Zhou Kai sat up from the floor, gulping in huge breaths. Within seconds, his face had turned red from lack of air.
After shouting, he tried to climb to his feet, but when he turned his head and saw Zhang Yingying not far away, his eyes rolled back, and he collapsed again.
Xie Qingmian, who had just managed to wake him: …
He was at a loss for words.
Xu Keke closed his mouth and patted his forehead. “Should I call him again?”
“You wake him. His soul has stabilized.” Xie Qingmian called for Zhang Yingying, then had her follow him out of the room.
As soon as Zhang Yingying moved her foot, she realized she could float again and immediately followed Xie Qingmian.
The two of them soon disappeared from the room. Xu Keke sighed and went back to shaking Zhou Kai awake.
Outside the door, Xie Qingmian had Zhang Yingying lead him to the place where the body was hidden.
Meanwhile, at the Hai City police station, after staying up for more than ten hours, Xie Chenque had finally found surveillance footage of Xie Qingmian taking the bus.
“Times Garden? Why did that person take Mianmian there?” Xie Chenque hurried over to the monitor.
“We’ll head over now.” The nearby police officer immediately told his colleagues to get the car ready.
Xie Chenque was about to call his frantic parents, but the moment he took out his phone, their call came through first.
He answered, and excitedly began, “Mom, Dad, we found Mianmian!”
“Chenque, Daoist Qingyun said Mianmian’s mental illness is cured!”
The person on the other end sounded even more excited. They spoke at the same time, and both sides fell silent in surprise.
Pei Junshu was the first to react. Her happiness nearly spilled out through the phone. “Mianmian’s been found! Where is he? I’ll drive over right now!”
“At Times Garden. I’ll send you the location.” Xie Chenque answered that question first, then quickly returned to what Pei Junshu had said. “What did Daoist Qingyun say?”
“The time has come. His heart-soul has returned.”
Xie Chenque’s heart sank. He pressed his lips together without saying anything.
His parents had always believed that nonsense about some heart-soul being incomplete and causing his idiocy, but since they had never put his little brother through any strange rituals, he had been too lazy to investigate. But what was this supposed to mean now?
The time has come. His heart-soul has returned?
It looked like he was going to have to report someone for spreading feudal superstition.
Xie Chenque rubbed his brow. He wisely refrained from arguing with his parents about it and planned to deal with it quietly instead.
He sent his parents the address of Times Garden, then followed the police car straight there to pick up his little brother.
Xie Qingmian still had no idea what was happening. After listening to Zhang Yingying explain where the body was, he performed a divination for her as well. Once he had confirmed that everything was correct, he planned to mention it to the police later.
Xu Keke also woke Zhou Kai and told him that the matter had been dealt with.
Zhou Kai stared blankly, his eyes vacant. “Dealt with…”
Xu Keke nodded firmly. “It’s taken care of! A master has already handled it.”
“But I just saw…”
“You were dreaming.” Xu Keke looked utterly sincere. Lying through his teeth was one of his specialties. “The ghosts aren’t chasing us anymore.”
That seemed to snap Zhou Kai back to reality. He turned and looked around before asking, “They’re really gone?”
“They’re gone. Get up first. There’s something else to deal with.”
Zhou Kai: ?
He had a faint feeling that this was not going to be good. “What is it?”
“There might be a body in your house.”
Zhou Kai: ???
His expression turned terrified again, his entire face screaming, What the hell are you talking about?
Xu Keke added, “The ghost’s body.”
Zhou Kai completely broke down. “I don’t want this house anymore. I’m leaving right now. I don’t want it anymore, okay?”
Young people these days were really too fragile.
Xu Keke grumbled inwardly, but he still grabbed hold of his benefactor. “It’s fine, it’s fine. It has nothing to do with your family. It’s the previous owner’s problem.”
Zhou Kai, a genuine successor of socialism, a model student since childhood, and an ordinary person, wore an expression of utter despair. “I don’t want the house anymore. I don’t want it.”
