It was two days later before the entire report came out.
Like most people who died from ghosts, the deaths of the homeless people seemed to be accidents. The exorcists went to the places where they had been, searched carefully, and found the remnants of Ji Cai's Yin energy.
Because the first victim disappeared on Lucheng Road, the incident was named the Lucheng Supernatural Serial Murder Case and was included in the files of the special department.
Two days later, Lu Yingjiu went to the special department of Jiufeng Mountain.
When Xiao Li found him, he was sitting by the window in the conference room, looking into the distance at the city center.
The weather has been good recently, and he wore a white shirt, which contrasted sharply with the washed blue of the sky.
The conference room was not being used, so it was opened to them.
The table was covered with spread-out talisman papers, each with runes drawn on them that Xiao Li had never seen before. They were so densely packed and extremely complex.
—He was still trying to find the ghost that possessed him. But two days had passed without success, and he didn't even catch a trace of the evil spirit.
Xiao Li had seen that scene in the school dormitory before and knew about this. He hesitated for two seconds at the door and knocked gently: "Brother Lu, the report will take another hour or two, let's eat first. The takeaway here can't be delivered, so we plan to find some instant noodles and snacks."
"It's okay. I'm not hungry." Lu Yingjiu replied, "You guys eat."
Xiao Li thought of Ye Feng's casual mention that Lu Yingjiu always forgot to eat. So he said, "How about this, if there's instant noodles later, I'll let you know."
"Okay, thank you."
Xiao Li looked at the talisman on the table and said, "Don't worry. Although we can't help you, we can definitely find it when Master comes back and we can think of a solution together."
Lu Yingjiu smiled.
Xiao Li closed the door lightly and left.
Lu Yingjiu gathered the talisman papers on the table, took them to the window, made a gesture, and the talisman papers began to burn. They burned very quickly and quietly, and even such a thick stack of talismans had little ashes left, which were blown away by the wind.
He and Chu Banyang both knew that a ghost of this level could not be stopped even if Lu Yingjiu's actions were restricted. With its strength, it would be easy for it to go anywhere and kill anyone it wanted. Besides, if even they couldn't do it, who else could
There is nothing I can do.
Completely helpless.
unless-
Tomorrow is Ghost Festival.
The only chance is to communicate with the Yin energy when it is at its most vigorous.
Lu Yingjiu lay on the table and took a nap.
Until there was another knock on the door, Xiao Li poked his head in and said, "The bodies of Ji Cai and Zhong Aiguo have been moved here."
They walked together to the morgue on the underground second floor.
In the elevator, Lu Yingjiu said, "Xiao Li, have you ever thought about why Ji Cai killed Zhong Aiguo?"
"I don't know." Xiao Li was stunned. "It's just a falling out, right? Is there something else going on?"
Lu Yingjiu said, "The bodies can only be buried next to the objects of obsession, so they are all in the school. When Ye Feng and I went there, a lot of resentment had accumulated. If Zhong Aiguo continued to bury the bodies, there would definitely be casualties." He paused for a few seconds to sort out his thoughts, "I was thinking, maybe Ji Cai didn't want to bury the bodies for revenge at first, or maybe she didn't want to continue. It was actually Zhong Aiguo who couldn't let go of the hatred and was swept away by anger."
"Oh... what do you mean?"
He said, "Ji Cai killed Zhong Aiguo for those students. Even though she became a ghost, the things she cared about remained the same." Lu Yingjiu smiled, "Of course, the character of ghosts is hard to guess. This is just my extremely idealistic guess. The only evidence is not sufficient."
"What evidence?"
"She still loves Zhong Aiguo - I can verify this."
They went downstairs and took the elevator to the basement level. After passing through layers of doors sealed with talismans, they arrived at the morgue.
It's cold and silent here, with an unbreakable sense of stagnation, and every compartment hides a story.
Two pieces of white cloth covered the bodies of the two men.
Lu Yingjiu took a few steps forward, and Xiao Li realized that he was holding "On the Other Side of the Mountain" in his hand.
Lu Yingjiu finished reading this book.
It begins with "You are birds, you should fly over the mountains and soar with your wings spread" - to my favorite students
The ending ends with a conversation between the heroine and her lover: We stood together in the fields, with the mountains in the distance. The weather was very good today, and he smiled and said to me, yes, this story will end until we
She died before she finished writing it.
Lu Yingjiu lifted the white cloth, revealing the faces of the two people, both with their eyes closed.
When they were in Meihua Community, they also lay side by side downstairs. At that time, he felt that Ji Cai's hand seemed to want to reach out to Zhong Aiguo. He reached out and grabbed Ji Cai's wrist. The woman's skin was delicate and the cold temperature came from her.
