Case Files Chapter 94: Horror at the Studio (4)

Translated by Vivian of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Addis

 

In the end, Lu YunYang and Guan Jin were kicked out by the furious Lu YunShen…

However, Guan Jin wasn’t mad, and instead said a little happily, “If your brother can rebuke you like that everyday, I’d like to watch.”

Lu YunYang’s eyes lit up. “I can stay here and let my brother bully me everyday. You’re welcome to move in to watch.”

“Are you masochistic? Sorry, I’m not interested in perverts.”

The two of them teased each other until they arrived at the police station.

Spirits seemed to be a little low in the office, so Guan Jin raised an eyebrow. “What, is something the matter?”

“We found the initial murder scene.” Gu Xiang said, “It’s a swimming pool in another building on the set that’s frequently used. The pool is dry, and it’s been cleaned very well. However, Le Fan and the others used blacklights near the pool’s drain, and the blood samples were taken in for testing. Without a doubt, it’s the victim’s blood.”

“What’s the M.O.?”

“The victim lost a large amount of blood, and high levels of sedatives were found in the remaining blood left in the body, enough to knock someone out. On a vein in the victim’s right arm, we discovered a hole that must’ve come from a needle. We’re speculating that the killer first rendered the victim unconscious with the sedatives, before using equipment that’s often used by hospitals to draw blood. The killer let the victim’s blood flow out and down the drain. After the victim died of exsanguination, his blood flow stopped.” Gu Xiang continued, “Time of death was between two to three a.m. None of them have a corroborated alibi.”

“Oh? Weren’t the assistant director and staff members all staying at a hotel?” asked Guan Jin.

“That hotel is very ordinary, and the security system isn’t very good. They recently decided to replace the security camera outside, so they’re in the middle of taking down the old one and installing the new one. The crew members are all staying on the second floor, so it’s not impossible for them to get out using the balcony.” Zheng Fei took over the explanation.

“Well, not everyone can leap onto roofs and vault over walls like you, you know.” Guan Jin expressed his doubts.

“The hotel’s balconies have a large pipe next to them, and there’s also a tall column with a carved design, so it’s very easy to climb. As long as one has a bit of upper body strength, it’s no problem.” Zheng Fei huffed, “Who designed the building, they don’t have any safety awareness at all!”

That was all fine, so then why was the atmosphere so strange?

“We found one more thing.” Gu Xiang glanced at Ding Ding and Chen QiaoYu.

“We found a hair at the edge of the pool. Upon further investigation, we verified that that hair——is Yan Qing’s.”

Guan Jin’s eyes widened, and he subconsciously looked at Lu YunYang, who was frowning slightly. It seemed that Yan Qing’s alibi would have to be discounted.

“So you guys are sad that your idol’s image has been ruined?” Guan Jin finally understood.

“It hasn’t been ruined!” retorted Ding Ding. “This can only be used as evidence. After all, Yan Qing has filmed there before, so even if his hair is there, it can’t be regarded as a crucial piece of physical evidence.”

“That’s right! We have to work even harder to clear our idol’s name,” exclaimed Chen QiaoYu. “Besides, the pool was cleaned very thoroughly, so don’t you think it’s a little too obvious that only his hair was still there?”

“What if it really is him?” Guan Jin couldn’t help but ask out of curiosity.

“Then that just means that his acting skills are really superb, so our worship was not in vain…” Chen QiaoYu shrugged. “We have trust in him, but we won’t bring that bias into the investigation, so don’t worry.”

“I’ve never doubted that.”

With this sentence, Chen QiaoYu’s favorability of Guan Jin rose.

Guan Jin quietly whispered in Lu YunYang’s ear, “Looks like your brother-in-law is going to be troublesome. In case something goes wrong, don’t we have to face off against your brother? Of course, this ‘we’ doesn’t include you.”

Lu YunYang felt a surge of excitement as he felt Guan Jin’s breaths on his ear. However, there would be time for that later, so he mustered all of his self-control to calm down. “My brother is very acute, and he definitely wouldn’t be led astray. All these years, although the two of them don’t completely understand the other’s every move, he’s still very certain about his personality and moral character.”

“I also hope your brother’s judgement is right.”

“That’s for sure, our family excels at finding treasure.” Lu YunYang looked at Guan Jin with a scorching gaze.

“Your family ancestors were grave robbers?” Guan Jin raised an eyebrow.

“…Your comprehension really is unconventional.”

“Hm?” He narrowed his eyes.

“But I like it.”

“Hmph…”

*****

Because they had been forced to temporarily stop filming the movie, the set of Guilt 2 was empty and abandoned. Yan Qing stopped the car and walked into one of the buildings on set by himself.