Xu Keke: …
He was tired.
Xu Keke tried to persuade him for a long time, but even when they heard the police sirens, he still couldn’t calm Zhou Kai down.
The two of them descended the stairs wearing equally pained expressions, just in time to see Xie Qingmian leaning beside the living room window and looking outside.
“The police are here.”
Xie Qingmian paused, then added, “It’s a little strange. It looks like two groups have arrived.”
Xu Keke and Zhou Kai halted in their weak-legged tracks, then hurried over to the window beside Xie Qingmian to look outside.
Zhou Kai said, “Aren’t there just a tiny bit too many police officers?”
There really were just a tiny, tiny bit too many!
Xu Keke nodded in agreement.
After the last black Maybach came into view, Xie Qingmian and Xu Keke, who knew nothing about luxury cars, showed no reaction. Zhou Kai, however, was a wage slave working for a capitalist and recognized it at a glance.
He even knew that it was the car his boss had always wanted but couldn’t bear to buy. There were only twenty of them in the entire world!
And that license plate! It looked expensive and important at first glance!
Zhou Kai instantly forgot all about the ghost’s corpse and stared at the Maybach with shining eyes.
“That can’t be right. I’ve never heard that Hai City police cars come equipped with Maybachs,” Zhou Kai muttered.
Xie Qingmian turned his head and asked, “Is it very expensive?”
Xu Keke asked too, “Compared to a Maserati?”
“Of course it’s expensive!” Zhou Kai was incredibly excited. “It depends on the model when you compare it to a Maserati, but this model of Maybach is limited to twenty units worldwide. It’s not just about money anymore. It’s a symbol of wealth and status!”
Xie Qingmian looked at the auspicious license plate and fell silent.
The number looked a little familiar.
And the car also looked exactly like the original body’s brother’s car.
T-T This couldn’t really be such a coincidence, could it?
Xu Keke failed to notice anything strange about Xie Qingmian. After Zhou Kai’s explanation, he also began looking at the car with burning eyes.
The police officers filed out of the vehicles one after another. Finally, the doors of the Maybach, the center of everyone’s attention, opened as well.
The first thing the three of them saw was a long, shapely leg clad in black suit trousers. Next came half a suit jacket, and finally, a handsome and familiar face.
“Holy crap, Xie Chenque! What’s he doing here?” Zhou Kai was the first to blurt out in a low voice.
Xu Keke immediately recognized the man as well.
Xie Chenque, the current president of the Xie Group, was one of the wealthiest people in the country, even the world. He frequently appeared in financial news, and with his striking looks, practically everyone knew him.
Xu Keke suddenly seemed to realize something and whipped around to look at Xie Qingmian.
He asked in disbelief, “You’re not somehow related to the Xie family, are you?”
Xie Qingmian awkwardly coughed twice. “Well… he seems to be my brother.”
“…”
“…”
Xu Keke raised his voice. “Your actual brother?”
Zhou Kai asked, “Same parents?”
Xie Qingmian nodded meekly.
Xu Keke & Zhou Kai: …!!!
Holy crap, so the rich guy was right beside me all along!!!
Xu Keke threw his arms around Xie Qingmian’s leg. “Big shot! Please take care of me!”
By then, the police officers outside, along with Xie Chenque, had already spotted Xie Qingmian leaning against the window.
When Xie Chenque saw Xie Qingmian, delight flashed through his eyes. He strode toward the house.
Without waiting for the police officers to catch up, he entered the house first and headed straight for Xie Qingmian.
“Mianmian!”
Xie Qingmian blinked very lightly, his eyes filled with innocence.
“Brother.”
That single word made Xie Chenque stop dead halfway across the room. The urgency in his eyes instantly transformed into disbelief.
He looked at his little brother, who seemed to have grown a little thinner. His breathing quickened, and the hand hanging at his side trembled uncontrollably.
“What did Mianmian just call me?”