Chapter 28: Chapter 28: Case Closed
Logically, Sun Jian shouldn’t have this kind of perspective.
What kind of perspective?
The big fish eating the small fish!
Let me give you an example.
A ruler in the Eastern Country once said something that became a laughingstock: "Why don’t they eat meat?"
Why would he say something like that?
Because that was his understanding, his perspective. He thought that if there were no vegetables to eat, then just eat meat. If there was no money to spend, then just collect more taxes.
He believed there were no poor people in the world. He didn’t even understand what "poor people" meant.
It’s like if you’d never heard of beggars growing up and had no idea what it meant to have no money. If you suddenly saw a beggar in ragged clothes, you might think he was doing performance art.
And perception...
Perception is your environment, and your environment is everything around you.
A child from the countryside who grows up and gets a normal job will carefully budget every few hundred yuan.
On the other hand, someone from a wealthy family might spend hundreds of thousands without batting an eye.
What if their family backgrounds were swapped?
The one who spent hundreds of thousands would start budgeting carefully, and the one who budgeted carefully would start spending lavishly.
This is a perspective on money.
"Sun Jian’s worldview is inconsistent with what you’d expect from his background."
Li Jianye let out a long breath and said, then frowned after a moment of thought.
"He comes from an ordinary rural family."
"Fifteen years ago, in 1988, he was still farming. He was even illiterate. How could he possibly have this kind of mentality?"
In the countryside of 1988, there was no reason for a simple, 25-year-old man to have such a man-eats-man mentality.
That kind of environment can produce people of poor character.
But...
A man-eats-man perspective, as vicious and sinful as it might be, isn’t the same as being base.
Unless he experienced a major, life-altering event.
In layman’s terms, an event that changed his environment.
Let’s go back to the example of the person who grew up in the countryside and budgeted carefully.
On a normal life trajectory—work, marriage, their entire life—they would never treat themselves to a meal worth several thousand.
That’s the result of unchanging circumstances.
But what if a major event suddenly occurred?
For example, what if you won the lottery? Tens of millions, maybe even over a hundred million after taxes. Would you still haggle over a few hundred?
No. You might even start throwing money around the moment you walk out the door, tossing it as you go. You might see a beggar and hand him two hundred on the spot.
This is an event changing the environment, which in turn extends to the individual.
"How’s the investigation into his life history coming along?"
Xu Huo asked again.
"Any situations like that?"
Li Jianye shook his head. "It was too long ago."
If the police could easily investigate things from over a decade ago, there wouldn’t be so many cold cases.
Sun Jian was forthcoming about everything else, but he refused to discuss this one point. He remained emotionally stable and couldn’t be provoked, leaving the police completely stumped.
"Was it murder?"
Xu Huo thought for a moment, his mind flashing back to Sun Jian’s file—the part about him murdering his wife and friend.
What Sun Jian had been through was enough to put the police on high alert.
Why?
Because *he* had access to it!
If this perfectly ordinary man could come into contact with it, that meant other people could too!
There are levels to these events. If you’re not at the right level, you can’t access them.
It’s like a piano competition with a prize of tens of millions. But how many people actually know how to play the piano?
Even getting rich quick has a barrier to entry.
Status represents the level of the threshold, and achievement represents the upper limit!
Sun Jian, with his ordinary status, had reached such a high ceiling...
Could that mean that other people who experience this sort of thing could also end up like Sun Jian!?
"Fortunately, it seems that even if an ordinary person can encounter this... thing, the chances are very, very slim. And it’s not guaranteed they’ll turn out like this."
Li Jianye sighed, then chuckled.
Suddenly getting rich might make someone look down on others, or it could make them overflow with charity.
If you really think about it... it just reveals one’s true nature.
Xu Huo shook his head, not dwelling on the matter, and promptly said his goodbyes to Li Jianye.
He walked over to the administrative office.
It was working hours, and that girl, Chu Xi, was still working with a completely serious expression.
Her oval face and delicate features, combined with her dead-serious expression, looked quite cute. It made Xu Huo want to pinch her cheeks.
But he resisted the urge and sat down beside her, watching patiently.
When Chu Xi snapped out of it, she was startled to realize someone was next to her.
After seeing it was Xu Huo, Chu Xi thought for a moment.
Then, she rummaged in her breast pocket and pulled out a piece of candy.
"Go play by yourself for a bit. I have to work."
Chu Xi held out her hand, patiently placating him as she passed over the candy.
Xu Huo: ?
To be honest, Xu Huo felt the words sounded familiar, like something a mother would say to a mischievous child.
He wanted to object, but seeing her innocent gaze, he fell silent again.
In the end, he took the candy.
The candy was still warm. Xu Huo subconsciously glanced at her generous bust before quickly averting his eyes.
He unwrapped the candy and popped it into his mouth.
A gentle sweetness spread throughout his mouth along with his saliva.
Seeing him eat it, a look of satisfaction appeared in Chu Xi’s eyes.
Then, she lowered her head and went back to work.
It was now one in the afternoon.
Quitting time was around five o’clock.
During that time, Chu Xi would occasionally pull out something to feed Xu Huo. It made him feel strange, but he obediently ate it all anyway.
At five o’clock, it was quitting time.
Chu Xi stretched, her slender waist accentuating her bountiful assets. Then, full of energy, she pulled Xu Huo out of the office with her.
The things they had bought at the seafood market the night before last were still in the fridge, uneaten.
’Although these dishes felt a bit ’unlucky’, the yellow croaker is innocent. Wang Chao is innocent, too. And me, Xu Huo... what crime have *I* committed!? I saw the crime scene for this case in a dream, but that dream was from many years ago! So, I’m not guilty either. No one can say I’m guilty.’
"I’ll cook! I’ll cook!"
Back at Xu Huo’s house, Chu Xi spoke up, her usually dazed-sounding voice picking up a little speed.
Xu Huo let her be, allowing her to show off her culinary skills.
Soon, the kitchen was bustling with activity.
Xu Huo lay lazily on the sofa, peeking through the crack of the door at the busy figure in the kitchen. He felt a little bad and thought about going to help, but Chu Xi just stuffed another piece of candy into his hand.
"Dinner won’t be ready for a while," she said. "Just watch some TV and wait."
Xu Huo smiled. He decided to just indulge her, not correcting her tone or choice of words. He lay back down on the sofa and continued watching whatever drama was on TV these days.
Chu Xi had the day off tomorrow, so they ate until they were completely stuffed that night.
Xu Huo couldn’t eat another bite, but Chu Xi was still peeling crayfish, telling him to "have one more" as she tried to stuff it in his mouth.
After they finished eating and he had taken her home, Xu Huo finally washed up and lay down on his bed.
A thought crossed his mind, and a light blue screen appeared before him.
[Congratulations, Host, for grasping the plot.]
[Dream-entry for the ’Flesh Processing Plant’ case has been unlocked.]
[After completing the dream-entry, the Host will receive a reward for writing it down and publishing it.]
[Initiate this dream-entry? Entering the dream will allow you to view the subject’s entire life, which may help you obtain the reward.]
Hearing the voice in his ear, Xu Huo’s heart sank.
’Sun Jian’s transformation is baffling.’
’For a person to develop such a personality...’
’For an ordinary person to do something like this, and to say those things with such a stern and severe expression!’
’It’s very strange. Interrogation won’t get anything out of him, but maybe... this thing can show me the reason why.’
At this thought, Xu Huo steeled himself.
"Enter dream!"
Comments