Chapter 22 Chapter Twenty Two

The snake scrapes and grinds its body on the gravel, crevices of stones or between trees until it scratches or bites off the old scales all over the body before it can crawl out of the snake slough.Like that snake, she fled away with her blood-stained body, completing a beautiful and cruel transformation. When Wu Bingbing arrived in Chengdu, she received a call from Zhang Qun and asked her how her family was doing.Zhang Qun said it was too late. My mother had passed away when I got home.Bingbing's heart sank, not knowing what to say.Zhang Qun said that the examination revealed that he died of suffocation, a symptom of a heart attack.Bingbing took a breath and didn't answer.Zhang Qun said that my mother has always been in good health and has never had a heart problem. I suspect it was Jiang Lan's fault.Bingbing let out a soft cry.Zhang Qun said that she came to my house only after seeing the business card, and because she couldn't find me, she took revenge on my family, and I'm sure it was Jiang Lan who did it.

Zhang Qun also said that mysterious deaths in the city are still happening.When I went to see my mother in the hospital mortuary, I heard the nurse say that several doctors and nurses also died in the hospital.It seems that although Jiang Lan was injured and her magic power was weakened, she did not stop revenge and murder.How is your investigation going?Have you figured out her whereabouts?Have you found the longevity lock? Wu Bingbing said: "It has been clarified that the Chen Xiaona that Gu Hongsheng saw was Wang Xiaoyue. I have now arrived in Chengdu and am preparing to investigate what happened to Chen Xiaona later."

Zhang Qun asked: "Is your boyfriend with you?" Bingbing's tears came out, and she didn't know how to answer Zhang Qun. Zhang Qun said: "Okay, I won't ask anymore, you can investigate. My mother has not finished dealing with the aftermath. If I finish it here, I will help you." Bingbing asked: "Have you visited my house? For some reason, my mother never answers the phone. Maybe my phone at home is broken. Or, is it because she doesn't live at home?" Zhang Qun said: "I didn't want to tell you that your mother was also sick...but it's not serious, because your father's case was opened, he was convicted of homicide and sentenced to death...I heard that your father did not confess, He's appealed to the Superior Court. There's still time, it'll be cleared up... Hey, are you listening?"

Bingbing cried so hard that she couldn't speak, and it took a long time before she choked up and said: "I said I would save him. ——Dad, wait for me, I said I would save you." Upon arriving at Xidu Academy of Fine Arts, Wu Bingbing inquired about Mr. Ma Yuan, and learned that he was already a professor of the Department of Fine Arts.Before meeting him, Wu Bingbing met a retired female professor on campus. From talking with her, she learned that Professor Ma Yuan was still single. After that, he always refused to remarry. Wu Bingbing asked: "How did his wife die? Didn't she commit suicide?"

The female professor said: "I fell off the cliff when I went out to sketch. Although she acted freely on her own, it was a major event in the school after all, and it had a great influence on teachers and students at that time." "How long has Chen Xiaona been assigned to this school?" "About three years? A little more than three years." "Do they have a good relationship as a couple?" "Oh, you have to ask Ma Yuan, others can't tell you." Ma Yuan is the kind of man who has an artistic temperament in a good way, and a bookish man in a blunt point.

Tall, thin and thin, with ear-length hair, a complexion as pale as blood, and gloomy and melancholy eyes.He looked at Wu Bingbing suspiciously for a long time, and asked who she was?Why are you here looking for Chen Xiaona?Why did you ask about Chen Xiaona? Wu Bingbing had been prepared for a long time, saying that she was Chen Xiaona's cousin, who came from her hometown in Hengyang, Hunan, and wanted to ask about Chen Xiaona's situation.Xiaona's family is gone, my mother is her mother's younger sister, and our mother and daughter are her only relatives.She hadn't been heard from for years, and we wondered, what the hell happened.

