shadow of crime

The winter did not make the orphanage feel bleak, colorful sports equipment can be seen everywhere, and there are colorful graffiti on the walls.The children laughed and played from the slide to the seesaw. Their faces were flushed with heat, and they dispelled the cold with pure heat and childishness.

Jiang Bei stood in the square and listened to the noise of playfulness for a while, a trace of tenderness welled up in the corners of his usually indifferent eyes.Cheng Ye stood aside, his expression couldn't tell whether he was happy or unhappy, and after a moment of silence, he said, "It's like an amusement park, isn't it?"

Jiang Bei turned his head to look at him, and the rare tenderness in his eyes became complicated, filled with puzzlement and analysis.

Cheng Ye's nose was red from the cold, and his thick black eyelashes were covered with mist.He put his hands to his mouth and exhaled to keep warm, and his slightly shivering appearance was no different from those children who hugged each other to keep warm.

"It's fine here, how can a kid who grows up here become a murderer?" he said.

Not knowing who he was talking about, Jiang Bei only thought he was defending himself, and immediately looked away, saying, "Let's go, the dean is still waiting for us."

The dean of the orphanage, surnamed Qiu, has been guarding here for nearly 25 years. Now he is over half a century old, and his temples are stained with frost.Jiang Bei had contacted him before coming, so he waited in the office, but he was too old to hear the newspaper, so he didn't hear the knock on the door. He didn't react until someone lay down at the window and called "Dean".

"Here we come." The dean built the big teapot, got up on his knees, and went to open the door. When he saw the person beside Jiang Bei, he was slightly taken aback, feeling familiar but unable to call out his name.

In the end, Cheng Ye took the initiative to introduce: "Dean, it's me, Cheng Ye."

The dean's eyes behind the presbyopic glasses were full of confusion, and he stared at Cheng Ye for a long time before he remembered, then took Cheng Ye's hand, and said with a smile: "Ah, it's Xiao Qi, who has grown up so much. Why don't you?" Come back and see, after you were taken away, your brothers and sisters are still talking about you. Come, come in and sit, Xiao Jiang is also with you."

The heating was turned on in the office, and the glass windows were covered with a fine layer of water mist, and children playing outside could be vaguely seen.

Cheng Ye took off his coat and leaned it on the back of the chair, his chin tucked into the gray turtleneck sweater, his eyes staring outside without moving.

The dean was busy making tea for the guests. Jiang Bei saw that his legs and feet were inconvenient, so he took the initiative to take over the job. He was not particular about drinking tea, so he grabbed a handful and threw it into a cup, poured boiling water and it was done.

When the dean was free, he pulled a chair and sat in front of Cheng Ye, held Cheng Ye's hand and asked about his health, from where he studied to getting married and having children.Knowing that Cheng Ye has been admitted to the police academy and is now doing an internship, the dean is very pleased.

Cheng Ye was uncommonly patient, he answered whatever he asked, and said a few thoughtful words from time to time, which made the dean very happy.

Jiang Bei was holding two big tea mugs, so he didn't want to disturb their reminiscence, so he stood firmly aside.After talking enough, the dean realized that there was another person in the room, and hurriedly greeted Jiang Bei:

"Look at my memory! I'm sorry, Xiao Jiang, I haven't seen Xiao Qi for a long time. By the way, you are here today because of that, right?"

"Sorry to bother you again," Jiang Bei nodded, "I still want to ask you something, and by the way, look at the children's files in the orphanage."

"Don't bother me, I support your work." The dean took a bunch of keys and tried for a long time to open the painted metal cabinet. "The child who came out of me had an accident, and I can't help you much." , but what do you want to ask, just tell me what you want to see, I hope it will be useful to you, and catch the murderer as soon as possible!"

The dean was a little agitated, with a look of color on his face.

The cabinet door was opened, and there was a smell of old paper, mixed with a musty smell. The dean covered his face and coughed a few times before saying: "The files are all here, I'm looking for the ones from 10 years ago."

"It's troublesome."

Jiang Bei handed one of the tea mugs to Cheng Ye, and Cheng Ye looked out the window without noticing the hand stretched out to his cheek.

"Don't you want to drink the tea your boss made for you?" Jiang Bei asked.

Only then did Cheng Ye come back to his senses, and smiled at Jiang Bei: "Don't drink, you guys talk, remember to call me before you leave."

After speaking, he greeted the dean, and ran to the square like the wind to join the team of children.

Jiang Bei was still holding the tea mug, and drank it without thinking, almost scalding his tongue.He opened his mouth and exhaled, and he forgot to close his mouth when he heard the children outside calling "Brother, Brother".

"I found it," the dean put a large stack of documents on the desk, "Xiao Jiang, come and take a look."

When Jiang Bei heard the sound, he carefully flipped through the yellowed and fragile paper, selected the materials of the five victims and put them aside.Photos of them when they were young are pasted on the head portrait column, and their immature faces may be sad or dazed, but their death is the same - pretending to pray peacefully.

He asked: "Has there been any bullying incidents in your hospital?"

