Long Biao
Driver Xiao Chen was not frightened by the ghost that suddenly appeared. He did not change his speed and calmly turned the corner while the car was steadily going uphill.
Wen Dai glanced at Chen Sizhe, licked her dry lips, and looked up at the ghost still pressed against the car window and bleeding. She said lightly, "Chen Sizhe, I've found that you're quite realistic."
Holding the steering wheel with unwavering composure, Chen Sizhe didn't even flinch, only twitching his eyebrows slightly. He lazily asked, "What?"
“If this were a real person, you would stop and kick him out, right? But this is a ghost, so you wouldn’t care even if it smeared blood all over your car window, because the blood would disappear with the ghost.” Wen Dai put forward her very reasonable deduction.
Unfortunately, all he got in return was a sneer from Chen Sizhe and his matter-of-fact reply: "This isn't my car."
Okay, that's true.
They rented this car after arriving in Bay City for convenience.
The ghost peering through the car window wasn't deaf; he knew perfectly well that the two people inside were teasing him. A feeling of frustration arose within him, and the ghost, with a hint of defiance, slipped into the car. He sat in the back seat, craning his neck forward, clearly intending to challenge the giraffe.
When faced with a funny face that came up to her, Wen Dai responded with her expressionless face.
She slowly raised one hand and made a hand seal, while the other hand took out the talisman she always carried and coldly held it out to the ghost's face.
"ah!--"
The scalded ghost quickly pulled his neck back, clutching his face and hissing in pain, while snarling, "You heartless woman!"
Most people would probably ignore it, but Wen Dai retorted: "You were the one who came up to me first to scare me. I didn't even care when you were leaning against the car window at first."
However, there was no time for them to bicker, so Chen Sizhe parked the car in front of the villa.
I shuffled off the car. The air conditioning was gone, and the oppressive heat that should have been there was nowhere to be seen. The cool breeze in the mountains was just as good as air conditioning. It was summer down below, but it felt like autumn had arrived early on the mountain.
The ghost in the car crawled out on its own, following Wen Dai like a sticky snotty bug that couldn't be driven away. It sent a message to the client indicating that they were already at the door. Wen Dai turned around and glanced at the ghost who had returned to its normal human face and was staring at her.
As expected, the goblin's bone structure was actually quite good. He didn't have a protruding mouth, and his face shape was very smooth. His features weren't exactly delicate, but they were well-proportioned. If he were to be properly groomed and brought to life, and thrown into the world below the mountain, he might even be called a handsome man.
After commenting on the goblin's appearance, Wen Dai coldly looked away and followed Chen Sizhe to the villa entrance to wait for the owner to come down and open the door.
"What are you going in here for?" The word "ghost" should be preceded by "outgoing and familiar."
With only the back of her head facing him, Wen Dai succinctly said, "Kill the ghost."
"Oh, kill the ghost... kill the ghost!?" The prefix for being overly familiar also needs to include "startled".
The inner villa gate opened, and a person who looked even more like a ghost than the "startled and overly familiar ghost" behind Wen Dai walked out.
Even from a distance, you could clearly see the blue whites of his eyes. His messy short hair and stubble-covered face, along with the dark circles under his eyes, were hard to ignore. His short-sleeved shirt swayed as he walked.
When he reached the gate of the courtyard and opened it, the ghost's wicked sense of humor resurfaced. Regardless of whether the thin man who came out could see him, he stuck his head out—and indeed, he could.
"ah!--"
Wen Dai silently raised her hand and rubbed her ear. Chen Sizhe, who was next to her, clicked his tongue and said, "My eardrum is going to get a work injury."
The thin man, who had taken several steps back in fright, raised his arm, which was thinner than a bamboo pole, and pointed at the ghost with trembling eyes. His eyes widened in terror as he looked at Wen Dai and Chen Sizhe, "You...you...you...how could you bring a ghost with you?!"
“No, we brought him with us. We just bumped into him on the way, and don’t you think he didn’t seem to have any ill intentions, Mr. Qiu?”
Perhaps infected by the ghosts' wicked humor, Wen Dai smiled at him with pursed lips, her peach blossom eyes blinking a couple of times, giving the impression of a warm greeting. However, their words and words were completely unrelated to any form of comfort.
Qiu swallowed hard. To be honest, he didn't know why he instinctively felt that this thing was a ghost as soon as he saw it. Before the thing stretched out its neck, he had a vague feeling that something was wrong. The closer he got, the more he felt a chill, just like he felt in the house.
