Pure Darkness

Chapter 37

More information is revealed about Ke Qian as the Anime Murder mystery deepens. What did they do to Ke Qian, and why? Perhaps the issues being debated reflect the questions we all face: why is it always so difficult to reconcile one's dreams with the realities of life?

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To say that no one is surprised is impossible. Who would have thought that the insignificant Ke Qian could do something this big?

Thinking about it, though, he was indeed the only one who could do it. He is very intelligent, and his grades at university have always been good. For days, he had worked long hours, busy in the studio, figuring out what information. He also often went out on his own, using public transport, and no one knew where he was going. Moreover, only he can write and understand English, understand what is meant by ‘investment angel’ and ‘investment feasibility report’.

However, the human heart is changing. Yes, this news is fun for everyone. But, it was unexpectedly achieved by Ke Qian, the person they had always led. This made them all feel somewhat uncomfortable.

However, it seemed that Ke Qian was completely unaware of their discomfort. Seeing everyone silent, he excitedly began to explain his plan, trying to convince everyone. “. . . With that much money, we do not have to worry about our livelihood for at least the next two years, nor do we need to rush to find a job. I can draw up a short-term plan for the studio. We can enter major competitions at home, even in competitions abroad. Once we build our reputation, there will be a steady stream of business opportunities. We can buy better costumes, equipment and props, we can create official website and weibo account, we can promote Xiaofeng and Lu Ji as our star cosplayers. .”

In the end, some people smiled hearing him, and it seemed like he had set the atmosphere on fire.

At this moment, Jiang Xueran asked one question. “So, is this money for all of us to use?”

Ke Qian hesitated for a moment, then replied, “Ya!”

“We have to think about it carefully,” Jiang Xueran said.

“. . . okay.”

Ke Qian rented a place in a civilian residential building*near their studio. That night, they left the studio together; only Ke Qian was not with them.

*T/N (min ju) – China has many kinds of traditional or typical residential buildings, according to geographical conditions, climate, and lifestyle of people living in each region (see https://baike.baidu.com/item / ⁇ ). For example, in Beijing, the traditional arrangement of residences is the style of ‘page’, where the building is laid around a square or rectangular courtyard.

Lu Ji hesitated a bit. “What do you all think? I think Ke Qian's proposal is pretty good. It's just, if I don't find a job but work for the studio, I'm not sure if my family will agree.”

Rong Xiaofeng said, “We don't have to not work, we can always work part-time, and that's good enough. Two million! We could buy a lot of nice clothes, and we could even rent a better studio. Do you think we can even share some of that money so we can each spend it as we wish? ”

When he revealed this idea, everyone laughed.

Xu Sheng said, “Work part-time, share money – I don't know if Ke Qian will agree.”

Everyone was a little surprised.

Wen Xiaohua said, “Jiang ge , what do you think?” Everyone looked at Jiang Xueran.

Jiang Xueran had been silent from the start. Now, he smiled and said, “He is dreaming. Did you all dream with him? Two million is a big amount of money. His luck must have been pretty good if he could trick someone into parting with this amount. I think whoever it is definitely does not know the current state of the domestic cosplay world. Or, maybe it's the rich who just have fun. That whoever it is, the son of a rich man, don't you think he'll also throw money into the game world? How long do you think his interest will last? ”

Everyone is silent.

“Jiang ge , you mean, this situation can not be?” Lu Ji asked. “Then, what do we do?”

