Chapter 12 The Twelfth Murder

Panther didn't laugh. His face seemed to have suddenly turned into a whole piece of granite again, without any expression at all, he just looked at Luo Lie coldly. The noodles have been served, and the heat of the noodles rises and spreads between them. The distance between them seemed to suddenly become very far away again. The boy who sold the newspaper had already discovered that the person sitting opposite Luo Lie was the Black Panther, and he had already seen the cold face of the Black Panther. Suddenly an indescribable fear appeared in his eyes, he stepped back slowly step by step, tripped over a chair, fell and got up again, and rushed out without looking back.

Luo Lie was still smiling: "This kid is a good kid, smart and able to endure hardships, just like when we were young." He smiled with emotion: "I think he will rise up one day. " Panther didn't speak, and didn't even seem to listen. Luo Lie picked out a piece of eel from the noodle bowl, chewed it slowly, and suddenly smiled again: "Do you still remember that time when we went to catch loaches and eels in the small river, we almost got caught by eels instead?" gone?" Black Panther certainly remembered. They encountered a thunderstorm that day, and the river suddenly turned fast. If Luo Lie hadn't grabbed a small tree in time, they might have been swept away by the rapids.

This kind of thing is hard for anyone to forget. "I also remember that candy." Panther said suddenly. "What sugar?" "The piece of candy that Bobo stole from home." The panther's voice was cold: "Whoever wins will get the piece of candy." "You won." Luo Lie said with a smile, "I remember you were the one who ate that piece of candy later." "But Popo secretly gave you a bigger one." There seemed to be a guilty expression in Luo Lie's eyes, and he nodded slowly. He has not forgotten this matter. "At that time, I had a feeling that you didn't treat me as a friend, that you were deceiving me anytime and anywhere." The corners of Hei Panther's eyes tightened, and he stared at Luo Lie: "Until now, I And that feeling."

Luo Lie sighed: "I don't blame you." "Of course you can't blame me." Black Panther sneered: "Because until now, you are still deceiving me." Luo Lie smiled wryly. Hei Panther's pupils had shrunk, and he looked at him and asked word by word, "When did you come?" "Half a month ago." "Didn't you just disembark yesterday morning?" "no." "Why don't you tell the truth?" "Because I didn't want you to know all about what I did." Luo Lie sighed again, before continuing: "Just like what you did, you didn't want me to know all about it."

Black Panther nodded slowly: "I remember you said that keeping secrets for others is an obligation, but keeping secrets for yourself is a right. Everyone has the right to protect his own private secrets, and no one can force it He said it." A trace of mockery suddenly appeared in his cold eyes, and he continued: "Unfortunately, no matter who wants to keep a secret from me, it is not easy." "Oh." "Because whatever he's done here, I'll find out sooner or later." Luo Lie smiled: "So it's better for him to say it himself." There was the same kind of mockery in his smile, but the object of his mockery was not others, but himself.

Black Panther looked at him coldly, waiting for him to speak. "As I said, Gordon is a good friend of mine, and I would do anything for him." "anything?" "Although I can't save him now, I should at least know how he died." "For the past half month, you have been investigating the cause of his death?" Black Panther asked again. Luo Lie nodded. "Have you investigated it?" "He did indeed fall to his death from the upstairs, and the Jewish medical examiner has confirmed this." "Is that not enough?" "Not enough." Luo Lie looked at the panther, "Because he was injured before he died."

"Where is the injury?" Black Panther asked. "The injury was on the wrist." Luo Lie said, "I think this is the real reason for his death." The black panther said coldly: "Even if both wrists are broken, a person cannot die." "But people like him are an exception." Luo Lie's voice was equally cold: "As long as this kind of person can still hold a gun in his hand, he will never jump off the stairs!" "Oh?" "Usually he always carries four guns." Luo Lie added, "But when others found his body, he didn't even have a single gun on him."

