Xiao Lou picked up the letter and examined it carefully. The calligraphy on the letter was elegant and unrestrained. Xiao Lou's father had a calligraphy work by the elder Old Gui, and Xiao Lou could recognize the handwriting at a glance. Moreover, the spider dagger mark on the roof beam was also a unique mark of Chu Huaying, which could not be forged by others.
Therefore, this letter must have been left by Ninth Brother and the others.
Xiao Lou looked at his teammates and said confidently, "This letter is in Senior Gui's handwriting."
Yu Hanjiang frowned as he looked at the first line of the letter. "They actually went to the world three years ago? That means we're in a different timeline now, and cards like Telepathic Connection and team voice chat are all unusable?"
Xiao Lou said, "Well, starting today, we can no longer speak directly with them from three years ago. Fortunately, they thought of leaving us clues in this way."
We cannot speak to our past selves, but we can leave advice for our future selves.
Lu Jiuchuan and his companions acted wisely. They guessed that Xiao Lou might return to the Zhao family to investigate the person who set up the mourning hall, so they secretly hid a letter on the roof of the mourning hall using Chu Huaying's spider mark as a marker.
Fortunately, no one had discovered this letter for three years, but Xiao Lou has now successfully found it.
Yu Hanjiang read through the letter and said thoughtfully, "It seems that Ninth Brother and the others have traveled back to the night of the incident three years ago and witnessed a plot that we cannot verify—first, there's Zhao Zesui. On the night of her sister's wedding, she went outside the town to meet a masked man and gave him a purse embroidered with mandarin ducks."
He turned to Xiao Lou: "Remember when you saw the unfinished handkerchief in Miss Zhao's room and guessed she had a sweetheart? It seems you were right. However, her sweetheart has a special identity. She even has to wear a mask for their midnight rendezvous. Is she afraid of being discovered by the people in town?"
"Hmm. Wearing a mask in the middle of the night, this person's identity is definitely not simple." Xiao Lou paused, then continued reading the letter: "The letter said that Chen Yu rushed out of town in a panic to burn paper money for his father. His father's death was not a secret, so why didn't he openly set up a mourning hall at home, but instead sneaked out of town to burn paper money?"
"We have a custom in our hometown," Lao Mo interjected. "If our parents passed away in a foreign land and their graves are not nearby, we will go to the entrance of our community or the street near the 15th of July every year and burn some paper money facing the direction of our hometown. My father's hometown is in Beijing, and I live in Jiangzhou. Sometimes when I can't go back to sweep the graves, I also use this method to pay my respects."
"It's the same in my hometown. During festivals, if we can't go back to our ancestral graves, we worship our ancestors facing the direction of our hometown from afar," Qu Wanyue said.
"So, it seems Chen Yu's father wasn't buried in Qingfeng Town? That's why, after his son was born, he burned paper money for his father outside the town, facing the direction of his hometown, to announce the good news?" After hearing their conversation, Xiao Lou thought this explanation made sense.
" We need to investigate further about how and where Chen Yu's father died," Yu Hanjiang said.
The strange behavior of Zhao Zesui and Chen Yu seen in Ghost City at night has now been explained.
The clues that Brother Jiu and his team saw with their own eyes on the day of the incident three years ago are definitely not fake, but what these two clues mean remains to be investigated and verified.
The letter then listed some clues.
First, there's the roster and the secret room concerning Mayor Qin Feng.
Upon seeing this, Qu Wanyue couldn't help but say, " Qin Feng really doesn't seem like the murderer. Senior Gui said in his letter that when the case occurred three years ago, there was no secret room in his study, nor was there a list full of red crosses in the cabinet. But we found these three years later... This means that Qin Feng must be investigating the murderer, collecting evidence, and recording the names of the victims, just like us?"
Xiao Lou nodded: "Yes. From the beginning, I felt that Qin Feng was not the murderer. The clues were obviously too simple, and the rattle drums that appeared in the Zhao and Chen families all had tiger patterns, but he had a rattle drum with the twelve zodiac animals in his secret room, which didn't match up. However, he definitely knew something and was very uncooperative with us."
Yu Hanjiang said, "We can't ask this person directly; we need to investigate through other means."
Xiao Lou nodded, picked up the letter, and said, "On the night of the incident, those who claimed to have seen the white-clad ghost included vegetable vendor Old Man Liu, hunter Zhang Chengyu, tofu seller Second Sister-in-law Xue, butcher Lin Yueran, and clothing store owner Qin Ruolan. Ninth Brother and the others have listed detailed information about these people. Do they suspect that there are suspicious individuals among them?"
Yu Hanjiang took the letter from him and examined it carefully. He said in a low voice, "Judging from the locations marked on the letter, the five people live in the east, west, south, north, and center of the town. Although Qingfeng Town is not large, the evil spirits would not appear in all five places at the same time. It is very likely that someone is deliberately lying to confuse the public."
