Case Files Chapter 91: Horror at the Studio (1)

Translated by Vivian of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Addis

 

Everything started from the famous weekly gossip.

It was said that after Jin MaiLong succeeded in pursuing Le Fan, he was very self-aware and knew his place. It wasn’t that his nature of being a player had changed too much; instead, it was because all of his attention was focused on Le Fan. Love could ignite a man’s responsibility, and his male instinct made Jin MaiLong want to establish a good image of himself. He had even rushed home to swear to his father that he was going to turn over a new leaf, work hard to learn the family business, and become an outstanding successor.

However, when doing business, it was inevitable for there to be many interpersonal relationships, wine, and entertainment. That day, Jin MaiLong, as an investor, had had a few drinks with some people in the film industry, and he had naturally wanted to toady up to some of the young actors. Everyone was flirting around, and Jin MaiLong also joined in on the fun, partly because he was drunk. Then, one of the actors helped escort him out of the hall, and they happened to be stopped at the door by some paparazzi, who snapped countless ambiguous photos of them.

“No wonder FanFan is so moody these days…” Lin Bai looked at the copy of the Film Entertainment Weekly the others had shown him and shook his head.

“I see him sharpening knives in the dissection room all the time. He wouldn’t kill him, would he?” Ding Ding frowned.

“Don’t worry, Le Fan has a lot of finesse. At most, he would castrate him.” Chen QiaoYu grinned.

“…What are you guys talking about?” Zheng Fei scratched his head.

Gu Xiang smiled vaguely.

“Brother Fei, how oblivious can you get?!” exclaimed Ding Ding. “Can those keen eyes of yours really not see what’s going on?!”

Zheng Fei continued to blink in confusion.

Ding Ding explained everything to him in exasperation.

“Huh? When did they get together?!” Zheng Fei was shocked.

“Never mind, rotten wood can’t be carved,” interjected Chen QiaoYu. “Do you have any problems with this?”

“Of course not!” Zheng Fei shook his head vigorously in front of the two women’s fiery gazes. “I-It’s not like I’ve never seen it before.”

“Where have you seen it before?!”

“…When I served in the army, I’ve, ahem, seen some things.”

Guan Jin was resting his chin on his hand and listening quietly. Lu YunYang was next to him, also resting his chin on his hand, and quietly enjoying Guan Jin’s side profile and his smooth neckline.

When life was plain, it was relaxing, but also a little boring. Since a good show was already here, he didn’t mind fanning the flames.

*****

At noon, in the police station’s cafeteria.

Everyone was eating together listlessly.

Guan Jin said slowly, “YunYang told me that he’s quite close with the president of JingTian Entertainment. Seeing as everyone’s so free lately, he can take everyone to the studio to take a look for fun.”

Lu YunYang, who had suddenly been called on, was taken aback for a second. Then, he went along with it right away. “Yes, I heard that recently, JingTian has been working on a movie starring Yan Qing ¹ and Yu ManTing. It would be interesting to take a look.”

Ding Ding’s and Chen QiaoYu’s eyes lit up. “Really? Yan Qing is our idol, ahhh!”

“Oh, Yu ManTing…?” Zheng Fei also expressed his interest towards the queen of acting.

JingTian Film Studio? Le Fan’s expression suddenly darkened.

Guan Jin glanced at him and continued, “I heard that this movie is a large production, and the Jinshi company made a big investment. Perhaps we’ll gain a deeper understanding after taking a look.”

Le Fan froze briefly and was lost in thought.

“An understanding of what?” Lin Bai was perplexed.

“An understanding of film and movie production.”

*****

After work, Lu YunYang was cooking in the kitchen when he asked, “How come you suddenly want to go to the studio? Besides, aren’t you closer to Min Yan than I am?”

Guan Jin leaned against the doorframe, A-Gua following behind him. “I’m so bored, and don’t you think seeing who that ‘homewrecker’ is and forcing Le Fan to quickly make a move will be very interesting? Also, if we’re not allowed in, then it’s your fault, not mine.”

“…Good idea.” Lu YunYang could only express his absolute pleasure to take the blame for him.

*****

“It doesn’t seem proper for us to skip work to hang out.” Gu Xiang was still a little uneasy after getting out of the car.

“Don’t worry, there’s only half a day until it’s the weekend, and the leader has gone off to who knows where. Moreover, there haven’t been any cases recently, so we’d just be wasting energy if we stayed at work.” Chen QiaoYu beamed.

