19 Gentlemanly Teacher Gao

 

2 Questions:

1. Did the killer know that he had killed the wrong person?

2. Would he kill again?

To resolve these problems, we went to see Wu Jiajia once more and this time we met with her at her rental apartment. Wu Jiajia did not receive any threatening letters and the stalking had stopped since Zhang Mingliang’s murder. It felt as if the stalker had disappeared or at least disappeared from Wu Jiajia’s life. Wu Jiajia showed us the picture she had taken of her apartment wall. The message was written in red paint. “Don’t push me.”

In terms of handwriting, the message was much more legible compared to the poem written with the human head at the crime scene. Of course, when one considered the different writing instrument used, it was quite understandable. Unfortunately, 3 words were not enough for a handwriting comparison. Then we were handed the threatening letter which had the appearance of a ransom note. “One day, I will rape you and then cut off your head and write with it.” She received this letter the day before Zhang Mingliang’s death. At the time, she called the cops and the police were building a case on it. However, they couldn’t do much with a letter. Furthermore, no harm came to Wu Jiajia. They assumed this was just a scare tactic. What they did not know was Zhang Mingliang was murdered the day after.

“He wrote on the wall the first time so why did he switch to using letter cutouts the second time?” I was confused. True, he might have done this for safety’s sake. Using cutouts, we wouldn’t be able to trace the handwriting. Perhaps the stalker thought he wouldn’t be identified with just 3 characters but writing a long letter would risk his exposure. However, if that was the case, then we had to consider the possibility that Wu Jiajia might recognize the handwriting on the letter if it was handwritten and thus the identity of the stalker himself. He might be someone in Wu Jiajia’s social circle…

At that moment, there was clicking from the front door. A man had just opened the door with his key. Needless to say, this was the new roommate whom Wu Jiajia had invited to move in with her. This man was 1.87 metres tall and he was around 24 years old. He had a full beard but he kept it well trimmed. He looked stern and had an impressive presence. He was thin but through the rolled-up sleeves, one could see the clear lines of his muscles. Guan Zhenglin whispered to me, “Now look at him. That is a fine male specimen. The clothes fit him perfectly and underneath them, you can tell he has a muscular body. He’s also a teacher, that’s so handsome!”

“Gu Chen has bigger muscles than him.” I countered.

“Yea, and that makes him look more like a gorilla than a fashion model.” Guan Zhenglin tutted.

“Gao Rui, you’re back.” Wu Jiajia’s smile bloomed when she saw Gao Rui.

“This must be your maaaaaale friend.” I purposely dragged the word out. But my subtly was lost on Wu Jiajia. She nodded. “Yes, Gao Rui is my colleague and my friend from high school. He has been taking care of me since then, he sees me as his little sister. He’s such a good and neat person. In contrast, I’m very clumsy and have the habit of losing my keys so I gave him a spare key to this place the day I rented it.”

“Wait, you mean he already had your spare key before he moved in with you?” I enquired.

“Of course.” She made the introduction. “Gao Rui, these are the police officers who are here to help me capture that stalker.” The few of us stood up to greet him. I studied Gao Rui’s expression closely. As Gao Rui removed his shoes, he said, “Thank you so much for helping Jiajia. It’s now already 10.30 pm and you’re still working. That’s some dedication.”

“Well, we can say the same for you. You look like you’ve just come back from work too.” I smiled. Gao Rui nodded. “I’m the class teacher for the year 1 students. After they finish with their nightly tuition, it’s already 10 pm. At the start, I wasn’t quite used to it but 1 year has passed since then. It’s part of my life now.”

We asked Gao Rui about the stalker. Since Gao Rui moved in later, he wasn’t familiar with what happened at Wu Jiajia’s previous rental. However he did see the message on the wall and the threatening letter. He commented that things had gotten better since the police had been brought in. The stalker had never returned since then.

We did not plan to inform Wu Jiajia about Zhang Mingliang’s death, after all, there was no need to cause the girl unnecessary panic. Furthermore, Captain Zhao already sent Xiao Liu to protect Wu Jiajia from the dark. On top of that, this Gao Rui could be a good bodyguard as well.

“Your phone has rung multiple times already, aren’t you going to get it?” I glanced at Gao Rui’s phone. “We’ve gotten everything we need for now.”

Gao Rui shrugged helplessly and explained, “I suppose this is the hardship of a long-distance relationship. My girlfriend keeps getting angry at me every few days but she won’t say the reason why. I’m sorry but I think I’ll answer this in my bedroom. If you need me, just call my name.” Then Gao Rui stood up and walked into the room. Once the call was picked up, a woman’s scream could be heard, “We’re definitely breaking up this time. Why didn’t you pick up…”

Well, everyone had their own troubles to face…

Wu Jiajia watched Gao Rui walk into his bedroom and sighed, “You know, I hate to say it but I don’t see a future for them.”

Guan Zhenglin nudged Wu Jiajia’s shoulder and whispered conspiratorially, “Sister Jiajia, from the looks of it, you have a crush on Teacher Gao, right?’

Wu Jiajia blushed and said, “Of course not!”

