Chapter 5, I Have Liked You for a Long Time (1)

"And you?" she asked

Su Cai and Su Bai do not look very similar, but both possess a certain unusual aura. Ming Jing said, "Among a hundred people, it is easy to distinguish them, not because they are beautiful, but because their gazes are unlike those of normal people. Su Bai's gaze is overly focused on a certain corner of his thoughts," he said with a faint cold smile, "I heard girls say that it is called profound. In my view, Su Bai never truly looks at a person; he is looking at the you in his thoughts, not the you in reality.

"It is proven that my uncle Mingheng was once very close to Su Bai. He became disabled, his mind deteriorated, and he nearly died." Mingjing responded calmly, "Su Bai's academic performance is outstanding; he holds a position as a student leader at school, conducts his tasks in an orderly manner, and is very composed. No one has ever doubted that he could possibly murder my uncle"

"Since it is not, can you tell me what Mingheng's fall from the building was meant to prove?" she calmly retorted

"Su Bai and Su Cai, the two brothers, one of them is a madman." The corner of Mingjing's mouth was slightly curled, as if holding an elusive cold smile, "If you know Su Cai, do you know who has gone mad?"

He said the same thing to me two years ago. Mingjing said lightly, "He said that if he cannot obtain the dead soul, he will die; he is a ghost who has long since passed away." After a pause, he continued, "I do not know if there is such a thing as a 'ghost' in this world; at least I do not believe in it. Su Cai firmly believes that he is a ghost, no matter how absurd it is or how much reality proves that he cannot be a ghost, he remains oblivious to it. In psychiatry, this is called paranoia."

"Is he your brother?" She has always been able to understand the implications behind the words

Yang Chengyan smiled and said, "Both of them have gone mad"

"Do you know that Su Cai has an older brother?" he said

"Oh? I don't think so," she said with a faint smile. "Su Bai and Su Cai have both gone mad, and then what?"

Mingjing took off her glasses, glanced at her, and slowly fished out a cleaning cloth from her pocket to wipe her glasses, "Girls like you are quite rare."

At 6:50, the cafeteria gradually became empty as everyone went to evening self-study.

She did not deny it, quietly gazing into the eyes of the bright mirror, waiting for him to continue speaking.

"I know, Su Cai has an older brother named Su Bai," she said. "He cares a lot about his younger brother"

"He is my uncle," Mingjing said expressionlessly. "He fell from the ninth floor balcony of the dormitory, resulting in high-level paraplegia and nerve damage. At that time, there were six people living in that dormitory, four of whom participated in a speech competition and were in Shanghai, not in the dormitory. He was washing clothes on the dormitory balcony and leaned against the glass railing, which suddenly collapsed along with the railing. The screws and rivets that were supposed to hold it in place failed to function."

Mingjing stood in front of the dining table, watching a girl in a navy uniform skirt slowly approach. She was holding a lunchbox that had already been washed, with a smile on her face; she was naturally Yang Chengyan. Mingjing remained motionless in place, waiting for her to come before him, and only after his sharp gaze had thoroughly assessed her from head to toe did he ask: "Where is Su Cai now?"

He said he was already dead. She replied very sincerely and cleverly

The corner of the mirror's mouth slightly curled up, as if it had smiled for a moment, "Hmph, knowing you means knowing the whereabouts of Su Cai. And *illustrated books*

The students in the cafeteria watched as Mingjing stood straight in front of the dining table with one hand in his pocket, whispering and speculating among themselves. After a while, the two girls sitting at the table left one after another, yet Mingjing remained motionless in front of the table. As everyone was puzzled, they couldn't help but speculate about the identities of the two girls—could one of them be someone Mingjing liked?

The mirror does not make a judgment, "Su Bai is an intermittently irrational murderer; have you heard of kleptomania? It is a psychological disorder that does not require a reason, it is simply a matter of need. Everyone around him could potentially be murdered by him, and Su Cai is no exception." He leaned against the pillar in the cafeteria, glancing at the star lights and floral decorations on the ceiling, "The year I was admitted to Xinzi High School, I was in the same class as Su Cai. Like Su Bai, to some extent, Su Cai is also a genius; he possesses extraordinary imagination, athletic ability, and musical talent. Everyone around him could potentially be murdered by him, and Su Cai is no exception." He leaned against the pillar in the cafeteria, glancing at the star lights and floral decorations on the ceiling, "The year I was admitted to Xinzi High School, I was in the same class as Su Cai. Like Su Bai, to some extent, Su Cai is also a genius; he possesses extraordinary imagination, athletic ability, and musical talent. However, the first day I saw Su Cai, I knew he was Su Bai's brother, and I also knew he was a madman."

Oh?" Yang Chengyan raised her head to glance at Mingjing, a hint of a smile in her eyes. "To obtain Su Bai's diary, you must have paid a very high price."

"I only want to hear stories, without exchanging conditions," she said. "I can choose not to listen to the stories, but you must know the whereabouts of Su Cai, right?"

Su Cai's gaze lacked focus. Ming Jing said, "He is different from Su Bai. If you know him, have you heard him say that he is a ghost?"

"Is this done by Su Bai?" she asked

Their parents were both madmen, two beasts devoid of self-awareness, who randomly mated in a mental hospital and gave birth to a pair of outwardly handsome brothers, one named Su Bai and the other Su Cai. Mingjing spoke without a trace of compassion, as if referring to two beasts, "Then, due to genetic defects, their parents soon died from mutual violence. Su Bai inherited the intermittent murderous instinct of his parents..." Mingjing said coldly, "He learned from a young age how to torture various small animals to death; it may not have been his hobby, but it was his instinct. Seven years ago, Su Bai was admitted to Xinzi High School, during which a student at Xinzi High School fell from a building and was injured; that person was Su Bai's good friend, named Ming Heng.

I only speak of facts, without doubting anything. Mingjing put on his glasses and said, "Su Bai murdered my uncle; it is his instinct and habit. Four years ago, Su Bai was admitted to Q University. During his four years in college, three of his classmates had accidents one after another. After graduating from university, he worked as a section chief in a foreign company, and a female employee committed suicide for him." He spoke very calmly, "He recorded all these events in his diary. I have obtained that diary and asked Su Bai himself; he did not deny it." "Su Bai murdered my uncle; it is his instinct and habit. Four years ago, Su Bai was admitted to Q University. During his four years in college, three of his classmates had accidents one after another. After graduating from university, he worked as a section chief in a foreign company, and a female employee committed suicide for him." He spoke very calmly, "He recorded all these events in his diary. I have obtained that diary and asked Su Bai himself; he did not deny it."

"On the surface, it is not so," Mingjing said lightly. "When the police arrived, screws and rivets were mixed in with the glass shards, all found downstairs. There were no suspicious fingerprints in the dormitory, and besides, what motive could Su Bai have to commit murder? That was his best friend. The school has taken responsibility for the substandard quality of the dormitory renovations, and this incident has been classified as an accident."

Why? She is a very good listener and thinker

Yang Chengyan smiled slightly, "What about Su Cai?"

He said he is a demon ghost named Lu Cai, not Su Cai

The glasses of the bright mirror glimmered with an impenetrable luster against the backlight, "Tell me where he is, and I will tell you what happened back then"