The man staggered back two steps, clutching his eyes with a pained howl. Nie Jiuluo ignored him, rolling toward the bedside to switch on the room light.
Just as the light flickered on, the sound of shattering glass erupted from the window. Turning sharply, she saw the man had already crashed through the open window with such force that he even shattered the adjacent pane.
Nie Jiuluo rushed to the window, first looking down—after all, someone jumping out would usually plummet to the ground.
Yet, aside from scattered glass fragments, there was no expected thud of a heavy impact. A thought struck her, and she immediately looked up, barely catching a glimpse of a dark shadow flitting past the rooftop’s edge before silence reclaimed the night.
The entire ordeal, from deafening chaos to eerie stillness, lasted less than two minutes. Though the sound of breaking glass was piercing, the late hour ensured nearby guests remained deep in sleep, undisturbed by the midnight commotion.
Standing by the window, Nie Jiuluo felt the cold wind seep through the broken pane, gradually chilling the fine sweat on her skin. Realizing the vulnerability of a brightly lit room, she quickly returned to the bedside and turned off the light—darkness offered security, whereas light exposed every movement to prying eyes.
Then, leaning against the wall facing the window, she sat on the floor and opened the "Burn After Reading" app on her phone, sending a message to Natou.
Nie Jiuluo: Something happened here. Call me.
At the end of the message, the ten-second self-destruct countdown began. Nie Jiuluo watched the screen as the characters were devoured by flames and smoke. It was the middle of the night, so she didn’t expect an instant reply.
Yet, within a minute, her phone rang. The call connected, and Xing Shen’s calm, gentle voice came through: "A-Luo."
Keeping it concise, Nie Jiuluo recounted the incident: "That man was seriously injured—he’d have to seek medical attention. Since you’re often in southern Shaanxi, I thought you could ask around: which hospital treated such a patient, and who he is."
Xing Shen replied, "Hold the line. I’ll arrange it first."
Only then did Nie Jiuluo exhale deeply. Her eyes had adjusted to the dimness by now. She stood, walked to the counter, and cracked open a bottle of mineral water, gulping down half in one go.
After a while, Xing Shen’s voice returned through the receiver: "A-Luo?"
Nie Jiuluo set the bottle down. "Go on."
"Crashing through a window without falling, then immediately scaling to the rooftop… an ordinary person couldn’t do that, right?"
How diplomatic. Nie Jiuluo said flatly, "I don’t think any human could."
Xing Shen remained meticulous: "Not necessarily. A specially trained martial arts master might. Any suspicions about who it could be?"
"No."
After a pause, she added, "I’m just an ordinary person. My profession wouldn’t attract life-threatening enemies."
She emphasized the words "ordinary person."
Xing Shen asked, "Have you offended anyone recently?"
Who could she have possibly offended? She was always mild-mannered—even if she lacked warmth, her courtesy was never lacking. Irritated, she retorted, "I filed a complaint against a travel agency once, but I doubt they’d go this far over something so trivial."Or was it related to the police sketch she had drawn? But Nie Jiuluo couldn't be bothered to explain the process to Xing Shen again. Besides, if the sketch hadn't been submitted yet, killing her might have made some sense. But now that it had already been handed over, what was the point of coming after her?
Xing Shen was equally puzzled. "You just let him into your room like that? That was too dangerous."
"If this person really wants me dead, he'll try again if he fails this time. Better to settle it once and for all than drag it out."
Xing Shen still found it hard to believe that someone would suddenly appear out of nowhere to kill her. "Could it just be a random attack? Maybe you were unlucky enough to be chosen?"
Unlucky enough...
Nie Jiuluo scoffed. "Then I must be really cursed."
Why didn't she ever have this kind of luck with lottery draws or raffles?
Xing Shen chuckled. "No, he's the unlucky one—picking the wrong target. But Jiuluo, gouging out someone's eye is no small matter. You've made a serious enemy. I'm worried you might face repercussions."
Nie Jiuluo replied, "It was self-defense."
