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.”

I opened the sandalwood box.

The Serpent-Brow Bronze Fish lay still inside, its tarnished body catching the sunlight with a dull, cold gleam.

The officer leaned in for a closer look and frowned：

“Because this thing got some condensation on it, you decided to spread rumors and cause a panic?”

“Jesse, you're a grown man. A college graduate. How can you be this superstitious?”

I closed the box and put the Serpent-Brow Bronze Fish away.

“I'm sorry, but I can't go back with you. I didn't spread any rumors. I'm doing everything I can to prevent a disaster.”

“If you actually want to solve the problem, you should go run a full inspection on that restaurant. You might still catch it before something happens.”

The officer pulled out a pair of handcuffs, ready to take me in by force.

That was when a white SUV came tearing down the road and screeched to a stop beside my car.

The door flew open and Serena jumped out, Melanie in her arms.

Her eyes were red and swollen. She rushed up to the officers, her voice shaking：

“Officers, please, my husband isn't a bad person. He's just been under so much pressure lately……”

She turned to look at me, and the tears spilled all at once：

“Jesse, I'm begging you, please stop this, okay?”

“Just tell the officers you were talking nonsense before.”

“Then go back and apologize to Clement, and we'll reopen the restaurant and live our lives like normal people. Can you do that?”

“If you won't do it for yourself, think about Melanie……”

I looked at my daughter in my wife's arms, and my eyes burned.

I was about to speak when Clement's voice exploded out of the crowd.

“Jesse! You've got some goddamn nerve pulling this voodoo crap!”

He charged over, face white with rage, and grabbed me by the collar：

“Do you have any idea how much money I've lost because of your psychotic rants?”

“I was finally about to turn things around, and you pull this shit on me!”

Ramona chimed in from behind him：

“Exactly! Playing fortune teller now? If you can really see the future, how come you didn't see when your own mother was going to die?”

More and more people at the rest stop were crowding around us.

“Isn't that the guy from the hotpot place? Looks pretty put-together. Who knew he was crazy?”

“Right? Total nutcase. Feel bad for his wife and kid. Guy doesn't know how good he's got it.”

I let out a breath and looked at Clement. “How many employees are in the restaurant right now?”

Clement blinked：“The hell's it to you?”

“Fifteen. So what?” Ramona cut in. “What, you think they're gonna beg for mercy on your behalf?”

I looked Clement in the eye. “Have you thought about what happens if something goes wrong with those fifteen people? What are you going to pay out with? You could sell everything you own and it still wouldn't be enough.”

“Who the hell are you cursing?”

Clement slapped me across the face.

“You really think I won't hit you, Jesse?”

He pulled out his phone and shoved the screen in my face：

“Take a good look! Business is booming!”

I focused on the screen. The restaurant's dining hall was packed, loud with voices.

Every table was full. Steam billowed over the pots and servers wove between the rows with loaded trays.

Clement waved the phone in front of me, grinning：

“Wasn't there supposed to be some bloodbath? Go on, make it happen!”

“Running your mouth about doom and gloom every damn day. This beating? You earned it. And if you don't set the record straight, I'll have you charged with defamation and thrown in a cell!”

Serena dropped to her knees, crying：

“Please, don't press charges. He just lost his head for a moment. He didn't mean it……”

“I'll apologize for him……”

Melanie burst into terrified wails.

My mind went blank.

Had I really been wrong this whole time?

Had the Serpent-Brow Bronze Fish's power of foresight been wrong this time?

Looking at my wife on her knees and my daughter screaming herself hoarse, I felt like a knife was being twisted through my chest.

I was about to give in.

Then the surveillance feed on Clement's phone shook violently.

A blinding white flash.

A deafening boom ripped through the phone's speaker, laced with screams.

The screen went black.