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墨書 Inktalez
I glanced at the business card, which read "Wen Yan Private Detective Agency," along with a phone number and the number 18.
I pocketed the card and said, "No need for a reward. But since you're not a police officer, will it be illegal for you to catch these three?"
"It won't be. These three committed crimes in Donghai City, stealing over thirty thousand in cash and even taking the female owner's underwear. I'll bring them back to Donghai City, and they'll ultimately be handed over to the police," Wen Yan replied, his expression serious and devoid of any smile.
I nodded. "Alright then."
The three thieves on the ground kept begging for mercy. "Please spare us! We only stole because we had no choice."
"Yeah, that's right! The owner owes us our wages, and they won't give us our bonuses, so we had to steal!"
"Please let us go! We're begging you!"
Wen Yan remained expressionless, completely ignoring their pleas.
At that moment, Zhao Yin stepped out, looking a bit anxious. "What's going on? Is everything alright?"
I shook my head.
Suddenly, one of the thieves on the ground shouted in panic.
"Wait... you’re Zhao Yin? Ah, weren't you supposed to be dead?"
"I can't believe it, it's really Zhao Yin! We've encountered a ghost!"
"Ghost my ass! Zhao Yin, hurry up and plead for us. Remember we used to be neighbors? Please, just help us out!"
The three thieves shouted.
Zhao Yin and I were stunned.
Zhao Yin looked at the three on the ground and suddenly froze. "Lock Brother, Fourth Uncle, Teetering Brother! What happened to you guys?"
Zhao Yin actually recognized these three thieves and called them by name without hesitation.
Wen Yan appeared a bit anxious; his vigilance was evident as he stood in front of the three, frowning at me and Zhao Yin.
I said, "Buddy, don't be nervous. We're all from Donghai City. Let's just talk it out. I'm with the East Sea Public Security Bureau Auxiliary Police." I pulled out my badge and showed it to Wen Yan.
Wen Yan relaxed a bit and nodded. "No matter what your relationship is with these three, I have to take them away. They are wanted by my clients."
I replied, "Alright, let's move to a room first; it's not safe here."
As I spoke, my expression was serious because I knew these three must know something important. This was a great opportunity to uncover the truth about Zhao Yin, and I wasn't going to let it slip away.
Wen Yan and I pushed the three thieves into the room I had just opened. Once inside, Wen Yan sat on the bed without saying a word but looked very guarded; it was clear he wouldn't let them go no matter what.
I turned my attention to the three thieves.
The three thieves had already confirmed that Zhao Yin was a human, so they were continuously pleading with her for mercy.
I sat across from them and asked, "Why did you steal from her?"
"Their boss didn't pay us first," the oldest among them explained. He was Zhao Yin's Fourth Uncle, the eldest and seemingly the most honest of the trio.
"Go into detail," I prompted.
Fourth Uncle quickly elaborated, "It's like this: we came to the city to work and took on a contract to dig trenches for laying down pipes for a villa. We agreed on a total payment of fifty thousand yuan. The Boss Lady paid us twenty thousand upfront, and the remaining thirty thousand was to be given after the job was completed to her satisfaction, as a bonus. We agreed to this. We even signed a contract, but since that thirty thousand was considered a bonus, it wasn't included in the contract. After we finished everything, the Boss Lady went back on her word and only paid us the two thousand yuan, leaving us with nothing else."
"We tried to sue her, but since the contract didn’t mention that thirty thousand, we couldn’t win. The lawyer and judge scolded us. So we were really frustrated because just buying those pipes cost over twenty thousand yuan. We worked hard for five months and ended up losing money! Out of anger, we went into the Boss Lady's house and... stole thirty thousand yuan."
After listening to Fourth Uncle, Wen Yan frowned and asked, "What about the underwear incident?"
Fourth Uncle looked embarrassed. "When we entered the Boss Lady's house, we only took the thirty thousand yuan. In our minds, it was just collecting our wages; it felt legal, so we didn’t take anything else and weren’t afraid. But we were quite upset because we thought the Boss Lady was shameless. At that moment, Lockzi lost control and stole some of her underwear for fun. Later, when the police came to arrest us, we realized we had really messed up. So we hurried back to Shanshui Village without even returning home; we just stayed in this town to avoid being caught by the police."
I looked at Fourth Uncle and could tell he was being truthful.
Wen Yan continued to frown without saying much.
I said, "Alright, I understand your situation now. Don't worry; I am an auxiliary police officer from the East Sea City Public Security Bureau. You don’t need to be afraid. Once we're back at the station, I will ensure your safety and seek justice against that Boss Lady. However, I have one question that you must answer."
