As soon as Yu Xiao’s voice rang out, the sinister presence that had been hovering around her came to a halt, then swiftly coalesced in front of her, taking on the shape of a woman who looked exactly like Yu Xiao.


    Every detail was replicated with eerie precision: the same clothes, the same hairstyle, the same expression, and the same movements. The only difference was in the eyes, which were devoid of any spark or emotion, unlike Yu Xiao’s.


    With a curious gaze, Yu Xiao studied the ghostly apparition in front of her, continuing to sing, “Pluck the stars to give to you…”


    The female spectre echoed her, singing, “Snatch the moon to give to you…”


    The upbeat rhythm of “Little Apple” filled the entire morgue, creating a stark contrast with the gloomy atmosphere. For Yu Xiao, this was a fascinating experiment, so she sang with gusto, hoping to get the ghost right on the first try.


    She repeated “Little Apple” twice in this manner. As she sang, she had a vague sense that she might have messed up some of the lyrics, but she shrugged it off, thinking that ghosts wouldn’t know any better.


    …Or would they?


    After the second round, the ghost showed no signs of change, while Yu Xiao’s voice was getting hoarse. She realised this wasn’t working; the ghost clearly didn’t appreciate this song. She pondered for a moment and decided it must be the song selection. “Little Apple” was too cheerful, while this ghost seemed to have suffered some heartbreak, so she might respond better to something more sombre.


    Yu Xiao searched her memory for a suitable song and quickly found one, switching the melody without hesitation.


    “Selling my love, forcing me to leave, finally knowing the truth, tears falling down~”


    The ghost followed suit, singing about the cruel trade of love.


    After two renditions of “Love’s Transaction”, the ghost still remained impassive. Yu Xiao felt a surge of frustration; her throat was parched, her mouth bitter, her breathing ragged, her chest tight, and her breath short…


    She couldn’t take it anymore, she had to switch the song!


    But damn, her playlist was scraping the bottom of the barrel!


    She couldn’t handle any of the mushy stuff, she could only manage to croak out the choruses, barely keeping up with the rhythm. Bloody hell! It was all that blasted Gu Shu’s fault, if he hadn’t nicked her phone, what would she be singing now?


    Yu Xiao racked her brains for a solution and finally settled on a desperate strategy: she would only sing the high notes.


    With her voice raspy, she belted out, “You smell of her perfume~ It’s a crime my nose commits~”


    “…”


    Outside the morgue, a crowd of people gathered, their eyes fixed on the entrance. Zhou Xiao Zhen squatted on the ground, her hands covering her face, a picture of misery.


    Zhao Lan crouched beside her, leaning in close, whispering, “Don’t worry, Smiley’s tough, she’s even done her research, she’ll be fine.”


    Hearing this, Zhou Xiao Zhen felt no relief. She sighed, “Of course, I know Smiley sis will be fine, I’m worried about myself.”


    “Huh?”


    “That damn Gu Shu changed the rules, even if you don’t answer, the ghosts will come after you.” Zhou Xiao Zhen sniffed, feeling sorry for herself. “I can feel it, I’m getting colder and colder. There must be a ghost nearby.”


    “Oh, that…” Zhao Lan was clueless about this, so she could only suggest, “Don’t be scared, worst comes to worst, when the ghost shows up, you can ask it to play mahjong, plenty of people here.”


    “Sigh, guess that’s the plan.” Zhou Xiao Zhen glanced at Gu Shu, who’d been holding the same posture, staring at the morgue’s door. Her voice, as fragile as a spider’s web, murmured, “Gu Shu seems wicked, seems like he’s got a grudge against Xiao, she’s all by herself in there with no phone, wondering if she can cope.”


    “Can he not loathe Smiley?” Zhao Lan wondered, putting herself in Gu Shu’s shoes, she’d probably loathe Smiley too, “Hope she’s alright.”


    **


    With a raspy voice, Yu Xiao’s voice cracked on the final note, a harsh sound that scraped her throat raw. She slumped on the morgue bed where a corpse lay, clutching her chest with one hand and reaching out with the other. “Have you no heart, you monster? Have you no pity for the living? Do you want me to bleed from my throat for you?”


    The ghost seemed indifferent to her suffering. As soon as her song ended, it shed its human guise and revealed its true horror. Its hair hung in filthy clumps, soaked with rot and maggots. Its eyes were empty holes that oozed blood. Its mouth was a slash of flesh that ran from ear to ear, filled with sharp teeth that dripped with saliva. It dove at Yu Xiao with a piercing scream.


    Yu Xiao met its gaze with a steely one of her own. She pulled out a thick bundle of talismans from her pocket. “I tried to be nice, but you’ve gone too far.” She said, her voice icy and steady.


    The ghost, in mid-air, spotted the talismans and panicked. It tried to stop its momentum, but it was too late. It skidded to a halt, barely avoiding the talismans by a hair’s breadth.


    If ghosts could sweat, this one would named Niagara Falls.


    Yu Xiao got up from the bed, her eyes locked on the ghost. The ghost felt a wave of dread and vanished, dissolving into a plume of black smoke.


    Yu Xiao scoffed. “Coward. You’re afraid, aren’t you?”


    “…”


    But the ghost had no choice but to reappear, its face contorted in pain, its bloody tears streaming down.


    “Didn’t you hear so many songs with no reaction?” Yu Xiao advanced towards it.


    “Weren’t you supposed to attack me?” Yu Xiao closed the distance.


    “Weren’t you supposed to smile like a lunatic?” Yu Xiao cornered it.


    The ghost cowered before. Yu Xiao, who had no talisman in her hand, grabbed a handful of the ghost’s hair and jerked it back and forth. “You think you’re so tough, huh?”


    The ghost’s hideous face twitched, then twisted into a smile more grotesque than a sob.