Uh… then what about wasting gasoline…

Le Fan trailed behind the others and criticized himself fiercely, but he just couldn’t help but wonder what that actor who could sweep Jin MaiLong off his feet was like. (Jin: I already said I don’t even know what he looks like, the reporter was just blatantly lying qaq)

“Ah, Second Young Master Lu, you’re here!” The studio’s manager, Dong ChangLong, was waiting at the doorway as he nodded and bowed to greet them. 

Guan Jin crossed his arms and smiled. “So we meet again.”

Only then did Dong ChangLong recognize Guan Jin and Chen QiaoYu, and his heart thumped. “Officers, is there a case you need my help with?”

“This time, we only came to have a look around.”

Dong ChangLong sighed in relief. In any case, he only needed to follow the instructions of the president’s secretary and provide his best services.

The movie being currently filmed was the second installment of the famous director’s, Qin Tao’s, series, named “Guilt”. Qin Tao was extremely skilled in portraying characters, and he used fast scene transitions and the characters’ perspectives to express fear, tension, or excitement. Guilt was his first horror and thriller movie, and the first installment was a huge box-office hit and critically acclaimed. Thus, this year, he had continued to film a sequel of the same name, and he had even been able to get the winners of best actor and actress to play the lead roles. The media had been speculating about the movie ever since they started filming.

The weather was very cold, but fortunately, the scenes they were currently working on were all indoors. Today, they were filming a scene inside a theater, and it was taking place in the studio’s auditorium. When Dong ChangLong brought them to the auditorium, he showed them to their seats in the left box.

“Woww, it’s really Yan Qing!” Ding Ding jumped up in excitement. “Can I get a picture with him?”

“…It should be okay after he finishes filming this scene. Yan Qing is very well-mannered.” Although this was what Dong ChangLong said, his heart was pounding. He kept feeling that this group of uninvited guests may bring a lot of instability.

Yan Qing’s character was a playwright, and he was arguing about the arrangement of the scene with the theater manager, who was played by the female lead, Yu ManTing.

“Although you’re an investor, shouldn’t you respect the professionalism of the directors and actors regarding the performance details? Instead of gesturing and making random changes!” The playwright, Li Chen, that Yan Qing was playing, was the only person who expressed their true views without caring about the consequences. It was also because of this that it was very tense between him and the character Yu ManTing played, Wang MengNan.

“You!” Wang MengNan’s face paled in anger.

“Okay, okay, let’s just talk this out.” The play’s director hastily intervened. “Li Chen, you can just modify it a little, it won’t affect things too much.”

Li Chen didn’t say anything and turned around to walk off the stage. After walking down the stairs, he suddenly stopped and slowly turned back. His face contorted slightly, and his eyes had a strange light in them as he said slowly, “The play also has a soul. It will get angry, it will resist, it will punish, and it will kill…”

His ethereal voice echoed lightly in the auditorium, and for a moment, everyone was silent.

Director Qin Tao was also taken aback for a few seconds before he shouted, “Cut!”

Yun ManTing placed a hand over her heart. “Yan Qing, you scared me.”

Yan Qing smiled faintly. “We’re acting in a horror film, no?”

“His acting really is excellent. Just now, he had the look and behavior of a typical mentally ill patient.” Lu YunYang rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

“He wouldn’t have acted so much that he develops split personality disorder, would he?” Zheng Fei laughed.

“You’re the one with split personality disorder!” Ding Ding stomped on his foot.

Brain-impaired fans really were dangerous; Zheng Fei resolutely shut his mouth.

Yan Qing’s assistant, a woman around Ding Ding’s age who had a ponytail, rushed up to him holding a bottle of water. “Drink some water, your lips are getting dry.”

“Thanks.” Yan Qing took the bottle, drank a sip, and his gaze collided with the person who had exited the box. He couldn’t help but be startled, and his expression was a little uneasy.

“Hi! My name is Ding Ding, and I’m your diehard fan! Um, if it doesn’t disturb your work, can you give me your autograph?”

Yan Qing was a little surprised as he looked at the joyful woman in front of him. However, since she was with that person, she probably still had some connections.

“Of course. Thank you for your support.” Yan Qing took the pen she gave him and signed his name on a piece of paper.

“If it’s okay, can I also get a picture with you?” continued Ding Ding.

“…”

“Um, it’s not convenient for Yan Qing to take pictures while he is filming, why don’t you wait for him to wrap up for the day?” His assistant, Xiao Duo, stood in front of Yan Qing protectively.

Sizzle——Where the two women’s gazes met, sparks flew everywhere.

Le Fan’s eyes darted everywhere; it seemed that he hadn’t found that person yet.

“Director, can I wear different clothes for the next scene? I think that these clothes can’t show liveliness.” A slim man stood in front of Qin Tao, holding a set of clothes.