“But the blush on your cheeks disagrees!” Guan Zhenglin giggled. “Teacher Gao is handsome, tall and has a steady occupation. Even I have a little crush on him so Sister Jiajia, stop acting. I’m sure there are many male friends in your life, there has to be a reason why you’ve invited Teacher Gao to move in with you…”

“He’s already taken.” Wu Jiajia leaned into the couch.

Guan Zhenglin shook her head. “But we all can hear that phone call. Do you think that relationship will last? Sister Jiajia, I’m rooting for you! By the way, since you’re the only two persons living here, has he done anything to reciprocate your feelings for him?”

Guan Zhenglin had disguised her interrogation perfectly under the cover of gossip. Being asked these questions, Wu Jiajia blushed harder. She turned self-consciously towards us two men. Gu Chen and I immediately turned to look out the window. “Gu Chen, look, the moon is quite beautiful tonight.” “Yes, it’s so round.”

Once the girls started gossiping, it was like they had known each other for life.

Wu Jiajia shook her head. “Xiao Lin, to tell you the truth. I’ve liked Gao Rui since high school but I was still too young for a relationship back then, or at least my dad thought so. With a blink of an eye, the 3 years of high school passed. I was so embarrassed to say anything and Gao Rui had always treated me like a little sister. After high school, we were supposed to apply for the same university but for some reason, we got accepted by different universities. Apparently, Gao Rui had his application forms mixed up. I almost cried my heart out, you know. But there was nothing I could do, it was too late to reapply.

“Even though we were not in the same school, we kept in touch through 4 years of university. I found out from our mutual friend that Gao Rui had gotten a girlfriend from his university class. I was so angry, I should have confessed when I had the chance. Regardless, as devastated as I was, I decided to wait. My parents finally had no issue with me getting a boyfriend so I would confess my love to him after he broke up. But Gao Rui’s relationship lasted for the whole of his university life and I’ve been single throughout. Gao Rui and I came from the same city but the girl was from another city, eventually she would have to leave the picture, so I waited further.

“After university graduation, Gao Rui came here for his internship while I joined a post-graduate program. However, I’ve been looking for the opportunity to seek an internship here as well. When I finally got the internship offer, I was overjoyed. However, when I arrived here, Gao Rui had found himself a new girlfriend. Sigh, when will it be my turn?”

Guan Zhenglin suggested, “Sister Jiajia, you’ve liked him for so many years already, I think it’s about time you take more initiative…”

Wu Jiajia hugged the pillow and curled into the couch. She grumbled, “Gao Rui is a true gentleman. Honestly, I was hoping that some sparks would fly with us living under the same roof, but Gao Rui always keeps a respectful distance. Furthermore, the issue with the stalker has been taking up most of my mind… But I did get inspired by the stalker on how to get Gao Rui’s attention.” Wu Jiajia leaned closer to Guan Zhenglin to whisper, “The stalker clearly likes my… erm… personal clothing. So I wanted to use them to test Gao Rui’s reaction. I purposely left one of my bras in our shared bathroom to see if Gao Rui would do anything about it… And, the bra was left inside the humid bathroom untouched for a whole week, it was almost moulding when I had to take it back…”

Guan Zhenglin’s eyes glowed with fireworks. “Wow a real gentleman, that’s a rare breed now always. Then, Sister Jiajia, what did you do next? Did you push further?’

“I’m still a virgin~” Wu Jiajia mumbled shyly, “What else do you expect me to do?! Aren’t you a virgin too?”

“Of course I am!” Guan Zhenglin said.

“Jesus, why is that all the pretty girls are in love with other people and not me?” I whispered to Gu Chen, “Do you have a sister that you can introduce to me…” Before I could finish, I could feel 2 eyes on me. Out of pure embarrassment, I quickly changed the subject, “Brother Gu Chen, the moon is quite beautiful tonight.”

“Indeed, Brother Wu Meng.” Gu Chen agreed, “It’s quite round.”

At 11.30 pm, the 2 girls parted with unwillingness. If Wu Jiajia didn't need to work tomorrow, I believed they would talk for another 2 hours. However, from their gossip, I did acquire a lot of information.

“Gao Rui already has Wu Jiajia’s keys before he moved in.” I began. “On top of that, I have reason to believe the stalker is someone Wu Jiajia knows.”

“The fuck?!” Guan Zhenglin stopped and challenged, “You’re suspecting Teacher Gao? Have you lost your mind? He is already living together with Sister Jiajia, does he need to stalk her? Furthermore, do you think Teacher Gao will mistake Wu Jiajia and Zhang Mingliang? Lastly, if Teacher Gao really wanted to, he could have easily acquired a relationship with Sister Jiajia, there was no need for him to resort to threats and those other creepy actions!”

Guan Zhenglin did have a point. With a frown, I said, “But is it possible that Gao Rui can’t tell that Wu Jiajia is in love with him?”

Guan Zhengjin shrugged. “It’s hard to say. Love is always complicated. Some men are as dull as rocks, while others would pretend to not notice the interest thrown their way so they could go on hunting for more conquests. Love is a real mystery!”

“Sounds like someone is quite experienced in the field of love. Did he reject your confession? On what grounds? Was it because he preferred something more substantial?” I took a quick glance at her chest area.

“I swear I’m going to kill you!”

As I fended off Guan Zhenglin’s offence, a message came to my phone. It was from Mary. They had found Zhang Mingliang’s house address.