Chapter 90 90 An Feng
She searched for the live video on her phone, but it had been deleted by the capital platform, with only a few clips still saved on some marketing accounts.
The image shows a sunny, handsome young man, surrounded by flowers and cakes, holding a cheering microphone and bowing his head to thank his fans for their support and companionship. It's a typical fan-sharing scene.
But the big screen behind him, which was projecting photos and portraits, suddenly changed. A distorted ghost face appeared on it. When the ghost face blew the ribbon bubbles, the big screen seemed to be really blown, and physical waves were set off on the surface.
Then came the screams of the fans.
The male star lowered his head and bowed for a long time. Suddenly, he got down on all fours and crawled around like a mad animal, with a pair of blood-red eyes revealed under his bangs.
Tu Lanxun looked at the delicate face. The facial features were deformed, making it lose all its charm. There was also a trace of blood hanging between the lips and teeth.
A staff member or fan tried to help him up, but was bitten hard on the arm. The video ends at the moment when the injured person covers his arm.
Tu Lanxun asked, "What's going on?"
Li Ao said, "Director Wen took over the case from higher-ups. The relevant agencies are currently understaffed. While the actual damage is minimal, the social impact is significant. We believe the crazed male celebrity may have been under a mysterious influence, though the specific details still need to be verified."
Tu Lanxun still didn't understand. "Director Wen wants me to handle this matter?"
"Yes," Li Ao said without hesitation. "We will send someone to go with you. Wen Chong's idea is that solving this bizarre case will largely prove your ability to the decision-makers and lay the foundation for the establishment of a pilot ghost community. After all, even the most orderly ghost community is better off having living people overseeing it."
Tu Lanxun understood that this was an opportunity for her to perform on stage.
Li Ao smiled faintly: "Employ people with confidence, promote the talented regardless of personal connections, and enable talents like Consultant Tu to maximize their value. This is also our job responsibility."
Tu Lanxun nodded, "Okay, when do we leave?"
"Early tomorrow morning," Li Ao said, "someone will come to pick you up at eight o'clock. The destination is Tang City in Western Province, which is across the province from where we are. However, I will pick up Zhu Hong from Western Province and bring him back for interrogation, so it's a coincidence that we meet here. If you have any questions, you can come to me."
Tu Lanxun agreed. Before Li Ao left, she suddenly asked, "Wait, Tang City?"
Li Ao said, "What's wrong? Tang City is not far from Huangjinzhou. The scenery is quite beautiful. You can spend a day or two there after you're done."
Tu Lanxun said, "It's nothing. Please drive slowly."
The convenience store door opened and closed. Tu Lanxun was lost in thought.
Tang City? Li County, under the jurisdiction of Tang City, is not the place where Teacher Nie's sister once studied.
So I asked N, and N was not shy about what happened to Teacher Nie back then, and told him everything in just a few words.
Teacher Nie was born in a poor family. When he was a child, his family members fell ill and the family was too poor to survive. They sold snacks on the street to make a living. They gave birth to three children in succession. The eldest was Teacher Nie's brother, who later died in a group fight among street vendors in his youth.
In the middle is Ms. Nie, a lucky draw winner. She's been beautiful since childhood, with an even more beautiful voice. At 25, she was discovered by a street food agent. She started out as a model, but due to her height, she transitioned to singing, achieving instant fame. She then abruptly retired, rumored to have married into a wealthy family. Her early records are still displayed in the corners of vintage music stores.
The year when Teacher Nie's family's condition worsened the most was when she was 23 years old and her sister was six months old.
Sonia next to her said, "Is she her mother and father's biological child?"
"Probably not," N said. "One of the parents had it outside, the one who is healthy and supporting the family."
Because with the birth of his younger sister, Teacher Nie's originally poor but complete family was broken.
The sick one passed away, and the one who gave birth to my younger sister also left quietly one morning. But according to the judgment of the young teacher Nie, the person they eloped with should not be the other creator of my younger sister, because my younger sister was abandoned.
The computer ghost was confused: "The eldest son died at that time, but the eldest daughter grew up and was old enough to work, so why did she run away?"
N was silent for two seconds, then said, "Later, we investigated and found a possibility that he was tricked into working abroad and never returned."
