Being Targeted by a Female Ghost [Criminal Investigation] - Chapter 7

Chapter 7: “You Should Feel the Pain Too…”

What’s wrong with strangling you?

Qiu Chi sneered internally.

“Didn’t you use a gun to scare me too?” she said aloud.

Her fingers were trembling from the exertion. To keep the other woman from noticing, she resisted raising her hand, instead clenching her fists tightly at her sides.

“I…” Zhang Zhuo was speechless.

Yes, she had been impulsive last night. She shouldn’t couldn’t just point a gun at her, let alone fire it. She wasn’t normally such a reckless person; she hadn’t been ten years ago, either.

But for some reason, last night she simply couldn’t control herself. Whether it was hatred or anger, she couldn’t say. In ten years, she had never imagined they would reunite like this.

And she certainly hadn’t expected that Qiu Chi had been in a car accident and forgotten everything.

During the hours she spent waiting for the interrogation to end, she had received files from the cyber-investigation unit. The records showed that over a month ago—on the night of the second murder Qiu Chi had been in a car accident. According to the attending physician, she was covered in blood and in shock; a few minutes later and she truly wouldn’t have made it.

Zhang Zhuo had pulled the hospital surveillance footage to verify the timeline and the doctor’s testimony. She had intended to find a proper opportunity to test if Qiu Chi’s amnesia was real, but the woman had escaped.

Escaping was one thing—but then she had tried to strangle her.

There was no time like the present; she felt now was the perfect moment to fish for information.

Zhang Zhuo reached out with one hand and ripped off Qiu Chi’s mask. “I didn’t realize you were so vengeful.”

Qiu Chi looked at her, her voice cold: “There’s no blood. How is that revenge?”

The wound on her shoulder still throbbed.

Zhang Zhuo smiled faintly. “Do you really not remember who I am?”

The streetlights shone through the window, but the interior of the car remained dim. Neither could see the other’s expression clearly.

“I know who you are,” Qiu Chi said.

Zhang Zhuo froze, only to hear her continue: “You are Zhang Zhuo, Captain of the Criminal Investigation Squad, Lancheng Branch.”

Zhang Zhuo: “…”

“What, am I wrong?” Qiu Chi arched an eyebrow. “Then you tell me, who are you exactly?”

I tell you?

Zhang Zhuo gritted her teeth and remained silent.

Qiu Chi asked again: “If I’m not mistaken, you must be my enemy, right?”

Otherwise, she wouldn’t have shot at her the moment they met. However, as soon as the words left her mouth, Qiu Chi felt something was off. Her attention shifted from Zhang Zhuo’s face to her neck.

The clothing wrapped around the woman’s throat was loose. Compared to her own previous effort, the detective’s grip was practically non-existent. She didn’t feel suffocated at all; she only felt the coarse fabric of the janitor’s uniform chafing her skin.

This level of retaliation… calling her an “enemy” didn’t seem quite right.

“If you don’t plan on strangling me, let go,” she prompted.

Zhang Zhuo was half-kneeling on the seat, leaning down toward her in an uncomfortable posture. Hearing this, she slowly straightened up, released her grip, and tossed the fabric aside.

“Miss Qiu, that’s twice.”

Qiu Chi was confused. “Twice what?”

“Assaulting a police officer.”

Qiu Chi snorted. “Then arrest me.”

I escaped once; I can escape again.

Having rested for a moment, her fingers had stopped shaking. She quietly unclenched her fist and reached toward the gap in the car seat.

Zhang Zhuo looked at her, her tone somewhat helpless. “You are currently a major suspect in a serial murder case. Even if I don’t arrest you, others will. I suggest you don’t think about running, or you’ll only solidify their suspicions.”

Qiu Chi smiled slightly. “Is that so?”

Zhang Zhuo gave a grunt of affirmation.

Qiu Chi slowly sat up. “I think you got one thing wrong…”

Before Zhang Zhuo could ask what, the woman beneath her lunged forward, pinning the detective back onto the seat.

As Qiu Chi surged toward her, she carried the scent of wet grass after a rain. It immediately reminded Zhang Zhuo of the footprints in the bushes. Those footprints were messy, screaming of their owner’s panic. Looking at them, Zhang Zhuo could almost imagine how hurried Qiu Chi had been.

