murder begins in summer

Xiaoqi is an unpredictable cat.

When it is happy, it will doze off on Qiu Shili's lap like any docile and lazy pet cat. After a short sleep, it will roll over, like a warm little hand stove.Qiu Shili sometimes had to put down his book to catch it, lest it really roll down.

When it is unhappy, it likes to do things that make people uncomfortable, such as climbing trees.I don't know which window it slipped out of. The old oak tree more than [-] meters high, Qiu Shili climbed up to chase it, and it continued to climb up, perched on a thin new branch that Qiu Shili couldn't get through. His hair was hidden in the dark blue shadow, he licked and squinted his eyes, and stood in a stalemate with Qiu Shili for a long time, with an expression of condescension.

In the end, Shi Zhanyang coaxed from below, "Nana, come down."

Qiu Shili hugged the branches, pushed aside the leaves, and looked down at him, "If I can't catch Xiaoqi, I won't."

Shi Zhanyang knew his stubbornness, so he was not in a hurry. After waiting for 2 minutes, a servant came over with a small pot of stewed fish. While meowing loudly, like singing and talking, the fish will be a little quieter when it enters the mouth.

Qiu Shili slid down dingy little by little, picked a thick branch closer to the ground, stood up and jumped down.

He squatted to absorb the shock, and then stood up with his head down. The knees under the college shorts were rubbed red by the tree trunk, and a lot of dirt was rubbed against his shirt. "Oh, I still want to capture a tiger alive. I didn't expect it to be a greedy cat." .” He patted the ashes on his hands, feeling a little ashamed.

Shi Zhanyang laughed out loud, he had a strange illusion, as if stewed fish attracted more than one kitten.

With good food and being pampered, the cat grows extremely fast.More than a year has passed, and Qiu Shili was 16 years old in summer. Although he himself was still hopelessly short of a centimeter, his cat was no longer as big as a cub who was just over one year old. Loud, extremely smooth fur, and more and more keen to stay in the trees.

Shi Zhanyang stood under the tree and asked Qiu Shili, "Did we raise it into a wild cat?"

Qiu Shili stared at the crown of the tree for a while and thought, and replied seriously: "But it knows how to go home by itself, so it's not a wild cat."

Indeed, now they no longer need to climb trees, and no longer need to lure them with stewed fish, because at unexpected times, Xiao Qi will come home from an unexpected window, and obediently nest next to Qiu Shili, rubbing his nose against him , Sleep obediently.The rest of the time, do whatever it likes, there's nothing wrong with the tree.

In July of that year, Shi Zhanyang went to Hong Kong with his father to meet some friends. The night before boarding the plane, he called home and chatted with his mother for a few minutes. The second child, Shi Yizhou, refused to communicate with him. At four o'clock, Yu Feng was only seven years old, and he had already gone back to sleep, and the receiver was put in Qiu Shili's hands.

"Did you encounter any trouble this time?" Qiu Shili asked while holding the receiver tightly.Shi Zhanyang went out for 24 days this time, longer than usual, and rarely contacted his family.He absolutely didn't want to see his elder brother go home with injuries, no matter how serious or minor.

"No, the main reason is that there are many entertainments, and the etiquette is very particular there," Shi Zhanyang said relaxedly, "I went shopping for several days to buy gifts for everyone. The streets in Hong Kong are really crowded, and I often talk to the locals. I don’t understand, it’s not the same as our vernacular.”

"Oh." Qiu Shili looked up at his mother, and then at his second brother, "Brother, please go home early. I don't want any presents."

"You don't want it," Shi Zhanyang smiled, "I bought honeycomb snow clams and bird's nests for my mother, as well as a few cheongsams, brushes and Cantonese records for my second child, and comic strips of four famous books for my fourth child."

He spoke eloquently and with flavor, but after the comic strip, he fell silent. Qiu Shili didn't wait for the next article for a long time, and raised his throat, saying: "It's not good to be here. Brother is very careful about what he bought.”

The pretentiousness in his words was too obvious and too polite, he didn't feel it himself, but Shi Zhanyang laughed again when he heard it, "ナナ, you really think I didn't bring it for you."

Qiu Shili noticed that the other two in the room had put down their work and were staring at him, so he said nervously, "I don't have any hobbies either... Your luggage is too heavy, I don't need it."

Shi Zhanyang seemed very worried, and said to himself: "It's not something with Chinese characteristics, just throw it away if you don't need it."

Qiu Shili was stunned for a moment, then suddenly smiled, "What is it?"

"A mobile phone is still relatively light. It can surf the Internet and make video calls, so you can find me at any time," Shi Zhanyang said lightly, "Although you can buy it in San Francisco, I just happened to pass by and saw it. I would love to give it to you."

This was still 2006, the era when smart communication was not so popular, and email and telephone were still the mainstream.Qiu Shili thought that he would be very happy if he could line up in the living room and communicate with his elder brother for a few minutes.

At this time, hearing this from Shi Zhanyang, Qiu Shili foresaw that he had been thinking about the future of that mobile phone all night.

