Chapter 39: Haunted by a Female Ghost

"The meat inside the box belongs to me; that's why I can appear here."

Zhang Xiaofan felt a jolt of regret in his heart. He cursed his own carelessness—if only he had known how sinister this piece of meat was, he would never have brought the box out.

"You people are truly despicable, daring to come to my territory to deal with me. This time, I'll kill you first, then deal with the others one by one. Hehehe..."

Seeing the female ghost open her blood-red mouth wide, Zhang Xiaofan hurriedly cried out, "Wait! Who killed you? If I can, I can help you."

At this point, Zhang Xiaofan was completely helpless. The ghost's strength was overwhelming, rendering him immobile. His only hope was to seize a slim chance at survival by trying to talk to the ghost.

The female ghost paused, staring blankly at Zhang Xiaofan. Suddenly, she burst into a harsh, grating laugh.

Seizing the opportunity, Zhang Xiaofan said, "In the hotel, I overheard your conversation with a man before you died. I know you were murdered, and that's why your resentment is so great. If I'm not mistaken, it was that man who killed you, wasn't it?"

A wave of black mist suddenly erupted from the female ghost. She glared at Zhang Xiaofan with a twisted, ferocious expression and shouted, "I want to kill him! I want to kill him!"

"Yes, he killed you. You want to kill him. I can help you." In order to keep the ghost from attacking him, Zhang Xiaofan could only say this.

The menace around the female ghost gradually subsided. She gave a grim, distorted smile, then sat down on the bed opposite, next to Jiang Jiewei. "If you help me find him," she said, "I will help you capture all the ghosts in the hotel, and I will surrender myself to let you finish your task. How about it?"

"You know we're on a mission?" Zhang Xiaofan asked in surprise.

The female ghost sneered, "Of course. I heard you talking about it in there."

So that was it, Zhang Xiaofan thought. He had worried that Bao Lei had spoken to them.

"Fine," he said. "I can help you find the man who killed you. But I expect you to keep your promise."

"Naturally!"

"Then tell me your story."

The female ghost began her tale. Her name was Liu Yu. She used to live nearby. At work, she met a wealthy man named Jiang Jianhao. Later, Jiang Jianhao got her pregnant. But as it turned out, he was only playing with her. Then Jiang Jianhao met a young singer and dumped Liu Yu. She threatened to expose everything and arranged to meet him at the hotel to talk things out. To keep his secret, Jiang Jianhao strangled Liu Yu. He then staged the scene to make it look like a suicide by hanging, hoping to escape justice.

Having heard all this, Zhang Xiaofan burned with indignation—how pitiful! Liu Yu had been pregnant, after all. Even wild beasts don't harm their own offspring, yet Jiang Jianhao, just to seduce a pop singer, had done such a thing.

He immediately decided that, whether it was to complete his own mission or to help Liu Yu, he would help her.

He said, "Liu Yu, don't worry, I'll help you find that man. But do you know where he lives?"

Liu Yu shook her head.

Now things were awkward. All he had was a name; in this vast sea of people, where could he start?

But Liu Yu said, "I may not know where he lives, but I know who he's with." She fixed Zhang Xiaofan with a piercing gaze. "Search for the singer, Shen Daiying."

Zhang Xiaofan had indeed heard of this name. Shen Daiying had become famous in the past year or so—a versatile entertainer, strikingly beautiful, sexy, and seductive.

When he pulled up her pictures, Zhang Xiaofan noticed the black mist swirling around Liu Yu, clearly enraged.

He scanned the images on his phone. Among them, several showed Shen Daiying with a man, described as her manager and boyfriend.

"That's him—Jiang Jianhao!" Liu Yu spat out the name syllable by syllable.

"Jiang Jianhao left you for Shen Daiying?" Zhang Xiaofan asked.

"That's right. It was for that woman. As long as you find her, you’ll find Jiang Jianhao. All you need to do is locate him; I'll take care of the rest," Liu Yu answered with a chilling tone.

Zhang Xiaofan took a deep breath. "That shouldn't be a problem. The issue is, she's a celebrity, her whereabouts aren't fixed. It might be difficult to track her down."

"That's not my concern," the ghost said, her tongue lolling.

Zhang Xiaofan was used to such sights and wasn't particularly frightened. He said, "Could you put your tongue away first?"

The female ghost complied. "All of this is Jiang Jianhao's fault. You must find him."

"I know," Zhang Xiaofan replied impatiently. He only had one month for this mission. In that time, not only did he need to find Jiang Jianhao, but he also had to capture three level-three malignant ghosts—a daunting task.

Thinking it over, he realized he knew few influential people. The only one with major connections was Chen Jing.

He could only call Chen Jing. "Hello?"

Chen Jing answered, her tone lazy. "Handsome, calling me this late—are you missing me? If you send me a video, I'll sleep with you every night."

It had to be said, though Chen Jing had been passed around by many, she was undeniably beautiful. Even her voice was alluring, and Zhang Xiaofan felt an immediate reaction.

Beside him, Liu Yu cursed coldly under her breath.

Feigning indifference, Zhang Xiaofan said, "Cut it out. Even if you threw yourself at me, I’d pass you up."

"You’re just sour grapes because you can’t have me," Chen Jing retorted. "Don’t forget you used to peek at me."

"That was then, this is now. I’m not interested in you anymore," Zhang Xiaofan insisted, feigning indifference.

"Hmph. So what do you want?" Chen Jing asked irritably.

"Do you know the singer Shen Daiying?"

"What, you want her autograph? I’m not that well-connected," Chen Jing replied.

"Is this really the time for jokes? I want to know if you know anyone in her circle, or if you know where she lives."

"How could I know people like that? If I did, I wouldn’t be stuck with Song Feng," Chen Jing snapped.

"Fine, forget it," Zhang Xiaofan said with resignation.

He was about to hang up when Chen Jing added, "If you really want to find her, I might have a way. Do you know Zhou Jiajia, that A-list star?"

Zhou Jiajia had been a household name just a year ago—a superstar like Shen Daiying, also a versatile artist, but she had debuted much earlier. Not only was she even more beautiful, she had acted alongside several big-name celebrities from the start. Later, she worked with world-renowned directors, and several of her films had won major awards.

Sadly, fate is unpredictable. At the height of her fame, Zhou Jiajia suffered a car accident on her way home, which left half her face badly burned. Though she survived, her appearance, so vital in show business, was ruined. Her body was covered in scars, and she lost everything overnight. The once-invincible star fell from grace.