She had denied they were footprints to the guard to deflect suspicion, then sent him away to erase the traces herself. As a cop, she had clearly done something she shouldn’t have. But as Zhang Zhuo, she felt she had no choice.

It seemed that whether it was ten years ago or now, no matter what happened, her first instinct was always to protect her. Every time she made that choice, her pain grew. The word “contradiction” was written all over her.

But things were always like this: Qiu Chi always forced her into a corner where there were no choices. Just like this moment—she clearly should have held her fast, but the sudden proximity made her heart leap. Her body froze, unable to move.

Then came the sharp sting in her abdomen.

Qiu Chi pressed closer, slowly increasing the pressure as she drove the tip of the pen deeper.

Zhang Zhuo realized then: this wasn’t an embrace; it was a trap.

The pain flared, and her breathing grew ragged. Zhang Zhuo tried to push her away, but Qiu Chi leaned in even closer, whispering into her ear.

She heard Qiu Chi say with a hint of a laugh: “It’s actually three times.”

As the words fell, Qiu Chi threw open the car door, intending to bolt.

Enduring the pain, Zhang Zhuo reached out to grab her around the waist. With her other hand supporting the back of her head, she flipped over and pinned Qiu Chi to the ground. The interior was narrow, and the two were tangled together between the seats. A violent struggle erupted.

Zhang Zhuo pinned the woman’s arm with her knee. Following the source of the pain, she found the pen. Gritting her teeth, she yanked it out, her breathing hitching.

Qiu Chi knew things were going south and began to struggle fiercely. She only had two pens; one was now in Zhang Zhuo’s hand, and the other was on her own person. Without a pen, she couldn’t escape, so she didn’t dare use the second one.

Zhang Zhuo couldn’t hold her down with one hand, so she tossed the pen aside and threw her entire weight onto her. She intentionally pressed down on Qiu Chi’s wounded shoulder, saying through gritted teeth, “You should feel the pain too.”

Qiu Chi’s breathing also grew rapid. “Let me go!”

Let go? Why should I?

Zhang Zhuo tightened her fingers. Even through the fabric, she could feel the dampness on her fingertips.

Just then, she noticed Qiu Chi’s struggling was odd. She was only resisting with one hand; the other was reaching under the car seat as if searching for something. Zhang Zhuo decisively pinned that hand down, warning coldly, “Don’t move.”

Qiu Chi laughed.

Her wrist flicked nimbly, reversing the direction of the stun baton she had hidden under the seat. Just as Zhang Zhuo’s hand reached in, Qiu Chi hit the switch.

Zzzzzzt…

The crackle of electricity filled the car.

Zhang Zhuo’s arm convulsed, her brow furrowed in a tight knot. She bit her lip and yanked her hand back. Qiu Chi followed through, pressing the baton against Zhang Zhuo’s neck and hitting the switch again.

Zzzzzzt…

Zhang Zhuo’s body spasmed uncontrollably before she collapsed onto the seat, unconscious.

Qiu Chi took the opportunity to get up. Before leaving the car, she looked at the passed-out detective. After a moment’s hesitation, she checked for a pulse. Confirming the woman was alive, she turned to leave.

Before disappearing, she returned the stolen stun baton to the security office but took everything useful from Zhang Zhuo’s person. With a police officer’s belongings, investigating the case would be much easier.

By the time Gu Xiao arrived, the sun was fully up. From a distance, she recognized Zhang Zhuo’s car. The back door was wide open. Zhang Zhuo was sitting on the edge of the seat, head down, disinfecting the wound on her waist.

Getting injured while catching a suspect wasn’t unusual, but when Gu Xiao got closer and saw the wound was quite deep, she immediately asked, “What happened?”

Zhang Zhuo didn’t look up. “Ambushed.”

Gu Xiao looked skeptical. “By who? That suspect you had all wrapped up in bedsheets?”

At those words, the cotton swab in Zhang Zhuo’s hand snapped. She gave a grunt of affirmation, grabbed a new swab, and continued treating her wound.

Gu Xiao then noticed the red marks on her neck. “And what’s this about?”

