In the southern town of October, there is already a bleak autumn mood. Next to the long street on the river bank, there is a row of old and new buildings, and vehicles and pedestrians pass by from time to time.
Han Chen parked the car beside the road and looked up.
Hongshan County, Fuyang Lane, No. 17.
Bai Jin Xi's childhood residence.
This is a new three-story house with a small shop at the door. Han Chen went over to buy a pack of cigarettes, and started chatting with the proprietress: "Let me ask someone, I have a friend named Bai Jinxi. Did she live here before?"
The proprietress was a kind woman in her forties, she shook her head when she heard the words: "No, I've never heard of it."
"Then when did you move in?"
The proprietress smiled: "It's been three or four years. When did your friend live here?"
"She lived here when she was a child, and then moved out. It has been more than ten years." Han Chen replied with a light smile.
The proprietress patted the table lightly: "That's right. The land here was bought and demolished a few years ago. You see, what we bought is the newly built building by the developer. The old tenants don't know where to move to. went."
"Oh." Han Chen was quiet and asked again, "Do you know who bought the land for demolition at that time?"
When he asked this question, the proprietress was stunned. But seeing his straight face and focused eyes, he subconsciously said everything he knew: "I really don't know this. But I heard at the time that the land here has been handed over several times, and finally it was handed over to a local developer. inside."
After coming out of the canteen, Han Chen stood on the side of the road and looked at both ends of the long street for a while.
Finally, his eyes fell on the corner of the street, a small restaurant looking at some years old.
It was not yet noon, and there was not a single table of guests in the humble but fragrant restaurant. Only an old lady with gray hair was sitting at the door picking vegetables.
Han Chen walked to her side and bent down slightly: "Old man, I want to ask you about someone."
The old lady looked up at him: "lady, who are you trying to inquire about?"
"Do you know Bai Jin Xi? I'm her friend."
The old lady thought for a while: "Oh... Is it Xiao Xi who used to live in the east?" She looked at him in surprise: "Her family has moved away for a long time, how did you find this place?"
Han Chen smiled and replied, "I haven't contacted her for a few years. I remember she mentioned her hometown here. I happened to be passing by today, so I came to look for it."
The old lady smiled and pulled a chair for him: "lady, sit down. You're in the wrong place. It's been ten years since her family moved away. But I remember a few years ago, she came back once and pulled me We talked for a long time."
Han Chen sat down, put his hands on his knees, and looked at the old lady: "Then do you remember when she came back?"
The old lady thought about it and sighed: "At the end of 10 years, it was the year when her family had an accident. This child is also pitiful, and her parents are gone. I can't remember the past." She smiled lovingly again: "But she has changed a lot in the past few years when she went to study. After all, she went to a big city and became more and more beautiful."
Han Chen was silent for a while, and asked, "Do you have any pictures of her when she was a child?"
The old lady shook her head: "Where is it?" She smiled and looked at Han Chen: "Young man, do you want to chase after her? You've found it here, you really care."
Han Chen smiled.
"Does she have any relatives?"
The old lady pondered for a while and replied, "There are no relatives on her father's side. On her mother's side, I heard that there was a sister, but not in K province. I heard that she died a few years ago. Oh, this girl Xiaoxi, It's also very pitiful, and now it's considered unaccompanied."
A customer entered the store, and the old lady was also busy.
Han Chen found a table and sat down, and ordered a bowl of the signature rice noodles recommended by the old lady.
Looking at the smoke wafting from the stove at the entrance of the shop, and the old wooden table in front of him that had been polished, he naturally thought of Bai Jin Xi who admired this kind of street food.
"... I bought it at a roadside stall. It's very delicious." When she said these words, her big clear eyes were brighter than electric lights.
Thinking of this, Han Chen smiled slowly. He picked up the phone, flipped to her number, watched for a few seconds, and called.
—
Bai Jin Xi can already sit up and is eating at the small table.
The lunch box is still yesterday's lunch box, and the rice spoon is still yesterday's rice spoon. One bite after another, it always feels weird.
Some men have a strong presence and aura. She put the rice spoon he used once in her mouth, and she always felt that it was contaminated with some kind of breath from him. From time to time, the image of him eating with this spoon came into his mind from time to time.
irritable.
The nurses who were doing the rounds were still chatting about Han Chen at the door.
Too. Bai Jin Xi thought sourly, a man like him should have a predestined relationship with women wherever he goes. A few days ago, she had heard the police gossip, saying that in the past few years, in the Lan City Public Prosecution and Legal System, there were at least a dozen police officers who fell under Han Chen's black jacket.
He has remained indifferent.
until…
Bai Jin Xi stabs the rice a few times with a spoon.
Over there, the young nurses were still chatting.
"That criminal policeman, I heard that he was the main force in solving this major case."
"So young, he looks like he's not yet thirty. He looks so handsome!"
This made the nurses laugh.
"Why was he discharged so quickly? Will the director approve?"
"No approval! I left without saying hello. It was said to investigate the case, but I had to ask the inpatient department to prescribe painkillers."
"Too man!" Someone exclaimed.
…
Painkillers
Jin Xi uses a spoon to poke a hole in the rice again.
As a result, it was said that Cao Cao Cao Cao was coming, and the cell phone beside the bed rang. The name that jumped on the screen was "Shameless Korean bastard with two boats".
Jin Xi looked at the phone, was silent for a while, and picked it up.
She doesn't speak.
"Hello." His low and warm voice came from the phone, "What are you doing?"
Jin Xi: "Nothing."
On the other end, Han Chen heard her very cold words, but her blushing face and puffed cheeks appeared in her mind in anger. His heart softened slightly, he smiled while holding the phone, lowered his head, and tapped lightly with his fingers on the table.
"How are you today?"
Jin Xi didn't answer directly, ignoring him.