"Your investigation is indeed very clear." The black panther showed that mocking look again, and suddenly asked: "Do you think he was forced to jump off the stairs?" Luo Lie admitted. "I heard that he is a very fast shooter, very fast." The panther said coldly, "Who can shoot down the gun in his hand and force him to jump off the building?" "There are not many such people." Luo Lie stared at him: "Maybe there is only one." "only one?" "only one!" "I?" "Not you?" The panther suddenly laughed, and Luo Lie laughed too.

It was as if they suddenly discovered something very interesting at the same time. The steamed stuffed buns had also been served, and the black panther's laughter hadn't stopped, and he suddenly said, "Eat the steamed stuffed buns with crab roe while they are still hot, they will smell fishy when they are cold." Luo Lie picked up the chopsticks: "I will eat one basket, and you will eat one basket." So the two stopped laughing suddenly, lowered their heads, and began to concentrate on eating their buns and noodles. They all ate fast, as if they were all hungry. For them, there seemed to be nothing more important in the world than eating.

Then Luo Lie let out a long breath, with a satisfied look on his face: "This bun is really good." Black Panther smiled and said, "This is also made by the master himself, only my friends can eat it." "But I don't know if Gordon has eaten it?" "No." "Of course he hasn't eaten." Luo Lie smiled, as if a little sad: "He is not your friend." "I only have one friend." "only one?" "only one!" "I?" Hei Bao also smiled, and his smile was equally sad: "I have no family, no parents or brothers, and I don't even have my own last name." He stared at Luo Lie, and slowly continued: "But I never knew you from the day I met you." From the beginning, I have always regarded you as my friend."

