I See Murders Before They Happen

Chapter 350: Chapter 348: I Remembered

Sister Ying couldn’t be sure who she was.

On one hand, she knew Qin Leyan was already dead. On the other, the woman before her felt entirely too familiar.

She decided to recount some of Qin Leyan’s past to provoke a reaction from the woman before her.

Su Miaoyi did react, a slight hesitation in her attack.

But... Sister Ying couldn’t tell if this reaction was because she *was* Qin Leyan, or because she was afraid of suffering the same fate as Qin Leyan.

’Her test had been pointless.’

She remembered what her boss had told her.

"If you’re not smart enough to think, then don’t. Just do what you’re told."

Her purpose here was to kill her.

The hesitation in Sister Ying’s expression vanished.

Su Miaoyi’s dagger sliced across her arm, then aimed for the side of her neck.

Sister Ying raised a hand to block, but the dagger still left a shallow cut on her neck.

After blocking, she twisted around and grabbed Su Miaoyi’s wrist, dislocating it and causing the dagger to fall.

Su Miaoyi kicked away Sister Ying’s dagger and, in the same motion, popped her own wrist back into place.

They fought bare-handed. It was unclear who tripped whom first, but they both tumbled to the ground. In one moment, Su Miaoyi had Sister Ying pinned; in the next, Sister Ying was on top, raining down blows.

There was no honor in this fight; fists flew straight for faces.

They rolled off the asphalt and into a roadside ditch. Su Miaoyi’s head slammed against a rock, and her vision went black, but she forced herself to get up.

Sister Ying had rolled to the other side and also scrambled to her feet.

Su Miaoyi steadied herself against a nearby tree.

In that instant, a flood of voices poured into her mind.

"Lele, over here. What did your teacher teach you today? Mommy isn’t off work yet. I have one more class in a bit. Will you come to work with Mommy, okay?"

"Lele, look what Daddy brought home for you today! It’s a slingshot. But we have a deal—no aiming it at people. Alright, now you can start thinking about what present you want tomorrow."

"Lele, what do you want to eat? Your uncle will make it for you."

"Lele, come to Grandpa. Grandpa’s got your back. Let me see who dares to disrespect this old man and scold you right in front of me."

"You little rascal, be reasonable. You’re the one who hit me, but then your own hand hurts and you blame me."

"A party? A huge party! It’s my niece’s eighteenth birthday, it has to be a huge party. She’s the only daughter in the Shen family, why shouldn’t we go all out? Don’t give me that nonsense about not being extravagant. She might be your daughter, but she’s also my niece. What does a Shen family party have to do with you? Not only will we make it huge, I’ll also make a donation and hold a charity gala."

"Lele, pick a plot of land. Wherever you like, your uncle will develop it. Just tell me what you want it to look like."

"Brother Ye has lost contact. He must have been exposed. We still haven’t gotten a single piece of identifying information on the person behind them... Deputy Captain, I want to go. I’m the most suitable person for the job."

"Dad, just let me go. I haven’t troubled you with anything since I started working. Just this once, please help me."

"Grandpa, I have to go work out of town for a while. I might not be able to come see you for some time. You have to take good care of yourself. When I come back, I’ll still sneak you some sugar figurines to eat, and we won’t let them find out."

...

With so many voices suddenly flooding her mind, Su Miaoyi felt as if her skull had been split open by a blast. The pain was immense.

She began to suspect the blow to her head had actually cracked it open.

Sister Ying was also covered in injuries. She took a moment to recover, then lunged forward again.

Su Miaoyi’s vision was blurry, but she still managed to block the attack.

The sun was suddenly blotted out by dark clouds. In just a dozen seconds, the sky became overcast, darkening rapidly. Lightning snaked through the clouds, followed by the rumble of distant thunder.

"Qin Leyan, I met you when you were very young. I never thought they would send you undercover. You’re not even an investigator, you’re an open book."

The man’s voice echoed in her ears again.

"I’ve never met anyone like you. You’ve obviously been exposed, you hear me call you by your real name day after day, yet you still pretend to be weak, insisting you’re Su Miaoyi. What’s the point? Do you think I’ll believe you just because you pretend? I’ve known you for so long, and you’re still putting on an act for me."

"Just be honest. Stop being so stubborn with me. Stop fighting me on everything. If you’d just cooperate a little, you’d suffer a lot less."

The voices in her head multiplied, becoming a chaotic jumble. It sounded like everyone was speaking at once.

Su Miaoyi’s hands clamped around Sister Ying’s neck.

Sister Ying slammed a fist into her stomach.

Pain lanced through Su Miaoyi, veins popping on her forehead as her face turned deathly pale.

The thunder grew louder, a deep RUMBLE that sounded as if it would crash down from the sky.

The cemetery was too remote. Even for the nearest police station, it would take time to get here. But they should be here soon.

Su Miaoyi kept her grip on Sister Ying’s neck, slamming her against the nearby hillside.

Sister Ying hammered several more punches into her gut.

Su Miaoyi’s grip on her neck was like a vise.

The voice in her head continued, "Qin Leyan, it’s been so long and you’re still not cooperating. How long are you going to keep pretending to be Su Miaoyi? Aren’t you tired? Look at you, so frail and teary-eyed. It’s not endearing at all. Why won’t you cooperate? I don’t want to do this to you. I really don’t."

Sister Ying began to choke, her hands desperately trying to pry Su Miaoyi’s fingers from her throat.

But Su Miaoyi was going for the kill. Ignoring the pain racking her own body, she held on, refusing to let go, determined to kill her.

Unable to break the hold, Sister Ying’s free hand scrabbled wildly at her side.

Suddenly, her fingers closed around a loose rock on the hillside. She grabbed it and smashed it directly against Su Miaoyi’s head.

Su Miaoyi took the blow. Blood streamed instantly down her cheek, but she still didn’t let go.

Sister Ying gripped the rock, her fingers feeling for its sharpest point.

Using her last ounce of strength, she drove the sharp point of the rock toward Su Miaoyi’s heart.

After stabbing at her heart, she aimed for the side of her neck.

Su Miaoyi raised a hand to block it. Seizing the opportunity, Sister Ying wrenched her other hand free and shoved her away with all her might.

Su Miaoyi collapsed to the ground.

Sister Ying slumped to the ground as well, coughing and gasping for breath.

Her chest was bleeding, but the voice in her head still hadn’t stopped. "Qin Leyan, you won’t cooperate, is that it? Fine. Qian Ying, bring in the one surnamed Ye."

"Does this man look familiar? You say you’re Su Miaoyi, not Qin Leyan. Then kill him. From this day forward, I’ll believe you’re Su Miaoyi."

"Come, take this dagger. Aim for his heart, and stab."

The thunder grew louder. Su Miaoyi lay on the ground, clutching the wound in her chest, watching as lightning tore the sky apart. A bolt struck a nearby tree, which instantly began to smoke.

The voices in her head vanished. All of them.

She remembered.

She was Qin Leyan.

Qin Leyan of the Jinghai City Criminal Investigation Detachment!

She also remembered Sister Ying’s real name.

And she remembered Brother Ye throwing himself onto the dagger in her hand, dying...

Su Miaoyi’s mouth gaped open, but she couldn’t draw a breath.

Sister Ying, having recovered, got to her feet. She picked up the sharp rock and walked back toward Su Miaoyi, gripping it with both hands and thrusting it at her throat.

Su Miaoyi grabbed her hands and stared into her eyes. Using all her strength, she said, enunciating each word, "Qian Ying, if you kill me today, Xie Zhiyan will not spare you."