S.C.I Mystery Series Volume 3 Chapter 41

Ghost Murderer 09 - Magic

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As soon as Qin Ou and the others left, the electricity came back on and the entire police station went back to normal. Everyone was talking about the power outage, and the phones at the station were ringing non-stop. It is said that many people got into accidents and that there were people in distress, so rescue was being organized.

In the SCI office.

Jiang Ping clicked on the video. Zhao Zhen walked over, hit the play button, pointed at the screen, and said to Zhan Zhao and the others, “This whole video shows what is actually a magic trick, and here, there is a flaw!”

When everyone looked at the video, they saw Zhao Zhen pointing at the rear-view mirror in the center of the shot.

“The rear-view mirror?” Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang looked at each other.

“En.” Zhao Zhen smiled faintly, “I've watched it many times. This tactic is very commonly used in magic, and with this method, there is bound to be a flaw.”

“Rear-view mirror?” Zhan Zhao looked at Bai Yutang.

“The car is still in the evidence room!” Bai Chi said. Bai Yutang took Zhao Zhen and the others downstairs to check the rear-view mirror of the car.

The evidence room was on the ground floor. It was a very large room that was sealed and dedicated to keeping particularly large evidence. Earlier, the forensic department had taken the whole car apart and found no clues, but… the rear-view mirror did not seem to have been taken apart.

When they got downstairs, Zhan Zhao looked up and saw Bao Zheng up on the staircase to the second floor, walking into the elevator with a man.

Zhan Zhao raised his eyebrows slightly… the back of the person he just saw belonged to Qin Ou.

“Cat?” Bai Yutang also saw them, and looked back at Zhan Zhao.

Zhan Zhao thought about it and said, “You guys go first.”

Bai Yutang nodded and went to the evidence room with Zhao Zhen and Bai Chi to look at the car.

Zhan Zhao, on the other hand, went upstairs and looked at the elevator… only to see that it had reached the top floor.

After thinking about it, Zhan Zhao decided to take the next elevator and follow them up to the top floor.

In the evidence room, Bai Yutang and Bai Chi opened the front door for Zhao Zhen.

Zhao Zhen put on his gloves, sat on the driver's seat, and with a screwdriver, he pried off the mirror from the rear-view mirror.

With a ‘click’, the mirror was pried off. It was just a thin piece of glass, which didn’t seem to be a big issue.

Zhao Zhen touched it lightly, then raised his eyebrows at Bai Yutang and Bai Chi. Pulling down on it, he tore off the grey film behind the mirror and found that behind the mirror, there was a compartment with a set of chips and some wires inside.

“What’s this?” Bai Yutang asked.

“It should be a controllable electronic screen.” Zhao Zhen put the mirror into Bai Yutang's hand and asked with a smile, “Do you know how you can tell?”

Bai Yutang and Bai Chi looked at each other and both shook their heads.

“In the mirror, the angle of the rear-view window will not always be the same. If the driver is a good driver, he would have the habit of adjusting the rear-view mirror every time he gets into the car. ” Zhao Zhen smiled, “The bad thing about using a screen is that there will always be a gap between the screen and the mirror. We usually worry about making mistakes like this.”

“Someone tampered with the taxi?” Bai Yutang asked.

“It’s obvious.” Zhao Zhen nodded and said, “There’s no ghost, that’s for sure. The one who did this is not a single person, but a fully functional magic group. They plan the scenario, develop their own technology, and have more than one outstanding actor.”

“A group operation?” Bai Yutang felt a little surprised, “What about the whole process? Can you recreate it in detail?”

Zhao Zhen smiled and said, “If you give me a little time, my team and I can simulate it for you!”

“Seriously?” Bai Yutang was surprised.

Zhao Zhen raised an eyebrow, “I'm the Magic King, there's no way I can't even handle a ghost.”

Bai Yutang smiled, “That makes sense.” After saying that, he reached out and patted Zhao Zhen's shoulder, “Thanks for your hard work.”

Zhao Zhen coughed, “That, let me borrow Chi Chi for a few days.”

“What for?” Bai Chi overheard this and looked at Zhao Zhen.

Zhao Zhen smiled, “I want your help.”

Bai Chi thought for a moment and asked, “How can I help?”

“Chi Chi, go and give Zhao Zhen a hand.” Bai Yutang smiled, “By the way, take those books, aren't you scared to read them alone?”

Bai Chi's face reddened slightly, but he didn't say anything else, and he nodded his head. If he was with Zhao Zhen and Lisbon, then reading the books wouldn't be so scary, right?

The three of them left the evidence room with the chips and wires. Bai Yutang looked at the stairs, but Zhan Zhao was not there. He shook his head reluctantly and went upstairs with Zhao Zhen and Bai Chi.

