A Crooked Beam

[Content marked with an asterisk is not a complete version. Unmarked content may also have a few words omitted.] Late at night, the lock clicked. The man and woman looked at each other for a second, then both pulled out their phones and dialed 110 at almost the same time. Li Zhengqing spoke calmly. “Officer, someone has broken into my home.” His gaze swept over her and paused. “They’re not properly dressed, and it looks like they’ve been living here illegally for a while.” Liang Xin took half a step back, hooked one foot against the door, and covered the phone’s receiver. “Officer, someone broke in to rob me. This person is wearing a mask and dressed all in black. They dragged in two suitcases, probably full of tools for the crime.” From inside and outside the door, they spoke in unison: “This is Building C, Apartment 1501, at No. 1501 Guangyingli, Banhua Street.” 2026.05.20- Theme: Different worlds, same frequency.