Trafford's Trading Club

When he backed to the ward, he accidentally saw a man talking with his grandmother.

”Oh... You are back.”

Officer Ma smiled and said, ”Iʼm just worried about your grandmother.”

He Xiaomei nodded and kindly said, ”Jiahui, he is very kind.”

”Well.” He nodded, ”Granny, please rest a while, I want to talk to him.”

He showed Ma Houde out. When they walked to the corridor, he said, ”I think Iʼve told you not to bother me.”

Officer Ma said, ”Canʼt I show my concern to the elderly?”

He took a deep breath and said, ”Officer Ma, youʼre welcome for visiting. But if you came here for... that woman, please go back.”

Ma Houde narrowed his eyes and nodded, ”Well, alright, Iʼll go back. Take care of your grandma.”

”Wait, you dropped something.” Ma Houde suddenly shouted.

He was stunned and turned around, seeing Ma Houde picking up a medicine bottle. ”Your medicine.” said Ma Houde.

”Not mine.” He glanced at it and casually said, ”Maybe itʼs the nurseʼs.”

”It really isnʼt yours?” Ma Houde asked again.

He impatiently said, ”Iʼm fine, Iʼm not sick, I donʼt need medicine, OK?”

Ma Houde seemed to be suddenly become enlightened and patted his forehead, saying, ”Oh, Itʼs the medicine that I got from the doctor… But do you know who this medicine is prescribed to?”

”No, I donʼt.”

”This is the medicine for---Liu Jiahui...” Ma Houde squinted his eyes, ”Why do you forget that?”

His expression dramatically changed and said with his head lowered, ”I donʼt know what you are saying... Donʼt come again!”

He swiftly left. Ma Houde didnʼt catch him up this time, he just shouted, ”Gu Jiajie, youʼre Gu Jiajie… That day, the one who died was your brother…”

He suddenly turned around in shock and panic!

Ma Houde, who was rich in experience, sighed and slowly came to him, ”Before you returned, we have asked a doctor about Liu Jiahui. Technology is very advance now, we just need to examine the body and will know if he had an prior illness. And you, with just an examination, we will know your condition as well.”

He subconsciously backed up.

Ma Houde calmly and quickly said, ”Why did Liu Jiahui die there? Why did you come? And what did you do? You killed Liu Jiahui!”

”No, not me! Donʼt come... Donʼt come... Donʼt!”

”Do you want me to ask your grandma?” Ma Houde had no choice but to seriously ask with a threat to stimulate him. Even though he knew this mean was a little contemptible.

”No! Donʼt tell this to my granny! Please, donʼt!” He begged, ”Or my brother would have died in vain.”

”What... What the hell did you do?” Ma Houde frowned.

Gu Jiajie took a deep breath and said with a bitter smile, ”I donʼt know... I donʼt know why I agreed. Now itʼs useless to regret.”

Gu Jiajie looked at Officer Ma, ”Two months ago, I came here to see a doctor, and I saw him.”

”Your brother, Liu Jiahui?”

Gu Jiajie nodded, ”My mom told me he drowned, but I surprisingly saw him that day and knew what had happened.”

Sitting on the corridor stool, Gu Jiajie sadly revealed everything that happened in the past two months.

”Officer, did you know that my father usually hit me?”

”Yes, Gu Feng admitted.”

Gu Jiajie gave a wry smile, ”I donʼt know why I didnʼt tell my mom… Maybe they are same, just forcing me... ”

He grabbed his collar and painfully said, ”Sometimes, I feel Iʼm out of breath. I want to leave my home, leave them... I told this to my brother and he said we could exchange because we are twins…”

”You mean... You exchanged a long time ago?” Ma Houde was surprised.

”Not very often.” Gu Jiajie shook his head, ”We only exchanged if we knew my father would come home.”

Ma Houde nodded, ”No wonder Gu Feng said you suddenly rebelled... It was your brother…”

Gu Jiajie exhaled and leaned his head on the wall, ”Iʼm a coward. When I saw these wounds on my brother… I really didnʼt want to go back… And at that time, he said…”

”Said what?”

