My childhood friend is in her mature, sophisticated form again today. - Chapter 10
“And the last one?”
“They went east. They’re chasing Xiaoyu and the others.”
Lin Jiqiu frowned slightly. “Xiaoyu and the others have run far away?”
“Almost there. There are backup outside the wall, but we need to hold out for another two minutes.”
“knew.”
Lin Jiqiu quickened her pace, crossed the corridor, and turned into the stairwell. She didn’t run up—the third floor was a dead end with no other exit. She ran down, towards the basement.
The basement corridor was long and dimly lit, with pipes and storage rooms on both sides. A damp, musty smell permeated the air, mixed with the odor of some kind of chemical agent.
She ran through one door, then another.
Then stop.
It’s not that I can’t run anymore—it’s that I’ve arrived.
Before her stood an iron gate, just like the one Ah Mo had seen last night. There was no doorknob, only a small window.
iron gate.
Locked.
The footsteps behind me grew closer.
Lin Jiqiu did not turn around. She raised her hand and pressed it against the wall next to the iron gate.
Close your eyes.
“Bluebird”.
A bluebird emerged from her consciousness and landed on her shoulder. It tilted its head and looked at her with its black bean-like eyes.
“Go to the other side.”
The bluebird flapped its wings and flew up, disappearing into the ventilation duct above the iron gate.
On the other side of the iron gate was that room.
The place Amo visited last night.
Bed. Chair. IV stand.
The wall is covered with photos.
And—the person lying in bed.
The short-haired, thin girl in the white T-shirt. She was still lying there, her eyes closed, the IV drip slowly falling from the bag.
The bluebird landed on the IV stand, tilted its head, and looked at the girl.
Then it heard a sound.
Footsteps could be heard outside the iron gate.
Lin Jiqiu did not move.
She stood in front of the iron gate, her eyes closed, her hands pressed against the wall.
The pursuers have arrived.
Three.
“Stop! Don’t move!”
Lin Jiqiu opened her eyes and turned around.
Three men stood in the corridor, less than ten meters from her. The one in front wore a black jacket and held a black, stick-like object—not a police baton, but some kind of stun gun. The two behind him wore security guard uniforms and held flashlights and walkie-talkies.
“You can’t escape,” the man in the black jacket said.
Lin Jiqiu looked at him.
Her expression was calm. She didn’t look like someone trapped in a dead end.
“I know,” she said.
The man in the black jacket paused for a moment—perhaps he hadn’t expected her to answer that way.
“Put your hands behind your head and squat down.”
Lin Jiqiu did not move.
The man in the black jacket took a step forward, raising the stun gun in his hand. “I said, hands behind your head—”
He hadn’t finished speaking.
Because Lin Jiqiu has disappeared.
It’s not that it “ran away” or “dodged,” it’s that it disappeared.
Stay where you are.
disappear.
The man in the black jacket froze in mid-air, his eyes wide. The two security guards behind him were also stunned, and a static crackled from their walkie-talkies.
“W-what happened?”
No one can answer that.
Because nobody knew—Lin Jiqiu was no longer outside the iron gate.
She was inside the iron gate.
——
Qingque saw everything from the ventilation duct.
When Lin Jiqiu opened her eyes, she was no longer in the corridor. She was in that room, standing next to the IV stand by the bed.
My breathing is a little rapid.
It’s not that I’m tired—it’s the exhaustion from “changing positions”.
This is one of her abilities. She can retrieve her clones, gaining their memories and fatigue upon retrieval. But “switching positions” is different—it instantly swaps the positions of her main body and clone. It consumes far more energy than retrieval, and the distance is limited. However, the distance between her and Qingque is just within that range.
She looked down at her hands.
She still looks like “Lin Qiu”.
But “Lin Qiu’s” face appeared in this room.
The photos on the wall are looking at her.
More than twenty faces. More than twenty missing girls.
She turned around and looked at the person on the bed.
Short hair, thin, wearing a white T-shirt. An IV line was inserted into her arm, connected to an IV bag. The girl’s eyelids twitched—she was still conscious, just suppressed by medication.
“Who are you?” Lin Jiqiu asked softly.
The girl’s lips moved slightly, but no sound came out.
“It’s alright. No need to say anything.” Lin Jiqiu glanced at the label on the IV bag. “I’ll take you out.”
She reached out and pulled out the IV catheter.
The girl’s fingers trembled slightly, but her eyes remained closed.
Lin Jiqiu took the IV bag off the shelf and placed it on the bed. Then she walked to the wall and looked at the photos.
Each photo has a number underneath it.
She remembered it.
——
Outside the iron gate, the man in the black jacket was still in a daze.
Where…where is she?
“N-I don’t know…” the security guard’s voice trembled, “It was just here a moment ago…”
The man in the black jacket stepped forward, walked to the iron gate, and looked inside through the small window.
He saw Lin Jiqiu.
Standing in the room, looking at the photos on the wall.
His expression changed.
“How did she get in?!”
No one can answer that.
Because Lin Jiqiu has disappeared again.
This time, it wasn’t Qingque.
