Seeing Crime Scenes in My Sleep

Jiang Li looked at the boy in front of her who had grabbed her bag strap. He was about ten years old and, from his appearance, likely a local.

When he saw her looking, not only was the boy unafraid, but he even tugged again, trying to wrench the bag away from her.

Jiang Li’s mouth fell open in surprise. ’Are the thieves here all this brazen?’

"Let go!" Jiang Li shot him a cold glare.

The boy met her gaze and shrank back in fear. He let go, his body trembling, and mumbled something in the local dialect.

Judging by his nervous and frantic demeanor, he seemed to be apologizing. Then, he ran off in fear.

Jiang Li looked at the travel guide she had bookmarked on her phone, along with a rough map of the area.

𝘧𝗿𝖊𝖾𝑤𝓮𝑏𝓷𝚘𝚟𝗲𝒍.𝖼𝒐𝖒

She had only taken a few steps before locals began to surround her. Some were holding things and jabbering away, while others held nothing at all, simply extending their hands to beg for money.

She had heard before coming here that the locals believed all Chinese people were rich. Furthermore, most Chinese people preferred to avoid trouble, so some would give them money out of pity.

Jiang Li adjusted the bag on her shoulder and swept a fierce gaze over them one by one. Intimidated by her stare, the surrounding people took two steps back and didn’t dare to approach again.

Jiang Li observed the chaotic environment: people lying around everywhere, some even openly using drugs on the side of the road.

She could even see locals and local police brawling with each other. No one treated anyone else with a shred of humanity. The public safety was abysmal.

She saw quite a few Chinese people here as well, but none of them were tourists.

Jiang Li leaned against a nearby wall, observing the people who were observing her. This was the area Kun Sha had frequented when he was here; she had to find his residence.

Jiang Li stroked her chin and pulled out her phone to call Wu Ming.

"Hello, Jiang Li." Wu Ming covered the receiver and moved to the side before speaking.

Hearing the noisy background on Wu Ming’s end, Jiang Li figured she must be out looking for work. She reached into her bag, her fingers closing around something.

"Wu Ming, that thing you mentioned—sticking pins in effigies. How do you do it?"

"PFFT—COUGH, COUGH, COUGH!" Wu Ming was so startled by the question she choked. "Who... who are you planning to curse?"

An image of Kun Sha’s face flashed through Jiang Li’s mind. ’If he lives to see tomorrow morning, I’ll eat my hat.’

"Can you tell me?"

"I can. It’s not that complicated."

As Jiang Li listened to Wu Ming’s voice on the phone, someone suddenly flashed past in front of her. Her eyes shifted.

"Actually, I don’t need it for now. You go ahead and get back to what you were doing. I’ll come back once I’ve finished my business here."

Jiang Li hung up and straightened. ’Sticking pins in effigies, raising a ghost child... The latter is far more sinister, isn’t it?’

Jiang Li recalled Cao Tianwang’s methods, then went to buy some things locally and found a relatively clean inn to stay in.

After arriving at the inn, she sat down at a table and picked up the items she’d bought. ’This place really does have everything you could possibly need.’

She then laid out the items one by one. Next to them was a ceramic doll.

With her preparations complete, Jiang Li sat to the side, playing on her phone while she waited for the right moment.

There was still a video of Zhang Hongzhi’s trial online. The fact that he let Kun Sha escape had been confirmed, and combined with other evidence, he was sentenced to death.

Jiang Li watched the image of Kun Sha slumped in a chair to the side. ’Looks like his treatment was pretty good after he went back. He’s even been all cleaned up.’

Kun Sha didn’t care about Zhang Hongzhi’s verdict. His heart just kept pounding with unease as the memory of Jiang Li’s meaningful expression when he left replayed in his mind.

It was as if some unknown danger was waiting for him.

Lu Xingye didn’t go to the courthouse. Instead, he took Li Xiaoru to a mental hospital to see Song Shujing.