He placed this hand next to Zhong Aiguo's hand.
At first their hands were only loosely held together, but after a few seconds, as if in a trance, their hands were already tightened.
Ji Cai smiled.
The book flipped through the pages, and the last line of words floated up like a fish in the deep water swimming towards the surface of the river, with colorful scales and spitting out a series of quiet bubbles.
We stood together in the fields, with dark green mountains in the distance.
The weather is very good today. He smiled and said to me, yes, this story will end until we hold hands.
…
The problem was solved, and everyone packed up and prepared to go down the mountain.
Lu Yingjiu's cell phone rang and a text message came.
Big Dog: Should I go directly to your house tonight
Lu Yingjiu replied: OK
He was about to leave when he suddenly heard the group of people making a lot of noise, as if they were discussing something. Xiao Li shouted at him, "Brother Lu, do you want to eat with us tonight?"
So 20 minutes later, they took an online taxi down the mountain. It was dinner time, and everyone was waiting for a table. Xiao Li found a highly rated Jiangsu and Zhejiang restaurant, and they headed to the city center during the evening rush hour.
In the car, a man stretched himself and said, "It's finally over. I almost ran all over the city in the past two days."
Another person said, "Take a break if you can. Tomorrow is Ghost Festival and we have a lot to do. Your ancestors would be very grateful if they didn't call you in the middle of the night to take you away."
Yes. Lu Yingjiu thought, August 23rd is the Ghost Festival.
When we got there, several people rushed over noisily. We entered the restaurant, brewed a pot of chrysanthemum Pu'er tea, ordered pine nut fish, river shrimp and drunken crab, and ate it in a lively manner. Somehow we talked about Xiao Li who had never drunk alcohol, so we poured him a small half cup to try. As a result, after just a few sips, his face turned red, and he kept saying that he really had no talent and would not smoke or drink in the future.
Lu Yingjiu still wasn't interested in food and didn't order any staple food. She just peeled the shrimps slowly.
When they were almost done eating, Lu Yingjiu stood up and said with a smile, "You guys continue chatting, I'm going to go outside to get some fresh air."
He went to the small balcony on the second floor, opened the door, and the cool evening breeze blew in his face. The balcony faced a small road, not many people, and a wild cat was licking its fur slowly on the street corner. He leaned against the railing, looking into the distance, and his mind was briefly empty for a few seconds.
There was another squeak from behind. Lu Yingjiu turned around and saw Xiao Li.
Xiao Li had just drunk half a glass of wine, his face was all red, and he came out to get some fresh air. He leaned against the railing, patted his hot cheeks with his hands, and sighed: "Brother Lu, you just said you were going to pick up a friend, when are you leaving?"
"There's no rush." Lu Yingjiu said, "He won't arrive until midnight."
"Oh—are you here to play?"
"He said he would come to my office and take a look. If he was suitable, he would stay and work."
"Wow!" Xiao Li was a little surprised.
Lu Yingjiu smiled: "To be honest, I don't even know his name."
Xiao Li: “?”
He was confused for a moment.
Lu Yingjiu said: "We knew each other when we were kids, played together for a month, and then we didn't see each other again. He is the grandson of the mistress of the husband of my former neighbor's aunt's classmate."
"… What? Brother Lu, say it again?"
"He is the brother of the son of the teacher of my former deskmate's adopted daughter."
"There isn't a single word in your two sentences that is the same!"
"Anyway, I don't know his name. I always called him Big Dog."
"What kind of friend is this?!" Xiao Li was so shocked that he exclaimed.
"Anyway, we haven't seen each other for almost 20 years." Lu Yingjiu said, "You're right, this can't be considered friendship. I didn't have many friends when I was a child."
Xiao Li was stunned: "Why?"
Although he was really scared by Lu Yingjiu the first time, after spending a few days with him, he felt that Lu Yingjiu was by no means "friendless".
What's more, he is so powerful that there are countless people asking him to do things for them.
Lu Yingjiu thought for a few seconds and suddenly asked, "Have you ever played hopscotch?"
"I've played it before. What's the matter?" Xiao Li thought to himself. Most people should have played this kind of game before, or at least they've seen others play it. Could it be that Brother Lu wanted to play with him
"I've never played it." Lu Yingjiu said.
He has a special physique and is plagued by bad luck. When he was a child, people around him were afraid of him and of course did not allow their own children to have much contact with him. Lu Yingjiu never played with his peers since he was a child, and always watched other children from a distance.