Since he is a relative of his wife who came from afar, Ma Yuan brought Wu Bingbing to his home. Wu Bingbing saw the picture hanging in the picture frame on the wall of the living room at a glance—it was the same girl as the girl in the picture she saw in Aunt Duan Hong's room. Wang Xiaoyue, a girl who escaped from Xishangou.In the frame, she is obviously more mature than before - full of long hair, naturally curly, setting off a fair face, extremely dignified and demure.She looked sideways to the front, her eyelashes were long and flexible, her eyes were big and deep, and her eyes were slightly melancholy, as if she was thinking.Her delicate nose bridge, round lips, and her entire face are sculpturally perfect.

Wu Bingbing stood there staring blankly, so that she didn't even hear Ma Yuan offering her seat. Ma Yuan sat down and asked, "When did Xiaona's mother die?" Wu Bingbing quickly said, "Oh, it's Xiaona's second year in school. Xiaona never came home again." "She is a homeless bird!" Ma Yuanchang sighed, "She often said that when she was alive. She also said that she was born in poverty, and she didn't want to go back to the big mountain ditch... She often laughed at herself One sentence is: The peacock flies southeast, vowing not to look back! Therefore, it is understandable that she did not go home after her mother died. If she did not die, she might go back to see you now. But she can’t go back—”

Wu Bingbing said: "She also wrote to us in the past, saying that you were very kind to her. She also mentioned a professor Ouyang in the letter—?" "Yes, Professor Ouyang was her tutor. It's a pity that he passed away long ago." "Professor Ouyang died? When did he die?" "He went earlier than Xiaona. That winter. He fell ill in the house. No one knew. He missed a few days of class and didn't teach the students. Only then did someone go to find him. Only then did he find that he died. It was a myocardial infarction. , There are still untaken pills scattered on the ground. It seems that Xiaona found him when she went to return the book at his house."

Wu Bingbing recalled the letter he had read on the road, and couldn't help wondering whether Professor Ouyang's death had something to do with Wang Xiaoyue? Ma Yuan walked around the room and said, "You are her cousin, come and have a look in her room. The next room is her studio. It is still the same as it was when she left. Everything has not been touched, and it is exactly the same. It's here. It's been 10 years, and I can't forget her. But these years, many things have made me more and more confused. I don't know much about her past. If I knew more, I might be able to help her. Until now , I have never believed that she fell off the cliff and died while painting. I suspect that she committed suicide, but I haven't told anyone. You are her only relative I have seen, so I told you so. I suspect There was a reason for her suicide. It is meaningless to say these things now. No matter how she died, it would hurt me. Unfortunately, I couldn’t help her, and she took that road."

