Chapter 207: Chapter 174: The Substitute_2
After confirming that the Ghost wasn’t pursuing them, Yang Xiao finally breathed a sigh of relief. However, his attitude changed in an instant when facing Xia Xiuyan; he brutally pushed her away, "Just now, it was that teacher, wasn’t it? He was here for you. Each to their own responsibility, don’t drag me down with you!"
"It has nothing to do with me, nothing to do with me! It was all Sun Shengnan, all her doing!! She’s the one who caused Teacher Wang’s death!" Xia Xiuyan was hysterical.
"Was Teacher Wang wrongly accused?"
"Yes, he didn’t do anything. It was all Sun Shengnan; she was deluded. She orchestrated everything, and Teacher Wang was a good man." Xia Xiuyan knelt on the ground, weeping bitterly.
Yang Xiao put on an enlightened expression, "I see, so that’s how it is. I suppose Teacher Wang wanted to seek justice for himself. Since he hasn’t killed you yet, I think he wants to give you a chance to reform. If you confess the truth and identify Sun Shengnan’s crimes once you’re out, then maybe he will let you go, otherwise, he will haunt you for life."
"I understand! I understand! Sun Zhen and Nie Hexiang were also killed by Teacher Wang; these were warnings to me."
Seeing that his purpose was achieved, Yang Xiao suggested they find a place to rest for a moment.
Of course, his main objective was to capture Xia Xiuyan’s confession on video with the camera; otherwise, given Xia Xiuyan’s lack of integrity, she would probably retract her confession as soon as they reached safety, or even worse, she might turn things around and, in collusion with Sun Shengnan, seek to kill him.
Before that, Yang Xiao made sure to remove the number plate from the #4 marking point. The two of them quickly found a place to shelter from the rain along the steep path.
Taking advantage of Xia Xiuyan’s moments of calm, Yang Xiao sent a message to Xu Yu; partly to tell her Xia Xiuyan was ready to confess, and partly to warn her about Teacher Wang since nothing is unexpected when it comes to ghosts, and Yang Xiao did not want any last-minute surprises.
But this time, he got a different message back: I haven’t sensed Teacher Wang nearby.
The message hit Yang Xiao hard, he immediately replied: "Are you sure?"
"I don’t know how to explain it to you, but if Teacher Wang was near, I should be able to feel it," Xu Yu responded.
After hanging up the phone, Yang Xiao fell into thought. If that thing wasn’t a Ghost, then who could it be?
Without much consideration, a figure flashed through his mind. Yang Xiao picked up his phone and sent a message straight to Song Yan: Where is Pei Qiuyu?
The response he got made Yang Xiao frown deeply, "Pei Qiuyu is in the upstairs classroom. I am Lu Ji. Song Yan was taken to film, and to keep in touch, the phone was temporarily left with me."
Yang Xiao didn’t believe it and immediately made a phone call, concerned that Song Yan might be under Sun Shengnan’s control. When the call connected, Lu Ji’s voice came through, "Hello, what’s up?" Lu Ji’s voice was very low, as if he worried about being overheard.
"Have Song Yan come back and contact me." Yang Xiao had no time for small talk, he hung up immediately.
The situation had once again become confusing. If this second Ghost was also a human in disguise, then Pei Qiuyu was the only person Yang Xiao could think of.
Sun Shengnan was cautious; with the stand-in dying so miserably, she wouldn’t dare to come to the little forest to play Ghost at night. Could it be she sent someone else?
Or perhaps Xu Yu’s perception was faulty, and it wasn’t a human disguised, but a real Ghost.
The situation was growing increasingly complicated. Having dealt with Xia Xiuyan, the immediate priority was to ascertain whether this second Ghost was real or fake.
If it was fake, then Yang Xiao could proceed with his actions with much less worry. But at the same time, it would mean that Song Yan and Lu Ji were in danger.
After a brief period of thought, Yang Xiao decided to take a risk. To be on the safe side, he also brought along Xia Xiuyan. Despite her apparent compliance, who knew if she was withholding information, revealing only the trivial parts. To ensure Xia Xiuyan’s cooperation, Yang Xiao decided on one more strong dose of intimidation.
