Winter Returns

Chapter 94 The clue is feet, Lu Qinglian's
This woman's good point is that she is very polite.

“It’s nothing,” Zhang Shutong said casually as he followed behind her. “On the other hand, you got injured because of that pit, so it’s understandable.”

The two entered the house. He boiled some water, asked Lu Qinglian to sit on the sofa, and then went to the TV cabinet and opened a drawer.

If I remember correctly... there should be.

He crouched down, quickly found something, and tossed it behind him:
"then."

Zhang Shutong turned his head and saw Lu Qinglian instinctively catch the small bottle with both hands, adding:

"Safflower oil, you know how to apply it, right? You just put it on your feet to improve blood circulation and remove blood stasis."

Lu Qinglian nodded.

Zhang Shutong returned to the sofa, thinking that not long ago this place was a tense scene, but now the girl was injured and was bending down slightly to take off her shoes and socks.

Of course, he wasn't much better off himself. By the way, can safflower oil cure kick injuries?
Zhang Shutong pondered to himself, "Should I apply some to my chest later?"

Then he noticed Lu Qinglian unscrew the bottle cap, poured out a little oil, and was about to rub it on her feet, so he quickly stopped her:

"Wait."

"What's wrong?" She tilted her head.

What happened?

Zhang Shutong thought to himself.

"You can't just rub it on directly, you should at least soak your feet in hot water, otherwise why do you think I boiled water?"

Where did that mature and terrifying look you had on the mountain go? Can't you just stop making us worry about you?

He stood up and tested the temperature of the kettle with his hand; it was just right, only a little hot.

Zhang Shutong wasn't a very meticulous person. He was too lazy to boil water and then gradually add cold water. He simply took a foot basin from the bathroom, poured the water in, and held it in front of Lu Qinglian.

"Let's just make do with this."

Lu Qinglian thanked her again.

"I thought you were so skilled that you'd used to apply this kind of stuff a lot." He opened his phone and scrolled through his messages.

"Rarely used."

"Have you ever taken a medicinal bath, like the kind in martial arts novels?" Zhang Shutong wasn't sure if she had read those kinds of books.

“There’s no such thing.” Lu Qinglian’s tone was somewhat helpless.

Zhang Shutong noticed that she seemed to be enjoying herself, and was slightly narrowing her peach blossom eyes.

She seems to make this expression when she eats something delicious—in her own opinion—like Oreos or sour apples.

“I suddenly thought of a question,” Zhang Shutong said. “I used to think that Gu Qiumian’s murder was revenge, that someone wanted to stop her father from developing the island, otherwise why would they specifically target her? But now it seems that it’s not that simple. Let’s assume that the person like you is the murderer. Are there any other reasons? You know what I mean is, something more supernatural or ghostly?”

"As far as I know, no."

"How much do you know?"

"A little more than you think."

"You look cuter when you're soaking your feet without saying anything."

"You'd better not be so frivolous."

Zhang Shutong choked for a moment.

He wasn't a smooth talker, but the other person was indeed quite serious, and some things did need to be considered before being said... Wait, was he really serious?
"I suddenly remembered that you've said several times before, 'Whether I like you or not, isn't that just being frivolous?'"

Do you have any towels?

Lu Qinglian asked.

"Let me get you some tissues."

Zhang Shutong won the game and was in a good mood.

Getting back to the main point, since Lu Qinglian has ruled out one possibility, this question can only be left to him.

In retrospect, the development of the island has indeed come to a halt.

Information from eight years later shows that police records also mention that some people wanted to prevent the development of the island.

Lu Qinglian didn't know who the other party was, which was a headache. Was there something else they were hiding?
Just then, Zhang Shutong's phone rang. He snapped out of his reverie and saw that it was Qingyi calling.
"How is it? Did she fall in?"

"It's a long story."

"Shutong, you didn't get caught and beaten up by her, did you?" Qingyi asked curiously.

"Uh...where are you guys now?"

"It's a long story. We played for a while longer and just came down from the mountain. The two of them are waiting for the car. Ruoping's father will be here soon," Qingyi explained. "As for me... oh, it's so expensive. Even Ice Dew costs two yuan. I bought water at the convenience store... I'm out now. I just asked that unscrupulous old lady, and she said that two students just came down from the mountain not long ago. So I called to ask how things are going on your end."

“Thankfully, the misunderstanding has been cleared up…” Zhang Shutong glanced at Lu Qinglian and found that the other was also looking at him expressionlessly. “I realize my mistake.”

The girl looked away and continued to squint as she soaked her feet, like a lazy cat.

