Wei Lan and Xiao Yan were on duty for the late-night shift. The night was deep and silent, with only the television playing in the living room. Wei Lan smoked a cigarette, exhaustion evident between his brows. Xiao Yan, on the other hand, had tilted his head and fallen asleep on the sofa.
Around three in the morning, the time when people are at their sleepiest, Wei Lan was also drifting off when he suddenly heard the sound of a door opening upstairs.
Yin Feng walked down, dressed in a bathrobe.
Wei Lan immediately snapped awake, watching him descend and take a seat on the sofa. Yin Feng’s hair was damp, clearly fresh from a shower. His bathrobe was loosely tied at the waist, revealing a glimpse of his firm chest—marked faintly with pink bite marks and scratches. Though there was a trace of fatigue in his expression, it was overshadowed by the unmistakable satisfaction of someone who had been thoroughly released. As a fellow man, how could Wei Lan not understand what had happened?
“Are you alright?” Wei Lan asked.
Yin Feng smiled faintly. “I’m fine.” His eyes remained dark and brooding. This version of Yin Feng felt both unfamiliar and familiar to Wei Lan—as though this was his true nature, rarely revealed.
Wei Lan chose his words carefully. “We’ve already handled the cleanup, just in case.”
Yin Feng nodded slightly, as if he had expected them to do so, offering no further comment.
“So… what’s the plan now?” Wei Lan glanced upstairs, where the bedroom door was slightly ajar, with no sound coming from inside.
Just then, Xiao Yan, who had been dozing, jolted awake as his head drooped forward. Recognizing the man before him, he exclaimed, “Teacher Yin!”
Yin Feng acknowledged him with a nod.
Xiao Yan also looked upstairs and hesitated. “Um… Miss You…”
Yin Feng replied, “She’s still asleep. Guan Jun administered a heavy dose of the drug. She won’t wake until dawn at the earliest.”
Xiao Yan and Wei Lan fell silent.
After a moment, Yin Feng said, “Xiao Yan, go to the basement and bring four pairs of handcuffs.”
Xiao Yan stared blankly for a second but said nothing and headed to the basement.
Wei Lan furrowed his brow slightly and ventured, “Is there no other way?”
Yin Feng replied, “I’ll talk to her when she wakes up. The handcuffs are a precaution—one pair won’t be enough to hold her.”
Wei Lan couldn’t help but imagine the scene, feeling a thrill of excitement shudder through his heart. Still, he said, “It’s best if you can explain things clearly. Even though she’s a police officer, she’s still your woman.”
A cold smile flickered across Yin Feng’s face. “That’s right. Someone like me could never be with a police officer. But I also can’t stand the thought of her leaving me.”
Wei Lan was taken aback, staring at his icy expression without another word.
Just then, Xiao Yan returned from the basement with four pairs of handcuffs. Yin Feng took them, weighing them in his hand, and a quiet smile touched his lips as if lost in thought. Wei Lan and Xiao Yan exchanged a glance, both realizing that the situation was likely beyond redemption—Yin Feng was determined to have his way.
As Yin Feng stood up, handcuffs in hand, a crashing sound came from the master bedroom upstairs. All three of them tensed. Yin Feng immediately rushed upstairs, with the other two close behind.
Pushing the door open, he found the bed empty. His master bedroom was a suite, with a private study inside. Seeing the study door ajar, he frowned and strode over quickly, followed by Wei Lan and Xiao Yan.
Inside the study, a desk lamp was on, and You Mingxu was indeed there.She stood before the desk, wearing one of Yin Feng's shirts that barely covered half her thighs, her legs completely bare underneath. Her long hair cascaded over her shoulders, and fresh, deep red kiss marks—even bruises—were visible on her exposed neck, arms, and calves, evidence of the intense treatment she had just endured.
One hand braced against the desk, the other held a folder—who knew where she had found it or what she was reading. Her body swayed slightly, clearly weakened, her cheeks still flushed, indicating the drug's effects hadn't fully subsided. Her gaze was fixed intently on the contents of the folder, but she looked up at Yin Feng when she heard movement.
The moment their eyes met, he saw shock and hidden pain in hers.
Then she swayed again, gripping the desk tightly as she asked, "Is this yours? Both of these test results—are they yours?" Tears welled in her eyes.
Yin Feng felt his heart constrict violently, yet he let out a bleak laugh. "Yes, you finally saw them."
You Mingxu threw the folder onto the desk. It lay open, allowing Wei Lan and Xiao Yan, standing behind Yin Feng, to glimpse its contents: two sets of documents—one, a brain structure scan, and the other labeled as an internal assessment result from the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit.
Wei Lan and Xiao Yan remained silent.
You Mingxu said, "No wonder you understand criminals' psychology so well every time you solve a case... No wonder these people gather around you, willingly following you... You..."
Yin Feng stared at her coldly. "Get out."
You Mingxu pressed a hand to her head, swaying once more.
Wei Lan and Xiao Yan stepped out but lingered by the door, unable to leave without concern, listening for any sounds from inside.
They heard You Mingxu's almost broken voice: "So you're just like them! You're a psychopath too... No wonder you have dissociative identity disorder, splitting into two completely different personalities. Have you ever committed a crime? Have you?!"
After a pause, Yin Feng replied with a low chuckle, "Yes. Haven't you seen my brain scan? I was born different from you—like them. I was destined to be a psychopath. I've known it since long ago, working in this field. I refused to accept it and went to America, but the behavioral analysis came back the same. You're right—I understand them perfectly because I was damned from birth to be one of them. So, are you going to leave me now?"
You Mingxu pressed again, "Have you ever committed a crime?! Have you killed anyone?"
Yin Feng paused, then repeated his question, "If I said yes, would you leave me?"
You Mingxu let out a bleak laugh. "Yes, what a foolish question. You already committed a crime last night."
Just then, a "click" sounded as the bedroom door was kicked shut, cutting off Wei Lan and Xiao Yan's eavesdropping. Their faces turned grim.
Some things, though Yin Feng had never explicitly stated or shown them any authoritative scans or analysis results, they had always sensed.Teacher Yin always managed to grasp their psychology so precisely, perceiving criminal behavior; his gaze upon them didn't feel unfamiliar; he wasn't afraid of them—while so many trembled at the sight of them, he pulled them back from the abyss one by one, living among them for years with no one else by his side. They had all read some of his books to varying degrees, in which certain criminal methods were extremely cruel and the psychological depictions vividly intense, stirring their blood with excitement...
They all committed murder and crimes in reality.
Yin Feng killed in the virtual world. He killed more and more brutally than any of them.
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