Wu Bingbing was stunned, not knowing how to answer his words, nor what he wanted to say. Ma Yuan asked: "Tell me about Xiaona's past? Other than her mother?" "Her family is poor, and the past was very difficult." Wu Bingbing was thinking whether to tell him Chen Xiaona's real identity and her past experiences.In the end, I thought it was better not to tell him, as he would suspect her purpose of coming and complicate the problem. "There is nothing else." Ma Yuan asked: "I want to know about her past relationship?" "She has been out of school since she was so young, what will happen to her emotionally?" "You didn't tell me the truth. You know there is a man named Yang Li?" "Yang Li? You know him too? Is he here?" "Yes, I have seen him." "As far as I know, Yang Li is just her suitor in high school. It's too crazy to chase here! It's too deceiving! Isn't it?" Wu Bingbing said angrily. Next, Ma Yuan told her how Yang Li came to find Chen Xiaona—— That day, Chen Xiaona went to Tazishan Park to paint from life, and then went to the nearby suburbs after painting, but unexpectedly, she was followed by a male tourist.She ran in front, and the man followed behind, and she couldn't get rid of it no matter what. She ran into a bamboo forest, but the man found her inside.She quarreled with the man first, but the man threatened her viciously.Then she cried and begged again, and knelt down to beg him. That man's unrelenting attitude... Ma Yuan was not there at the time, but a girl came to tell him.The girl saw it when she was walking in the park with her mother. She didn't know what the relationship between the man and Teacher Xiaona was, so she didn't dare to go directly to support her.It was already noon when Ma Yuan rushed over.He called her and she refused, and when she went into the bamboo forest to look for it, she saw that unexpected scene—she was digging half of the bamboo pole almost manically, her hair was disheveled, covered in sweat, and her eyes were perplexed and confused; Next to it, lay the man. He was obviously dead, the painting knife was still stuck in his chest, and the blood that flowed out stained the soil under his body red. Seeing Ma Yuan's panic-stricken look, Chen Xiaona said in an orderly tone, come and help me dig the soil and bury him!I will tell you the reason slowly.Ma Yuan walked up to the corpse and drew out the painting knife, and dug up next to her without saying anything.As if she just remembered that she had a painting knife, she threw the bamboo pole aside, took the painting knife from Ma Yuan's hand, and continued digging vigorously.While digging, she said, his name is Yang Li, he followed me from his hometown, and he has been looking for me for several years.Just because I was engaged to him very early, he has been chasing me like a wolf since then, and let me live with him.The first time I was admitted to college, he sued me.I have been fleeing here for so many years, but he actually chased me here and said he would make me restless for the rest of my life, so I want to kill him!For this reason.After she finished speaking, she asked Ma Yuan, are you afraid?If you are afraid, go and report! ... "Has the body been found?" Wu Bingbing asked worriedly. "Of course I found it, and it was discovered two months later." Ma Yuan said. "Is it because she was afraid after this incident was exposed...you just thought she committed suicide?" Wu Bingbing asked tentatively, and then hurriedly explained, "I'm just guessing." Ma Yuan sighed again, and continued: "Since then, our lives have been shrouded in clouds. After I understand all the circumstances, although I sympathize with and understand my wife, I always think about how to protect her and bury that matter in my heart , never mentioned it again, but there is always an unspeakable fear that disaster may strike at any time. Xiaona is depressed and silent every day, and she always has nightmares at night. She often sees her sitting in a daze unconsciously, even if she Every little accident would make her scream. Especially after the corpse was found in the bamboo forest, the Public Security Bureau issued a notice offering a reward for clues to the unnamed corpse. "One night when I woke up, I saw her staring at the ceiling, so I asked her what she was thinking? She suddenly stared at me and asked, 'You won't report me, will you?', I was angry because of her suspicion of me. She is not only worried about others, but also about herself. Once she was in class, and she didn’t know what to think of, and she felt breathless and unbearable. She left a class of students and ran back to the dormitory, yelling at me: “I’m really hurt.” It’s over, I’m going to collapse!” Usually, she shuts the doors and windows tightly, and doesn’t listen to any sounds from outside. Occasionally, I open the window to let in the air, which will make her cry and protest. This kind of life lasted for half a year, Later, her condition got better, and she relaxed a little. During this period, she often went out to paint, sometimes running far away, for a few days or a week. I saw her so calm, so I let her run freely. That is At that time, she met a Hong Kong painter. There seems to be a relationship between her and that painter." Wu Bingbing frowned, and asked, "Why is this happening? What's the artist's