After a moment of silence, Xiao Lou carefully folded the letter and put it in his pocket.
Liu Qiao suddenly said, "All the clues left by Ninth Brother and the others are from the 'Ghost Snatching Case' three years ago, but what about the recent ' Sunken Lake Case '? We still have no clue who the murderer is for those girls who drowned at the bottom of the lake."
Xiao Lou is also having a headache, as this time two cases are progressing simultaneously, and the murderer is particularly cunning.
It can be said that "murderer B" took advantage of the "vengeful ghost" narrative created by "murderer A" to drag these girls into the lake, making people mistakenly believe that the missing girls were also killed by a vengeful ghost.
"Killer A" discovered that someone he hadn't killed had also mysteriously disappeared, so he must know that another killer was using him.
Using public opinion to commit crimes while letting the other party do nothing is also a way to use the other party in return, making the case more complicated and impossible to investigate.
They may have never met each other, but they have a tacit understanding of covering for each other.
Yu Hanjiang said, "Let's separate the cases first. The two murderers have different motives, styles, and victims. The first murderer in the 'ghostly murder case' should be related to the famine twenty years ago. He wiped out entire families with his first attack, and his methods were extremely cruel. The second murderer only targeted girls around 18 years old and drowned them in the lake. He should have a paranoid personality and couldn't get over the psychological trauma left by the girl in red."
Xiao Lou rubbed his temples, looking troubled: "Let's investigate the first one first. At least the clues in the first case are relatively clear."
***
After sneaking out of the Zhao family's house, the group split up to find out more information about the suspect mentioned in the letter.
Liu Qiao and Lao Mo are in charge of Chen Yu's line.
The two visited the neighborhood near the Chen family's home and quickly learned about Chen Yu's father from some elderly people. Liu Qiao pressed the earpiece and whispered, " Professor Xiao, we found out that the Chen family went to do business in another place twenty years ago. Chen Yu and his wife moved back to Qingfeng Town seven years ago. His father did not come back with them. It is said that he passed away in another place many years ago."
Xiao Lou asked, "Have you found out where they're going to do business?"
Liu Qiao said, "I don't know. The Chen family has always been quite mysterious. After Chen Yu moved back to his ancestral home in Qingfeng Town, he rarely interacted with people. When he saw someone, he would just greet them politely. The neighbors only knew that his family was quite wealthy and that they were very particular about their food, clothing, and daily necessities."
Based on this, it seems that Chen Yu's father was buried in a foreign land, which is why Chen Yu went outside the town to burn paper money for his father. He seems to be a filial son, but there is no memorial tablet for his father at home. This seems a bit strange... unless it was his father who asked for it.
A moment later, Long Sen and Qu Wanyue, who had gone to investigate in the East Market, returned. Qu Wanyue said, " Old Man Liu in the East Market was over eighty years old and passed away three years ago. According to the children in the neighborhood, the old man loved to tell stories and would always drag the children along to scare them with the story of the 'white-clad female ghost,' saying that he had seen a vengeful ghost on a rainy night three years ago."
Xiao Lou asked, "Is there a more detailed version?"
Long Sen said, " Wanyue tricked a child over with a candied hawthorn. The child then recounted the story of Old Man Liu in its entirety—On July 14th, a torrential rain fell. He was awakened by a clap of thunder in the middle of the night and was about to get up to use the bathroom. But when he opened the door, he saw a white-clad, long-haired female ghost float past the door. He was so frightened that he almost wet his pants."
People in ancient times did not have the habit of wearing watches, so they certainly did not know the exact time when they saw the female ghost. However, the thunderous sound provided by Old Man Liu, the eyewitness, is crucial.
The stormy night three years ago must have been just like the scene when Xiao Lou and his friends first went to Ghost City.
That was a scene reenactment; they had witnessed the Zhao family's daughter's wedding firsthand.
Xiao Lou clearly remembers that the rain stopped around 3 a.m., and after the rain stopped, Miss Zhao got married. There was only one clear clap of thunder in the sky.
Old Man Liu has passed away and is certainly not the murderer or an accomplice. As a witness, his description may have been exaggerated, but the information that he was "awakened by thunder" should be the key point that needs special attention.
Following that, Long Sen and Qu Wanyue visited Second Sister-in-law Xue, who lived in the southeast of the town and was closest to Old Man Liu.
Not long after, Qu Wanyue reported the investigation results: " Second Sister-in-law Xue remarried and moved to Yue Prefecture two years ago. However, according to the neighbors, she was also awakened by thunder. She remembered that she had not taken in the quilts that she had left to dry in the yard. When she went to take in the quilts, she saw a long-haired female ghost in white floating over the wall and floating in the direction of the Zhao family. She was so frightened that she quickly went back into the house."
