Qiming Chapter 68

Chapter 68

---

The female student sitting in the corner was someone he had seen before. Qiu Lu, Jiang Shuishan's tutor, was the second-to-last person to leave the Jiang family villa on the night of the incident. She held a book in her hand and wore glasses, exuding a scholarly aura, but her eyes occasionally revealed a hint of murderous intent.

At this moment, Xu Chengyue was giving his routine report on the progress of the AI detective project. He wore a tie and a black suit, while Lu Yong, sitting beside him, had a very refined demeanour. It was Qiu Lu's first time attending the meeting, and she seemed quite surprised to see him here. When their eyes met, she hastily lowered her head, pretending to flip through her book.

"The core of the future AI detective is artificial intelligence carried by AI chips, with data linked through hundreds of interfaces. Its ultimate form will be a near-automated detective processor, taking on the role of a detective."

Xu Chengyue retracted his gaze, refocused on his presentation materials and continued to report on the project: "It has a brain structure similar to that of humans, reasoning and making judgments through external interface data. According to the existing algorithms, our AI detective can systematically and perfectly solve general criminal cases, significantly improving the efficiency of case-solving and freeing up more human resources for tracking and solving complex cases."

"The human brain contains tens of trillions of synapses. Our chip uses memristors, electronic synaptic devices, which provide greater storage space. The AI detective employs billions of artificial neural network models and deep learning algorithms to build a brain-like system for computation. These neural networks function like synapses in the human brain, transmitting data, making self-judgments, learning actively, and transmitting signals like neural signals in the human brain."

"In the future, we will vigorously cooperate with biotech companies. Zhiyin Technology, the leading artificial intelligence research base in China, is a giant tech company that started with search engines and reorganised its structure last year to develop its biomedical department. Our aspiration is to integrate artificial intelligence and future genetic technology more into criminal investigations, bringing the greatest sense of security to the city through technology."

"Well said, young man." An older gentleman with still thick hair applauded him. Xu Chengyue recognised him as Dai Shuting, the former director of the Third Institute and the current dean of Nanpu University's School of Biology.

The last time Xu Chengyue saw him was in an interview with Zhiyin Biotech's CEO, Fang Xing, where Dean Dai was shaking hands and taking a photo with him.

"This is our university's youngest associate professor," Dai Shuting introduced to the others, "Young and promising, with a bright future."

Xu Chengyue nodded and smiled politely, but his attention remained on Qiu Lu. Why was she here? She was just an ordinary student at Nanpu University, with no reason to attend a debriefing of this level.

He stood somewhat dazed in the centre of the meeting room for a while before returning to his seat.

He rubbed his eyes and turned to look at the corner where she had been sitting, only to find that in the mere seconds that had passed, Qiu Lu had quietly slipped away.

In the sunlight, only an empty seat remained.

Lu Yong continued his eloquent speech on stage, laughing and talking. Xu Chengyue opened his laptop and once again pulled up the materials on the Jiang family massacre case. His long fingers tapped the keyboard as he stared at the words on the screen, gradually recalling some previously overlooked details.

In the hospital, Wang Kun only admitted to killing Jiang Yang and denied everything else. He was uncooperative, dodging questions and giving evasive answers, admitting some things while concealing others.

Since no one had entered the Jiang family's villa after Wang Kun, where were the others when he and Jiang Yang opened the door together?

A terrifying and bold idea sprouted in his mind. He closed his eyes and halted all movements, Lu Yong's voice drifting away like the wind.

– What if the others were already dead when Wang Kun and Jiang Yang entered the villa?

The murderer had planned to kill everyone in the Jiang family, not expecting Jiang Yang to be absent. When Wang Kun, who arrived with Jiang Yang, saw the three deceased, he, filled with hatred, finished off Jiang Yang.

Before Jiang Yang and Wang Kun returned, who was the last person to leave the Jiang family?

Xu Chengyue's hands began to tremble uncontrollably.

The last person to leave was Jiang Shuishan's tutor, Qiu Lu, a current student of Nanpu University student. She swaggered out through the front door, calmly greeting Jiang Yang upon encountering him, indifferent to what would happen next.

As she brushed past Wang Kun in the passenger seat, she seemed to have foreseen Jiang Yang's fate, knowing that the person in front of her would soon be silenced.

His right hand relaxed, and the mouse fell to the ground with a thud. When Xu Chengyue bent down to pick it up, Lu Yong was discussing something with Dean Dai of the School of Biology, occasionally glancing his way.

He didn't care about their conversation, instead, he found his phone and quickly typed out a message to Gu Yunfeng.

– Where are you?

A reply came swiftly.

– At Ying Xizi's place.

Xu Chengyue slammed his laptop shut with a bang, grabbed it with one hand, and walked out of the meeting room without any word to Lu Yong, under the gaze of everyone.

He had no interest in their discussion, he only wanted to see Gu Yunfeng immediately and share this bold idea with him.