It’s not like I haven’t tried hopscotch before.
When he was young, Lu Yingjiu showed an amazing talent in catching ghosts. When children refused to play with him, he would catch wild ghosts to play with him. He finally subdued all the ghosts in the streets and gathered them together. The ghosts were terrified and drew houses with blood, lined up to play, and forced smiles on their ferocious faces.
The situation was looking very good until Lu Yingjiu discovered that those ghosts could not jump but could only float, thus fundamentally eliminating the possibility of losing.
A failed attempt.
After that, he could only watch other children play.
Other games and activities were mostly like this, making childhood extremely boring.
Later, thanks to the ghost marriage, he grew up safely, became very capable, had no psychological trauma and no one was afraid of him anymore. Except for his poor sleep and a lazy and casual personality, he was healthy and successful, and even won the title of "Three Good Students" for several years... But the missing part could not be made up.
It's like a house with hidden damage that others can't see, but you know the gap is always there and occasionally air will leak in.
Xiao Li didn't know how to answer for a moment. He hesitated for a long time and finally said, "If you want to play hopscotch, I can play with you."
Lu Yingjiu suddenly laughed: "What are you thinking about? I'm not a child anymore." He patted Xiao Li's shoulder and said, "Let's go back. Tomorrow is Ghost Festival, you must work overtime."
A gust of wind blew, and the orange-red sunset was falling in the distance.
Six hours later, 23:50.
The horizon swallowed up the sky, and the whole city was shrouded in darkness. The taillights of vehicles crossed the road, and there were few pedestrians. Many people had fallen asleep, turned off the lights, and drawn the curtains. Only a few stars of light remained on the distant buildings.
Lu Yingjiu heated a cup of milk and was reading a book when the phone on the table vibrated: I'm almost there, the car will stop at the intersection you mentioned.
He stood up and put on his light coat.
It was especially cold tonight, and the chill could be felt through the window glass. He locked the door and took the elevator downstairs. As soon as he stepped out, the wind filled his sleeves. The street lights downstairs were broken, and it was so dark that you couldn't see your hand in front of you.
Lu Yingjiu walked alone in the darkness.
Until the clock on the phone quietly pointed to 00:00
The wind swept in with a whistling sound, the yin energy was agitated, the temperature dropped by several degrees, and white air came out of his mouth.
Ghost Festival is here.
Hundreds of demons are rampant and ghosts are reveling.
In fact, he was still wondering whether his cheap ghost marriage partner would show up during the Ghost Festival a few years ago. But after so long, there was no movement during the Ghost Festival every year, so he didn't remember it anymore.
Unexpectedly, he would start waiting for ghosts again this year - waiting for the evil ghost that possessed him to show up.
Lu Yingjiu walked like this and entered a small alley.
In the darkness behind me, a few more companions appeared silently.
The goblin was staring at him again, grinning eerily.
But this time, until the ghosts pounced on him, the evil spirit possessing him did not react at all.
Lu Yingjiu lit a piece of talisman paper. The light fell into his eyes like bursting fireworks, and ghosts turned into ashes in that light.
The talisman went out and he continued on his way.
He thought he could communicate with the evil spirit today, but it turned out to have left silently.
Even during the Ghost Festival, it did not leave any trace behind, and left very suddenly and completely.
It's impossible to say I don't care.
He didn't know where it came from, what it was doing, or why it left. It was a mystery from beginning to end.
From a rational point of view, this is a huge hidden danger, and from an emotional point of view, this has probably become an unsolved mystery in his life - just like he can't imagine a normal childhood, just like until today, he doesn't know whether hopscotch is fun. He will never know its story.
Perhaps, it is very similar to the ghost marriage. After the temporary interest, the human and the ghost will eventually go their separate ways.
It was getting colder, so Lu Yingjiu zipped up his coat.
Just two minutes after reaching the intersection, bright yellow light pierced through the darkness.
There was something strange about the black car—but Lu Yingjiu didn't notice what was strange at first.
It drove all the way and stopped steadily in front of him.
The back seat door opened and someone came out. Lu Yingjiu couldn't see clearly in the dim light. His first reaction was: this person is very tall.
Half a head taller than him.
The faint light in the distance outlined the handsome figure, thin lips, high nose bridge, and sharp hair, as if he had walked out of an ink painting, with a wicked and elegant temperament between his eyebrows. His eyes were a unique, deep black, as if there were thousands of words hidden in them.
Lu Yingjiu said: "Long time no see... huh?"
He was hugged whole and smelled a fresh fragrance.
"Long time no see." Jing Xian said in his ear, "I came to see you."