“When I was involved in the anime community while at university, it was because, first, I was interested in that field, and, secondly, it was, I want to gain real-life work experience to increase my chances of getting a job. . I never planned to rely on this for my livelihood. Two million for use by the six of us – how long will it last? Currently, renting an apartment in Beijing for a year costs tens of thousands of dollars. There is no need to talk about buying equipment and props, setting up a company or anything else. Was what he proposed so easy to accomplish? Do you really think that it will go smoothly? What happens if we enter a competition and do not win a prize? What happens if we don't build a name for ourselves? At that time, investors will not be willing to invest any more money in us, so what happens when we finish spending what we have? At that time, we will not have any work experience, a few years will pass, who will want to hire us? Today, we are all recent graduates, and finding a job is already very difficult. My friends who work in the field of human resources told me that people who have graduated for several years but do not have work experience are shunned from the job market, and it's even harder to find a job than a fresh graduate. Are you all really still planning to risk your future on someone like Ke Qian? ” My friends who work in the field of human resources told me that people who have graduated for several years but do not have work experience are shunned from the job market, and it's even harder to find a job than a fresh graduate. Are you all really still planning to risk your future on someone like Ke Qian? ” My friends who work in the field of human resources told me that people who have graduated for several years but do not have work experience are shunned from the job market, and it's even harder to find a job than a fresh graduate. Are you all really still planning to risk your future on someone like Ke Qian? ”

On the dark and silent road, everyone fell silent.

Then, Rong Xiaofeng said, “But, I love cosplay. This could be the only chance for us to realize our dream.”

Wen Xiaohua's lips moved silently.

However, Jiang Xueran said, “Do not believe his words. All the talk about trying it, life is more than just resigned to one's fate, it is poetry and distant places that are yearned for but beyond the reach that give meaning to life* – all bullshit. Those who really dare to ‘place far’ are those who live poor and disappointed. Those who stay behind, find a place in society and have a solid foot on the ground are the ones who are finally able to achieve a higher social status. Then again, what you all thought turned out to be a very good**. Ke Qian had no mother or father; if she produced just enough for herself, she had no family that would starve. Of course there was less pressure on him. But, what about us? If we do this, will our parents agree?”

**T/N He's being sarcastic.

These words really touched everyone's weak point.

They won't agree. No parent would agree. There was no need to even think about their response.

“Then, does that mean we break away from Ke Qian, and let her handle everything by herself?” Lu Ji asked.

Jiang Xueran did not immediately reply, but observed the others seriously.

“This amount of money was earned using information from our studio. So, everyone has a role in the application for investment, right?”

“Mm.” “Ya.”

“He also said that this amount of money belongs to all of us, right?” Jiang Xueran then asked.

“Stool once.” “Ya.”

“What do you mean?” Xu Sheng's eyes twinkled.

“Because the money belongs to everyone, and most of us do not agree with starting a business, we have to share it.” Jiang Xueran said, “He gathered all the information, so he had to get a bigger share, $400,000. I have calculated, we will all get $320,000 each. What say?”

Everyone looked at each other. No one spoke up to defend the idea, but no one raised any objections.

After all, this was a sizable sum of money for recent graduates from ordinary family backgrounds. Finance will not be a pressing issue for a long time.

“What if he won't give us money?” ask Rong Xiaofeng. “He's always selfish.”

Jiang Xueran said, “That money belongs to all of us, what power should he resist? Let's leave it for two days and give him a cool attitude during that time. Afterwards, Lu Ji, you and I can go and talk to him again and get his money back.”

……

The sun gradually crept higher, and the hole also gradually became deeper.

Fang Qing crouched down on the side of the hole and his brows slowly fused with wrinkles. The hole was already so deep, yet, aside from the random items they had dug up before, there was no further discovery.

Wen Xiaohua stuttered, “That day, we did not dig too deep. . We have already gone through that depth, he is not there, he really went.” Xu Sheng's face was deathly pale. He ran to the side of the hole and peered into it carefully, his lips trembling.

Bo Jinyan smiled coldly. “Hm, this is very interesting.”

Jian Yao asked the two of them, “That night, did you make sure he really died?”

“She is dead. .” Wen Xiaohua sobbed, and said, “When we got to her place, she was lying on the ground, her blood splattered on the floor. . Her eyes were wide open, she had long stopped breathing and her body was cold. .”

Xu Sheng's expression was terrible. He looked at Jian Yao and said, “We are very sure that he is dead. By the way he was, there was no way he would still be alive. ”

If you've ever seen a corpse with your own eyes, your words won't go wrong.

The dead and the living are very different.

It was the first time we saw the difference.

Our one-time friends who have worked together for us to kill, as well as our dreams.