S.C.I Mystery Series Volume 6 Chapter 14

The Card Murderer 14 – Strange Tales

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Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang arrived at the edge of the cemetery.

Lao Chen was sitting in the car, smoking a cigarette, while Mingdi was leaning against the car, looking at his phone.

Zhan Zhao walked over, and before he could ask, Mingdi handed the phone to him.

It was Lao Chen's phone.

Mingdi briefly explained what had happened.

After leaving the hospital cafeteria, he had gone straight to find Lao Chen.

However, just as he reached Lao Chen's door, he ran into him coming out.

Before Mingdi could say anything, Lao Chen showed him the phone.

The two of them hurried downstairs and followed the coordinates sent to the phone, which led them here – cemetery plot 127.

For most people, locating a specific spot in this sprawling, mountainous cemetery would have been difficult, but for Lao Chen, it was simple... As he put it himself, this place was the first half of his life, where half his soul was buried.

Zhan Zhao looked at the number 127 on the screen, along with the two emojis, and stroked his chin.

Bai Yutang asked him, "The message was sent from the deceased's phone, so where is the deceased's phone now? Still with the killer?"

Zhan Zhao thought it was worth a try and dialled the deceased's number.

As the dial tone echoed through the phone, everyone also heard a vibrating sound and a faint ringtone.

Gongsun, who was near the corpse, heard the vibration and ringtone coming from inside the deceased's chest cavity.

Using forceps, he shifted some of the straw and pulled out a ringing phone from within.

Ma Xin placed the phone into an evidence bag and handed it over to Zhan Zhao and the others.

Bai Yutang looked at the phone and frowned – So the phone wasn't with the murderer.

"Then what's the code to find the rest of the body?"

Zhan Zhao looked at the phone in his hand. "It must be this message..."

"127... 127..."

Muttering to himself, Zhan Zhao began scanning the surroundings before walking forward.

Bai Yutang, Luo Tian, and Qin Ou followed him, with Mingdi curiously tagging along as well.

Zhan Zhao walked to the front of the cemetery.

The cemetery was built along the hill slopes, starting from the summit and expanding downward in layers.

The entrance they had used was actually a side gate, accessible by car and leading only to the upper half of the cemetery. To reach the lower half, one had to take the stairs on foot from the main entrance on the other side, which was much larger.

The upper part of the hill was planted with large, broad-leaved trees, while the lower part had mostly coniferous pines and cypresses.

The shapes of these pines and cypresses varied, families could choose whether to prune and shape them or not, according to their preferences to match the tombstones. Some pine were tall and narrow, while others had been trimmed into rounded shapes.

Zhan Zhao stood on the hill, looking down.

Although the drizzle had stopped, thick clouds still covered the sky, blocking the moonlight. The entire cemetery was shrouded in darkness.

However, facing directly towards the main entrance, the stairway on either side was lined with streetlights, making it the brightest area of the cemetery at night...

Using the light from the streetlamps, Zhan Zhao observed the area below. After watching for a while, he raised his hand and pointed.

Luo Tian and Qin Ou followed the direction of Zhan Zhao's finger but weren't sure what he was indicating.

"The fifth level up from the bottom of the hill. From the left, count six tombstones to the right. Use that tombstone as the centre. Search within this area, three rows in front and behind, five columns left and right." Zhan Zhao said.

Luo Tian and Qin Ou led a few forensic officers down the slope. Soon, they found a large black box placed beneath a rounded pine tree.

The forensic team opened the box, it was filled with body parts. They waved their hands towards the top of the hill to signal – Found it.

Mingdi, curious, asked Zhan Zhao. "How did you figure it out?"

Zhan Zhao glanced at Bai Yutang.

Bai Yutang asked, "Morse code?"

Zhan Zhao nodded.

Mingdi tilted his head at them in confusion. Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang looked at him with a little concern – Brother, you write detective novels, is this really okay?

Zhan Zhao helplessly pointed at the pine trees below. "Round cypress trees and long, narrow pine trees represent the · and - symbols respectively."

"Oh..." Mingdi absentmindedly pulled out his phone and searched for a Morse code chart.

The numbers 1, 2, and 7 corresponded to...

One round cypress and four vertical pines, two round cypress and three vertical pines, and two vertical pines and three round cypress... The arrangement of trees perfectly matched the area Zhan Zhao had designated for the search.

