Chapter Summaries

In the video, Mr. Qian described how he and his family fled abroad after his brother-in-law’s smuggling business went wrong. He revealed that his wife and son had turned into toys, and that his own arm had developed a toy-like joint.

• Wu Ling questioned Mr. Qian about his brother-in-law’s smuggling operation and the stolen shipment of designer bags.
• A plush cat cried out, and a wind-up soldier shot Mr. Qian in the shoulder, prompting him to admit he had stolen and sold goods from the shipment.
• Mr. Qian described how his son Tiantian and wife became increasingly obsessed with their old toys after the family moved abroad.
• Mr. Qian said his wife’s body felt like cloth and cotton, while Tiantian’s had turned to plastic.
• Mr. Qian showed the rounded groove in his elbow, and Liu Miao recognized it as a toy soldier’s ball joint.

A terrified man told Ye Qing and Greenleaf’s people that toys from a factory in Country A had caused his family and others to act strangely. The man transformed into a doll, and after the wind-up soldier urged them to burn the toys, the fire consumed them and the woman fainted.

• The man described how his brother-in-law vanished and how toy-related incidents affected his family and hired investigators.
• Liu Miao inspected the baby doll and rag doll, finding the baby doll’s battery compartment empty and no mechanism in the rag doll.
• Ye Qing questioned the man about the toy factory and learned it was in eastern Country A, where his brother-in-law had used it for smuggling.
• The man transformed into a small plastic doll and pleaded for help as the other toys spoke in the voices of his wife and son.
• The wind-up soldier told them to burn the toys, and Ye Qing ordered Liu Miao to set fire to the toys and the room’s furnishings.
• The woman threw the white cat, tea set, and furniture into the flames, then fainted after the fire went out.

Lin Qi learned from Nangong Yao how the toy case ended in a bargain that spared Liang Qiyi while Qian Yongqiang and the toys were killed. Nangong also revealed that the overseas toy factory later burned down, and Lin Qi ended the chapter looking at a new post from Li Xingfang.

• Liang Qiyi confirmed that she felt safe and chose to end the assignment without pursuing the toy factory.
• Lin Qi called Gu Mo, who asked Nangong Yao to explain the case.
• Nangong Yao said the toys’ boss had ordered Qian Yongqiang killed and Liang Qiyi spared, while the toys involved were burned.
• Nangong Yao told Lin Qi that the overseas toy factory was destroyed in a 2010 forest fire, though he did not know whether it was a coincidence or the work of professionals.
• Lin Qi remained troubled by the unfair bargain, then opened social media and saw a new post from Li Xingfang.

The narrator reflected on Li Xingfang’s search for his family and the danger surrounding Sano, then continued working through the uncertainty. At Workers and Peasants Sixth Village, Xu Guangzong voted on a compensation plan and asked how voting again with his younger son would affect the ballot.

• The narrator checked Li Xingfang’s social media and wondered whether he would ever find his wife and daughter or uncover what happened to Sano.
• The narrator went to work and handled the demolition vote at Workers and Peasants Sixth Village.
• Xu Guangzong arrived with Xu Gang, requested a ballot, and selected a compensation plan.
• Xu Guangzong asked whether voting again with his younger son would invalidate both ballots, and the narrator explained that each property could cast only one vote.
• Xu Guangzong earnestly asked whether the office could invalidate only the later ballot.

Xu Guangzong asked the demolition office to keep his vote secret so he could influence which compensation plan his sons received, but the narrator refused. After Xu Guangzong voted, Director Mao explained that his apparent effort to favor Xu Gang was actually a way to keep supporting Xu Tie.

• Xu Guangzong asked the narrator to conceal his ballot so his sons would not know how he voted, but the narrator explained that the rules required votes to be recorded and made public.
• Xu Guangzong said he wanted cash rather than an apartment so Xu Tie would have to become independent, while the thin man noted that giving Xu Tie an apartment would be similar.
• Xu Guangzong reconsidered and cast his vote, then Xu Gang helped him leave without comment.
• Guo Yujie asked why Xu Guangzong wanted to teach Xu Tie a lesson, and Director Mao said he was actually favoring Xu Tie while making Xu Gang think he was being treated fairly.
• A neighborhood committee worker said Xu Guangzong would likely live with Xu Gang and give his pension to Xu Tie, and Director Mao warned that more trouble would follow.