It’s Ahua.
——
In the yard, Ahua squatted on the lawn, licking her paws.
It had just distracted the security guards, and now they were all focused on Lin Jiqiu, so no one was paying attention to it anymore. Ahua stood up, stretched, and then—disappeared.
Lin Jiqiu stood on the lawn.
Ahua was at her feet—no, Ahua was gone. After the switch, Ahua went into the room and took her place.
The night breeze blew through her hair.
Lin Qiu’s hair was shoulder-length and black. However, the hair tie fell off during the repositioning process, and her hair fell loose on the side of her face.
She looked up, gazing in the direction of the main building.
The iron gate was already behind her.
“Cheng Ran”.
“Yes.” Cheng Ran’s voice was a little tense. “You…switched seats just now?”
“Um.”
Is it very energy-intensive?
“It’s alright.” Lin Jiqiu flexed his fingers. “But Ahua is inside now.”
What will happen to Ahua?
“Nothing will happen. She’s just a cat. They can’t catch her.”
Lin Jiqiu turned around and walked eastward.
Xiaoyu and Xiaoyi should have already run away. She needs to go and meet up with them.
But after taking a few steps, she stopped.
There was also a car in the yard.
A black SUV. The engine was still running, and white smoke was coming out of the exhaust pipe.
The person in the driver’s seat—she could see through the car window—was talking on a walkie-talkie. He looked tense, as if he were giving a report.
Lin Jiqiu looked at it for two seconds, then changed direction and walked towards the car.
We’re not going to our deaths.
It’s about finding the answer.
——
Inside the main building, a man in a black jacket stood in front of the iron gate, his face ashen.
“Open this door for me!”
The security guard trembled as he pulled out his key, inserted it into the lock, and turned it twice.
The door opened.
The man in the black jacket rushed in.
The room contained only the bed, the chair, and the wall covered with photos.
And—a cat.
The calico cat was squatting on the bed, tilting its head and looking at him.
“Meow.”
The man in the black jacket stared at the cat.
“…What’s going on?”
No one can answer that.
Because the cat—Ahua—had already jumped off the bed, slipped through the crack in the door, and disappeared into the hallway.
The man in the black jacket stood there, holding a stun gun, unsure whether to chase the cat or report it.
He chose the latter.
“Boss, the guy’s escaped.”
A deep voice came through the walkie-talkie: “Escaped? How did they escape?”
“It’s like… it suddenly disappeared. Then it reappeared in the room. Then it disappeared again.”
silence.
“…Have you been drinking?”
“No! I saw it with my own eyes!”
Another silence followed.
“No matter what, find her. She couldn’t have just vanished into thin air.”
The man in the black jacket swallowed hard.
“yes.”
But he knew in his heart that the person had indeed vanished into thin air.
——
Lin Jiqiu walked to the black SUV.
The man in the driver’s seat was still talking on the walkie-talkie and didn’t notice her.
She knocked on the car window.
The man turned his head and saw the face of a young woman—shoulder-length black hair, delicate features, and a calm expression. He was taken aback.
“Who are you?”
Lin Jiqiu did not answer.
She raised her hand and smashed the car window with a punch.
It wasn’t Lin Qiu’s hand—it was her own hand.
The bones make subtle adjustments at the moment of punching, the knuckles harden, the muscles tighten, and the power is transmitted from the shoulder to the fist, and then to the glass.
The glass is broken.
The debris landed on the driver’s seat and on the man’s legs.
He screamed and instinctively shrank back.
Lin Jiqiu reached in, opened the car door, and pulled him out.
The man fell to the ground and before he could react, Lin Jiqiu had already gotten into the driver’s seat.
The key is still in the ignition. The engine is still running.
She stepped on the gas.
The SUV sped off, ran over the lawn, and crashed through the iron gate of the yard.
Behind me, someone shouted, someone chased, and someone fired a gun.
The bullets struck the car with a dull thud.
Lin Jiqiu did not turn around.
She held the steering wheel with one hand and took out a button-sized locator from her pocket with the other, sticking it to the steering wheel.
“Cheng Ran, can you locate this car?”
“Yes. After you drive out, head east. The pick-up vehicle will be about one kilometer away from you.”
“Where are Xiaoyu and the others?”
“We’re on the bus. Safe.”
Lin Jiqiu’s lips curved slightly.
Then she heard a sound.
It wasn’t coming from the headphones, it was coming from behind me.
siren.
Not police officers—they are the organization’s “sirens.”
In the rearview mirror of the black SUV, two cars had followed. One was a white van, and the other a black sedan. Their headlights flashed in the night, like two eyes chasing their prey.
Lin Jiqiu stepped on the gas, and the speedometer needle swung to the right.
But she knew that this car couldn’t outrun the two behind it.
It wasn’t a problem with the car—it was that she wasn’t familiar with the road.
“Chengran, road conditions ahead.”
“Drive forward 500 meters, there’s a fork in the road. Turn right, and you’ll find a small road. The road surface is uneven, but your car can pass through.”
“What about them?”
