SES Chapter 161 Part 1

Chapter 161 – Extra Story

Exactly the same?

The previous water-shadows had either been drawn by Yi Wan-san or were blurry images—honestly, those scenes only showed that it was a man and a woman in an intimate situation. Trying to recognize whether it was the same person each time was difficult, so they treated every one as an independent picture… except for that dog that appeared throughout.

But this time was different. Because Yan Hongsand’s dream was relatively realistic compared to what they saw with their own eyes, if she said the person was identical, then it meant the figures in the water-shadows also had continuity.

Luo Ren thought for a moment. “Generally, once a vicious slip is subdued, it presents us with two images. One is the water-shadow, and the other is a clue for how to find the next vicious slip.”

Mu Dai chimed in, “The water-shadow shows up particularly fast, but the clue always takes time.”

That was true. Luo Ren looked at her. “And why do you think that is?”

Mu Dai couldn’t answer right away, but Yi Wan-san leaned forward. “I think… maybe…”

Yan Hongsand urged, “Say it. Maybe what?”

“It feels like the water-shadows are something the Phoenix-Luan Buckle prepared long ago. As soon as the vicious slip is bound, it shows them immediately. But the next vicious slip? The Phoenix-Luan Buckle is still searching. That’s why the clues come late and are harder to decipher.”

Luo Ren nodded. “That’s what I think too. These water-shadows might be parts of a single, fully formed story—and its timeline is reversed. Think back to the previous ones.”

The previous ones… the memories were blurry. Mu Dai tried to recall: a dog, the Phoenix-Luan Buckle, a woman burned by fire, a bamboo curtain, a man and woman embracing, and a bride in a bright red wedding sedan.

Something clicked. She let out a soft “ah,” but before she could speak, Cao Yanhua shrieked, “I get it! A young woman, then marriage, then her hair styled as a married woman—that’s the correct timeline!”

Luo Ren smiled. “Yes. Let’s work backward from today’s scene.”

“Judging from her clothing and hairstyle, she’s an unmarried young woman. She shows up in a private school, but we all know that in earlier times, women weren’t allowed to attend such schools. So she was probably the teacher’s daughter, helping with household chores. And the family raised a dog.”

“Then, when she’s of age, she gets married, riding in a bright red sedan. Think carefully about that scene—the dog was far behind, watching the sedan. That means she didn’t bring the dog with her. It probably stayed at her parents’ home.”

Yan Hongsand hated thinking too hard, so when others analyzed, she listened with full attention. At this point, she muttered, “Who brings a dog as part of a dowry?”

“Next is the third scene—the bamboo curtain, the man and woman embracing, and the dog lurking in the corner’s shadow. That courtyard must be her husband’s home. The dog must have followed her there on its own.”

That made sense. She wouldn’t bring a dog as part of the dowry, but if it followed, they’d just keep it. Dogs were useful for guarding homes, and feeding one wasn’t costly.

Yi Wan-san continued, “In the fourth image, the woman’s house caught fire and she burned to death. The dog must have witnessed the whole thing—though it’s strange. Most dogs protect their owners. Instead of rushing in to save her, it just sat there, unmoving.”

Yan Hongsand snorted. “Not every dog is Hachiko. A beast is a beast.”

Luo Ren went on, “The fifth image is the dog with the seven vicious slips sealed by the Phoenix-Luan Buckle. So the water-shadows form a single story. If my guess is right, it should be seven scenes in total. We’ve only seen five so far. The story is becoming clearer, but the cause and effect are still unknown.”

Still, the story must have a major connection to the seven vicious slips—though what that connection was, they couldn’t yet decipher.

Seeing that morale was dropping, Luo Ren encouraged them. “Take it slow. We’ll figure it out eventually. With the fifth slip collected, we’ve at least gained more time—forty-nine days start again—”

He suddenly stopped speaking.

Yes. According to Yafeng, subduing a new vicious slip buys them another forty-nine days, but his agreement with Aoki would come due in a day or two.

If the Philippines trip went badly…
If something happened…

Luo Ren didn’t want to think about it.

At that moment, Cao Yanhua asked, “Little Luo, what about Qingshan and Yafeng? We can’t keep them with us forever, right? Tied up like this… Isn’t that illegal?”

Just hearing their names gave Luo Ren a headache.

On the wedding day, both bride and groom had vanished. The whole Cao family village must be in an uproar. As for Cao Jinhua—even though he told her not to say anything—after twenty years of living with the villagers, could she really keep a secret from outsiders?

They were like two burning hot potatoes—keeping them was unreasonable, letting them go felt unsatisfying.

Luo Ren stood. “I’ll step outside to make a call.”

In the Philippines, he had used certain stimulants during interrogations—things that acted on the brain and spinal receptors to relax a person and make them more inclined to tell the truth. But here, such controlled substances were nearly impossible to obtain.

He called Dr. He Ruihua, hoping to find a trustworthy local colleague who could perform hypnosis.

His intuition told him that Yafeng was eccentric, ruthless, and stubborn, but once separated from the vicious slip, she was just a difficult woman, not someone with strong mental resistance.

Dr. He answered with something completely unrelated. “Is Mu Dai with you?”

“She’s here.”

“She can do it.”

Luo Ren froze. Those three words took a moment to sink in. When they finally did, he was stunned. “Mu Dai can hypnotize people?”

“For something simple like this, yes.”

Luo Ren couldn’t believe it. “Impossible. Mu Dai herself is… messy.”

Dr. He chuckled. “Luo Ren, sometimes we must look at things from another angle. If Mu Dai has three personalities, and each can act independently, that doesn’t only show disorder. It also shows great mental strength.”

“Mu Dai has spent a lot of time in treatment with me. Don’t think it was wasted. We explored many recovery methods, including hypnosis. She may not be perfect, but she can handle simple hypnosis and self-hypnosis. And I will not introduce a colleague to help you with a private matter. That would violate ethics.”

Luo Ren had no rebuttal. As he prepared to hang up, Dr. He said, “Wait. Someone wants to speak with you.”

Who?
He couldn’t think of anyone, until he heard a familiar voice:

“Brother Little Knife?”

Pingting?

When Luo Ren came back inside, he was still processing the call. Mu Dai looked at him questioningly, and he said, “Pingting’s doing much better.”

Pingting? That name hadn’t come up in a while. Before Mu Dai could reply, Luo Ren looked at Yi Wan-san. “She also asked about you.”

Yi Wan-san stammered, “She… she remembers me?”

“She’s not amnesiac. Of course, she remembers whoever stayed by her side.”

He then pulled Mu Dai. “Come on. Let’s go. I have something to tell you.”

Outside, Mu Dai asked anxiously, “She remembers Yi Wan-san… does she remember me?”

“Yes. She asked who the pretty girl beside me was.”

Mu Dai tensed. “And what did you say?”

From Old Zheng’s hints, she suspected that Pingting had feelings for Luo Ren. Pingting asking wasn’t surprising—what mattered was how Luo Ren answered.

“I said what I should say. You’re my girlfriend. If I said you were my nanny, she wouldn’t believe it anyway.”

Mu Dai laughed, stepped forward, wrapped her arms around his waist, and buried her face against his chest, nuzzling him.

Luo Ren lowered his head and kissed her hair.

He understood Pingting’s feelings too. After he answered, she had gone quiet for a long time—and he understood what that meant.

But some situations required choosing one person over another. You protect whoever matters most. Life doesn’t need to be balanced for everyone.

Mu Dai suddenly thought of something and looked up. “Earlier… did you say that to Yi Wan-san on purpose?”