Paintings of Terror

Chapter 185: Luo Wei ah’ Luo Wei

The Checkpoint Border was like a boundary, where the inside of Heart City was full of lush green while the outside was full of weed.

Luo Wei’s gaze was still locked on the large trolley case. He couldn’t quite believe it. “You have already moved the beasts? When did you do it?”

“Sorry, I’ve been hiding from you. You’re friends with those people, so it might not be a good thing to tell you the truth early on.” Su Benxin continued to sit on the trolley case. “When the Guimei Hexagram appeared, I began to plan this. Fortunately, everyone left this morning, giving me a chance to work on my own and do this.”

“You didn’t watch Xiao Qinxian’s video today?”

“I didn’t have the time. I secretly assigned myself the key to the refrigeration room yesterday, and when I entered it, no one doubted me at all. After all, my current identity is as a staff at the hospital. Secondly, I was one of the owners of these beasts, and so no one suspected me at all.” Although Su Benxin was a little anxious, she still patiently explained it to Luo Wei. She hoped that Luo Wei would completely understand everything and then leave with her.

“How did you transport them out?”

“I dressed up as a cleaning staff collecting medical waste and I put them in a large bag. Six kilograms isn’t heavy at all and so I can still lift it.” Su Benxin smiled.

“And then you put these things directly into the trolley case and store the case in the store?” Luo Wei felt that if these things were done by himself, it probably wouldn’t have gone so perfectly.

“It’s not hard to get close to people. The girls in the luggage store were already familiar with me from yesterday, and I was able to buy all their help with a few boxes of super moisturizing cream from the hospital pharmacy.” Su Benxin disagreed with his words.

Luo Wei looked at the woman in front of him and pressed his hand to the painful part of his heart, which seemed to have relieved the pain somewhat. “You seem very smart, but you’re actually confused. Whether it’s inside or outside Heart City, it’s not our destination at all. Our purpose is to find the signature and leave the painting.”

“Yesterday, that Sister Lin had already checked the list of people on the computer for me, and there was no Yu Beiguo on it. With only the map, they’re just looking for a needle in a haystack. Chu Zhiyong ordered the check-up at night, which means that someone will die tonight. Who knows if the person who dies would be you or me?” Su Benxin’s tone was a little unhappy.

“…….”

“Besides, who knows if Yu Beiguo is inside or outside of Heart City! Anyway, this place belongs to the world of the painting!” Su Benxin gently put her hand over Luo Wei’s heart. “My heart is already hurting so much. No, we can’t wait any longer. Even if the beast doesn’t come out, we’ll die from the pain of heartbreak.”

“The pain of heartbreak? Why does our heart hurt?” Luo Wei couldn’t understand at all.

Su Benxin’s bright eyes were fixed on Luo Wei’s. “Because we’re people outside of Heart City. We don’t belong here. Why could we see everything? Why aren’t we confined here? Why did we not indulge to the point where we’re unable to extricate ourselves?”

“It’s because our hearts aren’t in this city at all.”

These words were heavier and heavier, like a bell tolling in Luo Wei’s heart. Luo Wei muttered to himself, “Our hearts aren’t here?”

“Yes. This is the difference between locals and outsiders. The reason why Qin Ci and the others will linger in Heart City is because their hearts are trapped here. It takes a lot of willpower to leave. They will become blinded and even confused. If it wasn’t because of your reminder, they wouldn’t have even remembered to look for the signature.”

Su Benxin, she had always been sober, even more so than Luo Wei.

“It’s not that I don’t want to find the signature, but we really can’t wait any longer. I’ve had two heart attacks in the middle of the night, and the third time will come soon.” Su Benxin looked at her “comrade-in-arms.” “I don’t think your situation is any better.”

Luo Wei didn’t answer. He’d always thought that the beast was in his heart, and that was why he’d felt such discomfort. The pain was getting stronger and stronger, causing him to conclude that the beast would pierce through his heart when it came out.

He didn’t tell anyone, because it wouldn’t have mattered. The beast couldn’t be surgically stripped from his heart in advance, and so, no matter what, he could only die.

“But we can’t come back after we leave here,” Luo Wei said.

“Why do you want to come back here? Maybe the signature is outside the city. We can call Ke Xun and tell them to leave the city.” Su Benxin added, “Life or death are ruled by fate. We don’t need to depend on them to find the signature.”

“I keep thinking that doing this is wrong.” Luo Wei was so confused. “At least we should tell them first.”

“Then we won’t be able to leave at all. They will not agree to let us take 6 kilograms of the beasts away. This kind of behavior is akin to stealing. They’re also waiting to strike a deal with Chu Zhiyong with 13 kilograms of beasts. These beasts are their lives, and we’re taking away their lives. They will definitely not agree.”

As Luo Wei was thinking, his heart pounded harder and harder, and with every beat, it was like an awl was digging into his heart. “Forget about everything else. These beasts hadn’t even been appeased yet and their masters were once our partners.”

