Zhang Jianfeng didn't open the box first, but took it and looked at it from left to right. He then put it to his ear and listened carefully for a while before he said to Xiaolan who was looking at him in confusion, "Are you a virgin?" Xiaolan blushed with shame and stared at Zhang Jianfeng fiercely, "What does a pervert care about you?" Zhang Jianfeng said, "Looking at you, a conservative female demon, I should lend you a hand." Without saying anything, he grabbed Xiaolan's left hand and held her index finger. "Ah!" Xiaolan screamed. It turned out that Zhang Jianfeng had bitten her index finger with his teeth. She was shocked and angry. Just as she was about to raise her palm to hit him, Zhang Jianfeng quickly stopped and said seriously, "What the director said is true. Listen–" Then he put the box close to Xiaolan's ear and faintly heard a painful groan of "Yiyiwuwu". Zhang Jianfeng took the box away again and said, "The reason why this box has the magical power to cause madness and death is because there is a vengeful spirit inside. Once the box is opened, the vengeful spirit will absorb the human blood. I am now preparing to use the blood of virgins to suppress the vengeful spirit before opening the box." After saying that, he bit his index finger and squeezed out a bean-sized drop of blood, which slowly merged with Xiaolan's drop to form a crystal-clear and round blood bead that penetrated into the box through the mark. Suddenly, a strange cry of "Ah Wow" came from the box, and white eyes rose from the cracks on the edge. Xiaolan looked at Zhang Jianfeng in great surprise and said, "You are a virgin…" Before she finished speaking, she was knocked on the head by Zhang Jianfeng: "If I broke the precepts, my master would have kicked me out of the gate of Zhongnan Mountain!"
When the white smoke cleared, Zhang Jianfeng slowly opened the box. Under a piece of white paper were three thick files. Zhang Jianfeng picked up the white paper first and saw a few lines of blurred words printed in ink on it:
The following resolution was passed unanimously by the 47th plenary session of the Parliament in 1972:
These three unsolved cases contain mysteries that the world cannot understand. They contain evil spirits that will never return. The deceased has passed away. To prevent the harm to his descendants, a gold foil box was specially made and sealed forever. It is not allowed to be seen again. It also warns future generations that once the fire seal is broken, the evil spirit will come out and the tragedy will repeat itself – whoever opens it will be forever trapped in the black blood of helplessness! "
Below were the seals of the parliament and the president. Xiaolan opened her eyes wide and asked Zhang Jianfeng, "What is the black blood of Naihe?" Zhang Jianfeng said, "There are three bridges in hell – the Golden Bridge, the Silver Bridge, and the Naihe Bridge. Under the Naihe Bridge is a blood river. Legend has it that the blood river is divided into two layers. The upper layer is a surging crimson and the lower layer is a foul-smelling black ink. However, this legend has not been confirmed in the magic world so far." Xiaolan's mind suddenly moved, "Black Naihe"? This name seemed familiar, and she couldn't help but feel ominous in her heart. In a trance, she heard Zhang Jianfeng flicking the paper and saying, "I don't know what the parliament in 1972 is doing. They even believe in unconfirmed talk!"
Xiaolan felt uncomfortable in her chest and didn't want to look at the white paper anymore. She reached out and took out a file from the box. She saw four big characters clearly written on the brown paper: "Mourning Hall Classroom". Zhang Jianfeng cheered and immediately threw away the white paper, snatched the file and said with a smile: "It's really a piece of cake. This trip is really worth it." Xiaolan asked calmly: "Is the mourning hall classroom also a mystery?" Zhang Jianfeng was stunned and felt that he had no answer. Xiaolan gently peeled off the cover and read the dozens of pages of densely packed files. The hearts of the two people seemed to fall into a bottomless abyss.
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Fang Tao is a doctor of architectural engineering at Harvard University. He returned to China with his wife Gillis when he was 40 years old. Unexpectedly, Gillis could not stand the life in China. The two of them had more and more friction. After only three years, she divorced Fang Tao and returned to the United States alone, leaving behind a son, Fang Wei, and a daughter, Fang Ying. Fang Wei is studying engineering at Cambridge University. Since his wife left him, Fang Tao has been deeply stimulated and his personality has become more and more withdrawn. Fortunately, his daughter Fang Ying accompanied him and comforted him from time to time.
