We got back to the hotel well past nine. Wang Dali's cold had eased a bit, but he was bored stiff watching TV alone. When he saw me, he was as happy as if he'd found a jackpot.
That day had thoroughly worn me out. I boiled some water for a bath, then lay back comfortably watching TV. Flipping channels, I stumbled on a romance drama—a genre I'd never cared for before. The scene showed the leads accidentally falling and sharing a kiss.
Wang Dali slapped his thigh and laughed, "So cheesy! These writers don't use their brains at all. Why don't I ever get to experience anything like this?"
I asked, "Hey, if something like that happened in real life accidentally, would girls hate it?"
"Definitely!" he said.
I felt disheartened. But why exactly? Even I couldn't say.
Then Wang Dali said thoughtfully, "Well, there are exceptions."
"What do you mean?" I perked up.
He told me about a high school buddy. One summer day during some horseplay, a girl accidentally sat on him while he was wearing shorts. You can imagine how awkward it was—he had a physiological reaction. The whole class teased them endlessly, nicknaming the guy 'Chair Brother.' But surprisingly, after a while, those two actually started dating.
Wang Dali stared at the ceiling at a 45-degree angle and sighed, "That guy's good-looking, like Takeshi Kaneshiro. Tall, great at basketball—totally unfair. Handsome guys can get girls even when they mess around."
I pushed back my wet hair after the bath and asked, "Dali, what do you think of my looks?"
He studied me a moment, then said, "If you clean up a bit, you kinda look like that fresh young star Lu Han, just…"
"Just what?" I pressed.
"I suspect all your skill points went into IQ, because your EQ is zero. No, actually, negative!" Wang Dali analyzed seriously.
I pulled a face. Why did everyone say that?
Wang Dali continued, "You probably didn't know, but in sophomore year, Xiao Li from our class liked you, and you didn't catch on at all. Later she got together with some gym freak, and everyone felt sorry for you."
I was shocked. I'd always thought I was doomed to be alone till 25. Turns out I did have my chance with a crush. I said, "Damn, why didn't I notice? She always glared at me, and once when I tried to say hi on the stairs, she ran away. I thought she hated me."
"Come on, have some EQ! Girls only act bratty when they like you," Wang Dali gave me a lesson.
"Why?"
"Because they're shy and too embarrassed to admit it, so they blush and get awkward around you."
"Oh!" It made sense.
Wang Dali sighed, "I used to get along with the girls in class, casting a wide net. But one by one, they ended up with other guys, and I was left all alone. Turns out, they just saw me as one of the girls."
I said, "Don't worry, you still have me."
He patted my hand, full of feeling, "Good brother."
Lying down later, I kept mulling over his words: Girls only act bratty when they like you. Wang Dali was no amateur in romance—could this be true?
After some restless thinking, I sighed and counted over a hundred sheep before falling asleep.
The next morning, Huang Xiaotao announced in our case group chat: "This morning Consultant Song is treating everyone to breakfast!" Cheers erupted.
She privately messaged me: "Don't worry, I'll cover breakfast."
Huang Xiaotao really knew how to manage people. Yesterday, we worked the cops like laborers; today, she gave them a small treat—soy milk and fried dough sticks for over a dozen people, which didn't cost much.
I'm more experienced dealing with the dead, but when it comes to the living, I'll admit she's better.
She then asked, "Song Yang, what do you want to eat?"
I replied, "Anything's fine."
She said, "Where should I get it from?" followed by a bloody knife emoji.
I said, "Soy milk and youtiao, anything works."
I checked my email. Lao Yao had indeed dug up some interesting info. In ancient times, some people secretly worshipped cat ghosts—vengeful spirits of dead cats, with black cats being the most powerful. These cat ghosts feed on their owner's essence, and their temperament is as wild and untamable as cats themselves. If not controlled, they can kill their masters. But if tamed, they're even stronger than fox spirits.
Worshippers could curse someone through the cat ghost. The victim would feel needle-like pains in their limbs, then symptoms would spread throughout their body, eventually reaching the heart. When heart pain struck, the victim would cough up blood and die, while their wealth transferred entirely to the worshipper.
Hence, the cat ghost had a special name—the Fortune-Bringing Spirit Cat.
Lao Yao also found legends about the Jinhua cat. Like the cat ghost, it's a black cat raised by humans, but alive. After three years of keeping it, it turns into a demon. Jinhua cats often sit on rooftops at night, mouth open to absorb moonlight's essence, and return indoors to sleep when the sun rises.
They can mesmerize people, shape-shifting to appear as a handsome man to women or a beautiful woman to men.
Jinhua cats sometimes sneak into homes to urinate in drinking water. The drinker's health then gradually declines until bedridden. If this happens, one must cover the patient with a blue cloth overnight. If cat hair appears on the cloth by morning, it's the work of a Jinhua cat.
The cure involves an experienced hunter with wolfdogs to catch the cat. Once caught, the cat's skin is stripped to prevent shape-shifting. The patient then eats the cat meat to recover.
If the patient is male, he must eat female cat meat; if female, male cat meat—otherwise, the patient will soon die.
Lao Yao also found a strange case from ten years ago: a man in his twenties was found dead at home, but his body looked old and frail like an old man. The police found a broken cat statue with some black cat hairs hidden inside.
Based on the legends, this man probably failed to control his Fortune-Bringing Spirit Cat and was backfired on.
I pondered. Legends and reality obviously differ. Judging from the clues, the Fortune-Bringing Spirit Cat and the Jinhua cat might be one and the same. The victim showed no needle marks but the mysterious death and wealth transfer perfectly matched the lore.
What's the truth behind the Fortune-Bringing Spirit Cat? Is it a biological energy field, or a vengeful spirit?
I couldn't say, but I wouldn't back down. Whether it's a dagger or a cursed statue, it's just a tool. The real culprit is the one using it.
In other words, the person benefiting greatly from these two cases is the mastermind behind it all!