This afternoon, after Lu YunYang and the others had left, Yan Qing had realized that the jade pendant he was always wearing was gone. Being with Lu YunShen all these years, he had never asked for expensive things, and Lu YunShen didn’t purposely buy him costly gifts, with one exception: the jade pendant.

Once, Yan Qing had gone to Xi’an to film a movie, and after they wrapped up, Lu YunShen specially rushed there to tour with him. They had been wandering in an antique market, and in one of the stores, there was a jade pendant in a special shape hanging around the owner’s waist. On it was carved the word “Qing” in fancy lettering. Yan Qing had never been interested in pendants, but at the time, he hadn’t been able to pull his eyes away from it. Unfortunately, that jade pendant had already belonged to someone, and the store owner didn’t intend on selling it. The next day, Yan Qing had flown back on a plane, still brooding about the pendant. Unexpectedly, when he got home, Lu YunShen was holding that piece of jade in his hand like he was performing a magic trick, saying that it was a gift for Yan Qing.

Although he didn’t know how Lu YunShen had convinced the store owner to let go of it, the price definitely hadn’t been low. This was the only gift Lu YunShen had given him, and he always knew what Yan Qing wanted most. Thus, even though it was just a piece of jade, it had moved Yan Qing greatly.

Now, he had lost the pendant, and it was like a piece of Yan Qing’s heart was missing so that he was extremely panicked. He hadn’t told Lu YunShen and had simply gone to the studio by himself to look for it.

He recalled that there had been an intense chase scene on the third floor, so it was very likely that it had fallen off while they were running. As he thought this, Yan Qing began to scour each floor carefully.

Since Guilt was a horror and suspense movie, the scenery in the building was very sinister and gloomy. Along with the fact that the building was empty, it indeed was quite creepy. Yan Qing could only think about the whereabouts of the pendant, so at first, he hadn’t paid attention to his surroundings. However, as he walked up the stairs by himself, he gradually felt more and more unsettled.

The third floor was one of the murder scenes in the movie, so on the bed in the large room, there was still artificial blood splattered on it. Yan Qing ignored it and turned on his flashlight to search the room carefully…

Creak——

Yan Qing froze, and he heard a sound of a door opening that came from the furthest room on the floor. There shouldn’t be anyone here at this hour; had he heard wrong, or had it been the wind? Yan Qing hesitated for a moment, but in the end, his instinct told him to check it out.

As he walked through room after room, Yan Qing quietly moved around the furniture and props scattered messily on the floor. He didn’t know why, but his heart kept getting tighter, and an inexplicable tension spread through his body. He began to regret his rash decision of walking here; curiosity had killed the cat, right?

“Is someone there?” Yan Qing couldn’t help but ask. “Are you from the crew? I came with a few coworkers to rehearse some scenes,” he said purposely.

There was no response, and there only seemed to be the sound of a draft blowing across the glass windows. Yan Qing took a deep breath; perhaps he had been too invested in the movie lately.

He thought about it and still picked up a baseball bat from the ground. Having a self-defense weapon made him feel more at ease. Yan Qing turned on his flashlight again and shone it in the corners of the room. When he confirmed the pendant wasn’t there, he was about to turn back around to continue looking.

Suddenly, a chill ran down his spine, and fear slithered around him like a serpent——there was someone behind him. He wasn’t sure whether it was the so-called sixth sense or intuition, but he did know that he wasn’t wrong about the presence of a person behind him.

Yan Qing closed his eyes and tightened his grip on the bat in his hands. I have to be fast, YunShen has taught me before, I——

The person placed a hand on his shoulder.

“Ah!!!”

The person dodged as Yan Qing swung the bat and frowned. “Say, have you acted in too many horror movies?”

“…Officer Guan?!”

When Yan Qing saw who it was, his legs seemed to turn to jelly. “Why didn’t you say something? I thought- I thought——”

“You thought I was a murderer or ghost?” Guan Jin looked at him in amusement. “Then why did you come here? To train your courage?”

“I came to look for something, and I heard movement just now, so I came here to check it out. I didn’t think it would be you.” Yan Qing sighed in relief. He didn’t know whether it was because Guan Jin was a police officer, or if it was because of his seemingly intimate relationship with Lu YunYang, but he felt very trustworthy.

“What are you looking for?” pressed Guan Jin.

“…Something important that I lost…”

“Is it this?” Guan Jin held up a jade pendant that hung from a red string.

Yan Qing’s eyes immediately lit up, and he grabbed the pendant, saying excitedly, “Yes! Where did you find it?”

“The first floor. I accidentally kicked over a porcelain vase, and this pendant fell out of it.” Guan Jin rubbed his nose.

“A vase on the first floor?” Yan Qing was confused as to how his pendant could have gotten there. “Anyway, if it wasn’t for you, I might never have found it. Thank you! Thanks!”

