Winter Returns

Chapter 67 Sadness (Bonus Chapter, Please Vote!)
Zhang Shutong stood there for a moment, listened, and then continued walking downstairs.

Blue, a little person, eyes—he suddenly had a bad feeling.

There weren't many students in the corridor; many were taking a lunch break in the classrooms. He walked quietly, holding his phone to his ear with one hand.

My mom works overtime every day, but she's on her lunch break at this time, so she should be able to get through. However—

"The user you are trying to reach is busy..."

If you could guess based on common sense, then she wouldn't be your own mother.

He simply sent her a text message and waited for her reply.

According to the senior student, the murderer's goal was to stop Gu's father from developing the island, but the wording was actually very vague. Boss Gu wanted to build many buildings, so who knows what he meant? Was it to maintain the original ecology of the island? Or to stop a certain type of construction?
It should be noted that demolishing a commercial street also counts as development.

The scope was too broad, but fortunately, he had a mother who worked in geological exploration and was employed by the other party. He could find out exactly which locations were to be developed simply by asking.

We must start preparing in advance.

Then Zhang Shutong went to the office. Old Song sat there, his face sullen and silent. Occasionally he would stand up and walk a few steps, roll up his sleeves and put his hands on his hips, still thinking about who left the word "Go to hell" on that A4 paper.

Zhang Shutong thought to himself, "Master, you won't find the murderer this way. You should hurry up and eat. Speaking of which, isn't Lao Song the only 'victim' after the time travel? He was promoted eight years later and became an elite, a refined and handsome uncle. Now he's been reduced to his original form and turned into this rough guy."

He ran to Old Song's drawer and took a lollipop. When you're thinking, you need to replenish your sugar. When Old Song saw this, he just waved his hand, meaning that he should eat it and leave quickly, so as not to get in his way and delay me from deducing the murderer.

Zhang Shutong sighed, thinking to himself, "You gave me this chance to show off," and then said calmly:
"Teacher, I know who it is."

Song Nanshan immediately stood up, put his hands on his shoulders, and hurriedly asked who it was.
As he spoke, he glanced around warily, closed the office door, and whispered that it was safer that way.

Zhang Shutong only mentioned his own deduction, saying that there might be an opportunity during tomorrow's long break—but he never mentioned Li Yipeng. He intentionally scheduled the time to call the parents on Friday noon, so that he could ensure that the arsonist would act at night and be caught in one fell swoop.

The situation was much simpler for Zhou Ziheng. He handed over the suspicion against his father to the police, firstly to control the suspect, and secondly to send the paper with the "fingerprint" to the city for examination. The results would be available in a couple of days, unlike before when he would deliberately lure Gu Qiu Mian out for a day.

So Zhang Shutong didn't come here to show off, but had a more important purpose—he analyzed that smashing the castle was likely a metaphor for dissatisfaction with Gujia Shopping Mall, mentioned the conflicts in the commercial street, and played the conversation between the lake fish restaurant owner and Lao Song, all for one thing—to attract the other party's attention.

"What should we do then?" Song Nanshan asked instinctively.

"Call Gu Qiumian's father and tell him to come back quickly, and also send more people." This was Zhang Shutong's real purpose.

The bodyguards used to arrive on Saturday night, but Gu's father would arrive on Monday. Zhang Shutong planned to bring the arrival time forward. Even if the real culprit hadn't been caught by then, he didn't believe that Gu Qiu Mian could still be harmed with a room full of people guarding her.

Old Song nodded and went to make the arrangements, but he couldn't get through to Gu's father on the phone, just like he couldn't get through to his mother.

"I guess he left the island early this morning after dropping off Qiu Mian," Song Nanshan analyzed.

"Then let's hurry up." Zhang Shutong nodded, told Lao Song to keep this matter in mind, and while the other party was still surprised and seemed not to have expected the matter to be resolved so quickly, he yawned and left.

He then realized he was really tired. He had been going back in time halfway through his sleep on Saturday night, and then spent half a day going back and forth eight years later before coming back. Even now, the mental fatigue is inescapable, otherwise he wouldn't have been on the verge of collapse before.

Zhang Shutong planned to take a nap during this time. When he returned to his seat, he found that there was someone else there. His deskmate was lying listlessly on the table, his coat under his body, one hand supporting his cheek, and the other hand scrolling through his phone.

Seeing him approach, the girl glanced at him, then looked away without saying a word.

Zhang Shutong pulled out a chair and sat down. Actually, he had a few questions he wanted to ask her, but she was feeling unwell and not in the mood to talk to anyone. Besides, what could he say?

Zhang Shutong avoided this trouble and simply glanced at Gu Qiumian.

She had put her phone away at some point, and was tilting her head slightly, with her hands folded under her face. One side of her face was flattened, and her thick eyelashes blinked occasionally, as if she were daydreaming.

He felt he shouldn't nag her to drink more hot water—even though Zhang Shutong knew that saying that would surely earn him a glare from the girl.

The curtains beside me were drawn, obscuring the snow scene outside.

The radiators emitted bursts of warmth. The classroom was dark and quiet, the lights were off. Most people were taking a nap. Sleepiness is contagious, and Zhang Shutong lay down as well. The soft breathing around him drowned out the wind and snow outside the window. He closed his eyes, his nerves gradually relaxing, and a sudden sense of peace washed over him.

He used to dislike taking naps in the classroom because he felt tightness in his chest, but now he has no choice.

Just like he used to feel uncomfortable sleeping next to Gu Qiu Mian, which was called "the young lady's bedside is not to be snored by others," he didn't have the energy to make such jokes now and just wanted to lie quietly for a while.

A faint fragrance wafted into his nostrils. He sniffed it and felt he was about to develop a skill: he could tell who was around just by smelling this fragrance.

Zhang Shutong didn't understand perfume, nor did he know if Gu Qiumian's scent was perfume, so he couldn't distinguish between sandalwood, citrus, or floral scents... He was insensitive to smells, but he would remember them if he smelled them a lot.

He closed his eyes and lay quietly. Hearing a rustling sound beside him, Zhang Shutong turned his head and saw that Gu Qiumian had also closed her eyes. She had draped the wool coat over her body, revealing only her small face. Zhang Shutong had seen her peaceful sleeping face before, in the nail salon. He subconsciously made a comparison. Now, Gu Qiumian's brows were slightly furrowed, and it seemed that her stomach was hurting badly.

Some girls seem to need to be protected.

Zhang Shutong had this thought for no reason. These words sounded a lot like what Lao Song said, but the other party didn't say what to do if only one person remembers some things. He didn't have time to be sentimental. Instead, he forced himself to fall asleep as soon as possible so that he could cheer up and take the next step. So he closed his eyes.

Time flows slowly by, and the ticking of the clock hands is clearly visible.

Gu Qiumian didn't open her eyes groggily until the bell rang signaling the end of lunch break.

A few strands of hair clung to her lips. The girl had low blood sugar, and she would always space out for a while after waking up. She habitually yawned and slowly got up from her desk, but a spasm in her lower abdomen made her groan in pain, and she clutched her stomach and slowly lay back down.

Perhaps she caught a chill, she felt really unwell today, even during her lunch break.

She seemed to have had a very sad dream. It was in a classroom at night, the lights were off, and an old black-and-white movie was playing on the projector screen. The ending was somewhat sad. Why was she watching a movie in an empty classroom? There seemed to be someone sitting next to her, but she didn't know who it was... She tried to turn her head to look, but she wasn't sure if she saw anyone in the end, because that was all she remembered when she woke up.

I just subconsciously looked at the spot next to me, but it was empty.

It was just a dream.

(End of this chapter)