"How should I put it?" The dean pushed his glasses, "I have done it before. At that time, Xiao Qi was too young, only under three years old, and there was a little fat guy who liked to bully him, but I found out in time, and I said that afterward. The child, he restrained himself. The child was five years old at the time, and was taken away not long after. Later, I told the mothers to pay more attention to the children, especially the young ones, and I never heard from the mother that any child was being bullied again."

three years old...

Jiang Bei's eyelids twitched, and he suppressed his emotions before asking, "Is that little chubby one of the victims?"

"I don't know much about this." Years later, the children in the orphanage came and went, and they all changed when they became adults. The director really couldn't remember.He thought for a moment, and then said: "But the child is strong and has a birthmark on the back of his head. You can tell if it is him by looking at the body."

Jiang Bei nodded, already having the answer in his mind.He continued to flip through the file, trying to find the page belonging to the child among the thick stack of papers.

"Did the five victims bully or bully others, or had friction with others during their stay in the hospital?"

"Probably not," the dean said after taking a sip of tea, "I think I pay attention to this problem. In addition to telling mothers to pay more attention, I usually observe the children's daily activities and behaviors. Little Although Cha Xiaomo is inevitable, but you can't hold a grudge for more than ten years because of this, which little baby grows up without fighting a few times?"

"It means that there has been no serious bullying in your hospital?"

The dean's eyes were burning: "It can be said that I don't know other orphanages, but I am worthy of all the children in the orphanage."

Jiang Bei saw that he was covered in white hair and looked older than his peers, so he knew that he had put in a lot of effort over the years.But the more serious a person is, the less he can tolerate doubts from outsiders. Jiang Bei knew he had made a slip of the tongue and said kindly: "The principal has worked hard for the children for many years. I believe they will be grateful to you when they grow up."

The dean snorted: "They are all poor dolls, it would be nice to live a good life!"

It seems to be playing a game outside, the children's play is louder and louder, mixed with the hearty laughter of young people.

Jiang Bei flipped through the entire document before finding the child on the last page.The big head portrait has faded, and the child's facial contours are blurred, leaving only a pair of bright black eyes, looking forward with fullness.

Unlike other people's files, the child does not have a proper name, and only two words are written in the name column - Xiao Qi.

"Why is he called Xiaoqi?" Jiang Bei was puzzled, "Doesn't he have a name?"

"Xiaoqi~" The dean squinted his eyes, and his thoughts traveled back to 23 years ago through the long river of time.

It was an ordinary day in summer, the dean was in full bloom, and the courtyard was short of manpower, so he personally took the children to the square for free activities.Suddenly, I heard a few cries coming from outside the gate. When I walked over, I saw a baby lying in the bushes.

"It's too young. It's probably not long after birth, and it's still running a fever." The dean showed regret, rubbing the corners of his eyes, "The older generation said that the child might not be easy to support, so he had to be given a humble name. I thought about it." He came in July, so he chose a random name."

Jiang Bei looked at the gray figure outside the window and said, "He's a boy."

The dean didn't understand at first, but he realized after a while, and said in a deep voice: "I was also wondering at the time, at that time, only one child was allowed, and every family was desperately trying to have a child, because of this, many He was also fined. At first I thought it was Xiao Qi who was sick, but his mother didn’t dare to take it. She took her to the hospital for an examination and she was fine. I couldn’t figure out why someone would throw away a good boy. I can't support it."

After Jiang Bei listened, he held his breath in his heart.But that era has passed, and both right and wrong have been buried by the trend of the new era, and it is not his turn to say it.

The tea was cold, and the dean came to open the water bottle and replaced it with new tea.He blew on the tea foam and took a small sip: "Xiaoqi was handsome when he was young. I thought he would be taken away by a good family soon, but no one wanted him when he was five years old. The child remembers things as soon as he is a child. Many families don't like him." Thinking about this kind of child, it was not adopted by a woman with ordinary family conditions until he was seven or six years old. Fortunately, he grew up well."

Jiang Bei was thoughtful, and finally asked: "Your courtyard...or is there a church nearby?"

"No," said the dean, "I haven't seen a church in the past [-] years. This place is remote, who would come all the way to pray."

The weather was gloomy, and the clouds were getting lower and lower. When Jiang Bei went out, he was hit by the bitter winter wind.With Cheng Ye's coat on his wrist, he walked to the swing with big strides.

Cheng Ye was sitting on the swing, surrounded by a large group of children, all trying to push Cheng Ye higher.The swing made a semicircle in the air, and every time it reached the highest point, the children cheered, and immediately got ready for the next effort.

"Your clothes." Jiang Bei tossed the clothes to him, not politely, and covered Cheng Ye's head, "The dean asked you to have dinner, I'll go back first, remember to be there on time tomorrow morning."

Cheng Ye quickly jumped off the swing, took out the candy and sent the children away. While getting dressed, he said, "I am the one chosen by the murderer. Don't you stay and protect me? It's terrible to go home alone at night."

His face was flushed red after exercise, the hair on his forehead was wet with sweat, and his eyes were also wet, like flowers with dew, but he didn't show any fear at all.

Jiang Bei had already taken two steps, but upon hearing this sentence, he turned around and looked at Cheng Ye helplessly.