Chapter 122 (This appears to be a fragment of a larger text, possibly a title or heading. The phrase "scheming with a tiger" is unclear and likely refers to a separate topic.)
Although the Black Shadow Chariot was excited, he wasn't particularly surprised.
Chu Ci: "Senior, have there been any precedents for using evil magic to prolong life?"
"Clever!" the Black Shadow Charioteer chuckled, rubbing his hands together.
The rat-like eyes stared at the Soul-Hooking Rope in Chu Ci's hand, "It's this..."
Chu Ci handed the Soul-Hooking Rope in his hand directly to him, saying, "I'll trouble you with this ghost, senior."
"Oh dear, you caught this one, how can I accept the credit!"
Despite saying this, he quickly took the Soul-Hooking Rope.
With credit already given, he's more willing to say a few more words.
"I've been in the underworld for quite some time now. The last time I saw someone extend their life through evil magic was probably over a hundred years ago!"
Hei Yincha tilted his head and thought for a moment.
"That was in the late feudal period, when the order of the entire mortal world was in complete chaos, and people were dying every day."
"Some people, in order to survive, began to use this evil method to borrow the lifespan of newborns to prolong their lives."
He raised an eyebrow and told Chu Ci, "However, this kind of evil magic is very costly; a newborn's twenty years of lifespan can only be exchanged for one year of time."
"That old bald monk..."
The dark figure sized up Master Jin, who had aged beyond recognition.
“I see that he has borrowed at least forty years of lifespan.”
Forty years of lifespan, and one year of lifespan is exchanged for twenty years of lifespan of a newborn.
If every newborn could live to be eighty years old, that would be...
Ten children!
Moreover, not everyone is fortunate enough to live to be eighty years old!
Chu Ci was shocked by the number.
An accident with more than ten deaths is generally considered a major accident and is sufficient to attract the attention of provincial and central governments.
This monk alone has at least ten lives on his hands.
Besides him, there was the escaped stranger, the dead Min Min, even Huang Wenhui and his son, and "that person" hiding in the shadows.
Chu Ci swallowed hard and quickly explained the details to the Black Yin Messenger.
After hearing this, the Black Shadow Chariot's eyes were practically glowing green.
"Really? Sister Chu, is what you said true?!"
Holding the soul-snatching rope in his hand, he jumped up.
"Good, good, good! After all these years of struggling at the bottom, I'm finally going to get a promotion!"
He patted Chu Ci's shoulder with a gleeful smile, and then confidently patted his chest with his other hand.
"Don't worry, Sister Chu! Leave this to me!"
"I'll report this to my superiors immediately and make sure those who are disrupting the order between the Yin and Yang realms are arrested as soon as possible!"
After saying that, he handed the newly bought Soul-Hooking Rope from his waist to Chu Ci with a smile.
"Your soul-snatching rope is outdated! Here, use my new one!"
Chu Ci took the things from his hands and couldn't help but urge him again as she left.
"Senior, you absolutely must report this to your superiors!"
"Absolutely!"
Hei Yincha patted his chest.
"This is a matter of life and death. If I do it well, I can accumulate merit. I will definitely do my best!"
Don't worry!
He urged Chu Ci to go back and rest, and then quickly led Master Jin away.
Chu Ci returned to the shop, closed the shop door, and went out.
After thinking about it for a while downstairs, I decided to go find Wu Jiangxue.
When Wu Jiangxue returned with a cold lunchbox, she saw Chu Ci standing at her door.
He leaned against the wall, head down, silently staring at the floor beneath his feet, not knowing how long he had been waiting there.
"Chu Ci?"
She called out, and Chu Ci looked over.
"You're back."
Wu Jiangxue nodded, and her younger sister and Xiao Juzi, who were chasing and playing, rushed out from behind her and ran towards the gate together, waiting to enter.
Meow~
Upon seeing Chu Ci, the younger sister unusually meowed.
Little Orange followed her sister and meowed. The two orange cats then lay down by the door and began grooming each other.
