Beginning with the Ubume Bird
Chapter 622 - Chapter 622 Chapter 8 The Murder Case

Chapter 622: Chapter 8: The Murder Case Chapter 622: Chapter 8: The Murder Case “`

Thud, thud~

Li Yan knocked on the counter, his eyes scanning among the dazzling array of cigarettes: “Pack of cigarettes.”

The grocer, wearing toad glasses, reluctantly shifted his gaze away from the TV.

“This one.”

Li Yan pointed, and the grocer deftly pulled out a packet of red and white cigarettes from behind the counter to hand to Li Yan, took the change, and then sat back down on the sofa, engrossed in watching the beauty pageant contestants on TV flitting around in various swimsuits.

He completely failed to notice the customer who’d just bought cigarettes disappearing as soon as he stepped out the door.

——————————–

The trip there and back took Li Yan about ten minutes, a bit faster than he’d expected. After buying the cigarettes, he took the opportunity to tidy up his appearance using the rearview mirror of someone else’s car, making sure there were no bloodstains on his clothes before entering the villa under the gaze of the servants.

No sooner had he entered than he heard Judy’s laughter; she seemed to be having a great time talking to Cha.

The sound of Li Yan’s footsteps also caught the attention of the people dining at the table.

“You’re back.”

“I’m back.”

Judy gave a cheerful smile, her earrings shimmering brightly: “Pig lung with lily and almond soup, very nourishing. I’ll get you a bowl.”

“Sure.”

Judy got up and headed to the kitchen.

Li Yan looked around and did not see Xiu.

“Where’s Xiu?”

Li coldly replied, “She usually goes to bed early. After dinner, Judy told her to wash up and rest.”

That’s when Li Yan sat down.

Li kept a tight watch on him, and suddenly asked out of the blue, “Where were you just now?”

“Didn’t I say I was going out to buy cigarettes?” Li Yan responded casually. He raised his voice to Judy in the kitchen, “Judy, you didn’t take off the Copper Coin I gave you, did you?”

Judy poked her head out, took out the red Copper Coin from around her neck, and dangled it in front of Li Yan.

“I tucked it inside. If you don’t like it, I can take it out.”

“No need, since I gave it to you, you can wear it however you like, but once it’s on, don’t take it off, it’s bad luck. Water won’t hurt it either.”

The red Copper Coin Li Yan gave to Judy before leaving was a Victory-Defying Coin from the South Seas, capable of warding off witchcraft and neutralizing black magic. Li Yan himself never needed it, and this time, he simply gave it to Judy for protection.

“Here’s your soup.”

Judy walked out gracefully.

“Thank you.”

“By the way, while you were away, I spoke with Mr. Cha. I’m throwing a party tomorrow. You and Mr. Cha should come, and I’ll introduce some of my uncles and aunts to you. They might be interested in the upcoming charity auction.”

“Got it, thanks for helping out.”

“No problem, it’s the least I can do.”

Xiaodao stroked his burgeoning beard, his eyes gazing at the ceiling, feigning ignorance of their clasped hands.

Li Yan took a sip and, as if he remembered something, put down the bowl and asked, “Judy, have you ever heard the name Chen Zhengcong?”

Judy frowned, “Why the sudden question? He’s the general manager of Huamao Real Estate. However, he was recently caught embezzling company funds and was also involved in a rape scandal. The shareholders are getting ready to file formal charges against him.”

“Oh.”

Li Yan read between the lines, understanding there was more to the story, but since Judy didn’t want to talk about it, he saw no reason to pry, content that the reason behind Chen Zhengcong’s hostility towards Judy had been found; the rest wasn’t important.

Li Yan then remembered another person in the cold storage and casually inquired.

“And the name Qian Wuyuan, does that ring a bell?”

He had discovered these two names in the cold storage using A Fleeting Glimpse and noted their proficiency in Feng Shui Skill — Chen Zhengcong at 68%, and Qian Wuyuan’s proficiency soaring to 97%, clearly a formidable force. The specifics were unclear.

Judy looked puzzled, “Qian Wuyuan? Never heard of him.”

“Oh, no big deal, I just saw something in a tabloid about a Feng Shui master, and I was curious.”

Judy chuckled, “What, you’re interested in Feng Shui now?”

“It’s alright.”

“By the way, where are you sleeping tonight?”

“I’ve got something on tonight. The auction items are arriving at the port at ten, and Dao and I are responsible for the handover.”

Xiaodao raised an eyebrow without a word, showing no reaction.

“Really?”

Judy looked visibly disappointed.

“I’ll come see you again tomorrow.”

“`

“`

——————————–

“The auction item won’t arrive at the port until tomorrow afternoon, why did you lie to them?”

After leaving Judy’s villa, Xiaodao asked.

