Chapter 49: Like a Nightmare

Qi Fei's exclamation directly startled those outside. Hearing the approaching footsteps, she immediately put on her face mask.

With the sound of the door being pushed open, a criminal police officer walked in.

"Consultant Qi, what happened?"

When Zhao Shan left, he had specifically instructed them that she was the consultant he had brought in.

"It's nothing."

"I'm just going out to get some fresh air."

Returning to the lounge once more for an agonizing wait, after who knows how long, her cell phone suddenly rang in the quiet room. Seeing that it was Zhao Shan's number, Qi Fei answered and hurriedly pressed:

"How is it? Has the girl been rescued?"

"Yes, she has already been arranged to be sent to the hospital."

Hearing those words, Qi Fei collapsed onto the sofa as if all her strength had been drained, a smile finally emerging behind her mask for the first time.

"But... we didn't catch the perpetrator."

It was past four or five in the afternoon when Qi Fei saw Zhao Shan return, though his expression was less than pleasant.

Zhao Shan knew that he didn't need to explain; Qi Fei would understand on her own.

The girl had been successfully rescued, but her feet had been severed from the ankles, and judging by the wounds, it must have happened just a few days ago.

Moreover, the girl had suffered severe trauma, shifting between lucidity and confusion. Her mental state was clearly compromised, making it impossible for her to provide any useful information.

[She kept saying in her mouth, 'Please let me go, I don't taste good, I'm sick.']

"Are... are the remains of those other girls found?" Qi Fei wanted to avoid using the word bones.

Zhao Shan shook his head. When he left, they hadn't been.

Everyone had their duties, and such specialized matters required professionals. Fearing that Qi Fei had been waiting anxiously, he had rushed back just to give her an update.

"Can I go see the girl?" Zhao Shan keenly sensed that Qi Fei's mental state was wrong.

Besides, now was hardly the time for visitors: "Wait. Wait until she gets better before going."

Qi Fei had originally wanted to say she would go see the girl to see if she could glean any useful information, but since the girl was traumatized and out of her mind, going herself probably wouldn't help.

In fact, the moment she said it, she regretted it. At that moment, she felt both terrified and repulsed at the thought of seeing the girl. If she didn't see her, she could pretend the girl was Youyou, believing that Youyou had survived and wasn't dead.

"I'll send you back. I'll order some takeout for whatever you want to eat." He genuinely had no time to take Qi Fei out for a meal now.

She waved her hand, went outside, hailed a cab, and left.

Unfamiliar with the area, Qi Fei subconsciously gave the driver the address of the lounge bar, figuring there shouldn't be anyone there at this hour.

Seeing the waiter step forward to greet her, Qi Fei felt as though all the strength in her body had been sucked dry, leaving her too weak to say much.

"I remember there's a private room on the second floor, right? Bring me a few bottles of liquor."

After a pause, she added:

"The stronger, the better."

"Don't tell your boss. I want to be alone for a while."

The person responding was Qi Fei's hardcore young fan. Stealing a glance at Qi Fei's pale complexion, she asked hesitantly, "Should we bring all kinds of liquor, or—?"

"Bring all the high-proof ones. Give me several bottles... I'm taking pictures."

Fearing she might frighten the other person, Qi Fei added an excuse.

Seeing them nod, Qi Fei casually grabbed a bottle of whiskey from the counter and headed into the private room.

The staff could clearly sense that Qi Fei's mood was foul, but they knew better than to ask what didn't concern them.

Before long, a dozen bottles of various types and classifications appeared on the table, every single one of them high-proof liquor.

"Help me close the door."

Forget it, she got up and locked the door from the inside. Turning around, she switched off the lights and even pulled the curtains shut, instantly plunging the entire private room into absolute darkness.

Just like that, she curled up alone on the sofa, drinking cup after cup. In a very short span of time, more than half a bottle of liquor was gone.

Her mind was besieged by the dream she had just experienced—her best friend's desperate eyes, lingering pain, and unforgettable, despairing screams, which seemed to echo right by her ears, so vivid and heartbreaking.

At that moment, her entire being was enveloped in sorrow. Her gaze was hollow, with nothing in her eyes save for the glass before her.

The staff occasionally looked up toward the second floor. As time ticked by, the others began to grow uneasy.

Qi Fei had ordered so much alcohol and had been locked in there for two or three hours without a sound. Although they had promised Qi Fei not to tell the boss she was here, they were genuinely terrified something might go wrong.

