MMJWQC Chapter 6

They couldn’t find any evidence or clues linking Chu Ruochun to Jiang Qiao’s death, so the police had to release him.

When Chu Ruochun came out, he saw Fang Ming, who had a clear handprint on his face, approaching him.

The April temperature wasn’t too high, and Chu Ruochun was dressed lightly, with his hands in the pockets of his outer coat.

Fang Ming knew why the police had kept Chu Ruochun until the end. Among all the trainees, while others had a competitive relationship with Jiang Qiao, Chu Ruochun, in addition to the competitive aspect, was also a colleague from the same company. Jiang Qiao used to bully him frequently, and this morning he even took the blame for Jiang Qiao. To be honest, the one with the most motive to commit the crime was probably Chu Ruochun and Fang Ming was well aware of all this; he had even been involved in the process.

“Is it over?”

“More or less. The police said they would need my cooperation for further investigation.”

Fang Ming glanced at the surprisingly calm Chu Ruochun. Today, he didn’t lower his head to look at the road but instead gazed calmly at the police station.

“The training camp has been sealed by the police. He Jun and the others have taken a nanny car back to the company dormitory. How about I take you there?” Fang Ming said, feeling somewhat dazed. Just this morning, Jiang Qiao had been lively and active, and now he was gone forever. It all felt unreal.

As the car drove on the increasingly empty road with the night deepening, Chu Ruochun yawned wearily.

Suddenly, Fang Ming asked him, “Do you know how Jiang Qiao died?” He hadn’t had the chance to ask earlier, and he remembered what Chu Ruochun had said in the morning.

He said they would regret it.

Chu Ruochun replied, “His vitality was sucked dry by a ghost.”

Fang Ming chuckled, “Since when did you become so superstitious?”

“Did you go see Jiang Qiao?” Chu Ruochun asked him.

“I did.”

“Does the body look like it died of natural causes?”

“While he had no external injuries, I find it hard to believe that it’s related to ghosts and spirits instead of poisoning,” Fang Ming pondered. Looking at Jiang Qiao’s grayish, deteriorated skin, he thought it must be poison. Otherwise, what could cause a person to die in such a state? The forensic results hadn’t been released yet, and he didn’t know the truth; it was just speculation.

Chu Ruochun glanced at the blue sports car in front of them and smiled at the logo on it. “Because what I said is the truth.”

“Little Chu, tell me, is this incident related to you?”

“No, it’s not.”

“Jiang Qiao’s situation will eventually come to light, and the ‘991’ project is likely to be canceled. I will arrange other work for you.”

Fang Ming was well aware that the company had invested heavily in Jiang Qiao before, and now that Jiang Qiao was gone, the resources would be redistributed.

Chu Ruochun didn’t want to discuss Jiang Qiao’s matter further. As for the work, he wasn’t the same Chu Ruochun as before. Without his singing and dancing skills, he needed to make it clear to Fang Ming.

“I don’t want to take on work related to singing and dancing anymore.”

“Why? You’re quite talented.”

“I was deeply affected today.”

Fang Ming thought he was referring to the scapegoating incident, “Alright, you can go and act in the web drama ‘Little Sweet Biscuit.’ I happen to have an opportunity for that.”

Chu Ruochun shook his head, “No singing, no dancing, no acting. Is there anything else?”

Fang Ming was getting a bit annoyed. Was Chu Ruochun starting to be difficult?

“Alright, consider it a favor. I watched the recording of your livestream this afternoon, and He Jun cleared your name. You’re no longer tainted. I’ll recommend you to join a variety show with Du Jiawei.”

He had a bunch of newcomers on his hands, and he thought that with Jiang Qiao, everything would go smoothly. But now, with this incident, Chu Ruochun was the only one who could be considered a slightly more famous newcomer.

“I’ll just plan your future development again,” Fang Ming said to himself.

Chu Ruochun wasn’t particularly concerned about it. He knew he wouldn’t stay in the entertainment industry for long or become a star. For now, after his recent rebirth, he wanted to adapt for a while.

“I want to take a few days off,” Chu Ruochun said.

“Alright, the recording for the next episode of Du Jiawei’s variety show is scheduled for next week. You can take a few days off.”

Chu Ruochun nodded, feeling increasingly tired.

Fang Ming dropped him off at the dormitory building of the company. Chu Ruochun then used a bit of his spiritual energy to locate his original dorm room, which had a keypad lock and didn’t require a key, making it more convenient.

The room was pitch black inside, but he could sense that every room was occupied. One room even had two people living in it.

Chu Ruochun found his own room, which he occupied alone. Fortunately, the original Chu Ruochun was relatively neat and clean. He took a shower, tidied up a bit, and went to bed.

—

The news of a fatality at the 991 training camp had caused quite a stir. After the trainees left the police station, the news about Jiang Qiao’s death was quickly clarified by various media outlets.

#Jiang Qiao 991#

This suddenly trending topic made netizens who were following the 991 incident immediately understand what had happened!

