It’s quite normal to see the moon in the afternoon. In summer, because the days are so long, the moon often rises before the sun sets, making it common for both the sun and moon to be visible in the sky. If only the moon is out, it means the sun is obscured by clouds while the moon isn’t blocked by any.
But today, the moon appeared at the wrong time.
Uncle Bai Guangde was desperate to resort to cutting the power line, his palms sweating. Logically, the government was hunting a murderer, so there was no need to drag him into it. His sons were all working elsewhere with decent incomes, and his grandchildren were bright and lively… What if he ended up with an axe splitting his skull? No, that wouldn’t do… Bai Guangde didn’t dare think further.
Shen Yihu hesitated for a moment before nodding. “Fine, cut the power line.” Bai Guangde exhaled in relief, his entire body relaxing as he swiftly climbed the ladder to snip the wires.
Shen Yihu instinctively reached for a cigarette but forced himself to resist the urge.
The power was cut. From inside the house came only the sound of coughing. After a while, the door finally opened. The madman Bai Jingshui stepped out, dressed neatly, his long hair tied up like a Taoist priest. His body was rigid, his brows furrowed in anger, his face filled with resentment. A strange smear of lipstick was visible at the corner of his mouth.
I grabbed Shen Yihu and stepped forward to greet the emerging madman, forcing a smile. “Uncle, you’re home today?” Beneath Shen Yihu’s jacket were handcuffs and a pistol, while the members of the expert team on either side crouched low, peering out, ready to rush in at any moment.
Bai Jingshui glared at me. “Who’s your uncle? I’m only twenty-nine. Call me ‘brother.’” His words were sharp and clear, devoid of his previous madness, his face flushed from coughing.
Shen Yihu suddenly spoke up. “We’ve confirmed you’re the murderer. Come with us.” My mind went blank, a chill running through my body as I sensed disaster looming. Bai Jingshui had kept his hands behind his back the whole time. I quickly shouted, “Inspector Shen, watch out—he’s got an axe behind him!”
Bai Jingshui acted fast, swinging the axe from behind. Shen Yihu dodged to the side, narrowly avoiding the blow. Bai Jingshui turned his gaze to me, his eyes boring into me. “You damn rat, it must’ve been you who told them to cut the power! I’ll split your skull right now—you’re just as bad as my grandfather!”
The arrest team, hiding on either side of the yard, sprang into action, some brandishing batons and stun guns crackling with electricity.
I was young and agile, dodging left and right as Bai Jingshui’s axe strikes missed. “Your wife’s already dead—what’s the point of fighting? I’m here to ruin your plans. What can you do about it? The cops are here to take you down—you deserve it.”
My taunts enraged Bai Jingshui, and anger made his movements sloppy. I dodged his first flurry of swings.
Shen Yihu calmly drew his pistol and barked, “Freeze, or I’ll shoot!” Bai Jingshui halted in the middle of the yard, defiant. “Go ahead, shoot me! If you don’t kill me, I’ll be your daddy!”
Then, like a white shadow, forensic examiner Chen Tutu, clad in a white coat, moved as silently as a cat. Taking a stun gun from a colleague, she shouted, “Look here!” Bai Jingshui’s vision blurred—he hadn’t noticed the icy woman approaching. Chen Tutu, who had handled countless dismembered corpses, was far braver than most. She charged ahead, taking the lead in the arrest.
She cranked the stun gun to maximum power. With a few crackling jolts, Bai Jingshu foamed at the mouth, convulsed, and collapsed, the axe clattering beside him. I wondered—was this woman some kind of cat? Even I hadn’t noticed her approach. But just as we thought the danger was over, Bai Jingshui twitched and struggled back to his feet.
Shen Yihu, assuming the threat was neutralized, had already holstered his gun.
Bai Jingshui lunged at Chen Tutu with a powerful arm. My heart sank. But Chen Tutu ducked low, flipping him onto the ground with a swift motion. She kicked the axe far away with her left foot.
