Chapter 333
Chapter 333
The next day, I rode to work in Meng Yifan’s car.
The two of us had assumed Song Xiaotian would never come to work again.
After all, he had married into wealth. Even if he never worked another day in his life, he would want for nothing.
But when we arrived at the storefront, Song Xiaotian was already there.
“Well, well, Mrs. Pan. Your presence truly brings glory to our humble establishment!” Meng Yifan teased.
“Get the hell out of here!”
Song Xiaotian tossed his head and cursed with the beaming pride of a man enjoying a spring breeze. “Show some respect for the honest dignity of the working people. I’ll continue working normal hours. I refuse to become a pretty boy living off a wealthy woman.”
I laughed. “We earn money so we can stop working when we’re old. You’ve already reached retirement ahead of schedule, so why put yourself through this suffering?”
Song Xiaotian said, “Even though I’m with Rou’er now, I’m still me and she’s still her. We’ve agreed on three rules. First, I will never spend her money. Second, her company belongs to her and her family and has nothing to do with me. Third, I need a career of my own, and she can’t interfere with my work.”
That transformation had certainly happened quickly.
Until yesterday, she had been “that woman.” Today, she was already Rou’er.
He continued, “But after work today, I have to… move all my things over to her place. From now on, you two can live by yourselves.”
Meng Yifan and I had expected as much the night before.
Even so, I asked, “You’re moving in together already?”
Song Xiaotian said seriously, “Everyone’s circumstances are different. You know Xiaorou has already endured one failed marriage, so she lacks a sense of security. Besides, I treated her terribly before. I need to move in with her and show her I’m serious. Only then can I give her the security she needs.”
“But if my father or grandfather asks, you need to say I still live with you. Otherwise, I’ll get thrashed again.”
Meng Yifan and I burst out laughing.
We worked as usual, but there was still no business.
Two prospective clients who had shown interest earlier had already blocked my number when I called to follow up.
With no other choice, we braved the blazing sun and went out to distribute flyers again.
Anning and I went to Guanyin Street, where the foot traffic was heavier.
We handed out almost all our flyers over the course of the morning. But the moment people heard the houses had been the site of deaths, they lost any desire to learn more.
At noon, we were eating in a restaurant when my phone rang. It was Brother Liu.
Brother Liu almost never called me first unless he wanted me to cast a hexagram for him.
“Brother, I’ve got some business for you.”
“Business? Someone wants to buy a house?”
“Not that kind of business. The other kind.”
Brother Liu sounded extremely excited over the phone. “This is a big job, something from the entertainment industry. They’re offering two hundred thousand for someone to solve a problem. I thought of you immediately, brother. Once we get paid, we split it fifty-fifty. What do you say?”
I immediately understood. Someone wanted us to investigate a supernatural matter.
Two hundred thousand was certainly a substantial reward. Even after splitting it with Brother Liu, I would receive one hundred thousand. Split that with Anning, and I would still take home fifty thousand.
Besides, business had been slow lately.
Only a complete fool would turn down money.
“Brother Liu, I’m very busy these days. A lot of clients have been asking me to show them properties, and I earn tens of thousands in commission on a single sale, so…”
“Hey, don’t be like that.”
Brother Liu grew anxious. “This is a major job from the entertainment industry. You know those people aren’t short of money. We might even be able to raise the price. How about a sixty-forty split? You take sixty, and I take forty.”
I reluctantly agreed. “Well… all right. We’re brothers, after all. Wait a moment. I need to report this to my boss, since I’m supposed to be working.”
Brother Liu clearly wanted the money badly. He hurriedly said, “Isn’t your boss that brother of yours who keeps getting hauled into the station? Tell him that if you ever get into trouble in my jurisdiction, like fighting someone, I’ll smooth things over for you. All right? Hurry up. I’m driving over to get you right now!”
After hanging up, I immediately called Meng Yifan and explained the situation.
After all, I would be taking a private job during work hours.
Meng Yifan naturally agreed. Business was slow, so of course we should take any opportunity to earn money.
However, he said that if a client decided to buy one of our properties and needed us to resolve its problems, I would have to prioritize the storefront’s business.
That went without saying.
Anning and I finished lunch, and only a few minutes later, Brother Liu arrived.
He stopped outside the restaurant, rolled down the window, and waved cheerfully at us, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth.
Once we got in, he began driving toward our destination. “Mo, let me tell you something. We can’t turn down free money. These people are from the entertainment industry, so they may act a little self-important, but none of that matters. The important thing is getting their money into our pockets. Understand?”
I nodded. Of course I understood.
We worked in sales. Did we not spend our days bowing, scraping, and smiling at people?
“Brother Liu, are you really that short of money lately?”
I had bribed him with three hundred thousand when I needed to save Meng Yifan.
“Who ever thinks they have too much money these days?” he said. “I work myself to death every day for a few miserable scraps. I don’t even earn as much as you salespeople. Of course I have to look out for myself.”
I asked him what exactly had happened so I could prepare myself.
He said, “Here’s the situation. A film crew rented a location at the studio complex to shoot some kind of Ghost movie. Then things started going wrong. During the first two days of filming, a supporting actress fell and broke her leg. At first, everyone thought the prop department had failed to prepare the equipment properly and it was simply an accident.”
“But yesterday, the second female lead… died on the spot.”
“Her character was supposed to fake a hanging in order to threaten the male lead into staying with her. But the male lead thought she wouldn’t really do it, so he left. Then the second female lead lost her footing, accidentally hanged herself for real, and became a Ghost.”
“That was the plot in the script. But when they filmed the scene, another accident happened. By the time they finished the take, the actress playing the second female lead had actually been hanged to death, exactly like her character in the script.”
Anning and I felt chills as we listened.
The movie’s plot had come to life.
“A death naturally attracted police attention. Fortunately, the case isn’t in my jurisdiction. I only heard about it from officers in another unit.”
Brother Liu continued, “I have a younger cousin who happens to work on the crew as a stagehand, and he told me about it too. After the death, the film’s investor, who’s also the producer, used his connections to suppress the matter. Now they suspect the location may be haunted, so they want someone to take a look.”
“They offered two hundred thousand right away.”