At this time, the dishes were served, and I immediately picked up my chopsticks. I dont know if it was because I was too hungry or if this small fly-ridden restaurant was actually delicious, but I ate until I almost bit my tongue off.

  "Its too delicious!" I exclaimed.

  He smiled and said, "The taste is not bad."

  "How did you find this place?" I asked.

  "It wasnt me who found this place, they brought me here." He paused and said, "In the past when I was studying in Beijing, I also looked down on this kind of restaurant. Now I realize that its peoples mindset, categorizing things into different levels. The owner of this restaurant is that woman over there, her husband passed away, she single-handedly raised two kids and kept this shop running. Her place is clean and delicious, people around here who want to have a down-to-earth meal without spending too much money will come here."

  I looked around and indeed the vast majority were workers and peasants in attire. A young girl like me was an exception. This is a completely different feeling from most of the restaurants Ive been to, more lively, more rustic, and closer.

  I couldnt help but laugh. I turned around and found Wu Yu staring at me. Then he lowered his head, continuing to calmly read the documents.

  My heart also swayed gently like a swing in autumn. I lowered my head and continued eating.

  I recalled asking him last night what he had been through in the past year. He only replied with two words: "Life". I dont know what kind of life that is, and when I searched online for his name "Wu Yu", there was only a brief introduction before his masters degree, and nothing after that. Before, he was a man standing on cloud nine. I even scolded him for being too pragmatic and utilitarian. But now, hes a completely different person, leaving everything in the past behind, with both feet firmly on the ground. If it were the old him, he wouldnt have even looked at this kind of restaurant or its owner. But now, he says hes a down-to-earth person who eats simple food. And last night, when we encountered a child being robbed, he rushed to save the kid without hesitation and even got beaten up.

  It must be a life of maelstrom-like downfall and destruction. Only then can there be rebirth.

  I looked at his extremely short black hair, full forehead, and those beautiful eyes as usual. How could I not recognize him at that time? Is it possible for there to be a second person in the world with such a temperament? Although he now has a dark beard on his chin and his face is much coarser. His neck had a reddish tan. He was wearing simple T-shirt jeans, and his big hands had fine scars from repairing cars. But compared to the one before, I found this one more fascinating.

  "Dont keep looking at me." Wu Yu said suddenly, without even lifting his head.

  My heart skipped a beat and I immediately said, "No."

  "He said: I am no longer the person I used to be."

  I didnt understand what he meant by that sentence, and then he said: "If you cant weigh the pros and cons and face, its easy to give up."

  He looked up at me. My heart suddenly felt like it had been scalded by something, and I understood.

  I said: "Oh, that day on the boat, after we quarreled, did you give up easily?"

  He was silent for a moment and said: "I waited for you at the entrance of the restaurant all evening, but you didnt come."

  A bitter taste suddenly emerged in my heart, that day I really disliked him, of course, couldnt bear to go down to the restaurant, so I had dinner delivered to the room. Later, I fell asleep. After that, there is no memory.

  We both fell silent for a while, I put down my chopsticks and said: "I dont think I can finish it." He said: "Then pack it to go." I said: "Okay, Ill continue eating tonight." He smiled.

  "Lets talk about the case. Now it seems that only by helping the police crack this case can we find that man and get closer to the truth."

  Although I had never really cracked a case before, for the sake of writing, I had done countless reasoning and design based on real cases. And I was holding that kind of mentality: three smelly cobblers can match one Zhuge Liang, right? I, he, plus the majestic fish who provided sci-fi technical support, arent we just three smelly cobblers? At this time, of course, I couldnt show weakness, so I nodded calmly and patted his shoulder, saying: "Dont worry, everything is under my control. You may not understand reasoning, but you have great physical strength, which will also play a huge role. We complement each other."

  He smiled and said "uh-huh".

  I also took a few documents, browsed through them, scratched my head and said: "Where should we start? Generally speaking, there are two major directions to crack the case. One is to look forward, and the other is to look backward. Looking forward means analyzing the background of past victims and perpetrators, finding patterns and reasons, maybe hiding clues about the perpetrators identity; looking backward means predicting his action pattern, his next victim, and catching him. Of course, the two methods are inseparable."

  "Look for it from front to back." Wu Yu said.

  I said: "Why?"

  He said: "I prefer direct and simple logic."

  I said: "Oh, okay." Suddenly, there was a slight flutter in my heart. Whats going on? Because the man in front of me had both the soul of a bookworm and the physique of a tough guy?

  "I said quietly, Where shall we start then?"

  We exchanged a glance. His eyes had a clear light in them.

  Bird.

  Bird.

  We coincidentally said the same word at the same time.

  Because of those birds, they always appear at the scene of the crime. Is it some kind of omen or is there a hidden connection? Now its unknown. But existence is fact. No matter how bizarre the facts look, you have to follow them to figure them out. Obviously, Wu Yu thought the same as me.

  "Where did you see these birds last time?" Ou Yu asked.

  I was just about to respond when I suddenly froze. His question seemed like a strong beam of light that flashed through my mind, and in an instant, I realized what the problem was that I had been neglecting all along on my way here.

  I stared at Wu Yu with wide eyes.

  He also stared at me without blinking for a moment.

  I said: "Wu Yu, I may know who the next victim is."