I rushed back to the hotel. I had sensed something was wrong, but I refused to acknowledge it. I hoped to find Old Tie and get a clear answer from him in person. I returned to the hotel, hoping Old Tie was still waiting for me.
The room was meticulously tidied. It was certainly not the work of the cleaning staff; I had instructed them that there were valuables inside and not to tidy the room. The room was neat, with two leather suitcases placed inside. One contained the two million yuan I had prepared to hand over to the police, and the other held the two million yuan I had already given to Old Tie. Due to our reckless behavior, the original two million had been scattered, but Old Tie had carefully arranged it back in the suitcase. I believed Old Tie hadn't touched a single cent.
On top of the suitcase lay a piece of kraft paper, bearing my familiar handwriting: "For Tang Nan." I sighed deeply and opened the letter. The first sentence read: "I'm sorry, brother. As you said, I should also be a schemer."
This sentence felt like a knife twisting in my heart.
Liu Chenxi's trial of human nature tested everyone. I had arrogantly believed that Liu Chenxi had sent Bi Dawang to deceive Old Tie because she wanted to draw me into her scheme. Now, I realized that if Liu Chenxi had wanted me involved, she had many ways to do so, such as directly informing Fourth Master that I possessed a jade thumb ring of Emperor Qianlong.
Looking back, I never truly entered Liu Chenxi's game. Everyone within her scheme had a hidden dark side. From Old Tie's perspective, everything began with Bi Dawang's death.
Bi Dawang was greedy. He didn't just want to work for Fourth Master; he wanted to wield the same power and influence. Thus, Bi Dawang was incited by Liu Chenxi. I believe Liu Chenxi must have told Bi Dawang to trick Old Tie and draw me into the scheme, because I had a jade thumb ring. Bi Dawang knew better than anyone that with the jade thumb ring in his possession, he would have leverage to negotiate with Fourth Master and wouldn't have to remain his subordinate.
Because of these prospects, Bi Dawang fell for Liu Chenxi's chrysoberyl cat's eye scheme. It was a simple scam, but not a common one. Liu Chenxi personally managed the operation, selling the cat's eye stone to Old Tie in the ghost market, and then, as they routinely did, swindled fifty thousand yuan from him.
Old Tie wrote in his letter that perhaps Bi Dawang never imagined, as he lay dying, that fifty thousand yuan could unleash such boundless evil hidden deep within someone's heart.
With the experience of being cheated, and the trauma of surviving a suicide attempt, Old Tie couldn't forgive himself for being deceived. He lost his reason. He was restless and irritable day and night, like a famished beast.
Liu Chenxi, who was observing him from the shadows, saw all of this. Then, Liu Chenxi informed Old Tie of Bi Dawang's whereabouts, and a terrible thought formed in Old Tie's mind: how to kill Bi Dawang legitimately.
A heart plunged into darkness and an extremely calm mind can turn an ordinary person into the most terrifying killer.
Old Tie formulated a plan. He bought two ropes, placing one in each pocket. Then he went to Bi Dawang's house and knocked on the door. Bi Dawang looked flustered upon seeing Old Tie. Despite his seemingly burly physique, he was a paper tiger. During their struggle, Old Tie strangled Bi Dawang with a rope. Bi Dawang didn't struggle for long before he breathed his last.
Killing is a terrifying act, but for Old Tie, it was a cathartic release. He felt that the malicious words and mocking glances he had endured from being cheated were all vented at that moment. It was incredibly satisfying.
After a moment of elation, Old Tie finally felt fear. However, he had already devised a plan. Following it, he dragged Bi Dawang into the bedroom and used a mop to clean the footprints on the floor.
Even though Old Tie had meticulously covered his tracks, he still feared oversight.
Thus, he began executing his second step. He took the murder weapon, the rope, and discarded it in a nearby trash bin. Then, he loitered around Bi Dawang's house, trying his best to appear shifty and villainous. Eventually, someone called the police.
The police took him to see Bi Dawang. Upon seeing Bi Dawang's dead body, even if the police found any clues in Bi Dawang's apartment, Old Tie would have a legitimate reason for having been there.