Li Yan shook his head without answering.

…

“Judy, are you asleep?” Li knocked on the door: “I want to talk to you, about Li Yan.”

“If you have something to say, come in and talk.”

Judy had just finished taking a bath, wrapped in a red towel, with a face mask on.

Li walked in, holding a black videotape in her hand: “Take a look at these tapes. I just fetched them from the surveillance at the entrance.”

Before Judy could speak, Li inserted the videotape into the player on her own.

“Look.”

Judy turned her head, and on the screen, Li Yan was standing in the yard, looking down blankly in a daze.

Judy couldn’t help but snort with laughter: “What’s he doing, looking so silly.”

Li pursed her lips, rewinding the tape frame by frame, until at a certain still frame, a blurry white shadow appeared on Li Yan’s leg.

…

“How do you plan to handle Judy? What you’re pulling off at this moment at the Yan Zhao Club, it’s not very respectable.”

Xiaodao eventually couldn’t hold back and said such to Li Yan.

“You, you think too highly of me.”

“What do you mean?”

Li Yan began: “Before I came here, I had already looked up information about natural fruit decay and recycling at Mother Crown. Unlike Sifan, who violently strips away almost all of the fruit’s matter, the Yan Zhao Club only surgically strikes at ripe and rotting fruit. This indeed causes some strange phenomena that ordinary people can’t understand and might even lead to massive death among certain life forms, but it generally doesn’t extend too far. As for the fruit decaying completely, the boundary collapsing and shrinking, and the total extinction of all life, that would take at least thousands, if not tens of thousands of years. Even if decay is accelerated, it’s measured in centuries, and that’s no longer a concern of mine.”

“Isn’t that good, though? At least for Judy, it’s a good thing.”

“Therefore, I have no reason to forcibly take Judy away.”

“Forcibly?”

“Judy and I indeed have a certain bond, but it’s impossible for me to stay in Hong Kong permanently, nor would she abandon her Huamao Real Estate, her social circle, her relatives and friends, just for a man she likes. That’s not realistic nor logical. If I asked her for such a sacrifice, I would be far too conceited.”

Xiaodao stared into Li Yan’s eyes for a while.

“What if she really is that foolish?”

Li Yan was unusually silent for a moment before he sighed deeply: “I would refuse.”

…

“Could the machine be broken?”

Judy tilted her head– the white shadow on the screen was too blurry to make out its shape.

“It’s not over yet.”

Li switched to another tape: “This is near the west window balcony. Look, the white shadow appeared again.”

She pointed at the frozen frame.

This time it was a bit clearer; no matter how you looked at it, it resembled a white baby crawling on the window. Soon after, Li Yan also appeared in the frame, as if he was chasing after the white shadow.

Judy crossed her legs: “This still doesn’t prove anything, right? I’ll just ask him tomorrow.”

“Judy, the first time you got kidnapped was because of him. Yes, he saved you, but that’s when you should have realized that something was off with this man. I’ve been by your side for many years, treating you like a real sister. I wouldn’t harm you, but how long has it been since you last saw him? At Dalong Bay, I watched helplessly as a red whale the size of a cruise ship leaped over your heads, and that was a shallow area. Besides, I searched the net and never heard of any red whale, let alone those auroras or fiery clouds. These things will surely make the news tomorrow, but I bet even with photos no one will believe them.”

“Actually, you don’t need to be so nervous. If he wanted to harm me, he would’ve done it long ago, right? If he’s after my money, I’ll give it to him. Why would he have a reason to harm me?”

“Judy, I work as a bodyguard, I can tell a bloodthirsty person at a glance. Believe it or not, he says he’s going to buy cigarettes, but he goes to kill people. He has the smell of blood on him, he can’t fool me.”

“He only went out for ten minutes, sister. And he did buy the cigarettes.”

Li stood up: “Judy, I said so much earlier, didn’t you understand any of it? Just because ordinary people can’t do it doesn’t mean he can’t. I’ll just say it, I suspect he’s raising a ghost.”

“Have you been watching too many Jiahe movies? Besides, A Chinese Ghost Story is pretty good.”

“You.”

Li was left speechless with frustration.

The two were at an impasse when the phone by the bed suddenly rang.

“Hold on a moment.” Judy picked up the call: “Hello.”

“Judy, something happened, Chen Zhengcong is dead.”

Judy silently peeled off the face mask, her eyes full of unexplainable expressions: “How did he die?”

“An old man reported it, in the cold storage at Hanlin Cold Chain on Pugang Road. When police arrived at the scene, they found many frozen bodies, and Chen Zhengcong, dead in a horrible state, his head was missing, identified only through his documents. The old man who reported it has been arrested, reporters are everywhere. Hello, Judy, are you listening? Judy?”

“`