Mingdi put his phone away, thinking this was a great idea, he might use it in his next novel.

Zhan Zhao looked at Mingdi in confusion. "How many detective novels have you written?"

Mingdi counted. "Several series, probably around ten to twenty books?"

Zhan Zhao calculated, that was quite prolific, so he asked, "Do you like suspense and mystery plots?"

Mingdi shook his head. "I always start with the romance, then I break up the emotional storyline and add a bit of suspense to push the plot along."

"Then why not just write romance novels?" Zhan Zhao couldn't understand.

"There are too many romance writers, all the tropes have been overused. Adding some suspense and thriller elements makes the books easier to market." Mingdi spread his hands. "But if the mystery is too complex, fewer people will read it. Writing this way makes it seem more sophisticated, but it's still easy and enjoyable to read. As for how logical or rigorous the plot is, I just do what I can. Most people aren't master detectives, they're just like me, mostly interested in romance, but they like to look clever."

Zhan Zhao gazed at Mingdi with a newfound sense of admiration – So that's how it is!

"Your books are actually really good." Mingdi stuffed his hands into his pockets and said to Zhan Zhao, "I can learn quite a lot, but sometimes after finishing reading it, I feel really stupid, like I've just been scolded."

Zhan Zhao opened his mouth, wanting to refute him, but couldn't think of a comeback. In the end, he turned his head away, looking rather unconvinced – Next time, I'll make you read Zhao Jue's books!

Zhan Zhao suddenly recalled that Gao Min had once tried to convince Zhao Jue to write a novel. Zhao Jue, quite intrigued by the idea, eagerly wrote a few pages. However, after reading them, Gao Min repeatedly warned him never to write fiction again, it could get him killed...

"So that's where the problem lies..." Zhan Zhao looked as if he had just had a great revelation, while Mingdi was more concerned that he might still be misunderstanding something...

...... 

All the body parts had been found, yet the killer had left no clues identifying them... However, since Wang Qiu was already dead and an identical murder had occurred, it was as good as a public announcement that Wang Qiu had been framed.

Bai Yutang suspected that the murderer's real aim might be to provoke the police.

Zhan Zhao pulled out his phone, opened a photo of the three young men, zoomed in on Pei Xiu's face, and showed it to Mingdi. "You know why we had people tailing you, don't you?"

Mingdi glanced at the phone and nodded.

"So, you know this person?" Bai Yutang asked.

Mingdi smiled. "He's the young master of the publishing house, how could I not know him?"

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang both looked at him – Then what were you hiding back at the cafeteria?

"You were bound to find out his identity soon enough, I just didn't want you getting the information from Xiao Min," Mingdi admitted openly, without any attempt to conceal the truth.

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang thought about it. Gao Min was an editor at the magazine, and Pei Xiu was her direct superior. So, was Mingdi trying to keep Gao Min from getting into trouble?

It was a rather subtle approach. Why would learning about Pei Xiu from Gao Min cause trouble for her?

"This guy," Mingdi said, pointing at Pei Xiu's face in the photo, "is very dangerous."

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang both looked at him – You suspect him? On what grounds?

Mingdi pointed to his own eyes, "Based on my years of instinct as a detective novelist..."

Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao exchanged sceptical looks – Not exactly a convincing argument...

Seeing their expressions, Mingdi looked a little disheartened and quickly defended himself. "Okay, I might not be great at reasoning, but I am really good at reading people!"

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang remained sceptical – That sounds like a completely useless skill...

"Ah!" Mingdi suddenly remembered something, pointing at them excitedly. "There's something that proves I am good at reading people!"

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang looked at him – Go on, let's hear it.

"You two know Lin Ruo, right?" Mingdi asked.

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang were a little surprised but nodded – You know him too?

"Our fathers are friends," Mingdi waved dismissively, indicating that wasn't the main point.

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang both nodded – In terms of temperament, they do have some similarities. Carefree second-generation rich kid, hopeless romantic, cheerful and handsome, a charming idiot.

"And?" Zhan Zhao prompted, wanting to know the actual point.

Mingdi raised an eyebrow smugly. "I warned Lin Ruo ages ago, his family's maid had issues! And that group of friends constantly hanging around him also had issues! They all had issues. And not just any issues, they had the same kind of issue!"