She didn't regret stabbing the pencil in the right place for a second: the guy had come for her life—why should she hold back?
Besides, the more she thought about it, the more terrifying it seemed. What if she hadn't been awake at that moment...
Xing Shen said, "Speculating won't get us anywhere. Let's gather more information first."
Nie Jiuluo hummed in agreement and was about to hang up when she remembered something. "You replied so quickly—it's late. Aren't you asleep yet?"
Xing Shen: "We're discussing something... It's pretty strange. This time in the mountains, we came across two empty tents in a row."
Nie Jiuluo didn't find it unusual. "Empty tents in the mountains aren't that weird, are they?"
Some hikers and campers leave their tents behind when they break camp, finding it too troublesome to pack up. Aside from being environmentally unfriendly, it's not a big deal. On the bright side, it's convenient for others—like "one generation plants the trees, another enjoys the shade."
Xing Shen explained, "No, you misunderstood. By 'empty,' I mean no people. All the equipment, supplies, even spare clothes were still inside, neatly packed. Only the people were gone. From the signs, they've been missing for days."
Nie Jiuluo thought for a moment. "So either they were dragged off by wild animals, or there's a serial killer roaming the mountains?"
It was a joke, but not entirely impossible. Xing Shen said, "We're discussing all possibilities, which is why we're still up so late. Are you... okay tonight?"
"I'm fine."
"It's been a long time... these past few years..."
He didn't finish. The line went dead.
Nie Jiuluo had already hung up.
After such a bizarre incident and with a broken window to keep watch over, Nie Jiuluo couldn't sleep for the rest of the night.
At dawn, she received a message from Natou: So far, inquiries at all major hospitals and clinics in Shihe County—even neighboring counties—have turned up no patients seeking treatment for an eye-gouging injury.
With such a severe injury, avoiding proper medical care was practically suicidal—unless the person happened to have a friend who could perform the surgery and patch them up privately. But the odds of that were vanishingly small.
Nie Jiuluo called the front desk, claiming she had accidentally broken the window and was willing to pay full compensation. She asked them to send someone for repairs as soon as possible or to move her to another room.
...At nine in the morning, the travel service provider called to inform that starting today, Lao Qian would be taking over the itinerary, and both he and the car were already waiting in the parking lot.
Nie Jiuluo quickly freshened up and went downstairs. After getting into the car, Lao Qian didn’t rush to set off. Instead, he formally introduced himself, emphasizing his extensive experience and strong sense of responsibility. He then sighed over Sun Zhou’s situation, mentioning that Sun Zhou’s family still couldn’t reach him and had already discussed filing a police report that morning.
Filing a report was good—double reports would make the police take it more seriously.
With the introductions out of the way, the day’s itinerary began. As Lao Qian started the car, he handed a few printed pages to the back: “Miss Nie, take a look. This is today’s schedule.”
Even for just a single day’s trip, they had gone to the trouble of printing out a schedule.
Nie Jiuluo took the pages. They were simple route maps printed by the travel agency, marking only the highways, rivers, major landmarks, and destinations.
Most tour guides had a set spiel—like which local legend to start with or what interesting cultural tidbits to introduce along the way—and Lao Qian had his memorized. Clearing his throat, he was about to begin when someone reversed into the lane ahead, forcing him to stop.
Nie Jiuluo instinctively looked up, but her gaze was drawn to Yan Tuo’s white SUV parked not far ahead. Yan Tuo was there too, opening the car door to load the large rolling suitcase she had seen before into the back seat.
With so little activity in the parking lot, Lao Qian noticed as well. “Whoa,” he said, “that suitcase must hold something valuable.”
Nie Jiuluo was curious. “How do you know?”
Lao Qian’s reasoning was sound: “His car is huge—any luggage could fit in the trunk. Normally, luggage goes in the trunk, not the back seat. If it weren’t valuable, he wouldn’t be so careful with it.”
...
Once on the road, Lao Qian resumed his duties: “Miss Nie, today we’re heading to the neighboring county via the provincial highway. Round trip is over a hundred kilometers—two Taoist temples and one Buddhist monastery. Check that route map, the one with the highway.”