A moved expression appeared in Luo Lie's eyes, and the past events from many years ago suddenly flooded into his heart again. He seemed to see another lonely and stubborn boy, wearing only a single piece of clothing, running non-stop on the snow. That was when he saw the panther for the first time. He didn't ask why the child was running non-stop. He knew that a child wearing only a single coat would freeze to death if he didn't run like this. Without asking a word, he took off his cotton jacket and ran with the child. Since that day, they have become good friends. Did Black Panther think of this now? He was still staring at Luo Lie, and suddenly asked: "If I really forced Gao Deng to jump off the building, wouldn't you kill me to avenge him?" Luo Lie didn't answer this question directly, and after a long time, he sighed: "He is my friend, and so are you, so I never really wanted to know who killed him." Hei Panther suddenly stretched out his hand from the table and grabbed his hand firmly: "But there is one more thing I want you to know." "you say." "This is a place for people to eat people. When people like Gordon come here, they will always be swallowed sooner or later." Black Panther's voice was low and sincere. "why?" "Because he also wants to eat people!" Luo Lie looked at his hands and was silent for a long time, then suddenly asked: "What about you?" "Me too." Black Panther replied simply: "So if I die at someone else's hands, I never want you to avenge me." Luo Lie didn't speak. During this short moment of silence, he suddenly did something very strange. He suddenly yawned. He shouldn't have yawned after Black Panther said something like that, and he himself was surprised to feel so tired all of a sudden. "Sorry." He said with a wry smile, "I'm too full and tired." "I can see that you didn't sleep well last night." Black Panther smiled: "I also know that Hongyu is not a woman who will let a man sleep well." He smiled and patted Luo Lie's hand on the table: "So you should go back to sleep now, sleep for three or four hours, and I will wake you up around twelve o'clock and take you home Have a meal." "Go back to your home?" "My home is also yours." Black Panther said with a smile: "After you go, I may never let you go again." The gate of the Paramount Hotel is revolving. Hei Panther stood behind the gate, watching the rickshaw driver who brought him park his car under the shade of a tree opposite, and took out a pack of cigarettes, but his eyes were still fixed on this side. the gate. He obviously didn't intend to leave, and he didn't intend to pick up other guests. There was a strange smile on the corner of Luo Lie's mouth, he knew there was a back door to this place. The sun outside the back door was just as bright. The sun is so bright everywhere, but it's a pity that some people in this world can't see the sun all year round. People who live in the "pheasant coop" cannot see the sun all year round, and of course Blind Chen can't see it. "Pheasant" is not a real pheasant, but some poor women, most of them are pale and underdeveloped, and their lives are even more despicable and miserable than real pheasants. The biggest misfortune of pheasants is that they get shot by hunters and become people's drink. But they are already living on other people's swords, and they are already people's drinks. They don't even have a place to escape. The only thing that can keep them alive is only a little ridiculous and pitiful dream left. Blind Chen is the one who weaves these dreams for them. According to him, their fate was very good. Although they are suffering now, they will come out one day. Relying on these ridiculous rumors, Chen Xiazi got three meals and two drinks every day, and also bought them a little bit of hope, so that they could still have the courage to continue living in this pit of fire. Seven fifty-five. This is the coldest time in the fire pit, these women who betrayed themselves eat less but sleep more. They don't care about wasting this good time, they don't care about wasting their lives at all. The door of Chen Xiazi's dilapidated thatched hut was still tightly closed. Luo Lie was knocking on the door. He didn't go upstairs, but came here directly from the back door of the hotel. When the newspaper seller uttered the words "Blind Chen", he had already noticed the anger and murderous intent in the black panther's eyes. The door knocked loudly, but no one answered. "Could it be that the Black Panther came first? Could it be that Blind Chen has already been murdered?" Luo Lie's heart sank, but his blood rushed up. This made him do something he'd never done before, he knocked down someone's door. It doesn't have to be very punchy, or even loud at all. The wooden house was already very dilapidated, and the door made of thin planks was almost as decayed as an old newspaper. The house is small and dark, with only two rooms in total. In the front room, there was a dilapidated wooden table, which was where Blind Chen received guests. On the wall were some crude calligraphy and paintings that he could not see. The one at the back is even smaller, which is Chen Blind's bedroom. Every five or six days, he will bring a woman with "the best life" into it, to vent his own desires, and at the same time create a little hope for this woman . When he touched their bones, he always liked to touch their thighs and breasts to decide who had the "best life". Although he is blind, he is a living blind man, a living blind man. When Luo Lie rushed in, he was still alive, sitting on the edge of his bed, panting continuously, looking surprisingly nervous and restless. "Who is it?" "It's me, Luo Lie." Luo Lie breathed a sigh of relief: "I thought something happened to