Chapter 55
Chapter 55
The post’s title read:
[Friends!! Be careful when seeing live shows!! Especially if you’re taking seniors or children – you have to choose the right production!! Last month, I took my parents to see *The Butterfly Lovers*. When we came home, both of them were so upset they fell sick for a whole month. I’m still at the hospital looking after them, shedding bitter tears!!!]
Original post: Here’s what happened. Last month, I had three months off. I realized I hadn’t spent time with the elders in my family for ages, so I decided to take them out and help them relax. *The Butterfly Lovers* happened to be all over the internet at the time, with tons of unpaid recommendations, so I took them to see it. The production really was excellent. That was the problem – it was too good. My parents became so immersed that, when we got home, they took a feather duster to me and bitterly regretted not sending me to dance school when I was little. After that, they kept going on about it as if they were possessed. All sorts of minor ailments appeared, and we were at the hospital every few days. The excitement was simply too much. Think twice before taking seniors or children to a live performance!! Their nerves are fragile. They can’t withstand the emotional devastation of a tragic ending!!!
The replies below had already dissolved into an argument.
Reply 1: This is the funniest attempt to shift blame I’ve seen all year. You failed to take care of your own parents, and now you’re blaming a dance drama because they got sick? Are you the one who forgot to take your medicine?
Reply 2: I agree! People aren’t that emotionally fragile! *The Butterfly Lovers* is such a huge national classic that seniors and children alike could tell you a thing or two about it. If you claim a dance drama made them sick, I’m not buying it.
Reply 3: Fame attracts controversy. This little production got too popular, so jealous haters started looking for ways to smear it. Honestly, claiming someone fell ill from watching a show is much too weak and far-fetched.
Reply 4: Actually, this only proves how well the production was staged. The haters couldn’t find anything real to attack, so they invented a plot about seniors getting sick after seeing it. Hilarious. What a waste that you didn’t become a screenwriter.
Reply 5: After reading the original post, all I can say is that it’s ridiculous. The poster certainly has a vivid imagination.
…
Most replies came from fans of the dance drama or Xia Ke’er, defending them both.
But a few people came forward and said they had experienced the same problem as the original poster.
Reply 45: I’ve actually wanted to mention this too. I took my nine-year-old niece to see the show. She’s a little cosplayer and goes to conventions with me all the time, but she came home badly shaken and fell ill. My mom even beat me up over it. Then I got sick too and almost saw my late grandmother coming to collect me, lol. At first I didn’t think much of it and assumed my niece had caught a chill. It wasn’t until I saw this post that I connected it to *The Butterfly Lovers*.
Reply 56: Seniors and children are physically weaker to begin with, so maybe they shouldn’t be exposed to this kind of intense sensory stimulation. To be fair, *The Butterfly Lovers* may be a national classic, but the live production is almost too effective. I sat in the front row when I went, and near the end, I could even smell something a lot like blood. I think people who are emotionally sensitive or easily frightened might be better off not seeing it.
Reply 77: All you can say is that Xia Ke’er and her team are pursuing absolute perfection. The live performance is incredibly powerful! Honestly, I felt as if I’d lost my soul while watching. I was completely immersed. It was just too beautiful!
At that point, Xie Qingling closed the webpage and stopped reading.
She had already reached a conclusion about the matter, though certain crucial details remained unclear.
Watching Xia Ke’er’s performance did have some kind of effect, but it did not affect everyone. So far, seniors and children seemed most likely to have problems.
The common factor was that seniors and children generally had weaker constitutions. They fell ill more easily and… were more likely to attract evil spirits.
As for stronger young people, were they entirely unaffected, or were the effects simply too minor to have appeared yet?
Xie Qingling had no way of knowing.
Xia Ke’er could sell four hundred and fifty tickets for a single performance, and every show was full.
*The Butterfly Lovers* had been running for more than two months. Even if it was not staged every day, plenty of people had seen it live given its popularity. Its reach was enormous. If it continued running, the number of people affected would inevitably grow.
Before the situation became more serious, they had to prevent more people from falling into this unknowable trap.
Xie Qingling’s expression turned grave.
It was only seven thirty in the evening, and Xie Qingling had originally planned to wander around outside. Now, however, she went straight back to the office.
She wanted to consult the records and see whether there was any precedent for Xia Ke’er’s condition or any solution she could follow.
It was eight by the time she returned.
No one remained at the office. Xie Qingling turned on the lights and searched the filing cabinets for records of similar incidents. At the same time, she leafed through the Book of Observation, hoping to uncover some clue.
