Chapter 36
Chapter 36
Having heard every word of Xie Qingling’s conversation with Ling Fang, the Painted-Skin Ghost fled in blind panic.
It knew the effort was futile and that it had nowhere left to go. But with life and death hanging in the balance, even a ridiculous struggle was better than doing nothing.
The Painted-Skin Ghost could not accept an ending in which it obediently surrendered. Yet it had also completely abandoned the thought of attacking Xie Qingling. It could never defeat her. If it wanted even the slightest chance of surviving her, its only option was to flee!
The Painted-Skin Ghost groped and crawled through the darkness for a long time, stumbling onward without knowing what it had knocked over, where it had gone, or even how far it had traveled.
It cared about only one thing now –
Had Xie Qingling left?
Was it safe?
Perhaps this final struggle truly had bought it a sliver of hope…
In the midst of its daze, a figure suddenly blocked the path ahead.
The crawling Painted-Skin Ghost went rigid.
Then it felt something cold press against its forehead.
Xie Qingling no longer needed to stall for time with endless conversation. She did not utter so much as a syllable.
A gunshot rang out. Even the Painted-Skin Ghost’s world of darkness ceased to exist.
After confirming that the final Painted-Skin Ghost was dead, Xie Qingling put away her handgun and secured it once more in the strap on her lower leg. She praised it, “Not bad at all. Specialized bullets really are convenient.”
Once again, she had killed a ghost with a gun.
“Director, it’s over,” Xie Qingling said to Ling Fang after activating her earpiece.
“All right. Wrap it up and return.”
With the battle over, Xie Qingling withdrew her Killing Field.
Then she saw the skin the Painted-Skin Ghost had shed lying on the ground.
It closely resembled human skin in texture. Pure white like jade and thin as a cicada’s wing, it felt cool in her hand without being unpleasant.
[A painted skin made from unknown material. This is the Painted-Skin Ghost’s treasure. It can paint the likeness of anyone in the world onto this skin. Although the result will not be perfectly lifelike, it should be more than enough to fool stupid humans.]
Xie Qingling: “…”
It seemed this was the equipment drop from killing the monster.
According to workplace regulations, she was allowed to keep loot like this for herself.
Of course, she could also turn it in and exchange it for another mysterious item. But Xie Qingling did not want any mysterious items for the time being, so there was no need to submit this painted skin in exchange for something else.
She stored her loot in the silver case, wrapped up her work, and returned to the office.
* * *
It was nearly five in the evening by the time she arrived.
The sky was gradually darkening, while the crowds on the streets steadily grew thicker.
It was the evening rush hour for both offices and schools. Employees leaving work, young children and secondary-school students heading home, and parents picking up their children crowded both sides of the road as they waited at the traffic lights. Traffic was denser than at other times, making the entire street look bustling and noisy.
By the time Xie Qingling returned to the office, everyone else was already there.
Yang Xianxian had returned with them.
Exhausted beyond what her young body could endure, Yang Xianxian had fallen asleep.
Although not many things had happened to her today, she had been taken to so many different places that physical exhaustion weighed heavily on her.
She lay on the sofa with her eyes tightly closed. Even though she remained inside the illusion Shen Huaizhou had woven for her, tears still occasionally slipped from the corners of her eyes.
Clearly, even with Shen Huaizhou’s illusion surrounding her, Yang Xianxian could not sleep peacefully.
Yu Wei sat beside her on guard, holding a little yellow duck toy he had produced from who knew where. He remained silent and said nothing.
The office was utterly quiet.
Ling Fang was the first to notice Xie Qingling. “Everything taken care of?”
Xie Qingling nodded.
She asked, “How is Jiang Lulu? What’s her condition now?”
That was what concerned Xie Qingling most at the moment.
“She’s in the inpatient ward at People’s Hospital. Her vital signs are stable, and there are no serious problems. At present, it seems she was only badly frightened. According to the doctor, she should recover after spending some time resting in bed.”
Xie Qingling nodded, breathing a sigh of relief. Much of her worry eased.
Then she turned her gaze toward Yang Xianxian. “Director, what are we going to do about her?”
Ling Fang sighed deeply. Instead of answering what they would do with Yang Xianxian, he brought up the two bodies in the basement.
“The bodies from Unit 1303 have finished being ‘vented.’ The police are transferring them now, while the Logistics Department is trying to find a way to conceal the truth.”
Ling Fang continued, “But the corpses are so horrific that conventional methods can no longer cover it up. To keep the truth of their deaths from spreading, we can only use another method to conceal the actual cause. Otherwise, it may create even greater panic throughout society.”
“How are they going to conceal it?”
“Burn the bodies until they’re charred. Then no one will be able to tell.”
Xie Qingling’s body trembled. She lowered her head and said, “I suppose so. Given the condition they’re in, that’s the only option.”
Ling Fang continued, “In a little while, we’ll have Ye Anran hypnotize the child and straighten out her memories, then hand her over to the police. Once the ‘accident’ happens tomorrow, someone will notify her relatives to come identify the bodies. Then they can finally be laid to rest.”
“All right,” Ling Fang said. “Everyone get back to your own assignments. Old Yu can watch the child. The rest of you, return to your posts.”
