Chapter 29

“Originally, I should have finished all my deliveries by now, but a guest insisted on hand-ground coffee. I had to go back to the kitchen, which delayed me.”

“But who knew, just as I got here, I heard people talking over on the flower terrace. I didn’t mean to eavesdrop though! The corridor isn’t warm anyway, I was just going to close the window, and that’s when I saw two people fighting.”

“The flower terrace is our scenic area, only open in the summer. In winter, the plants are bare. Who comes to see flowers then? There’s no safety barrier set up. When they were struggling, I saw this man in black push that other guy off.”

“I really just saw it by accident! He isn’t going to kill me now, is he?!”

The attendant was terrified, his face ashen, trembling like a leaf. No one doubted the truth of his words. Bo Xiting, deemed a murderer by the attendant, didn’t even bat an eyelid.

The butler calmed the attendant down, arranged for him to go back and rest, excusing him from the rest of his work, and then turned to face the group of them.

“Guests, although Little Zhang is rash, he never lies. Since he saw this gentleman… push another guest off, I can only wait for the snow to stop and then turn this gentleman over to the police station.”

“His words aren’t necessarily entirely credible. At the very least, the rest of us didn’t witness this. Based solely on a single testimony, I’m afraid we can’t make a final judgment just yet.” Jiang Mu spoke up then, his voice mature, steady, and thoughtfully reasoned. “This matter requires further investigation.”

Ying Weizhu had been looking languid and listless since just moments ago. He tried several times to hook his finger around Jiang Xiao’s, but was rejected. Hearing Jiang Mu’s words, he let out a cold laugh.

“How do you plan to investigate further? The person has already fallen off. You want to go down there and retrieve him? Fine, if you can find him, then we’ll know if he was pushed or fell by himself.”

Everyone fell silent.

Anyone who came here knew that this hotel was surrounded by rolling mountains on two sides, with only one side facing a steep cliff. Just one glance down was enough to make you dizzy. The height was terrifying. Some businessmen even planned to develop a natural bungee jumping project here, but it fell through.

Unfortunately, the flower terrace directly faced this sheer cliff and deep valley.

The gloomy sky and ceaseless snow made everything a blanket of white as far as the eye could see. The mountain rocks below were jagged and uneven, layered with pine branches blocking the view. The shadows grew deeper the lower you looked, rendering everything invisible and unclear.

Forget finding someone—even climbing down would be exceedingly difficult.

But Ying Weizhu had a point; falling from here meant certain death.

Wen Xu was just… dead?

They had spoken not long ago, and now he was already a cold corpse. A sense of horror ran through Jiang Xiao.

He asked the System: “Do I also need to find the killer who murdered Wen Xu?”

System: “No, you only need to find the culprit from the first night.”

But whether he looked or not, the person who killed Wen Xu was already patently obvious.

He didn’t even offer a single word in his own defense. Was it because he knew it was pointless?

Jiang Xiao had almost been completely certain that Wen Xu was Qin Guan’s killer. Yet Wen Xu was suddenly dead. Did his death imply that things weren’t so simple after all?

Or was the real killer actually someone else, and they killed Wen Xu to cover up a secret?

The progress bar, which had seemed close to completion, once again plunged into a thick, oppressive fog of mystery because of this cliff-side case.

“Senior, don’t you have anything to say?” Jiang Xiao said.

“Everything’s been said already. What more is there for me to say.” Bo Xiting said coldly.

The most delighted person present was undoubtedly Ying Weizhu. Showing no trace of grief or mourning, he instead said with a beaming smile: “No matter who did it, Jiang Xiao and I can mutually attest to our alibis.”

“When we heard the scream, I was just…”

The moment Jiang Xiao heard Ying Weizhu’s deeply ambiguous tone, an ominous feeling arose in his heart.

This feeling, it was all too familiar!

He absolutely did not want to experience that kind of awkward moment again. Jiang Xiao quickly cut him off and calmly concluded this extremely dangerous conversation.

“……He was with me. We can confirm each other’s alibis.”

“You two were together again?” Jiang Mu said, his voice emotionless, as if simply asking a question.

From just a moment ago, Jiang Xiao had felt a gaze occasionally land on his face, like a flame burning within ice. The slightest touch caused a hot, stinging pain.

It was obvious that Jiang Mu was an extremely vindictive person. Not to mention Jiang Xiao had deceived him and locked him in a room. Coupled with some of this man’s more perverse actions, Jiang Xiao had zero doubt that if he were alone and caught by Jiang Mu again, the consequences would be brutal.

Jiang Xiao pretended to know nothing and didn’t respond, letting Jiang Mu’s glare continually pierce him.

The discussion ended hastily.

Among those present, those who knew clues were unwilling to speak; those who didn’t know had nothing to offer. The sole eyewitness had already gone back to rest. Any further discussion was mere empty speculation.

The key to fully understanding this matter lay in just one point—

What exactly had Bo Xiting and Wen Xu argued about that led to blows.

Everyone stood up. Jiang Mu gave Jiang Xiao a few ambiguous, sweeping looks before turning and leaving. Bo Xiting was equally expressionless, exuding a cold, sharp aura from his entire being.

“Senior—” Jiang Xiao was about to call out to stop Bo Xiting when he suddenly felt Ying Weizhu grip his wrist, speaking with a smile that wasn’t quite a smile:

“Jiang Xiao, you’re not thinking of welching, are you?”