Xie Qingling did not search for long. That very night, she found a lead.
“Keeping a little ghost…” Xie Qingling murmured.
The department’s archives contained a similar case.
It had happened thirty years ago, before Xie Qingling was born.
A female celebrity had become famous overnight, only to kill herself by burning charcoal at home less than two years later. The media naturally claimed she had taken her life because of depression, but the department’s records clearly stated that she had invited a little ghost into her home in pursuit of fame and success.
Not long afterward, however, the little ghost turned on her, and she ultimately paid with her life.
Seen in that light, Xia Ke’er’s rise from obscurity to sudden fame also made sense if she had been keeping something.
The scent of incense offerings drifting from her body lent the theory even more weight.
The only problem was that Xie Qingling could not determine what kind of “ghost” Xia Ke’er was keeping.
The little ghost kept by the celebrity who died thirty years ago had brought her an endless stream of opportunities and a beauty that bewitched the heart, making her famous overnight. But it had also been extraordinarily sinister. It fed on its keeper’s blood and soon sucked the woman dry.
That little ghost’s malice had been directed only at the celebrity herself. The archives contained no record of anyone around her being affected.
In that respect, it differed from Xia Ke’er’s case.
It seemed Xie Qingling would have to watch the dance drama once more before she could be certain.
She quickly made arrangements.
Taking out her communicator, she sent Ling Fang a message.
[Xie Qingling: Director, if I discover that a certain female celebrity may be keeping a little ghost, then buy an extremely expensive ticket to investigate, can the department reimburse me?]
After a while, Ling Fang replied.
[Codename Zero: What kind of ghost have you run into this time? Aren’t you on vacation?]
[Xie Qingling: I don’t know what kind of ghost it is. That’s why I’m investigating. Just tell me whether I can get reimbursed]
[Codename Zero: If you can prove it’s connected to a case, then yes.]
With a definite answer in hand, Xie Qingling relaxed.
She spent a small fortune online on a scalped ticket.
A full three thousand yuan.
Even knowing she would be reimbursed, Xie Qingling felt the sting.
* * *
Early the next morning, Xie Qingling went downstairs.
Ye Anran, who had already finished her self-criticism, was seated in the first-floor hall with Dai Xingyu. He was scribbling furiously at his own self-criticism, while she drank coffee and scrolled through videos.
The voice of Xia Ke’er in an interview came from Ye Anran’s phone:
“…Ke’er is famous for pushing herself to the limit. Do you plan to keep performing at this pace?”
“Probably not. My schedule has been too full lately, and I’m physically exhausted. Once May is over, I plan to take some time off and relax.”
“We hear a movie starring you is in preproduction, and you’re only becoming more popular. Is there anything you’d like to say to the fans who support you?”
“…Thank you for loving me. I have to become even better and work even harder to deserve your support.”
“One last question. Does Ke’er have a boyfriend? People online have edited so many shipping videos that pair you with other celebrities, haha. What kind of person is your ideal partner?”
“Of course I don’t have one.” Xia Ke’er smiled. “I will devote my entire life to my dance career. I want to dedicate the brightest, most beautiful years of my life to the stage I love.”
Xie Qingling walked over and asked, “You’re following celebrities too?”
Ye Anran put down her phone and thought for a moment. “Not really. She keeps showing up in my feed lately, and I click without thinking. Don’t you feel like she has a special appeal even to casual viewers? The moment you see her, you can’t help liking her and wanting to know more.”
…If Xia Ke’er was not keeping a little ghost, it was difficult to explain.
“Oh, right. Didn’t you see *The Butterfly Lovers* live yesterday? How was it? Is it worth going? Was it good?” Ye Anran asked eagerly.
Xie Qingling’s expression turned conflicted. “It was good. It’s just… there was something strange about it.”
“What?”
“I suspect Xia Ke’er is keeping a little ghost. I’m planning to go back today and confirm it.”
The declaration struck like a bolt from a clear sky. Ye Anran stared blankly for several seconds before blurting, “Holy crap!”
That was absurd!
How did Xie Qingling always manage to make such horrifying statements so casually?
And more to the point, wasn’t she on vacation?
How had she managed to stumble into yet another supernatural incident for the umpteenth time?!
How did that make any sense?!
Ye Anran numbly closed the video. Xia Ke’er, celebrities – her interest in all of it vanished in an instant.