Then, only 23-year-old Teacher Nie and his six-month-old sister were left at home. Teacher Nie had no diploma and no relatives to help him, so it was really difficult to raise his sister, so he asked someone to send her to another family.
It has been more than ten years since we last met.
Later, when Teacher Nie became famous and wanted to find her biological parents, she found that her sister was nowhere to be found. Due to her own health problems, it was difficult for her to have biological children.
In order to find the only blood relationship left in this world, Teacher Nie spent a lot of effort and searched everywhere, but the network of relationships in the world was broken like a spider's thread. She could not find the family that had hurriedly sent her sister away. They had moved away long ago.
Tu Lanxun sighed and asked again, "Did you find her sister in Li County, Tang City?"
N said, "I found her. She was in high school twelve years ago. She probably studied at night for a year or two. She was just an ordinary, nice girl."
"Why didn't you tell Teacher Nie?" Tu Lanxun asked.
N replied, "Because... I can't tell her. I don't dare. It's not that easy to get into the Kingdom of Heaven Group. A little help from the top is like a blessing to young people who have just joined the group. But..."
Tu Lanxun felt that she had been touching N's inner secrets frequently recently. She tried to make her tone relaxed, "But what?"
N suddenly looked up. He had a youthful face, but for the first time, she saw a puzzled expression unique to young people. It was as if he was questioning the circumstances and why he had made such a choice under those circumstances. He said, "But I discovered that the higher-ups don't want Teacher Nie to find his sister. Kris, the chairman of Tianguo Group and Teacher Nie's boyfriend, doesn't want her to find him."
Tu Lanxun felt a chill run down his spine. Before he could say anything, N said quietly, "I sensed something was amiss with the Tianguo Group, but I was obsessed with climbing the corporate ladder, wanting a higher position and the support of my superiors. This is entirely my fault."
"So you decided to follow Kris's wishes?" Tu Lanxun asked.
Suoniya interrupted more directly, "Are you climbing up this ladder? Hiding the secrets about Teacher Nie's relatives to gain credit from a bigger figure?"
Tu Lanxun didn't say anything, hiding her regret in a cough with her head turned to the side. What Sonia asked was exactly what she wanted to ask.
N shook his head, "No. I didn't do that."
"It was Kris who entrusted Teacher Nie with the task of finding her relatives. I was just one of the people who handled the task. But Teacher Nie sympathized with me and treated me personally with special affection, hoping that I would become her confidant and work harder in the search."
"But when we were reporting on our progress, Kris hinted that if we found Teacher Nie's sister, we must bring her back safely. He told Teacher Nie to raise her like a little princess. Teacher Nie believed him."
In other words, if Teacher Nie's sister had been found back then, Kris would probably have known about it before Teacher Nie and would not have been able to hide it from him.
Considering the various events of the Tianguo Group and the ending where Teacher Nie was packed up and fell off a cliff, the retelling of "raising a little princess" made Tu Lanxun feel a chill down his spine.
N maintained a cold expression, lowered his head and said, "I went to see Song Siyu, the younger sister's school and home. Her parents treated her very well. They didn't have much money, but the three of them were a happy family."
"But I can't use this to excuse myself. I just had a hunch that finding this girl would offend Kris and lead to unimaginable consequences. Later it was proven that Kris was fully aware of the private contact between Teacher Nie and me. Although I didn't hint at this lie to him at the time, he knew I hadn't done my best for Teacher Nie."
Now even Suoniya couldn't say anything to make things difficult for her. No one thought that the great wealth that Song Siyu might become after being taken to Tianguo Group would be better than living in a small county town.
Perhaps N hadn't thought this through so deeply back then; his subconscious sense of crisis and ambition to rise up in the corporate world combined to drive this decision. It was a decision with ill-conceived intentions, but one that ultimately turned out to be a fortuitous outcome.
Tu Lanxun couldn't help but ask, "Do you know what happened to that girl later?"
N replied, "I don't know. At least not having anything to do with the Heavenly Kingdom Group is a kind of happiness."
It was twelve years ago that Song Siyu was in the second year of high school. She must be thirty years old now.
After a night of complicated and hazy dreams, it is early morning again and it is time to set off.
