第四章

On Friday, Xiaoman went to Shen's house again.

She stood at the door waiting for a long time, almost thinking that Shen Rui wouldn't open the door. She was still holding a box of homemade muffins.

She was about to leave when the door opened. Shen Rui stood behind the door, looking a bit surprised.

"I thought you were just talking," he said. "I didn't expect you to actually come back."

"I said I would come." Xiaoman handed him the muffins. "I am serious."

Shen Rui looked at her for a while, then finally let her in.

The Shen house was very quiet. Shen Rui said his parents were not home. If they were, Xiaoman wouldn't be able to come in. The family rarely talked about Shen Ran, because whenever they mentioned him, everyone would feel sad.

"It's not just that he died that's painful," Shen Rui said. "It's that we can't seem to think about him. If I say I miss my brother, others will think there's something wrong with me."

Xiaoman remained silent.

After a while, she began to ask about the events before and after Shen Ran's case.

Shen Rui said that on the evening of April 20, 2012, Shen Ran behaved very normally. That day their family ate dinner very early. Afterwards, Shen Guoqiang drove Shen Ran to He Mingxuan's house.

The next morning, Shen Ran was in a good mood too. After getting up, he even made breakfast for the family. Later, he received a call from Bai Anning's friend and learned that Bai Anning was missing.

From then on, Shen Ran kept calling Bai Anning. When no one answered, he called again and again.

When Xiaoman heard this, she paused.

If Shen Ran had already killed Bai Anning and hidden her phone, why would he keep calling her?

Shen Rui also said that Bai Anning's parents actually didn't know Shen Ran well. Shen Ran had never been to Bai's house. Bai Anning mostly saw him at Shen's house, school, or friend gatherings.

Xiaoman asked if Shen Ran had ever mentioned where Bai Anning might have gone.

Shen Rui thought for a moment and said that Shen Ran once said something. He said Bai Anning always had a purpose in doing things. She might have deliberately left to punish someone.

"Who?" Xiaoman asked.

Shen Rui said he wasn't sure. But he thought that person might be Bai Anning's father, Bai Jianguo. The relationship between Bai Anning and her father seemed not good.

Xiaoman noted this sentence down.

The police contacted Shen Ran on Saturday afternoon, asking where he was on the night of the incident and about his relationship with Bai Anning. Shen Rui didn't know all the details, only that the police recorded the conversation.

That evening, a few of Shen Ran's friends came to see him. Later they lied for Shen Ran, saying he didn't leave He Mingxuan's house until 12:15.

Shen Rui didn't know why Shen Ran did this. He guessed that Shen Ran might have been afraid of not having an alibi, so he had his friends cover for him.

"This looks really bad," Shen Rui said.

Xiaoman nodded. "But lying doesn't mean murder."

The last time Shen Rui saw Shen Ran was on Tuesday morning. They arrived at school together. Shen Ran stayed in the parking lot, saying he wanted to sit for a while. Shen Rui went to class. That was the last time they met.

Later, Shen Rui received a call from home. The police couldn't find Shen Ran and had searched his room. Shen Guoqiang received a text from Shen Ran. The gist of the text was: It was me, I'm sorry.

That evening, the police found Shen Ran in the woods.

Shen Rui never believed that his brother would kill Bai Anning, nor did he believe he would commit suicide. In his memory, Shen Ran was cheerful, smart, and never lost his temper easily.

After listening, Xiaoman told Shen Rui that she also knew Shen Ran when she was a child.

Shen Ran often went to Teacher Fang's house because Fang Na was his friend. Xiaoman also often went to Kexin's house when she was a child, so she had seen Shen Ran a few times. She remembered Shen Ran loved to laugh and had once helped her drive away a bully.

"Since then, I have always thought he was a very good person," Xiaoman said. "I don't believe he did that."

After that day, Xiaoman looked up a lot more information. She wanted to apply to see the police records of questioning Shen Ran back then, and also to check more police documents.

But what she couldn't let go of was Bai Jianguo, whom Shen Rui had mentioned.

Xiaoman found out that not long after Bai Anning was legally declared dead, Bai Jianguo and Zhou Lan divorced. Bai Jianguo later moved to a place not far from Qingshi Town and started a new life.

Xiaoman also went to watch the early press conferences after Bai Anning's disappearance.

The more she watched, the more she felt something was off about Bai Jianguo. He supported Zhou Lan in front of the camera, but sometimes his hand pressed too hard. When Zhou Lan wanted to continue speaking, he would pull her back. Beibei stood nearby and also seemed very afraid of him.

What bothered Xiaoman the most was one press conference.

At that time, the police had not yet considered Shen Ran a prime suspect. Everyone still hoped Bai Anning was alive. But Bai Jianguo said to the camera, "Bai Anning used to be very important to the family."

He said "used to be."

Xiaoman watched it over and over several times.

This might just be a slip of the tongue. Or it might indicate that Bai Jianguo already knew at that time that Bai Anning was dead.

If Xiaoman were to make a list of prime suspects, Bai Jianguo would be the first name.