investigative chronicle

Chapter 19 Quiet
Yuan Mu also discovered Ji Si'an's problem, and always sent her over later after picking up Zhao Di, or stayed with her for a while to reduce her burden.

When Ji Si'an came home that day, Yuan Mu and Zhao Di were doing their homework in the house.She took the dishes and went to the kitchen to make dinner as usual.Yuan Mu quietly followed in.

"I bought food, you don't have to cook today." Yuan Mu stopped her.

"It's costing you again." Ji Si'an smiled palely.

"Xiao An, what's wrong with you? You look very bad recently." Yuan Mu asked.

"It's nothing, it's just... I can't sleep well at night." Ji Si'an yawned involuntarily.

"Is it difficult to recruit a concubine?" Yuan Mu whispered close to Ji Si'an.

Ji Si'an didn't know how to describe the current Zhaodi, she didn't do anything, but it just made her feel weird.Zhaodi used to be stubborn and awkward, although it would make people angry, but at least it can make people feel alive.Now she is... so quiet, not like a 9-year-old child.

"She... Do you feel that she is much quieter?" Seeing that Ji Si'an hadn't spoken, Yuan Mu continued to whisper.

"It's not just quiet..., it's a very strange feeling..." When Ji Si'an said this, he looked sideways at the door, and Zhaodi had already stood at the door before he knew it.

When Zhao Di saw Ji Si'an saw her, she still said in a timid voice: "Sister, I have finished my homework."

Their conversation had to be discontinued.Yuan Mu walked out with a smile. "Our recruitment is really good. Come and sister will take you to preview tomorrow's homework. Let Xiao An sister heat up the dishes, and we will eat later."

Ji Si'an looked at their backs thoughtfully.These days, every time she wakes up from a nightmare, Zhaodi always appears by her side and looks at her quietly.Zhaodi's light sleep gave Ji Si'an a headache.Moreover, as Yuan Mu said, this child is too quiet, as silent as a cat, which often scares her.

Ji Si'an's house is small, and she has to push out the side cabinet and combine it with the coffee table to make a dining table when eating.She opened the drawer of the sideboard with a little force...Ji Si'an's things are always tidy, and all the drawer doors are closed tightly.She scrutinized the open drawer, the upturned notebook caught her attention....

"Xiao An, what's the matter with you?" Yuan Mu asked aloud when he saw that Ji Si'an hadn't moved away while holding the dishes.

"Oh, the drawer slid open, I'm closing the drawer." Ji Si'an pressed the notebook down and closed the drawer again.

Yuan Mu is as careful as a hair. "That's not like your style, have you lost something?"

Before Ji Si'an could speak, Zhaodi straightened her back and whispered, "I opened it. My pen is out of water. I want to find a pen. I'm sorry... I won't dare next time."

"You can tell me what you want to find in the future." Ji Si'an's tone was light.

Yuan Mu glanced at Ji Si'an, and guessed that there might be a secret she didn't want to be known in the drawer.

Zhaodi lowered her head and blushed, tears rolling down her eyes.Yuan Mu had no choice but to pull her into his arms, comfort and explain in a low voice.

Even so, Ji Si'an didn't speak either.That notebook hides her past, her memories, and her fragility and sadness that she has never shown to others.

After eating a bland dinner, Yuan Mu had to leave because he was on night shift.Before leaving, she worriedly pulled Ji Si'an and wanted to give some more advice, but when she saw Zhaodi who was following behind with her head bowed, she swallowed back the words, and only patted Ji Si'an's arm to express comfort.

After Ji Si'an got up and took Zhaodi to bed, she was about to turn off the lights and leave.Zhaodi whispered, "I'm sorry."

Ji Si'an paused for a long time, but decided to clarify with Zhaodi. "I haven't lived with anyone before. I didn't remind you that there is my responsibility. In the future, I will mark and lock some cabinets that I don't want others to move. This way we will all be at ease."

Zhaodi sobbed softly, and Ji Si'an sighed and sat down on the bed again. "Are you not used to living here?"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Di hurriedly shook her head vigorously.

"I don't mean anything else, I just... just feel that you don't seem to sleep well at night..." Ji Si'an gently wiped away the tears from Zhaodi's face.

"Sister... I... I always have nightmares... I... Am I useless... I can't remember anything. The thing that the police uncle asked... I can't remember at all."

"I tried desperately to remember...but every time there was only one big hand covering me under the quilt...holding me tightly...it was terrible...I dare not sleep."

Zhaodi's crying made Ji Si'an feel as if a knife was twisting her heart...why didn't she blame herself so much.Ji Si'an hugged Zhaodi tightly, feeling guilty that she was still a child...

It was late at night when Zhaodi settled down, but Ji Si'an didn't feel sleepy. As soon as she took out the notebook and opened it, the photos inside fell down...Ji Si'an picked up the photo and glanced at the bedroom...She remembered that she put this photo in the interlayer of the book cover...how could it fall out so easily....

This notebook is a diary she wrote before, and she hasn't opened it for a long time.Maybe I remembered wrongly, she comforted herself and wanted to put the photo in the interlayer.The girl's smile in the photo made her stunned for a moment, her sister... Zhaodi actually looks somewhat similar to her sister.

She caressed the face in the photo. At that time, her mother was so young, her fair face, light and delicate eyebrows and eyes matched her tall and handsome father very well.They must have loved each other back then.She touched the baby in her mother's arms with tears in her eyes, and this fleshy and energetic appearance turned out to be herself...She carefully put the photo back into her notebook, the only image they had left of her.

In the early morning, Ji Si'an woke up again from a light sleep. She felt that she should go to see a Chinese medicine doctor. Too little sleep has affected her work and life, and she can't go on like this.After making up her mind, she closed her eyes and felt a lot more at ease.

At this moment, a slight sound came from the balcony, and Ji Si'an's body instantly woke up, and all the sensory cells in his body were mobilized to detect the source of the sound.Before she could think about anything, her hand had already consciously reached under the pillow to hold the little bee...

As the sound got closer, Ji Si'an determined that it was the sound of shoe soles rubbing against the floor, someone...She seemed to have returned to a scene in a nightmare, and every step the other party took seemed to be stepping on her nerves.Just when she was about to lose her composure and was about to rush to the door, the voice suddenly stopped.

bedroom?Ji Si'an's house has a structure of one bedroom and one living room. The living room is the entrance, the kitchen is on the left, the bathroom and bedroom are on the right, and the balcony is outside the bedroom.

The other party entered the bedroom... Ji Si'an hesitated for a moment and decided to rescue Zhaodi.She rushed to the bedroom door but saw Zhaodi sleeping soundly on the bed, and there was no one else in the room except her...Unwillingly, Ji Si'an opened the cabinet and curtains, and checked all the places where he could find Tibetans, but he still didn't find anything.

"Sister... what's wrong with you?" Zhaodi asked, rubbing her sleepy eyes.

"Oh, it's okay... there are mosquitoes... I'll find a mosquito coil and light it for you." Ji Si'an panicked lamely.

"Go to bed quickly. My sister won't bother you anymore. You have to go to school tomorrow." Ji Si'an exited the room in a panic.

Ji Si'an was lying on the bed, dizzy, she couldn't tell whether what just happened was her dream or reality...

(End of this chapter)