Snap. Zhang Zhuo broke the second swab. She looked up at Gu Xiao with a dark expression. “Can you stop asking?”

“Tsk.” Gu Xiao sighed. “So you do know how to be embarrassed.” Her eyes fell to the side. She bent over to pick up the blood-stained ballpoint pen, her brow furrowed. “You’re really something. Ambushed by a suspect using this.”

Zhang Zhuo stopped cutting the gauze and said crossly, “Why don’t you try getting shocked twice and see how you feel?”

Gu Xiao froze, finally realizing where the red marks came from. Zhang Zhuo snatched the pen back, stuffed it in her pocket, and briskly packed the first-aid kit into the trunk. She got into the driver’s seat and prepared to start the car.

Gu Xiao: “Where are you going now?”

Zhang Zhuo: “To catch her.”

Gu Xiao: “You know where she is?”

Zhang Zhuo: “She stole my phone. I have the GPS location.”

Gu Xiao reached through the window to grab the steering wheel. “I’m giving you half a day off. Go to the hospital first; don’t leave any permanent damage. I’ll go get her.”

“No need.” Zhang Zhuo hit the window switch, watching the glass rise quickly. “I want to catch her myself.”

“Hey! My hand!” Gu Xiao hurriedly pulled her hand back. “While I’m still talking nicely to you, you better—Hey!!”

Before she could finish, Zhang Zhuo had already sped away. In the car, Zhang Zhuo stared fixedly at the mountain road ahead, muttering to herself: “Three times, huh? You just wait.”

Gu Xiao watched the car disappear around a bend, shook her head helplessly, and sighed. The officer beside her asked softly, “Captain Gu, should we follow?”

“She’s driving like a maniac. Do you think we can catch her?” Gu Xiao said.

The man nodded. “True.”

Gu Xiao turned back toward the sanatorium, then pulled out her phone to contact the cyber-unit to track Zhang Zhuo’s phone immediately. She walked to the security office and knocked on the window. The nervous guard opened it.

She went straight to the point: “Tell me everything that happened this morning, from start to finish.”

The guard recounted the events and led her to the garden, pointing at the mud in the bushes. “The morning shower might have washed it away.”

Gu Xiao gave a short laugh and turned to leave. Combining the nurses’ statements and the surveillance footage, she had a basic grasp of what happened. She knew Zhang Zhuo; with her skills, it was impossible for a suspect to escape unless she intentionally let them go or let her guard down.

But she also knew how much Zhang Zhuo hated criminals, especially murderers.

What is wrong this time? Was it really because the woman looked like “Xiao Chi” that she kept doing such absurd things that betrayed her identity as a cop? Or was it because both of their names contained the same character for “Pool” (Chi)?

In the darkness, someone was huddled under a blanket, shivering violently. It was a woman with messy hair plastered to her face, curled into a ball on her side.

“Namo Amitabha, Namo Amitabha…” she muttered the same phrase over and over, her voice weak.

The room she was in was tiny, containing only a bed and a modular wardrobe. The windows were shut tight, and the curtains were drawn so securely that not a single ray of light could penetrate. Even though it was daytime, it felt like night. The floor was littered with instant food containers and empty water bottles. One slipper was by the bed; the other was by the door.

The door was closed, and the sliver of light from the gap beneath it was the only source of light in the room.

As the woman continued her low chanting, faint footsteps echoed from outside. The sound grew closer and stopped at the door. The light under the door dimmed slightly. The handle moved, slowly pressing downward.

The woman’s breath hitched. She stared wide-eyed into the darkness, listening to the movement at the door. The handle was pressed all the way down, but the door didn’t open. The person outside seemed to grow anxious, the movements becoming faster, rattling the handle a dozen times. Then, as if losing patience, the person slammed against the door.

Goosebumps erupted all over the woman’s skin. she squeezed her eyes shut, her chanting becoming faster: “Namo Amitabha, Namo Amitabha…”

The banging grew louder, and her chanting reached a frantic pace until she could barely breathe. Just as she was about to break, the noise outside stopped.

A second later, she realized the footsteps were now by the bed. Even through the thick blanket, she could feel the person’s hand reaching out.