"You really are..." Qingyi couldn't help but laugh, "This is the first time I've realized that you also have girls you're afraid of."

You'd be scared even if you got kicked.

Zhang Shutong thought to himself, "This is ridiculous."

"In short, she's on our side now."

"How about we have lunch together to celebrate?"

"I doubt he'll be available."

"Then the three of us will go eat."

"Okay, contact me if you need anything."

Zhang Shutong hung up the phone.

"So you weren't hiding it from them after all," Lu Qinglian finally said.

"Only Qingyi is an option. Ruoping is too troublesome, you know. She treats you like a best friend now, and knows I'm digging a hole only to bury me in it. As for Dukang, well, his situation is also..."

Zhang Shutong didn't know how to explain it, so he left it at that.

"Oh, that child who likes me." Lu Qinglian thought for a moment.

Zhang Shutong's eyelids twitched:
What is a child?

You used to at least pretend, calling me "Du Kang Tongxue" (a nickname implying a respectable but actually illicit relationship with someone).

"I feel that people who are very childish call their children children."

"Are you really sixteen?"

"of course."

"You're really mature."

"You're too naive."

Zhang Shutong silently mourned for Du Kang in his heart, then, watching Lu Qinglian wipe her feet, he said:

"Actually, you can soak a little longer; there's no rush."

"You still don't understand how urgent this matter is for me."

"How to say?"

"For you, it's about preventing your deskmate's death, but there are other ways to achieve this."

Lu Qinglian lowered her eyes. She was quite frugal; instead of grabbing several sheets of paper to wipe haphazardly, she used only one sheet at a time, until it was completely soaked before taking out another.
“But for me, assuming what you dreamed about is true, if we don’t take this opportunity to find her, it means that another version of me will always exist on this island. I’m not interested in someone like myself, I’m even a little disgusted by it. Do you understand?” “That’s true.” Zhang Shutong thought about it and agreed. He sighed again, “But it’s not that I’m not in a hurry, it’s just that we have no more clues. We don’t even know where to look for her. If there’s still no progress, my idea is to take Gu Qiumian off the island and hide for a while.”

"If that's the case, I'll wait near the villa."

"Let's talk about it then."

"Ah."

Zhang Shutong then saw that she had applied safflower oil, and a pungent medicinal smell filled the air. Sure enough, her ankle was a little swollen, and because her skin was fair, the redness and swelling were very noticeable.

This time, Lu Qinglian was smarter. She carefully read the instructions on the back of the bottle first, and then massaged the swollen area gently, three circles counterclockwise and three circles clockwise, meticulously. Soon, a light sheen appeared on the soles of her feet.

until:

"Please stop staring at my feet." She turned her face away, frowning, her eyes slightly cold.

"Oh, sorry……"

Zhang Shutong turned his head. He had been lost in thought and hadn't noticed until the other person pointed it out.

"I'll find you a pair of my old shoes. What size do you wear?"

“I measured it last year, and it should be 23 centimeters.”

This answer left Zhang Shutong a little confused. She thought, "What kind of strange unit of measurement is this? Aren't they all just shoe sizes?" Then she realized that the woman probably hadn't actually bought many pairs of shoes. There were still some places on the island that made shoes by hand, so she probably went there to have them custom-made. Of course, it wasn't out of sentimentality; it was simply because they were cheap.

Zhang Shutong didn't know what to say. She actually went out in cloth shoes despite the thick snow. He himself was wearing a pair of hiking boots with waterproof material, and he was jumping around without any problems. Lu Qinglian's shoes were probably soaked through long ago. She must have endured it all the way from the bottom of the mountain to the restricted area and then back home.

"What are you drawing this connection to again?" Lu Qinglian said calmly, "My sneakers got wet last night, so I changed into a new pair today, that's all."

Zhang Shutong didn't reply, but just searched on her phone and found that her size was about 36.

Zhang Shutong had a pretty good idea of ​​what to do. He just needed to find a pair of shoes from his first year of junior high. His mother had kept his old shoes all this time. Although Zhang Shutong didn't know why she kept them, she always felt it would be a waste to throw them away, so she had been keeping them in a shoebox piled up on the balcony. Now they were finally coming in handy.

He also converted his own using the formula: size 40 is about 25 centimeters.

25 cm.

Wait.

Zhang Shutong suddenly stopped getting up, as if he had thought of something.

He stared intently at Lu Qinglian's feet. She was sixteen years old this year. A sixteen-year-old girl's feet were smaller than his, only about two centimeters shorter.

“Zhang Shutong, you really are…” Lu Qinglian sighed at him hopelessly, and simply used her toes to hook the water basin next to her and hide her feet behind it.

