Chapter 42: Distress Message

As she spoke those words, Daiyu’s expression dimmed like she was finally letting out a breath she’d held inside for too long. A bitter smile flickered across her face. In that moment, she seemed beautiful to me, stirring a sudden urge to protect her. People are never more beautiful than when they’re completely real.

But then, in the next instant: “I’ve told you everything you wanted to know. Now, little guy, how about staying with me tonight?”

Suddenly I remembered—Zhao Mingkun had asked me that exact question once too. Goosebumps ran up my arms and I quickly refused. “No thanks, I have dinner plans. Let’s grab coffee sometime instead, alright? Bye!”

“Queen, did Wei Changfeng and the others ever come to Jiazi County five years ago? Do you know anything about that?” I ran my fingers through my hair, thinking hard about Daiyu’s story.

By normal logic, Chumei should have wanted to kill those people. But why target only those involved in ghost marriages? They weren’t her biggest enemies. Could someone actually dislike the idea of ghost marriages enough to use Chumei’s name as cover for murder?

Unfortunately, all six of them wore masks back then. Daiyu never saw any of their faces. If she had, she might have been able to describe them and we could compare with Wei Two and his group.

So who out there opposes ghost marriages?

The most important part of a ghost marriage is the corpse—maybe someone didn’t want others to disturb the dead.

Zhao Mingkun thought for a moment before speaking. “Wei Changfeng and his guys did come here, but I honestly don’t know if they targeted Jiazi County locals. If someone was after them, they’d have said something by now.”

“Before we dig deeper, we should figure out how many ghost marriage cases there have actually been in the past five years here.” Zhao Mingkun tapped a finger thoughtfully against her lips.

“How do we check that?” I asked, puzzled.

Zhao Mingkun waved it off. “Leave this part to me.”

That afternoon, Zhao Mingkun finally emerged from her room with something big and paper-like in her hands. As I looked closer, I realized it was a map she had sketched herself, marking every homicide in Jiazi County over the past five years.

She’d already filtered them, and every case she marked had two words written after it—Ghost Marriage.

One by one, Zhao Mingkun was jotting down details as I stood silently by. I couldn’t figure out how she even got this information. These documents shouldn’t be so easily available. Was someone helping her behind the scenes?

She was getting more and more mysterious, almost like she could do anything. And what was driving her so hard—did she have another motive?

“Got it!” Zhao Mingkun suddenly called out.

Guan Zengbin and I leaned in to see the cases Zhao Mingkun had pulled together.

The cases spanned five years, starting with Chumei’s incident.

Four years ago, the Luo family held a ghost marriage. The very next day, both husband and wife were found dead at home from gas poisoning, with evidence someone had broken in. They found a shoe print, and it matched the shoes worn by the female corpse during the ghost marriage.

That same year, Old Zhang held a ghost marriage for his son. That night, he drowned in a shallow creek just outside Jiazi County. The water was barely ankle-deep, yet Old Zhang died there—while wearing a qipao, the dress his son’s ghost bride wore in the ritual.

Three years ago, Wang Lao’er arranged a ghost marriage for his deceased father. A few days later he was found dead inside his family’s pickling vat, with a headscarf covering it—the same one used to cover the dead woman’s head.

Two years ago, Old Wu held a ghost marriage for his younger brother. A few days later, people found his brother’s bones scattered along the street—Old Wu was nowhere to be found. Later they found Old Wu sealed alive inside a coffin. The female corpse vanished without a trace.

After that, no villager dared attempt another ghost marriage.

The last case was just the night before yesterday, at Old Zheng’s house.

This time, San died in the coffin. The female corpse disappeared again. But her body showed up last night in the courtyard where we were staying—for reasons no one knew.

Those are all the cases—from Chumei’s original ghost marriage five years ago, right through to today.

“Old Zheng?” Guan Zengbin spoke up. “Look at the pattern—everyone who tried to arrange a ghost marriage ended up dead under mysterious circumstances. Is Old Zheng next?”

He trailed off, but we all knew what he meant.

