Taboo Mage - Chapter 69 - A Chance Encounter with Murder

The journey from City A to Shenyang offered pleasant scenery. The truck driver, a sociable man, engaged me in conversation about everything under the sun. Jue Chi, influenced by the chatter, put down his romance novel and occasionally joined in.

Due to a traffic jam halfway, we were expected to reach the hotel by evening but ended up stuck at a service area.

I had never experienced a night without returning home before, and felt a mix of anticipation. Jue Chi, having been a monk for a long time and accustomed to traveling, seemed much calmer by comparison.

The most upset was the truck driver. Upon hearing that we would have to spend the night at the service area, his face instantly darkened. He squatted on the supermarket steps within the area, smoking three cigarettes in a row.

Having dry-swallowed a few buns during the day, my throat felt almost smoky. I got out of the truck and headed straight for the supermarket, where I picked up three packs of instant noodles and two bags of pickled vegetables.

As I left the supermarket, the truck driver was halfway through his third cigarette, with two butts lying on the ground by his feet. He leaned against a pillar, blowing smoke rings, while chatting with a man next to him.

“Old Li, you’ve been on the road this long and haven’t gone back yet?”

The speaker was a man standing opposite the truck driver. From their conversation, they seemed to be old acquaintances, but it’s common for long-haul drivers to know a few fellow drivers for companionship on the road.

The truck driver shook his head, tossing the half-smoked cigarette to the ground and gesturing towards me with a nod, “No idea what’s going on. The roads to Shenyang are all blocked, and even trains and high-speed trains are down. Even our long-haul route has been closed for over a month, only reopening a couple of days ago.”

“You haven’t been home in two months, doesn’t your wife miss you?” The man chuckled, revealing yellowed teeth and a lecherous grin.

“Get lost! I’ve been sick of your nagging for a long time!” Perhaps stung by the man’s words, the truck driver bent down to pick up the cigarette butt and threw it at the man.

The man jumped back with a laugh, “Li Jianjun! Stop trying to hide it, we all know about the problems in your family…”

“Get lost!”

Holding a packet of instant noodles, I was originally standing on the side watching the commotion, but when I saw the truck driver getting furiously embarrassed, I quickly moved aside. Just in case he really got angry and took it out on me, that would be trouble.

This service area is divided into three parts: on the far left is the gas station, in the middle is a supermarket and a fast food restaurant, and on the far right are the public restrooms.

I placed the instant noodles on a chair outside the fast food restaurant, grabbed a cup to fill with hot water, and looked up for Jue Chi.

Jue Chi was just coming out of the public restroom, and something seemed off about his complexion. I waved at him, signaling him to come over and eat something.

“Qingshu, are we sure we want to sleep here tonight?”

After sitting down, I pushed the noodles towards him. He stirred them with a spoon and suddenly looked up at me.

I slurped a mouthful and felt a warm rush directly from my throat to my stomach. That feeling was so exhilarating that my legs almost cramped.

“What’s wrong? Not used to this kind of place?” I asked casually, looking up.

Jue Chi shook his head, “Nothing, the instant noodles are good. Remember to get me the shrimp and fish cake flavor next time.”

I almost spit out a mouthful of soup. This bald monk, now he’s even ordering me around!

After finishing the noodles, I looked at the time; it was already nine at night. Li Jianjun had come by earlier to tell us to rest early and start out at dawn.

After tossing the noodle bowl, I pulled a blanket from the truck, draped it over myself, and crawled into the truck to sleep.

Though I had been sitting in the truck all day, the seats were narrow and cramped, and I could barely stretch my legs. Now, at last, I could rest. Within minutes, I had fallen asleep.

In a hazy drowsiness, it seemed like I could hear the sound of police sirens, as if it were a dream within a dream. I turned over, planning to continue sleeping.

But the sound of the sirens grew louder, disturbing my sweet dream. Annoyed, I covered my ears tightly, but the noise only increased. I threw off the blanket and sat up abruptly.

In the pitch-black night sky, the sound of sirens wailed in my ears, while the red and blue lights flickered before my eyes. I was stunned for a moment until someone came over to knock on my car window, snapping me back to reality.

Rolling down the window, I saw a young man in a police uniform standing opposite me. He looked to be in his early twenties, and under the dim light, the badge on his cap was particularly glaring.

“What happened?” I rubbed my eyes, asking bewilderedly.

First, he pulled out a pen from his jacket pocket, glanced at me, and asked coldly, “Who are you? Why are you in this car?”

“My name is Gu… Wait, what actually happened? You haven’t told me yet.”

I pushed the door open and jumped out of the car, looking around. How did I manage to lose sight of Jue Chi and Li Jianjun after just a nap?

The service area, usually quiet, was now filled with police cars, and dozens of armed police officers stood guard, with caution tape all around.

I was completely baffled, feeling as if I had woken up in a different era.

“Ah, here’s what happened: there was a murder at this service area just now. The victim was a long-distance bus driver, and we are conducting some routine questioning,” the young police officer explained, realizing his overly serious demeanor might be intimidating, so he cracked a small smile.

My eyes widened in shock. “The victim, it couldn’t be Li Jianjun, could it?”

“No.”

Relieved by the police officer’s response, I took a deep breath. As long as it wasn’t Li Jianjun, that was manageable. Otherwise, where would I find another driver for the rest of the trip?

“However… Li Jianjun is a suspect and has been lawfully arrested.”

His words sent a chill down my spine. Talking in gasps, this way of giving hope only to dash it was truly a rollercoaster of emotions.

I was just thinking about how Li Jianjun seemed like such an honest person, how could he suddenly become a suspect?

The police officer had already opened his notebook and started asking a string of questions.

Most of these questions were trivialities, but they covered a broad range, from how long I had known Li Jianjun to the last person I saw before going to sleep.

Holding to the excellent tradition of a cooperative citizen, I dutifully answered all of the police officer’s questions thoroughly.

The officer, satisfied, closed his notebook and moved on to the next person. I heaved a sigh of relief and quickly turned to look for Jue Chi.