The thought that everything had been manipulated by some unknown entity revolted Ye Anran, who dealt with such things all year round.
“What? What is it? Sister Anran, where are you going?” In the midst of his frantic work, Dai Xingyu found a moment to lift his head and join their conversation.
Xie Qingling smiled sweetly. “Little Brother Xingyu, are you free today? I’ll treat you to a dance drama.”
“Sure, sure. I’m not busy anyway.” Dai Xingyu agreed, then remembered something. He pointed at Ye Anran and said with a grin, “Is Sister Anran going too? If I see a dance drama with you and leave her here alone, won’t she beat me up?”
Xie Qingling was speechless.
So was Ye Anran.
He had such a punchable face.
Yet Ye Anran was not angry at all. Instead, she wagged a finger. “No, no, no. You’re still too young. You think you’re going to watch a dance drama? You’re going to work overtime! The world is a treacherous place, little brother!”
Dai Xingyu was speechless.
He no longer wanted to go.
But Xie Qingling would not permit him to say no.
Amid Dai Xingyu’s howls of protest, the matter of him seeing the dance drama with Xie Qingling was settled.
It was the weekend, and the weekend performance ran from six to nine in the evening.
So Dai Xingyu still had to work his normal shift during the day and then, that evening… accompany Xie Qingling for overtime.
At the thought, Dai Xingyu nearly wept over his own youth and the treachery of society.
* * *
Admission began at five thirty that evening.
Xie Qingling waved the tickets in her hand. “Let’s go, Little Brother Xingyu.”
She had ordered another ticket from a scalper. To make communication easier, she spent an extra five hundred yuan to buy Dai Xingyu the seat next to hers.
Dai Xingyu sighed, then followed her into the opera house.
It was the same auditorium, the same lighting, the same set. Mist curled through the breathtakingly beautiful scene.
*The Butterfly Lovers* began.
Xia Ke’er appeared onstage.
The scalped tickets were neither good nor bad. An average price of more than three thousand yuan per ticket was only enough to seat Xie Qingling and Dai Xingyu in the middle rows, with people both in front of and behind them.
Once again, the performance was completely sold out.
Not long after it began, Xie Qingling turned toward Dai Xingyu and whispered in the faintest voice, “Well?”
Dai Xingyu’s expression grew grave. He whispered back, “Her face is covered in an aura of death. She doesn’t have long. But…”
“But what?”
“Other than the aura of death, I can’t see any other presence on her for now,” Dai Xingyu said. “Take Chai Yuhu. When I saw him, I could see the aura of death on him, but I could also see the sinister yin energy of the ghost haunting him. Xia Ke’er seems different. Nothing appears to be attached to her. Her body is clean.”
Xie Qingling listened with a deep frown.
As expected, this would be troublesome.
No wonder the voice had never spoken. On the surface, there truly seemed to be “nothing wrong” with Xia Ke’er.
But when Xie Qingling recalled the faintly eerie replies people had posted online, she could not agree.
It seemed the spirit behind Xia Ke’er was very deeply concealed.
Neither of them had truly come to watch the performance. Now that they had confirmed something was indeed wrong with Xia Ke’er, it was time to leave.
Xie Qingling planned to report the matter to Ling Fang first. Then she would see if they could stop all later performances of this dance drama, preventing more people from becoming involved and the effects from spreading farther.
The two of them left midway through the show and were both somewhat quiet along the way.
Xie Qingling asked Dai Xingyu, “In a situation like this, can we simply order the troupe to stop performing and remove this production from its schedule?”
“Without definite, concrete evidence that a ghost or monster is causing trouble, our department has no authority to order them to stop performing. Otherwise, complaints will come in, and the Logistics Department will have a difficult mess on its hands. If we want them to stop, we have to obtain solid evidence that something is wrong with Xia Ke’er. Reasoning alone won’t do.”
“When you suspect too many things, you start jumping at shadows, and order can easily descend into chaos. Our department’s authority isn’t unlimited either. And if the basis for your reasoning is only a few replies from strangers online… You have to understand, people online have enormous imaginations. Sometimes you can’t tell whether they’re making up stories as a joke. It’s difficult to use that to persuade anyone.”
“I understand. I’ll find a way,” Xie Qingling said.
She drove in front with Dai Xingyu seated behind her. They sped through the city beneath the falling night.
Suddenly, Dai Xingyu said in a low voice, “Pull over at the intersection ahead.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Someone is following us.”
Dai Xingyu said, “Following a Groom? They’re courting death.”