The narrator struggled to secure a high turnout for the demolition vote and asked Chen Xiao Qiu about Chen Yihan’s findings. Chen Yihan refused to discuss Ye Qing, leaving Chen Xiao Qiu and the narrator uncertain, while the narrator’s sister changed her travel plans to visit a film set.

• The narrator and the residents’ committee tidied their meeting room after efforts to inform property owners about the vote.
• At home, the narrator asked Chen Xiao Qiu whether she had spoken with Chen Yihan about Ye Qing and the wind chime.
• Chen Xiao Qiu said Chen Yihan had brushed her off and changed the subject when she asked about Ye Qing.
• Chen Xiao Qiu said she had not mentioned the wind chime and planned to try asking again, possibly after her father returned.
• The narrator’s sister persuaded their mother to change her Japan tour plans so she could visit Nantian’s film set in Minqing.

Duan Xiaojun recounted how swarms of strange insects appeared in his home after he retired, despite repeated cleaning and extermination. After replacing infested furniture, he continued to find ants, moths, centipedes, spiders, and enormous cockroaches, leaving him frightened and unsure of the source.

• Duan Xiaojun said flies and mosquitoes filled his house even after he installed screens and used insecticide.
• He saw strange white worms cover a wall and emerge from around a light switch, then found cockroaches, bedbugs, and termite-damaged furniture while cleaning alone.
• Duan Xiaojun’s sons replaced the furniture and arranged extermination, while he stayed at his younger daughter’s home and his wife stayed with their older daughter.
• After returning home alone, Duan Xiaojun watched ants carry food into a bathroom drain, then found moths, centipedes, and spiders appearing around the house.
• Duan Xiaojun said his family had not witnessed the worst infestations and described the cockroaches he saw as enormous, flying, and unafraid of people.

Greenleaf Paranormal investigated Duan Xiaojun’s report of swarms of insects and learned that the trouble began after his retirement. His son Duan Zheng recounted finding his father dead in a freezing bedroom while his mother behaved strangely, leaving the truth about her condition unresolved.

• Greenleaf Paranormal questioned Duan Xiaojun about when the insects began and learned that he had stopped visiting the neighborhood teahouse after retiring.
• The investigators contacted Duan Xiaojun’s eldest son, Duan Zheng, who described his father as stubborn and said the family had tried to keep in touch after his retirement.
• Duan Zheng recalled that his mother had called after Duan Xiaojun argued with an old man at the teahouse, then later said the family was staying home and watching TV.
• Duan Zheng found Duan Xiaojun lying stiff and cold in a bedroom chilled by the air conditioner, while his mother emerged from the bathroom and acted as if nothing was wrong.
• Duan Zheng said his mother’s hand was ice-cold and began to explain that she had still been alive at the time.

A sibling recounted finding his father dead and his mother behaving strangely, then explained how the five siblings tried to protect her from the truth. While they watched the house, they heard their dead father moaning and speaking.

• The sibling described noticing that something was wrong with his parents and bringing his siblings to their home late at night.
• Kangzi found their father unresponsive and apparently dead, while their mother insisted he was merely sleeping and sent the siblings away.
• The siblings gathered at the narrator’s home, agreed their father had died, and planned to keep the truth from their mother while arranging for his body to be moved.
• The sons arranged for their mother to go on a trip, obtained fake medical paperwork, and planned to gradually tell her that their father was ill and then dead.
• While the three brothers watched the house, they heard their dead father moaning and speaking.

The siblings explained that their dead father had continued appearing at home, while their deceased mother seemed to return and live normally. After hearing how the family had struggled to understand what was happening, the firm said it would visit the parents and try to help them pass on peacefully.

• One of the sons recounted how his father’s voice and his mother’s figure appeared at home after monks performed rites for the father.
• The sons learned that their mother had died in the hospital, even as she seemed to return home and speak with their father.
• Kang received a call from their dead mother, and the family learned that others had seen her behaving like a living person.
• The siblings told the firm that their father had called about bugs and that the family had all witnessed them.
• The firm said it would visit the parents and arrange rites to help them pass on, with other options if necessary.