Chu Ci squatted down to pet the two kittens' heads, but her younger sister bared her teeth and dodged away.
Seeing Chu Ci being disliked, Wu Jiangxue laughed rather unkindly.
He took out his keys and opened the door. "Come in, how long have you been waiting?"
"Not long." Chu Ci followed her into the room.
Wu Jiangxue took off her coat, hung it in the entryway, and peeked out the door.
"Are you coming in? If not, you two can spend the night outside."
My sister and Little Orange meowed and rushed into the house.
They each squatted in front of their own rice bowls, meowing incessantly.
While preparing food for the two of them, Wu Jiangxue chatted with Chu Ci.
"You came to see me because of what happened during the day?"
Chu Ci nodded and sat down on the sofa.
She thought of Master Jin who had been taken away, and felt that the truth behind Wu Jiangxue's father's death was slowly being revealed.
However, to avoid disappointing Wu Jiangxue, she still did not intend to mention her father.
Do you remember Xiaomin I told you about?
Wu Jiangxue washed her hands, sat opposite Chu Ci, and started eating the cold bento box.
“I remember you said that.”
She looked up. "What's wrong with her?"
Chu Ci: "She regained her memory and said that she was killed by Min Min."
Wu Jiangxue stopped eating and raised an eyebrow in surprise.
"Min Min?"
"But when Xiaomin died, Minmin was only a junior high school student, right?"
"How could she..."
“Yes, that’s what I came to talk to you about today,” Chu Ci interrupted her.
But before she could speak formally, she asked Wu Jiangxue a question.
"You believe in ghosts, right?"
"Of course, I believe it."
Wu Jiangxue's pupils reflected her solemn face, and a smile spread across her face.
"I not only believe in ghosts, but I also believe that small animals can talk."
Speaking of this, Wu Jiangxue made a digression.
Do you remember that parrot that kept yelling that there was a ghost?
She took a bite of noodles and couldn't help but sigh.
"You have no idea how intelligent it is. It won over our old director's heart at just one meeting!"
"Now, our former director, under the guise of guarding physical evidence, has been keeping that parrot in his office."
"When I left work today, I saw him reluctant to leave, wanting to take the parrot home."
Chu Ci couldn't help but smile as she thought of the hot-tempered and protective old director.
"That's good too. Following your director is a good home for that parrot."
"That's right, our director really likes keeping birds."
The snow on the Wujiang River curves like the corners of a lip.
"That parrot is sure to have a good life following our director. It might even become the boss among the birds kept by our old director."
After saying that, she stuffed two mouthfuls of rice into her mouth and threw the lunchbox into the kitchen.
Two glasses of water were brought over, one of which was handed to Chu Ci.
He said seriously, "Now tell me, what do you want to say?"
Chu Ci held the warm cup in her hand, looking at the water sloshing inside, and decided to start her story with Li Lecan's death.
As she pieced together the entire timeline, the more she spoke, the more solemn Wu Jiangxue's expression became.
When Chu Ci mentioned that she had met Master Jin and a strange man at Mingguang School, her eyes suddenly lit up.
"Oh right, wait a minute! I forgot to tell you."
She took the bag and pulled out a very old book.
“I went to Mingguang Middle School to investigate today and met with their principal.”
“I got the book from him, and there was a photo inside.”
"This photo is weird. I was planning to show it to you when I saw you."
"But back then you said there was a little devil behind me, and I got so nervous that I forgot about the book."
She opened to the page with the photo and handed the photo and the book to Chu Ci.
The moment Chu Ci saw that black and white photo, he felt as if something in his head had exploded.
She leaned closer to the black and white photograph, her gaze lingering between the man and woman in it, her palms sweating.
“U Sir.”
She swallowed hard and pointed to the man in the photo.
“This person, the man I saw standing with Master Jin, is this person.”
Wu Jiangxue: "This is the principal I told you about!"
When she recalled her conversation with the principal that day, she couldn't help but slap her thigh hard.
"I knew he was talking strangely back then!"
