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墨書 Inktalez
Officer Luo bent down to search for the dialing records on the desktop computer after listening. He asked the receptionist, "Is it this recent number?"
The receptionist nodded. Officer Luo noted down the number and told her not to let Xiao Zhou know before leaving the company again.
Once outside the elevator, Officer Luo took out his phone and said, "138xxxxxxxxx, help me check whose number this is. Call me immediately once you find out."
"Officer Luo, do you have other duties to attend to?" I asked.
Officer Luo nodded and replied, "The city has been cracking down on drugs recently, and our team simply can't spare anyone." He continued walking as he spoke.
"What about this matter?" I inquired.
"Let's wait for news from that side. I have to leave right now. I'll call you with any updates," he said before opening the car door and getting in.
"Alright, Officer Luo. If you need my help with anything, just let me know," I offered politely. Beyond this current issue, there wasn't much else I could assist with.
Officer Luo started the car and slowly drove away. Just as he was about to speak, his phone rang. He pulled over to answer it and only said a couple of sentences: "Are you sure? No need." Then he hung up.
I was about to turn and leave when Officer Luo called out to me, "Xiao Liu, that number isn't registered under a real name, so we can't find out who it belongs to. How about this: you head back for now, and I'll see if I can spare someone to follow him and find out who he's meeting."
I sighed and said, "I'll just go handle it myself."
"Haha, I was waiting for you to say that. I'm off now. Call me with any developments," Officer Luo said before stepping on the gas and leaving.
I backed my car up to their company entrance, parking in a spot across the street that was quite expensive—fifteen dollars an hour. By the time I parked until after work in the afternoon, I had spent over fifty dollars without even getting a receipt.
As I was leaving work, I saw Xiao Zhou come out of the building and walk to a nearby bus stop. Fortunately, traffic was light at that moment. I leisurely followed the bus that Xiao Zhou boarded, trailing him for nearly ten stops before finally seeing him get off.
Next week, after getting off the car, I didn't walk far but went straight into a nearby restaurant. It seemed that they were meeting there.
I quickly found a parking spot and walked into the restaurant as well.
After searching cautiously for a while, I finally spotted Xiao Zhou sitting in a corner with another person, toasting and drinking. Their conversation seemed somewhat serious. However, the other person had their back to me, so I couldn't see their face clearly.
I deliberately chose a seat where I could see that person better. Upon closer inspection, I realized that this was the familiar face I had seen downstairs at Xiao Zhou's place. I was sure I had encountered this person recently, but I just couldn't recall who they were.
I took out my phone and secretly snapped a photo of that person, sending it to Officer Hu. After a short while, Officer Hu replied with a message: "Why is it him?"
I quickly texted back, "Who is this? I feel like I know him, but I just can't remember who he is."
"Isn't this the guy with the surname Sun?"
As Officer Luo mentioned this, it suddenly clicked in my mind who this guy was.
At Shao Xiaohuai's wake, he had stood in front of Shao Xiaohuai's coffin with another girl, trying to prevent Officer Luo and me from checking on Shao Xiaohuai's corpse. He mostly spoke to Officer Luo and had his back turned to me most of the time, which was why I hadn't recognized him.
Isn't he that lawyer named Sun? Shao Xiaohuai's boyfriend? Back then at the wake, I felt quite sorry for him. But now seeing him again, why do I suddenly feel that this Sun Lawyer is quite suspicious?
Thinking about it, his expression was heavy too, but it lacked the previous sadness.
Could it be that Xiao Zhou went to Wang Kun's house to tear down the talisman under the instruction of that Sun Lawyer? If that's the case, then this Sun Lawyer is terrifying. How would he know that Wang Kun had trapped his father's soul at home? If he did orchestrate this, his goal would be to kill Shao Xiaohuai. Yet he had acted so sorrowful at the wake.
With these thoughts racing through my mind, I stood up and walked out of the restaurant. I couldn't confirm anything; even if it turned out he was behind it all, I had no evidence. Rather than risk being discovered here, it would be better not to stir up trouble and instead discuss with Officer Luo what to do next. However, this matter had already deviated from Officer Luo's initial investigation focus and had nothing to do with Wang Kun's drug trafficking organization anymore—unless this Sun Lawyer was also involved in drug dealings.
I sent a text message to Officer Luo, informing him that I could no longer continue with the case. It wasn't until after eleven o'clock at night that Officer Luo called me.
"Xiao Liu, I've thought about it for a long time, and this case might have been done by someone with the surname Sun," he stated directly.
I responded with a hum, "I think so too, but do you have any evidence to prove it?"
Without hesitation, Officer Luo replied, "Well, this case is probably a headless wrongful conviction. Wang Kun has become a lunatic; he can't identify Sun Lawyer. Even if he weren't insane, his identification wouldn't hold any legal weight."
"I just don't understand why this Sun Lawyer would know about such a matter and also know that Wang Kun was going to meet Shao Xiaohuai. Then he found Xiao Zhou to sabotage the soul-locking formation that Wang Kun set up. This is quite unbelievable," I expressed my confusion about the situation.
Logically speaking, Wang Kun wouldn't casually share such information, and it seemed that Sun Lawyer was only familiar with Xiao Zhou, who in turn was close to Wang Kun. Otherwise, Sun Lawyer wouldn't have asked Xiao Zhou to handle this matter; there would be no need to leave a handle in someone else's hands. I shared this thought with Officer Luo.