    “Oh, now you smile? A second ago, you looked like a dead fish,” Yu Xiao said, her hands on her hips, her chin up, her attitude that of a morgue tyrant. “You were acting all hard with me when I smiled at you first. Now that I’m rough with you, you want to smile. What’s wrong with you? I can’t even find the words for you…”


    The ghost wept, truly wept, a wretched weep. When that bastard had killed her, dumped her in the wild with no trace of who she was, she had never wept so bitterly.


    Her piercing cries filled the morgue, heightening its creepy mood. If anyone were to stumble in at that time, they might be too terrified to even weep.


    “Cut it out, stop weeping,” Yu Xiao said, snatching a random sheet from a nearby bed and awkwardly dabbing the ghost’s face with it. “What are you weeping for? Is it worth it to end up like this over a bastard? Stop weeping.”


    The ghost whined, thinking to herself, ‘Am I weeping because of that bastard? I’m weeping because of the shame you’re making me feel.’


    “When you were alive, your head was foggy. Now that you’re a ghost, can’t you see clearly?” Yu Xiao tapped her shoulder, speaking sincerely. “Whoever did this to you, go and pay them back. If you think killing them is too easy, make them suffer before you do. You’re already a ghost, what do you have to lose?”


    The ghost, hearing this, didn’t want to weep anymore, but the habitual weeps continued. She wavered, still loving that man in spite of everything.


    Yu Xiao could read her mind like an open book. She snapped, “What’s so great about that piece of trash (渣男)? What does he have that you like? He can’t compare to Gu Shu in looks or build. And in bed… by the way, does he even satisfy you there?” Sёar?h the n?vel_Fire.ηet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    The female ghost shook her head rapidly.


    “No, he doesn’t. Gu Shu is probably better than him,” Yu Xiao said, baffled. “You’re wasting your time on this worthless scumbag. You might as well fancy Gu Shu outside.”


    The female ghost wavered.


    She knew Yu Xiao had a point, but Gu Shu outside was no ordinary ghost. He was a top-notch attending doctor! How could she, a lowly ghost, dare to dream of such a lofty goal?


    Yu Xiao, catching her thoughts again, exclaimed, “Don’t be ridiculous!”


    The female ghost stared at her in shock, her mouth hanging open.


    “Why do you think he’s so special? Haven’t you heard the gossip?” Yu Xiao went on, “The whole hospital is talking about how he’s obsessed with a married woman. He’s just like you; a lovesick fool.”


    The female ghost felt a pang in her chest, as if an arrow had pierced her heart.


    “Listen to me, I’m telling you for your own good: dump that trash and stop throwing away your life,” Yu Xiao said, giving her a reassuring pat on the shoulder. “Then go after your second chance at love (第二春: second spring) with confidence.”


    At that moment, the female ghost saw the light. She looked at Yu Xiao, who seemed to have a halo around her head, leading her astray soul to the right path.


    Yu Xiao cut off the chatter with a wave of her hand. “Enough. Hand over the clue.”


    The female ghost’s fingers, tipped with long and jagged nails, searched her own body until they found a blue bow tie. She offered it to Yu Xiao, who snatched it and made to leave. But she felt a tug on her clothes, and spun around to see the ghost holding on to her with a desperate look, her head bowed.


    Yu Xiao frowned. “What now?”


    The ghost said nothing, but plucked a strand of hair from her scalp and extended it to Yu Xiao.


    “Is this for me?” Yu Xiao took the hair, wrinkling her nose. “Gross. How long has it been since you washed this? And what am I supposed to do with it?”


    The ghost gave a faint sigh and pointed to Yu Xiao’s pocket.


    Yu Xiao shrugged and stuffed the hair inside. “Fine, I’ll keep it. But don’t you dare try anything funny, or you’ll face the wrath of the five thunders.”


    With that, she shoved the door of the morgue open, making a loud clang that startled the people outside.


    She stepped out, looking as immaculate as ever, her hair in place and her clothes spotless. It was as if she had just gone in for a quick nap, not a confrontation with a ghost.


    Dr Gu Shu watched her with a calm expression. He was not like Lolita, who had no brains to speak of. He knew Yu Xiao well enough to know that the ghost posed no threat to her.


    “Smiley!” Zhou Xiao Zhen squealed and ran towards her, clutching her hand.


    The others followed suit, crowding around her. “How did it go?”


    “What happened there?”


    “Did you find the clue?”


    “I found the clue.” Yu Xiao lifted her hand, displaying the blue bow tie. “This is it. I got it. You can all relax now.”


    The crowd let out a collective breath as they watched Yu Xiao twirl the bow tie in her hand and slip it into her pocket. She headed straight for Gu Shu, who regarded her with a steady gaze. She reached out a hand towards him.


    What was she doing? Zhang Kui and the others wondered as they saw Yu Xiao’s gesture, seemingly inviting him to take her hand. Was she still teasing Gu Shu?


    The news had spread like wildfire that the doctor who had attended the Gu Family Village case had fallen for the top-ranked patient of the Sixth Hospital, the Dragon’s Descendant. Many had tried to copy their style and charm. Was Yu Xiao one of them? Was she trying to make Gu Shu fall for her too?


    “Give me my phone back.” Yu Xiao’s voice was raspy and annoyed. “You know it’s illegal to take a patient’s belongings without cause, right? Do you want to face the medical dispute office?”


    The crowd felt a pang of guilt. They had been so wrong about her intentions.


    Dr Gu Shu handed her the phone with an icy expression. He spoke in a formal tone. “It’s late. The patients need to rest. We have arranged rooms for the eight of you. Please go and sleep.”


    With that, he turned and walked away, leaving the crowd stunned. Eight? Weren’t they nine?