Ying Weizhu’s golden eyes narrowed slightly, carrying a gloomy, unpleasant dark light. The scent of roses carried thorns, as if the moment Jiang Xiao said “yes,” those thorns would mercilessly pierce into his very bones and blood.

Truly a rose with thorns.

Jiang Xiao paused mid-sentence.

“I have to go ask him clearly. Wen Xu can’t just die like this.”

With that, he pushed Ying Weizhu away and stumbled off in the direction Bo Xiting had gone.

Leaving Ying Weizhu alone, staring at the spot where Jiang Xiao had left, his lips pressed tightly together. A terrifying, ghastly aura seemed to swirl around him.

The pure gold in his eyes was replaced by a bloody hue, as if blazing with towering fury. Yet finally, he just let out a soft laugh.

Only Wen Xu was important, was he?

Hearing of his death, Jiang Xiao was in such a hurry, so anxious to seek justice for him, not even worried whether Bo Xiting might hurt him.

Jiang Xiao… you are truly something else!

“I have nothing to say.” Bo Xiting said flatly. “If you believe I killed him, then so be it.”

Jiang Xiao was completely shocked. How could someone say such a thing so casually? Everything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law… wait, wrong script.

“Even if you did, there has to be a reason, right?” Jiang Xiao said. “Neither of you is the impulsive type. How could you argue, even fight?”

Jiang Xiao found it utterly inconceivable. These two people, worlds apart with absolutely no connection, how could they end up together in a conflict?

“You truly believe I did it?” Bo Xiting’s lips curved into an almost imperceptible arc, as if mocking. “I thought Qin Guan was the fool. Now it seems, the one truly blinded by appearances, the one who has always been unwilling to wake up to reality—”

“Is you yourself, Jiang Xiao.”

Bo Xiting just dropped those words and was about to leave. In his desperation, Jiang Xiao grabbed his sleeve. Bo Xiting’s jawline was drawn incredibly tight, and even his deep green eyes, usually only showing mottled hues, were now filled with violent irritation.

“Let go.”

“You tell me to wake up, but I don’t know anything. What can I do?” Jiang Xiao gritted his teeth, questioning Bo Xiting word by word. “You clearly know I’m blind, yet you still blame me for not seeing people clearly. I know Wen Xu has problems, but I have no proof!”

“And the things you did were witnessed by someone else, yet you won’t even bother to explain. Aren’t you just relying on the fact that I like you, assuming you couldn’t possibly be the murderer, so you can so brazenly turn around and blame me?!”

“Bo Xiting, you’ve gone too far!”

After shouting, Jiang Xiao released Bo Xiting’s sleeve. He didn’t see the flash of shock and doubt in Bo Xiting’s eyes. He fumed and headed towards the exit. On the way, he ran into a dining cart left in the middle of the corridor. His knee slammed hard against it, nearly causing him to fall flat on his face.

A pair of hands behind him caught him swiftly and firmly.

“Let go!” Jiang Xiao hurled the exact same two words back at Bo Xiting, loud and clear.

And Bo Xiting, for some unknown reason, didn’t this time respond with sharp, sarcastic words. Instead, he held Jiang Xiao and didn’t let go. His voice was also less cold and severe than before:

“……He came to find me.”

Due to his emotional outburst, Jiang Xiao’s bitterness was still hard to suppress. His eyes kept welling up with heat, but he didn’t wipe them—that would make him lose too much presence.

He said: “Wen Xu came to find you about someth—”

A pair of hands brushed over his eyes, wiping away the tears at their corners.

Bo Xiting’s fingers weren’t soft. On the contrary, they bore slight calluses, likely marks from years of extreme sports.

Bo Xiting liked racing, surfing, diving, bungee jumping. The more dangerous the activity, the more he wanted to try it. It was as though the rebellious nature deep in his bones grew proportionally with age.

A few times, when his life hung by a thread and his life began to flash before his eyes, the images he thought were etched in his memory weren’t the oppressive training from childhood, nor the single day of parental company per year, nor the pain of the family discipline whip lashing his back—but rather—

“He got hold of some things and used what I fear most to threaten me.” Bo Xiting lowered his eyes and said faintly, “My dispute with him was because of those things.”

“……What things?” Jiang Xiao asked instinctively.

Bo Xiting’s gaze was like a snowflake—soft, silent, and lightly settling on Jiang Xiao’s oblivious face.

He pressed his lips together.

“He knew I like you. So, what he found was all about you.”

Bo Xiting seemed to be hiding something, yet every sentence sounded a bit strange, more like… words of love.

“How could you possibly still like me?” Jiang Xiao reflexively retorted. “That day I asked you to meet me at the restaurant, not only did you not show up, but you appeared at the accident scene, saying you were working.”

To this day, Jiang Xiao still remembered this. The accident scene was a crucial point. Anyone present at the time was bound to be a suspect.

And Bo Xiting’s explanation was that he had been working at the time.

Well, it was indeed flawless. But didn’t that perfectly illustrate that Bo Xiting was completely done with him, hence why he ignored his invitation?

Whether it was truly work or some other purpose, Jiang Xiao still didn’t know.

Bo Xiting’s lips pressed even tighter. To an outsider, this was Bo Xiting looking unhappy, a state they’d do well to flee from swiftly.

Yet Jiang Xiao didn’t detect any dangerous aura from him.

Bo Xiting said:

“I never received your message inviting me.”

“Because I had also blacklisted you.”