Not Under Control
“Anonymous call?”
Gu Zhiye frowned as he looked at the girl in front of him.
“Was the person who called you the one who told you to go to the Jin Hong Hotel? Did he also give you Zhou Yaohui’s room number?”
“That’s right. I don’t know who he is. The voice was young male, probably using AI to disguise it. Officer Gu, didn’t you ask me earlier if I had ever had a conflict with Zhou Yaohui? Later, I posted about it on a forum but didn’t say the person was Zhou Yaohui. Then some netizens started arguing in the replies, so I deleted the post. The next day, I got a call telling me to go to Room 712 of the Jin Hong Hotel, saying Zhou Yaohui would be there waiting for me.”
Gu Zhiye was stunned.
“He’s using this method to vent on your behalf? Could it be your admirer?”
Yu Song shrugged, “I’m not sure. Anyway, my mother’s a single parent, no one’s ever chased after me, neither openly nor secretly. I’ve never had online relationships or ambiguous relationships, so I was just really curious. I couldn’t help but go to the Jin Hong Hotel. The door of Room 712 was open, and Zhou Yaohui was already dead.”
She sighed, “I panicked back then, running around trying to find a phone to call the police. In the interrogation room, I was scared that if I mentioned that call, you would suspect me even more, so I chose to hide it. Today I got another call from him, telling me to go to Beihe Apartment, saying there’s something there I want to see!”
Gu Zhiye didn’t know what to say to her.
“So you went again? I’m telling you, you’re a brave girl. If someone called and told you to go to Northern Myanmar, would you go?”
Yu Song said seriously, “That’s too far. Besides, I do watch the news; I know what Northern Myanmar is. Beihe Apartment is pretty close to my home. I was just curious and wanted to take a look.”
Gu Zhiye laughed angrily, “Alright then, sounds pretty smart.”
Yu Song defended herself, “Officer Gu, you know my family situation. People like me don’t like to deal with you guys. When something happens, my first reaction is definitely not to call the police. But I’m very curious. The call was vague, and then I remembered He Zilu lives there, so I wanted to go check it out.”
“So that means the caller never mentioned He Zilu, but you knew she lived in Beihe Apartment.”
“That’s right. When I went there, I heard He Zilu’s parents arguing. I thought maybe that was what the caller wanted me to see, that He Zilu’s family wasn’t perfect either. Zhao Xue thought I came to find He Zilu and took me to knock on her door, but she wouldn’t open it. Thinking about Zhou Yaohui’s death, I feared she might have died too. Although she always targets me, she’s still a classmate; no crime deserves death. So I kicked the door open to see what was going on. You all know what happened next. In short, this case looks related to me, but I truly didn’t do anything.”
Gu Zhiye sighed, “You really didn’t do anything.”
Yu Song instantly understood his meaning.
“I didn’t know they would die. Like I said earlier, I don’t have the habit of calling the police. My family situation and my green hair—both would make you label me. Officer Gu, dare you say you have no prejudice against me?”
“Song, it’s you who are prejudiced against us. When something so unbelievable happens, you don’t report it immediately but think we’ll label you and be biased against you.”
“Actually, I did report it. After finding Zhou Yaohui’s body, I reported it. Today I even reminded Zhao Xue to call 110. But before things happened, I really didn’t dare report because I’d be treated as a suspect or even as a lunatic.”
“That’s still prejudice! If you’d reported earlier, we would have thought you were being harassed and would have protected you, checked your call records, tracked down that person, and even if we couldn’t find them immediately, we’d wait with you for the next call.”
Yu Song raised her brow, “Are you sure? That’s great. I have the recording of the second call here to prove it really was harassment. Officer Gu, I’m not just a complainant; I’m also a victim. I hope this case can be investigated confidentially so we don’t scare the snake by beating the grass.”
She said this as she put her phone on the table, pushing it toward Gu Zhiye.
“The password is my birthday. You can check everything in the phone, all accounts can be logged into. Can you give me a backup phone first?”
At first, Gu Zhiye thought she was complaining about police inaction, but hearing this, he realized she just wanted to avoid suspicion. She was the complainant and the victim, not the suspect.
