Cherish You as My Life - Chapter 18.1

Chapter 18.1

Three hours before Qiao Jiang’s death.

He hid under a bridge. It was the place of the homeless man that he threw the knife after murdering Zhou Tong.

Although the homeless man wasn’t the murderer, he was still squatting in the police station because of burglary.

Qiao Jiang had been sitting on a frayed mat.

An old beggar walked by and gave him a quick look. 

They didn’t talk with one another and didn’t display any shame. There were just like two strangers who met at a road.

Qiao Jiang had previously enjoyed this type of relationship with others. He thought there was no need to create a false connection. 

When he was a child, his mother took him to his relatives’ houses and forced him to talk to them. If he showed any hesitation, he would get scolded for being rude and useless. The more he got scolded, the more he became introverted.

Over time, he developed a deep-seated anxiety and started to resist from the bottom of his heart. He wanted to avoid talking with others because he was irrationally terrified of talking to them.

He knew this was known as social fear, according to the Internet.

One day, he met Xiao Yu at work. She would never, like others, call him moody and reclusive behind his back. She frequently assisted him and was always supportive. She had the brightness and brilliance of a sunflower. Gradually he gained a profound understanding of the need for interpersonal relationships as a result. When someone challenged him, she stood up for him. When he was isolated by his colleagues, she was there for him.

The cookies she baked were so delicious that he still has a few in his pocket.

Her cranberry cookies were his favourites. He’d never tasted anything like the amazing combination of fruity sourness and sweetness in the cream.

Unfortunately, she passed away, a victim of the injustice and apathy of this world, just as he was ready to welcome the world.

A throng booed her from below as she stood on the rooftop. 

The little security guard had halfway succeeded in convincing her not to jump, but some people would not allow her to survive. At that moment, he was among the crowd. He noticed a bunch of hideous souls when he turned around to run to the rooftop.

“Jump, you’ve been standing there for so long; why don’t you just jump?”

“I heard that she was fooling around with someone, and her husband caught her in bed, and she has no shame in living.”

“You’re really cheap.”

“Why don’t you jump? I’m going home to make fish soup.”

Upon hearing those false and filthy words, he could no longer lift his steps, and he couldn’t make a sound from his throat. ‘This world is not beautiful, and it is not full of love like she had always told me.’

He stood there like a stone, unable to lift even a finger.

Finally, he heard a loud noise, and the ground seemed to be covered with bloody red. 

He stared intently at the group of people who took the lead in heckles and live streaming.

He couldn’t kill everyone, but if someone didn’t pay the price, he wouldn’t be able to let go of his hatred.

He first killed Zhou Tong and then let Wu Ting experience Xiao Yu’s pain and forced him to commit suicide.

After doing that, he felt it was useless to stay in this world anymore. 

A blast of icy air gusted. Nighttime in Nanquan City was substantially colder than daytime. 

Qiao Jiang stood up. He wanted to go outside and get some food because he was very hungry. He was aware that there were police searching everywhere for him and that leaving would put him in danger, but he still had two targets to murder, and he couldn’t let him starve to death.

He took a coin out and thought. ‘If it is head, I’ll kill that scumbag husband Sun Xunhai first, and if it is tail, I’ll kill that sexually harassing financial director Liu Jinjie first.’

He threw the coin but failed to catch it. The coin rolled to the ground, spun around several times, and stood upright next to a pebble.

As he bent to get it, he spotted a newspaper lying on the ground. The headline of an article caught his attention.

“To save a girl who was going to commit suicide on a flyover, drivers lined up spontaneously.”

Qiao Jiang took it up, read it word by word, and settled down on a bench by the side of the road.

At last, he placed the newspaper on the bench, glanced up at the street lamp, and his thoughts returned to Xiao Yu.

Qiao Jiang pulled out his phone from the trouser pocket and turned it on. 

He was aware that his cell phone number was being tracked by the authorities, and as long as he turned on it, he would most likely be traced. But he didn’t care.

He took a photo of the newspaper article, opened QQ, and sent it to Xiao Yu.

It was just that the other party would never reply again.

At this time, the phone vibrated, and a call came from an unknown number.

Qiao Jiang answered.

“Hello, is this Mr. Qiao? The courses, adult education and financial accounting major, you registered in our school have been reviewed and approved. Please bring your valid ID to check and sign before June 1st.” 

“…”

“Mr. Qiao, are you listening?”

“Hello?”

“Okay, I will come,” said Qiao Jiang, grinning slightly while holding the phone.

He hung up the phone after that.

He recalled how Xiao Yu registered him at that college, which was conducting courses for adults a month ago. She said that first he would study for an adult education programme, then follow an accounting course to become a certified public accountant.

Qiao Jiang got up from the bench and grabbed up the newspaper that was lying next to him. He was so hungry that he was weak and could hardly stand.

An aunt came by and held his hand and asked, “Are you alright, young man? Should I call for an ambulance?”

Qiao Jiang steadied himself  and shook his head. 

The aunt was carrying a transparent bag filled with paper money. She took out a bottle of mineral water from another supermarket shopping bag and handed it over to Qiao Jiang.

[TL:  Out of all the rituals, burning paper money is the most popular and frequent event honouring the deceased in China.]

Because Qiao Jiang was really thirsty, he took the water bottle, opened it, sat down on the bench, and drank almost all of it in one sitting.

The aunt also sat next to Qiao Jiang. The bag containing the paper money was not tied tightly, so two pieces of paper money floated out of the bag and landed on Qiao Jiang’s feet.

He bent down to pick it up and handed it to the aunt without saying a word.

After putting the paper money inside the bag, the aunt replied, “My son is as old as you,” glancing at Qiao Jiang. “If he were still living, it would be great.”

Qiao Jiang remained silent.

After wiping away her tears, the aunt said, “What happened in the end? If you insist on playing live broadcasts and dreaming about being an Internet celebrity, you will end up killing yourself.”

Upon hearing that, Qiao Jiang was startled. Wu Ting’s last moment flashed in his mind. 

The bright red burst out instantly, dyeing the entire carriage red, and Wu Ting said goodbye to the indifference of this world, and at the same time he also lost his loved once.

After wiping her tears away, the aunt got up and said, “Young man, running away from home is not fun. Go home soon and live a good life.” Then she left. 

It took a while for Qiao Jiang to finally get up, pick up the newspaper, and move in the direction of the City Bureau.

End of chapter 18.1