Xu Xiaonan and Jiang Huihui sat down at the innermost table in a small restaurant not far from Middle State University.
They had just ordered two plates of fried noodles and were waiting for their food.
Jiang Huihui's face was grim, her pale complexion devoid of expression. Under the table, her hands were tightly clenched, her fingernails digging deep into her flesh.
A strong surge of resentment churned within her.
The person who killed her younger brother worked right here.
These past few days, she had been restless, her brother's face constantly appearing before her eyes, and nightmares plaguing her nights.
She saw her brother, covered in blood, calling out for help.
She wanted to grab her brother's hand and pull him back, but something seemed to block her, preventing her from rushing over.
Then, she saw the murderer who killed her brother.
That person, with a cruel grin on his face, picked up a large stone and violently smashed it onto her brother's head until her brother could no longer move.
Yet, she could do nothing, waking up in agony.
More than five years had passed, and she had thought she had moved on from it.
But the moment she saw that person, those old memories uncontrollably surged back.
She still couldn't help but feel pain and resentment.
Her brother was gone, but that person was still alive and well. No matter how she thought about it, she couldn't bring herself to let go of this hatred.
And her brother's vengeful spirit probably couldn't rest in peace either.
Xu Xiaonan looked at her face, feeling a pang of sorrow.
Jiang Huihui had become much gaunter these past few days, with dark circles under her eyes and a somewhat dazed look.
Today, as soon as she was discharged from the hospital, she decided to come here with Jiang Huihui to take a look.
"Hui Hui, let's confirm it first. What if you're mistaken?"
After all, so many years had passed, and that person must have changed a lot. It was possible Jiang Huihui was mistaken.
She hoped it was so.
If that really was the murderer of Jiang Huihui's brother, having the killer of a loved one Wander in front of her was too cruel for Jiang Huihui.
Just then, a seventeen or eighteen-year-old boy walked out from the kitchen, carrying two plates of fried noodles, which he placed in front of the two women.
The boy was tall, with a fair complexion and a sunny, cheerful smile on his face.
Seeing this boy, the muscles on Jiang Huihui's face couldn't help but twitch. Her grip tightened even more, her fingernails almost breaking her skin.
Seeing this, Xu Xiaonan already understood that the boy was the person Jiang Huihui had spoken of.
She nudged Jiang Huihui's foot, signaling her to calm down.
The boy placed the two plates of fried noodles on the table and was about to leave when Xu Xiaonan suddenly turned and said,
"Handsome, what's your name? Can we get to know each other?"
The boy paused, stopped, turned to look at Xu Xiaonan, then smiled and said, "Hello, my name is Li Xin, Xin as in 'new beginning'."
"Oh," Xu Xiaonan nodded and asked again, "Handsome, where are you from?"
"I'm from Nan—" Li Xin seemed to suddenly remember something and quickly changed his words, "My home is in Zhongzhou City."
"Oh, you look familiar. I thought we were from the same hometown. My hometown is Nanqiu County."
After Xu Xiaonan finished speaking, she observed Li Xin's expression, because Jiang Huihui's home was in Nanqiu County, and the murderer of her brother was also from there.
There was a subtle change in Li Xin's face, but he quickly concealed it.
"No, I'm a local."
"Oh."
Xu Xiaonan turned back to eat the fried noodles in front of her.
Li Xin looked at her and said, "Beauty, what's your name? Let's exchange contact information."
"Sure," Xu Xiaonan said, tapping her phone a few times to open her WeChat QR code.
"Here, you can scan me."
Li Xin took out his phone and added Xu Xiaonan's WeChat.
"Beauty, what's your name?"
"I'll tell you on WeChat," Xu Xiaonan said, no longer paying him any attention.
Seeing that Xu Xiaonan was ignoring him, Li Xin walked back disappointed.
A moment later, Xu Xiaonan and Jiang Huihui stood up and left the restaurant.
Once outside, Jiang Huihui could no longer control her emotions, her eyes red and tears streaming down her face.
Xu Xiaonan gripped her wrist, looking down at Jiang Huihui's face,
"Hui Hui, are you sure it's him? Didn't you say his name was Li Xingyu?"
"It's him, absolutely no mistake," Jiang Huihui said with certainty.
"When my brother was being bullied, my father and I went to his house together. I saw him then.
Although I didn't see him many times, and he's changed a lot over the years, I still clearly remember the scar on his hand.
He must have changed his name."
Xu Xiaonan nodded. It was normal for him to change his name after doing such a thing.
He probably wouldn't dare to continue living under his old name.
Moreover, when she asked Li Xin where he was from, Li Xin initially started with a 'Nan' before changing his words and saying he was a local.
This was very abnormal. How could someone even get their hometown wrong?
Xu Xiaonan sighed, "He looks very normal. If it weren't for someone who knew him before, who would know he used to be a murderer?"
"Li Xin, he wants to start over, to begin anew. He still has a chance.