In the intense sunlight, Xu Chengyue's skin looked particularly pale. He raised a hand to shield his eyes and walked straight off campus through the bustling grounds. He didn't even stop to think why Gu Yunfeng would be at such a place but directly hailed a taxi to Ying Xizi's doorstep.

Ying Xizi's house was very close to the school, only a five-minute taxi ride away. He ran upstairs, still holding his laptop, and was about to knock when the door opened by itself.

Gu Yunfeng stood in front of him, his left hand bandaged, his face full of hopelessness.

Seeing him, the despair on his face was immediately replaced by astonishment. "What are you doing here?"

"I, I know who the other killer is," he gently bent over, panting and leaning on the door for support. After saying this, he paused and looked at Gu Yunfeng with a complicated expression.

"Who is it?" Gu Yunfeng asked instinctively. But he quickly realised this wasn't the place for such discussions, nodded appreciatively, and said, "You've finally come to save me from disaster. Let's discuss work somewhere quieter."

He turned to wave at Ying Xizi, intending to leave with a serious expression.

Immediately, the girl's shrill voice stopped them in their tracks.

"Neither of you is allowed to leave!"

—————

The three of them sat awkwardly around the same table. Ying Xizi's parents, seated on the sofa, watched the three young people stare at each other, none daring to speak first.

"It's been a while, Chengyue, why are you here too?" Ying Han looked at him in surprise, sensing something odd.

"I'm here to see our captain," Xu Chengyue said seriously, drinking several glasses of water in quick succession. Suddenly, he realised something was off. He turned sharply to Gu Yunfeng, eyes filled with suspicion. "Wait a minute, why are you here? Are you two close?"

"Why am I here... haha..." Gu Yunfeng laughed awkwardly, feeling caught between a rock and a hard place. He forced a smile and shot a pleading look at Ying Xizi.

He couldn't exactly say he was here because of Professor Xu's abnormal brain CT scan.

Ying Xizi avoided Gu Yunfeng's gaze, her earlier boldness disappearing. She clasped her hands together, staring at the tea in front of her in silence.

She didn't know why she felt so guilty.

"Xiao Gu is visiting our house," Ying Han said naturally. "You know, Chengyue, my daughter isn't young anymore, I want her to meet more people, especially young men around her. Your Captain Gu is quite a good match."

"Ah?" Xu Chengyue looked baffled as he glanced from Ying Xizi to his captain.

"No, it's not like that." Gu Yunfeng nudged Xu Chengyue's arm and whispered.

After saying that, he let out a deep breath, and found himself unable to explain the situation. He couldn't find the words.

As he watched Xu Chengyue's expression grow darker, Gu Yunfeng's heart sank. What a mess of complicated relationships!

Ying Xizi's parents seemed to want to match him with their daughter. Ying Xizi originally liked Xu Chengyue, but now... she seemed to have feelings for him?

When did this start? He hadn't noticed.

A cold sweat formed on Gu Yunfeng's hands. How did he become the focal point of all these conflicts? He suddenly felt the heavy burden on his shoulders, he had to be responsible for several people.

Under everyone's gaze, he almost forgot his original purpose for visiting Ying Xizi's house. He was here to look for clues about Xu Chengyue's illness, but now he wanted to run away every second.

"Not like what?" Ying Han was even more puzzled. He looked at his daughter, who was avoiding the awkward atmosphere with her head down, and simply wanted to reach out and lift his daughter's head up.

But he held back and, after a long adjustment, finally said kindly to the three young people, "You all take your time to talk. Xizi's mother and I will cook, stay for dinner."

After Ying Han left, all three of them breathed a sigh of relief.

The clock on the wall ticked steadily. Xu Chengyue, sitting opposite Gu Yunfeng, stared intently at the two of them and continued questioning with a stern face, "Why are you here?"

Before Gu Yunfeng could answer, Xu Chengyue seemed to grasp something and said with a meaningful wink, "Could it be... you two are..."

"Us?" Gu Yunfeng realised that his hands and feet were numb. He forced a bitter smile, covering half his face with his hand, and glanced at Ying Xizi, who clearly didn't want to get involved. He quickly waved his hand at Xu Chengyue, "It's not what you think."

"What do you think I'm thinking?"

What a mess. Gu Yunfeng tilted his head back to look up at the clouds outside the window, catching a sour smell from the kitchen. He mustered the courage to drink a large cup of tea made by the coffee machine.

I know what you're thinking.

But it's not like that.

"Actually..." His gaze shifted back indoors, and he finally made a big decision. He quickly grabbed Xu Chengyue's hand and earnestly said to Ying Xizi, "Actually, I like Professor Xu."

‿︵‿︵ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ・❉・ ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ‿︵‿︵

Previous Chapter | TOC | Next Chapter

Translator Notes

Please feel free to comment any mistakes I made so I can improve and do better as I go through the book.

Translated: August 24, 2024 by Angel

Edited: November 8, 2024 by Angel