“Team Leader Qin, the results from the Inspection Section are out. Would you like to take a look now?”
Holding the files, Zhang Yue cautiously asked the woman dozing off against her chair:
“Did you stay up all night again? Um, would you like to... take a break?”
In the familiar office layout, over a dozen massive whiteboards were lined up in a row.
The whiteboards were covered with photographs, dense webs of connection strings crisscrossing between them, with sticky notes haphazardly pasted all around.
Notes were written beside each person; family backgrounds, detailed addresses, and even educational histories were all clearly marked.
The short-haired woman leaned her head back against the chair. Even in a relaxed state, her posture remained upright and disciplined.
The office door was wide open, revealing staff members bustling about in a hurry outside.
Each one was full of energy, as though possessing boundless vitality.
“No need, just hand them to me. Did the facial comparison results from Traces Inspection come out yet?”
Qin Yue opened her eyes, not a trace of exhaustion showing on her face:
“What about tracing the physical evidence? Have they still not found the origins of the yellow chicken and the yellow paper?”
Of course, that was if one ignored the faint dark circles under her eyes.
“Still no results. The surveillance team’s eyes are practically popping out, but they could only confirm the last place Target B, codenamed ‘Female Ghost,’ appeared that night.”
Zhang Yue shook her head, an apologetic look on her face:
“As for tracing the physical evidence, that side is having an even bigger headache. They investigated over a dozen nearby chicken farms, but couldn't find where that chicken came from.
Then there's the yellow paper. They said it was made using ancient papermaking techniques, and the craft of rolling the paper money closely resembles how paper money used to be handmade.
Nowadays, it's mostly mechanized. Only some remote areas with poor transportation still use this kind of yellow paper. Team Leader Wang and his team have already set out to pursue this lead.”
“Target ‘Female Ghost’ is practically as if she sprang out of thin air.”
Qin Yue stared at the rows of figures on the inspection report. Involuntarily developing a headache, she rubbed her temples and said:
“We’ve fallen completely into a passive position... Tsk. The background investigations on the employees of Hongxing Mansion are mostly done as well.”
She flexed her wrists. Though bloodshot lines laced her eyes, her spirit was still high.
Qin Yue reached out and tapped a few photos in front of her.
“Still, there has been some progress. In a bit, have Traces Inspection run another background check on these few people in the system to see if they share any connections with Chen Ping.
Remember, don't overlook any clues. Even if it's something as minor as ordering from the same takeout place or riding the same subway train, record it in detail.”
Seven photographs were neatly arranged on the desk, featuring men and women, old and young.
Each person’s life history was highlighted, naturally including their hometown and ancestral origins.
“Got it, I'll go notify them right away!”
Zhang Yue’s face flushed slightly, feeling the excitement of being entrusted with heavy responsibility.
Just a few days ago, she was merely an ordinary office worker.
That night, she had fainted from fright.
Opening her eyes again, she woke up in a private hospital room.
Zhang Yue originally thought that what happened that night was just a nightmare.
Yet official personnel showed up at her door, proving to her that everything that occurred at Hongxing Mansion that night was indeed real.
And because she was one of only two living people who had made contact with Target B, codenamed ‘Female Ghost.’
After some maneuvering by Qin Yue, Zhang Yue became a member of the special investigation team, effortlessly securing a stable government post.
—It was truly a blessing in disguise; if word got out, she would be cursed to death by countless students struggling with postgraduate and civil service exams.
She had also landed a spot on the government payroll.
It was also only after joining the investigation team that Zhang Yue truly witnessed what was meant by "the power of the state apparatus."
In just one short week.
Hongxing Mansion had completed its preliminary renovations, with floors 20 through 27 all designated as workplaces for the special investigation team.
Floors 20 and 21 served as the security zone, while floors 22 through 24, as well as floor 27, served as upper and lower buffer zones.
The true core areas were the 25th-floor experimental area where Chen Ping resided, and the 26th-floor investigation team office area.
Tens of thousands of surveillance cameras, hundreds of security personnel, along with various counter-surveillance measures and equipment—going to such great lengths and expending such massive resources, all merely to establish a special investigation team.
As the leader of the special investigation team, the burden on Qin Yue's shoulders was undeniably heavy.