you, why didn't you open the door?" Blind Chen smiled: "How do I know it's you." He smiled too forcedly, even if there was a woman with a "good fate" here, he didn't need to be so nervous. Luo Lie suddenly found that beside his feet, there was another pair of feet. A pair of feet in rag shoes protruded from under the bed, and the soles of the shoes were almost worn out. Women here would never wear such shoes, women here seldom walk at all. A person who is always lying in bed will never wear out the soles of his shoes. "I don't open the door until after ten o'clock every day." Blind Chen was still explaining, his eyes looked like two dark holes. "You never see a visitor before ten o'clock?" Luo Lie asked. Blind Chen shook his head: "But of course you are an exception, you are my friend." He smiled more forcedly: "Come on, let's sit outside, I still have half a bottle of Moutai." He wanted to stand up and pull Luo Lie out, but Luo Lie suddenly bent down and pulled out the feet under the bed. The feet are already cold and stiff, and the person is also cold and stiff. "little monkey." The little monkey is the kid who sells newspapers, this "smart, hard-working kid who will rise up one day in the future", but now he can never get up. His eyes protruded like dead fish, and there were purple-black fingerprints on his throat, and he was strangled to death. Blind Chen was also shocked, and after a while, he rushed out, but Luo Lie had already grabbed his shirt! "You killed the little monkey!" "I...I..." Blind Chen's face was distorted by tension. Only a murderer could have such a nervous and terrifying expression on his face. "Why did you kill him?" Luo Lie asked sharply. In fact, he didn't have to ask at all. After the little monkey saw him and the black panther, of course he rushed here immediately to tell blind Chen, but he didn't dare to tell him that he had already spoken his name in front of the black panther. "Are you afraid that the black panther will question you from him, so you killed him to silence him?" Blind Chen shook his head vigorously, and there was a rattling sound in his throat, but he couldn't say a word. "You didn't kill him?" Luo Lie shouted angrily. The cold sweat on Chen Blind's forehead was already raining down, and he finally lowered his head. He knew that it was useless to lie now. Luo Lie's hand was so strong that he almost lifted him up: "He is still a child, how can you bear to do such a cruel thing to him?" "I don't want to kill him, I really don't want to, but..." Blind Chen's gray face, those black hole-like blind eyes showed indescribable emptiness, despair, and fear: "But if he doesn't die, I will kill him." I have to die, I...I don't want to die yet." Luo Lie couldn't help but sneer: "What's the difference between living like you and dying?" "I know that my life is worse than that of a dog, and I am a blind and disabled person." Blind Chen's face was filled with tears suddenly: "But I still want to live...Everyone has the right to find a way to make me happy." Live on your own, don't you?" Luo Lie looked at him and saw the clear teardrops flowing out of his blind eyes like spring water. Is there anything more tragic than a blind man crying? Luo Lie's hands softened. Blind Chen's voice sounded like the dying cry of a hungry wolf on the plain... "I don't want to die yet, I still want to live!" Does a person have the right to harm others in order to keep himself alive? Luo Lie couldn't answer. "If you encounter a situation like mine, what would you do?" Blind Chen asked again: "Are you willing to die by yourself?" Luo Lie finally sighed: "I just want you to understand two things." He said in a deep voice, "First, the little monkey is also a human being, and he has the right to live; use." "why?" "Because he mentioned your name in front of the Black Panther." Luo Lie suddenly put down Blind Chen and walked out without looking back. He didn't want to look back at Blind Chen, nor did he want to look at the expression on Blind Chen's face again. But he could still imagine it. The narrow alleys are filled with a stench of cheap cosmetics, cheap tobacco and alcohol, and people vomiting. A woman with disheveled clothes and a pale face was rubbing her red and swollen eyes with hands painted with bright red Kodan, seeing off guests at the door. She seemed to be no more than thirteen or fourteen years old, not even fully developed, but her guest was an old man in his sixties. The old man was holding her shoulders, whispering in her ear, with a disgusting obscene look on his face. She was still giggling and pinching the old man's leg with her hands. Because she is living too. Luo Lie couldn't bear to look at it any longer, he almost couldn't help vomiting. "People like her and Blind Chen will do anything to survive, let alone others?" Not to mention the Black Panther! Luo Lie suddenly discovered that there are indeed some questions in this world that no one can answer. What is the right way to do it?Who is right? He could not answer, and perhaps no one could answer at all. Now he just wants to get out of here quickly, because he can't solve the difficulties and problems of these people at all. But at this moment, he heard Blind Chen let out a cry like a dying beast. "I don't know...I don't know anything..." Both the little girl and the old man turned their heads, with surprised expressions on their faces. With a bang, the decayed door of the cabin was knocked open again. Blind Chen rushed out like a wounded wild dog, staggering and running wildly. "Help……" Luo Lie had to turn around, and immediately saw Blind Chen rushing towards him. There is another person behind him. This man was thin and thin, with a dark and pointed face, with a vicious and