Officer Luo immediately said, "There's nothing difficult to explain here. The one with the surname Sun doesn't want to fall under our investigation's radar, so he pushed Xiao Zhou out. Even if Xiao Zhou gets caught, what can we do? Can we use Old Wang's situation against him?"
I hummed again and said somewhat stubbornly, "Officer Luo, are you saying that this person with the surname Sun will get away with it?"
"I'll investigate him and see if he has any stains on his record. If he does, I'll focus on prosecuting him. People like him are truly heartless," Officer Luo said indignantly.
I nodded and realized that Shao Xiaohuai's Seven Days After Death had not yet passed. I quickly said, "Officer Luo, check his background and see if there's anything we can charge him with. If not, leave it to me. I might have a way to punish him."
"Alright then, get some rest. I'll call you tomorrow," Officer Luo said before hanging up, as if he had other matters to attend to.
After calculating the time carefully, I realized there were still two days left until Shao Xiaohuai's Seven Days After Death. If Officer Luo didn't have any news within those two days, I would intervene on the day of Seven Days After Death.
The next evening, Officer Luo called me again to update me on Sun Lawyer's situation. This Sun Lawyer was quite a talent; not only was he a lawyer but also a psychologist. However, his family background wasn't great; he had always been dependent on others and worked at Shao Xiaohuai's father's law firm. His relationship with Shao Xiaohuai was arranged by her father, but unfortunately, Shao Xiaohuai wasn't the type of person who could settle down for a relationship.
I hurriedly asked Officer Luo if he had found anything illegal related to the surname Sun.
Officer Luo sighed in disappointment, "Well, this matter doesn't have much to do with my case. I initially thought this person with the surname Sun was part of Wang Kun's gang, but now it seems this case should come to an end. It's a pity that this scumbag won't be dealt with."
I responded, "Then forget it. Tomorrow is Shao Xiaohuai's Seven Days After Death. Are you interested in watching my performance?"
"Of course! Haha, it just so happens that I don't have much going on tomorrow night. Is it in the evening?" Officer Luo seemed quite excited.
I said, "Great, I was waiting for you to say that. If you want to see the show, you need to help out a bit. You should be familiar with Shao Xiaohuai's father, right? Ask him to hold a Send Soul ritual for Shao Xiaohuai tomorrow night at his home, at eleven o'clock. Just tell him you found a very powerful ritual to help his daughter move on. Make sure to invite Sun Lawyer as well. Is that too difficult?"
Officer Luo thought for a moment and replied, "Sure, no problem. Leave it to me. It's just that they might associate my identity as a police officer with superstition. But that's not an issue; I'll call you tomorrow."
...
The next day, Officer Luo called and said, "It's all set! I did what you said and found a master—who is you, by the way. Just don't stand me up!"
"Don't worry, I've got it covered," I chuckled and hung up the phone. Honestly, there wasn't much necessity in doing this; it was more about my own acceptance. After putting in so much effort for this matter, I wanted it to have a proper conclusion. If it just ended like this, I felt it would be unfair to the deceased—both Shao Xiaohuai and Old Wang.
That evening, I arrived promptly at the Shao Family's residence. According to tradition, tonight Shao Xiaohuai would return home to sever her last attachments and peacefully complete her time in the afterlife. Perhaps Shao Xiaohuai herself didn't even know her death was caused by Sun Lawyer.
I came with Officer Luo, and there were only four people in the house—Shao Xiaohuai's parents, Sun Lawyer, and a girl standing beside him.
As Officer Luo led me inside, they all looked at me with confusion. Shao Xiaohuai's mother said to Officer Luo, "Why is this young man here? Didn't you say you found us a master? We agreed to this ritual because we trust you; isn't he from your Forensic Department?"
I smiled and replied, "Uncle and Auntie, don't let my youth fool you; I truly work in this field. Today is your daughter Shao Xiaohuai's Seven Days After Death ceremony. I have a way for you to see her again, but the time will be short."
They were all somewhat stunned by my bold and direct statement. The first to react was Shao Xiaohuai's Father, who seemed to believe me. He said, "Then I’ll trouble you, Little Master."
I glanced at the spirit tablet of Shao Xiaohuai in the corner of the living room and replied, "Not a trouble at all, just part of my duties. You all sit on the sofa first; he should be arriving soon."
They slowly gathered on the sofa. I took out the compass and placed it on the table to examine it closely. There was no reaction, which indicated that Shao Xiaohuai had not yet arrived.
Calmly, I set up a small Soul Calling Array in front of Shao Xiaohuai's spirit tablet, preparing to directly call upon his spirit when he arrived, using Shao Xiaohuai's soul to reveal Sun Lawyer's true form.
After waiting silently for about half an hour, everyone was starting to get a bit impatient. Just then, the compass finally reacted as expected. I let out a sigh of relief and quickly began the incantation for Call of Souls, summoning Shao Xiaohuai's spirit.
Shao Xiaohuai appeared dressed just as he had been in the coffin, his face as pale as his dress, looking somewhat eerie. However, to me, this was already a sign of a well-adjusted Spirit God.
My lack of hesitation did not mean they wouldn’t be scared. Aside from Officer Luo, everyone else instinctively recoiled into the corner and only after a moment did they realize what was happening, fearfully gazing at Shao Xiaohuai's soul.
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