After that night, Chen Ping did not have his soul return to the Underworld like in mythological stories, nor did any Ox-Head and Horse-Face or Black and White Impermanence come to escort him.
—Leaving the fully prepared researchers disappointed for a long time.
Qin Yue stared at the photos on the desk, furrowing her brows slightly.
After the Chen Ping incident was reported through the chain of command, the higher-ups specially ordered her to form a special investigation team, radiating outward from Hongxing Mansion to investigate supernatural cases that had occurred over the past several decades.
In any city, no fewer than ten thousand people die each year.
Let alone a populous metropolis like Qianli City.
Thus, Qin Yue and her team really did manage to pan for gold in the sand, filtering out over a dozen supernatural incidents.
【Changping Red-clothed Little Girl Case】
【Cat-Faced Old Lady Corpse Resuscitation Case】
【Intersection Traffic Accident Case of the Janitor】
【Route 608 Supernatural Bus Case】
【Haunted House Case of the Exterminated Family of Three】
Yet upon careful follow-up, every single lead yielded nothing.
Not only did they fail to find any communicable ghosts like Chen Ping, but they couldn't even catch a glimpse of a ghostly shadow.
Chen Ping's current condition was improving day by day.
Not only was he gradually breaking free from his previous "bloodthirsty" state, but his strength also seemed to have increased.
After several rounds of experiments, the duration he could be detected on surveillance increased from 0.01 milliseconds to 0.03 milliseconds. Though only a minuscule improvement, it was sufficient to prove that Chen Ping's strength was growing.
Even He Xiaoyi, who was accustomed to seeing ghosts, asserted that Chen Ping was special.
Chen Ping was special.
Was it because of the ancient-attired woman codenamed “Female Ghost”?
What in the world did she do to Chen Ping?
Could it truly have been just a simple ritual of “yellow chicken pathfinding”?
At Qin Yue's request, He Xiaoyi replicated the "Female Ghost's" ritual down to the finest detail based on that video.
Yet it remained completely ineffective.
The identity of the "Female Ghost" was an enigma, and her origin was like a murky gray mist, impossible to grasp no matter how they probed.
The investigation had run into a total bottleneck.
Qin Yue suppressed the irritation in her heart.
...
...
Late at night, the 25th-floor experimental area of Hongxing Mansion was brightly lit.
Except for one special room, which was pitch-black.
Inside the room, furniture was complete and fully equipped: a computer, coffee table, sofa, refrigerator, single bed, bookcase...
There was even an altar table, except that what was enshrined upon it was a black-and-white funeral portrait.
Click.
The refrigerator door opened on its own without any breeze, as if guided by an invisible hand.
A can of iced cola "floated" out from inside the refrigerator. With another pssst, the can opened, carefully drifting toward the funeral portrait.
In front of the funeral portrait, atop three incense sticks, the tiny points of red glowed glaringly bright. Chen Ping sprawled greedily over the altar table, taking a deep breath:
“Drinking iced cola in the dead of night—man, this feels good.”
Never in his wildest dreams did he imagine that after toiling like a beast of burden in life, he would actually secure a permanent government post and join the Party in death, transforming overnight into a proud child of the nation and its people.
Even Chen Ping himself found it unbelievable.
Yet though he was dead, his worldly attachments remained. His mortgage wasn't fully paid off yet, his daughter needed money for school, and his elderly parents would also need funds to live comfortably in their twilight years.
So when Qin Yue proposed having him join the special investigation team, Chen Ping agreed without a second thought.
His work was relaxed now: from 1:00 AM to 5:00 AM every day, working just four hours a day.
The job responsibilities were ridiculously easy too: just cooperating with researchers on tests, chatting about personal thoughts, helping Master He practice spiritualism, and then his day was done.
Calculating it this way, he only needed to work for another thirty years. Not only would the mortgage be completely paid off, but he could also build up a substantial nest egg for his wife and daughter.
This was the first time Chen Ping genuinely exclaimed from the bottom of his heart: being a ghost is awesome.
Lying on the table were the photos of relevant personnel sent over from Qin Yue's side for him to review once more.
Chen Ping glanced over them, his gaze suddenly falling upon the face of a smiling young woman:
“Nan... Zhi. What a strange name. Is there really anyone with the surname Nan?”
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