INSIDER Chapter 32

He felt his blood run cold and his skin crawl.

Besides these two phrases, He Mingde didn’t know how to describe his current feeling.

From the moment Lu Chu uttered those words, he felt as though an invisible hand had tightly gripped his breath. In the cramped space, his heartbeat was so loud it seemed it might leap out of his chest.

“Thump-thump—thump-thump—”

No one dared to breathe loudly.

Even the usually laid-back Song Gui was breathing softly, his eyes unblinking, unsure of where to look.

Li Jiapeng simply closed his eyes, trembling, as if accepting his impending fate.

Life or death.

After a moment, Li Jiapeng finally couldn’t bear it any longer. He suddenly arched his body and began shouting and screaming, trying to crawl from the back seat to the front to take control of Qi Li’s steering wheel. He screamed, “Stop! Stop! We’re going to die! We’ll die! It’ll kill us! It’ll kill us!”

Qi Li remained extraordinarily calm, preventing the frantic Li Jiapeng from taking control of the steering wheel.

A moment later, Qi Li had found a safe place and quickly parked the car.

“Get out,” he said.

Immersed in the suffocating atmosphere, everyone got out of the car. During this, Li Jiapeng clung tightly to He Mingde’s sleeve, his voice trembling, occasionally shuddering, “Chengzi, Chengzi…”

He Mingde couldn’t believe it either. He patted Li Jiapeng’s shoulder to comfort him, saying, “Calm down.” Though in truth, he himself was far from calm.

Lu Chu sighed and said, “Don’t worry, we’re safe now.”

Li Jiapeng didn’t believe it. He tried to overcome his trembling and spoke to the air around him, “I don’t know anything now, I just want to live a few more days. Chengzi, if you can hear me, please let me go…”

Lu Chu reassured him, “Let’s get back in the car. If it wants to know the truth, then following us is normal. Didn’t we already suspect this before?”

Yes, Song Gui had joked before, “It might be following us all along, even interested in our voting.”

But a guess was just a guess. Even if they knew that ninety-nine percent of it was true, as long as no one confirmed its existence, the fear wouldn’t be so overwhelming, so suffocating.

Everyone knew it was following them.

But no one confirmed this guess with facts, so they could deceive themselves: “It’s just a joke, how could it really be nearby?”

Until Lu Chu spoke those words.

All their self-deception and self-persuasion crumbled instantly.

This time, Song Gui was not just a spectator but helped Lu Chu persuade Li Jiapeng, as his panic slowed everyone down, making them even more dangerous. Li Jiapeng was in a state of panic, and He Mingde was not feeling well either, but he still comforted Li Jiapeng and got him back in the car.

In the car, Li Jiapeng’s voice was hoarse, “Has it always been here?”

Lu Chu honestly said, “Sometimes it is, sometimes it isn’t. Maybe it leaves for a while, or maybe the scent is so faint that I don’t notice.”

This scent had surrounded them before the village head died. At that time, Yang Cheng had just “died,” and Lu Chu’s attention was elsewhere, so he didn’t pay much attention.

There were actually other clues pointing to Yang Cheng, but they were scattered and intertwined, making them hard to explain. It was easier to just present the simplest truth directly.

As for Song Gui’s judgment, since he didn’t want to speak and just wanted to watch, then let him watch. But Lu Chu would let him know that he wasn’t the only one choosing his teammates carefully.

The car was still bumping along. Li Jiapeng, extremely tense, fell asleep. He Mingde rubbed his brow, feeling utterly exhausted, both physically and mentally. Song Gui stared out the window, lost in thought, while Qi Li drove calmly, and Lu Chu organized the clues in his mind.

No one asked about the scent again.

---

They didn’t know Cui Mei’er’s address, but according to Grandma Lu, she once chatted with an elderly neighbor in the apartment complex and learned that Cui Mei’er’s mother was out shopping. Naturally, she would return home after shopping, so her home should be nearby.

Neither Grandma Lu nor the village head’s wife remembered Cui Mei’er’s full name, nor did they remember her father’s name clearly, as they moved away twenty years ago. But Grandma Lu told them that Cui Mei’er’s father was surnamed Liu.

The group found a hotel near the complex, a large suite where they could all stay together.

Then they split up to ask around about any Liu families in the area.

He Mingde, not trusting Li Jiapeng to go alone, paired with him. Song Gui, Lu Chu, and Qi Li went separately.

A few hours later, they gathered back at the hotel.

He Mingde said, “I found three families that match the surname, age, and length of residence. Whether they came from the village, the neighbors wouldn’t know.”

Qi Li said, “Two.”

Song Gui said, “One.”

Lu Chu smiled, “Two, one of which said they moved here from a poor village.”

Song Gui patted Lu Chu’s shoulder, “Well done, let’s start with this one.”

They were lucky; the family was home. After some questioning, they confirmed this family moved from Lu Chu’s village twenty years ago.

Lu Chu politely asked, “Is Cui Mei’er your daughter?”

The old man’s face changed at this, “Yes.”

Lu Chu exchanged a glance with Qi Li, “We need to ask her some questions. Is she available?”

The old man scrutinized Lu Chu, “Since you’re Old Lu’s grandson, I trust you’re not a bad person. Come in.”

The old man served them tea, “I haven’t seen my daughter in years.”