But my brother doesn't have that chance!"
Jiang Huihui's body trembled slightly, and her voice was choked with sobs.
"He... he has completely moved on from that past incident.
He doesn't have to pay the price for hurting others, nor does he have to feel guilty about it.
He can live well, just like a normal person, with no difference whatsoever.
But why!
Why can someone like him start over, but my brother..."
Jiang Huihui burst into tears, her petite body appearing extremely fragile, as if it would shatter at a touch.
"This is indeed very unfair," Xu Xiaonan's hand rested on Jiang Huihui's shoulder, her expression also somewhat complex.
Although she wasn't directly involved, she couldn't stand by and watch.
Such a thing completely went against her values.
Normally, if she saw a character in a TV show or novel who had committed a great crime, then repented, was forgiven, and all past sins were wiped clean, she would be angry and curse for days.
Why should mistakes be forgiven and past deeds erased just because someone has changed?
Had anyone consulted the victims? Why should forgiveness be granted simply because someone wants it?
As long as a mistake is made, even if corrected, the person should still receive appropriate punishment. Only then can justice be served to the victim.
But she knew that Li Xin couldn't be punished; societal rules wouldn't allow it.
Were they to wait for heaven to claim such a demon?
Then they could only wait until he died of old age.
But there was no other way. Sometimes, people just had to accept reality.
"Hui Hui, you want to use The bixian's power to kill him?"
"Yes," Jiang Huihui's voice was very faint.
"If I hadn't met him, perhaps I would have let go, but I met him, and I can't pretend nothing happened.
Now, all I can see is my brother's face. He's scared, he's asking for my help, because the person who killed him is still alive and well in this world, and he can't rest in peace.
I absolutely cannot accept this!"
Xu Xiaonan sighed helplessly, gently embracing her.
She saw a hidden tenacity in Jiang Huihui's tear-filled eyes.
After a moment of silence, she said,
"I know this might not sound good, but give up, Hui Hui.
You still have your own life. It's not worth risking ruining yourself for such a scumbag.
The bixian is not something we can command at will. To make it do something, you must pay an equivalent price."
There could never be anything free in this world, let alone The bixian explicitly stating it was an equivalent exchange.
She only asked The bixian to help her with an exam, and she encountered one unlucky event after another.
What would happen if Jiang Huihui asked The bixian to kill someone?
The equivalent of a life should only be a life, right?
She didn't want Jiang Huihui to lose her life because of this.
After Xu Xiaonan finished speaking, she took out a tissue from her person and helped Jiang Huihui wipe away the tears from her face.
"Hui Hui, please don't do anything foolish. You still have a beautiful future ahead of you.
You still have your parents. Think of them; they've already lost your brother. Do you want them to lose you too?
What would they do without you?
Although I shouldn't say this, let bygones be bygones. We can only look forward."
Jiang Huihui remained silent, her expression deeply conflicted.
This was indeed a very difficult decision.
Her hatred was strong, but to seek revenge, she would have to pay with her life.
She had too many attachments to this world; she really didn't want to die.
After a long silence, Jiang Huihui finally spoke.
"You're right. The bixian might not be able to grant my wish, and I might have to pay with my life for it.
Doing this is no different from me directly taking a knife and killing him.
I really shouldn't do anything foolish."
Xu Xiaonan stared at Jiang Huihui's face. In Jiang Huihui's eyes, hatred and unwillingness were still hidden.
She was trying to hide these things, but she wasn't someone good at hiding her emotions.
Xu Xiaonan knew Jiang Huihui's personality very well. Although she seemed naive and fragile,
Once she made up her mind, nine oxen couldn't pull her back.
But she could only slowly guide her later. Time would help Jiang Huihui calm down.
"Hui Hui, let's go back first."
"Okay."
Xu Xiaonan held Jiang Huihui's hand and walked forward. It wasn't far from where they lived.
They hadn't walked far when Jiang Huihui suddenly cried out, "Be careful, there's something above..."
Before Jiang Huihui could finish her sentence, Xu Xiaonan felt something fall from the sky and hit her head.
Her brain first felt a dizzy spell, followed by pain.
Warm liquid flowed from her head.
She pressed her hand to her head and realized it was blood.
She looked at the ground again and saw it was an apple.
The apple had fallen from a height and hit her head.
The dizzy sensation grew stronger and stronger. She felt as if the ground was spinning, and her body went limp, involuntarily falling to the ground.
Jiang Huihui quickly supported her.
"Nan Nan, are you okay!"
Jiang Huihui covered the wound on her head, looking at the continuously flowing blood, her face filled with panic, almost on the verge of tears.
"Save me, save..."
Xu Xiaonan said, then fainted.
Jiang Huihui reacted quickly, immediately took out her phone, called the police, and requested an ambulance.
She never expected that Xu Xiaonan, who had just been discharged from the hospital today, would have to go back in again.
"You must hold on, Nan Nan, the ambulance will be here soon."