The group immediately dispersed. Some wrote reports, while others tended to their injuries.
Silence spread through the room. No one spoke.
They remained busy until nightfall. Only after handing the child over did the Department’s members disperse, finally bringing the day’s incident to a conclusion.
* * *
The next day, Xie Qingling had just carried a freshly brewed pot of coffee out of the kitchen.
She sat on the sofa and flipped through the post-operation summary Dai Xingyu had written yesterday. After a moment’s thought, she turned on the television.
The morning news was playing.
On the screen, the anchor wore a grave expression as she reported in a sweet voice, “At three thirty this morning, a serious traffic accident occurred on Changying Road…”
“According to the investigation at the scene, the deceased were a man and woman seated in the driver’s and front passenger seats. Traffic was sparse in the early morning, and there were no other casualties.”
“Because the fire at the scene was extremely intense, by the time firefighters extinguished it, both victims had been severely burned beyond recognition.”
“The identities of the deceased are still being verified. Any member of the public familiar with the license plate XXXX is asked to call XXXXX to assist with identification…”
Nine o’clock soon arrived.
Shen Huaizhou was on duty today.
He pushed open the office door and heard the news broadcast the moment he stepped inside.
After watching for a moment, he asked Xie Qingling, “Is the psychological strain severe the first time you encounter something like this?”
“It’s manageable.” Xie Qingling thought for a moment. “I did everything I could. At least the same thing won’t happen a second time. I only wish we could eliminate threats like this before anything happens.”
Shen Huaizhou drank a cup of coffee. “That’s impossible. Your expectations are too idealistic.”
“When you discover one cockroach in your home, it means all the other places in your house are already too crowded to hold the rest,” he said. “We operate in the open, while they hide in the shadows. Humans have no way to eliminate every cockroach. We can only do our best.”
Xie Qingling had mixed feelings. “Fine. I’m done talking to you. You can handle the shift by yourself today. The Director asked Dai Xingyu and me to go to People’s Hospital and check on my friend.”
“All right.”
Xie Qingling waited in the office for about five minutes before Dai Xingyu arrived as well.
He and Xie Qingling went together to the inpatient building at People’s Hospital.
Ling Fang’s main concern was Jiang Lulu’s condition. He was afraid the Painted-Skin Ghost might have left behind another trap, so he needed Xie Qingling and Dai Xingyu to visit Jiang Lulu at People’s Hospital while confirming whether the incident had truly been resolved.
At the entrance to the inpatient building, they checked which ward Jiang Lulu was in and went to find her.
Room 507.
When they opened the door, they saw Jiang Lulu sitting on the hospital bed. One hand was connected to an IV drip, while the other gestured animatedly through the air as if illustrating something. Her face was extraordinarily expressive.
Someone was sitting beside her, apparently a plainclothes officer assigned to watch over her.
When the plainclothes officer saw Xie Qingling and Dai Xingyu arrive, the conversation with Jiang Lulu stopped. The officer then stepped outside, leaving the space to them.
The instant she saw Xie Qingling, Jiang Lulu flung herself forward, wrapped her arms around Xie Qingling’s waist, and burst into loud sobs.
“Waaah… It was so scary, so scary,” Jiang Lulu said. “I thought I’d never see you again.”
Xie Qingling soothed her and asked, “What happened? Are you all right?”
“Nothing happened to me.” Unaware of the full story, Jiang Lulu excitedly recounted her experience to Xie Qingling. “I just ran into this crazy couple. They were genuinely insane! They tied me up and wouldn’t let me contact anyone outside. But they also made me contact my parents and tell them to come find me. The more I thought about it, the more wrong it seemed. I thought I might have fallen into a pyramid-scheme den, so I sent you a message.”
“Thank goodness, thank goodness I’m all right. I wasn’t locked up for long before the police rescued me. Waaah… Pyramid-scheme dens are terrifying… They actually wanted to go after my whole family…”
Xie Qingling: “…”
She truly did not know whether to call Jiang Lulu fortunate or unfortunate.
Although Jiang Lulu had suffered no physical injuries, the experience had clearly dealt her a severe psychological blow.
Xie Qingling comforted her. “All right, it’s over now. Are you feeling unwell in any way?”
Jiang Lulu’s sobs abruptly stopped. Only then did she notice Dai Xingyu’s completely unfamiliar face. Realizing an outsider had been present all along, she immediately became embarrassed. She shook her head, wiped away her tears, and grew much more demure.
Dai Xingyu quietly asked Xie Qingling, “I can’t sense a ghost’s presence anymore. What about you?”
Xie Qingling shook her head as well.
Dai Xingyu was still somewhat uneasy. He asked again, “Does it feel right this time? Is she really your friend?”
Xie Qingling considered the question but had not yet answered when Jiang Lulu, whose demure act had lasted less than three seconds, sniffled, clenched her fist, and furiously pounded the hospital bed several times. Her face blazing with anger, she declared, “They violated my right to personal liberty and imprisoned me illegally! They called that place a law firm, but it was really beyond the reach of the law! Those two lawless criminals – I will sue them until they lose everything!”
“This time it’s right,” Xie Qingling said with absolute certainty. “That’s Lulu.”