"Do you know the specific building and room of the Blue Moon Community?" A new clue about Sima Yuanying was discovered, and Dong Chenghai asked eagerly.

"I don't know. But his roommate probably knew, and I remember him saying that his roommate had helped him when he moved because he had too many books. ”

Dong Chenghai picked up the cappuccino in front of the table, tasted it, let the coffee stay in his mouth for a while, and then swallowed it slowly, as if he was tasting an expensive cup of coffee in his own study.

"I'm sorry to delay so much of your precious time. There may be any questions that you need to ask in the future, so please feel free to help. Dong Chenghai felt that he should end this conversation, and his years of experience as a criminal police told him that if he communicated with the other party for too long the first time, it would be easy to arouse the disgust of the other party, which would not be conducive to the questioning that might be needed in the future.

"Officer Dong is polite, I can only say something I know, and I may not be able to help anything." Zhou Xiaobo replied politely.

"You've helped us enough today, and you've provided us with a lot of new clues for our investigation."

Zhou Xiaobo smiled and didn't speak.

Zhou Xiaobo picked up the boiled water in front of him, drank it all, said goodbye to Dong Chenghai and the others, and got up and left the Left Bank Cafe.

"Brother Dong, did I make a serious mistake?" After Zhou Xiaobo left, Ouyang Yunxi glanced at Zhou Xiaobo's signature, then put the transcript into his bag and said a little coquettishly.

"What do you say? As soon as you finished speaking, Zhou Xiaobo's face immediately changed. ”

"I really didn't mean it, Sima Yuanying is so alternative, I really can't help it. I'm sorry, I promise not next time. ”

"I won't criticize you anymore, let's reflect on it." Dong Chenghai picked up the cappuccino again, the difference was that this time he took a big sip and swallowed it quickly.

"Brother Dong, do you think the Arctic Bird will help solve this case?" After a while, Ouyang Yunxi asked.

"We don't know yet, but I believe that the Arctic Bird is key to learning more about Sima Yuanying."

"But North China is so big, and there are no names and no photos, what's wrong with the vast sea of people?"

"Didn't Zhou Xiaobo say, 'North China, which lives behind the haze, fantasizes about living in the fog and rain of the mountains south of the Yangtze River', isn't that a clue?"

"What kind of clue is this?" Ouyang Yunxi pouted, a little stunned.

"It could really be a clue. I thought about it, I could first try to find out which areas in North China have serious smog, and then rule out how many of these areas have a lot of rain. ”

"Even if we find out, we don't know what his name is, it's just Sima Yuanying's personal name for him."

"This can only hope to go to Sima Yuanying's mobile phone. I believe that since Sima Yuanying has so few friends, the Arctic Bird that he often mentions to Zhou Xiaobo will definitely appear in the address book of his mobile phone or one of the few WeChat contacts. Zhou Xiaobo calmly analyzed.

"Okay, I'll rush my colleagues in the technical department later."

"In addition, we have to go to Sima Yuanying's bedroom again and ask for the address of Sima Yuanying's house in the Blue Moon Community."

"Speaking of which, I really don't know what Sima Yuanying thinks, he obviously rented a house outside, but let the book live and live in the dormitory by himself, is he very rich? The rent in Linhai City is not low. Ouyang Yunxi said suspiciously again.

"You haven't found out yet, any common sense doesn't work here in Sima Yuanying." Dong Chenghai teased and said, not only teasing Ouyang Yunxi, but also laughing at himself, and even teasing those common senses that are regarded as universal truths.

"I have an idea, I don't know if I can say it." Ouyang Yunxi said again and again.

"It's okay, you say, it's just the two of us anyway." Dong Chenghai cocked Erlang's legs and looked at Ouyang Yunxi with a relaxed expression.

"I feel that Sima Yuanying is not a person from this world, at least not like a person living in this world." Ouyang Yunxi said cautiously.

"What do you think, have you read too many novels? Aren't the people of this world in such a world of us? Dong Chenghai patted Ouyang Yunxi's head, even though he regarded Ouyang Yunxi's thoughts as nonsense, but he felt the same way in his heart, although not much.

"By the way, Sima Yuanying's parents arrived in Linhai City on July 27, and when the time comes, you take the initiative to contact them and arrange for them to come to the police station to determine whether the deceased is Sima Yuanying. The teachers from Myeongcheon University are expected to pick them up, so we don't have to go, you can contact them after Mingcheon University settles them down. ”

"Why is it me every time this happens?" Ouyang Yunxi protested again.

"You're a girl, you're delicate, you're comforting, and you're good at talking to them." Dong Chenghai said with a smile, and then patted Ouyang Yunxi's head, "Let's go, go back to the bureau." ”

Just as they finished packing up and stood up to leave the Left Bank Cafe, Dong Chenghai's phone rang, and the phone showed that the caller was Xiaolin.

"Brother Dong, Sima Yuanying's mobile phone has been repaired, and Sima Yuanying's password has been successfully bypassed......" As soon as Dong Chenghai picked up the phone, Xiao Lin on the other side of the phone said excitedly.

"Okay, we'll go back to the game now." As soon as Dong Chenghai hung up the phone, he happily urged Ouyang Yunxi to leave quickly, and repeated what Xiao Lin had just said to Ouyang Yunxi.

Dong Chenghai and Ouyang Yunxi got into the car and drove quickly to the police station.

……

Finally, when the bell rang at the end of the exam time, Zhou Xiaobo stood up and put away the students' exam papers with Yang Ying, Yang Ying took the initiative to propose that he be responsible for taking the students' exam papers to the office and let Zhou Xiaobo go back first.

Zhou Xiaobo thought about it, didn't shirk, and left the classroom after saying thank you to Yang Ying.