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"Oh, are you upset about your parents fighting over their divorce?" Rainie Cheng quickly asked with concern.
"Uh—yeah, that's a headache too. But honestly, my parents have never gotten along, it's just gotten worse lately. Sigh—it's their business, I don't want to get involved, and even if I did, there's nothing I could do. I can live and work independently now, so if they split up, I'll just have my mom move in with me. No way am I dealing with that homewrecker my dad keeps around! But that's not what's really bothering me lately—there's something else!" Sergeant Mandy Chung said.
"Hmm? What else could be bothering you even more? Is it something to do with work?" Rainie Cheng asked, puzzled.
"Yeah, it's kind of work-related. Rainie, do you know why I asked you to help transfer me out of Sham Shui Po Police Station?" Mandy said.
"Oh? Is it because you couldn't adapt to the new environment and felt stressed?" Rainie Cheng asked, frowning slightly.
"Uh—actually, I like the new place just fine. It's something else! It's been tormenting me so much I can't sleep. Just thinking about that moment makes me shiver with fear, and I have no idea who I can talk to about it. That's the real reason I wanted to leave Sham Shui Po. But—even after switching jobs, it keeps following me around. It's like a nightmare I can't shake!" Mandy said in a trembling voice.
"Mandy, you've always been so strong and brave, and you know your own mind. Tell me—what on earth has got you this shaken up? We're cousins, I’ll help you no matter what!" Rainie said urgently, seeing how scared Mandy looked.
"Rainie, I—I saw a ghost!" Mandy blurted out.
"A ghost?! You mean... you actually ran into something supernatural?" Rainie gasped.
"Yeah, it happened during my night shift at Sham Shui Po Police Station—back then—" Mandy thought for a moment, then finally told Rainie Cheng about her encounter with the evil spirit.
After hearing this, Rainie Cheng frowned again and said, "From what you’re describing, it really does sound like you ran into something supernatural. And it keeps following you, harassing you—"
"Exactly! Sometimes I feel like I’m about to break down, but I have no idea who I can talk to. I mean, everyone around me—including you, Rainie—is a cop. If I say I saw a ghost, who knows what people will think! Sigh—" Mandy sighed, then glanced at Shawn Young, who had been silent, and winked at him.
Shawn Young got the hint, stepped forward and chimed in, "Hey, let me say something—Mandy, don’t worry. I’m basically half a Taoist, and I do know a thing or two about catching ghosts and exorcising demons! Maybe I can help you out with this."
"Really? Are you actually a Taoist? You know how to do all that stuff? Like those exorcist masters in movies?" Mandy asked, pretending to be surprised.
Before Shawn could answer, Rainie Cheng jumped in, "Yeah, Shawn really is a cultivator, and he's got some skills when it comes to Taoist arts! If he’s around, maybe he really can help you!"
Actually, Rainie only knew that Shawn was good at martial arts and had seen him use spells like 'Soul Snatching Technique' and 'Divine Light Technique,' but she hadn’t really seen him exorcise demons before, so she wasn’t about to make any guarantees. As for herself, she believed there were plenty of incredible supernatural phenomena and strange people in the world—after all, she was a descendant of the House of a Thousand Faces! She was much more open-minded about these things than most.
"Ah! That’s great, then—Shawn, you have to help me!" Mandy said, more than happy to accept.
"Sure, no problem! We need to take care of this ASAP, or it could get really bad—" Shawn replied, playing along. The two of them were acting so well, they could win an award for it.
"Let’s go right now, I can’t wait any longer!" Mandy nodded eagerly.
"Wait, where are you guys planning to go?! It's early morning—if there are ghosts, they shouldn't be out at this hour!" Rainie Cheng quickly asked.
"Oh, Rainie, that's not always true. Even though people and ghosts walk different paths, some really fierce spirits—especially those who died with grudges—can gather enough resentment to appear even in broad daylight. I see a faint dark shadow between Mandy's brows, which in Taoist terms means she's being haunted by a vengeful ghost. We need to go to the police station where Mandy ran into the spirit and figure out what's going on, so we can treat it properly!" Shawn Young explained.
"Whoa—that's scary! We really need to take care of this. I'm on vacation these days, so I'll come too! If anything happens, we'll have each other's backs!" Rainie said, now nervous after hearing Shawn's explanation.
"Uh—about that!" Shawn hesitated, a bit worried Rainie would discover his ambiguous relationship with Mandy, since he hadn't found the right time to tell her yet.
"Great! Rainie, you should come too! We can help each other out, and the more people, the better!" Mandy agreed immediately.
Rainie nodded and said, "Alright, let's head to Sham Shui Po Police Station. I'll go get the car, you guys wait for me outside!"
Rainie got the car, and the three of them drove straight to Sham Shui Po Police Station. After parking, they walked to the entrance and saw yellow talisman papers pasted everywhere—on the gate, the walls, and even some burnt joss paper in the corners.
It was a sunny morning, but outside the police station, a dozen officers stood around looking gloomy. Some were burning joss paper, others were putting up talismans, and on a patch of sunlit ground by the gate, a forty-something male officer with a badge was working at a desk piled high with paperwork.
Shawn glanced at the officers and noticed many of them had a faint dark aura on their faces. Looking up at the station, he saw a strange, ominous black mist hovering overhead, like a cloud. He frowned—this meant the evil spirit was way stronger than he'd expected.
Mandy and Rainie were both shocked by what they saw, but Mandy quickly composed herself and led Shawn and Rainie straight to the officer at the desk. He wasn’t really working—he was just staring blankly, looking pale and anxious. Still, Mandy greeted him politely: "Hi—Sergeant Louis Liu, hello!"
The officer was so lost in thought that Mandy's voice startled him. He jumped out of his chair, tripped, and fell to the floor. He scrambled up, half-hiding under the desk, pulled out his service pistol and waved a talisman paper at Mandy, shouting in terror: "Ah! Long-haired ghost! Stay away! I’m a cop—I’ve got righteous energy and authentic Maoshan charms! If you come any closer, I’ll blast you to pieces!"
Mandy couldn’t help laughing and groaning at his antics. She grabbed his talisman, pressed down his gun hand, and yelled under the table, "Hey! Sergeant Liu, it’s Mandy! My hair’s short, I’m not some ghost! What’s wrong with you? Pointing a gun at me? You’re a senior sergeant—don’t joke around like that!"
Sergeant Liu finally recognized Mandy’s voice and crawled out from under the desk, relieved. "Ah—so it’s you, Mandy. You scared me half to death! These days, any young woman’s voice freaks me out!"