Chapter 13

A surge of wild joy rose in Shen Juan’s heart. Instinctively, she braced one hand on the desk to support her weight, staring at that figure without blinking, as if no matter how long she looked, it would never be enough.

Gu Shuge finally sensed that something was wrong. Slowly, she looked toward the phone Shen Juan had placed on the desk. The time displayed on the screen was exactly twelve o’clock.

So it was midnight. Every day at this time, Shen Juan would call her once, to show that she had sensed her presence.

Gu Shuge was just about to walk over and move a little closer to Shen Juan.

“I can see you,” Shen Juan said.

Gu Shuge’s legs went weak, and she nearly fell. In Shen Juan’s eyes, that figure drifted forward a step, then stumbled, and even the edges of her outline blurred.

“Walk slowly.” Shen Juan took a step forward, wanting to support her. But then she remembered Xiao Ge’s current state; she probably could not touch her. So she withdrew her hand again and looked at Gu Shuge with concern.

Gu Shuge’s eyes widened. She asked in surprise, “You can see me?”

Shen Juan nodded.

Gu Shuge looked dazed, yet subconsciously, all she wanted was to get closer to Shen Juan. She walked over until she stood before Shen Juan. Once she was close, Shen Juan could see her appearance clearly too.

She was like a holographic figure projected in a sci-fi film. Her body was semi-transparent, but her features could be made out: beautiful brows and eyes, long slender eyebrows with a very obedient shape, and a slight upward curve at the corners of her eyes that made her [unauthorized copy]seem as if she were smiling even when angry. When she did smile, she looked even warmer.

Only her complexion had become extremely, extremely pale. On closer look, it even carried a faint bluish-gray tint, completely unlike the skin color a human should have.

Shen Juan felt a little sad.

Gu Shuge suddenly grew nervous. She glanced at Shen Juan, then lowered her head and timidly called, “Sister.”

“Have you been by my side all along?” Shen Juan asked her.

Gu Shuge nodded, then fearing that Shen Juan might misunderstand, added, “Not when you were sleeping.”

Hearing her specifically emphasize that she had not been there while Shen Juan was sleeping, Shen Juan froze for a moment, then smiled. There was a bitterness in that smile that was not easy to detect. “I know.”

Gu Shuge did not notice the change in her emotions, because she had thought of the fact that she did not know how long this current state could last. She needed to hurry and tell Shen Juan what she knew.

Although the disappearance of the corpse had made the case both complicated and eerie, at its core, it was still a murder case. To know who the murderer was, they had to know who had known in advance that she was returning to the country. The killer had to be among them.

Gu Shuge sped up her speech and said, “About my return to the country, Muzi…”

The moment Shen Juan heard “return to the country,” her expression immediately turned serious. But before Gu Shuge could finish speaking, her voice stopped abruptly, and her already semi-transparent figure vanished completely without warning.

Shen Juan held her breath. “Xiao Ge?”

Gu Shuge guessed what had happened. Flustered, she asked, “I’m here. You can’t see me again?”

Shen Juan did not answer. She only looked at the place where Gu Shuge was, her expression sinking.

It had only been a few short minutes before she disappeared again.

Gu Shuge had known it. After all their failed attempts—reciting the Original Vows Sutra, burning the manifestation talisman, failing to manifest, being unable to poke the incense ash—she had expected that even if she did appear, it definitely would not last too long.

She sighed inwardly. Fortunately, she had already said the most crucial word: Muzi.

Gu Shuge had not finished her sentence. Shen Juan had only heard the sound “Muzi,” and did not even know how the two characters were written, but that did not hinder her from understanding what Gu Shuge had left unsaid. She took out her phone and called Lin Mo.

Lin Mo had already gone to sleep. When he heard the ringtone, he picked up his phone. Seeing the name on the screen, he immediately sat up and answered, his voice without the slightest trace of sleepiness. “Chairman.”

“Look into someone around Xiao Ge named Muzi.”

“All right. I’ll arrange it immediately.”

Shen Juan raised her eyes and looked toward the spot where Gu Shuge had just been standing. For some reason, she imagined Xiao Ge obediently standing in place, waiting for her to arrange the search.

In the past, when Xiao Ge came to see her after school and happened to find her busy, she would sit to the side and wait, either playing on her phone or holding a book. From time to time, she would ​Read on BaiLianTales​look over at Shen Juan, and whenever their gazes met, her eyes would curve as she smiled, warm and well-behaved.

Because of these memories, a faint smile appeared in Shen Juan’s eyes. She said to the person on the other end of the phone, “Most likely someone Xiao Ge knew overseas.”

Gu Shuge was indeed standing there without moving. She did not know what Shen Juan had thought of, but her heart dimmed because of that instruction.

She knew why Shen Juan guessed that Muzi was most likely someone she knew overseas. Before Gu Shuge went abroad, whenever she made a new friend or encountered something interesting, she would always share it with Shen Juan right away. So Shen Juan knew all her friends. In Shen Juan’s phone, she even had the numbers of several people Gu Shuge got along well with who were around her age.

But after Gu Shuge went abroad, it had no longer been like that. She deliberately distanced herself, so she had never once taken the initiative to call Shen Juan, much less share the new things happening in her life.

At the very beginning, Shen Juan had often contacted her first, reminding her to dress warmly, not to go home too late at night, not to feel pressured even if her studies were heavy, and to pay attention to rest. But Gu Shuge was always perfunctory, finding all kinds of reasons to hang up. Shen Juan had never blamed her. Her concern remained the same as always.

This had continued for an entire year. Shen Juan calculated the time difference and called her punctually at eight every evening.