It seemed that successfully scaring people gave the ghost a sense of accomplishment. The disappointment he had felt earlier from Wen Dai and Chen Sizhe vanished. He straightened his back and said with a hint of pride, "I still have some prestige. I really don't understand why the boss gave up on me."
As Chen Sizhe walked into the villa's courtyard, he suddenly asked the ghost, "Who is your boss?"
"My boss? My boss is Brother Biao, Long Biao—" The words stopped abruptly, and the ghost suddenly froze, standing there motionless.
The ghost was mute, but Qiu Kou opened his mouth and exclaimed in surprise, "Long Biao?!"
"Don't just stand there, let's get this over with quickly." Wen Dai and Chen Sizhe followed Qiu Kou into the villa. After urging Qiu Kou on, Wen Dai pressed on, "Who is Long Biao? What is his relationship with Sang Biao?"
The question was asked out of curiosity, but Qiu's expression and tone were very serious: "He's very famous in our Bay City. Decades ago, he was a local tyrant with a lot of power. Back then, he monopolized video games and casinos. I remember when I was a kid, my parents would scare us by saying that if we went out to play late, we would run into Long Biao, and he would cut off our noses, chop off our hands and legs, and even rip out our tendons and gut us..."
"Brother Biao would never do that." The sudden appearance of the ghost startled Qiu Kou, causing him to slip and fall forward. He turned around and stared at the ghost in horror.
The group stopped at the entrance of the villa on the first floor. Ghost stood beside them and began to defend the legendary Long Biao: "He just wanted to live a good life. He's not as heinous as people say. If Dizi hadn't done anything wrong, Brother Biao would never have laid a hand on him. He's always been good to us brothers. When we're out, we call him Boss, but in private we call him Big Brother or Brother Biao."
“Back then, my dad died in an accident, my grandma also fell seriously ill because of him, and my mom broke her leg and was bedridden. My family couldn’t even afford to eat, so I had to go out and secretly rummage through garbage cans for food, or go from shop to shop begging the owners for some food… It was Brother Biao who gave me food, and he even came with me to my house and gave me a lot of money to use for my grandma and mom’s medical treatment…”
He lowered his head and recounted many things to himself, then clenched his fist, raised his chin, and said firmly, "Brother Biao is a man of great loyalty and righteousness!"
"So how did you die? You mentioned earlier that you were still quite powerful, saying you didn't understand why your boss gave up on you. Were you abandoned by Long Biao? Was your death related to him?" Chen Sizhe pressed the ghost for details, using his height advantage to look down at the ghost with a scrutinizing gaze.
Stunned by the question, the ghost froze once more, his neck hunched as if broken, his head bowed low, seemingly lost in thought, repeatedly muttering, "How did I die? Was my death related to Brother Biao?..."
Ignoring the ghosts and monsters that were not the purpose of their trip, Wen Dai walked into the house and slowly made her way around. She understood what was going on as a spirit was giving her hints.
Stepping closer to Qiu Kou, Wen Dai raised her chin in a gesture, "Raise your arm. Didn't you say there were words on your hand?"
Qiu Kou, who had been standing there blankly like a ghost, was brought back to his senses. He said "Eh" and quickly turned his body to the side by pulling his upper arm up to his shoulder, revealing a red "中" (zhong) character printed on his not-so-muscular upper arm.
It wasn't just a single character "中" (zhong). The red marks, both horizontal and vertical, were probably made by Qiu Kou himself, and the most prominent one was this single character "中".
“I didn’t ask you carefully online, but you’re clearly not comfortable living here anymore, so why haven’t you moved out yet?” Wen Dai’s question wasn’t meant to ask for an answer. She reached into her pocket, and only half of the talisman was visible when Qiu Kou suddenly covered her face and burst into tears.
If Wen Dai hadn't known she was in the real world, she probably would have been startled by his sudden snapping neck movement—after all, it was a standard feature of zombie mutations.
One shoulder shrugged high, almost touching the ear, while the other shoulder swayed back. The already thin person seemed to be trying to transform himself into a praying mantis, yet both hands remained covered in the face, tears spilling from between his fingers.
However, reality and mutation have similarities.
"Brother Biao, Brother Biao, why did you abandon me... Brother Biao... What did I do wrong..." Qiu Kou covered his face and cried, his neck trembling, or rather, sobbing.