“It’s nothing.” Guan Jin waved generously, making sure not to mention that the well-made jar and glazed tea set next to it had also shattered under his foot…

“Are you here to investigate? Does this place have something to do with the case?” asked Yan Qing.

“Yes, although it’s already been searched, I wanted to take a look myself.” Guan Jin put his hands into his pockets; this building sure was cold. “I’m going that way to look. Since you’re familiar with this place, you should lead the way, lest I accidentally break another prop.”

“…Another?”

“Don’t worry about it.”

“But didn’t you come from that direction?” Yan Qing asked in confusion.

“I came from the other way, behind you. Otherwise, how could I have appeared behind you?”

Yan Qing’s expression changed slightly. “So the sound of the door opening that came from there wasn’t you? Could I have heard wrong?”

Guan Jin narrowed his eyes. “You’re saying that you heard a door open up ahead?”

“Yes. Up ahead is the other exit, and it’s near the back staircase. For effect, the hinges on that door are very creaky.”

Guan Jin motioned for him to be quiet and slowly walked ahead. Yan Qing followed him silently, yet he felt a little excited.

After passing three rooms, Guan Jin suddenly gestured for him to stop and pulled him to the wall. He said in a low voice, “There’s someone in the next room.”

Yan Qing’s eyes widened.

He was worthy of being an idol; even when he casually blinked, it was powerful and entrancing. Yan Qing was also the type that Guan Jin used to like… Hm? Why had he said used to…

“Guan Jin?” Yan Qing looked at his conflicted expression, and couldn’t help but interrupt.

“…Stay here, I’ll go take a look.”

“Be careful.”

Yan Qing waited anxiously by himself, and less than a minute later, Guan Jin was walking towards him silently. He grabbed his hand and retreated backwards.

“Keep your movements quiet.”

Yan Qing didn’t ask further and cautiously ran down the stairs behind him.

On the first floor, Guan Jin suddenly stopped and shielded Yan Qing behind him. At the corner, someone sneakily poked their head out, and when they saw Guan Jin and Yan Qing, they gasped in fright and stumbled backwards.

“Aren’t you one of the actors?” Guan Jin examined him.

“…I’m the second male lead! And my name is Zhang Xin!” Zhang Xin seemed to be a little angry.

Of course Guan Jin remembered his name, it was just that he hadn’t left a good impression.

“Then may I ask what you’re doing at the crime scene that has already been sealed off for investigation?”

“I wanted to get a better sense of the movie.”

“How dedicated. However, this place is under police supervision, so you’d best go somewhere else.”

“If that’s the case, then why is Brother Yan here?” Zhang Xin looked doubtful.

“I invited him here as my guide. This building isn’t small, no?”

Zhang Xin humphed and left reluctantly.

After they exited the building, there was a costume drama being filmed not too far away. Yan Qing smoothed his clothes down and felt like he had returned back to Earth.

“Who was in that room just then?”

Guan Jin gazed at the overcast sky. “It might snow, so you should head home. Unless you guys resume filming, don’t come here again, especially by yourself.”

*****

Guan Jin tossed and turned in the bed by himself as he thought about what he had seen. Why had that person been there? And he had even been hiding in that type of place. Exactly what had he been doing?

The lock on the front door clicked, and A-Gua looked up alertly before lying back down lazily.

Tch. Guan Jin had thought that he wasn’t coming back. He checked his phone; it was already 11 p.m.

Who cares, I’m going to sleep!

At midnight, Guan Jin reluctantly got up to go to the restroom.

When he passed through the living room, he glanced at Lu YunYang, who was sleeping on the sofa. Clearly, the sofa was a challenge for him due to his height.

Lu YunYang suddenly coughed in his sleep. Although the living room had heating, it was still facing the front door, and this old building always had a draft. He didn’t have a cold, did he? It seemed that that guy’s lung still hadn’t recovered completely… Dammit!

Lu YunYang opened his eyes and saw that it was Guan Jin poking his arm. He abruptly sat up. “It’s so late, what is it? Are you feeling uncomfortable? Are you hungry?”

Guan Jin’s expression was unreadable in the dark. “You can go inside to sleep.”

Huh? Lu YunYang froze.

Guan Jin tilted his head. “You don’t want to? Then never mind, I’ll——”

The person on the sofa had already gathered his blanket and pillow and disappeared into the bedroom.

…

“Stay away from me.”

“It’s cold at night, and it’s warmer if we’re closer to each other,” pushed Lu YunYang.

Guan Jin rolled his eyes.

 

Lu YunYang didn’t know why he had suddenly been pardoned and allowed to stay in the bedroom, but he knew that there was only one step left until his ultimate goal. He hoped it wouldn’t take too long; after all, it wasn’t healthy to be able to see something but not be able to eat it. Just like just then, in his dream, he had been kissing Guan Jin and even choked on his own saliva…