Han Chen didn't care either, and explained without hesitation, "Don't get out of bed in a mess, tell them to do something if you have something to do."
Jin Xi still doesn't speak.
Han Chen also fell silent. He looked at not far away, the river flowing slowly under the sun. In her ears, there was the sound of her thin breathing.
It seems that he is enough.
Seeing that he didn't speak anymore, Jin Xi felt inexplicably uncomfortable. So he said coldly again: "Is there anything else? I'll hang up."
He was silent for a few seconds.
"I miss you," he said softly.
Jin Xi only felt that her heart was being gripped tightly.
It was Han Chen's hand, capturing her heart.
Putting down the phone, she stared blankly ahead. After a while, I realized that my cheeks were hot. Pick up the phone and put it down again. It was difficult to calm down for a while.
Finally, I finally picked up my phone and sent a text message. Then he threw his phone away completely and went to sleep.
In the small shop, the old lady had already brought the rice noodles and asked with a smile, "Young man, do you want to put spicy food?"
Han Chen picked up the chopsticks and stirred the rice noodles: "Don't let it go."
At this time, the SMS bell rings. He picked it up and looked at it, it was sent by Jin Xi. Only two words -
"Fuck off."
Han Chen was silent for a moment, put down the phone and didn't reply, bowed his head to eat fans. At this time, the old lady smiled and said, "You have the same habit as Xiao Xi. She came to me to eat noodles when she was a child, and she didn't put any peppers."
Han Chen raised his head.
In his mind, Bai Jin Xi is in the cafeteria, every time he adds a tablespoon of chili peppers to the rice, he is so happy.
"Is that so?" he said. "When I met her later, she was very happy."
The old lady replied in surprise: "Huh?" Immediately relieved: "Yes, people's tastes will change. When you grow up, whether you like it or not will change."
Han Chen nodded, lowered his head, and slowly began to eat.
—
Han Chen stayed in Hongshan County for a day, and visited Bai Jinxi's primary school and middle school. Because it has been more than ten years, there is not much information. And in schools in small county towns, the archives are not well kept. I only got a few blurry and yellowed photos of her when she was a child, and I couldn't see it clearly.
The next morning, he drove from Hongshan County to Shajiang City.
Shajiang Police Academy.
The administrator of the archives is a male employee in his forties. Han Chen showed him his credentials: "I'm from the Criminal Police Team of the Provincial Public Security Department. I need to check all the information of your school's level 56 criminal investigation class."
However, the administrator shook his head in embarrassment: "Officer, why do you want to be level 56? A few years ago, the office building was poorly managed, and a fire broke out. 44, 56, 57... The data files of several levels were all burned. already."
Han Chen frowned slightly: "No electronic archives?"
The administrator sighed: "We are such a small police academy, and the funding never came down at that time, and the new system was built later. So these materials are lost. I'm really sorry."
"It's okay." Han Chen stood there, pondered for a while, then turned to leave.
The Criminal Investigation Department's office is in the same building.
When Han Chen pushed the door open, there were three or four teachers inside. Hearing his intentions, he was a little surprised.
The head of the department is in his fifties and has gray hair. Hearing the name "Bai Jin Xi", he shook his head: "How many years have passed, I can't remember exactly."
A female teacher in her 40s smiled next to her: "Director, why don't you remember? She is a very quiet and pretty girl. I remember where I went to Jiangcheng, right? I found a good job. But I didn't do much after graduation. I've been here. Hey, Officer Han, do you have anything to do with her?"
Han Chen smiled: "She is now in the provincial office, and she is doing well. The leader asked me to visit again."
Hearing what he said, several teachers naturally praised Bai Jin Xi again—after all, she was a student from her own school. But they are all general words, what is practical and serious, diligent and studious. Han Chen has been listening quietly and earnestly, asking a question or two from time to time. Several teachers started chatting, and the female teacher said again, "I still remember that Bai Jinxi loves beauty very much, it's a girl. Is it the same now?"
Han Chen smiled slightly: "That hasn't changed."
The female teacher smiled and said, "That's right. At that time, she would go to the beauty salon every day, and she would always wear makeup. She was really pretty when she graduated."
"Now I don't wear makeup anymore." Han Chen replied.
—
The last place Han Chen went was the later home address of Bai Jinxi in Jiangcheng City.
However, the situation is similar to that in Hongshan County, because they are newly relocated residents and they are not familiar with their neighbors. The house was burnt down four years ago, and now it has been demolished and rebuilt, leaving almost no traces or clues of Bai Jin Xi's life.
In the evening, Han Chen drove his car to the riverside, watched the sunset and the sunset, and smoked quietly.
This city is also where he and Bai Jin Xi met.
Bai Jin Xi suffocated in a fire four years ago, causing her memory loss.
And he? According to his doctor at the time, as well as the leaders of his unit and the Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau, he was injured in an explosion five years ago and woke up in a coma for a year.
When I woke up, everything looked the same. Except that there is someone vaguely in my heart, but that person is missing by my side.
The only direct physical evidence that "she" ever existed was a ring.
Han Chen reached out from his arms and took out his wallet. Inside the wallet's compartment is a somewhat worn platinum ring.
When he woke up, the ring was on his left middle finger. Because the size is just stuck on the knuckle of the finger, it cannot be removed. It wasn't until later that he lost a lot of weight that the ring was removed. Afraid of being worn out, I put it in my wallet.
He went online to check the meaning of the ring on the middle finger.
That means "in love" or "engaged."
After a long silence, Han Chen took a few deep breaths of his cigarette, dropped the cigarette butt on the ground and put it out, put the ring back in his wallet, and called Leng Nian.
"Bai Jin Xi mentioned that she had an ex-boyfriend. Go check who it is, and give me his contact information and address."