N's resentment has disappeared, so the sugar content of breakfast today is normal. He actually steamed buns, boiled tea eggs and soy milk. No one knew that he had the skill of kneading dough.
Tu Lanxun had barely taken a bite when Li Ao's agent arrived early. It was Xiao Zhang, a familiar face, who immediately jumped over to greet Tu Lanxun. Also accompanying him was an unfamiliar male police officer, in his early thirties, with a fair complexion and strong features. He nodded politely.
"Hello, Consultant Tu, my name is An Feng."
"Ah, hello, Officer An."
"Stop being so arrogant." Xiao Zhang knew An Feng well enough and laughed at him openly, imitating him: "You still say 'my name is An Feng'? When did you become so serious?"
An Feng's skills were not broken at all. He smiled dignifiedly and said, "We are meeting our chief advisor. We have to put on some show."
Xiao Zhang laughed. "Come on, that's disrespectful to the elderly. Tu Tu is from our branch, and he's not 'us' to you."
There was no breakfast left. All the ghosts behind him disappeared, leaving behind only a large table of steaming buns and soy milk.
Tu Lanxun found some takeout boxes and coffee cups and collected breakfast for four people. Xiao Zhang followed behind him eagerly, "Wow, Consultant Tu, you can cook so much by yourself? That's impressive! But you're still burning incense while eating buns. How elegant."
The soy milk was handed to the two policemen, Tu Lanxun took his own two cups, and An Feng took the steamed bun bag and said, "You are a great cook, it smells delicious."
A barely perceptible "hum" sound came from behind Tu Lanxun.
Xiao Zhang warmed his hands with soy milk and said, "Drink two cups. Oh, and you brought so much sugar."
Tu Lanxun rolled his eyes at the air, tightened the plastic bag of sugar, and said casually, "I get thirsty easily."
N's unhappy expression faded a little, and he hesitated and gave me a look that said "that's good enough".
Tu Lanxun and the others drove off. Xiao Zhang was driving, Tu Lanxun was in the passenger seat, and An Feng was in the back seat with a bunch of steamed buns and soy milk. He even laughed, "You're isolating me."
Xiao Zhang immediately mocked back, but Tu Lanxun saw clearly that there was an N squeeze between An Feng and Baozi.
Tu Lanxun cast a subtle sympathetic look at the back and began to enjoy the journey. They had to catch the high-speed train this morning, otherwise it would take two days to drive from Lucheng to Tang City.
After checking their tickets and entering the station, the few of them relaxed and had a bite to eat. Actually, they were a bit early. While An Feng was browsing the local specialty shops, Xiao Zhang started complaining, "It's all An Feng's fault. He insisted on leaving early because he was afraid of traffic. Actually, before picking you up, we planned to go to an old street porridge shop for breakfast. Their fish porridge is incredible."
Tu Lanxun raised an eyebrow. "Last time you said you only knew how to eat fried chicken and hamburgers. You've been so busy in Lucheng for a few years that you don't even know what's going on."
Xiao Zhang yawned, "An Feng said so. He's familiar with that porridge shop on the old street."
"Have you known each other for a long time?" Tu Lanxun was a little curious.
Xiao Zhang flashed her ID card, which was painted blue. It said Zhang Nuli, which meant she was 28 years old. She put it away and said, "He was my senior at the police academy. We both came to Lucheng later, but I was at the South Branch and he was at the Municipal Bureau. Humph."
Tu Lanxun couldn't tell at all that Xiao Zhang was already 28 years old. She was the kind of girl whose age was hard to tell. She had a pair of black and bright eyes, and her face was a little tanned, which made her teeth look extremely white.
"Don't ask me my name," Xiao Zhang said, chewing a bun contentedly, his elbows resting on his knees. "My family hopes I'll work hard and make progress every day, so they named me Zhang Nuli. But when I was registering my household registration, the clerk made a mistake and wrote "Li" as in "Jasmine."
Tu Lanxun nodded, but found another point, "Work hard every day, make progress every day, then why do you——"
Xiao Zhang interrupted skillfully, "My nickname is Tiantian. You may be satisfied."
An Feng came back soon, holding a box of honeydew melon and ham, a specialty of Lucheng. Xiao Zhang wrinkled his nose and said, "This thing must be from abroad."