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang exchanged a glance, both looking slightly surprised at Mingdi.

Mingdi seemed satisfied with their reactions and nodded proudly. "See? I do have real skills! I've been known for my ability to spot scumbags at a glance since I was a kid! Whenever my best friends started dating someone, the first thing they did was bring them to me for an assessment, I was always right!"

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang both nodded – Confirmed again, Mingdi is just a happy-go-lucky idiot.

"So, what exactly is wrong with Pei Xiu?" Zhan Zhao asked.

Lin Ruo's case was indeed a compelling example. Plus, if Lin Ruo had trusted Mingdi enough to share details about it, then the two of them must have been close. That meant they could also approach Lin Ruo to learn more about Mingdi's character. The more people they connected with, the more information they could gather.

"Pei Xiu went to high school abroad, and I attended the same school," Mingdi said. "But he was quite a few years older than me, he had already graduated by the time I was there."

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang both asked, "Were there any rumours about him?"

Mingdi nodded. "I'm not the type who can just make up stories out of thin air, I need a lot of real-life inspiration, and I love hearing stories, so I go around digging up all sorts of things. Back in school, a group of girls in my class wanted to put on a stage play based on campus ghost stories, and they asked me to help write the script. I was interested, so I started asking my seniors for any weird stories or urban myths associated with the school. That's when I found out that there had been a theatre club at the school before. The scriptwriter at the time was Pei Xiu... but something happened, and the school forcibly disbanded the club."

"What happened?"

"The girl who was cast as the lead in a play disappeared," Mingdi said. "And the script Pei Xiu had written was based on a so-called 'mirror' legend from the school's ghost stories."

"Mirror legend?" Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang felt the situation was taking a strange turn, but they continued listening.

"That high school is very old, and the legend dates back to the last century. There was a storage room for miscellaneous items on campus that had once been a dance studio, so all four walls were still lined with mirrors. It was a known hangout spot for delinquent students, who often went there to play cards, smoke, and drink... One time, a group of students was smoking inside when a security guard passed by and noticed the warehouse door was open. He went in to check, and the students quickly stubbed out their cigarettes and hid. Seeing cigarette butts on the floor, the security guard immediately knew that the delinquents had been there again. So, he shut the door and locked it from the outside. The students were locked inside the warehouse. To make matters worse, one of the discarded cigarette butts hadn't been fully extinguished, but rolled into a corner and ignited some flammable fabric. The warehouse was packed with cloth materials and cans of paint, not only were they highly flammable, but the fire also produced thick, suffocating smoke. After locking the door, the security guard returned to the security room at the entrance. The warehouse was located at the back of the campus, separated from the main teaching buildings and the guardhouse by an entire sports field, so no one heard the trapped students' desperate cries for help. By the time other students realised the warehouse was on fire, the flames had already reached the warehouse ceiling... and thick smoke billowed out. When the firefighters finally put out the blaze, they discovered the bodies of three students inside."

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang both frowned – What a tragedy.

"Since the warehouse was covered in mirrors, ghost stories started circulating around the school not long after," Mingdi continued. "Some students claimed that, in rooms with mirrors, they would suddenly see burnt, shadowy figures flashing across the reflection. These ghostly figures would attack students and drag them into the mirrors. Anyone who got pulled in would vanish without a trace, taken to another world. The only thing left behind on the mirror would be a blood-red silhouette of their body."

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang couldn't laugh or cry, every school seems to have stories like this.

"It's one of those classic haunted school legends. Whether it really happened or not, no one can say for sure." Mingdi shrugged. "But Pei Xiu used this story as inspiration for a script. The girl cast as the lead was supposedly the school beauty queen at the time, she was passionate about dance and a member of the dance club. But as soon as rehearsals started, strange incidents kept happening. Rumour had it that she began having hallucinations, often glimpsing ghostly figures flashing past the mirrors. Then, one day, she went into the dance studio alone to practise and never came out. On the mirror, there was an outline of her body formed by blood. The school called the police, and a large number of officers were dispatched to search, but the girl had vanished without a trace. She was never found. The play was cancelled, and that year, Pei Xiu graduated and returned to China. However, many unsettling rumours about him remained on campus, most of them are not good."

‿︵‿︵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: March 21, 2025 by Angel

Edited: May 16, 2025 by Soojin