The Return of the Zombie King ③ Part 2

“I had also heard something about this, but I didn't expect there to be this kind of connection involved.”
“That really troubled our brothers. Fortunately, with the blessing of heaven, or perhaps the spirit of the wronged soul manifesting, one of our officers found a heart-shaped pendant while organizing Si Xi's belongings. The pendant was only about the size of a thumb, and it was originally in two halves. On one half there was a photo: it was a picture of her with a man.”
“Is the mystery about to be revealed?”
“Yes. We enlarged and reproduced this photo and carried out a wide search, and we finally found this man.”
“This man is named Li Mingcheng, who was originally an ordinary employee at Tianbao Entertainment Company. After thorough police interrogation, he revealed the truth: it turned out that through business interactions he had met Si Xi Liqi. He was attracted by Si Xi Liqi's temperament, and hid the fact that he already had a wife, doing everything possible to get close to her. Si Xi was deceived by him, thinking she had met someone who truly loved her, so they began dating, and soon had a physical relationship. But paper cannot cover fire forever; Si Xi Liqi eventually discovered that Li Mingcheng had a wife. Alas, if Si Xi Liqi had realized the truth at that moment, none of the subsequent events would have happened. Si Xi Liqi believed that Li Mingcheng truly loved her and wanted him to leave his wife and live with her. But who would have known, Li Mingcheng was actually an incompetent and talentless person, relying entirely on his wife to support the household. Even his position at Tianbao Entertainment Company was arranged with considerable effort by his wife through an old classmate. You could say, without his wife, he would have nothing.”
“Did he not know that Si Xi Liqi was the daughter of a jewelry tycoon?” asked Kuang Tianyou.
“No. Si Xi Liqi was a very self-reliant woman. She believed she could create her own world through her own efforts. She didn't want to rely on her father's reputation to achieve everything for herself—for this, even the old man Si Fenqi greatly admired her. Otherwise, he wouldn't have worked so hard to have the police investigate the truth. So, Si Xi Liqi thought she could believe that this time as well, Li Mingcheng would leave his wife and live with her. Faced with her persistent pressure, Li Mingcheng was at a loss—I think that if he had known Si Xi Liqi's true identity, he probably would have kicked his wife aside long ago. Perhaps this was the fate that Si Xi Liqi could not escape.One day, while Li Mingcheng was watching a crime TV show, an evil thought flashed through his mind: he decided to imitate the plot and plan to kill Si Xiliqi to get rid of her entanglement.

"What plan?"

"He first deceived Si Xiliqi by saying that he was in great pain because he truly loved her and really wanted to live with her. However, he had suffered with his wife for many years, and if he left her, he knew his wife would not be able to live alone. He couldn't bear it in his heart, and it would also be shameful in the eyes of his colleagues. So he thought of death, as a way to relieve his pain. He asked Si Xiliqi if she was willing to die with him, so they could live together forever. Perhaps a rational Si Xiliqi might have refused, but unfortunately, at that moment she had already drunk the wine that Li Mingcheng had drugged her with, and her mind was not very clear."

"Didn't the police find out that she had been drugged?"

"Because she had a history of taking eye medication, we overlooked this point."

"Oh."

"Later, Li Mingcheng took out two knives. One was the knife stuck in Si Xiliqi's chest, and the other, guess what? It was a trick knife!"

"A trick knife! I understand. When it was inserted into a person's body, the blade had already retracted into the handle."

"Yes! This shows that Li Mingcheng did put some thought into it. He bought a set of movie props—those where fake blood spurts out when someone is shot. He killed himself first, and then Si Xiliqi also 'committed suicide.' Unfortunately, Li Mingcheng's death was fake, but Si Xiliqi really died! You should know what happened next without me telling you."

"Si Xiliqi truly suffered. A person with such a bright future ended up dying at the hands of such a man!"

"That's nothing; the worst part comes later."

"What happened?"

"That old man in Si Xiliqi's family learned the truth and flew into a rage. He scolded Si Xiliqi for dishonoring the family: so many capable and elegant young men chased after her, yet she ignored them and instead got involved with a married man, who was just a low-level employee, basically a clown. He immediately decided to sever all ties with Si Xiliqi, remove her from the family genealogy, and no longer acknowledge her as a member of the Si family. Alas, in life she was deceived, in death, abandoned by her family. Now, one could imagine, she has become a wandering spirit, suffering immensely.""Sigh," Kuang Tianyou sighed, "So this is how it ends!"

"It's not over yet. That old fellow Si Xi is really ruthless. First, he paid money to silence Li Mingcheng's wife, and then he gave a red envelope to the police investigating the case at the time, asking them not to make the result public, and claimed it was a suicide. After that—" Looking into Kuang Tianyou's sharp eyes, Aken continued, "Boss, don't look at me like that. I admit I accepted the red envelope, but I really didn't do anything else wrong. Honestly, if you hadn't come to investigate this personally, I would absolutely never have said anything."

"I know. I found it strange from the start. Why would it take only 15 minutes to investigate a file? And when it came to Si Xi Liqi, you seemed nervous and secretive; all this made me suspicious. But still, I really appreciate your trust in me!"

"Boss, don't say that. What kind of friendship do we have!"

"By the way, what happened later? You didn't seem to finish earlier."

"I'm not very sure about what happened later, I only heard that after the old Si Xi took his daughter's body back, he immediately cremated it."