One of the girls finally couldn't help herself: "Should I go up and check?"

The others nodded quickly, but soon enough, the girl came running back down: "The door is locked, the curtains are drawn, and the lights don't even seem to be on."

"You don't think... something happened, do you?"

Hearing this, the group panicked. If something happened to Qi Fei in their establishment, none of them could bear the responsibility.

At this, a young male staff member took charge and said, "Xiaodong, go tell the boss."

"Yaoyao, take some ice cubes upstairs."

As he spoke, he found the key to the private room and handed it over. Yaoyao, the girl who had first suggested checking upstairs and also one of Qi Fei's devoted fans, was still shocked by the scene that greeted her upon entering.

Several empty wine bottles were scattered messily across the floor.

These were all high-proof spirits, and she had been mixing them like this. One wrong move could genuinely cost someone their life.

Now, she was truly panicked.

She hurriedly ran back down to tell the others to contact the boss, taking a few steps to wave the others away and clear the area. Fortunately, it was still early and there were hardly any customers; if Qi Fei were photographed like this, it would be a disaster.

Returning upstairs, she immediately placed the ice cubes down and, trembling, poured Qi Fei a drink while waiting for news from her colleagues.

Soon, finding pouring too troublesome, Qi Fei simply drank straight from the bottle.

Slowing down even a fraction caused Qi Fei to reach out and snatch the bottle back. Yaoyao discovered to her shock that Qi Fei possessed such immense strength; a momentary hesitation or a word of persuasion was all it took for Qi Fei to yank the bottle away.

Futility met her every attempt to retrieve it; the bottle seemed welded to Qi Fei's hand. Fortunately, reacting quickly, she managed to snatch it back during a brief pause while Qi Fei was swallowing.

Fearing Qi Fei would grab the bottle again, she immediately moved all the remaining alcohol on the table into a nearby cabinet.

Yaoyao was thoroughly frightened by Qi Fei's drinking speed and demeanor; she was genuinely terrified of a tragedy occurring.

She hurriedly asked her colleagues to bring up a few bottles of water, slipping the liquid into Qi Fei's drink whenever she wasn't paying attention.

Even so, the bottle in her hand was nearly empty in no time at all.

Seeing a colleague panting as they rushed back up, Yaoyao thought the boss had arrived, only to hear: "I couldn't reach the boss."

Hearing this, Yaoyao felt like crying. With the boss unreachable, she had no idea who else to contact. She didn't even have the contact information for Young Master Su, who had accompanied Qi Fei last time.

Hearing the persistent ringing of the cell phone on the table, Yaoyao had an inspiration. Privacy was out the window now; she had to do something.

She picked up the phone, approached Qi Fei, and after struggling for a long time, finally managed to unlock the screen. A WeChat group chat appeared before her eyes.

Tapping into it, she discovered there were only five members in the group.

Glancing briefly at the chat history, she guessed that these must all be Qi Fei's close friends.

Thinking typing was too slow and fearing she couldn't explain things clearly in a rush, she directly tapped the video call button.

Qi Fei, who had been completely unresponsive up to this point, suddenly reacted. As she raised her hand, she coincidentally swiped the phone right out of Yaoyao's grip.

"Don't tell Yingying, lest she worry."

Though she had no idea who Yingying was, Yaoyao quickly agreed to whatever Qi Fei demanded.

The phone had been knocked far away, out of Yaoyao's immediate reach, and she had to keep an eye on Qi Fei to prevent her from grabbing more alcohol. Conveniently, the phone landed right beside a decorative object on the coffee table, propping itself up at an angle.

This was the first time any of them had initiated a video call. Seeing that it was Qi Fei calling, Su Xiang was the first to tap in, feeling rather curious as to why Qi Fei would video call today.

Upon connecting, he saw the tilted video feed from Qi Fei's end, and before he could speak, he caught sight of Qi Fei sitting in the distance with a hollow gaze.

Even though he wasn't there in person, and even through the distance of the screen, Qi Fei's entire demeanor signaled that something was terribly wrong.

The second to enter was Shi Lin. Stunned by the sight of Qi Fei, he quickly typed into the chat box: "What's going on?"

"What happened to Qiqi?"

"Xiang Ge, aren't you with Qiqi?"

Wan Yang and Tong Sheng, who hadn't originally planned to answer the call, saw the messages and quickly tapped in as well.