Too many things happened in such a short period of time. After waking up from the nightmare, he found that he had just woken up from another nightmare. Li Youcai didn't know how to answer Maeda's question. Without a correct answer, he continued to be in a daze. He didn't dare to look at Maeda or out the window. He could only look at the floor, dully thinking about another desperate option.
Ten steps away, separated by a desk, it would take some time to draw the gun, and it would also take some time for the military police outside the door to rush in, and the chance of success was unknown. He had already held someone hostage once in order to survive, so what if he held Commander Maeda hostage again? The question was, would he be willing to be held hostage? Maybe it was another scapegoat
"I just... wanted to kill him so she couldn't ask me for anything. I have nothing to do with the Rangers, otherwise why would I go to the hospital to see if he was dead or not, why would I go through this nightmare. I... like her, really do."
Looking at Li Youcai staring at the floor with his head down for a long time, Maeda nodded slightly behind the desk: "I'm very curious. The other prisoners are fine, and there is no insider. You have never entered that cell, and you were not there at mealtime. How did you do it?"
"The night before, after drinking with Ishihara Taikun, I deliberately passed by that corridor and replaced the bowl inside his cell fence while he was asleep."
"Swoosh-Ga-" Maeda suddenly realized, and a hint of relief appeared on his originally expressionless face. He couldn't help but start pointing his fingers at the table, and leaned back a little in his chair to look at the lamp hanging from the ceiling.
It takes great courage to draw a gun in front of Maeda, not only because he is an imperial army, nor just because he is the commander of the gendarmerie, but most importantly, he is the owner of the dog Li Youcai. When a dog wants to bite its owner, it takes more than just courage. Li Youcai's back was already soaked without him realizing it. He knew he could not hesitate any longer. Once Maeda opened his mouth to call for guards, he would have no chance. He tried to hide with his right hand and lean to the side to get closer to the holster.
Suddenly, someone shouted "report" outside the door, and then a military police officer came in and reported to Maeda: "There is no progress in the poisoning case, and the person in charge of serving meals in the prison has been ruled out as a suspect. The investigation team now speculates that the prisoner took the poison himself, perhaps because of negligence when he was sent to the prison."
Li Youcai tried to reverse the clockwise vortex in his mind, but failed. It became a mess and he couldn't think at all. He was stunned.
Maeda (while looking at Li Youcai who looked like a wooden stake, he suddenly sneered: "Taking poison on his own? Trash! Tell the investigation team, he wouldn't take poison on his own. That's what I said! Keep investigating!"
After the officer stood at attention and walked out, Li Youcai raised his sweaty face and stared at Maeda.
"I believe you have nothing to do with the Rangers, not because I trust you, but because you are smart. I had no choice but to do it in the hospital, so don't think too much about it. So if the investigation team finds you out, I won't let you off. Understand?"
"… "
"Why don't you answer? Don't you have many women?"
"I see."
Maeda smiled: "I said, as long as you work hard, you can have everything. Why don't you work hard?"
…
The three-legged table was restored to four legs, and the leg that was broken by Li Youcai had been repaired by Hu Yi. An oil lamp was lit on the table, and Hu Yi was sitting at the table with bowls and chopsticks in front of him. He watched Su Qing go in and out of the kitchen and bring a dish up, staring blankly.
Later, she filled his bowl with rice before sitting down opposite him. She asked unhappily because of his gaze, "What are you thinking about?"
"You shouldn't have waited in the hospital. There's nothing you can do in that situation."
Not far from the hospital, Hu Yi saw Su Qing, hiding at the entrance of the alley like a miserable woman, looking at the end of the situation within the bayonet cordon. When she saw Hu Yi walking towards her, she didn't smile happily, and had no expression at all. She tried to be calm, but she didn't know that there was a drop of forgotten crystal in the corner of her eyes.
"I know. I just wanted to collect your body."
Hu Yi laughed happily. To him, this sentence was worth a thousand words. But she didn't realize it yet, thinking that she was acting as mean as always.
Picking up the bowl and chopsticks, he began to eat with big mouthfuls, wolfing down the rice and vegetables, sipping them with extra sweetness.
The courtyard door rang, and soon after, Li Youcai walked in. His eyes were dull, his steps were weak, and his clothes were still covered in dirt from his experience. He was so dejected that Hu Yi and Su Qing could hardly recognize him. He sat down at the table like a destitute ghost, staring at the oil lamp in a daze without saying a word.
Su Qing looked at Hu Yi, and Hu Yi had to speak first: "I? I'm dead for you!"
A few seconds later, Li Youcai sighed deeply: "I didn't expect you to be alive!"
"What happened?"
Li Youcai smiled bitterly: "A lot! So much that I can't believe it myself!"
Su Qing sat down on one side: "Why did you run into the Rangers? Who commissioned you?"
This question made Li Youcai dazed again. He continued to stare at the oil lamp, lost in thought for a while, then regained consciousness, noticed the food on the table, and answered the question irrelevantly, "I'm hungry."
Su Qing went back to the kitchen and added another set of bowls and chopsticks. Li Youcai picked up the chopsticks, picked up a big mouthful of food and stuffed it into his mouth. After chewing three times, he stopped, then tilted his head and spit it all out.
Hu Yi didn't say anything. He knew how salty and bitter that big mouthful of food would be. He had just been experiencing the pain of taste, but he didn't want to disappoint the housewife.
The mood that Li Youcai had managed to gather up disappeared again, and the uncontrollable sadness suddenly swelled up. He threw away the chopsticks in his hand and roared: "Why? Is it retribution? Or do I deserve it? I own everything! I own him! What is everything? What is everything? Who can tell me... what is everything?"
No matter what happened, Li Youcai was not in a good condition to ask. However, Su Qing was more curious about why Li Youcai spit out the food she cooked. She snatched the chopsticks from Hu Yi, who was in a daze, picked up the food and tasted it. Then her face turned from pale to green, and she threw the chopsticks away. Her beautiful eyes widened and she angrily said to Hu Yi: "Why did you lie to me? Why do you keep lying to me? Is this considered a mockery?"
Hu Yi was dumbfounded. He didn't understand. What did he do wrong? Didn't she do it on purpose? Didn't she eat the food she cooked these days? At this moment, he finally realized that she had no money now and she only ate rice.
Li Youcai was hysterical enough that he rested his elbows on the table, buried his traitorous face in his hands, and immersed himself in his own sorrow, seemingly unaware of what was happening to the other two people at the table.
Su Qing waited for the answer she wanted coldly and angrily, but Hu Yi didn't dare to look her in the eye. He just stared at the rice in the bowl in front of him in a daze, feeling mixed emotions.
The flame of the oil lamp flickered, as if it was also surprised by the three silent people at the table...