"Where were the ashes buried?"

"Boss, how would I know? That's someone else's private matter. Besides, judging by how the old Si Xi operates, it's hard to say."

Kuang Tianyou understood Aken's meaning and felt a bit worried. "No ashes, how can there be a proper blessing? I hope that old Si Xi isn't so heartless; after all, she is his daughter!" After thinking, Kuang Tianyou asked, "What about the man?"

"Li Mingcheng? Dead. I heard that one night he suddenly went mad and hit his own head against the wall until he died. Definitely a vengeful spirit!"

"Alright, thanks a lot, Aken."

"Boss, can you tell me why you investigated this matter?"

"This—"

"I mean nothing else. Boss, you always handle things steadily, and all of us old subordinates know that. I just want to remind you: Si Xi Fenqi is not someone to be trifled with. You must be careful!"

"Don't worry," Kuang Tianyou patted Aken heavily on the shoulder. He knew that Aken had misunderstood the purpose of his investigation. "I have no intention of having any conflict with Si Xi Fenqi!"

"Hearing you say that reassures me. Do your best; all your old subordinates will support you!"Returning to his own office, Kuang Tianyou kept worrying about what to do—he did not expect that a vengeful ghost would lead to such a truth, which seemed to go beyond his wife's simple intention of wanting to perform a ritual for it. "Daddy, what are you thinking about? Are you thinking about mommy again?" His thoughts were interrupted by a pleasant voice. No doubt, it was Ma Tianling.

"Little ghost, when did you get here?" Kuang Tianyou asked.

"You only think about mom, so you naturally don't care about me. You didn't even pay attention when I called you." Ma Tianling pouted.

"Really? Just now, your dad was thinking about a troublesome matter and didn't expect to neglect our little princess!" He laughed. "Daddy admits his fault. Ah, but how could you think of your old dad as a big pervert?"

"Of course you are! If mom hadn't been watching you closely, you'd have already run off with Aunt Wang a long time ago. Hmm, thinking about a stepmother. People often say stepmothers are fierce, ah! So scary, I wouldn't want one!"

"What Aunt Wang, what stepmother?" Kuang Tianyou asked in surprise.

"It's just your dad's junior sister!"

"Ah," Kuang Tianyou almost fell off his chair. This little ghost was becoming increasingly outrageous, joking even about him. Can you say such things? This could trigger an internationally sensitive incident. Really, talk about something inappropriate to mention. "Tianling, you're still too young to understand these things, so don't speak recklessly!"

"Calling me young, hmph, I've grown up long ago. I am a woman who can hold up half the sky!" Ma Tianling solemnly 'announced'.

"You're just a girl now, not a woman yet," Kuang Tianyou said with a mischievous smile.

"What's the difference between a girl and a woman?" Ma Tianling asked in confusion.

"Once you marry, you truly become a woman!" Kuang Tianyou said.

In an instant, Ma Tianling's face turned red. "Oh dear, Daddy, you're so bad! Always joking at my expense. I won't talk to you anymore."

"Tianling—" Kuang Tianyou was about to delve deeper into the topic when he was interrupted.

"Daddy, mommy said you were looking for me, is there something you need?"

"This child, when it comes to marriage talks, either evades or changes the subject. Seems the child has a very proud sense of judgment and will not easily open her heart before meeting her prince charming. Sigh, as girls grow up, they are not theirs to command." Kuang Tianyou thought to himself."Little rascal, of course, it's your old job, to help a restless spirit move on."
"It's a small matter!"
"Little rascal, it's not that simple. There are a lot of complications involved here. To be on the safe side, what we do must not be known by anyone except you and me," Kuang Tianyou said heavily.
"Even Daddy and I, and Mommy must keep it a secret? Sounds like this is quite important and exciting! I like it!" Ma Tianling said after thinking for a moment. "Don't worry, Daddy."
"This is for you." Kuang Tianyou handed over a mirror, "The restless spirit is inside."
"We're going to exorcise it now? I didn't bring any ritual tools!"
"No need, I have a few things to ask her first." Saying that, Kuang Tianyou closed the doors and windows, "Set up the separated world."
Ma Tianling took out a paper talisman from her handbag, twirled it twice, and the talisman caught fire. After reciting the incantation, she tossed it into the air, and a dead silence fell around Ma Tianling and Kuang Tianyou, leaving everything emptily still.
"Release it!" Kuang Tianyou commanded.
Ma Tianling tossed the mirror into the air. The mirror automatically opened, and a surge of restless energy burst out. "Ah!" A mournful voice came from the spirit, which manifested a pair of sharp claws, reaching toward Kuang Tianyou and Ma Tianling. Kuang Tianyou stretched out his right hand, and a transparent wall of light appeared in front, quickly covering the spirit. Soon, the spirit was sealed within a sphere of light.
"Ah! Ah! Ah!" The spirit struggled frantically.
"Miss Si Xi Liqi!" Kuang Tianyou's voice echoed endlessly in the empty world.
"Si Xi Liqi? It's really her! My youth idol."
The frenzied spirit suddenly stiffened as if struck by electricity. After a long moment, the spirit said, "Who are you? I thought the world had long forgotten me, yet someone still knows my name! And it's a so-called 'Six Roots Pure' Taoist. Hahaha." The voice was full of desolation. She clearly regarded Kuang Tianyou as a type of ghost-exorcising master.

(End of Chapter)