Wu Ling and Ye Qing investigated the bugs plaguing Mr. Duan and found a swarm beneath his mattress, despite the couple having replaced the bed and cleaned the home. The inquiry turned to Mr. Duan’s life after retirement, as his wife suspected someone was retaliating against him.

• Wu Ling and Ye Qing visited Mr. Duan’s home and filmed the bedroom, where a person wrapped in cling film lay on the bed.
• Wu Ling opened the curtains, revealing the room to sunlight, then lifted the mattress and uncovered a swarm of tiny black bugs.
• Ye Qing and Wu Ling drove the bugs out of the room, and Ye Qing collected one for Wu Ling to examine.
• Ye Qing and Wu Ling questioned Mr. Duan about what had happened since he retired.
• Mrs. Duan said Mr. Duan had struggled with retirement and suggested he had offended someone who was now taking revenge.

Wu Ling questioned Mr. Duan and his wife about the events surrounding his retirement and learned that their children once hired monks to chant sutras for him. The investigation continued with an audio analysis that revealed Mr. Duan had seen bugs emerging from a light switch.

• Mr. Duan recalled arguing with an old man from Building 13 before going home angry and staying in bed early for several days.
• Mrs. Duan said she had left a trip early after Mr. Duan complained that he was not eating or sleeping well.
• Mr. Duan remembered that their children had hired monks to chant sutras, but neither he nor his wife recalled other strange events.
• Wu Ling asked the couple to keep thinking about the previous four years and said the team would speak with their children.
• During analysis of audio file 01220020705G.wav, the Greenleaf team heard Mr. Duan describe bugs squeezing out from inside a light switch.

The Greenleaf Paranormal Agency met with the Duan family about their parents’ unresolved deaths and the insects troubling Duan Xiaojun. The children resisted laying their parents to rest, leaving the agency unable to resolve the deadlock until the family changed its attitude.

• Ling explained that ghosts could lose control and become evil ghosts the longer they remained in the world.
• On July 10, the agency contacted the Duan family and played them Duan Xiaojun’s request and recording.
• Duan Kang questioned the agency’s motives, while Duan Bo and the sisters grieved and explained that their parents had continued visiting and helping the family after death.
• The Duan children asked the agency to fix the insect problem while allowing their parents to stay, and offered to pay anything.
• The agency explained that resolving the insects required dealing with Duan Xiaojun’s corpse and that the parents’ condition was tied to the family’s refusal to let them go.

The Duan siblings debated whether to tell their ghost parents they were dead, and agreed to let them choose after a salvation ritual. On July 15, 2002, Master Huiyi began the ritual, leaving Mr. Duan and Aunt Duan about to sit before the altar.

• A woman explained that the Duan parents’ ignorance could worsen their condition and that learning the truth might turn them into vengeful ghosts.
• The siblings argued over whether their parents should be told the truth, while the woman warned that ghosts could lose their self-control.
• Duan Xiahua’s eldest brother agreed to arrange a salvation ritual and let their parents decide whether to stay.
• Master Huiyi began the ritual by lighting incense and setting it upright in the burner, then asked Mr. Duan and Aunt Duan to sit before the altar.

Master Huiyi’s ritual eased the elderly couple’s symptoms, and Ye Qing said their children’s wish to keep them among the living would determine what happened next. The case was closed after the client’s father improved, but when the client returned months later, he reported that he and the old woman had become strange and could no longer control their tempers.

• Master Huiyi performed a ritual that made the old man and old woman feel lighter and stopped the bugs from appearing.
• Ye Qing told the family the corpse could be cremated, but whether the elderly couple could remain in the living world depended on how long their children could hold out.
• The client visited on July 19, 2002, to thank Duan Kang and Master Huiyi, and the case was closed after the family settled the fees.
• An audio analysis noted that the bug sounds had stopped and that the family had gotten what they wanted, if they could endure the consequences.
• The client returned on April 21, 2003, and said he and the old woman had become strange and could no longer control their tempers.

Mr. Duan described how he and Mrs. Duan had grown increasingly disturbing since their children cremated his body, and Greenleaf Paranormal Agency told their son Duan Zheng that the children’s relief may have weakened the bond keeping the couple’s minds together. Duan Zheng said the family needed to discuss whether they still wanted the elderly couple to remain in the mortal world.