“Don’t try to be the Holy Father! Our lives are not guaranteed. What did we have to do with these dead ghosts?! We aren’t the ones who killed them!” Su Benxin’s patience was wearing thin. “Luo Wei, once the Guimei Hexagram appears, our lives will be lost if we stay. The countdown is ticking. Even if you don’t leave with me now, you won’t be able to make it back to the hospital.”

Luo Wei squeezed the trolley case. “No, I have to call Ke Xun and the others first!”

The wind tossed Su Benxin’s hair into wild disarray, setting them to dancing like a mass of black seaweed. Her face was as pale as water. “Don’t be stupid. You won’t be able to take the trolley case from me, and I won’t give you the chance to call them.”

At this time, several large men with sturdy bodies approached from the distance, and one of them called out a greeting to Su Benxin.

“They’re responsible for receiving the goods and for our extradition,” Su Benxin said. “It’s too late now to say anything. They’re already here for the goods. Even if we both changed our minds, we won’t be able to beat those large men.”

Su Benxin added, “I originally thought that you’re a straightforward man. How could you be so muddled-headed? If it’s anyone else, they would have been more decisive than you, regardless of whether it’s Wei Dong, Mu Yiran, Zhu Haowen, or Ke Xun! How can you be so stupid?!”

Luo Wei was still confused, but when he suddenly heard Ke Xun’s name, his thoughts suddenly stabilized. “Just give me 10 minutes. There’s a phone booth over there. I’ll give them a call first!”

Su Benxin shouted after him, but it was as if Luo Wei didn’t hear her at all. He just wanted to tell his comrade about this as soon as possible. He couldn’t leave them in such a secretive way.

……..

In the hospital, in Qin Ci’s office.

Everyone was studying the map.

Zhao Yanbao was watching Xiao Qinxian’s video from last night on the computer, thinking that since she’d learned a bit about recognizing mouth shapes, she might be able to mouthread if Xiao Qinxian said anything last night. This information might prove helpful to everyone.

Suddenly, the phone rang. Ke Xun was the person closest to the phone, and thinking that there might be progress on Luo Wei’s side, he answered the phone casually. “Hello? Hello? Who are you looking for? Is this Luo Wei? Luo Wei!”

The others turned their attention to Ke Xun, who held the receiver. “How strange. The other person didn’t speak at all. He only said hello, and he sounded like Luo Wei.”

Zhu Haowen immediately took the receiver from Ke Xun and listened to it. But there was no sound at all. Although the other person did not hang up, neither did he speak.

When Wei Dong listened to the receiver, he suddenly heard commotion coming from it. “Someone got killed! Someone just got killed in the phone booth!…It’s murder.”

Just as everyone was listening anxiously, Zhao Yanbao, who had been staring at the computer screen the entire time, suddenly said, “Xiao Qinxian said something! Although she was in a state of madness, she said it very clearly! She said, ‘The words are on her forehead’!”

……….

As night was ushered in, everyone felt that this evening had turned darker than ever.

Luo Wei’s body was sent to the cold room, where he lay next to Lion.

Su Benxin had disappeared.

The first person to react with Mu Yiran. “Are the beasts still there?”

Naturally, they were gone, and everything could be seen through the monitors in the hallway. Even so, it was no longer necessary.

“Let’s focus on looking for the signature. There’s no need to go to Chu Zhiyong anymore. Right now, we need to focus on finding the signature,” Zhu Haowen said with his head slightly lowered.

There was a rhythmic pounding from the hallway. It was Ke Xun punching clenched fists into the wall. With red eyes, Wei Dong went over to pull Ke Xun back. “Ke’er, Luo Wei has left. Ke’er, we’d promised him that if he couldn’t get out, we’ll help him take care of his mother. The old lady isn’t in good health…”

Ke Xun lowered his head and looked at the floor of the hallway. Luo Wei was a friend, a comrade-in-arms, and their friendship was one experienced through life-and-death. Even though he’d thought about having to part with his friends many times before, when faced with the reality of this truth, he couldn’t help but fall into pieces.

“I just can’t bear Luo Wei dying so incomprehensibly! We don’t even have a clue about how it happened! We don’t even know how he died!” Ke Xun’s expression was twisted in a way that it’d never been before, but he couldn’t help but remember the scenes of Luo Wei coming to see him before entering the painting.

Luo Wei had, cautiously and with lingering melancholy, walked into Ke Xun’s house and said, “Tell me about the first few paintings you’d experienced. It wouldn’t hurt to know more. I’m new, and I don’t want to hold you back.”

Luo Wei, you didn’t hold us back.

Luo Wei…

Just when Ke Xun felt that everyone around him was cold and bitter, he felt a burst of warmth surrounding him. Mu Yiran held Ke Xun tightly in his arms with amazing strength,and his voice was very low and very soft when he said, “What we can do now is get out as soon as possible. We’ll help Luo Wei take care of his mother, and we’ll handle Luo Wei’s funeral for her. Luo Wei said that if something went wrong, he wants a place next to Li Yaqing, so that he can keep her company.”

Xida:?Yep, I got teary-eyed.

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