7: Chapter 7 Omens 7: Chapter 7 Omens âAhâŠ?â
Pei Laoliu was baffled by this sudden question, he paused a good while before he could respond.
July 7, wasnât that the day when he encountered the ghost-faced man?
âThat day I went to Fat Fish Villa District to check the Feng Shui for a clientâŠâ
Pei Laoliu felt a bit nervous, he wasnât really afraid to speak out, since he hadnât done anything guilty during that time.
However, he was also worried that if the ghost had killed someone, it might implicate him.
He truly had entered that house, but feared it would backfire horribly.
The square-faced police officer seemed to detect the old manâs tension and smiled reassuringly,
âYou donât have to worry, we just have a few questions to ask you.â
âOh, alright, Officer, go ahead and ask.â
Hearing this, Pei Laoliu felt a bit more at ease.
âWhat exactly did you see in building 27 of Fat Fish Villa District on the evening of the 7th?â
The middle-aged police officer cut to the chase.
Pei Laoliu hesitated on hearing this, he thought for a moment, then said:
âOfficer, do you want to hear the truth, or a lie?â
âPfftâŠâ
The young police officer standing behind suddenly laughed, saying:
âOld man, you are quite funny.
We, police officers, of course need to hear the truth; who listens to lies when investigating a case?â
Pei Laoliuâs face looked somewhat embarrassed.
âHearing the truth is right, but you canât punish me with a re-education session afterwardâŠâ
The middle-aged police officer waved his hand, guaranteeing him,
âRest assured, just tell us what you saw.
We are not concerned with anything else, and no one is going to take you for an educational talk.â
Regardless of what Pei Laoliu was thinking now, Zhang Xiaoman next to him was filled with swirling thoughts.
There were certain things Master Liu might not understand, but Zhang Xiaoman had some clues.
These things, perhaps, were not the so-called ghostsâŠ
If she hadnât guessed wrong, they hadnât always been there, but had only appeared recently.
âHe just said they donât handle other affairsâŠ
does that mean they are a department specifically responsible for such cases⊠or is that just a polite phrase, and Iâm overthinking itâŠâ
Zhang Xiaoman continued to analyze in her mind while listening to Pei Laoliu explaining the situation.
âJudging by their demeanor, they seem to already know the real situation, now they are just here to confirm their investigationâŠâ
Thinking this, Zhang Xiaoman couldnât help but take another look at the two officers.
Unfortunately, she could not see anything unusual about them.
At least, for her, a regular employee who rarely interacted with the government, it wasnât obvious.
Pei Laoliu went on and on, repeating the story he had just told to Zhang Xiaoman.
However, this time he was much more concise, finishing in no time.
After drinking some water, Pei Laoliu looked at the young police officer who was still seriously taking notes, a curious expression crossed his face.
âOfficer, do you actually believe what Iâve said?â
He ventured.
The middle-aged police officerâs face showed a half-smile,
âWhatâs the matter?
Wasnât what the old man just said the truth?â
âNo, no.â
Pei Laoliu quickly waved his hands.
âIâm just curious why you guys donât seem skeptical at all.
After all, what I said sounds so mystic, I reckon anyone who hears it might think, might thinkâŠâ
âThink youâre telling a ghost story, huh?â
The middle-aged police officer interjected, âYou donât need to use your imagination.
We have already conducted a preliminary investigation of this case and found that it was not caused by any so-called ghost.â
âHowever, as for what it specifically is, I canât disclose that to you.
Whatâs important is that you canât go around spreading rumors about this matter; I need to make that very clear to you.â
He paused then, shifting his gaze to Zhang Xiaoman.
Zhang Xiaoman quickly understood and immediately responded,
âOfficer, rest assured, I wonât speak of it either.
My grandfather often told me these kinds of stories, I always took them as just stories.â
The middle-aged police officer nodded.
âThatâs good.
With todayâs advanced technology, whether in reality or online, all words and actions can be traced.
I hope you understand that.â
The elder and the younger both nodded in agreement.
âWell, Iâve asked everything I needed to, and Iâve taken up plenty of your time.
I wonât bother you any further and will be on my way.â
After finishing, the middle-aged police officer stood up, and the young officer next to him also stopped writing at this moment.
âUmâŠ
Officer, could you tell me what happened to the house afterward?â
Pei Laoliu suddenly asked.
The middle-aged police officer, who was about to leave, paused.
He turned his head to look at Pei Laoliu for a moment before responding,
âAs for the specifics, Iâm not at liberty to tell you.
All I can tell you is that right after you left, the owner of the house immediately called the police, and the scene was quickly brought under control with no casualties.â
Pei Laoliu breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing there were no issues at the homeownerâs house.
âThank you, officer, now I can relax.â
âItâs nothing; itâs part of our job,â the middle-aged police officer said and waved his hand before heading towards the door.
However, when he nearly reached the rather shabby door, he suddenly turned around.
âBy the way, thoseâŠ
tools of yours, weâll need to run some tests on them, so I canât return them to you just yet.
Oh, and that thingâŠ
donât randomly splash dogâs blood on people anymore.
When our patrolling officers saw the homeowner, they almost sent them directly to the hospital for emergency treatment.â
âAh?
Oh, okayâŠâ
Pei Laoliu was taken aback upon hearing this and his expression gradually shifted from perplexed to embarrassed; even his thick-skinned face, usually immune to shame, reddened slightly.
âMaster Liu, he has left.â
Zhang Xiaoman saw him still standing there, dazed, and promptly reminded him.
Pei Laoliu turned around and glared as he scolded,
âStinker, I know theyâve left.
Stop being an eyesore here and let me have some peace.â
ââŠâ
On the street, a police car was driving down the middle of the road.
Inside the car, the young officer who was at Pei Laoliuâs house was driving.
On the passenger seat beside him, the middle-aged officer with a square face was leaning back in his seat with his eyes closed.
âCaptain Hu, hearing that fortune tellerâs story, I feel even more like it was a ghostâŠâ
The middle-aged officer named Captain Hu also opened his eyes at this point and said,
âXiao Wu, even the old fortune teller doesnât know; how can you still not understand?
Are there really such things as ghosts in the world?
If it were a ghost, could we have killed it with just one shot?â
Xiao Wu shrank his neck upon hearing this.
âCaptain Hu, Iâve never seen such things before.
You said it could move, yell, and even spew out so much stench, what exactly is it?â
Captain Hu sat up straight, pinched the bridge of his nose, and shook his head,
âItâs my first time encountering it tooâŠ
Thereâs never been any record of such a thing in internal filesâŠ
Anyway, the leadership said, we canât rule out the possibility of such events happening again in the futureâŠâ
âSo, we need to intensify our investigation now and try to figure out where that thing came from and why it appeared in Mr.
Liâs basement,â Xiao Wu quickly nodded in agreement.
Yet Captain Hu leaned back into his seat again, sighed, and said,
âAh, I hope this incident is just an isolated caseâŠâ