If what Chu Ci said is true, then Principal Mo, like Master Jin, is borrowing lifespan from newborns.
If someone has lived for decades, then all the doubts can be explained.
Her gaze then fell on the woman in the black trench coat next to Principal Mo.
"Where is she? Have you seen her?"
Chu Ci opened his mouth, staring at the woman's dark lips in the photo, still able to recall the bright red color on her lips.
"...I've seen it, but I can't tell you right now."
Wu Jiangxue was stunned for a moment.
He nodded quickly, "Then I'll wait for you to tell me later."
She answered readily, but looking at Chu Ci's somewhat serious profile, she couldn't help but ask:
Is there something wrong with this woman?
Her eyes flickered, and she asked shrewdly, "Is she also one of those who borrowed lifespan?"
This time, Chu Ci didn't hesitate. "Yes, she's one of those people too."
At this point in the conversation, Wu Jiangxue had already realized the seriousness and danger of this case.
She lowered her eyes and pursed her lips.
After a long pause, he said, "I will try to persuade the old director to reconsider this matter."
If the former chief of staff continues to refuse to let the experts join, the case will be far too dangerous.
Chu Ci didn't have high hopes for this. "I guess so."
If the old director is stubborn, she can always resort to the fat monk's trick and throw two ghosts into the old director's house.
By then, even the old director won't be able to disbelieve it.
After the two finished discussing business, it was almost midnight.
After saying goodbye to her, Chu Ci returned home, where she was greeted by the whining Black Bean as soon as she entered the door.
It had a small scarf around its neck and squatted down at Chu Ci's feet, whimpering twice.
"good."
Chu Ci patted its head and asked it softly.
"Did you encounter any danger when you went out with Grandma today?"
Black Bean meowed and wagged its tail.
"Okay, that's fine."
Chu Ci picked it up and stroked its gently wagging little tail.
"Take good care of Grandma, and I'll buy you fish cakes another day."
Upon hearing the words "fish cake," Hei Dou became excited and gently pressed her palm with his hand.
Chu Ci laughed out loud, "Okay, it's a deal."
She went to wash up and go to bed, swayed by Hei Dou's clingy words.
The next morning, she was woken up by black beans licking her face; her grandmother was knocking on her bedroom door.
"Aci, are you there, Aci?"
Chu Ci sat up abruptly. "I'm here. What's wrong, Grandma?"
Grandma's voice came through the bedroom door, "A big star came and said he knows you and came to see you!"
Big star?
Chu Ci immediately thought of Sun Lingyan.
She didn't even have time to change into her pajamas before rushing out of the bedroom.
In the living room, Sun Lingyan sat on the sofa, drinking water with her head down.
Hearing the door open, she turned her head and looked Chu Ci up and down.
Seeing her pajamas, he chuckled softly, his voice neither hurried nor slow.
"I'm not in a hurry, you can get ready first."
"Okay." Chu Ci scratched her head. "I'll be done soon, just wait for me a moment."
Sun Lingyan nodded with a smile.
After washing up and changing her clothes, Chu Ci quickly sat down opposite Sun Lingyan.
It wasn't until Chu Ci sat down opposite her that he realized Sun Lingyan's outfit today was not quite in line with her usual style.
The person who used to always wear red dresses and heavy makeup was dressed in a low-key black outfit today, with hardly any makeup on.
Meeting Chu Ci's questioning gaze, Sun Lingyan smiled and sat up straight.
Ask her, "Do I look good in my new clothes?"
Chu Ci still remembered the last time she glanced into her eyes and was immediately taken to the hospital, so she quickly avoided her gaze.
Nodding, "It looks good, quite different from your usual self."
Sun Lingyan's smile deepened. "What am I usually like?"
"You usually dress very conspicuously, but today you're very low-key."
"Yeah?"
She looked down at her black dress, seemingly quite pleased with it.
Without saying much to Chu Ci, she suddenly stood up.
"Master Chu, would you do me the honor of coming with me somewhere?"
Chu Ci paused in his drinking, then looked up at her.