By a mix of coaxing and deception, he finally persuaded Xia Xiuyan to return the same way they came and located the spot where they had seen the Ghost before.
It was a cluster of jagged rocks. After watching for a moment without finding anything suspicious, Yang Xiao asked Xia Xiuyan to wait below while he went over alone.
Turning on his flashlight and using its beam to scan the ground near the rocks, he had not expected much, but to his surprise, Yang Xiao did discover something amiss.
Among the crevices of the rocks were several footprints.
The footprints weren’t big. Yang Xiao used his own shoe for comparison nearby and found that these prints were at least two sizes smaller than his own. He had seen the ghost’s pair of black leather shoes, and these definitely weren’t Teacher Wang’s size, so it meant... this guy wasn’t a ghost, but a person!
And most likely, it was a woman!
If it wasn’t Pei Qiuyu, could it have been Sun Shengnan herself?
...
Elsewhere, in a lecture theater of the academic building, Song Yan, who had been called away to film, was supporting his back, utterly exhausted.
"Is that how you told it to Chu Xi?" Song Yan exploded after hearing Lu Ji’s description, "You didn’t even verify it!"
"Not true, I saw it with my own eyes, I really saw Pei Qiuyu, she was rehearsing in the classroom upstairs, with several women." Yu Mi hurriedly explained.
"Bullshit! We two seasoned players searched several rounds and didn’t find Pei Qiuyu. You, a newbie, saw her?" Song Yan grabbed Yu Mi by the throat, pinned her against the wall, "Speak! Who told you to say that? Was it Sun Shengnan?"
"No... I didn’t," Yu Mi was scared stiff, not even resisting, but continuing to explain desperately.
"I really saw Pei Qiuyu. Just now, the props team asked me to deliver some costumes upstairs. As I passed by a classroom, the door wasn’t completely shut, just a crack open. I peeked in when they were not paying attention, and I saw Pei Qiuyu rehearsing. I can’t be wrong." Yu Mi was almost in tears, feeling utterly wronged.
"I’m asking you, are you sure it was Pei Qiuyu?"
"Positive."
"Did you see her face?"
At this question, Yu Mi hesitated for a moment, "Sort of. I saw her back, and a little of her profile, but I recognize her clothes and shoes, it can’t be wrong."
"Idiot! If I put on your clothes, does that make me you?" Song Yan couldn’t fathom how such a person could survive in Nightmare World.
Lu Ji panicked too, "Damn, didn’t we just cause trouble for Chu Xi? Quick, call him!"
Song Yan immediately made a call; their conversation was brief yet efficient, laying out the situation straight away.
Yang Xiao and Song Yan agreed that the fake ghost that had shown up was very likely the long-missing Pei Qiuyu, and the one upstairs, the stand-in wearing Pei Qiuyu’s clothes.
This was a film crew, where there was no shortage of makeup artists. Finding someone of a similar build to Pei Qiuyu, dressing her up, and applying some makeup could easily fool a newcomer like Yu Mi.
"Listen to me, go to the props room. I remember there’s a white suit there, see if it’s still there?" Yang Xiao instructed.
"Alright, I got it, I’m on my way." The moment he hung up the phone, Song Yan raised his hand and delivered a slap to Yu Mi.
"Smack!"
The slap dazed Yu Mi, and even Lu Ji couldn’t bear to watch, quickly pulling Song Yan off her, "Song, don’t do this, isn’t it still..."
"What do you know? If Chu Xi dies, who could take his place? You or me?" Song Yan glared fiercely at Yu Mi, "This is the last time, I warn you, if Chu Xi dies, we’ll all have to pay with our lives, but before that happens, I guarantee I’ll make your death a grisly one."
Leaving Lu Ji to accompany Yu Mi, Song Yan rushed off to the props room. Moments later, an anxious Yang Xiao received news from Song Yan: The props room didn’t have the suit you mentioned.
Now Yang Xiao was finally certain, the second ghost to arrive was Pei Qiuyu, and only she had the means and the motive to come here and stir up trouble.
Shortly after, his phone vibrated again, the second message had come through.
"Be careful with everything, waiting for you to return."
