Chapter 5: Is It Really You?

Su Tianmu hung up the call from the bureau and stood frozen in place, unable to utter a word for a long time.

“Captain Su, what’s going on?” Xiao Wang noticed something was amiss and quickly asked.

“It’s alright, thank you all. Class is about to start, you’d better head back now.” Su Tianmu swiftly composed himself, smiling at the group of students.

After all, they were still young; the children could hardly grasp what true death meant. The moment the bell rang, they hurriedly dashed toward their classroom.

As it turned out, after careful analysis by the technical team, the fragment with writing on it was found to originate from a school textbook.

Further scrutiny of the remaining content confirmed it was from a middle school curriculum.

This discovery struck Su Tianmu like a blow to the head.

He never imagined that the boy he had quietly pitied might actually be a suspect.

Perhaps the child had his own reasons, but a crime remains a crime; personal circumstances cannot excuse it.

Moreover, this was a blast that claimed multiple lives.

“Let’s go, we need to return to the bureau immediately,” Su Tianmu said heavily to Xiao Wang.

Neither spoke on the way back. If Liu Dong truly was the suspect, his motive most likely related to the incident of being replaced for the elite high school recommendation.

Yet, for now, everything was still conjecture. Even with the note discovered, there was no definitive proof linking Liu Dong directly to the explosion.

But just as Su Tianmu and Xiao Wang returned to the bureau, Liu Dong’s homeroom teacher called.

He said Liu Dong had left some belongings at school before his death and wanted to know if the police needed them.

“Xiao Wang, would you go and bring them back? See if we can find any more clues.”

“Alright, Captain Su, I’ll go right away!”

Once Xiao Wang departed, Su Tianmu began piecing together the clues they had gathered over the past few days.

First, it was certain that an explosive device existed; the accident wasn’t caused by a malfunction of the bus itself. Second, as things stood, Liu Dong likely had a motive—resentment toward society, a desire for revenge.

But if Liu Dong really was the perpetrator, why act on the last bus with the fewest passengers? And why sacrifice himself? It didn’t fit the logic of someone seeking vengeance against society.

Xiao Wang took only half an hour to retrieve Liu Dong’s belongings from the school.

Aside from an old mobile phone, the rest were ordinary study supplies.

The phone was outdated and had long been switched off due to lack of power.

“Send the phone for technical analysis right away,” Su Tianmu ordered.

He truly hoped not to find any further evidence connecting Liu Dong to the bombing, but as a police officer, he had to face reality with impartiality.

Meanwhile, for Xia Wuyou, her days consisted of work and returning home to comfort the youthful soul of the deceased. Hoping for his early release, she visited the police station whenever she found time, yearning for progress in the case.

“Brother Su, how’s it going? Any new discoveries today?” As time passed, Xia Wuyou naturally came to address Su Tianmu as “Brother,” and he gladly accepted this unexpected addition to his family.

“Do you know, during investigations, cases rarely progress as we wish. Often, we encounter many unexpected developments—it’s perfectly normal,” Su Tianmu said, preparing Xia Wuyou mentally for the possibility that the case might affect her.

He didn’t know when he began to care about her feelings.

Though at first, they’d felt no fondness for each other.

“If you think there’s anything new I can’t handle, you’re mistaken!” Smart as ever, Xia Wuyou easily caught the meaning behind his words.

“The blows I’ve endured would be hard for most people to withstand! Don’t worry, go ahead. I’ve been tempered by countless trials,” she said confidently, hands on her waist, chin raised with pride.

Time had tempered her, and now she could speak easily about the tragedy that befell her parents.

Though she seemed strong, in Su Tianmu’s eyes, she evoked a deep tenderness.

Looking at the petite girl who considered herself formidable, a warmth flickered in Su Tianmu’s resolute gaze.

“Oh!” Su Tianmu momentarily forgot the gravity of the case, leaning against the desk, propping his chin, and looking at her askew.

“So the giant standing before me is barely over one meter fifty tall!” he teased, adopting a rare playful expression.

Though his tone was meant to lighten the mood, Xia Wuyou focused only on his face—handsome, almost dangerously so.

For a moment, she was stunned, lost in the depths of his gaze.

“Captain Su…” Xiao Wang’s sudden arrival shattered the awkward atmosphere.

Perhaps realizing his timing was off, Xiao Wang glanced at the two and tried to leave, but Su Tianmu called him back.

“Wait, where are you going?”

Su Tianmu immediately abandoned his playful demeanor, assuming his usual commanding presence.

“Uh, I just wanted to tell you—there’s something really suspicious in Liu Dong’s phone!”

Xiao Wang returned, answering awkwardly.

“Is it really… that child?” Xia Wuyou asked quietly.

Her calm expression suggested the suspicion regarding Liu Dong didn’t surprise her.

If even the police had found something questionable, her own suspicions were likely correct.

“What do you know?” Su Tianmu looked at her curiously.

It turned out that Liu Dong’s phone revealed searches about homemade explosives, and traces of purchasing related materials from an online platform.

Xia Wuyou shared her findings with Su Tianmu; connecting information from several sources, it was now certain Liu Dong was directly linked to the bomb.

However, they still had no direct evidence that the bomb on the bus was the one Liu Dong purchased and assembled.

Though all signs pointed to Liu Dong, neither Su Tianmu nor Xia Wuyou wanted to believe, deep in their hearts, that he was the culprit.