Where to go?
Sun Lingyan tilted her head. "A... nice place."
Chu Ci: "..."
She frowned in confusion, feeling that Sun Lingyan seemed a little different today.
"you……"
"Master Chu, I was just joking with you!"
Sun Lingyan glared at her, then turned around first, her black skirt swaying in an arc with her movement.
"I found a really delicious restaurant and I'd like to talk to you about it."
She walked to the door and looked at Chu Ci with a smile.
"Master Chu, would you do me the honor?"
Chu Ci put down his water glass and looked at the smile on Sun Lingyan's face. The more he looked, the more he felt that something was wrong.
Well...
Sun Lingyan, under the long-term control of her boss, always wore a polite but stiff smile.
Like a mask worn on the face, impossible to take off, oppressive and rigid.
...But her smile today was very composed, as if she had already turned the tables and taken control.
Chu Ci put on her coat and went out with her. As they took the elevator downstairs, she couldn't help but ask:
"Your boss is going to jail? You seem so happy about that."
"Happy?"
Sun Lingyan smiled and turned her head, "Am I really happy?"
"...Yes, you seem quite happy."
Sun Lingyan lowered her eyes and smiled, her smile radiant and bright.
"Master Chu has excellent eyesight. I am indeed in a good mood today."
As soon as the elevator arrived, she stepped out first and got into the black sedan parked at the door.
Once Chu Ci got in, she gave the driver an address.
The car quickly stopped in front of a Chinese-style building.
"Let's go, Master."
Sun Lingyan went in first, as if she were walking into her own home.
Chu Ci followed behind her, looking around.
This building is a large, exquisitely decorated Chinese garden.
But perhaps it's a matter of the owner's aesthetic sense, there's actually a small Western-style building in this traditional Chinese garden.
There were hardly any people along the way, until we entered the small villa, where we saw a few figures.
Chu Ci stopped in front of the small villa, looked up at it, and didn't leave.
Sun Lingyan turned her head and called to her, "Come in, Master Chu."
Chu Ci didn't move.
She glanced at Sun Lingyan, who was standing at the entrance of the villa, turning her head to urge her on, and took a step back.
"You're not Sun Lingyan, so who are you?"
Sun Lingyan was taken aback, then covered her mouth and laughed.
"Master, you must be joking. Who else could I be but Sun Lingyan?"
As she spoke, she spun around in place.
"Look, I haven't changed at all. Of course, it's Sun Lingyan."
She smiled and gave Chu Ci a reproachful look, "Master, you're too nervous. Come in quickly!"
As she spoke, she went into the house first, but after waiting for a long time, she didn't hear any footsteps behind her.
Turning her head, she saw Chu Ci still standing there, staring at her expressionlessly.
Sun Lingyan: "..."
Seeing Chu Ci's expression, the smile on her face also faded.
She tossed her bag into the arms of the maid guarding the door, crossed her arms, and gave a cold snort.
His eyes and brows held a coldness as he gazed at Chu Ci with a cool look.
"I thought Master Chu would be happy to see me, but I was just being presumptuous."
Chu Ci: "So you admit you're not Sun Lingyan?"
Sun Lingyan shrugged and spread her hands. "Master Chu, didn't you already see that?"
A servant brought her a chair, and she sat down.
With his arms crossed, he looked at Chu Ci from a distance outside the small villa.
"Since Master Chu saw through it all along, why did you still come with me?"
She tugged at one corner of her mouth and smiled, tilting her head to the side.
Aren't you afraid I'll lay a hand on you?
Chu Ci smiled in response, "If you kill me, you'll be completely unable to deal with me."
Her words seemed to remind "Sun Lingyan" of something, and the corners of her lips immediately drooped down.
With a cold snort, "Sun Lingyan" stood up and turned her head away expressionlessly.
"Come in. If I wanted to make a move against you, I would have done it already. There's no need to bring you here."
She ignored whether Chu Ci followed or not and went straight to the dining table.
