mauvaises graines - Chapitre 18
He Qing turned around like a startled deer, still clutching a water glass tightly in her hand. The sudden movement had spilled most of the water. She was clearly terrified; her eyes were wide open and slightly red.
Xu Haicheng scrutinized her closely. She was wearing heavy makeup, thick powder concealing her shock, her bright red lips trembling slightly, and her hand clutching her water glass tightly as if grasping at a lifeline. She was clearly terrified, no longer possessing the charisma she displayed on television.
After a moment, she remembered that she should stand up.
"Miss He, please sit down. Could you please tell me the details of what happened?" Xu Haicheng said, pulling up a chair to sit opposite her, while Pan Xiaolu looked around.
Section 35: Chapter Six, Part Three of the Abiding Calamity (6)
The long-haired man gently patted He Qing's shoulder. She slowly sat down, took a deep breath, and said, "Here's the thing. Today we invited Professor Lei to do a program. We've already done several episodes of this interview program. Professor Lei, he..."
Xu Haicheng interrupted her, saying, "Let's start talking from when we received that phone call."
"Telephone?"
"Hotline number."
When the hotline was mentioned, He Qing's expression changed drastically again. She said, "Originally, this program didn't have a hotline, but because the audience liked it so much and strongly requested it, we started one..."
Xu Haicheng had to interrupt her again, saying, "Don't be nervous, just explain things slowly and clearly. I remember someone called, said a couple of sentences, and then you hung up on him. Then Professor Lei's face turned pale..."
He Qing nodded and said, "Yes, when I saw that Professor Lei didn't look well, I quickly signaled to the editing room to insert a commercial break, and then helped Professor Lei to sit down in the small dressing room next door..."
She helped Lei Yunshan sit down in the small dressing room. Seeing that he was having trouble breathing, she opened the window. A cold wind blew in, and he immediately perked up, his complexion improving considerably. He said he was fine and asked He Qing to pour him a glass of water.
There was no tea in the small dressing room, so He Qing had to go back to the host's dressing room to get water, which is why she left the small dressing room.
She returned to the studio first to discuss the ending with everyone. Ending it so abruptly would unsettle the audience and could even lead to the cancellation of this highly-rated talk show. Finally, everyone agreed to continue the program once Lei Yunshan had recovered.
He Qing took the water to the small dressing room. When she opened the door, she saw Lei Yunshan, who had been sitting in front of the dressing table, had stood up. His face was crooked to one side, his complexion was bluish-purple, and his body was convulsing. His wide-open eyes were staring at the window. She followed his gaze and saw a face outside the glass window, which flashed and disappeared into the deep darkness of the night.
It was a face so terrifying that words could not describe it.
For a moment, He Qing felt like she was suffocating, and the water glass in her hand fell to the ground...
Section 36: Chapter Seven, Part Four of the Abiding Calamity (1)
Chapter Seven: The Fourth of the Calamity
From a psychological perspective, fear is an emotional experience in which an organism attempts to escape or avoid a situation but is powerless to do so. Its essential manifestation is the violent contraction of the organism's physiological tissues, a sharp increase in tissue density, and a rapid release of energy. Its fundamental goal is the disappearance of physiological phenomena, i.e., death.
(Excerpt from "Police Detective's Diary")
"That's a ghost face." He Qing's body trembled violently again, and the powder on her face fell off in a flurry. Most of her makeup was ruined, making her face look fragmented, and coupled with her panicked expression, it also resembled a ghost face.
"Making a face?" Xu Haicheng raised his eyebrows in confusion.
He Qing looked up at Xu Haicheng and Pan Xiaolu, nodding frantically, saying, "It's a ghost face, a real ghost face, there can't be such a face in the world..." She kept repeating it, her voice gradually lowering, fear spreading from her eyes, making the surrounding air freeze.
There was a moment of silence in the dressing room, so quiet that you could hear everyone breathing.
After a moment, Xu Haicheng asked, "What exactly does this face look like?"