Shen Yihu stepped forward and cuffed Bai Jingshui. The madman spat curses, shaking his head and baring a row of yellowed teeth as if ready to kill, screaming and shouting—yet tears streamed from the corners of his eyes.
“Not too many people should go inside,” I said. “Inspector Shen, just you and me.” Shen Yihu, still rattled by the earlier scene, agreed. Bai Jingshui was terrifying, exuding an eerie aura unlike any criminal he’d dealt with before. “Then the two of us will go in,” he said.
I nodded, pulling out the half-filled jar of century-old swill from my bag.
Side by side, Shen Yihu and I entered Bai Jingshui’s home. The madman continued shouting until Chen Tutu stuffed a plastic bag into his mouth and bagged the axe, muttering, “This must be the weapon that killed Widow Wang.”
Faint bloodstains were still visible on the blade.
The inside of Bai Jingshui’s house wasn’t as chaotic as expected. In fact, it was almost clean—likely because there was hardly anything in it. The dirt floor of the living room was scattered with small sweet potatoes, some already peeled, ready to be cooked.
On a low table in the eastern part of the room sat a densely woven wire cage teeming with scorpions—thousands of them, crawling over each other. Next to the cage was a metal bucket half-filled with insects and earthworms.
Shen Yihu’s expression remained unchanged. “Are these the infamous poisonous scorpions?” I scoffed. “Inspector Shen, didn’t know you were a fan of Gu Long’s novels. These are just scorpions bred for profit. Don’t be so jumpy—you’re making me nervous too.”
He didn’t understand rural life. Many families raised scorpions for extra income. With an abundance of insects like grasshoppers, earthworms, and spiders in the countryside, there was no shortage of food for them.
Shen Yihu shot me a glare. If I were a criminal, he’d probably have shot me between the eyes already.
Soon, we found a refrigerator in the bedroom. Aside from that, nothing else in the room was worth more than a hundred yuan. Two yellowed, crumpled blankets reeked of sweat, foot odor, and smoke. Just as Village Chief Bai Guangde had described, the bright red fridge did resemble a coffin—except it had a door with a handle.
Shen Yihu remarked, “Bai Guangde is dirt poor. How could he afford such a nice fridge? Is it a Siemens or an ‘East-gate’ brand?” I rolled my eyes. “Come on, man. Your family’s fridge must be the ‘East-gate’ one. Siemens’ slogan is ‘0°C, no ice, freshness like the first day.’” Shen Yihu glared at me again, probably thinking, *This kid talks nothing but nonsense. What the hell did he grow up eating?*
The leftovers beside the fridge had started to smell. If the fridge wasn’t storing food, what was inside?
Standing before the red Siemens fridge, Shen Yihu gripped his pistol, while I clutched the jar of century-old swill in my left hand and tightly grasped the jade ruler in my right, my palms slick with sweat. Soon, my body grew cold, my lips turning pale.
Then I understood why there were two blankets on the bed, why Bai Jingshui looked like an old man—the overwhelming Yin energy in the room had drained his vitality.
Ten minutes passed. Shen Yihu finally spoke. “Well, Master Xiao Qi, why don’t you open the fridge?” He was telling me to open the coffin-like Siemens fridge.
Outside, the team grew anxious. Shen Yihu and I had been inside for nearly half an hour.
His walkie-talkie crackled to life. “Inspector Shen, boss, are you okay? Should we storm in? Is anyone else inside?”
Shen Yihu grabbed the radio. “Everyone, stay put. We’ll be out soon. It’s fine.”
I gestured at my hands. “Inspector Shen, do I look like I have a third hand to spare?”
Shen Yihu shot me yet another glare before stepping toward the fridge, ready to open it himself.
*Thud… thump…*
His hand froze mid-air. We stared at each other, tension crackling between us.
Then, an icy, sinister aura burst from the fridge as the door swung open on its own.
Out leaped a woman smeared with lipstick, her clothes as red as blood.
Why did the shade of her lipstick look so familiar?
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage