The New Year's Day Ghost Fetus (23)

"Here, this is the one. It used to belong to the old Li family. Their daughter-in-law gave birth, so the old couple moved in with their son to help with the baby. This house was lent out..."

Knock! Knock-knock-knock!

Bang bang bang...

"I say, are you really that woman's family?"

"Auntie, thank you. We'll handle things ourselves from now on..."

Click!

"Oh, it's Auntie Qian. I thought it was someone else knocking..." Hey, Auntie Qian, are you looking for that young couple?"

"It's not me..."

Bang bang bang bang!

"Ah Miao, you break down the door!"

"Hey, what are you doing..."

Boom!

"Ouch, what's that smell!"

Thump thump thump thump...

"What's going on? What's going on?"

"Who exactly are you people? Auntie Qian, who did you bring with you?"

"Already... dead... for two or three days..."

"Boss! The ring!"

"How could this..."

"Ah!!! Someone's dead!!!"

May 28, 2004: Discovered the client's body. Their limbs were tied to the bedposts, their abdomen was cut open, and signs of struggle were found, but no other injuries were present. The fetus was not found. The client was wearing a square diamond ring on their left ring finger. It disappeared after being removed and was confirmed to be a supernatural item, not a physical object.

May 30, 2004: Confirmed the deaths of Xu Ling and her husband. Cause of death: car accident. Police investigation concluded that the couple was crossing the road at night when they were hit by a passing vehicle. No abnormalities were found. An investigation into their reason for going out at night is ongoing, with no results yet.

Attachment: Photocopy of police investigation report.

June 7, 2004: Located the whereabouts of Xiao Zheng's ghost and Wang Fangjie's body. Confirmed that on May 30, 2004, they were seen in the residential complex where Xu Ling and her husband lived, holding an infant. They have since disappeared.

June 15, 2004: Investigation suspended. Case outcome: Lost clues regarding Xiao Zheng's ghost, Wang Fangjie's body, and the fetus. This case is classified as "Incomplete." Long-term surveillance of Room 809 at Junli Hotel is to be maintained, with the keyword "Wang Fangjie" set. If any information regarding Wang Fangjie's whereabouts is found, the investigation will be reopened.

January 1, 2005: Confirmed no abnormalities in Room 809 at Junli Hotel.

January 1, 2006: Confirmed no abnormalities in Room 809 at Junli Hotel.

January 1, 2007: Confirmed no abnormalities in Room 809 at Junli Hotel.

January 1, 2008: Unable to book Room 808 at Junli Hotel. Confirmed the occupants of the room that day were a couple. Booked other rooms in the hotel for surveillance.

January 3, 2008: Confirmed the couple showed no abnormalities.

January 1, 2009: Confirmed no abnormalities in Room 809 at Junli Hotel. Confirmed the danger in this location has passed. Surveillance operation terminated.

"Another dead one, and not even any family to ask. This time, I flipped straight to the end of the case file. After a quick glance at the results, I shrugged and spread my hands at the fat and thin duo."

"Why are they all dead? Hasn't anyone survived?" the thin one complained. "Could it be that they all died, and that's why they became vengeful spirits and killed everyone at that... agency?"

"You have a vivid imagination," I chuckled dryly, unplugging the USB drive attached to the file and plugging it into the computer. "I think I just picked the wrong ones back then, choosing their failed cases. How about this, you two go and look through the other things in that filing cabinet?"

"Are you kidding me?" The thin one's face stretched out in horror. "I'm not going back into that haunted place! Didn't you feel anything when you went in? It was so cold and eerie in there! There's definitely something wrong!"

"It was a bit cold, but it was probably because it never gets any sunlight," I said, clicking the mouse as I flipped to the first page of that "New Year's Day Fetus" file.

"I think so too. The windows there were covered with frosted film, so not much light got through," the fat one agreed with my explanation.

The thin one looked to Guo Yujie for support. "Xiao Jie, you think something's wrong too, right?"

"Huh? I don't feel anything," Guo Yujie replied innocently.

Left without allies, the thin one looked at us with disappointment. Seeing me put on headphones and carefully examine the file, his eyes darted, and he sidled up to me, slinging an arm around my shoulder like a buddy. "Brother Qi, it's all up to you now! You're the bravest one here! Help your little brother out, won't you?"

"This isn't even my responsibility," I said, taking off my headphones and looking at the thin one helplessly.

Besides, it wasn't that I was brave, but rather a strange impulse.

The Qingye Paranormal Agency was indeed cold. The windows were covered with dark frosted film. I didn't know how long the owner had been missing, but the room had been sealed, shut off from sunlight all day, and covered in dust, giving it an eerie, cold feeling. The power was out in the room; they probably hadn't paid the electricity bill for a long time. With no sunlight and no lights, it was dim even in the daytime. But before the police officers from the station could even turn on their flashlights, I noticed that row of filing cabinets. After our group went in, I didn't even think twice before opening the filing cabinets and finding the records of Qingye's cases. And I didn't think twice about it when I casually took a few of them with me when we left.

Compelled by some force?

I looked down at the file in my hands.

"Brother Qi, how about it? Help your little brother out! I'll treat you to a late-night snack! How about some barbecue? Let's start with fifty lamb skewers, then fifty beef skewers!" the thin one declared generously.

I could hear the fat one slurping his mouth from the side.

"You're paying half! This is both of our jobs!" the thin one said, reaching out to poke the fat one.

"Huh?" Fatty wore an expression of being caught in the crossfire.

"Or do you want to get the files?" Skinny offered Fatty a choice.

Fatty shook his head, his jowls jiggling.

"Then it's settled!" Skinny patted my shoulder.

"What's settled?" I asked, unsure whether to laugh or cry.

"Here, take the key." Skinny pulled a key from his pocket.

We'd broken into the police station to get it, then repaired the lock and made a new key, which Skinny had kept.

I looked at the key and instinctively took it. Holding the key, warmed by Skinny's pocket, I inexplicably thought of the filing cabinet in the shadows.

"Oh, and Brother Qi, check when they went missing," Skinny reminded me. "See what their last case was."

"Oh, okay," I agreed casually.

"Isn't this too much trouble? We've followed all the proper procedures. The police have put up missing person notices, and you've inquired around the neighborhood," Guo Yujie said. "Once the demolition is done and they're still not found, we can just record it. If they show up later, we can issue the demolition compensation then, right?"

Fatty nodded along.

Skinny, however, shook his head. "We've only been looking for a few days, and we're giving up? The media will go crazy then—they'll have a field day! We're just giving them fodder! 'Homeowner missing, government forcibly demolishes,' the news will twist it to 'Government forcibly demolishes, homeowner missing,' and a few days later, they'll be writing about us murdering people to cover up the demolition."

This might not affect the demolition itself, which would proceed regardless, but on a personal level... Damn it, it could ruin careers!

"Is it really that exaggerated?" Guo Yujie looked skeptical.

"We have to be prepared. You have to assume the worst from people with no bottom line," Skinny said with a mournful expression of worldly disillusionment.