No…

She gripped the blanket tightly, shaking like a leaf. A powerful force suddenly ripped the blanket away, leaving her completely exposed.

Before a sound could escape her, the blanket was thrown over her again, wrapping her tightly in her fear-wracked state.

“Why are you so scared? Guilty conscience?” Qiu Chi asked.

Thinking she was being smothered, the woman kicked and flailed with all her might. Qiu Chi didn’t dare pin her too hard for fear of accidentally killing her, so she hopped off the bed and stood to the side.

The woman threw off the blanket, gasping for air. The moment their eyes met, she opened her mouth to scream. Qiu Chi saw her chance, grabbed a corner of the blanket, and muffled her mouth. “Don’t scream.”

She looked into the bulging eyes and said with total seriousness: “I’m a police officer.”

After leaving the sanatorium, Gu Xiao took her team to search Qiu Chi’s house.

“Search every inch, inside and out. Don’t miss a single corner,” she ordered. The forensics team nodded and dispersed.

Gu Xiao went straight to the upstairs study. The bullet hole in the door was clearly visible. She turned around, looking in the direction she imagined the shot had come from. After a moment, she pushed the door open.

The room was large, but at first glance, there was nowhere to step. The floor was covered in crumpled paper. She stepped through the gaps to reach the computer. Zhang Zhuo had said she could view all surveillance here. Gu Xiao had already sent the CPU to the lab last night, so there was nothing to see now.

Her gaze swept over the tablet on the desk, then over the boxes of colorful paints, finally landing on a sheet of white paper. There was a drawing. She picked up the pen-and-ink sketch. Upon closer look, she recognized the scene. She hurried to the rooftop terrace and looked toward the opposite villa.

“How could this silhouette…” she muttered, “…look so much like Xiao Zhuo?”

A shout came from behind: “Captain Gu!”

Gu Xiao turned. “We found something!”

Five minutes later, Gu Xiao stood in a walk-in closet, tilting her head as she looked at a row of identical red dresses hanging neatly.

“Didn’t you say it was a limited edition?” she asked.

The officer beside her replied, “We just checked. It’s the same brand. We checked her purchase records: she bought seven in total, but not on the same day.”

“What does that mean?” Gu Xiao didn’t follow.

“The first purchase was on September 10th—just one. The second was on September 19th—she bought six.”

Gu Xiao was still confused. “Why buy so many identical dresses?”

The officer had no answer, but Gu Xiao already recalled the woman’s earlier statement.

“This isn’t evidence. It’s just my pajamas.”

Gu Xiao froze. Could she really be wearing them as pajamas?

“Captain Gu!” someone else shouted from outside.

Gu Xiao left the closet and went downstairs. From a distance, she saw a crowd gathered at the end of the hallway. She hurried over. “What now?”

The crowd parted to reveal a door left slightly ajar. The smart lock had been bypassed. She pushed the door open to a wide, open space.

In the center of the room was a massive solid wood table. Half was covered in paints and brushes; the other half was filled with sculptures and tools. An unfinished sculpture on the table had no face—only a silhouette as if the creator hadn’t decided what kind of soul to give it yet.

Nearby was an easel, equally large, holding a portrait with no facial features. The paint was dry and felt hard to the touch. Gu Xiao pulled her hand back and surveyed the various frames stacked against the walls.

“It’s just an art studio,” she said, turning to the officers at the door. “What’s all the fuss about?”

the officer at the front hesitated, then pointed to a half-human-sized painting behind her. “Captain Gu, look at that painting.”

Zhang Zhuo was on her way to the nurse’s house when she received a call from Gu Xiao. It was on her backup phone, which she was currently using to track her own phone. Gu Xiao’s call cut off the signal, losing the location.

She answered impatiently, “What is it?”

Contrary to her usual frantic tone, Gu Xiao spoke calmly: “From now on, you are off the investigation.”

Zhang Zhuo was bewildered. “On what grounds?”

“On the grounds that there is a portrait of you in the suspect’s house,” Gu Xiao said.

“What?” Zhang Zhuo frowned.

The other end of the line was silent for a few seconds before saying: “Come here. You’ll understand once you see it.”

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