However, the police were still suspicious of him. He had a rope in his pocket, and Bi Dawang had indeed been strangled with a rope. When the police believed they had found the murder weapon and sent it for forensic examination, the real murder weapon had long since vanished with the routine work of the garbage collectors.
Old Tie was apprehended immediately. The first person he thought of who could help him was me. But Old Tie, who had just committed murder, had undergone a profound change in his mindset. He feared I wouldn't come, that I, now wealthy, might abandon him, his brother. Most importantly, he was already deeply wounded by the gossip from his hometown, and he feared I too would believe the rumors and look down on him from a position of superiority.
Old Tie's father was an honest farmer. Old Tie easily persuaded his father to take gifts to my home to find me. This way, even if I had come to despise him, I would have to come to Beijing out of consideration.
He worried unnecessarily. I hadn't changed, but I couldn't control his thoughts, especially since he was in Beijing then, and I was in my hometown.
...
After I arrived in Beijing, I quickly helped Old Tie out of detention. This was all part of Old Tie's plan, but it didn't bring him satisfaction. He was jealous of me, and friendship was slowly being eroded in the depths of his heart.
On the very night I decided to enter the ghost market scheme, something outside Old Tie's plan occurred: his murder was witnessed. Liu Chenxi found him, recounted the details of his killing and evidence concealment, and Old Tie's composure nearly shattered. However, Liu Chenxi claimed no malice, stating it was all to deal with me and even revealed my status as a schemer to Old Tie.
Yet, I remained completely oblivious to all of this. When Old Tie approached me at the night market, I thought it was a chance encounter. Even when I noticed a change in Old Tie's demeanor during my own scheme, I still didn't address the issues he was facing and remained focused on my own plans.
Following Liu Chenxi's instructions, Old Tie approached Fourth Master, fostering a harmonious relationship between us. Later, while we were fighting on the bus, Old Tie slipped the note with puzzle-like clues into my pocket.
These were not Liu Chenxi's schemes. Liu Chenxi only set the requirements, not the plans. All the plans were made by Old Tie. His words were true; he had indeed become a schemer. He followed the unfolding trend and set up the bait, drawing me in with intricate details.
I never imagined that the large willow tree on the letter was drawn by Old Tie. I even confessed to him that I was a schemer, thinking we had reconciled. Little did I know, he already knew everything and was dismissive of my confession. My sincerity was genuine, while he was acting, an inside informant for Liu Chenxi. Old Tie knew my plans, which allowed Liu Chenxi to stay one step ahead of me in the pacing of the scheme.
Old Tie wrote in his letter: "Despite my meticulous planning, I still made a slip. When you asked me who bought the red jade thumb ring, I told you it was Bi Shuwen, but I never met Bi Shuwen throughout the entire process. Liu Chenxi was right, you are a schemer not to be underestimated. You couldn't even spot such a flaw, so why do you deserve the praise of such capable people? I refuse to accept it. They don't know you, but I know you better than anyone. We grew up together. You're usually lazy and careless in your demeanor. Why are you a schemer? Why do you condescend to me as if you're giving alms to a beggar? I won't take a single cent of the two million you gave me."
Tang Nan, we will meet again in the Jianghu. The next time we meet, I will already be a schemer.
...
After reading this letter, I felt as if several knives had been plunged into my heart, a pain that was both agonizing and fatal.
The crossroads of human destiny are truly unpredictable. I had gone to Ruili with Old Tie, and we were like inseparable companions. Yet, at this crossroads, we took entirely different paths.
When I heard the gossip, I should have intervened in Old Tie's life sooner. But I knew Old Tie was a man with immense pride, and I believed he could prove himself to others on his own.
I was wrong. I underestimated the darkness and obscurity of this world. I couldn't comprehend the madness that grips a person when they reach their psychological limit. Now, Old Tie admits to murder. What am I to do? What can I do?
This letter in my hand is the evidence of his crime. Can I hand it over to the police?