name?" Ma Yuan said, "Let's think about it...Chen Zhongjie." "Is it Chen Zhongjie?" "Yes, you know him?" "No, I know it from her letters." "Actually, he is not a painter, but an art dealer. She came back from painting in Chongqing that day and said that she met this Hong Kong artist when she was sketching on the Jialing River. He not only painted, but also opened a gallery for business and collection. ; Said that he admired her paintings very much, and bought three studies on the spot, and asked her to take the other paintings for him to see. She took the paintings and went to Chongqing again, in exchange for a considerable sum of money. Later, the art dealer paid the travel expenses and invited her to visit the art exhibition in other places. I was busy with other things at that time, I don’t know, she went with the art dealer without telling me. After running for a few days, she came back and didn’t take the initiative to mention that. The art dealer. But I saw that the relationship between her and him was complicated, so I took the initiative to talk to her. She admitted that the art dealer pursued her and had a crush on the art dealer, but she would not betray me. The art dealer cut off contact and lived with me. I was deeply moved by her confession. Her heart belonged to me, and my heart also contained her. We hugged each other tightly. I just wanted to go through all this After the wind and rain, we lived together in love and depended on each other, but we didn't expect that she would die suddenly two months later..." "How did she die? Can you tell me about the situation in detail?" "She went out for a week and didn't come back. I thought she went out to paint like before. It wasn't until more than ten days later that the unidentified female corpse was announced in the newspaper. After comparing the figure, appearance and general condition, I thought it might be her. It was in The body was found under a mountain more than 100 miles away. When I went to the local police station to identify it, all they gave me was an urn. The police explained to me and analyzed that she might have fallen from a cliff Yes, his head was broken, and his whole body was covered with bruises, and he just rolled into the deep pool at the foot of the mountain; it was at least several days before he was discovered; Most of the flesh was eaten by fish. Because they could not preserve the body, they took pictures and cremated it first, and then published it in the newspaper looking for relatives to claim it. They also returned to me the painting tools and paints they found on the cliff. The picture clip is engraved The pinyin of her name, and the string of longevity locks that she often wears on her body. The urn has been kept in her studio, which is covered under the white cloth you just saw. Everything in her studio is well preserved. good." Before Wu Bingbing could bring it up, he opened the cabinet in the corner, took out the silver longevity lock, and placed it in front of her.For a moment, Wu Bingbing was uncontrollably excited.She saw the semicircular silver lock with the shiny chain, and on the cover was a wolf's head baring its teeth. The wolf's teeth protruded from both sides like a crescent, and there was a small bell on each tip... But the bell had already disappeared. One was flattened, and the lock cover part in the middle was also somewhat dented.She turned it over and looked, and was even more amazed. There was a strangely shaped charm on the back, which was not cast, but engraved, and there were densely packed small characters around the charm.Carefully distinguish, it says—— The star of Changgeng, the spirit of the white tiger, the mutual support of yin and yang, the effect of mountains and rivers, the law of the sky, the peace of the law and the peace of the land, no beasts can invade, thousands of evils hide from their shapes, guard the body and dare to act as stones, wild wolves rush to the calamity, protect and protect Grow up, be rich and live long.The foolish girl Xiaoyue is assisted by Tiande, and her soul will survive a hundred calamities. Bingbing said: "I think, can you give me some pictures of her? Also, if I take back this longevity lock and let her go home, it can be regarded as comfort to her soul after death. What do you think?" Ma Yuan said: "Okay, you can take it all. She has seen her relatives." Bingbing asked again: "You just said that you suspect that she committed suicide?" "Yeah, I went to the rock she fell off afterward. She was obviously painting there, the mountain on the opposite side and the stream below, and there were a few escaping pines on the mountain. She could have stood Painting in a farther place, the scene selection and composition are quite good, there is no need to go to the downward sloping rock to paint, unless she is doing it on purpose or taking risks. This reminds me of what happened in late autumn last year, when we went out to sketch together, It was also on the top of a mountain, standing on a rock and drawing. She was painting and suddenly told me that she really wanted to fly, and she had an urge to fly down to the mountain stream. She threw away the brush and opened her arms. Opened, walked towards the cliff, letting the mountain wind blow her clothes and hair. On the edge of the cliff, she