"Don't talk nonsense. This is a new cultural and creative specialty. We don't grow honeydew melon here, but we do grow ham." An Feng pulled out a plastic fork and handed the pieces of honeydew melon carved into the shape of the Lucheng Riverside Bridge to Xiao Zhang and Tu Lanxun. "Hurry up and eat it! Are you saving it for gifts?"
Xiao Zhang looked up silently, "I feel like someone is already delivering..."
The three of them finished off a box of honeydew melon and ham. The sweet and salty flavor was quite good, though it left a bit of a choking sensation. Xiao Zhang rushed over to get some soy milk and asked Tu Lanxun in surprise, "Advisor, did you finish one of your two cups of soy milk? I remember you were right under my eyelids. And the sugar's gone too."
Tu Lanxun glanced at the figure sitting cross-legged on the empty seat next to him and took the blame: "Yeah, yes, I was thirsty. I drank it when you turned your head."
Xiao Zhang didn't feel satisfied after drinking soy milk and needed to buy some mineral water. Tu Lanxun went with him. While waiting for Xiao Zhang outside the store, she whispered to N, who had been dragged along: "Do you want to try that honeydew melon with ham?"
N sneered, "I don't eat what others choose."
Tu Lanxun gnashed his teeth and said, "You are so heartless! Do you know how much a box of that stuff costs?"
N said: "Well, some people are willing to spend money."
Xiao Zhang's voice came from behind, a little different, "Tu Tu, who are you talking to?"
Tu Lanxun choked for a second, then turned around and smiled: "No, I was thinking about how to investigate after Tang City. I don't know what kind of people I will meet."
Xiao Zhang consoled him with a few words, "Hey, things will work out in time. Don't be stressed."
It was ten hours later that the high-speed train arrived in Tang City.
Tu Lanxun's legs were swollen from sitting so long. He and Xiao Zhang carried their luggage onto the platform one after another, and An Feng walked last, pushing the suitcase.
It hasn't snowed in Tang City in early November, but the dark and heavy sky indicates that snow is not far away. However, a large amount of snow is held by the cotton-quilt-like clouds, and it is getting heavier and heavier. When the clouds can no longer hold it, it will fall from the sky.
The chill wind bit hard, mixed with sand, and the gravel settled in the wrinkles of clothing from the long journey. As soon as Tu Lanxun left the station, he felt the skin on his cheeks dry and almost scabby. Fortunately, they had put on thick clothes in advance.
This trip was much better than the one to Fu City. The police officer who came to meet them was from Tang City, a very ordinary middle-aged man who introduced himself as Cao. Since the Tang City investigation was also assigned by a special unit, Officer Cao readily accepted the role of assistant host, treating the three of them as staff members of the special unit.
Xiao Zhang was surprisingly more capable than An Feng in this situation: "Officer Cao, you're welcome. We're all in the same profession. You're my senior, and I still have a lot to learn from you."
Officer Cao sent them to the guesthouse and said he would treat them to dinner in the evening. "We have to abide by the rules. You can treat us to a meal. Tangcheng's fried shredded pancakes and meat skewers are the most famous. Take your pick!" After saying that, everyone laughed.
Tu Lanxun and others booked two rooms in the guesthouse, which were originally divided into two floors, but Tu Lanxun, under the hint of someone's eyes, said a few nice words to the guesthouse staff and booked two adjacent rooms.
So when Tu Lanxun followed Xiao Zhang into the standard room, as soon as he closed the door, Xiao Zhang pulled the curtains and started changing clothes. Now N had already followed An Feng into the next room.
Tu Lanxun sat on the bed, studying the words embroidered on the corners of the guesthouse's quilt cover. Xiao Zhang was still talking about going out for dinner in the evening.
Tu Lanxun was a little lost in thought, "Didn't we say we'd have fried shredded pancakes and meat skewers tonight?"
Xiao Zhang waved his hands in anger, "I just finished speaking, what did you hear? I said to talk to the male celebrity's staff and ask what they had for dinner the night before and on the day of the incident."
"Oh." Tu Lanxun understood.
