Seeing Crime Scenes in My Sleep

Chapter 41: Chapter 41: The Strange Building

Wu Ming led Jiang Li toward Building 11. Building 11 was part of the original old residential complex. The surrounding buildings had all been renovated, leaving only Building 11 in its original state.

Not only that, but Building 11 was completely unmanaged. Anyone could come and go as they pleased, making it a good place to hide.

Jiang Li had been curious about how she found this place, but seeing Wu Ming so focused, she didn’t want to interrupt.

Wu Ming, holding her device, led Jiang Li to the base of Building 11. Sure enough, the pointer stopped moving.

She looked up at the building, then turned to Jiang Li. "This should be it."

Seeing her questioning look, Jiang Li couldn’t help but smile. "Let’s go. I trust you."

Jiang Li led Wu Ming inside, and they proceeded with caution.

"Young ladies, what are you doing here?"

On their way up, they encountered an older woman coming down the stairs.

"I saw a listing for a rental here on an app, so we came to see the apartment," Wu Ming said with a smile, greeting the woman.

The woman’s eyes fell upon them. "Renting a place here? Are you two looking for trouble or something?"

"Ma’am, what do you mean by that? Don’t tell me this place is..." Wu Ming stepped forward enthusiastically to chat with the woman.

"You look like you just graduated from college. Take an old lady’s advice and go look somewhere else." The woman waved her hand at them as she spoke, then continued downstairs with a look of pity.

Jiang Li frowned. A situation like this usually meant one of two things: a haunted property or a condemned building.

"Could it be that the suspect has started killing again?"

Wu Ming turned her head to look at her.

Jiang Li shook her head. "Unlikely. Since he’s a fugitive, he wouldn’t be stupid enough to give away his location."

This place wasn’t far from the police station. If something really happened, the police could get here quickly. Unless he had a death wish, he wouldn’t expose his location.

Wu Ming listened to Jiang Li and nodded in agreement. ’If I were the suspect, I’d definitely keep my head down and behave.’

"Then what did that woman mean earlier?"

"It’s fine. Let’s take a look around first."

Jiang Li started walking upstairs. For some reason, the higher she went, the more she felt that something was wrong.

Halfway up, Wu Ming reached out and grabbed Jiang Li’s hand. "Jiang Li, stop. Something’s not right here. We should go back."

A panicked expression appeared on Wu Ming’s face as she pulled Jiang Li and practically fled back down the stairs.

Jiang Li followed behind her, confused. It wasn’t until they were back outside, standing in the sun, that both of them let out a simultaneous sigh of relief.

"This building... something’s wrong. The yin energy is too strong."

Wu Ming stared at the building, her frown deepening. ’This is terrifying. If we had kept going up, I’m afraid we really would have been tainted by something unclean.’

Hearing Wu Ming’s words, Jiang Li was momentarily speechless. ’Didn’t she just adamantly tell me last night that there are no ghosts in this world?’

"Is there really something in there?" Jiang Li asked, looking up at the building curiously.

"AHEM, it’s not ghosts. Uh, how should I put this... Look at Building 11. It gets no sunlight from the front, back, or sides, so it’s normal for it to be cold."

"The residents who live inside would feel oppressed, so it’s easy for them to develop psychological problems, like anxiety or something."

Wu Ming looked at Jiang Li and quickly waved her hands, explaining. The bottom line was, there were no ghosts.

Jiang Li nodded at Wu Ming. "I didn’t realize you also knew feng shui."

"Stop, stop, stop. Let’s not talk about that. Let’s get back to business."

Wu Ming quickly cut Jiang Li off. ’This is getting more and more ridiculous.’

Jiang Li looked at Wu Ming, and the corner of her mouth lifted. ’It’s perfectly normal. Everyone has their own secrets.’

Jiang Li didn’t press the topic further. She looked up at the apartment building and then pointed to a window above.

"Wu Ming, do you think it could be that apartment?"

Wu Ming, who had been studying the terrain, paused. She turned back to Jiang Li’s side and followed her finger, looking up.

A rust-spotted rebar enclosure, but what made it different was the potted plant on the outside.

"Why do you think it might be that one?"

"They have a plant, but on a hot day like this, the window is shut tight. Don’t you think that’s strange?"

Jiang Li voiced the doubt in her mind, rubbing her chin.

Wu Ming mimicked her, rubbing her chin in thought. "It is a bit strange. But what if we’ve got the wrong person?"

"Simple. Rental apartments require tenants to fill out their information, which is then submitted to the police station."

As she spoke, Jiang Li took out her phone and sent a message to Huo Qing and Lu Xingye, asking them to help look into it.

A dozen or so minutes later, the sound of a motorcycle roared from behind them. Jiang Li and Wu Ming turned around to see Lu Xingye getting off his bike.

Lu Xingye walked toward them, pulling a form from his pocket. "All the tenant information for this building is here. This info was just reported in the last half-month."

After speaking, Lu Xingye looked at the two of them. "What are you two doing here? Did you find a new case?"

Jiang Li was focused on studying the information sheet in her hand.

"Nope. Jiang Li brought me here to catch a fugitive and make some money," Wu Ming whispered, leaning close to Lu Xingye.

Lu Xingye couldn’t help but smile. "Then count me in. I can be your scout."

"Lu Xingye, this apartment here, what unit number would it be?" Jiang Li asked, pointing to the suspicious rental unit.

Lu Xingye took the form from her hand, went inside to check the first-floor layout, and then came back out. "6-4."

He scanned the form, and his fingertip stopped on the line for 6-4.

The next second, he noticed something was wrong. "This ID number is off. It has an extra digit."

He then took out his phone and dialed the number provided, and sure enough, it was fake too.

He lowered his gaze to Jiang Li. "You suspect the fugitive is living here?"

Jiang Li nodded. "Wu Ming calculated it based on his birth date and time, so we came over."

The corner of Lu Xingye’s mouth twitched. ’You can do it like that?’

"Hold on, I’ll go contact the landlord."

Lu Xingye turned to contact the landlord, and a moment later, a woman in her fifties walked over.

"I’m the landlady here. Can I help you with something?"

Lu Xingye looked at her. The guilt on her face was blatant; she was definitely hiding something.

"Who is living in 6-4?"

Hearing that he was only asking about the tenant, the older woman visibly relaxed.

"Oh, that’s a man named Pi Ziyang. Isn’t it written right here?"

"How old is he, and what does he look like?" Jiang Li asked, taking a step forward.

"He’s in his thirties or forties. It’s just him and an old man. The old man is in his sixties or seventies and couldn’t remember his ID information, so it wasn’t filled in."

The landlady smiled at them. "Officer, the people who live here are all from construction sites. Most of them can’t read. I promise I’ll make sure they fill it out carefully next time."

Jiang Li pulled up a photo on her phone, handing it to her. "Ma’am, take a look. Does he look like this?"

The landlady squinted, peering at it carefully.