“Their vehicles have low chassis and can’t get through.”
Lin Jiqiu gripped the steering wheel tightly.
Crossroads.
Go to the right.
With a sudden turn of the steering wheel, the SUV sped into the narrow road.
The road was full of potholes, and the car bounced violently. Her head hit the roof, but she didn’t let go of the steering wheel.
In the rearview mirror, the white van followed—it could also pass.
The black sedan was stopped at the intersection and couldn’t get through.
There’s only one left.
Lin Jiqiu stepped on the gas and continued driving forward.
The road was flanked by dark, endless woods. The headlights illuminated a short stretch of the road ahead, and the branches on either side scraped against the car, making a screeching sound.
“Cheng Ran, how much further?”
“Drive another 300 meters, there’s a turn. After the turn, there’s an open space. The pick-up vehicle is there.”
“good.”
She gripped the steering wheel tightly.
Behind us, the white van was getting closer and closer.
The car headlights shone into her rearview mirror, making her squint.
She took a deep breath.
Then–
Slam on the brakes.
The SUV suddenly stopped. The van behind it didn’t have time to react and crashed into it.
The immense impact propelled Lin Jiqiu forward, the seatbelt buckling around her shoulders. Her head slammed against the steering wheel, and her vision went black for a moment.
40% of the feedback—no, this is the pain of the body itself.
100%.
She shook her head, pushed open the car door, and got out.
The front of the van was badly damaged, and white smoke was billowing from the hood. The person in the driver’s seat struggled to unbuckle their seatbelt, push open the door, and try to get out.
Lin Jiqiu walked over and kicked the car door back in.
The person was trapped between the car door and the seat, and screamed in pain.
“Don’t move.” Lin Jiqiu’s voice was calm.
That person stopped moving.
Lin Jiqiu turned around and ran into the woods.
Behind us, the voice on the walkie-talkie came from inside the van: “Have you caught up with her yet?!”
“No…she ran into the woods…”
“Chase!”
Footsteps came from behind.
Lin Jiqiu quickened his pace.
Her physical abilities weren’t a problem—her structural deformities made her muscles far more efficient than the average person. But the woods were too dark; there were no streetlights, only moonlight filtering through the leaves, scattering like fragments on the ground.
She ran past one tree, then another.
The footsteps grew closer.
Three people.
No, four.
“Chengran, how far is the open space?”
“You’ve already passed.” Cheng Ran’s voice was a little urgent. “Go back, to the left, about fifty meters away.”
Lin Jiqiu turned around and ran to the left.
Fifty meters.
She saw it—not an open space, but a car. Black, lights off, parked at the edge of the woods. The door was open, and someone was standing beside it.
Cheng Ran.
“Quick!” His voice came from both the earpiece and the air at the same time.
Lin Jiqiu quickened his pace.
The footsteps behind them grew closer.
Someone fired a shot.
The bullet hit a tree next to her, sending splinters flying.
She didn’t turn around.
She ran to the car, and Cheng Ran grabbed her arm and shoved her into the back seat.
“Drive!” he said to the person in the driver’s seat—it was A-Zuo.
Ah Zuo stepped on the gas, and the car shot forward.
The bullet hit the rear of the car, and the glass shattered.
Lin Jiqiu lay on her seat, feeling the shards of glass fall on her hair and shoulders.
Then—it fell silent.
The only sounds were the engine and A-Zuo’s steady breathing.
Lin Jiqiu slowly sat up.
In the rearview mirror, the grove of trees grew farther and farther away. The car headlights became two small dots in the darkness, and then disappeared.
“Where are Xiaoyu and the others?” Her voice was a little hoarse.
“In that car up ahead.” Cheng Ran sat next to her, looking at her. “It’s safe.”
Lin Jiqiu leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes.
Those images filled my mind—the photos on the wall, the IV bag, Teacher Mingyi’s face, and the incredulous expression on the man in the black jacket.
There’s also the feeling of weightlessness for a moment when you switch positions.
“Your head is bleeding,” Cheng Ran said in a low voice.
Lin Jiqiu reached up and touched his forehead; there was a little blood on his fingers. “A scratch.”
“It’s not a scratch. It needs stitches.”
“Let’s talk about it back at the office.”
Cheng Ran remained silent.
But he reached out and gently pressed a tissue on her forehead—he had taken it out at some point.
Lin Jiqiu opened her eyes and looked at him.
He didn’t look at her. His gaze was fixed ahead, his expression calm, but his fingers moved very lightly.
“Your hands are shaking,” Lin Jiqiu said.
“No.”
“I can sense it.”
Cheng Ran remained silent for a moment.
“…I’m fine.”
Lin Jiqiu did not expose him.
She closed her eyes and leaned back in her seat.
The tissues had a faint smell of disinfectant—he brought them from his studio.
The car drove through the night.
In the distance, there was the sound of police sirens.
I wasn’t chasing them.
Finally, someone noticed this place.
As Lin Jiqiu heard that voice, the corners of her mouth slowly curved upwards.
It’s not a laugh.
It’s a feeling of finally being able to relax.
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