Chapter 74 Chapter 74
Tu Lanxun took a breath.
No. 256, Sonia?
Xianyu Qingyun sighed and told the story of what they had experienced.
"I died while leading a tour group abroad. I ended up in a restroom at a foreign airport just outside the border," Xianyu Qingyun said. "That country didn't ban guns, and the airport was a chaotic place at the time. The foreign police couldn't find my body. Haha."
But the emerald mermaid's eyes, sparkling with sparks, told Tu Lanxun that the other party must have mastered something.
Xianyu Qingyun took out a small hammer from behind his waist, put it in a sealed bag, and smiled: "This is the weapon that killed me."
Her soul awakened earlier than normal ghosts, and she was able to find her body before the foreign police did. She successfully intercepted the garbage truck that was transporting her body, took back the anchor, and stole the murder weapon.
"Did you see the face of the person who killed you?" Tu Lanxun asked.
Xian Yuqingyun was full of courage: "I see clearly, but it's useless. He is just a foreign gangster, hired temporarily."
"Then how were you caught? I mean your soul." Tu Lanxun was a little puzzled, "You have awakened." The soul awakened early, which cannot indirectly prove that it is powerful, but it is related to the willpower of the deceased.
This petite mermaid looks very tough.
"I remember a net..." Xianyu Qingyun recalled. "Others of us have similar memories. It wasn't a physical net; it was invisible, but when you were caught in it, you could feel it was a net."
Most of the experimental subjects were captured, and Tu Lanxun already knew what happened later. They were transformed into mermaids.
Xian Yu Qingyun corrected: "Not only mermaids, but also manta rays, dolphins, baby whales and boys in snails..." All kinds of artistically processed... ornamental pets.
Then they are sold to customers at high prices.
"I don't understand," Tu Lanxun said. "How should you, uh, treat a soul after buying it? I mean, how can you guarantee that you won't vanish into thin air?"
Xian Yu Qingyun replied, "We have a special fish tank that is sold as a set. Even if it becomes blurred, it can't escape."
Whether due to technical limitations or a rejection of the lower darkness, the only fortunate aspect is that the mermaids and other marine fantasy creations cannot be touched by the buyers. Therefore, most buyers take them home as mere simulacrums to decorate a corner of their mansion or basement.
Xianyu Qingyun dug a remote control out of the trash. The custom fish tank it corresponded to had been destroyed, so she could only press buttons to explain: "This one changes the water, this one feeds the fish, and this one creates pulse waves to force the souls in the tank to interact."
Tu Lanxun lowered his eyebrows: "Do you... have a lifespan?"
This question was quite inhumane, but she had to consider it. If the transformed soul was like most ghosts, its lifespan would be almost "immortal" compared to that of living people, and it would be passed down to the buyer's descendants...
It is easy to be exposed to the outside world.
"Five years." Xianyu Qingyun smiled. "Once it's sold, it'll only last about five years. This is to ensure scarcity."
It is also to create a mythical tragic beauty.
"What about the transformation process?" Tu Lanxun asked.
Silence spread in the space, only the faint green and blue light of the water rippled on the walls, making this place look like a deep sea of death.
Xianyu Qingyun raised his hand slightly and said frankly, "I can't remember. Our souls were brought here, photographed, locked up and kept, and then the number of people we knew in the same group became smaller and smaller. The day it was my turn, I don't remember a thing. I fell asleep and woke up like this."
"But," she changed the subject, "Sonia might know."
After saying this, more figures appeared behind Xianyu Qingyun, four or five more at a time. Some had the long tentacles of a giant jellyfish, while others had killer whale skin attached to their bodies. Tu Lanxun also spotted Zhao Xu, whom she had noticed.
Zhao Xu's lower body also had a fish tail, but from his knees down, it became pointed and long like a whip, with a flag-shaped triangular wing fin swaying behind him.
"Oh, my God," she heard Liu Maosheng say, "These children..."
The other surviving victims did not come out to say hello. They stared at Tu Lanxun coldly, with resentment in their eyes.
Although every wrong has its perpetrator, the transformed fish people did not attack Tu Lanxun and others. Perhaps N and Mikhail standing coldly behind them played a role, but she still clearly felt that people with legs were not welcome here.
