When Jian Yao opens her eyes, she sees a darkish blue sky.  There’s a new moon, skinny and brilliant, hanging simply above the horizon.

She remains to be in Bo Jinyan’s automobile.  The environment are acquainted.  It’s the car parking zone of their condominium.  Bo Jinyan didn’t activate the lights contained in the automobile.  Skinny yellow mild from the road lamps shines by way of the home windows.  

Bo Jinyan is sitting on the motive force’s seat beside her.  Searching from the window.

“What’s in your thoughts?”  asks Jian Yao.

Bo Jinyan faucets his finger on the dashboard: “ ‘He didn’t seem.”

Jian Yao is aware of that Bo Jinyan didn’t prepare any surveillance on the crime scene to provide ‘him’ the chance to go away a be aware  – that’s, if he’s nonetheless alive.  There have been lots of people up on Qi hill peak in the present day.  If he wished to sneak up as a cops or forensic workers, it will have been very simple.

However there may be nothing. 

“Is ‘he’ lifeless?”  Jian Yao asks.

“Possibly.”

He turns to take a look at her.  

The inside of the automobile could be very dim.  However the shadows intensify his well-shaped options – his physique, his face… His eyes sparkles like stars, taking a look at her.  

It flustered her to have him watching her.  She clears her throat and asks: “What’s up?”

“E.T!” He says softly: “We’d like a brand new rule.  Any further, once we are investigating a case, you have to be inside my attain 24/7.” 

Jian Yao: “I perceive the second half of the sentence.  However the first half.  What?  E.T?”

“Yea…” Bo Jinyan smiles and opens his automobile door.  

Jian Yao: “Hey…you’re the E.T…”

Bo Jinyan walks over to her aspect.  He opens the door and carries her out of the automobile.  He says slowly: “I’m not the one with the bump on my brow.”

————-

By the point they get inside Bo Jinyan’s condominium, it’s 1am.

Bo Jinyan places her down on the couch.  He goes into the kitchen and got here backwith two ice packs.

After he sits down beside her, Bo Jinyan presses one ice pack on her brow.  The bone chilling coldness causes her to gasp.   A smile seems on his face: “You maintain on to the ice pack.”

Jian Yao quietly takes over.

His tenderness in direction of her was solely short-term. Then it’s changed by teasing – ET, bump on the face, seeing how she reacts to the ice pack…. Like a faculty boy that runs round to tug the women’ ponytails.  He’s so immature!     

However then, he bends down and lifts up her left foot.  He removes the shoe, throws it subsequent to the doorway, then rests her foot on his legs.  

She blushes, and doesn’t dare to maneuver a muscle.  

He picks up the opposite ice pack and locations it on prime of her left ankle.  Together with his different hand, he factors the distant on the TV and begins watching a documentary.

As this different ice pack touches her pores and skin, she gasps once more.  She notices that though his eyes are glued to the TV, his lips curl with a small smile.  

Jian Yao isn’t serious about documentaries about criminology.   She thinks about in the present day’s case.  

“Hey.” She gently kicks him with the left foot. “You stated Huo Xiao Lu’s assertion was filled with loopholes.  Clarify.”

His palm felt her kick.  As a reflex motion, he grabs her foot along with his hand in order that she will be able to’ transfer it anymore.  

“Keep in mind Wang Wan Wei’s suicide be aware?”

“Sure…” She recollects the small print from the case.  Bo Jinyan stated the suicide be aware was real as a result of it had minor inconsistencies and a particular private fashion of writing.  However pretend notes are typically concise, clear and with out flaw.

Following this prepare of thought, Huo Xiao Lu’s assertion was extra just like the latter.  But when that is the one motive he based mostly his conclusion on, it may appear a bit of insufficient.

Bo Jinyan is aware of what goes by way of her coronary heart.  He says: “The evaluation course of used for written notes and oral statements are completely different.”

“Oh.”

He provides her a look: “It’s easy.  When it’s involves verbal communication, human show a whole lot of the identical traits no matter their persona and background.”

Jian Yao smiles at him: “Please enlighten me.”

Bo Jinyan teases her once more: “E.T, now that you simply’ve come to Earth, you might want to learn extra.  These are primary analytical abilities.”

“….. I’ll.  Later!  Please inform me now.”

“Firstly, what information our reminiscences are feelings, not time sequence.” He says.

Jian Yao is ready for additional rationalization.  

True to Bo Jinyan’s phrases, he doesn’t “mock or look down on folks based mostly on their lack {of professional} data.”  He patiently explains: “For instance.  In case you are to inform your buddy about your fall in the present day, what would you say?”