Wen Dai raised her eyebrows, her thoughtful gaze lingering briefly on the still-dazed ghost. Strange, it's "Brother Biao" again.
Sending away ghosts and monsters is better done by smoothly clearing away their resentment rather than forcibly doing so.
Instead of immediately banishing the soul residing in Qiu Kou's body, Wen Dai leisurely struck up a conversation: "You were also abandoned by Brother Biao? What a coincidence! Look at that guy next to you who's spacing out, he's the same one. Do you two know each other?"
The sobbing of "Qiu Kou" stopped abruptly. His two hands, which had been covering his face, slowly fell down. There seemed to be a blank look in his eyes. He turned his head to meet the eyes of the ghost who was also in a state of ignorance.
"Yang Ke?"
The ghost called "Yang Ke" paused for a moment, then, like a piece of wood awakening, he stared wide-eyed at "Qiu Kou." Perhaps these kinds of spirits have the ability to see through the outer shell and directly perceive the soul inside. Although his tone was somewhat hesitant, he still called out a name: "Ma Qi?"
The two ghosts' eyes widened at the same speed, staring at each other in disbelief, their first reaction being—
How did you die?
The problem of speaking with one voice.
The pragmatic Chen Sizhe did not calmly appreciate the "family reunion drama" like Wen Dai. He found several spots in the house and placed red candles. The yellow talismans in the bag he was carrying were also exposed to the light of day and fell one by one next to the red candles.
The actors in the "family reunion play" were unaware of this situation.
The only audience member, Wen Dai, pieced together the general outline of the incident through their accounts.
Many years ago, this area was the territory of Long Biao, a local tyrant, but naturally, he wasn't the only tyrant.
The car, carrying many people, bumped and swayed as it went uphill. Yang Ke and Ma Qi were both from the first tier of Long Biao's close associates and were qualified to ride in the same car as him.
Besides them and Long Biao, there were two other outstanding men in the car. Yang Ke and Ma Qi were especially self-aware, knowing that their status in Long Biao's heart could not compare with those two.
Yang Ke and Ma Qi weren't very familiar with each other, as they usually stayed in different territories. It was only by chance that they got to know each other while traveling together this time. In a way, it was all thanks to Long Biao's "brotherhood culture" that he had always practiced.
Which area are you from?
"Where are you over there to the north?"
"I'm from the south. Nice to meet you."
A brief negotiation. But at that moment, neither of them imagined that another negotiation would mean they would meet again in the afterlife.
With Long Biao sitting beside him, Yang Ke couldn't bring himself to talk to Ma Qi about anything else. Since people can't suddenly grow two mouths, he just kept chatting with Long Biao.
Long Biao, lounging lazily in his chair, puffed on a cigar, the wisps of white smoke filling the car. His deep voice boomed, "I'll take you guys to see the casino later. Hmph, this casino is full of 'fat pigs.' I'm leaving you two here because I trust you; you'd better 'slaughter' them for me."
Yang Ke's eyes widened, and he patted his chest without hesitation, replying, "Brother Biao, don't worry, I definitely won't let you down."
Much like him is March, who readily makes vows: "I swear, I will go through fire and water for Brother Biao for the rest of my life! I will never do anything to disappoint Brother Biao."
Long Biao curled the corners of his mouth, glanced meaningfully at the two people beside him, and said nothing more.
The casino at that time is now the villa.
The villa's ground floor was filled with tables, and the smell of smoke and alcohol was nothing compared to the bloodstains on the walls, which needed to be cleaned up every day. This was because people injured or killed others due to emotional outbursts or were unable to repay gambling debts. Broken arms and legs were the least of their worries, and missing organs was also common.
The first to enter were the two men who had been sitting in the front row. They each fired a shot, one to the left and one to the right. Long Biao, sandwiched between them, naturally enjoyed the stares of the frightened people in the casino.
Yang Ke and Ma Qi followed behind Long Biao, one on the left and one on the right. The four of them surrounded Long Biao as they walked forward, creating a strong sense of oppression. Those who were engrossed in gambling couldn't help but raise their heads and stare intently at the people who had entered.
The weekly payment days are when the blood loss is the greatest.
"Give me the money."
These words were spoken by Yang Ke and Ma Qi, who were assigned specific tasks.
Long Biao only needed to sit in a secluded room specially reserved for him in the casino. The door to the room was closed, and the two men with exceptional martial arts skills naturally stayed in the room with him.
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