I did have dinner with Officer Cao in the evening, and it was indeed at a small roadside restaurant, with the average consumption per person being less than 40 yuan.
However, Officer Cao's words were very reliable. The fried shredded pancakes were very flavorful, and the spices were ground very finely, turning into sauces that seeped into the flexible pancake shreds. The meat skewers were even more dry and fragrant with the smell of charcoal, but they were slightly lacking in juice, and had the chewy flavor of dried meat.
They each opened a can of Tang City's specialty iced lime soda, and Officer Cao explained the case briefly. "As for this matter, since Nan Shaochen is our Tang City Culture and Tourism spokesperson and a public figure, we hope to minimize the impact of the investigation as much as possible."
But he turned serious and said, "However, investigating the case is always the top priority. What I said is just a subtle way of conveying the expectations of other brother units. You don't have to take it to heart."
Xiao Zhang smiled, raised his glass, and clinked sodas with An Feng, Tu Lanxun, and Officer Cao.
The next step was to formally discuss the case. Officer Cao brought some information and several people sat down in the guesthouse. A temporary whiteboard had been set up.
"Everyone already knows the victim's name. Nan Shaochen, formerly known as Nan Jiajun, is a 25-year-old male from Tangcheng. He is a contracted artist for Haohan Entertainment. He normally develops his career in the capital. On November 7th of this year, three days ago, Nan Shaochen returned to his hometown of Tangcheng, where fans from all over the world came to celebrate his birthday."
"At the birthday celebration, Nan Shaochen suddenly suffered a hysterical attack, biting and chasing any staff members who approached him. Notably, behind him was a large screen showing photos, with a ghostly face appearing in the center. This could be a serious case of a bizarre intrusion."
Tu Lanxun interjected, "Where is Nan Shaochen now?"
Officer Cao sighed, frowning as he spoke, "He's in Tangcheng Anding Hospital, but his condition hasn't recovered. His family and agency are trying their best to prevent the doctor from prescribing psychiatric medication."
As we all know, the side effects of drugs are drowsiness, dizziness, and inability to think and communicate, which can greatly destroy a young person's mental state and even change their appearance.
Whether it is out of genuine heartache or reluctance to cut down the cash cow is a matter of opinion.
Tu Lanxun thought they had hit the jackpot; this incident was likely a product of some strange circumstance and had nothing to do with mental illness. Medication was inappropriate.
"Okay, when are we going to Anding Hospital?" Xiao Zhang stood up and said.
Officer Cao waved his hand downward and said, "We can go to Anding Hospital anytime, but to protect Nan Shaochen and his family, it's best for you to first visit the scene and comprehensively analyze the existing physical evidence before going to Nan Shaochen with your questions."
"No, this is the normal criminal case handling process." Tu Lanxun flatly denied, "This is a strange invasion incident. Regardless of whether the strange can be caught or not, ensuring the safety of the strange victims is the most important thing."
"It is impossible to rule out the possibility that Nan Shaochen is out of danger, even though he is currently in Anding Hospital," said Tu Lanxun.
Officer Cao's expression changed, Xiao Zhang and An Feng also stood up. They looked at Tu Lanxun seriously, trying to understand the meaning of her words.
Xiao Zhang said, "You mean... the weird one that assaulted Nan Shaochen? Maybe it's still nearby?"
"It didn't succeed, or it only succeeded halfway." Tu Lanxun analyzed: "Although Nan Shaochen has gone crazy, he is still alive."
The three-dimensional police fell silent. This was not their area of expertise. Xiao Zhang's previous experience had convinced him to completely entrust the young consultant with his services. "What can we do? Should we go see him now? Or should we just leave?"
Tu Lanxun said, "Okay."
They went out immediately, and Tu Lanxun was thinking about a question all the way.
What's the status of that weird thing now?
She didn't think it was dead.
"The fourth treaty," N said beside Tu Lanxun, "The fourth treaty requires the strange entity to appear before a living person, causing an impact, and the living person to remain alive. These conditions must be met for it to take effect."
What Nan Shaochen’s fan club and staff saw was nothing more than an illusion created by ghosts.
As soon as Tu Lanxun got into the car, he suddenly asked, "Could this weird thing be the same as the school movie ghost from eight or nine months ago?"
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