Wenjie didn't have to say anything else. The name was sufficient. Xu Zhengqing. That bastard was still alive. Xiao Dao jumped out of the car without closing the door behind him. His only thought was his friend, who was in danger. As fast as he could, he ran to the stairs that led up to the apartment. 

"I'll be right there." He rushed upstairs. As he did so, he regularly took two steps at a time. Shortly, he reached the floor where the apartment was located. No light was burning in the hallway. Nevertheless, he sprinted on. There was a crash behind him, because he knocked over boxes that were standing there. 

Finally, he reached the door. Out of breath, he pushed down the handle. It was locked. "Wenjie!" He literally banged on the door, which must have alerted a neighbor. For there was a creaking sound diagonally behind him. 

"What's that ruckus?"

Ding Wei turned around. An elderly woman had opened her apartment door and was looking out into the hallway. She was wearing only a nightgown and slippers. Her white hair was disheveled, probably because the noise had just made her get out of bed.

"If you don't stop this right now, I'm calling the police!"

The police. Under other circumstances, Xiao Dao would have shut up immediately and hunkered down. But this was an emergency. "Yes, please do so. Contact Captain Luo Jian and tell him to come here." 

Confusion was reflected in the wrinkled features. 

"My friend is in danger."

At that moment, he heard a click that prompted him to turn back toward Wenjie's apartment door. He was prepared to see Xu Zhengqing, but it was Wenjie. 

"Excuse me, Ms. Chen. It's all right. My friend is exaggerating." 

Before Ding Wei could say anything, Wenjie had grabbed him by the arm and pulled him into the apartment. Mrs. Chen muttered something unintelligible. But out of the corner of his eye, Xiao Dao still noticed her closing her door again. 

In Wenjie's apartment, the main lights were on. The room was apparently empty. At least he saw no one in the kitchen area. No one was sitting at the table either. Only Wenjie's clothes were hanging over a chair. In the back, by the windows, he spotted the dresser that stood in front of the outlet for the landline. Next to it was a stack of books. Moving deeper into the room, he caught a glimpse of the bed. The blanket was rumpled. 

"False alarm, sorry," Wenjie said.

He was as pale as cheese, as if he had seen a ghost. Not very convincing. Without further ado, Ding Wei yanked open the bathroom door. There was no one there either. With a frown, he turned to his friend, who poured him a glass of water in the kitchen area and brought it to the table. 

"Are you sure he wasn't here?" The door had been locked. And as far as he had seen, there were no signs of a break-in. 

Wenjie nodded and sat down on his bed. 

Xiao Dao breathed a sigh of relief. False alarm or not. He was glad he had reacted right away. His buddy could tell him whatever he wanted. The way he looked, he needed help. "What happened? And don't say nothing now."

"The light blinded me. I thought Xu Zhengqing was sitting there on the chair."

Ding Wei grabbed the other chair and placed it opposite the bed, about a meter away from it. The back was facing Wenjie, so Xiao Dao could rest his arms on it and look at his friend. "Did this happen a lot, since you were released? I mean, that you thought you were seeing him?"

Wenjie nodded again, then wrapped himself in his blanket.

"Should I drive you to the hospital, get you checked out again?" Restless, Xiao Dao tapped his fingers on the wood. Was it possible that the doctors had failed to remove the poison entirely? Or where did the hallucinations come from? 

"They won't find anything." Wenjie's tone sounded tired. "It could also be a trauma sequelae disorder."

"Then you should see a doctor too," Ding Wei indicated. 

"I know. But I want to do this on my own."

"That's stupid. Why are you so stubborn?" Xiao Dao jumped up again. In doing so, he almost knocked over the chair.

His friend winced.

"Listen. The doctors can tell you for sure if it's something mental. Get some clothes on. I'll drive you there."

Wenjie didn't move. 

Xiao Dao clicked his tongue. Then he just sat down next to him and put an arm around his shoulder. The fact that Wenjie didn't swat him away almost worried him. "We should also ask Captain Luo if we can see him, Xu Zhengqing. Then we'll know for sure if he's dead."

That's when Wenjie did something completely unexpected. He leaned against his shoulder. "Captain Luo said there was a fire. His face is no longer recognizable. The coroner could only determine who it was from a DNA sample."

Ding Wei raised an eyebrow skeptically. "The coroner could have been lying." 

"Why would he do that?" The younger man straightened up and now pushed his friend's hand off his shoulder after all. "Nobody was here for real. And the people I thought were him, all looked like Mr. Xu only from behind. He's dead."

Xiao Dao shrugged his shoulders. "If you say so. But I'd feel better if you went to the hospital to get checked out. You just gave me a big scare. I thought that bastard was there, harming you again."

Wenjie looked at him with an expressionless face. "Sorry."

"No big deal, man. If you need me, I'm always here."

"Don't tell me you were sleeping down there in the car."

Ding Weis's eyes widened noticeably. The car. He had just left the door open, and in the middle of the night. The area wasn't known for burglaries, but if someone wanted to steal his car, it would be on display now. Even the ignition key was in it. "Oh, damn," he gasped. Hastily, he jumped up. "I didn't lock the car."

Wenjie walked over to the window and pushed the curtain aside. "Still standing there. Go on down. I'll be right down."

Xiao Dao hesitated.

"He wasn't here. Even if you're right. The coroner might have made a mistake. It still feels unreal that Monsieur should be dead."

Who was he saying that to? "'That's why' I'm keeping watch down there." He grinned wryly before heading downstairs. On the way, he met no one. It really seemed to have been a false alarm. And yet, he was on pins and needles as he waited for Wenjie down by the car. Nervously, he played with his lighter as he walked up and down the sidewalk next to the car. 

There was hardly any traffic on the street. At this hour, most people were asleep. A light breeze was blowing and it remained quiet until Wenjie appeared under the cone of light from the street lamps. Ding Wei breathed an inward sigh of relief, walked around the car and opened the passenger door for him. 

His friend was carrying a backpack, with hopefully more than just books as its contents. Xiao Dao hoped, however, that the doctor would not want to keep him there overnight. Gently, he closed the door after Wenjie got in, then circled the car and took a seat in the driver's seat. With a soft click, he closed his door, fastened his seat belt and started the car. 

to be continued...