• Mr. Duan told Greenleaf Paranormal Agency that he had attacked former colleagues and a neighbor, while Mrs. Duan had become obsessively watchful of her grandchildren.
• Mr. Duan agreed to let the agency contact his family, though he worried that something serious was wrong with him and his wife.
• Duan Zheng told the agency that his father’s violent behavior and his mother’s fixation on a grandchild had alarmed the family.
• The agency explained that the parents’ condition may have deteriorated because the children’s feelings had changed after the father’s cremation.
• Duan Zheng admitted that he had felt relieved after the cremation, and the agency said this may have snapped the bond sustaining his parents’ minds.
• Duan Zheng said the family needed to discuss whether they wanted to keep the two elderly people in the mortal world.

The five Duan children learned that their conflicting feelings had kept their parents lingering as ghosts, and they agreed to tell them the truth and let them choose whether to stay or move on. When the family told the seniors, Mr. Duan revealed that he had already suspected he was dead.

• The Duan children argued over whether the cremation had caused Mr. Duan’s worsening condition and whether their parents should be laid to rest.
• The investigators explained that the children’s conflicting wishes had bound Mr. and Mrs. Duan to the living world and urged them to agree on what they wanted.
• Duan Kang proposed telling his parents the truth, and the investigators agreed while warning they would exorcise the seniors if Mr. Duan became dangerous.
• The children visited their parents with Master Huiyi and told them Mr. Duan had died four years earlier.
• Mr. Duan said he thought he had already guessed the truth.

The Duan family chose to let Mr. Duan and Mrs. Duan remain as ghosts, and Master Huiyi performed a ritual to preserve their condition. Fourteen years later, the couple returned with family photos and videos, thanked the young people, and decided to move on after seeing their descendants grow up.

• Mr. Duan and Mrs. Duan realized they had died and learned their children had unknowingly lived alongside them as ghosts.
• Their children and grandchildren agreed to support the couple staying, and Master Huiyi performed a ritual for them.
• The case was closed on April 25, 2003.
• On April 3, 2017, Mr. Duan and Mrs. Duan visited for a third time and gave the young man photos and videos of their family.
• The couple said their descendants were grown and that they did not want to burden them, then thanked the young people and left to move on.

Lin Qi watched fourteen years of the Duan family’s home videos and saw Mr. and Mrs. Duan choose to leave after their family had given them extra years together. Lin Qi told Gu Mo about their farewell visit to the agency, and Gu Mo confirmed that Ye Qing may have been the only one left there.

• Lin Qi watched photos and videos documenting the Duan family’s fourteen years together and noticed Mr. and Mrs. Duan’s yin shadows growing stronger.
• In the final video, Mr. Duan thanked his family and asked them not to keep taking care of him and his wife, and the shadows over the couple faded.
• Lin Qi reflected that the Duans had accepted death peacefully while Ye Qing had endured years of separation and death at the agency.
• Lin Qi called Gu Mo and said Mr. and Mrs. Duan had visited the agency in 2017 to thank everyone and say goodbye.
• Gu Mo repeated Lin Qi’s suggestion that Ye Qing had been the only one left at the agency and impatiently asked whether that was all.

The narrator reassured Gu Mo that they would protect their friends and give them years of peace, then returned to work at the relocation office. There, Xu Tie protested his father and brother’s votes, while the narrator and colleagues heard that Xu Gang had joined a heated family argument at Xu Guangzong’s home.

• The narrator told Gu Mo they would save their friends and family and hoped to give them at least ten peaceful years; Gu Mo calmed down and ended the call.
• The next day, Xu Tie angrily protested Xu Guangzong and Xu Gang’s votes at the relocation office, but Director Mao dismissed his complaint and sent him home to talk to his father.
• Director Mao told the narrator and Guo Yujie how Xu Guangzong had helped Xu Guangneng and Xu Gang succeed, including securing Xu Gang’s wife a job that helped him start his business.
• Director Mao and Guo Yujie watched Xu Gang arrive, while the narrator stayed at their desk; an auntie later reported that Xu Tie and the others were arguing loudly in Xu Guangzong’s smoky home.