As soon as she sat down, the servants who had been waiting in advance began to serve the food.
The entire process was completely silent; there wasn't even a sound of plates colliding with the table, which was enough to show how strict the servants were.
Chu Ci looked at her figure sitting upright at the table, hesitated for a moment, and then walked over.
As she passed by "Sun Lingyan," she heard "Sun Lingyan" snort in dissatisfaction.
Once she was seated, the maid quickly prepared the tableware for her.
But they are Western tableware.
As an ordinary criminal police officer who had lived a simple life for many years, even after time-traveling, she was still not used to using Western tableware.
She politely stopped the maid who was about to leave:
"Hello, do you have chopsticks?"
The maid was stunned for a moment, then subconsciously looked at "Sun Lingyan".
Sun Lingyan chuckled. "Give her that pair of chopsticks."
With chopsticks in hand, Chu Ci picked up a steak, and just as she took a bite, she heard "Sun Lingyan" across from her laugh:
"You dare to eat here so unguarded? Aren't you afraid I'll eat your flesh?"
Chu Ci swallowed the steak in her mouth and looked up at her.
"You can't eat human flesh every day, can you?"
"It's not something I eat very often."
"Sun Lingyan" answered her, her laughter soft.
"I prefer to wrap human flesh in dumplings, wontons, or mooncakes and glutinous rice balls, because it's easier to eat that way."
"Oh, by the way, I have some left here, would you like to try some?"
She chuckled softly, the laughter forced out of her throat.
"I guarantee that the taste will be unlike any meat you've ever eaten."
Chu Ci: "..."
The tender and juicy steak in front of me instantly lost its appeal.
She frowned, looking at "Sun Lingyan" whose eyes held a hint of excitement, and finally confirmed her identity.
"Miss Zhong?"
"Sun Lingyan," no, it should be Miss Zhong.
She raised an eyebrow and gave a soft "hmm".
"I just enjoy dealing with smart people."
She was in a good mood, and even her appetite improved a lot.
Chu Ci, however, completely lost his appetite and stared at her elegant eating movements.
This person must have received excellent dining etiquette training from a young age, as they use their knife and fork almost silently.
Even when eating a single bite, they would chew it the same number of times before swallowing.
As if he had some kind of obsessive-compulsive disorder, the steak on the plate was cut neatly, with each piece of meat perfectly horizontal and vertical.
After eating one piece, cut it into pieces; almost every piece of meat is the same size.
"I know I look good when I eat, but you won't get full just by watching me eat."
Miss Zhong suddenly smiled and spoke.
Chu Ci looked up and saw the other person staring at her with a smile.
Miss Zhong glanced at the steak on her plate that only had one bite taken out of it. "Don't you like Western food?"
She called the maid, wanting someone to serve Chinese food, but Chu Ci refused.
"No need, Miss Zhong, please get to the point."
"What exactly do you want from me?"
Miss Zhong's smile faded, but she remained silent.
Only after slowly finishing the steak on her plate did she wipe her mouth and look up at Chu Ci.
"You know who I am, and I know who you are."
"Chu Ci, let's make a deal."
Without even thinking, Chu Ci said, "You've harmed so many people, whatever fate you face is what you deserve. I won't help you."
Her answer was so quick that it made Miss Zhong laugh.
"You dare to talk like that on my turf? You've got some nerve."
Chu Ci: "If you weren't bold, how would you have dared to follow me here?"
Miss Zhong smiled and looked at her silently.
After a long while, she lowered her eyes, smiled, and shook her head.
"This is not the deal I want to make with you."
"After all these years, I'm tired of living."
"I have no intention of prolonging my life by stealing other people's lifespans; the outcome makes no difference to me."
"But I don't want to do that, yet some people still crave an ageless body and a youthful face."
The smile on her face gradually faded and deepened as she stared intently at Chu Ci.
“I know you want to arrest those people, and I can help you.”
"But if I help you catch those who want to continue harming people, you have to help me find the address where someone will be reincarnated."
"So, is this a good problem for you?"
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