Upon hearing my assurance and having seen my police badge earlier—though it was an Auxiliary Police Certificate—they respected me greatly and nodded vigorously in agreement, saying, "Thank you, Comrade Officer."
I pointed at Zhao Yin and asked, "What exactly happened to Zhao Yin? Why was your first reaction upon seeing her that she was dead?"
On one side, Lockzi said, "I have seen Zhao Yin's ghost before. It really was Zhao Yin. So when I saw her alive this time, of course I thought Big White had seen a ghost."
"Zhao Yin's ghost?" I asked, puzzled.
Seesaw chimed in from across the table, "Yeah, I always thought Sister Zhao Yin was dead. Besides, didn't Sister Zhao Yin marry Zhao Min in a Yin Marriage? How could she be alive again? I've never seen a living person enter into a Yin Marriage; that seems really inauspicious."
"Yin Marriage!?" Upon hearing this term, I frowned. I had experienced a Yin Marriage myself, so I was somewhat familiar with such matters.
At that moment, Fourth Uncle spoke up with a serious expression. "Let me handle this. After all, I've lived in the village the longest and know this matter best."
Both Zhao Yin and I looked at Fourth Uncle. Even Wen Yan seemed interested now, sitting with a furrowed brow as he awaited Fourth Uncle's explanation.
Fourth Uncle sighed and said, "I'm not entirely sure what happened between Zhao Min and Zhao Yin, but one day, Zhao Yin suddenly ran away from home and didn't come back. Ever since then, Zhao Min started drinking heavily and crying all day long. About a month later, he got drunk and sat on the dirt wall at the edge of the village crying. In a moment of carelessness, he fell to the ground where there was a sharp stone that pierced his chest. His heart split open, and he died."
Zhao Yin covered her mouth as she listened to Fourth Uncle's account, tears shimmering in her eyes.
Fourth Uncle continued, "Since then, the village has often heard Zhao Min's cries—ghostly wails that were truly unbearable. At that time, several people in the village fell ill with leukemia and were on the brink of death. Everyone believed it was Zhao Min's doing and wanted to drive him away. But Zhao Min was a ghost; no one in the village knew how to exorcise him, so everyone felt helpless. Then Old Witch appeared—Zhao Min's aunt, an old woman who lived in the mountains. She said it would be easy to dispel Zhao Min's resentment; all we needed to do was arrange a Yin Marriage between Zhao Min and Zhao Yin, and everything would be fine."
"When we heard about the proposed Yin Marriage in our village, everyone was dumbfounded. We all knew that Zhao Yin was alive; how could a living person marry a dead one?"
At that point, Old Witch insisted again that Zhao Yin was already dead. As long as we acted as matchmakers and provided some flowers for the ceremony, the Yin Marriage would be valid and peace would return. Moreover, during that time, it seemed there truly was a female ghost haunting the area; everyone assumed it was Zhao Yin's spirit. The villagers had no further objections; everyone came together to hold the Yin Marriage for Zhao Min and Zhao Yin...
Zhao Yin listened in shock; she had no idea so much had happened regarding her.
Fourth Uncle continued, "After the Yin Marriage took place, Zhao Min's ghostly cries indeed ceased, and the villagers began to feel relieved. Later on, for reasons unknown, Zhao Min's parents passed away too. The village grew poorer over time; people often died in their sleep. Lockzi, Seesaw, and I found it increasingly terrifying to stay in Shanshui Village and bravely decided to leave the mountain village. We initially survived by scavenging in Donghai City but gradually figured things out and started working as low-level renovation workers. We haven't returned to Shanshui Village in over three years."
I stood there in a daze, thinking it was just a Yin Marriage. It shouldn't be like this. I had also been arranged for a Yin Marriage, but that time, if it weren't for Master Ma suddenly appearing and deliberately trying to harm our entire village, that Yin Marriage would have had no effect on me. Why was Zhao Yin's Yin Marriage so terrifying?
Beside me, the usually cold Wen Yan finally couldn't hold back and asked, "What exactly is going on? Can you start from the beginning?"
I recounted Zhao Yin's situation from the start.
Wen Yan stroked his chin, looking quite interested.
I picked up my phone and tried it out. Although there was no 4G signal here, the G signal was quite strong.
I immediately contacted Azure Cloud Taoist via WeChat and briefly explained the situation at hand. I originally thought Azure Cloud Taoist would charge me a consultation fee, but unexpectedly, he called me directly.
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