Every visitor present has an extra pair of legs than them, and the blue xun has to be painted with an extra life. It is not easy for the victims to maintain their original personalities after living in isolation for so many years.
"When you've been a ghost for too long, you often lose your humanity." This is what N said before.
Tu Lanxun didn't look directly at them, especially avoiding the part that belonged to the fish, and naturally fell on Xian Yu Qingyun's face, "Sonya is not here?"
"I hope you can go find her." Xianyu Qingyun replied.
"Where did she go?" Tu Lanxun asked.
"Sonia wasn't here when the field formed, so she wasn't trapped here, nor was she protected by the field." Xianyu Qingyun said briefly, "After she killed that wealthy businessman, she found us and gave us tips on how to resist. Then she left temporarily without saying where she was, and she never returned at the agreed time. I guess something happened to her."
Tu Lanxun nodded: "Of course, when did Sonia leave?"
"Eight months ago." Xian Yu Qingyun said.
Tu Lanxun frowned.
At eight months, even if the baby is reborn as a child, a birth certificate can be issued.
They want to look for a ghost who left here eight months ago and disappeared somewhere in Lucheng or even outside Lucheng?
"We could try," she hinted cautiously, "but it's very risky."
Xianyu Qingyun still had that experienced demeanor: "Sonya has what you want."
"What?"
Xianyu Qingyun folded his arms. "An original project data file, created by a wealthy businessman. You know, that Ji guy has a good relationship with Hu Haisheng, and they were planning to run a business together."
The original project data file may include the source of technology, a list of project participants, and the most core operating procedures.
But the question is, where did Sonia go?
I'm not worried about not being able to find her, I still have a pocket watch in my hand, but the number is only eight months...
Tu Lanxun remembers it vividly: eight months ago marked the beginning of Lucheng's current wave of bizarre invasions, the beginning of the collapse of the development zone's commercial and residential ecosystem.
One of the biggest horror games in this round has been detected and confirmed, and its name is well-known.
Gray Cave
"We'll try. Now tell me what Sonia looks like after the transformation. It would be best if there's other information as well."
In Xianyu Qingyun's words, Sonia had a head full of black hair and a huge humpback whale-shaped tail, but with a sharper tip, and there were white lines like accordion patterns on the front of her body.
"She had been to Hu Haisheng's home several times before, but the old man moved away soon." Xianyu Qingyun recalled: "Before leaving for the last time, Sonia said she wanted to stay away for a few more days." Maybe the destination was quite far away.
The two groups said goodbye.
The mixed-haired kitten ghost left again with Tu Lanxun and others. Xianyu Qingyun ignored it because it was the cat fed by Sonia and left to find its owner.
"We're already locked up here," Xianyu Qingyun said, "If you can get out, go ahead."
#
Tu Lanxun and his group left Bi Hai Chao Sheng and did not go back to the convenience store directly. Instead, they found a place on the side of the road and tried to use a pocket watch to prevent being tracked back.
She closed her eyes, and thousands of candles appeared around her again.
Tu Lanxun kept recalling Sonia's appearance and combining it with the humpback whale's tail. It felt like a down feather was scratching in his heart: he had a sensation, but he couldn't tell which one it was.
"I can't find it." Tu Lanxun opened his eyes.
N nodded: "Then she might be in a closed state."
Since they couldn't find the pocket watch, they could only go back to the convenience store and spend this time.
Tu Lanxun got up very early the next day and prepared to go to the breakfast shop. When he went downstairs, he found N standing in front of the rice cooker cooking.
Doesn't he sleep at all?
N's back was straight, and his spirit was calm as if he had just slept for several hours. It was not Tu Lanxun, but him.
"Come and eat." He glanced at her.
Mikhail followed the scent and emerged from the bronze lynx. The computer ghost poked an arm out from the screen and snorted, "Save some food for me. I stayed up late playing games."
After saying that, he retracted his arm.
Today we planned to go find Li Ao to "report the case", but Mikhail got a headache when he heard the word "police" and strongly refused to go with us.
"Why don't you invite them here?" asked Wu Long, who was still eating for free.
Liu Maosheng thought for a moment and said, "This is more formal. Besides, if we frequently meet with Captain Li in the store, it's easy for the bad guys to find out."
