That night, we found a hotel and booked two rooms. I stayed in one room with Howard Zhang and Lan Yin, while Susan Li and Mark Zhang stayed in the other.
It was already past 11, almost midnight, when Howard Zhang finally came back from Susan Li's room. As soon as he entered, Lan Yin excitedly ran over to him.
"All done?"
Howard Zhang made a victory gesture.
"She's already asleep. The nightlife begins now. Oh yeah!"
I let out an 'ah,' having just finished my shower. Looking at Lan Yin and Howard Zhang, I saw lecherous expressions on both their faces. Lan Yin was holding a flier—who knows where he got it—with something like 'seductive girls' written on it. I immediately understood what it was.
I really didn't have the patience to reason with these two, whose brains were clearly in their pants. At this point, that's all they could think with.
Lan Yin looked impatient, like a monkey in heat.
Damn, the women in joints like this are no good. Ethan, let me borrow your phone.
"Howard."
"You're already like this down there, and you still want to go out and play."
Helpless, I realized that now I'm at least half ghost, and pulling off tricks like this is child's play.
Howard said, forcibly taking my phone. After dialing for a while, I saw he was calling Uncle Charles.
Cheng Xue took out the photo she'd had taken. I held it, activated my Ghost Net—a spiritual sensing ability—to probe it, but found nothing unusual.
"This thing definitely has a ghost's touch."
Then Howard and I left the KTV. He hailed a taxi, shoved some cash at the driver, and barked at him to get us back as fast as possible.
Their voices were low, but I could still catch every word through Ghost Net. The shock hit me hard. Just then, the bus reached their stop and the two girls got off. I rushed after them, but the crowd slowed me down—by the time I got to the sidewalk, they were already far ahead.
"Zhang Hao, sigh, come back tomorrow and see your mother. I haven't dared tell her about you. It's fine to have fun, but don't go overboard. Come back with Uncle Li tomorrow."
"Hmph, Zhang Hao, don't bother explaining. Even if you wanted to, you don't have what it takes."
"Uncle Charles, it's Ethan."
"Ethan, thank you. Please keep an eye on your cousin and don't let him get into trouble, sigh..."
"Understood, Uncle Charles."
After hanging up, Howard and Lan Yin quickly got dressed and were ready to head out. Helpless, I had no choice but to follow.
"Howard, we should just go back." I glanced at Lan Yin, who looked excited. Thinking back, that hard drive Old Moe gave Lan Yin—could it be... I really didn't expect Lan Yin to be this kind of person.
"We're men, Ethan. You'll understand one day."
I really didn't have the energy to reason with these two, who could only think with their lower halves. Right now, that's all they could use to think.
Sure enough, after a while, a nice-looking black sedan stopped at the entrance. Out stepped a man in his forties, wearing glasses and carrying a brown leather bag. Seeing Howard, he greeted him warmly.
"Uncle Li, where's the fun around here?"
"Ah, Xiao Hao, there are plenty of fun places around here. Come, let Uncle Li show you. Take this money—tonight, it's on me."
When I woke up again, I rubbed my eyes and saw that it was already broad daylight. I was still in a private room at a KTV. Howard was sleeping soundly nearby, but Lan Yin was nowhere to be seen. I remembered last night, he left with three women, and Howard gave him a stack of money.
"Howard, wake up."
My head was spinning, but Howard seemed to have had too much fun last night and couldn't get up. I checked the time—it was already 10 a.m.
"Howard, it's ten o'clock."
Suddenly, Howard sprang upright from the sofa, looking terrified.
"We're screwed, cousin! Hurry! Why didn't you wake me up?"
Then Howard and I left the KTV. He hailed a taxi, threw some bills at the driver, and told him to get us back as fast as possible.
When we got back to the hotel and entered the lobby, we saw Susan Li with Mark Zhang, both glaring at us. Howard looked at Susan with a face about to cry.
"Susan, I..."
"Hmph, Zhang Hao, don't bother explaining. Even if you wanted to, you couldn't do it anyway."
Then Susan Li gave me a cold, sinister smile.
"Ethan Zhang, I never would've guessed someone as honest as you could be like this."
