FIMA Ch33: Ghost Nemesis

“I need to go check the nursery where it happened,” Gu Siyuan ignored Xie Jinzhao’s expression and said to his two teammates.

Teacher Li and the three members of the Red Team said they had the same idea.

Xie Jinzhao snapped out of his rejected dejection, stiffened his neck, and followed along. Xi Shuang naturally wouldn’t stay behind.

Generally speaking, in a murder case, the first thing everyone should do is go to the scene on the third floor.

However, this was just a variety show, not a real police investigation. They wouldn’t let you see a baby’s corpse, as it would be censored and unbroadcastable.

Therefore, the show’s explanation was that the child had already been buried.

Since the program was set up this way, it indicated that the body wouldn’t have any clues affecting the game’s outcome.

The variety show’s pace is pre-set with some puzzles for everyone to solve step by step, eventually revealing the story behind the Bai family’s old castle, while also watching the guests get scared to tears.

After all, it’s a variety show; details aren’t important, emotional impact and fun are.

Hence, experienced teams like the Red and Yellow teams would slowly gather clues from bottom to top.

As for Xie Jinzhao and Xi Shuang, rushing to the third floor right away and getting scared out of their wits was just plain foolish.

After entering the nursery, the three groups started their investigations.

The room had few items, as it was from eighty years ago.

There was only a crib, a cabinet, a wooden table, two small stools, and a large wooden basin.

Aside from these, there was nothing else, and the floor was cleaned spotless.

Gu Siyuan carefully examined the crib several times, then was the first to prepare to leave.

Xie Jinzhao quickly stopped his wandering gaze and got ready to follow.

Gu Siyuan suddenly stopped at the door, glanced at him, and a light smile appeared on his lips.

The look was subtle, the smile faint, but its meaning was clear.

For some reason, Xie Jinzhao was highly sensitive to Gu Siyuan’s mockery, as if it was ingrained in him from a past life.

So, his pride surged, and with a cold snort, he turned and marched confidently in the opposite direction.

Xi Shuang, as a loyal teammate, quickly followed.

After walking for a while.

Xi Shuang lightly poked Xie Jinzhao’s shoulder and asked, “Why aren’t you talking, what are you thinking?”

Xie Jinzhao turned his head and realized the corridor was once again empty, leaving just the two of them.

He calmly said, “What else could I be thinking? It seems both teams have found clues. I’m reasoning that since we came to the third floor first, maybe we inadvertently discovered something crucial already.”

Xi Shuang’s eyes lit up in agreement, “Yes, we must have found something but overlooked it. Look at how smug those two teams are, not even letting us tag along. Hmph, just because they have one more person than us, they think they’re all that.”

Xie Jinzhao, feeling quite indignant, said, “Right? They act like they’ll definitely find the key evidence. Who knows, maybe they’ll end up empty-handed, and we might just turn a corner and find the key weapon.”

“That makes sense.” Xi Shuang clenched her fists, “We mustn’t give up. We need to keep working together and show those two overstaffed teams what we’re made of.”

This conversation, in another context, could be likened to the two worst performers in a department, feeling jealous of their colleagues’ promotions and awards, and then starting to gossip illogically.

Xie Jinzhao beckoned to Xi Shuang, “Let’s go.”

“Okay.” Xi Shuang nodded.

After a few steps, Xi Shuang suddenly widened her confused eyes and asked, “By the way, where are we going?”

Xie Jinzhao curled his lip, completely losing hope in his teammate, “I want to ask that lady in the nightgown earlier. She’s the child’s biological mother and must know something, at least who might have ill intentions towards the child. Maybe she was also targeted during her pregnancy.”

Xi Shuang immediately caught on, “Got it, I understand. I love reading mansion fight novels the most.”

However, things didn’t go as smoothly as those two fools had imagined.

When they reached the door of the Fourth Madam’s room, they saw several figures already inside.

It was Teacher Li and Qi Ran’s group.

Xi Shuang looked helplessly at Xie Jinzhao, “What now?”

Xie Jinzhao remained silent.

Qi Ran, noticing the movement at the door, peeked out and smiled, “You’re here too? We’re just about to finish getting some clues.”

Teacher Li looked at them too, teasingly smiling, “Weren’t you always on the third floor? Why are you here now?”

Xie Jinzhao stubbornly said, “No, we came up to the third floor early, and we’ve already talked to her. We know everything we need to know, we’re just passing by now.”

Xi Shuang, showing rare teamwork, nodded, “Yes.”

After speaking, they turned and left together.

After walking a bit further, to a place where they couldn’t be heard, Xi Shuang pouted slightly, “Hmph, look how smug they are. What’s there to be smug about? Maybe the Fourth Madam will go crazy and chase them with a knife later.”