Gu Shuge knew there was a saying that it took twenty-one days to form a new habit. Shen Juan’s calls had continued for an entire year, without missing a single day. So Gu Shuge had long since formed the habit of speaking to her at eight every night.

From six o’clock onward, she would begin looking forward to it. By seven, she could no longer do anything at all, restlessly circling her phone—checking whether it had enough battery, then opening it again to look through Moments. By seven fifty, she would sit properly and hold the phone in her hand.

At eight o’clock, the ringtone would sound on time, and Gu Shuge’s heartbeat would begin speeding up. She would count silently in her heart, and only when she reached fifteen would she take a deep breath and answer. Then, in a very calm tone, she would call her Sister. Before Shen Juan had spoken even five sentences, Gu Shuge would find all kinds of excuses to hang up.

For the next hour, she would do only one thing: calm the racing heartbeat caused by hearing Shen Juan’s voice and by Shen Juan’s concern. Every day was like this.

Sometimes she would wonder why Shen Juan was so good, and why she herself was so useless. She clearly knew Shen Juan and her brother loved [stolen content]each other, yet she still could not let go of Shen Juan. She still felt reassured because of one phone call from Shen Juan every day at eight. When would she finally be able to let go, then properly return to being family with Shen Juan?

Every time she brushed Shen Juan off, Gu Shuge’s heart felt as though it were being torn apart by sharp claws, both guilty and heartbroken.

That day, Shen Juan called again.

As usual, Gu Shuge had begun looking forward to it from six o’clock. At seven fifty-nine, her eyes were fixed on the phone screen, unwilling to look away. The moment the phone rang, she began counting.

When she answered, she had to take a deep breath first. Only then could she make sure her voice would not tremble when she spoke.

“Sister.”

Shen Juan’s voice sounded, soft and peaceful. “Xiao Ge, have you eaten dinner?”

“I have,” Gu Shuge answered briefly.

“It’s going to cool down over the next two days. Have you prepared enough clothes?”

“I have.” In truth, she had not. She did not have the habit of checking the weather forecast and did not know when it would start getting colder. Her coursework had also been heavy these past few days, with several projects going on at once. She simply had no time to think about such things.

On the other end of the phone, Shen Juan fell silent for a moment. Unable to hear her voice, Gu Shuge grew a little nervous. She restrained herself from speaking first and thought that if Shen Juan said nothing, she would find a reason to hang up.

After a while, just as she was about to end the call, Shen Juan spoke. She said, “Little liar.”

Gu Shuge’s eyes reddened at once. When she was little, she loved eating candy, but too much sugar would cause cavities. Especially after her baby teeth were replaced, if those teeth decayed, there would be no new ones to replace them.

So Shen Juan had set a rule: she could only eat three pieces of candy a day. Gu Shuge agreed, but sometimes, she really wanted candy, so she would secretly act spoiled with the servant auntie. When the auntie softened, she would secretly give her one extra piece. For some reason, Shen Juan could discover it every time, and then she would say this to her, calling her a little liar.

Gu Shuge covered her mouth to stop herself from making a sound.

“I’ve prepared them for you. They should arrive tomorrow. Remember to sign for the package.”

Shen Juan had arranged everything thoroughly. Gu Shuge nodded messily for a long while before realizing Shen Juan could not see her, so she gave a soft “Mm.” She did not dare say more, afraid Shen Juan would hear the nasal tone in her voice.

But a simple “Mm” sounded very cold.

Shen Juan seemed not to know how to respond to her coldness either. She paused, and only after a long while did she continue. “Xiao Ge, starting tomorrow, I won’t disturb you anymore.”

Gu Shuge’s mind went blank.

“In the future, when you have someone you like, you must tell Sister. We’re still family.”

“Xiao Ge, you really are a little liar.”

In that last sentence, Gu Shuge seemed to hear Shen Juan’s choked voice.

Her brother had called several times to ask what had happened between her and Shen Juan, and every time, she had brushed him off.

Three months later, she received the news that Shen Juan and her brother had registered their marriage. Shen Juan told her herself.

“Twelve ten. Yesterday, I could sense you for an hour and a half, but today, from the moment you disappeared, I haven’t been able to sense your presence.” Shen Juan had already ended the call. She glanced at the time and began analyzing tonight’s abnormality.

Hearing her voice, Gu Shuge woke from her memories.

For three years, they had rarely been in contact. It could be said there was almost none. Even during her brother’s funeral, they had exchanged very few words. The reason she had wanted to come back on Shen Juan’s birthday this time and give her a surprise was because she had heard from a friend back home that at a reception, that friend had unintentionally seen Shen Juan’s phone screen. It had shown a photo of Gu Shuge when she was little.

Her childhood appearance was very similar to how she looked now; one could recognize her from the outline.

During this period, she had thought of Shen Juan every day. When she heard about that, her longing had become like floodwaters released through a sluice, impossible to stop. She thought Shen Juan probably wanted her to come home too. Once this thought arose, it could no longer be suppressed.

“Is it because you manifested just now?” Shen Juan was analyzing the reason for tonight’s change.

To know whether manifesting had swallowed up the time during which Gu Shuge could be sensed, they only had to wait until tomorrow night to find out.

But Gu Shuge’s attention was not on that at all. Because of those memories, her entire heart was on Shen Juan. She discovered that Shen Juan was very different from before.

Shen Juan still cared about her, wanted to protect her, looked after her Read on BaiLianTalesin every aspect, and treated her as her own responsibility. But her care, protection, and attentiveness all now had boundaries. She maintained a certain distance, no longer as close and intimate as before.