However, after hanging up the phone, he was just about to say good night to his mother when Mrs. Qiu said to his second brother, "Go back to bed early, the third child and I have something to talk about."

Shi Yizhou put down the newspaper, looked at Qiu Shili twice, and left without hesitation.

Qiu Shili stood straight in front of Mrs. Qiu. His adoptive mother, who had always been a fine and elegant lady before, fell into a serious illness in the past two years. It is said that it was related to the lymphatic system. Now she is like a handful of dry wood, displayed on the sofa, covered with an overly heavy blanket.

But her expression didn't change. When she looked at Qiu Shili, she was still gentle and kind.

"Miss your brother?" she asked softly.

"Think." Qiu Shili nodded.

"In the blink of an eye, you will be 16 years old. Your elder brother always told me that it is very comfortable to get along with you, and you can be treated as an adult."

Is this boasting of your maturity?Qiu Shili smiled shyly.

"Our generation will get old soon. In the future, the boss will go out more and more. What his father can't finish will be left to him in the end." Mrs. Qiu sighed and asked: "Would you like Don't you want to go out with him to do errands in the future?"

Qiu Shili opened his eyes wide, "Me?"

"The second child and the eldest brother can't get along, just let him do his own shit," Mrs. Qiu smiled, "but Shili is a sensible and capable child. Your eldest brother also started working with his father when he was 16. He entered the industry early. A little bit more experience can be gained.”

Qiu Shili listened to every word in his heart, his heart was beating wildly, he straightened his waist, his hands were shaking with joy, "I have always wanted to go out with my eldest brother... If I can help him, don't give If he drags his feet, that's even better."

Madam Qiu nodded, "Let's start next time."

Qiu Shili sniffed, "Thank you, Mom," he was not used to calling this in person, bit his lip, "I will definitely work hard."

Mrs. Qiu still nodded, holding a glass of warm water, as if she was relieved about this matter, but she said: "By the way, before this, ten miles, you have to do one thing, you have to ask me, to the whole family prove."

"What?" Qiu Shili understands that there are many people who want to go out to do things with his elder brother. Except for his brothers, those experienced red earrings are also competitors, so as long as he can prove himself, he is willing to do anything.

"Do it yourself, kill Xiao Qi."

"...Xiaoqi?"

"Boss and the others will be home at noon the day after tomorrow, you have to clean up before then."

"Why?" Qiu Shili was just thinking about anything, but at this moment, he suddenly had a splitting headache.

"Boss asked you to do this. He asked me to let you know on the phone."

Qiu Shili was stunned for a long time, "No, it's impossible," he suddenly smiled, "Brother will never do this, if this is true, you will not, like now, ask me to wait for him to go home Do it before."

Mrs. Qiu was also silent when she heard the words. Qiu Shili clenched her hands tightly, lowered her eyes, and looked at her without blinking.

"Okay," Mrs. Qiu finally said after a while, "I want you to do this."

Qiu Shili said nothing.

"You want to ask, what does this incident prove?"

"I want to ask." Qiu Shili said hoarsely.

"Prove your ability to act, execute, and how determined you are to achieve your goal." Mrs. Qiu frowned and closed her sunken eyes, "I know, this It will be painful and useless in your opinion, but can you make up your mind when this is your first entry into this profession and you can only do it?"

"I just know," Qiu Shili clenched his fists, and raised his voice rarely, "I just know that Big Brother would never want me to do this! Xiaoqi is not just my cat, it's ours."

"He doesn't want to, but is he you? Does he need to get into the business again?"

"Brother never kills innocent people, let alone a cat, a cat... the cat has never done anything wrong."

"Don't kill innocent people...Yangyang really wanted to do this all the time." Mrs. Qiu opened her eyes, looked sadly at Qiu Shili's red eyelids, and looked at the shadow under his eyelashes, "I understand. In my heart, big brother is the most important thing. But if one day, for your big brother, you have to do what he doesn't want you to do, kill the person you have feelings for, Shili, can you show the courage? "

Qiu Shili clenched his molars so tightly that his whole body was numb.

"This business is very cruel, cruel to a degree that you can't imagine. You have to prove that you are capable of enduring pain," Mrs. Qiu separated his fingers one by one, holding them gently in her skinny palm Li, "It's just a cat, much simpler than a goat. Did the sheep do something wrong?"

"No."

"Then you think it's cruel for me to ask and ask like this."

"Yes."

"This is the cruelty you have to face. Your eldest brother is going through it every day. Whether it is hurt or being hurt, I can't help him much, but he will continue to support the whole family," Mrs. Qiu said almost solemnly. Looking carefully into Qiu Shili's pupils, "In the future, without you... If you don't have the courage to stand behind him, he will experience it alone."

Qiu Shili also looked into her pupils, they were cloudy and teary, but Qiu Shili didn't cry after all.He just looked at it for a long, long time, the misty confusion in his eyes gradually faded, disappeared, and turned into a kind of dead black, "Okay. I will kill."

After thinking for two seconds, he asked again: "Tomorrow at the latest, I will hand over the body to you, can you help me deal with it?"

"Leave it to me. It will be buried."