Xie Jinzhao sighed, “If only that were the case, then we could just sit back and reap the benefits.”

As soon as he finished speaking, a sharp, shrill scream came from not far behind them.

“It’s all your fault, all your fault! Ah…”

They turned to look.

Indeed, Qi Ran and his group were running out of the room in panic, with the Fourth Madam brandishing a long spear with a red tassel, closely following them.

“Holy crap, she really went crazy!” Xi Shuang was shocked.

Xie Jinzhao quickly nudged her, “Those three didn’t dare to fight back against the Fourth Madam, which means that spear is probably a marking weapon. Don’t just stand there gawking.”

Xi Shuang snapped out of it, “Right, right, let’s run!”

During their brief conversation, Teacher Li, being older and slower, had already been caught by the Fourth Madam.

However, instead of killing him outright, the Fourth Madam made him raise his hands and escorted him back to the room.

With a “bang,” the door closed.

All noise ceased, and the corridor returned to silence.

“What’s going on?”

Xie Jinzhao and Xi Shuang stopped in their tracks, confused.

Just then, the two remaining members of Qi Ran’s group, Qi Ran and Lu Yanyan, happened to escape to their side.

Xi Shuang, curious and slightly gloating, asked, “Weren’t you doing well just now, about to get some clues? What happened…”

Lu Yanyan shot her a glare, too lazy to answer.

Girl, even if you enjoy watching drama, tone it down a bit!

Qi Ran, always portraying a well-bred, highly educated image, smiled and answered, “It was going well initially, but before leaving, Teacher Li casually asked one last question, and she suddenly snapped.”

“What did he ask?” Xie Jinzhao temporarily set aside his animosity, curious.

Qi Ran smiled and coughed lightly, “That’s a secret.”

Lu Yanyan nudged Qi Ran’s arm, “We need to go. Although Teacher Li was captured, we still have enough clues to continue investigating.”

After they left.

Xi Shuang asked Xie Jinzhao, “What now? The Fourth Madam is angry; even if we go back, we won’t get anything out of her.”

Xie Jinzhao, resting his chin on his hand, said, “Then let’s go to the room with the eyeballs from earlier. He loves lying on the floor to watch; maybe he saw the murderer the night before last. Then we won’t have to guess.”

Xi Shuang hesitated, still terrified by the eyeballs from earlier.

Even now, just thinking about it gave her goosebumps.

Xie Jinzhao glanced at her, disdainful, “It’s all fake. What’s there to be scared of?”

“…” Xi Shuang.

Bro, who was the one screaming like a slaughtered pig before?

Now that you can’t see it, you’re all brave…

She pouted, determined not to be looked down upon, “Fine, let’s go. Hopefully, we won’t run into anyone else.”

Xie Jinzhao felt a vague sense of unease, “Don’t jinx it.”

Meanwhile, the Yellow Team trio was also walking through the corridor.

Wang Xue said, “It’s a pity we didn’t get anything useful from the eldest lady or the nursery…”

Ji Haoying laughed, “Not getting anything is normal. We’ve been pretty lucky so far, asking for more would be too much.”

Gu Siyuan shook his head, “Who said we didn’t get anything?”

“…” Wang Xue and Ji Haoying.

They knew the boss wouldn’t say anything useless.

But that nursery was cleaner than a ghost’s lair, and that Miss Bai was crazy, only saying two sentences. What clues could there be?

Just then, a strange knocking sound and eerie laughter came from behind them.

Wang Xue and Ji Haoying were startled.

But Gu Siyuan remained calm, even stopping to knock on the door opposite them.

“You here?” A ghostly male voice came from beneath the door.

Wang Xue and Ji Haoying looked down, meeting a pair of clear black and white eyes. “Ah…” Their screams echoed through the corridor.

Two members of the Green Team, tiptoeing towards them, froze and then quickened their pace.

Turning the corner, Xie Jinzhao and Xi Shuang exchanged glances. Sure enough, three figures stood at the door of the room with the eyeballs.

Gu Siyuan looked at the young man who opened the door, “Second Young Master?”

The young man’s appearance and voice didn’t match the eyeballs from earlier at all.

The young man nodded, seeming in good spirits, “You’re here to find out the cause of my little brother’s death, right? Finally, someone asked me.”

Gu Siyuan remained calm, “So you know something.”

The Second Young Master shook his head, “I just heard some noises. Whether it’s helpful or not, I’m not sure.”

Gu Siyuan said, “Tell us about it.”

The Second Young Master continued, “I’m an editor at a newspaper. The night before last, I stayed up late writing until around 1:30 a.m. Then, at about 2:15 a.m., while I was lying in bed, I heard heavy breathing outside my door. It was a man.”