"Wait, I think I know where to find her!"

His heart skipped a beat, and he knew something was wrong.

Zhang Shutong quickly found Lao Song's phone number and dialed it.

At the same time, what comes to mind is the footprints I saw at the entrance to Huanshan Road today.

At that time, he didn't have a clear concept of shoe size. The footprint was smaller than his own, but he thought 38 or 39 would be about right. Foot length is related to height. He was already tall among his peers, and people of his generation were generally taller. Now it's 2012, and many people in their thirties and forties are shorter than him.

But it wasn't until he went to look for his shoes that he realized that a difference of two centimeters in foot length could mean a difference of four sizes!

How big was that footprint?

I estimate it will be around 35 or 36.

So were the footprints we saw really the owner's?

This discovery made Zhang Shutong stand up. Lu Qinglian also realized something was wrong. She quickly put on her wet shoes and socks. The safflower oil hadn't even penetrated her skin yet, and the socks were stained red. But she stood up without caring, as if ready to act at any moment.
"what happened?"

"I saw a set of footprints today, right at the entrance where you picked me up..." Before Zhang Shutong could finish explaining, the call connected, and he simply put it on speakerphone.

"Hey, Shutong, how are things on your end?"

Zhang Shutong hurriedly asked Lao Song if he knew the car repair shop owner before, and how tall the owner was.

"A little shorter than me, around 1.78 meters?"

Zhang Shutong's heart sank:
"Teacher, what size shoes do you wear?"

"43?"

If that's the case, doesn't it mean that the other person's shoe size must be at least size 40 or larger?

So that footprint wasn't the repair shop owner's at all; it belonged to someone else from the beginning...

Others also visited the area near the villa today!
Where is she now?

Zhang Shutong felt a chill run down his spine. He quickly told Lao Song the whole story, and Lao Song was also taken aback.
"Really? I went out to the yard this morning and smoked two cigarettes, but I didn't see anyone. So, you're saying it was a woman?"

Then came the sound of someone getting up from the sofa:

"Wait a moment, I'll go outside and check right now..."

"It's best not to," Lu Qinglian suddenly said, her tone serious.

"Uh... Qinglian?" Old Song was stunned again. "No, did I hear that right? I think I heard Qinglian's voice just now. Where are you? Are you two together?"

"It's a long story, I'll explain later." Zhang Shutong said, quickly putting on his shoes. "You and Gu Qiumian should not leave the villa for now. We're heading there now. Remember, don't go out to look for them. That person could very well be the murderer."

He won't hold back at crucial moments; if a misunderstanding arises and Old Song doesn't believe in superstitions, it will be troublesome.

"Wait, wait, wait! What murderer? What do you mean you two are rushing here right now? Are you kidding me?"

“Anyway, the other party is very dangerous.” Zhang Shutong simply emphasized, “We’ll talk when we meet. I’m on my way to the villa with Lu Qinglian right now.”

"The problem is, even if it's really dangerous, you two aren't safe, are you?"

Zhang Shutong simply handed the phone to Lu Qinglian, and the girl immediately spoke up:
"He won't get into trouble as long as I'm here."

"What do you mean..."

"meaning is……"

Zhang Shutong didn't have time to listen to their explanations. He immediately went to the balcony to find his old shoes and grabbed a pair of unopened socks. By the time he returned to the living room, the other party had already hung up the phone.

"Finished explaining?"

"Ah."

"Change your shoes first, don't push yourself."

Zhang Shutong frowned and calculated the time in his mind. It would take at least half an hour to get from here to the bus station and then to Huanshan Road. He also had to take into account that Lu Qinglian walked slowly and that he had to wait for the bus, so the time would only be longer.

He hadn't expected things to be so rushed; he thought it didn't matter if he went to the villa a little earlier or later. But now he wasn't sure where the people in the restricted area were. If they had just taken a quick stroll there in the morning, that would be fine, but what if they had gone back...?

Zhang Shutong got goosebumps.

The heavy snow changed many things, and might even have changed the timing of when the other party would take action.

All he could do was tell Lao Song not to open the door easily, and then rush over as soon as possible.

The problem lies precisely in this "as soon as possible".

Zhang Shutong opened his contacts.

Mom is probably already on the ship by now.

After thinking about it, he realized he had no choice but to ask for other outside help.

So Zhang Shutong dialed Ruoping's number directly.

"What's wrong with you?"

"Can you do me a favor?" Zhang Shutong pushed open the security door. "I need your dad to come pick me up."

(End of this chapter)