Gu Jiajie looked at the ceiling lights and whispered, ”He said... He would die for me.”

”Are you agreed?”

Gu Jiajie closed his eyes and nodded, ”Until now, I still donʼt know why I agreed… To pay them back… To live… Or to stop the pain of my brother? He fell down in front of me when he suffered relapse…”

He shook his head and went on, ”He has so little memories about me and my mom. Granny is the most important person for him. So if he died, I could take care of granny and be free.”

Ma Houde was shocked. He wiped his face and sternly said, ”How ridiculous! Have you ever thought about you mother? You followed her these days, didnʼt you know how pain she was in?”

”But what should I do? I didnʼt know my brother choose that day, but he just died! We didnʼt talk over this, he himself just made this decision and died…I canʼt go back to the past!”

Gu Jiajie was excited, ”Many many times, I want to tell my mom… Iʼm Gu Jiajie… But I canʼt... I dare not to tell her I cheated her… I shouldnʼt have agreed with my brother. He said a few years later, granny would pass away and my mother would forgive me whether Iʼm Gu Jiajie or Liu Jiahui…”

”That day... When I saw my mom bitterly cried downstairs and my brother was covered by the white cloth, I...” His voice trembled, ”I… I regretted.”

Though Ma Houde was an experienced officer, though he knew Gu Jiajieʼs sadness, fear and regret, he only shook his head and didnʼt know what to say.

”I... I did not mean to hide it from you, Officer Ma.”

”I know.” Ma Houde nodded. He patted Gu Jiajieʼs shoulder and bitterly smiled, ”This is not really a bad thing… But itʼs really not good to go on like this.”

”I donʼt know what I should do.”

Ma Houde shook his head and suddenly asked, ”Oh, Why there are strange messages in your cell phone?”

Gu Jiejie replied, ”You mean the teacher?”

Officer Ma nodded.

Gu Jiejie said, ”My brother said we can use the rumor of that teacher to confuse the police…”

Ma Houde was dumbfounded in an instant.

He was curious about…about Liu Jiahui--- What had this child been through before he died?

Did he die in exchange for someone to take care of his grandma and let Gu Jiajie be free?”

”Oh, Officer Ma, I...” He gulped. He wanted to say he had seen his brother, a living dead brother, but he swallowed his words.

”What else do you want to say?”

”No... Just donʼt tell my mom for the moment, OK?”

Ma Houde sighed, ”Then till when? Your brother lived with your grandma for more than ten years…Couldnʼt she recognize you that you are not Liu Jiahui?”

”I donʼt know. I can only play it by ear.” Gu Jiajie shook his head.

”Well, Iʼll keep the secret for the moment… But youʼd better tell your mom soon.”

Ma Houde left the hospital with a touch of melancholy.

…

Looking at the noisy street, Officer Ma couldnʼt help but wonder how Liu Jiahui got over the pain of living these years?

Twins that came into this world at the same time.

Yet, walked down different paths.

”He...” Ma Houde stopped on the road and suddenly realized, ”He has deep, deep grievances!”

…

…

After revisiting these old haunts, he came to the play center again.

Itʼs still opened. And the staff who was watching a video on the cellphone didnʼt notice anyone or anything.

He didnʼt notice---no, he couldnʼt see him.

He also couldnʼt hear the music of these game machines in this play centre, because he was wearing the earphone.

One tortoise machine now was running.

”Itʼs the time.”

Seeing him grabbed the hammer and hit the tortoises, Luo Qiu slowly closed his eyes.

There was no soul in this dead body, but now the long lasting desire for life which was like a seed burst out at this moment and a new soul was born.

This was the most meaningful moment for Luo Qiu. He quietly waited for it, just like quietly waiting for the night-blooming cereus to bloom.

But now Boss Luo opened his eyes and lightly said, ”Miss Black Water, I thought you would stand by and do nothing…”

Miss Black Water was standing behind him; and at her back, Shen Meihuan was there.