“There shouldn’t be any danger for Old Zheng right now,” Zhao Mingkun reassured us. “If something happens to him, it’ll be tonight at the earliest. There’s still time before evening, so we should be safe for now.”

I nodded, and quietly asked, “Queen, it seems like you and…”

Before I could finish, Zhao Mingkun looked up, fixing me with an icy stare. “I’ve said it before—smart people know when to stay quiet. The more you know, the more dangerous it gets. Don’t you understand?”

Then her tone softened. “I have a younger brother. By now he should be about your age, I think. I don’t know if you…”

She sighed but dropped the subject. “Never mind, we’ll talk about this another time. For now—what do you think about the case?”

I could tell there was something Zhao Mingkun wanted to say to me. Otherwise she wouldn’t have invited me to her room so quickly after we met. Maybe as I’m trying to test her, she’s also probing me—trying to see if I have secrets she could use? Except, what secrets could I possibly have?

For now, I put those thoughts aside. The case came first.

“Over five years, counting this recent one, there have been five ghost marriage cases in total. All of which share a common trait—did you notice?”

“They’re all for men,” Zhao Mingkun answered immediately. “And every time it’s over, the female corpse vanishes. That means someone is stealing the bodies. The killer always targets the organizer soon after, as if to declare their dominance.”

I snapped my fingers. Her answer matched exactly what I was thinking. Why steal only the female corpses? Why kill the people who arranged the ceremonies? It’s all because someone doesn’t want these bodies falling into other hands.

For most people, a corpse is something to avoid. But to certain people, it could be the most valuable thing in the world.

“Were there any cases in the last five years of ghost marriages held for dead daughters?” I asked, meeting Zhao Mingkun’s eyes.

“There was one,” she answered flatly.

I shut my eyes, tugging at my hair as I thought. If that’s the case then Lao Liu looks like the most suspicious suspect.

“Find out where Lao Liu is really from.” I said. “Right now, he’s our prime suspect.”

Zhao Mingkun grunted an acknowledgment.

Right then my phone buzzed. To my shock, I’d received a text message from Wei Changfeng. I didn’t remember ever giving him my number—so why would he have it? Maybe when he confiscated my phone earlier, he secretly added his own contact info?

That would mean back then, Wei Changfeng wasn’t really suspicious of me; maybe he was wary of the other guys around him instead? But everyone had solid alibis. Why was he being so careful?

Could it be because of some hidden event from years ago—something he doesn’t dare talk about?

My head spun with all kinds of wild, disjointed ideas.

Quickly, I pulled up his text:

“Brother Wu, things are urgent. We’re about to head to a tomb on the mountain west of our previous place. Just follow the road west from the house where we stayed—you’ll see a cave. Chumei has come back and is working with one of our group. Right now, I can’t trust anyone but you—the new guy who knows nothing. I’m worried something will happen to me in the tomb. Please, come save me. My life is in your hands.”

My expression grew serious. Guan Zengbin and Zhao Mingkun both asked what happened.

I read the message aloud and told them it was from Wei Changfeng.

Judging from his words, they were about to enter the tomb. Once inside, there’d be no signal. His tone sounded panicked; they were almost there. Maybe he sent the text in a rush to avoid being found out, so some words came out wrong.

“Chumei” in the message probably meant “Chumei.”

But how could a person who died five years ago be collaborating with these six? Just reading it sent chills down my spine.

Was this some kind of indirect confession? What were they really after in that tomb—could this spiral even further out of control?

So many questions crowded my mind.

“Are we going or not?” Guan Zengbin asked, glancing at me.

I said, “I really don’t know what’s happening inside. It could get dangerous, so you and Zhao Mingkun should stay here. I’ll take Wang Ergou to check it out.”

“I’m coming with you,” Zhao Mingkun interrupted before I could finish.

I hesitated, putting on a troubled face, though inside I was glad. I wanted her to come. If she left, Guan Zengbin could contact Team Leader Shao and the others.

“I’m a lot handier in a fight than you,” Zhao Mingkun added with a grin, holding out her fist. “Let’s go see what kind of trouble Wei Changfeng and his crew are stirring up.”