The Lengthened Tongue Ghost played an old, tired game, asking the wife, "If I and your mother fell into the river, who would you save first?"
Now, the choice before me was a similar dilemma, with Yu Xiaoluo and Yang Zhenzhen both in the Lengthened Tongue Ghost's clutches. He had given me two addresses, situated north and south of my current location.
Both locations were about a twenty-minute drive from where I was. The Lengthened Tongue Ghost had planted a timed bomb at each spot. They were ordinary blasting detonators, but he said he'd connected them to gas tanks, and the explosion would leave no survivors.
He told me the timer was set for twenty-five minutes. With this timeframe, if I left now, I could save one person, no matter which address I went to.
...
After listening to the Lengthened Tongue Ghost, I didn't hesitate and ran out of the pedestrian street. Although it was midnight, there were many nightclubs and bars here, so I figured I could still get a taxi.
I chose Yang Zhenzhen!
This choice didn't mean I didn't care about Yu Xiaoluo. This was the real world; no one would foolishly play games with the Lengthened Tongue Ghost. As I ran, I called Luo Bo, explained the situation and the addresses. Luo Bo said he'd go with the action team to the other direction to save Yu Xiaoluo.
...
Just as I was about to hang up, Luo Bo suddenly said, "Tang Nan, wouldn't the Lengthened Tongue Ghost know we're coordinating?"
"He probably would."
"Do you think he'll just stand by and watch me go save someone?"
By then, I was panting and had reached the main street, looking for a taxi. I was a bit anxious. "Brother Luo, I don't understand what you mean. Just say it directly."
"I think the Lengthened Tongue Ghost definitely has a way to deal with me. He's planted a bomb in my heart."
I understood what Luo Bo meant by a bomb in his heart; it was the idea of being a born criminal. Luo Bo had always considered himself a born criminal, possessing a suppressed urge to commit crimes. He was afraid to contact the Lengthened Tongue Ghost, fearing his criminal heart would be awakened.
"What are you afraid of? You're with the action team. The Lengthened Tongue Ghost is just a schemer; can he really stop you on his own?"
"I..."
"Don't be afraid, Brother Luo. Just don't listen to him."
Just then, a taxi drove by. I quickly hailed it and got in. There was no traffic at night, so the ride was smooth.
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...
As I got closer to my destination, my phone rang. It was the Lengthened Tongue Ghost again. He spoke calmly, his tone like a语文 teacher lecturing in class: "Tang Nan, I just called Luo Bo. I wanted to play a game with him, but he refused and turned off his phone."
"Lengthened Tongue Ghost, I'm telling you, no one is playing your game anymore. Just wait to be caught."
"I wish I could, but I feel it's necessary to remind you, you won't turn off your phone like Luo Bo, will you?"
The Lengthened Tongue Ghost mentioning Luo Bo turning off his phone twice gave me a bad feeling. "Lengthened Tongue Ghost, you're not going to detonate the bombs, are you? That would ruin the game."
I used a bit of provocation, and the Lengthened Tongue Ghost laughed. "Fairness is most important in a game, but you broke the rules by splitting up with Luo Bo. So, I've changed the detonation time. I've moved it up by five minutes. Normally, with twenty-five minutes, you'd save the person without incident. Twenty minutes, you can still make it if you hurry. But the problem is, Luo Bo might not have enough time, right? Tang Nan, your time is precious, so I won't keep you."
"Driver, please hurry. I'm a police officer, and it's a life-or-death situation. Don't stop for red lights, drive as fast as you can."
"This~"
I slapped my wallet in front of the driver. "It's all yours."
"No problem."
The driver accelerated. I quickly called Luo Bo to tell him the time had been moved up and that he might still make it if he went all out. However, Luo Bo's phone was unreachable. As expected, before changing the time, the Lengthened Tongue Ghost had provoked Luo Bo, forcing him to turn off his phone.
Give up now?
No, that wasn't my style.
I immediately called 110 and asked them to contact the action team. I briefly explained the situation. Time was running out. I had arrived at the residential complex the Lengthened Tongue Ghost had mentioned. I hung up and ran upstairs.
The key was under the doormat. I took it out and unlocked the door.
...
I didn't see Yang Zhenzhen. Instead, I saw Yu Xiaoluo. She looked drowsy, clearly drugged, but she had woken up with her willpower and was struggling to save herself.
I rushed in, turned off the bomb's switch, and in a panic, untied Yu Xiaoluo. Although the timer was off, the detonator was still placed near the gas tank. I carried Yu Xiaoluo, placing her limp body outside the door, then went back to detach the gas tank and dragged it to another room. After that, I returned, picked up the semi-conscious Yu Xiaoluo, and carried her downstairs.
At that moment, I didn't dare to think, numbly focusing on saving her, praying that nothing had happened on the other side.
My phone rang, that familiar sequence of numbers. I hesitated to answer, bit my lip, mustered my courage, and picked it up.