"Oh..." Wu Long lowered his head and ate his meal.
The driver today is still Tu Lanxun.
Not allowing a ghost whose driver's license has been revoked to drive on the road is her last bit of responsibility as a citizen of Lucheng.
The radio in the car was on. The host's voice was vibrant and bright, perfect for the morning light. It was broadcasting the latest viral online news: the exposure of an organ transplant operation at a certain hospital.
The impact brought by Wu Long is greater than expected. Everyone knows about it, but it has not been spread by the mainstream media. Combined with Li Ao's attitude, the matter has not been suppressed, but is still under discussion.
During the journey, they passed by breakfast stalls one after another. Traffic was beeping, and Tu Lanxun could see the roof of Deshi Hospital from afar. He wondered whether it was deserted now or not.
The South City Branch arrived soon.
Tu Lanxun had sent a message to Li Ao in advance, and he was already sitting in the office.
The only people who came today were Tu Lanxun and N. N was still invisible, so Li Ao only made three cups of tea.
Tu Lanxun had a cup, he had a cup for himself, and the woman sitting on the sofa in the corner with her uniform draped over her side had a cup.
"Hello, Miss Tu, my name is Wenchong." Wenchong stood up, shook hands briefly, and sat back down to eat fried dough sticks and soy milk.
"Hello, Officer Wen."
Tu Lanxun dared to guarantee that when N turned around to look at Li Ao's file cabinet just now, Wen Chong's eyes turned towards N.
She could see him.
Wen Chong picked up a whole fried dough stick, raised it, and smiled: "Miss Tu, would you like one?"
Tu Lanxun didn't take the fried dough stick and smiled back.
The fact that Wen Chong didn't care that she was aware of N's discovery was itself a hint.
"Please sit down." Li Ao asked Tu Lanxun to sit down. "Do you have any clues when you come to me this time?"
Tu Lanxun nodded slightly: "Do you know Bi Haichaosheng and Hu Haisheng?"
Li Ao paused. Surprisingly, it was Wen Chong who spoke first. She said slowly, "Hu Haisheng, a member of the Tianguo Group's board of directors, founded Bi Hai Chao Sheng, an exhibition center for rare aquatic plants and animals, about ten years ago. It's actually a trading organization. Most of the smuggling cases of banned aquatic life in Lucheng and the surrounding areas are linked to this man. Bi Hai Chao Sheng closed six years and three months ago."
Tu Lanxun didn't expect Wen Chong to understand it so clearly.
She took out the sealed bag from her shoulder bag, and inside was a bloodstained hammer: "This is the murder weapon used by one of our victims, Xian Yu Qingyun."
Wen Chong and Li Ao's expressions grew serious, and the latter took the hammer. It was a heavy, hard hammer used in geological research. The blood on its surface had dried and peeled off, but the veteran detective could see at a glance that half a long black hair was entangled beneath its bulge.
"How did you get it?" Li Ao looked at Wen Chong cautiously, then turned to ask Tu Lanxun.
Tu Lanxun didn't intend to hide it: "I have met Xian Yu Qingyun."
If this had been said in front of the uniformed personnel half a year ago, Tu Lanxun would definitely have hesitated, but everyone knows the current situation.
The mysterious invasion has made the dividing line between human and ghost existence just a piece of window paper that has not been broken.
After listening to Tu Lanxun's brief account of his two encounters with Xianyu Qingyun, Li Ao's face darkened and he slapped his thigh. "Nonsense! How could you go to a place like that to look for ghosts without permission? Do you need anyone to tell you how dangerous it is?"
Tu Lanxun and Wen Chong exchanged a glance, and she probably realized how much Li Ao knew about her. He didn't know that there was a ghost team around her.
Wen Chong held Li Ao down, narrowed his eyes, and said, "Miss Tu, are you sure Xianyu Qingyun's ghost has been transformed into a human-on-top fish, and that she's not an isolated case?"
Tu Lanxun nodded: "Yes. I can provide a list of victims."
The digital camera was handed to Wenchong.
Wen Chong frowned as he picked it up. "The mechanism has been modified, and the shooting frequency is similar to that of a ghost... This camera is not for photographing people."