Gu Siyuan raised his eyebrows, “Doesn’t the Bai family know you stay up late to write? The killer deliberately passing by your door at that time, whether going up or down the stairs, could have used the closer staircase on the other side. Isn’t that nearer?”

Hearing this, the Second Young Master smiled slightly, “You’re very observant. But I don’t always stay up late writing, just these past few days. Some people probably haven’t noticed this yet. Recently, the war in the north has been intense, and our newspaper started an extra edition specifically for war news. The deadlines are tight, with telegrams often arriving in the evening and the news needing to be out early the next morning. That’s why I’ve been staying up late these days.”

Gu Siyuan’s expression darkened, “The country is in turmoil; it concerns everyone.”

“Hmm.” The Second Young Master looked at him, fell silent for a moment, then continued, “As for why the killer didn’t use the other staircase but chose to pass by here, you should know the reason.”

Gu Siyuan nodded, “Because the eldest daughter practices dancing secretly every night.”

The Second Young Master chuckled, “I knew you would know.”

At this moment, there was a commotion at the other end of the corridor.

Qi Ran and Lu Yanyan were coming up with the Old Master Bai and the Eldest Young Master. They had apparently gone down to the second floor earlier.

Gu Siyuan glanced over there and then asked the Second Young Master in a low voice, “Does the Old Master know she secretly practices ballet?”

“Ah…” The Second Young Master’s fingers curled slightly before he answered after a moment, “Probably not. My father is quite conservative; he can’t stand such things. If he knew, he would have thrown away her dance clothes and shoes long ago.”

Gu Siyuan gave him one last look, “Goodbye.”

“Gentlemen, you’ve been wandering around my house for half a day. Have you found anything?” The fifty-year-old Old Master Bai, looking quite energetic, walked over briskly.

Gu Siyuan said softly, “Almost.”

Hearing this, the Old Master’s eyes brightened.

But the Eldest Young Master’s face immediately changed, “You’d better be sure of what you’re saying and not spout nonsense.”

Gu Siyuan glanced at him and said lightly, “How can it be nonsense? Are you suggesting that the Eldest Young Master killed his own brother?”

“What are you talking about?” The Eldest Young Master’s eyes instantly turned blood-red.

Gu Siyuan’s expression remained unchanged, “If it wasn’t you, why are you so agitated?”

“If you dare to accuse me, I’ll kill you!”

The Eldest Young Master shouted, suddenly shaking his hands, and from somewhere, he pulled out a marked pistol, pointing it straight at Gu Siyuan.

“Holy crap, even though I know this is set eighty years ago, does a bug weapon like a pistol really need to appear?”

Everyone was shocked and prepared to run.

However, the shock didn’t last long.

A long, straight leg flashed by, bringing a gust of wind and kicking the Eldest Young Master’s wrist hard.

“Ah…” A cry of pain echoed, and the pistol fell to the ground.

The Eldest Young Master panicked and immediately bent down to pick up the gun.

However, as soon as he lowered his head, the barrel of the gun was pressed against his head.

Gu Siyuan smiled lightly, “Stand up.”

“No way…” Xie Jinzhao, although knowing his manager was a badass, was still shocked to the core watching this, “Why is he so fearless? There are no words like retreat or run in his dictionary. The moment he was pointed at with a gun, instead of being scared, he fought back without hesitation.”

“…”

Others were equally curious.

Especially the two from the Yellow Team; they had casually called for outside help, never expecting to draw such a powerful ally.

At this moment, Old Master Bai’s anxious voice rang out, “Hey, sir, my eldest son was just joking. Please put the gun away. This isn’t something to joke about.”

“Heh… I was joking too.” Gu Siyuan laughed softly, indeed withdrawing the gun and even leisurely spinning it twice with his fingers.

Then, he turned and smiled at Xie Jinzhao, “I’m going to the first-floor hall now.”

The boastful tone was unmistakable.

Xie Jinzhao couldn’t help but wrinkle his nose in jealousy.

Old Master Bai and the Eldest Young Master followed Gu Siyuan’s group to the first floor.

The Red Team and the Green Team, each with two members left behind, clearly had no intention of giving up.

Xi Shuang watched their retreating figures, discontented, “Hmph, look at how high and mighty the Yellow Team is, as if victory is already in their grasp.”

Xie Jinzhao, recalling Gu Siyuan’s boast, said casually, “Maybe they’re completely wrong about the killer and will fail at the critical moment.”

Xi Shuang started to fantasize, “Maybe an NPC with a marked weapon will jump out of a corner and start attacking them, wiping out their whole team instantly. Let’s see them be arrogant then.”

