Chapter Thirty-Seven: Doubt!

Li Hong and I hurried to report to the bus company. The person in charge of receiving us was an elderly man with a limp. He had kindly eyes and a gentle demeanor—a cultivated elder whose temper was certainly much better than Director Wang’s.

We called him Uncle Wang. He told us that Director Wang had already explained our purpose for coming, assuring us that he wouldn’t breathe a word of it to anyone. He also reminded us that at two in the morning, the company’s security guards would all be asleep, so we should act then.

I nodded immediately and thanked Uncle Wang.

Instead of sleeping in the staff dormitory arranged by Uncle Wang, we stayed in his own room. Besides overseeing the cafeteria, Uncle Wang was also responsible for recording bus departures, so his quarters were near the company’s bus parking lot.

That night, we unrolled our bedding on Uncle Wang’s floor. Usually, he went to bed only after midnight, as he had to record the departures for Bus No. 8. But tonight, he turned in by ten, saying Bus No. 8 wasn’t running because they hadn’t found a new driver yet.

Only then did we realize that the previous driver, Master Bai, had already quit!

I set an alarm for the early morning. To avoid disturbing Uncle Wang’s sleep, I switched my phone to vibrate and placed it on my chest, so I wouldn’t oversleep.

It felt as if I’d only just closed my eyes when the alarm startled me awake. Groggy, I sat up halfway, pinched my cheek, glanced at Li Hong, and nudged him awake.

Li Hong opened his eyes sleepily, looked at me, and asked what time it was.

I told him it was dawn.

Li Hong rubbed his face and said, “Let’s go now.”

I nodded.

Getting up, I instinctively glanced at the bed. To my surprise, it was empty. Where could Uncle Wang have gone at this hour?

“Maybe he went to the bathroom?” Li Hong suggested.

“Could be. Let’s go, never mind him,” I replied.

We crept quietly toward the bus parking lot.

The lot was utterly silent and deserted. The cold glow from the streetlights made it look like a platform in hell.

I took a deep breath, patted Li Hong’s shoulder, and signaled him to look toward the farthest corner, where Bus No. 8 was parked.

“Let’s go,” I said. Li Hong followed closely behind.

After taking a few steps, Li Hong suddenly stopped and whispered, “Did you hear that?”

“Hear what?”

“Someone’s crying. Sounds like a girl.”

I listened intently. Sure enough, the mournful sobbing came again, and from the direction, it seemed to be coming from Bus No. 8.

Hell, is the bus haunted again?

I didn’t believe in ghosts. If there were, all the better—it would help us catch the culprit.

When we reached the bus door, the sound was indeed coming from Bus No. 8. Somehow, the radio was on, and the crying came from the speakers.

Even knowing it was a trick, the sound in that setting sent chills down my spine.

Even Li Hong, who had killed before, looked uneasy. “Should we just pry open the door and shut it off?” he muttered.

“Not yet,” I said. “Let’s search the area first—see if anyone suspicious is nearby. The radio was just turned on; the culprit could still be around.”

Li Hong nodded and began searching the area, but soon came back empty-handed.

I was about to tell him to open the door when suddenly a bright light shone on us and a gruff voice barked, “Who’s there?”

Damn! My heart sank—it had to be the security patrol.

But wait—it was already one in the morning. Why weren’t the guards asleep? Had Uncle Wang given us the wrong information?

Li Hong instinctively wanted to run, but I grabbed his arm, signaling him to stay calm. If we ran, we’d only look more suspicious—better to play it by ear.

Li Hong nodded grimly.

Soon, three security guards surrounded us with batons. “Who are you?” they demanded.

I quickly pulled out three cigarettes and handed them over. “Brothers, there’s a misunderstanding. My friend here needed the bathroom but was too nervous to go alone, so I came with him.”

“The bathroom’s in the southwest corner. What are you doing over here?”

“We heard a girl crying from this direction, so we came to check it out. Didn’t realize we’d end up by this bus…”

The guards asked, “You didn’t turn on the radio, did you?”

I forced a bitter smile. “We don’t even have the keys. Besides, why would we get on the bus for no reason? We just started today, don’t know a thing—please look after us.”

Just as I worried they wouldn’t believe us, Uncle Wang hobbled over, scolding, “What are you two doing here? Didn’t I tell you the bathroom’s in the southwest corner?”

I apologized, “Sorry, Uncle Wang, we just heard something and came to check.”

Seeing Uncle Wang, the guards greeted him and let us go without further trouble.

I followed Uncle Wang back, frustrated—how had we been discovered?

“Uncle Wang, didn’t you say the guards would be asleep by one?” I asked.

He replied, “Yes, by one. What time is it now?”

I checked my phone—it was already half past one.

Uncle Wang looked skeptical. I showed him my phone. He pulled out his large-faced watch. Sure enough, it wasn’t even midnight yet.

What was going on? I was baffled.

Uncle Wang waved us off. “Enough, get some sleep. Those guards are sharp. I doubt you’ll get another chance tonight.”

Annoyed, I had Li Hong check his watch—it matched Uncle Wang’s time exactly.

Something was off.

Someone must have tampered with my phone. But who? It had been on my chest the whole time.

Could someone have sneaked in while I was asleep? Or… could it have been Uncle Wang?

Doubt crept in.

Of course, I didn’t show it. I just asked Uncle Wang where he’d been—I hadn’t seen him.

He said he’d just gone to the bathroom. Why?

I quickly said it was nothing and lay down, my mind swirling with suspicion about my phone.

I became more convinced that while I slept, someone had slipped in and fiddled with my phone.

But Li Hong was so sensitive—if anyone came in, he’d have noticed. I glanced at him and saw the same confusion on his face.

With Uncle Wang there, it wasn’t convenient to talk, so I told Li Hong to sleep and decided we’d talk in the morning.

At dawn, we said our goodbyes to Uncle Wang and returned to the police station.

I asked Li Hong what had happened last night—how could he have slept so deeply, not even noticing Uncle Wang left?

Li Hong said, “Remember how Mouse said the first time he tailed the bus, he got drowsy and almost fell asleep?”

I nodded, not seeing the connection.

Li Hong explained, “Last night I was more tired than ever. I slept deeply—deeper than I ever have before.”

A chill ran through me. “You mean… you were drugged last night?”