After flipping through the photos one by one, Li Ao started to light a cigarette again. As soon as he took out the lighter, he looked at Wen Chong and then at Tu Lanxun, sighed, put it back in his pocket, and rubbed his fingers on his sleeves.
"I'll have someone process the photos into a normal format. Most of these people are probably Lucheng locals or migrant workers, so I'll have to trouble Captain Li to collect their identities..." Wen Chong made the decision.
Li Ao received the signal: "We will strictly enforce confidentiality regulations."
Tu Lanxun understood something: Wen Chong and Li Ao weren't actually colleagues. He just didn't know that Wen Chong was from a different level of agency, or even... the same system?
"Six years ago, in Hu Haisheng's business, ghosts themselves were the most important commodity. Organs were merely added value," Tu Lanxun said. "Hu Haisheng is also a member of the board of directors of Deshi Hospital. Deshi Hospital has no direct relationship with Tianguo Group, where Hu Haisheng also holds a position. But based on my judgment..."
Wen Chong said lightly: "Its largest shareholder is a shell company of Tianguo Group."
Have you guys investigated to this extent?
After Tu Lanxun relayed all the information, the purpose of her trip had been achieved. She sat for two minutes before suddenly remembering something else: "Officer Wen, Officer Li, how will the organ transplant theft incident be handled?"
Wen Chong curled his lips at her and said, "We're investigating."
Another way to say it is no comment.
Tu Lanxun, who was not considered one of his own, was about to say goodbye, but Wen Chong brought a copy of the case file of Ji Jingyan, a wealthy businessman who bought Sonia seven years ago.
For confidentiality reasons, Tu Lanxun could not read the files directly, but Wenchong's authority was unexpectedly broad, so the photocopy was unfolded in front of her.
Ji Jingyan's death scene was in his white villa, a four-and-a-half-story villa. The staircase had a ceiling more than ten meters high and was equipped with a crystal chandelier with a metal frame. Hundreds of crystal balls dangled in the air.
But to Tu Lanxun's surprise, the newspaper said that Ji Jingyan was hanged from a chandelier, but that was not the case.
He did not die by hanging. Instead, his feet were tied with a long rope, his hands were tied behind his back, and his whole body was hanging from the chandelier, his head facing down, with a fish tank below.
To be precise, it is a large ocean tank of about one hundred cubic meters, placed against the wall in the first-floor lobby. It looks like a huge oil painting, beautifully displaying the creatures inside to every guest.
The case file didn't specify what was previously kept in the aquarium, but there was a note next to it: According to Ji Jingyan's nanny, Ji Jingyan had boasted before his death that he had illegally kept protected animals in the aquarium. Based on the description, it was probably a striated bream, also known as a Napoleon fish. But it had died long ago, and the aquarium was empty.
Li Ao rubbed an unlit cigarette and said, "Looking back now, the authenticity of this testimony needs to be considered."
Because the physical evidence department did take water samples at the crime scene that year, but they didn't find any results.
No relevant objects were found in the ocean tank water except Ji Jingyan's soaked head.
"I wasn't even the team leader back then," Li Ao sighed, recalling, "I still can't forget that scene. A man was hung upside down by his feet, his upper body submerged in the ocean tank, with the rope extending straight to the center of the ceiling. He looked like a victim sent down from heaven."
He paused and added, "Ji Jingyan had signs of chest, abdominal, and neck muscle strain before his death."
It represented that he had been doing crunches for a long time, trying to bend his body above the water using his own strength, but he eventually ran out of strength and fell into the water in despair, drowning in his own ocean tank.
Just like Sonia who was once trapped inside.
"Has he never been found?" Tu Lanxun turned his eyes away from the photo of the bloated, pale corpse.
Li Ao replied, "Not at all. During that time, the two nannies and the gardener all took leave to return home, leaving Ji Jingyan alone in the villa. He relied on the scheduled cleaning service of the housekeeping company. According to neighbors, he often called friends and had many people in and out of his house in the two weeks before his death."
"But no one came to his house for two whole days after his death. It was not until two days later that his body was discovered by his hourly worker."