Lu Xingye stood at the door, watching the adult and child inside. Song Shujing’s real name was Zhu Yan.

Back then, when Kun Sha had appeared and threatened Uncle Li’s family, Song Shujing had stepped forward, saving them from being killed by him.

Lu Xingye thought of the confession Huo Qing had sent over, and his fists clenched at his sides. Song Shujing had submitted herself to Kun Sha. Later, after Kun Sha left, she changed her name with Uncle Li’s help and got married.

That child who was strangled to death... if he wasn’t mistaken, it must have been Kun Sha’s.

Kun Sha was oblivious to all this. He didn’t know Zhu Yan had changed her name and been sent to a mental hospital. She was like Jiang Li; she had used a mental illness diagnosis to survive.

A tightness constricted Lu Xingye’s chest. He leaned against the wall, took a deep breath, and glanced down at the court proceedings on his device. Seeing Kun Sha’s state, he knew without a doubt that it was Jiang Li’s handiwork.

In his heart, Lu Xingye was quite grateful to Jiang Li for avenging his sister.

...

「At the stroke of midnight, news came from the prison.」

"This is bad—Kun Sha is dead!"

Everyone was jolted awake, staring at the surveillance footage that was sent over.

In the video, after Kun Sha was sent back to his cell, his expression was one of constant agony. Then, his veins bulged visibly. He was in too much pain to scream, but his mouth kept forming the two words, "Jiang Li."

The prison doctor arrived and provided timely aid, and his condition eased for a bit. But it wasn’t long before it started again. This continued right up until twelve o’clock sharp.

Suddenly, the blood vessels on Kun Sha’s body burst. His eyes flew wide, and he stopped breathing.

The same toxins found in Lu Xingchen and the others were detected in Kun Sha’s blood. That, combined with the infection in his legs, made it seem normal that he couldn’t hold on and died.

Lu Xingye stared at the forensic report. ’The same poison as my sister?’

’How did Jiang Li get her hands on it?’

Meanwhile, on Jiang Li’s end, the wind was making the open window rattle. The room was lit only by a single candle.

Jiang Li looked at the Ghost Talisman and the doll on the table. ’I wonder if this will even work.’

After some time, the wind outside died down, and the candle flame stabilized.

"Jiang Li?"

A familiar, fear-filled voice sounded from behind her. A smile bloomed on Jiang Li’s previously expressionless face as she turned to meet Kun Sha’s terrified, trembling Spiritual Body.

Kun Sha couldn’t believe it. He hadn’t escaped Jiang Li even in death. And how did she know this kind of magic?!

"Jiang Li, you... what in the world are you trying to do?"

Kun Sha’s voice trembled as he looked at Jiang Li. He had no idea how many times he had asked that question, but every time, Jiang Li would just stare at him without saying a word.

𝐟𝑟ⅇ𝐞𝔀𝙚𝖇𝔫𝕠𝖛𝕖𝑙.𝖈𝑜𝘮

’No wonder she didn’t give me a quick death. No wonder she didn’t stop them on the ship and just watched me get taken away. It was all premeditated.’

Hearing Kun Sha’s question, Jiang Li shrugged. "Not much. I just can’t stand you. The more you suffer, the happier I am."

As she spoke, she nonchalantly sat down and began to fiddle with the things on the table. She accidentally bumped a doll hanging on her bag, and in the next second, a whole series of them came tumbling out.

Jiang Li looked up, dumbfounded, at the familiar figures before her. "You guys haven’t left?"

It was the same group that had followed her in H City. She hadn’t seen them after that first day and had assumed they were gone. She never would have expected this!

"We... we can’t leave," the little kid ghost said, propped up nearby as he stammered at her.

They had wanted to leave, but they found they couldn’t. So they had found something she was carrying and hidden inside it.

’If we have to follow someone, it might as well be her,’ they thought. ’She doesn’t demand anything, and she won’t torture us on a whim.’

Jiang Li looked at them, then back at Kun Sha, a smile spreading across her lips.