I didn't explain myself.
The last time the Serpent-Brow Bronze Fish wept blood was during my SATs. I reported it to the school that same day.
They spent three days inspecting the grounds and discovered a critical structural hazard beneath the testing center.
If it hadn't been caught in time, the building could have collapsed on exam day.
The hazard was dealt with. But I missed the test and had to repeat the year.
None of that mattered to anyone. In their version of the story, I was just a lunatic.
I opened my chat with Trudy and transferred the last twenty thousand dollars in my account：
【Find a way to take Serena somewhere. Anywhere. Just keep her out for at least two weeks. Please.】
Trudy went quiet for half a minute, then replied with a single【Okay】.
I turned off my phone and got on the highway.
Three hours later, I pulled into a rest stop.
I parked, then reached over and opened the sandalwood box on the passenger seat.
The Serpent-Brow Bronze Fish lay inside, still and silent.
It wasn't large, only about the length of an adult's palm. The whole body was aged bronze, its scales etched with dense rows of ancient script.
Above each eye, where the brows would be, two sea serpents coiled in lifelike relief.
But something was different. The blood tears that had been streaming down its face were gone.
I exhaled.
The Serpent-Brow Bronze Fish protected the Henson bloodline.
If the tears had stopped after I left the restaurant, then the omen had lifted.
My phone buzzed. A message from my mother：
【Jesse, I heard everything. You did the right thing. When the Bronze Fish weeps blood, a bloody catastrophe follows. What you did was righteous. The ones who wouldn't listen have their own fate to answer to.】
I stared at her message for a long time.
My mother never wasted words.
For her to send something that long meant she was worried, too.
I typed back a short acknowledgment, then opened the restaurant's security feed.
It was the dinner rush. The dining hall sat empty except for a few servers wiping down tables.
Clement said he was going to keep the place running. So where were the customers?
Right then, a push notification slid down from my news app. The headline read：
【Viral Restaurant Owner Predicts Bloodbath: Crackpot or Clairvoyant?】
I tapped through. It was a clip posted by some clickbait account.
The video showed the argument between me and Clement at the restaurant that afternoon.
Whoever filmed it had been sneaky about it. The angle was just right to catch my face dead-on.
The title read：《Trendy Hotpot Spot Pulling in Over $2 Million a Month: Owner Shuts Down and Forfeits His Shares Because a Bronze Fish "Cried." Claims a Bloody Catastrophe Is Coming!》
The comment section already had over a hundred thousand replies：
【Is this guy out of his mind? Walking away from money to chase superstitious garbage?】
【Bet he poisoned the food himself. Trying to create a panic so he can dodge responsibility.】
【The more you think about it, the creepier it gets. What if he actually put something in the hotpot?】
【Already called the cops. People like this need to be investigated!】
A wave of relief washed through me. If no one dared to eat there, the casualties would be minimal.
I was about to close the app when another notification dropped in：
【BREAKING：Viral Hotpot Owner Wanted by Police for Inciting Public Panic. Investigation Underway!】
I tapped the link. It was a screenshot of an official police bulletin：
【Our department has received multiple public complaints regarding a hotpot restaurant owner surnamed Henson whose superstitious statements have caused widespread social alarm. The individual is suspected of disturbing public order. A case has been opened. The individual is urged to report to authorities immediately for questioning.】
Below it, they had posted my photo and my license plate number.
A knock rapped against my car window.
I turned. Two officers in uniform stood outside, their expressions hard and unyielding.
“Jesse Henson, you are suspected of disturbing public order. Come with us for questioning.”
“And that box on your passenger seat. What's in it? Open it up.”