Jian Yao thinks for some time: “I tumbled down the steps throughout an investigation in the present day.  I used to be by accident pushed down by the assassin’s mom.  It was a painful fall…”

“Cease.”  Bo Jinyan interrupts her. “Did you discover? Once you recalled the incident, the very first thing that got here to thoughts was what you felt was crucial a part of the occasion – you had been pushed down by the lady, ache.  Since you had been led by your feelings, not time sequence.”  

Jian Yao thinks about it.  It’s true.  She opens her bag and takes out her pocket book.  

She turns to the women’ assertion.  

– How did they begin?

Huo Xiao Lu – Round 8pm, Huai Huai collected all the cash…

Qi Xiao Ran – If I knew one thing would occur to Huai Huai, I might keep together with her…

Bo Jinyan says once more: “Their good buddy was killed.  It could have been an enormous emotional blow to the entire ladies.  Everybody ought to have very robust emotions about what had occurred.  However Huo Xiao Lu was too smart.  Her assertion begins with time sequence.  And it was nicely rehearsed.  She was not recalling the occasions, however presenting a state of affairs, one which she wished us to consider.”  

Jian Yao nods.

Bo Jinyan continues: “Second level.  Huo’s assertion had numerous mundane particulars that had little or no to do with the case.  For liars, particulars pads out their tales to make it extra plausible.  If she was really devastated by her buddy’s dying, would she keep in mind and care to inform the police that she washed her garments and made herself a cup of tea?”

Jian Yao appears to be like at that a part of the assertion:  The seniors are on vacation.  The opposite college students are learning… ; made myself a cup of tea…

“Third level.” Bo Jinyan says, “The stronger you’ve gotten emotions for one thing, the extra you’re feeling the urge to conclude.   It’s an emotional must ‘wrap up’ the emotions.  However liars put off that.  As a result of they really feel that when they’ve defined the incident, their job is finished.”  

Jian Yao is flicking the pages once more.  She hears Bo Jinyan says: “Sure, try their concluding statements.”

Huo Xiao Lu – Then I made myself a cup of tea, lied on mattress to learn.  After some time, I went to mattress.

Qi Xiao Ran – Why would anybody need to kill her… there’s faculty entrance exams subsequent 12 months… however she is going to by no means…

—————

Bo Jinyan’s condominium is the one home with lights on.  The remainder of the neighbourhood is quick asleep.

They’ve watched two episodes of the documentary. Jian Yao has had an hour of ice pack on her foot and brow.  However Bo Jinyan doesn’t look drained in any respect.  Jian Yao, then again, can hardly preserve her eyes open.  She kicks him once more.  “I must go house.  I’m very drained.  Thanks for the whole lot.”

He appears to be like at her: “Sleep right here tonight.”

Jian Yao: “….why?”

Bo Jinyan: “What for those who need assistance tonight?  Do you anticipate me to run as much as the studio?  You sleep in my room.  I’ll take the examine.  Should you want me, simply knock on the wall.” 

——————

Jian Yao didn’t knock on the wall, in fact.

After a fast bathe, she collapsed on his large mattress and falls right into a deep sleep, nearly instantly. 

Bo Jinyan lies on the only mattress within the examine.  Maybe it’s as a result of it’s not his normal mattress, he’s not very used to it.  He finds it laborious to fall asleep.  

He recollects the moments when Jian Yao fell down the steps.

Darkish and slim stairways.  As he rushed out of the unit, all he may see was her physique within the air, then the tumble, and the knocks… 

Then he hurried to her aspect, carried her, the look on her pale face, her physique mendacity softly in his arms…

Some unknown sentiment fills and agitates his coronary heart. 

He pulls down his sleeping masks.  All the things is darkish.  Time to sleep.

———-

Jian Yao wakes up after a dreamless night time to the brilliant sunshine coming by way of the bed room home windows.  

She appears to be like on the alarm clock on Bo Jinyan’s bedside desk.  It’s previous noon.

She touches her left foot. The swell has subsided a bit.  The bump on her brow… remains to be there.  She smiles and will get off the bed.

She slowly makes her solution to the lounge.  Bo Jinyan is sitting within the couch in his normal white shirt and black pants, studying newspaper.  

When he hears her footsteps, he asks from behind the newspaper: “Do you might want to be carried?”

Jian Yao: “…. no.”

She slowly walks in direction of the couch.  There’s some breakfast left on the espresso desk.  She picks a chunk of bread and begins consuming.  

Nobody speaks.  After an extended pause.  Jian Yao asks: “What are we doing in the present day?”

Bo Jinyan places down his papers briefly, takes a take a look at her brow and foot, and says: “Your name.”

Jian Yao: “…..”

– Man..He has the flexibility to annoy folks with only one sentence.  Your name?  Yeah, in fact.  As a result of she has twisted her ankle.  There’s nothing they will do anyway.