Le Fan took a closer look, and his expression immediately darkened.

“Okay, let’s do it.” When Qin Tao saw his black clothes, he also agreed.

The man glanced at the costume designer in pride and walked towards the changing rooms.

“Are you an actor in this movie?” Guan Jin suddenly stopped him.

Zhang Xin turned and looked at him strangely. “Of course. Who are you? You’re not part of the crew.”

“What role are you playing?” Le Fan suddenly added.

Zhang Xin seemed to feel refreshed, as he thought they were fans. “I’m the second male lead, and I act as Yan Qing’s cousin.”

“Oh, then when are you going to die?”

“…What do you mean?!”

Le Fan glanced at his small figure. “Isn’t this a horror movie? Starting from the last male and female lead, shouldn’t they all die until only the main leads are left?”

The corner of Qin Tao’s mouth also began to twitch: Do you think I’m a third-rate director?!

“You sure are conventional. I’m the second male lead, so I don’t die. The investors are very optimistic about me.” Zhang Xin glared at him.

“Sure enough, someone is backing him up.” Guan Jin fanned the flames even further.

In his mind, Le Fan had already beaten Jin MaiLong to a pulp. Actually, he originally hadn’t really believed that Jin MaiLong had cheated on him and was only angry that he had been rash and irresponsible. But from the looks of it now, had he been too naive?

The studio was very tense over here, and there was also a turbulent undercurrent on the other side.

“Yan Qing, your acting is really superb. I’ve seen all of your movies, and my favorite is Feng Lan~” Chen QiaoYu had completely dropped her mature act.

“You like Feng Lan ²? A lot of people didn’t really like that one.” Yan Qing was a little surprised.

“Of course! It feels as if you really are Feng Lan. I’ve never felt that a fictional character could be so moving, and it’s not because of the movie’s plot, it’s because of you yourself.”

Yan Qing’s gaze darkened: I’m Feng Lan? It really can’t be concealed.

“Compared to other actors, you’re practically mythical. You don’t have a professional background, and you don’t come from a very powerful family. You just went from rags to riches, purely based on your talent and hard work to achieve miracles.” Ding Ding also couldn’t help but praise him.

“I’m very flattered.” Yan Qing shook his head. “The entertainment industry isn’t somewhere you can succeed in just by working hard. I am merely luckier than others.” And this luckiness came with a hefty price.

Xiao Duo was very observant, and she quickly stepped forward again. “Miss, we’re about to shoot the next scene soon, please return to your seats!”

The sparks became even bigger.

“Next scene!”

“What’s this scene about?” Lin Bai and Zheng Fei reluctantly ended their conversation with Yu ManTing and returned to their seats.

“It seems to be where they are rehearsing in this theater, but something happened during the rehearsal, and someone died or something.” As someone who had seen a lot of real cases, Chen QiaoYu wasn’t very interested in the script.

Onstage, during the play’s rehearsal, Li Chen was sitting in the audience and watching carefully with the “director”.

“Sir, you came late today, the sign-up sheet is already full,” the registration officer said coolly.

“But I really need to use it, can you make an exception?” Zhang Xin said while hiding his worry.

“How can I make an exception for this?”

“It’s really very urgent, I have something I need to store.”

“Then…” The registration officer thought for a moment. “Our cabinets are all already full, but we have a very large wooden box that’s empty, and it has a lock.”

“That works, thank you!” He hastily paid and sprinted towards the box with his suitcase.

He unlocked the box using the given passcode and quickly opened the box’s lid.

Zhang Xin froze, and he suddenly staggered backwards, falling backwards in shock. Then, he scrambled up and ran downstage, his face contorted in panic. After a while, he screamed, “H-He’s dead!!!” His voice practically pierced the roof of the auditorium.

“Cut! That was excellent!” Qin Tao was very pleased.

Zhang Xin was still pointing a trembling finger at the box and couldn’t speak for a while; it seemed that he still hadn’t broken character yet.

“Tsk tsk, his acting skills aren’t bad at all,” Guan Jin said purposely.

Lu YunYang suddenly grabbed Guan Jin’s wrist gently and said in a low voice, “Sweating, rapid breathing, pupils dilating, eyes widening, and screaming… are signs of an adrenaline surge in which the body enters a state of stress. I do not think he is acting.”

Yan Qing was the first to rush onstage, and he peered into the box.

He covered his mouth and stumbled backwards. He turned around, and his face was pale.

 

“Damn! Have we really been possessed by Kogoro Mouri ³?!” exclaimed Lin Bai.