Nie Jiuluo found the one he meant.
“Did you notice there’s a village along the provincial highway with a particularly odd name?”
Nie Jiuluo glanced at it. “That would be ‘Banya Village,’ right?”
Amid surrounding names like “Seven-Mile Bridge,” “Li Family Gully,” and “Wang Family Camp,” “Banya Village” stood out like a breath of fresh air.
Lao Qian was enthusiastic. “Do you know why it’s called ‘Banya’?”
Honestly, Lao Qian’s transitions were stiff, as if he were reciting lines. Nie Jiuluo wanted to laugh, but since he was putting in so much effort, she didn’t want to dampen his enthusiasm. “Why?”
Good—the tourist had taken the bait. The worst was when guests didn’t engage, leaving him to perform a monologue.
Lao Qian said, “The name has a history. There are two explanations. First, the village well water was bad—it ruined teeth, so everyone in the village grew big front teeth.”
Nie Jiuluo laughed. “That’s… a bit far-fetched.”
Bad water could indeed ruin teeth, but it usually affected the whole mouth, not just the front teeth specifically.
“The second explanation is that this area is mountainous. Banya Village is backed by a mountain with a flat vertical face and a straight crack down the middle, making it look like the gap between two big front teeth—hence the name.”
Nie Jiuluo asked him, “Have you been there?”"Most people wouldn't go there, it's just the name that's interesting. A small village with no scenery to speak of..." At this point, Lao Qian had a thought. "Miss Nie, do you want to see it? If you're interested, I can make a detour. It's no trouble."
Nie Jiuluo shook her head. "Not interested. You'd better not go either. It sounds inauspicious."
Lao Qian's curiosity was piqued. "Why's that?"
"You said the village is backed by mountains that look like two big teeth, right? Teeth are connected to mouths. The village sitting at the 'mouth' seems like it's about to be swallowed. Bad feng shui, unlucky."
Lao Qian made clicking sounds with his tongue. "Hmm, that makes sense."
But inwardly he thought: This Miss Nie, so young yet believing in such things. Quite superstitious.
Yan Tuo drove onto the provincial highway.
This wasn't an expressway—no toll booths. As he drove, he kept glancing at the rearview mirror. The large box tilted on the back seat was very conspicuous.
After driving for a while, strange sounds came from the trunk—rustling, occasional knocks, without any pattern.
Yan Tuo frowned and focused on the road ahead. The provincial highway's guardrails weren't fully installed, and there were side roads leading to county and rural routes.
Soon, he turned onto a county road, then onto the nearest rural road. In short, he headed wherever was most remote as long as the car could pass, finally parking by a quiet grove.
Yan Tuo sat in the car for a moment, in no hurry to get out. The season had turned the leaves halfway to yellow, lending a desolate air. In the distance was a village nestled against the mountains, perfectly still.
Only when he was sure the surroundings were "clean" did he get out and open the trunk. Inside was a duffel bag moving violently—clearly containing something alive.
Yan Tuo unzipped the bag.
Sun Zhou, who had been struggling fiercely, froze and looked up at Yan Tuo. His mouth was sealed with wide tape, rendering him mute. He could only blink rapidly and shake his head, eyes pleading.
Yan Tuo pulled out the car's first-aid kit, took a neatly folded square of gauze, poured some liquid from an unlabeled plastic bottle onto it, and pressed it over Sun Zhou's nose.
Sun Zhou thrashed harder, but like a fish on a chopping block, completely at another's mercy, his struggles soon weakened. In less than half a minute, he was completely still.
Yan Tuo put the bottle back, closed the trunk, and casually brushed off his hands while habitually scanning his surroundings—near to far, low to high—then abruptly refocused on a ridge dozens of meters away.
The sunlight glinted off something there—lenses, by his judgment. Either eyeglasses or binoculars.
Someone was there.
How unlucky. He'd deliberately chosen a secluded, deserted spot for this shady business, only to be seen after all.
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