Chapter Eighty-Two: Dim Eyes of Old Age

Cui Yue was startled. How could the police suddenly appear?

Old Yu clasped his hands behind his back, peering left and right as if searching for something, muttering as he walked.

"That’s odd. There was clearly one more."

The lead officer pointed at Old Yu and said sternly, "We received a report from the public that people were fighting on the street here. Is that true?"

Before Cui Yue could answer, a voice rushed in ahead of him.

"Impossible! I saw it with my own eyes. That man really had no head. How could he have vanished in just a moment?"

Old Yu touched his own head, looking puzzled.

Only then did Cui Yue understand what was going on. Seeing the police sizing up the wounds on his body, he knew that if he denied everything, it would only arouse more suspicion. But if he admitted it, the matter was too bizarre for anyone to believe; it might even make things worse, and if word spread, it would be bad all around.

When Yang Liu heard the police questioning them, she trembled inwardly and felt a little guilty. She was just about to answer when something moved at her feet. She hurriedly looked up.

Cui Yue’s expression had changed. Frowning slightly, he signaled for her not to speak.

"Officer, do you mean someone was fighting here just now?"

"We received a report from a citizen. Look at the injuries all over you—are you still going to deny it? Speak. Who was it? What’s his name? What grudge was there? Tell us everything clearly."

"Officer, I think there’s been a misunderstanding. I did struggle with someone just now, but it wasn’t a fight in the way you mean. It was a robbery, and we acted in self-defense."

Cui Yue said with complete seriousness.

"A robbery?" the officer asked, puzzled and half unconvinced.

"Then, where is the person?"

"He ran."

"He ran?"

The people there looked at one another, then at Old Yu, their faces full of doubt. What on earth was going on?

Old Yu also looked confused. What he had seen was Cui Yue fighting with someone. As for whether it had been a robbery, he could not say. Besides, what concerned him most at the moment was this headless person—what on earth had that been about?

The officer who had asked the question said, "This old gentleman says that during the fight, one of the men had no head. Is that true?"

As soon as he said it, he regretted it. He silently cursed himself for an idiot. How could he ask such a stupid question? No head? And still fighting? Even he felt that was impossible unless someone had gone completely mad.

Cui Yue glanced around, took a breath, and pretended to be surprised. "No head? Officer, don’t scare me like that. I’m timid. Oh, right—I think that person was wearing a black cloth hat, and with the shadows from the trees, could this old gentleman have seen it wrong?"

The officer heard this, looked at the surroundings, and found himself strongly agreeing. Yes, that’s right—how could a person possibly have no head?

But Old Yu was not pleased with this at all. How could this young man lie so easily? I saw clearly that the man had no head, and now you say he was wearing a hat?

"Hey, young man, I saw it perfectly. There wasn’t even a bit of hair on those shoulders. How could he possibly have been wearing a hat?"

Cui Yue shook his head and shrugged, wearing an expression that said there was nothing he could do if the man refused to believe him.

Old Yu pointed at the glasses perched on his nose and said angrily, "I’m not going blind. I saw it clearly. That person absolutely had no head!"

This time the officers beside him could no longer stand it. Yes, yes, with your reading glasses on, where is the blindness? This old comrade is far too stubborn. The person involved has already explained everything clearly—why keep pressing on? How can superstitious thinking be so deeply rooted?

Cui Yue cursed inwardly. This old man is really unyielding. Must he make such a fuss over everything? Should I really go find that headless corpse, drag it before him, make it wave its hands and kick its legs just to satisfy him? Why does he seem so desperate to stir up trouble in the world?

Yang Liu still felt lingering fear when she recalled the appearance of that blood-soaked corpse. Hearing Cui Yue lie, she was puzzled, but she knew he must have his reasons, so she said nothing.

"And the robber you mentioned—where did he flee? Which direction? Was any property lost?"

Cui Yue deliberately pointed casually ahead. "That way. We resisted desperately, so he didn’t get anything. He covered his hat and ran in that direction."

"You two, go take a look."

The two officers behind him hurried off in the direction Cui Yue had indicated to investigate.

"The rest of you, come with us to the station and make a statement."

Cui Yue was anxious. He had originally wanted to hurry to the People’s Inn to find the bespectacled oddball; only that man could handle the situation before them. He hoped to find some clue and locate that headless corpse.

Who would have thought they would run into the police? He had no choice but to react on the spot and go to the police station first, getting the officers off his back for the time being.

Yang Liu was, after all, only a girl. The moment she heard they were going to the station, her heart tightened and her face turned a little panicked.

Cui Yue gently took her small hand and gave her a look, signaling that he was by her side and she need not be afraid.

Yang Liu nodded slightly, only feeling warmth spread through her palm. A wave of comfort rose in her heart, and much of her earlier fear was washed away by it.

Police Station Office in Zhongcheng.

An officer closed the notebook in his hand, rose, and said to Cui Yue, "All right, young comrade, we basically understand the situation you described. We’ll sort through the case as quickly as possible, and if there is any progress, we’ll notify you as soon as we can."

"Thank you, no problem. We didn’t really suffer any loss anyway, so we won’t trouble you officers further."

When Cui Yue heard they were done, the stone in his heart finally fell away. He stood up, taking Yang Liu with him.

"All right, then you two can head back for now."

The officer then leaned close to Cui Yue and said quietly in his ear, "This girl is your girlfriend, right? She looks rather frightened. Make sure you comfort her properly when you get back."

Cui Yue’s face turned bright red, and he could only agree.

"Uh, yes, all right."

Just as Cui Yue reached the corridor entrance, he saw an old man slapping the table in a rage.

"You young fellows never believe people! I told you, that man simply had no head. I saw it as clear as day!"

"Dad, Dad, don’t get upset. Let’s not argue anymore, all right?" The man beside him, dressed in a spun-silk shirt, seemed to be the old man’s relative. He was trying hard to soothe the old man while winking at the officers in front of him, clearly meaning that his father was old and they should not take offense at an elderly man.

The officer taking the statement was also very helpless; Old Yu had nearly driven him mad. The whole night had been anything but peaceful.

"What do you mean by that!" Old Yu snapped, his nose lifting as he barked, "What was that look for? Don’t think that just because I’m a little old I’ve gone senile. I..."

The people around him had headaches already and had absolutely no way to deal with Old Yu.

Cui Yue clicked his tongue under his breath, not daring to linger any longer. In a flash, he vanished from sight.