stretched her neck and shouted: "Ah! - shouted three times in a row, then turned her head and said, "Okay! It's still good!" Continue to draw. I know that she is depressed, and she sat beside her for a long time without speaking, and her heart was always sore and uncomfortable." "You mean, she was suicidal at that time?" Bingbing asked. "Maybe." Ma Yuan was a little sad.He drank a few sips of water, trying to calm his emotions, "I remember when she was painting that day, she saw a snake on a branch among the rocks next to her, and hurriedly called me to look at it—it was a red snake with black and white spots, It is shedding its skin, half of its body has crawled out of the snake skin, and the other half of its body is still in the snake slough, its tail keeps wagging, trying to break free from the snake slough hanging between the branches of the tree; because the snake's waist is very thin. It was tight, and the second half of the snake could not be pulled out, so the snake turned back and bit its own belly, and the skin burst after a few bites; its body slowly slid out, took off the bright and transparent snake skin and hung it on the branch. The snake entangled itself among the branches, turned around and sniffed its own slough for a while, and then reluctantly left. Chen Xiaona watched intently, and she was so excited that tears filled her eyes. I held her in my arms. She She told me that snakes shed their skins every year before hibernation, and she often watched the process of snakes shedding when she was a child. She said that some snakes that shed their skins in spring are simply frightening to watch. Those snakes put their bodies on sandy ground, hard rocks, etc. Pick a stubble in the seam or between the trees, and scratch it again and again until the scales of the whole body are scratched, the new flesh inside spreads the skin, and the teeth tear off the outer skin one by one. This kind of snake skin is mottled and fragmented, and the new flesh that grows on the body is pink and tender, and is often torn bloody by myself. I said, since it hurts so much, why does the snake shed its skin in spring? She said that after the snake crawled for a long time, the scales on its body When it becomes horny, it feels like it's tied up; it needs to get rid of this layer, it needs to get a new skin. Because tourists come to watch us paint, she didn't go on, but I have been talking about it for many years afterwards. I remember that conversation, the more I think about it, the more interesting the snake sloughing process she talked about, and I always feel that Xiaona, like the spring snake she talked about, died in order to get rid of the heavy things in the past and pursue the relaxation and freedom of the soul of." Wu Bingbing listened, and nodded if she realized something.She suddenly thought of Huang Qing, Zhang Qun had come to investigate, Huang Qing is a student of this academy of fine arts, since Jiang Lan used her name to go abroad, she must know Huang Qing, maybe there is a story with Huang Qing! "By the way, is there a girl named Huang Qing in your school?" "Yes. How do you know her?" Ma Yuan asked in surprise. "Well, that's what Chen Xiaona said when she wrote a letter home..." "Well, she is a student in Xiaona's graduating class. Xiaona likes her very much, and even brought her to the house a few times, saying that Huang Qing looks a lot like her. I haven't seen her since graduation, maybe I went back to my hometown." "Huang Qing looks a lot like her?" "Xiaona said so. I don't think they look alike, but they are about the same size, fat and thin, and their temperament is far different. However, their faces are a bit similar, and their eyes are not the same. Xiaona's eyes are big and energetic, while Huang Qing She's a silly girl with single eyelids, and her facial features don't look good, she can't compare to Xiaona." "Yes, yes." Wu Bingbing agreed, thinking in his heart that he just loves his beautiful wife. Since even the person involved thinks they are alike, then the two of them must be alike to some extent, maybe Jiang Lan took advantage of this resemblance, and since then she has purposefully gotten close to Huang Qing, and later directed the conspiracy of the golden cicada to escape her shell. "I still want to ask, have you never seen that Hong Kong art dealer again?" "He left and never contacted Xiaona again, I'm sure of that." Otherwise, Wu Bingbing said in her heart, it was the Hong Kong art dealer Chen Zhongjie who helped her escape. When he was about to leave Ma Yuan's house, Wu Bingbing looked at the picture in the frame on the wall again.She did not tell Ma Yuan the real identity of the girl in the photo.Thinking of how infatuated he was with his late wife, how much he loved her and the pictures on the wall, like everything in the studio, moved her deeply as an outsider.At the same time, she felt a little sad, because the person he loved was as illusory as a dream, not only did he not belong to him physically and mentally, but even his name was fake... and he never doubted his feelings for her... Just thinking like this, Wu Bingbing saw a movement in the frame, Wang Xiaoyue in the photo lowered her head, two lines of tears flowed from her eyes, flowed down the photo, overflowed the frame, puff da da fell to the ground...