The case file was written very clearly. There were no signs of doors or windows being pried open, no signs of a second person being active at the scene, no fingerprints on the iron frame of the chandelier, and the ropes hanging on the legs were rough in texture. However, there was no trace of the murderer's skin flakes, cotton glove threads, or latex glove powder left behind.
Even more bizarre was the fact that the handrail on the fourth floor beside it showed no signs of footsteps or pulley stress. Aside from the print of Ji Jingyan's own shoe, half of which was on the outside of the glass, there was nothing there.
The law of material exchange fails, as if Ji Jingyan is hanging himself on the lamp.
"We did a simulation," Li Ao said. "If Ji Jingyan had sat on the armrest with his legs stretched out, tied his ankles, and then jumped..."
He gestured, a near-insane simulation, but then Li Ao shook his head. "There's no way he only stepped on the fourth-floor handrail and didn't collide with anything on the second or third floors within the confined space."
This case is a well-known unsolved case internally because according to the inertia of gravity, even if Ji Jingyan tied himself up and jumped down directly towards the ocean tank, the probability of him maintaining balance in the air would be very low because his feet were tied.
"Unless he is a professional gymnast, and the kind that does aerial rings," Li Ao concluded.
But Ji Jingyan is a slightly plump middle-aged man with little signs of exercise.
Tu Lanxun certainly knew who did it.
Sonia.
No one knew that Ji Jingyan's ocean tank once contained stolen souls.
"Soniya is missing," Tu Lanxun said. "Xianyu Qingyun can't find her either. She left a month ago and hasn't returned. She had data on the original experiment project on the Bi Hai Chao Sheng soul transformation."
Tu Lanxun suddenly turned to Wen Chong: "So, Ms. Wen, I think you might be able to help. After all, you know a lot about this..."
N, who was studying the bookshelf in the corner, suddenly froze in his movements, like a cat with its face covered with cheese slices.
He looked at Wen Chong implicitly, then stared at Tu Lanxun, as if questioning: Why didn't you wait until you left to remind me?
But those gloomy eyes with a cold light made Tu Lanxun a little suspicious. This ghost actually knew that Wen Chong could see him as soon as he entered the door.
Wen Chong, who had not joined the discussion for a long time, suddenly spoke up: "I will remember about Sonia. Miss Tu, here is a recording, perhaps you would like to listen to it."
Tu Lanxun took over a pair of wireless headphones that were connected to somewhere unknown. The sound was rough and loud, and the voice was slightly familiar.
It’s Zhou Hu.
This is a recording of a conversation.
"Officer, I think I should call the police, or surrender myself. I have committed a crime, but I was coerced..." Zhou Hu's voice was tearful, and he couldn't hide the accent of Guihua Town, Pu'er Township.
In the recording, Zhou Hu confessed the whole story of how he operated the Heijia Mingji Department Store for Mr. Li and Qianniu, but he did not mention Tu Lanxun directly. He only said that she was kidnapped by a group of people whose faces could not be seen, and they might be Mr. Li's rivals.
He never admitted two facts: he did not admit that he could see ghosts, and he did not admit that he understood the meaning of the orders from his superior, Mr. Li.
"I was coerced. They made me bury a jar under the floor tiles of Yard No. 1. I don't know what's inside..."
"And some of those paper crafts do infringe copyright."
Zhou Hu was not stupid. In the end, he cleared himself of all charges. The only charge left was copyright infringement. The data for modeling was even provided by Mr. Li.
He came to the police to seek protection. According to Zhou Hu, someone was hiding in the Heijia Mingji Department Store and wanted to kill him.
Tu Lanxun listened to the whole conversation from beginning to end without revealing any information about his own side. Just as he was about to take off his headphones, Wen Chong's voice came through them.
It was recorded in advance and pasted behind Zhou Hu's audio.
Wen Chong said to Tu Lanxun through the headphones, "From this second on, the actual content of the broadcast will not be heard by anyone other than you. Now you can choose to listen to me."
"Tell me, you didn't hear a sentence clearly in the middle. Please repeat it again."
"I have something to tell you."
Tu Lanxun was stunned for a moment, took off one of her headphones, and turned to Wenchong. Wenchong was not looking at her at the moment. Tu Lanxun smiled and said, "Officer Wen, please turn back. I didn't hear something clearly."
Wen Chong remained calm: "Okay."
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