"Tang Nan, you've rescued Yu Xiaoluo, haven't you?"
At that moment, I froze, my voice wooden. "Lengthened Tongue Ghost, what's the point of this game?"
"I knew you'd definitely go to save Yang Zhenzhen, so I placed Yu Xiaoluo there. Originally, my plan was for Yang Zhenzhen to die. How should I put it, she was very fat, but she had a captivating quality, a girl who was both pitiful and lovable. It was you who brought such an innocent girl into this mess, and she died by my hand because of your incompetence."
"Lengthened Tongue Ghost, I'm going to kill you."
"I'm out of the pirate gold splitting game. I want someone to throw me into the sea and kill me. This is the feast I've prepared for you."
"You lunatic, F*** your mother!"
"Tang Nan, calm down. True scheming is never about the cliché that nothing is not yours, and everything is for your use. Scheming is a science. To scheme, you must understand neurophysiology and individual unique social experiences. You can't believe that the environment determines everything, nor can you use neurophysiology and personality factors combined with greed, indifference, and disguise as tools. You must understand the social function of scheming. Come to me and inherit my legacy, establishing a world dominated by schemers."
My eyes turned red. What kind of nonsense theory was this? Fine, I'll come see you, and I'll kill you immediately.
"Okay, I'll come find you, tell me..."
Just as I was about to ask the Lengthened Tongue Ghost for his location, Yu Xiaoluo, who had been semi-conscious, used her last bit of strength to knock my phone out of my hand. It fell to the ground and split in two, the battery flying out.
"Sister, what are you doing?"
"You're not allowed to go!"
Yu Xiaoluo uttered these three words with all her might and glared at me fiercely.
I sighed, picked up my phone, reinserted the battery, and turned it back on. I looked at Yu Xiaoluo, who was breathing heavily, and turned to call Luo Bo. Luo Bo had turned his phone back on.
"What's going on?"
"It's already exploded here. It was at a shop. There were no people around at night, I..."
I interrupted Luo Bo and directly questioned him, "Why did you turn off your phone?"
"I..."
"We could have saved both of them! Because you're a coward, a weakling, trash. You're afraid the Lengthened Tongue Ghost will lead you to commit a crime, so you turned off your phone. Think about it, since he knew you were going to save the other person, wouldn't he have plotted against you? If you hadn't been cowardly and turned off your phone, I would have notified you, and you would have hurried, and no one would have died..."
"Xiaoluo..."
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"Don't mention Xiaoluo. You have no right to mention Yu Xiaoluo. I'm telling you, Luo Bo, you're not fit to be a police officer at all!"
With that, I hung up.
I called the Lengthened Tongue Ghost's number again, but it was unreturnable. I was about to leave with my phone when Yu Xiaoluo shakily stood up and blocked my path.
"Sister, you can't stop me today. I have to go and kill the Lengthened Tongue Ghost."
"For a bad person, you're going to kill someone? Have you lost your mind?"
"Yang Zhenzhen was an innocent person. She shouldn't have died. If it weren't for me, she would have had nothing to do with this. I have to do something about her death."
"Calm down, Tang Nan. With your abilities, you'll definitely catch the Lengthened Tongue Ghost."
"And then what? Bring him to justice. Yu Xiaoluo, don't be so naive. Do you really think I'm a good person? I'll tell you the truth, the one hundred million in my account was also something I scammed. I should have left long ago and lived in the dark. I must leave today. I'm going to kill the Lengthened Tongue Ghost, and before he dies, I'll tell him that I won't establish some grand world centered around schemers. I won't just kill him; I'll kill all his accomplices."
"As long as I'm here, I won't let you go."
"Yu Xiaoluo, you can't stop me. The drug hasn't worn off yet. Move aside, don't force me to use violence against you."
"I won't!"
At this moment, my reason began to crumble. Hearing her refuse, I threw a punch at her. To my surprise, she used my strength, redirecting it and throwing me to the ground. I was furious and turned to charge at Yu Xiaoluo madly. Yu Xiaoluo threw me down again. She could barely stand, and I still couldn't beat her. I was enraged and shouted, "If you have this ability, why were you captured as a hostage?"
"When I went out, the Lengthened Tongue Ghost ambushed me with a tranquilizer dart gun meant for animals. Tang Nan, with me here, you're not going anywhere. Don't talk to me about light and darkness. You tricked a trickster, and I'll turn a blind eye. You want to become a murderer? No way. Remember this, your sister is a police officer. With me here, you have to live honestly under the sun. You have to endure it, even if it's hot."
I really couldn't do anything about this stubborn Beijing girl. Thinking of Yang Zhenzhen's death, I knelt on the ground and roared like a beast. Yu Xiaoluo watched from the side, her eyes welling up with tears. Just then, the sound of sirens reached my ears, and soon, a police car stopped in front of me. Luo Bo got out of the car, followed by a bunch of plump pinkness.