Xie Jinzhao thought for a moment, then came to his senses, “Gu Siyuan has a gun. The NPC probably wouldn’t dare come out.”

Xi Shuang said, “Even if the NPC doesn’t dare, if I get the marked weapon, I’ll shoot them. There should still be one more marked weapon, right?”

Qi Ran and Lu Yanyan of the Red Team glanced at them, speechless.

So, these two haven’t been seriously looking for clues but have been daydreaming instead.

Just then, a crisp “click” sounded.

The four turned to see that the door, which had been knocking all along, suddenly opened.

A figure with disheveled hair, whose gender was indistinguishable, jumped out, landing right on Lu Yanyan, who was closest to the door. The next moment, a cold voice came over the broadcast, “Lu Yanyan, eliminated.”

Aside from the kidnapped Teacher Li, this was the first player to be eliminated so far.

Everyone was stunned. What happened? They didn’t see any marked weapons.

Across from them, the Second Young Master looked at the disheveled person and widened his eyes, “Third Madame, how did your door get opened?”

The group immediately understood. According to the game’s background, this Third Madame was a leprosy patient, and anyone who was touched by her would immediately die.

“Ah…” The remaining three survivors instantly split into two directions, fleeing wildly.

Qi Ran and Xie Jinzhao happened to flee in the same direction, and the Third Madame was chasing them.

Gu Siyuan had just reached the staircase when he heard the commotion behind him and turned to look out of curiosity.

Xie Jinzhao, probably because he had a lot of experience running away today, was slightly faster than Qi Ran.

It was like encountering a bear in the wild; you don’t need to run very fast, just faster than the others.

Qi Ran was about to be caught.

Gu Siyuan decided to wait a bit before going downstairs.

Qi Ran looked up and saw Gu Siyuan ahead, quickly shouting, “Brother Siyuan, help!”

Gu Siyuan lazily replied, “In a moment.”

Qi Ran just sighed in relief.

At that moment, the Third Madame rushed up.

The broadcast sounded at the right moment, “Qi Ran eliminated.”

The corner of Gu Siyuan’s mouth twitched. He raised his right hand, held up the gun, closed one eye to aim, and then fired.

“Pop…” a soft sound.

A blue light flashed, and the Third Madame’s figure vanished.

In the place where the Third Madame had been, a small orange-yellow ball dropped, clearly a toy gun bullet.

Xie Jinzhao’s mouth gaped open.

Damn, he had almost shouted “husband, you’re so cool” in his heart while watching Gu Siyuan’s suave movements, only to find out it was a toy gun. He felt like he had been teased by an elementary school student.

Gu Siyuan seemed to notice his gaze. As he turned to walk downstairs, he glanced at Xie Jinzhao, with a faint smile in his eyes.

Xie Jinzhao pouted and made a face at his retreating back.

When Qi Ran was being led away by staff, he happened to see this scene and suddenly felt a very bad premonition.

The third floor returned to silence.

Xi Shuang appeared from somewhere, “It’s that black tech again. I’ve been fooled enough by this damn thing today!”

Xie Jinzhao snorted, “Who hasn’t?”

The two cursed together.

Suddenly, their eyes flashed. Something seemed to be left where the Third Madame had disappeared.

They slowly moved closer and saw that it was a dagger, a marked dagger.

The NPC with killing power and the marked weapon they had been dreaming of had appeared just like that?

Their hearts leapt.

Xi Shuang said first, “Xie Jinzhao, your chance to turn the tables has come.”

Xie Jinzhao looked at her, “Didn’t you say that if you got the marked weapon, you’d immediately go and shoot Gu Siyuan’s team from the shadows?”

Xi Shuang stammered, “Isn’t Gu Siyuan your fan? He wouldn’t be on guard against you. Your success rate in a sneak attack would be higher.”

Xie Jinzhao shook his head, “No way. Since I’m an idol, how can I do such a thing? After this airs, my fans would all leave me.”

Heh… after seeing Gu Siyuan’s previous display of taking a gun barehanded and hitting the target in one shot, who would dare to take a dagger and risk their life attacking?

The atmosphere fell silent.

The two looked at each other in silence for a moment.

In some ways, they were alike, so they quickly realized that both of them were essentially paper tigers, all bark and no bite.

Immediately, they didn’t continue to expose each other. After a sheepish smile at each other, they kept silent, treating the previous conversation as if it never happened.

Well, it wasn’t the first time anyway. They were used to it.

Just then, an unpleasant, piercing broadcast sounded, “Game over. Congratulations to the three players of the Yellow Team for becoming this adventure’s kings.”

“…” Xie Jinzhao.

How to break this feeling of regret? If he went downstairs now and wiped them all out with the dagger, would he still have a chance to win?