……

On the roof of the police station.

“For me?” Qin Ou asked with a smile as he took the hot dog Bao Zheng handed him.

“I still remember that you like the hot dogs from outside the station the most.” Bao Zheng put his hands on the fence and looked at him, feeling a little relieved that he was looking well.

Qin Ou took it and unwrapped it, smiling as he did so, “It's been a long time since I've had one.”

“How have you been?” Bao Zheng asked him.

“Same as always.” Qin Ou nibbled on the hot dog.

“You came here with a purpose this time, right?” Bao Zheng asked, “For this kind of thing, you could just send one of your younger brothers, why did the captain need to come?”

Qin Ou chewed on the hot dog, “Bao Sir, I am a very responsible captain.”

“Did you tell them all the clues you found?”

“Mhmm.” Qin Ou laughed, “But then again, SCI is really amazing. It’s only been a few years, but so many cases have been solved.”

“Do you want to come over?” Bao Zheng asked, “Come to SCI?”

“Me?” Qin Ou smiled and shook his head, “I’m getting older, haven’t run in a long time, and my reflexes are slow, I’m not suitable for that anymore.”

“You’re in your thirties, you are not that old, and your expertise is still unmatched by anyone.” Bao Zheng said, “I won’t force you, but I hope you’ll think about it.”

Qin Ou smiled, ate the rest of the hot dog, and clapped his hands, “I’d better go back to my team, call me if there’s anything you need me to do.”

“Here are Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao's phone numbers.” Bao Zheng gave Qin Ou two phone numbers, “If you find anything or need anything, just call them. If there's anything you can't figure out, you can call Zhan Zhao.”

“Oh.” Qin Ou nodded, “I’ve read his book. Does he do psychological counseling? Does he charge for it?”

Bao Zheng shook his head, “You were able to take refuge with them both that day when Wu Jie was hunting you down.”

“Hahaha.” Qin Ou couldn’t help but laugh. He took the piece of paper with the phone numbers on it, said goodbye to Bao Zheng, and went downstairs.

When Qin Ou left, Bao Zheng left the roof and went inside the stairwell, asking, “Did you hear everything?”

At that time, Zhan Zhao poked his head out from behind the door to the roof and smiled at Bao Zheng.

“How’s the case coming along?” Bao Zheng asked him.

“There are clues and they are being followed up.” Zhan Zhao walked over to Bao Zheng and went downstairs with him, “Bao Sir, you know that Qin Ou?”

“I’m very familiar with him, he was no less famous in the police station than Yutang.” Bao Zheng shook his head, “Unfortunately, it’s risky to be in this line of work, the price is too heavy.”

Zhan Zhao looked at Bao Zheng and saw his face of regret, so he smiled, “Bao Sir, this Qin Ou is really good and I can see that he really cares a lot about this case. It would be a pity to miss out on such a powerful person.”

Bao Zheng looked at Zhan Zhao and asked, “What do you have in mind?”

Zhan Zhao shrugged his shoulders and smiled, “Just give me his phone number.”

Bao Zheng was puzzled, but when he saw Zhan Zhao pull out his phone, he gave him the phone number. Zhan Zhao noted it down and saved it, then smiled, “It’s good to keep as a backup.” After saying that, he smiled and walked away.

Bao Zheng was a bit puzzled. Seeing Zhan Zhao smiling strangely, he didn’t know what he was up to.

He walked downstairs with him and asked, “How is Jintang?”

“Just now, Gongsun said that he has been discharged from the hospital and is going to attend the opening ceremony of his new entertainment company later in the evening." Zhan Zhao replied.

“Tonight?” Bao Zheng frowned, “Has the security issue been resolved yet? That car accident doesn't appear to be an accident.”

“En, I personally feel that it was definitely not an accident.” Zhan Zhao rubbed his nose and spoke seriously.

“Then why are you still letting him show up in public?” Bao Zheng frowned.

“It’s the opening of the entertainment company and Zhao Zhen is invited. Yutang and I will take some of the SCI members to attend. After all, if they are targeting us, then this is indeed a good opportunity to draw out some clues.”

“Not afraid of danger?” Bao Zheng and Zhan Zhao entered the elevator together.

“Hehe.” Zhan Zhao smiled slightly, “Don't worry. They may have gotten Brother the first time, but there won’t be a second. Although he has lost a few years of his memory, Bai Jintang is still Bai Jintang.”

“Makes sense.” Bao Zheng nodded. At that moment, his phone rang. Bao Zheng answered, “Hello? I am…”

Bao Zheng nodded after a long time, “Understood, mhmm, we’ll handle it carefully.”

When he hung up the phone, Zhan Zhao saw Bao Zheng’s face was sullen.