He took the phone and, after a moment’s thought, entered the password.
Yu Song was about to say it was her birthday, but seeing him unlock it, she was surprised, “Wow, Officer Gu, do you have a photographic memory or have you already looked over my info many times?”
Gu Zhiye checked the call logs while speaking, “Is it hard to remember a birthday on June 1st? Not everyone celebrates their birthday on Children’s Day.”
Yu Song sighed, “True, but it’s a pity I wasted such a good day. No one has ever celebrated either Children’s Day or my birthday for me.”
Gu Zhiye felt a pang of sympathy but quickly reminded himself not to let her family background or age affect his judgment.
The girl before him was not as simple as she appeared.
Ordinary girls would have told family or sought help online, even if too scared to call the police after this.
But she still dared to answer the calls and go to the addresses given.
Despite two murders already, she wasn’t panicked and could calmly recount the events and explain how she got involved.
Yu Song said she never celebrated Children’s Day or birthdays not to seek pity but to remind Gu Zhiye that no one cared for her growing up, so she dared not tell her family or report to the police, even being manipulated to go to the crime scenes.
In short, she was an innocent victim.
Watching Gu Zhiye’s expression, Yu Song felt she hadn’t gotten through to him.
Could she have an opposite kind of villainous aura compared to the protagonist?
Maybe, since the protagonist wasn’t around, she herself brought suspicion upon arrival?
Irritated, Yu Song crooked her jaw.
Forget it.
Confessing this might disrupt the entire plot, no need to dwell on it.
Anyway, she was as upright as could be.
Gu Zhiye first played the call recording.
The voice on the other end was brief, with no distinguishing features or memorable points.
Yu Song responded lightly, not at all scared.
He then checked the communication logs and quickly found the two unknown incoming calls around the time of the incident.
They were clearly untraceable calls.
Even with technical means, they might not find the caller.
“Xiao Yu, if the Zhou Yaohui case and He Zilu’s suicide were both orchestrated by someone, this case is bigger than we thought. I don’t have enough authority; I have to report up. There might even be a Special Task Force established.”
“Great! Great!”
Yu Song nodded eagerly.
A Special Task Force was exactly what was needed.
The opposing party’s influence was so vast, with such long reach, Gu Zhiye alone couldn’t handle it.
Gu Zhiye looked at her and pondered, “As for you…”
Yu Song, afraid he would suggest protective custody, quickly said, “I have to live a normal life. Otherwise, we’ll scare the snake. If he disappears and never calls again, how will we catch him?”
Gu Zhiye hesitated because of that concern, then said, “Alright, you’ll first go out to do the record as He Zilu’s classmate. We’ll notify you once we have an action plan after the meeting.”
Yu Song wanted to attend the meeting and help devise the plan, but she knew that was just a dream.
No way they’d let her in.
Gu Zhiye’s words sounded nice, but the Special Task Force’s plan would never be shared with her—at most, they’d tell her what to do when they needed her cooperation.
The person taking Yu Song’s statement was Huo Anran.
She was responsible, empathetic, and often comforted Yu Song.
Though her interrogation tone was strict, it was much better than Gu Zhiye’s.
Yu Song couldn’t help but sigh, no wonder she’s the heroine.
Ji Jiang reviewed the surveillance but saw no clear cause.
Everything happened too quickly.
He Zilu’s resolve to commit suicide was very strong.
When she left the bathroom, she broke free from Zhao Xue’s hand and hid behind a patient.
Zhao Xue was startled, went to grab her, but she pushed the patient aside and ran desperately toward the emergency exit.
Zhao Xue wore high heels, naturally she couldn’t outrun her daughter’s chunky sneakers.
After watching the footage, Ji Jiang saw Gu Zhiye approach and asked, “Do you think this girl is familiar with the hospital, or did she accidentally end up on the rooftop?”
Gu Zhiye recalled what Yu Song said and quickly watched the extracted footage.
He found that the police escorting He Zilu were following her the entire way until a quarrel broke out at the lab entrance, almost turning physical.
Bystanders saw police there and wanted to report the incident on-site.