"Thank you." Qiu Shili shook his adoptive mother's hand vigorously, returned to the door of his room, and stood there for a while.

Xiao Qi had already returned home, curled up into a ball of hair, and was sleeping at the end of his bed. As soon as he opened the door, it opened its eyes, yawned, and rolled on its belly.

Qiu Shili approached step by step, and pulled out a double-edged dagger from the back of his waist.It was the one he first practiced with, and it was also the one he was most comfortable with.He can't kill in bed because the sheets are not easy to clean.

Xiao Qi hid her stomach as if she had sensed something, looked at him in a daze, jumped off the bed and jumped up to the window, directly grabbed the branch of the tree canopy by the window, and slid into the tree canopy rustlingly.

Cats may be sentient.The summer night wind blew in the refreshing fragrance of plants and trees. Qiu Shili took a deep breath and squinted his eyes.This tree was planted independently, and there were no other tree crowns around it. He estimated the height, leaned on the window sill, and jumped to the top of the balcony window on the first floor. The glass was not broken, and then he fell to the ground, light and quiet. Like a cloud.

He walked under the tree and looked up to see a pair of eyes with a glint of light, just like when he picked it up in the corner back then.

Xiao Qi didn't run up any further, just crouched on the lowest branch, and even meowed very lightly twice.

Are you asking me something, asking me why.Qiu Shili pressed it from the bottom, thinking silently, why, I can't say.

Wouldn't your chances of surviving be greater if they hadn't picked you up?You will grow into a more majestic, stronger big cat.You are dressed in black and white gloves, like a conductor of a symphony.Brother took me to see the symphony, but didn't take you to see it.

he thought again.

He might be able to climb the tree directly, as he always tried to do before, to "catch the tiger alive", but Qiu Shili didn't in the end.He squatted down under the tree, wanting to cry very much, but his eyes were dry. He stuck the dagger deep into the soil, looked into Xiaoqi's eyes, and felt confused about tonight.

He thought that he probably had to wait for this night, and stay alone for a while, and wait until dawn before doing anything.The entanglement before killing may be more painful than the blankness after killing, but no matter what it is, he should bear it, and it is not even enough, because he wants to deprive a life that is much weaker than him.

Unexpectedly, Xiao Qi jumped off the tree by himself.At least five meters high, it is as light and quiet as a cloud.

Qiu Shili was in a daze, and subconsciously grasped the handle of the knife. He was ready to run wildly and chase after him, but it would be tricky to get into the bushes, but he saw Xiao Qi walking slowly, with his tail cocked high, and he saw him. side, rubbing his hand resting on the side of the blade.

It also licked Qiu Shili's already sweaty fingers, and gently touched his knuckles with his beard.

Immediately afterwards, Xiaoqi lay down on the ground and closed her eyes motionless.

It will do this when it wants to be touched. Qiu Shili stroked it slowly as usual, and it also purred a few times as usual, sleeping comfortably under Qiu Shili's hands. After that, just a few seconds passed , the snoring stopped abruptly.Qiu Shili almost pushed the knife with his left hand and lifted his right wrist before pulling the blade out of the cat's neck. It seemed that he had never held such a heavy knife, nor had he cut the throat of a goat.It was as if he had seen blood for the first time.

Qiu Shili stood there until dawn, staring at the ground.The smell of blood has dissipated, and the flying insects have been driven away by Qiu Shili. The morning dew wets Xiao Qi's fur, and the morning light makes it shine. When you touch it, it is cold. When you hug it, it is much heavier than before. .

Qiu Shili still didn't want to understand if it had understood something when it jumped down and approached him so unusually.Is it already accepted.

Are cats really sentient?Just like people.

But which person would put his neck under his blade and promise him to kill himself like this.

At exactly eight o'clock, Qiu Shili knocked on the door and returned home with a cat and a knife.He handed the cat to the housekeeper and asked him to hand it over to Mrs. Qiu. He didn't enter the house for breakfast, but walked directly into the woods. The water surface in the middle of the lake sinks to the bottom of the lake.

This is what Zhan Yang gave him when he threw it away for the first time.He was sad before throwing it away, because he found that he could no longer do anything with this knife, even if he used to use it deftly to subdue the fiercest ram and cut the thinnest potato slices.

At noon the next day, Shi Zhanyang returned home on time. He entered the big iron gate in the front yard, walked behind his father, and carried the big and small bags for the family members in high spirits, and handed them to the women who came up. Maid, only one box was left in his hand.It was Qiu Shili's mobile phone, and he wanted to put it in his younger brother's hands, and teach him how to use it by the way, leaving jet lag behind.

Qiu Shili was indeed standing at the gate of the house, beside his mother and second brother, on the edge of the steps, tidying up very vigorously, smiling with his milky white shirt tucked into the waistband of his bib shorts.

After saying hello and hugging each other, Shi Zhanyang patted his younger brother on the shoulder, and carried him to sit on the sofa, but he sat down by himself, while Qiu Shili was still standing.

"Brother," he looked down at him and asked softly, "Did I tell you? Xiaoqi is a tomcat."