dangerous expression, and a sharp knife in his hand. Even Luo Lie rarely saw such a vicious and dangerous person. He also saw Luo Lie, seeing Blind Chen running towards Luo Lie. With a sudden wave of his hand, the saber flashed and pierced Blind Chen's back. Blind Chen only felt a stabbing pain in his back, he fell down without even making a cry. The blade had pierced his heart from the back. The thin man with sharp face and sharp eyes immediately showed satisfaction on his face, but his eyes were still fixed on Luo Lie. He seemed to be ready to go, but he stopped suddenly, and drew the sharp knife out of his hand. Now his person looks like the knife in his hand, short, sharp, and full of aggression. Luo Lie walked over slowly. "Are you desperate Shichiro?" The man nodded and clenched the knife in his hand even tighter. He obviously knew Luo Lie, but he didn't expect Luo Lie to recognize him. But he didn't speak, let alone flinch. Luo Lie was still walking forward: "You want to fight hard with me?" Desperate Shichiro grinned, and a low hiss like a rattlesnake suddenly came out of his throat. At this moment, his men rushed towards Luo Lie, and with a flash of saber light, they stabbed at Luo Lie's throat. His shots are quick, accurate and deadly! Luo Lie seemed to want to dodge backwards, but suddenly, the edge of his palm cut towards the opponent's wrist holding the knife. Desperate Shichiro didn't seem to see his movements at all, and he rushed towards him with both men and knives. As long as he can stab the knife in his hand into the opponent's throat, that is his only purpose. As for whether he was dead or alive, he didn't care at all. This is the real scariest thing about Desperate Shichiro, even more terrifying than his knife. Luo Lie had no choice but to back up, but suddenly, he turned around and kicked his right leg from behind, hitting the opponent's wrist. Desperately, the knife in Shichiro's hand flew out of his hand, but he didn't even look at it, and pulled out the knife with his backhand. But at the same moment, Luo Lie turned around and punched him hard on the bridge of the nose. As soon as he lowered his head, he rushed towards Luo Lie's ribs. He had pulled out his knife, and stabbed Luo Lie's ribs with all his strength. Although this blow was vicious, it was tantamount to selling himself to Luo Lie. Even if his knife could penetrate Luo Lie's ribs, his own head would inevitably be crushed. Except for him, no one would use this desperate style of play, and no one would use it. But suddenly Luo Lie's body flashed past the knife and caught his right arm. His body was almost completely in Luo Lie's arms, and his arm was almost severed. But he still gritted his teeth and slammed his knee into Luo Lie's lower abdomen. Luo Lie's hand sank down, cutting on his knee, the sound of bones breaking made one's heart almost break. Cold sweat rolled down his face like soybeans, but he drew out the knife again with his left hand, and stabbed Luo Lie's chest through gritted teeth. His hand was immediately held by Luo Lie, as if there was an iron band suddenly added to his wrist, and he couldn't even hold a knife. He was completely restrained from top to bottom. But he still has a mouth. He suddenly roared wildly, biting Luo Lie's throat like a beast. Luo Lie couldn't help sighing, and suddenly punched him head-on on the bridge of the nose. Immediately, his man was sent flying, fell heavily two feet away, his black and thin pointed face was covered with blood. But he was still struggling, wanting to pounce again. Luo Lie looked at him and sighed softly: "Everyone is desperately trying to survive, why don't you want to?" Desperately Qilang got up, fell down again, stared at him fiercely with a pair of black eyes full of resentment, his throat was still low, and suddenly roared: "If you have the guts, come and kill me." Luo Lie didn't go there, and didn't want to kill him. Drawing knives desperately, killing people in narrow alleys, this is not something Luo Lie is willing to do, no matter what the reason is, he is not willing to do it. He turned around slowly, just wanting to get out of here quickly. But at this moment, he suddenly found that Desperate Shichiro seemed to have completely changed. When this desperate person saw Luo Lie turn around, he immediately breathed a sigh of relief, his whole body softened, and the vicious look in his eyes also turned into a relieved expression. He knew that Luo Lie would not kill him anymore, and he knew that he could live on. His reckless appearance was just a gesture for survival. Because he knew that if he didn't, he might die sooner. He wants others to be afraid of him, just to cover up the fear in his heart-the fear of death is also the fear of life. "Is this really a world where people eat people?" "Does a person have to hurt others in order to survive?" Luo Lie's heart seemed to be prickling, and suddenly, he felt an indescribable sympathy and pity for the people living in this kind of world - this feeling was as deep as his disgust. He couldn't help but look back at Desperate Shichiro again, a look as cold as a blade, but with cruel ridicule and pity. Desperate Shichiro saw this look, and immediately realized that this person had completely seen him through. It was even more painful than stabbing him. "Luo, you can't leave!" He suddenly shouted again: "Since you have come here, you are dead!" He shouldn't have said that. But a person whose dignity has been hurt will always say something that shouldn't be said. At this time, Luo Lie had already walked out of the narrow alley, and walked into the sunshine again. The sun is brighter, and it is already close to the most glorious time of the day. It is half past eight.