I let out an 'ah' and hurried to explain, but Susan Li took Howard and planned to go home with him. I couldn't shake the feeling that the way Susan looked at me was strange.
Then Howard gave me some money for a cab and left with Susan. I decided to take the bus instead. The Ghost Burial Squad was in the east of the city, a bit far from here. After grabbing something to eat, I still had no idea where Lan Yin had gone, nor did I care to find out.
I planned to go straight to the Ghost Burial Squad. Last night, while Howard and the others were partying, I called back to the apartment building, but there was still no news about Roger Lee's son. I was feeling a bit down.
It was just past eleven, rush hour for work and school. I looked at the money Howard gave me and decided it was better to just take a cab—buses were too slow.
Just then, I overheard two female students in the crowd talking about photos.
"Axue, where did you take this photo? It's so pretty, it looks almost alive."
"Oh, it was at this old photo studio. My boyfriend and I were passing by, and he wanted to check it out, so we went in. It was a bit creepy inside, but after I took the photo, it turned out surprisingly well."
Suddenly, I thought of that photo studio where Roger Lee and Boss Chang both had their pictures taken before dying one after another. The bus had already arrived. I didn't know if the girls were talking about the same place, but I decided to ask. I squeezed onto the bus with the crowd.
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I stood not far from the two girls who looked like high school students, watching them. They were laughing and chatting. The girl who'd taken the photo looked serene and pretty, but I couldn't tell much else.
I thought for a moment and released Ghost Net to check them, but didn't sense anything strange. Maybe I was mistaken. I sighed and got off at the next stop.
"Axue, you've gotten prettier lately. The pimples on your face are gone. Did you use some new makeup?"
"Nope."
"Axue, come on, tell me, okay?"
"Alright, actually, let me tell you—the photo studio is pretty mysterious. The person who took my picture said that after you get your photo taken, you become prettier and younger."
Their voices were quiet, but I could still hear them through Ghost Net. I was shocked. Just then, the bus reached their stop and the two girls got off. I hurried after them, but because of the crowd, they were already on the sidewalk by the time I caught up, and had walked far ahead.
I pushed through the crowd and followed the Ghost Net after them. After entering an alley, there were several apartment buildings nearby. I followed the two girls into the courtyard of one, but then they suddenly started running.
I quickly chased after them. Just then, the two girls said something to a security guard, who immediately glared at me and walked over.
"Sir, is there something you need here?"
I let out a sound of surprise, and suddenly, a crowd gathered around me.
"It's him—he's been following us since the bus."
The girl called Axue pointed at me. Then I saw someone take out their phone to call the police.
"I'm a police officer. I need to investigate a case, so I was looking for these two students."
At a time like this, that's all I could say. But the security guard asked to see my ID. I froze, not knowing what to do—I wasn't a cop, and the fake ID Hu Tianshu gave me was at home.
Just then, a leaf suddenly appeared in my hand.
"Show him—what are you afraid of?"
In my mind, I heard the voice of the Grieving Ghost. Surprised, I held up the leaf. The security guard looked at it, and the crowd dispersed. I stared in amazement as the girl called Axue and her friend awkwardly walked over.
"Sorry, officer."
I looked again at the leaf in my hand—it was just a leaf. Yet the two girls stared at it, seeming almost envious.
"He really is a detective, Axue."
Helpless, I realized that I'm at least half ghost now, and doing little tricks like this is easy.
Then I sent the other girl home and took the one who'd had her photo taken—her name was Cheng Xue—to a stone table covered in vines in the courtyard. I asked her about the location of the photo studio.
Cheng Xue took out the photo she'd had taken. I held it and released Ghost Net to sense it, but there was nothing special.
"This thing really is the work of a ghost."
I stared in surprise—my shadow on the ground was speaking. Cheng Xue couldn't hear it. I examined the photo again.
After a few casual questions, I learned the location of the photo studio, took down Cheng Xue's details, and left her my number. I told her to contact me immediately if anything happened, no matter what.
The studio was only a few kilometers away on Beixin Road. I decided to go right away. I called Hu Tianshu and told him everything that happened.
"Ethan, be careful out there."
"Got it, Tianshu. Help me let Rachel know I might be late."
"You'd better tell her yourself, Ethan. She's in a bad mood right now!"