Xiao Lou opened the map that Lao Mo had left him.
Geographically speaking, Old Man Liu lived in the easternmost part of the town, while Second Sister-in-law Xue lived in the southeast. Both of them were awakened by the thunder and saw the female ghost. The timing was very close, perhaps the female ghost was active in the southeast area of the town when the thunder sounded.
Liu Qiao and Lao Mo went to find Qin Ruolan, the owner of the clothing store in the center.
Liu Qiao slipped her a silver ingot and asked if she knew anything about the rumors of vengeful ghosts. She then leaned closer mysteriously and said, "There really are ghosts in our town. Three years ago, on a rainy night, I had a headache and couldn't sleep. When I heard the rain stop, I got up to go to the shop to sort out the new fabrics that had arrived. As soon as I stepped outside, I saw a female ghost dressed in white with her hair covering her face float past in the alley in front of my house. I was so scared that I quickly hid back inside!"
Liu Qiao asked, "When you saw that female ghost, did you hear thunder?"
The proprietress thought carefully for a moment, then shook her head and said, "No. The rain stopped a long time ago, and I only went out to see the female ghost then."
There are two people left: Lin Yueran, a butcher living in the north of the city, and Zhang Chengyu, a hunter living in the west of the city.
Xiao Lou and Yu Hanjiang went to investigate personally.
Lin Yueran wasn't as strong as a typical butcher. He looked quite refined when he wasn't holding a butcher's knife, but Yu Hanjiang could tell that he was very strong, with very well-developed muscles in his arms.
Yu Hanjiang asked directly, "Brother, I heard you saw a female ghost three years ago? My wife loves hearing stories about the supernatural and ghosts. Could you tell us about it?"
Lin Yueran looked at Xiao Lou with a puzzled expression. Xiao Lou smiled and slipped him a silver ingot, saying, "My husband and I have been traveling around and just wanted to hear some ghost stories to relieve our boredom."
Lin Yueran's expression was complicated: "I've told this story many times. Three years ago, on a night when it was pouring rain, my son cried that he needed to pee in the middle of the night. When the rain stopped, I took him to pee."
I told him to go out to relieve himself. Just as we stepped outside, a female ghost in white floated past us. I was startled and quickly carried my son back home. I thought I was seeing things, but then my son saw the ghost too—it definitely wasn't an illusion!
Xiao Lou asked, "Was it a rainy night when you saw the female ghost?"
Lin Yueran nodded: "Yes."
Xiao Lou asked, "Was there lightning and thunder at the time? Isn't it said that strange phenomena occur when evil spirits appear?"
Lin Yueran was stunned for a moment: "It seems like there was..." He paused, then said with certainty: "I definitely heard thunder."
To prove his point, he even called his son out as well.
The child, not yet 10 years old, said in a clear voice, "My father is right, we all saw that female ghost, and there was thunder in the sky when she appeared!"
Xiao Lou thanked Yu Hanjiang and got up to leave. Finally, they went to investigate the home of hunter Zhang Chengyu in the west of the city. Zhang Chengyu wasn't home; he must have gone hunting. However, there were a few children playing with stones nearby.
Xiao Lou coaxed a child over and asked, "Do you know this hunter family surnamed Zhang?"
The child, upon receiving the candy, obediently replied, "I know him. Uncle Zhang went hunting this morning, and he said he'd hunt some wild rabbits for us to roast."
Xiao Lou asked, "Has he ever told you any stories about vengeful ghosts?"
The child said nervously, "A vengeful ghost is coming to claim our lives! It's terrifying! He said he's seen a ghost with his own eyes and told us not to go out at night, or we'll be taken away by the ghost."
Yu Hanjiang asked in a low voice, "What did he tell you?"
The child scratched his head and said, "Three years ago, on a rainy night, he was awakened by thunder in the middle of the night. When he got up, he saw a female ghost in white floating past outside the yard. He slipped and twisted his ankle. The next day, someone went missing. No matter how hard they searched, they couldn't find them. They must have been lured away by a vengeful ghost!"
Yu Hanjiang and Xiao Lou exchanged a glance, seeing a hint of suspicion in each other's eyes.
thunder.
Of the five "witnesses," four said they heard thunder, but only the clothing store owner was certain that she saw the female ghost long after the rain stopped.
The killer, disguised as a female ghost, will not appear in all five locations in the town at the same time.
Three years ago, on a stormy night, after the rain stopped, there was only one clap of thunder. The thunder lasted no more than 3 seconds. It was impossible for the female ghost, played by the murderer, to teleport to all five locations in the town within 3 seconds.
Among these people, someone must be lying.