The two police officers took responsibility and said they had a task, telling them to call 110 to handle it.
But Zhao Xue said He Zilu was going to the bathroom, so they could deal with the fight first.
The bathroom was at the end of the corridor.
He Zilu was wearing earphones and looked very obedient.
The officers probably thought nothing would happen and feared being recorded by people with phones, which could cause negative publicity if police ignored the fight.
So they stayed at the lab entrance to mediate.
Zhao Xue didn’t let the police follow, nor did she hold her daughter’s hand tightly when leaving the bathroom.
She seemed to bear the greatest responsibility, but as a mother, how could she harm her own daughter?
It truly looked like an accident.
After watching the footage, Gu Zhiye said, “What’s the story with the people fighting? And the patient blocking He Zilu? Everyone in the footage needs to be checked, including her mother and our own people, and the unlocked rooftop door. Was it left unlocked after the helicopter emergency ended, or was it opened again?”
Gu Zhiye raised the phone in his hand toward Ji Jiang.
“Captain Ji, this is complicated. We need to go back to the station for a detailed discussion.”
Ji Jiang glanced at Yu Song’s flashy phone case, then looked at her.
“Are you sure she’s involved? Zhao Xue is convinced Yu Song pushed He Zilu to her death. She just cried a lot and now they want to sue her.”
Gu Zhiye frowned, “The daughter isn’t even cold in her grave, and they’re already thinking of legal action?”
Ji Jiang solemnly said, “I think everyone shares some responsibility, including you and me. Irresponsible parents, suffocating family environment, negligent police, and pushy classmates. No one is the murderer, but by pushing and shoving, they all pushed that poor girl down.”
Gu Zhiye thought his words made sense but felt uneasy.
“Captain Ji, I have been to He Zilu’s home, but you haven’t. You never met her. Don’t worry, everyone has responsibility, but definitely not you.”
Ji Jiang patted him on the shoulder and sighed deeply, “Sigh, I wish I were on duty today. I could’ve gone to He Zilu’s home with you. Maybe then…”
He shook his head and sighed again.
Gu Zhiye twitched at the corner of his mouth.
What was he trying to say?
If he went, it wouldn’t have happened?
Was Captain Ji that confident?
Yu Song had finished her statement.
Hearing Ji Jiang’s words, she couldn’t help but chuckle.
That was Ji Jiang trying to build a responsible and compassionate image.
Paper-thin characters from books just don’t fit into reality.
Ji Jiang noticed Yu Song seemed to be laughing at him but didn’t know what was funny about his words, especially seeing her so cheerful right after He Zilu’s death.
Yu Song had completely let go.
She wasn’t the villain, and neither were Ji Jiang or Huo Anran her protagonists.
All those lofty ideals—“stay away,” “distance,” “disengage”—were useless.
She’d just let things be.
She ignored Ji Jiang’s displeased look. “Officer Gu, can I go now? If I don’t have a backup phone, can I have the SIM card?”
“Don’t worry, it’s all arranged. Come with us back to the station. I’ve already notified the tech department to work overtime and make you a secondary SIM right away.”
Ji Jiang was baffled.
He looked again at the phone in Gu Zhiye’s hand.
“Is all this really necessary?”
Gu Zhiye only said they’d report back at the station.
When Yu Song got the backup phone, she looked a little lost. “Is our station really that poor? Whose discarded phone is this?”
Someone from tech laughed nearby.
Gu Zhiye also found it amusing.
Seeing Yu Song’s stunned expression, he wanted to reach out and ruffle her green hair.
“No one said that! A backup phone is just a backup. As long as it works, it’s fine. Besides, your phone isn’t that great either.”
Yu Song was truly annoyed this time.
She’d hoped for something better.
By now, it was already past midnight.
Gu Zhiye arranged for someone to escort her home.
As she expected, no one at home waited for her, nor asked where she’d been so late.
Yu Song carefully pushed open her bedroom door, surveyed the room, and only turned on the light after confirming no one had entered.
She wasn’t sure if the mastermind knew she had reported to the police, but she was absolutely certain now that she was no longer under anyone’s control.
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