“Right, Bao Sir, have you found the reason for the power outage yet?” Zhan Zhao asked.

Bao Zheng glanced at Zhan Zhao and saw him smiling wryly, and he couldn't help but shake his head, “Only you are this clever.”

“What happened?” Zhan Zhao asked.

Bao Zheng looked around, moved over and whispered a few words in a low voice in Zhan Zhao's ear.

Zhan Zhao was stunned and looked at Bao Zheng with wide eyes, “How could this happen?”

Bao Zheng sighed, “The tree wants to be still but the wind keeps going.” After saying that, the elevator reached its destination. Exiting the elevator, Bao Zheng spoke to Zhan Zhao, “You and Yutang, as well as the rest of SCI, be careful.” (Angel: “The tree wants to be still but the wind keeps going” is a Chinese idiom that means that the situation is contrary to one's own wishes.)

“I understand.” Zhan Zhao nodded and went back to the office.

Inside the SCI office, the faces of the group were grim. Zhan Zhao was a bit puzzled,  he couldn't have found out so quickly, could he? Walking in, he saw Ma Xin was there, Bai Yutang looking at a piece of information, and Jiang Ping searching for something quickly, as if they had made a major discovery.

“What’s wrong?” Zhan Zhao asked.

“This is the investigation report of the fingerprints found on the arm of the driver who hit Brother that day." Bai Yutang said and handed that report to Zhan Zhao.

When Zhan Zhao took it and read it, he saw that the fingerprints belonged to a high school girl, and he was a bit surprised, “A high school girl, really?” But looking down… the last line said that the girl died in a car accident in June 2009 and that she was only 16 years old when she died.

Zhan Zhao's eyes widened as he looked at Bai Yutang, “This is…”

Bai Yutang shrugged, “En, take a look at the photo.”

Zhan Zhao glanced at the photo of the deceased. Although the face of the person on the video wasn't too clear, it really had a slight resemblance to the deceased.

“Wang Zhenning?” Zhan Zhao looked at the name, “It's quite poetic.”

“Both her parents are teachers, and they have been contacted. Shall we go investigate?” Bai Yutang asked.

“Okay.” Zhan Zhao nodded and went out with Bai Yutang. When they got downstairs, Ma Han and others called and said that the condition of the driver who caused the accident at the entrance of the police station had stabilized. The doctor said that he was a drug addict, and that was why he kept shaking his head and yelling. They questioned him, but found nothing.

The two of them looked at each other and both shook their heads helplessly, it was a drug addict?

Reluctantly, the two had no choice but to get in the car and go to Wang Zhenning's house first to investigate the ghost that had emerged out of thin air.

Inside the Bai Group office in S City.

Bai Jintang was flipping through the property statements and logs, looking up every now and then to glance at Gongsun, who was lying on the sofa.

He had struggled with the soup last night, couldn't sleep that night, and had to get up early to see Bai Jintang. But Bai Jintang refused to go home and insisted on coming to the company, so Gongsun had to accompany him and fell asleep after sitting for a while.

Bai Jintang suddenly stood up and slowly walked over to the sofa, sat on the coffee table and looked at Gongsun's sleeping face.

Reaching out to gently tidy Gongsun's hair, his fingertips unconsciously went down and gently touched Gongsun's forehead, then his nose, and finally pinched Gongsun's chin. Bai Jintang smiled faintly.

Gongsun was probably exhausted, so he didn't wake up, and continued sleeping in a daze.

Bai Jintang leaned over and poked Gongsun’s lips lightly with his finger, then withdrew his fingers and lowered his head for a kiss.

Unlike the man's tough personality, his lips were warm and soft. While experiencing that softness, Bai Jintang could not help but laugh. He must have fallen in love at first sight with this man back then, because no matter how he looked at him, his personality, his fingers, and even his hair, everything was very much in line with his ideal aesthetic.

While looking at him, Bai Jintang got up and reached out to pinch Gongsun’s cheeks.

“Hmm…” Gongsun was annoyed by the feeling. He rolled over and instinctively tried to shoo him away. Usually it was either Bai Jintang or one of the three cats in the family that would disturb his sleep.

Bai Jintang smiled and stopped bothering him, leaving him to sleep in peace.

Back at his desk, Bai Jintang picked up the information and read it. He noticed that the phone on the desk had stopped charging at some point, probably because of the sudden power cut.

He picked up the phone and turned it on… The phone probably has an automatic recovery function and had gone back a few days. There was a log alert on the screen – Anniversary, gift, surprise.

Bai Jintang touched his chin – What gift?

‿︵‿︵ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ・❉・ ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ‿︵‿︵

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Translator Notes

Please feel free to comment any mistakes I made so I can improve and do better as I go through the book.

Translated: October 14/15, 2021