He Qing thought about it very seriously, and the two words that came out of her mouth were still "funny face." It seemed that she could not find any other adjective.
Xu Haicheng and Pan Xiaolu exchanged a glance, knowing she was too frightened and her mind was temporarily blank. So he said to her, "Rest for a while, and then come with us to the police station to give a statement." After saying that, he walked to the window to check. The window was tightly closed, and when he opened it, he could see a thin layer of dust on the windowsill. The angle of view was slightly different from what he had seen in the small chemical room, but there was still no foothold, so it was impossible for anyone to climb up from the outside.
Afterwards, Xu Haicheng and Pan Xiaolu left the host dressing room and went into the adjacent studio.
The studio's mercury lamps were off, replaced by regular lights. The thirty audience members were restless, whispering amongst themselves in small groups. As soon as Xu Haicheng and Pan Xiaolu entered, all eyes automatically focused on them like searchlights. Unsure of what was happening, their faces showed alarm.
The hotline kept ringing, with viewers calling to inquire about Lei Yunshan's condition. The staff had to lie: "Professor Lei wasn't feeling well, but he's rested and is feeling better now. It's just that the program won't be continuing for the time being..."
Xu Haicheng scanned the scene but found nothing unusual. He then casually asked a few audience members what happened after the hotline call was cut off; their accounts matched He Qing's. Lei Yunshan, after receiving the hotline call, turned pale and had to pause the program. Shortly after, they heard He Qing's screams.
What exactly is the "ghost face" that He Qing mentioned?
Xu Haicheng calculated that it took He Qing less than five minutes to leave the small dressing room and return with her water cup. If someone really entered the dressing room, there were only two ways: one was to climb in from the next room, and the other was to walk in from the door.
The people in the opposite room said that no one else had entered the small dressing room since He Qing left, and everyone in the opposite room had an alibi. The possibility of entering through the door is practically nonexistent.
Xu Haicheng asked Producer Feng to open the right-hand room of the small dressing room, which was where clothes and other props were stored. The window was tightly closed, and when the window was opened, there was a thin layer of dust on the windowsill, ruling out the possibility of someone climbing into the small dressing room from the right-hand room. The left-hand room was the dressing room where He Qing had just been, and according to everyone, no one had been in that dressing room. Xu Haicheng had also checked it, and there were no footprints on the windowsill or window frame.
The possibility of climbing over from next door has also been ruled out.
So where did the "ghost face" outside the window come from?
Xu Haicheng thought for a moment and asked, "Producer Feng, besides this production team, are there any other production teams working on the show?"
"Yes, there's another TV crew filming on the first floor."
"Take us to see it."
"Okay." Producer Feng led the two downstairs, through a long corridor, to a large studio at the end. The set inside resembled a traditional opera stage, with nine men casually sitting around it, some smoking and some talking. They ranged in age from thirty to fifty, with dark skin, clearly the result of long hours of working under the sun.
Producer Feng whispered that their program had already finished recording and they should have been able to leave, but the police had blocked the television station, so they were stuck there. "They are a Nuo dance troupe from Tongluozhai in the Jingyun Mountains. They came specifically to record a program for this cultural festival, and they will also be performing Nuo dance at the opening ceremony." Producer Feng pointed to one of them and said, "This is the troupe leader..."
Xu Haicheng and Pan Xiaolu frowned at the same time, wondering if there was such a name. Looking at their uncle, he was about fifty-three or fifty-four years old, with a serious face and a sturdy build.
Producer Feng, observing their expressions, understood why they were frowning and explained, "Please don't misunderstand, the people in their Nuo dance troupe are all highly respected figures in their respective villages. 'Uncle' is an honorific title; his name is Wu Dajun."
Xu Haicheng's heart skipped a beat, and he asked, "Do you know Wu Chunbo?"
"Of course, he's from our village." Wu Dajun looked at Xu Haicheng in surprise. "You know him?"
Xu Haicheng nodded, then asked anxiously, "Is he alright now?"
"Six months ago, someone saw him go into the mountains and never came back. Even his father has disappeared."