Lu Chu asked, “Could you tell us why?”

The old man hesitated, then sighed, “I’ll tell you. It’s a big scandal, everyone knows it, and they talk about it like a joke. Even if you don’t ask me, you could hear it from others.”

“Though I don’t know why you’re looking for her, I haven’t seen her in years. She ran off with a man a few years ago, taking our money. She even scammed the neighbors, saying she needed hospital treatment. I’ve tried to repay everyone, but people still talk.”

Lu Chu exchanged a glance with the others upon hearing this.

The old man went to turn off the stove.

Lu Chu took out a photo of Cui Mei’er with Guo Jianping. He tore off the half with Cui Mei’er and showed the old man Guo Jianping’s part, “Do you recognize this man?”

The old man nodded, “Yes! That’s the man who lied to Cui Mei’er, saying his wife left him.”

“Did he come looking for her later?”

“Yes, I remember him well. He seemed decent but wasn’t. Before we moved, he came looking for her, saying his wife had left and he wanted to be with her. We didn’t agree, so we moved to A City, but he followed us after a while. I was busy with my business and had lost contact with the village, so I let them be, but later he disappeared. He had remarried by then.”

“Do you know how Guo Jianping died?”

The old man shook his head, “Not really. I heard it was sudden, but our household registration had been moved, and the village kept things quiet.”

---

From the conversation, they learned that Cui Mei’er’s full name was Liu Cuihe. A few years ago, she ran off with a man to a neighboring city. The old man didn’t know the exact location, feeling disgraced by her actions and not wanting to control her. They hadn’t contacted her since, pretending she didn’t exist.

Despite saying they had severed ties, the old man still cared about his daughter. Song Gui reassured him, “Don’t worry, we’re just investigating some matters and need to ask a few people. It won’t affect Liu Cuihe or your life.”

Lu Chu couldn’t say this because he wasn’t sure if it wouldn’t involve Liu Cuihe. While he pondered how to get more information, Song Gui had already charmed the old man into providing that Liu Cuihe was likely in the southern district, around Zhongxing Street.

Thanking the old man, they left when his son came home.

The son was wary and hostile, saying, “I don’t recognize her. She nearly drove our parents to the hospital with anger. She doesn’t care about her child or parents, like she was never raised by us. Ask someone else if you want to find her!”

Seeing his reaction, they bid farewell politely and left.

Driving to Liu Cuihe’s supposed location, they found it was a large area with many residential buildings. Without more specifics, they couldn’t locate her easily. They tried asking around, but she seemed to keep a low profile or wasn’t close to her neighbors.

Frustrated, Song Gui received a call from Grandma Lu using the village head’s landline due to poor cell reception.

After ensuring Lu Chu was fine, Song Gui hung up and said, “Someone else died in the village.”

---

They hurried back to the village. In the car, Li Jiapeng nervously asked Lu Chu, “Can you still smell ‘it’ around us?”

The car fell silent.

Lu Chu closed his eyes, then opened them, “It’s not here anymore.”

Li Jiapeng gulped, “When did it leave?”

“Not sure,” Lu Chu replied. “The scent was faint, and we were focused on finding Liu Cuihe, so I didn’t notice. It was still there when we left the Liu family.”

He Mingde shivered, “Did ‘it’ return to the village?”

Song Gui speculated, “Maybe it got impatient with our slow search?”

Lu Chu added, “Or maybe ‘it’ can’t leave the village for too long.”

Discussing theories, they reached the village.

This time, the victim was a middle-aged man who died like the village head, with a snake emerging from his mouth, but he had it worse—dozens of snakes crawled out.

The villagers, terrified, didn’t dare gather around, fearing being targeted. The dead man had been among those who had joined the village head’s wife in causing trouble at Lu’s house.

Lu Chu realized he had noted this man among those who reacted oddly to Wang Po’s ambiguous comments.

Unable to find anything useful at the scene, they decided to rest at Lu’s house and plan their next steps.

During dinner, Lu Chu remembered Wang Po had asked him to come alone the next day, which had been interrupted by Yang Cheng’s incident. Deciding it might be crucial, he told the others he would visit Wang Po alone.

Despite some apprehension, the group agreed. Song Gui joked, “Horror movies tell us not to go alone, zombie movies say don’t split up. Be careful.”

Lu Chu smiled, “I’ll be fine.”

Navigating through the village, he arrived at Wang Po’s house. The girl opened the door, saying, “Grandma said to let you in when you came alone.”

Inside, the room was as dim and solemn as before. Wang Po, seated at the table, gestured for him to sit.

She asked, “What do you want to know?”

Lu Chu politely inquired, “Do you know who ‘it’ is?”

Wang Po shook her head, “No, I only know someone in the village committed an evil act, attracting this vengeful spirit. Wei Rong’s visits weren’t fully informative.”

“Is this visit related to the current situation?”

“Of course not.” Wang Po stood, lit incense at the altar, then beckoned him, “Come here.”

She took his hand, muttering incantations he couldn’t understand. After a while, she said, “Born under a light fate, troubled youth, solitary struggles, facing disasters in adulthood, but if aided by noble people, will turn misfortune into fortune.”

“Remember, trust those who help you.”

“You are different from us, destined to be trapped here.”

Patting his hand, she smiled, her wrinkled face creasing deeply.