㇐ Oh my God, did Jiang Qiao die?

㇐ I can’t believe it, why did it have to be him? He must have been killed by someone!

㇐ Can someone tell me what exactly happened? What happened to Jiang Qiao?

㇐ Is it really him?

㇐ @99 1 official account, I want to know the truth!

㇐ I watched a livestream of a trainee a couple of days ago. In order not to fall behind in the upcoming performance, he practiced for more than fifteen hours a day! One of the trainees from Group B collapsed from exhaustion and had to be rushed to the hospital! If it wasn’t for a reliable teammate performing CPR in time, he might not have made it. Could it be that Jiang Qiao also died due to the excessive training intensity?

㇐ Not necessarily, right? Directed to @HorrorMovieLovers, challenging your worldview!

Fans began to attack the show’s production team, demanding to know how Jiang Qiao had died and what they had done.

Marketing accounts that smelled an opportunity for a boost in engagement speculated on Jiang Qiao’s cause of death. Videos related to this incident were dissected and criticized extensively.

As they dug deeper, they found the live stream from that afternoon. Video clips of Ding Zhaozhao’s livestream, along with three specific clips, gained massive attention.

One was Chu Ruochun’s “Three Minutes” video in which he defended his innocence. In this video, He Jun revealed the truth about the fight incident, shedding light on the unscrupulous actions of their talent agency. Fans who supported Chu Ruochun felt that he had been wronged. Everyone knew that He Jun had the closest relationship with Jiang Qiao, so whatever he said was considered the truth. Why would the talent agency mistreat its own trainees, just because Chu Ruochun lacked connections?

However, the company couldn’t easily respond to this situation. There were three individuals involved in the incident: Lu Qing, Jiang Qiao, and Chu Ruochun. If the company apologized to Chu Ruochun now, it might become a reason for antis to attack the company in the future. More importantly, they were already overwhelmed by the Jiang Qiao incident and had no time to deal with whether Chu Ruochun could clear his name. At this point, they could only remain silent and wait for the police to provide their conclusion, whether Jiang Qiao’s death was due to overtraining or some other reason.

The other video, separately edited from the first, occurred around the same time. But why was it cut and edited separately?

Because the second video would shatter people’s worldview. In the video, He Jun rushed into the training room, and behind him, a black claw could be seen. More accurately, it was a long, withered hand, resembling the claw of a bird, with diseased-looking nails. It appeared for only a second but was infinitely enlarged by the video editor, making it extremely horrifying!

㇐ Who is the owner of this hand, and how did it come about? Is it Jiang Qiao?

In another video, the door to the training room was knocked on again. Chu Ruochun suggested not to open it, but He Jun and the others didn’t listen and opened the door to let Jiang Qiao in.

The video focused on enlarging Jiang Qiao’s actions. Due to a power outage, the room was poorly lit, and they adjusted the video to the brightest setting. They could only see Jiang Qiao, who was standing at the door with his head half lowered and a gloomy expression. His hands reached out towards Yu Chun’s shoulders, but it was at this moment that the live broadcast signal was interrupted.

What exactly happened afterward, no one knew!

It was precisely because of this heavy suspense that netizens were discussing it fervently.

㇐ Have you compared the before and after? Chu Ruochun cleared his name in three minutes, and later, he told the others not to let Jiang Qiao in. Before Jiang Qiao entered, there appeared a mysterious withered hand. I checked the program’s schedule for that day, and in the afternoon, it only scheduled Ding Zhaozhao’s live broadcast for welfare. There were no other collective entertainment programs!

㇐ Damn, after watching that hand video, it scared the hell out of me! Thank goodness Chu Ruochun closed the door, or else He Jun’s neck would have been snapped!

㇐ Yeah, it felt like watching a horror movie, the immersion was so strong!

㇐ I watched the hand video and the video of Jiang Qiao appearing. There’s less than a two-minute gap between them. Why wasn’t Jiang Qiao scared? When he appeared, he seemed fine, but He Jun was terrified!

㇐ Ah, why did I click on this Weibo? It scared the hell out of me!

㇐ Could there really be ghosts?

㇐ It’s 1 a.m. now, why are you guys talking about such terrifying topics? I’m outta here, waiting for an official police report!

Whether there are ghosts or not, no one knows for sure. If Jiang Qiao’s death was purely due to natural causes, that would fit into the normal worldview. However, if there are circumstances that cannot be explained by conventional scientific theories, then it becomes a different matter.

At this moment, even more pressured than the 991 program team was the Criminal Investigation Brigade of the Baihua District Police Substation. Team leader Zhang Dongliang received the autopsy report from the forensic department.

The forensic expert summarized the findings for him: “There were no wounds on Jiang Qiao’s body, not even minor ones like needle marks. We also examined the residue in his stomach, and it indicates that he had a regular meal at noon with no traces of poisoning. His skin, on the other hand, had lost seventy percent of its moisture, meaning he was like a mummified corpse.”

Zhang Dongliang asked, “We reviewed the live video from the afternoon, and around 4:30 PM, he was still alive. How could he suddenly lose so much moisture? Have there been any similar cases before?”

Forensic Dr. Hong replied, “It’s highly unlikely for a person’s body to lose that much moisture in just two to three hours. Even if he was engaging in strenuous physical activity without drinking water in the afternoon, it wouldn’t result in this level of dehydration. His body was almost completely shriveled.”

Zhang Dongliang couldn’t help but recall what Chu Ruochun had told him. No, he was a police officer, and this case was just somewhat complicated. He couldn’t jump to conclusions based on unusual circumstances, especially when the explanation seemed so unreliable.

“How about you conduct a more thorough examination, focusing on the possibility of poisoning? We’ll also reinspect the scene at the training camp tomorrow morning.”

“That’s a good idea. Perhaps I missed something,” said Forensic Dr. Hong. He had never encountered such a peculiar case, and he was determined to find answers.

After communicating with the forensic expert, Xiao Zhou, who was responsible for online matters, sent Zhang Dongliang the videos that were currently circulating on the internet.

After watching the videos, Zhang Dongliang had a headache. This Chu Ruochun was indeed quite eccentric. His three-minute self-proclaimed innocence had left a small fraction of netizens intrigued, but most still believed that he and He Jun were just acting. Were they really just acting? When he was taking He Jun’s statement, there didn’t seem to be any close friendship between the two.

Xiao Li leaned over to Xiao Zhou’s computer to watch the video and said, “Could it be a coincidence? Who can really predict the future?”

Xiao Zhou replied, “They must have coordinated this in advance through their phones.”

Xiao Li nodded and said, “Makes sense. Nowadays, the entertainment industry excels at crafting personas. I never expected they would incorporate mysticism into their image.”

Xiao Zhou added, “But it’s quite intriguing.”

Zhang Dongliang assigned them tasks, saying, “Alright, time is of the essence. Let’s continue working. The online world is still focused on Jiang Qiao’s case. And remember, as police officers, we must believe in science. All these mystical tricks are just deceptions. If anyone believes in them, I’ll transfer you to a local police station to help educate people about fraud prevention.”

Xiao Li sneakily glanced at Captain Zhang and thought to himself that Chu Ruochun was quite impressive. Marketing and manipulation of personas had reached a whole new level, but they needed to crack down on fraudulent behavior, including deceiving fans!

The online frenzy didn’t affect Chu Ruochun at all. He slept deeply for twelve hours, and afterward, he felt much lighter and more energized. His spiritual power had also become more abundant, and he was adapting even better to his new changes compared to the previous day.

Over the past few days, Jiang Qiao’s case has been making headlines, and the 991 program team faced heavy criticism. Even government-affiliated media started reporting on the incident.

Notably, Jiang Qiao’s parents and the boss of Qingju, who happened to be Jiang Qiao’s uncle, had a falling out. They resented Jiang Qiao’s uncle for taking care of their child, only for him to lose his life. Gossipy reporters even captured the moment when Jiang Qiao’s uncle received a slap from his sister-in-law.

Every day, there were new gossip stories dominating the top trending topics. The heat around Jiang Qiao’s death slowly diminished. After investigating the scene, the police ruled out homicide but still couldn’t determine the exact cause of death. The family was relentless, visiting the Baihua Sub-Bureau every day to make noise.

After resting for a few days, Chu Ruochun was about to start his new job. Tomorrow, he would begin work on the variety show, and Fang Ming wanted to brief him on what to expect.

Fang Ming, of course, didn’t want to put all his eggs in one basket. Besides Chu Ruochun, there was also He Jun to consider.

The company’s dormitories weren’t far from the office, and Chu Ruochun walked there, taking about half an hour to arrive.

As soon as he entered the company building, Chu Ruochun felt a resentful gaze. A woman of average height rushed toward him, clutching a bag full of rivets and attempting to strike him. “You’re Chu Ruochun, right? You’re the one who killed my son!”

Chu Ruochun took two steps back to dodge her attack, narrowly avoiding getting hit. The frantic woman continued to swing the bag’s chain!

“You’re the murderer! You’ll face retribution! Go to hell!”

She was going mad, trying to hit Chu Ruochun. However, no matter how hard she chased after him, she couldn’t even touch his clothes. It wasn’t until the security guards arrived to restrain her that Chu Ruochun stood still in front of the middle-aged woman, studying her face for a moment.

She had prominent cheekbones, sparse eyebrows, and narrow eyes. People with this type of appearance usually had an extreme protective instinct, indulging their children without limits.

Everything has two sides, and one must act with moderation. Excessiveness leads to consequences. 

Chu Ruochun spoke slowly, “Madam, from observing your physiognomy, your excessive indulgence and limitless indulgence towards your child contributed to all this. Do you know what kind of person is willing to go to such lengths to take him away? Excessive indulgence leads to suffering, while diligence and simplicity nurture talent.”