Fang Ying was elegant and quiet by nature, and was loved by Fang Tao. Seeing that her father was unhappy all day, she decided to never marry, and she just accompanied her father to travel around to relax. One day, when they arrived at a university, Fang Ying saw that the scenery here was very beautiful, surrounded by mountains and water, and she liked it very much, so she decided to stay for a few days with her father.
That day, Fang Ying went to the independent piano room in the school as usual to practice the piano. Fifteen minutes later, the piano room suddenly caught fire. There was a strong wind at the time and the fire was fierce. It was too late to save Fang Ying and she was burned to death beside the piano. Her soul disappeared from then on.
Fang Tao was devastated upon learning of the sudden misfortune. Fang Wei immediately flew back from England to help deal with the aftermath. Fang Wei saw that the single piano practice room was on a small island surrounded by water and only accessible by a small bridge. Several servants followed Fang Ying and it was difficult for outsiders to approach. He suspected that the servants who followed at that time were not doing well. So he asked all the servants of the Fang family to ask in person in the lobby.
"You have all worked in the Fang family for many years." Fang Wei helped his father sit on the rattan chair and said loudly, "I believe that the Fang family has always treated you well!" He sighed and continued, "Sister Ying is dead and her death was so unclear that I think she would not be willing to die even in the underworld. Therefore, we have the obligation to find the murderer and avenge her!"
The servants looked at each other, not knowing what Fang Wei was up to. The old butler of the Fang family quickly stepped forward and said, "We have tried our best to mobilize everyone to help find clues." "Did you find any?" "Because the fire was so big, the scene was all burnt to ashes, so…" Fang Wei snorted and said, "You can't find any? I expected that if you could find anything, it would be like the sun rising from the west." The butler was stunned and smiled, "I don't understand, please explain it to me, young master."
"Of course I will make it clear!" Fang Wei swept his cold eyes across the entire hall and said in a deep voice: "On the day of the accident, there were several servants waiting outside the piano room. Outsiders could not enter at all. I think the murderer is among you!" Fang Wei suddenly raised his voice by eight degrees and pointed at a servant in the front row and shouted: "It was you, Jin, who killed the young lady in a frenzy!"
The young man named Jin was first stunned with fear, then he knelt down and shouted: "I am not innocent, I have never approached the young lady, I really didn't, please investigate!" Fang Tao said tremblingly: "You… Wei'er, do you have any evidence?" Fang Wei smiled coldly: "Of course I have evidence, Jin, you are the first person to report the bad news to the master, do you dare to repeat what you said to the master that day in public
Jin puffed out his chest and said loudly: "Why not? After the accident, I hurried to tell the master: 'Something bad has happened!
The young lady was burned to death!…” “Stop!” Fang Wei said sternly, “The practice room caught fire, but Ying’er might not have been burned to death on the spot. How did you know that the young lady was dead at that time? Tell me? ! You are simply guilty and you refuse to admit it? ! ” Jin was stunned for a long time without saying anything.
At this time, the old housekeeper stepped forward and said, "Master, you blame the wrong person. If it were me, I would have said the same thing. I don't know how she died ." Fang Wei was shocked and said, "What do you mean?" The housekeeper cried, "I took the initiative to ask them to hide it from the master. There is no real murderer. The young lady was willing to burn to death…" Fang Tao was so angry that he put his crutches on the ground and said in a trembling voice, "You are talking nonsense! How could Ying'er be willing?"
The housekeeper burst into tears and said, "I have never understood the master's matter. When the practice room caught fire that day, I was there. I was calling for people to put out the fire and preparing to lead people to rush in and rescue the young lady. Who knew that at that moment we saw the young lady wearing a strange dress and holding a long object in her hand and slowly walking towards the burning house. I was overjoyed at the time and didn't expect that the young lady would be outside. I just shouted for the young lady to cross the bridge quickly to a safe place. But the young lady turned a deaf ear and walked into the burning door like this. After a while, she disappeared. I and the others were shocked and were about to rush in, but the house collapsed at this time. Naturally, the young lady did not survive."
Fang Wei shouted angrily, "You're talking nonsense! How could Yingmei be so stupid as to wear such weird clothes? It's obvious that you guys made it up to fool us!" The housekeeper knelt forward and said, "I am loyal to the Fang family. I don't believe it. The young master can interrogate the servants on that day. They all saw it. If there is any inconsistency, I will accept any punishment." Fang Tao said woodenly, "What kind of clothes?" The housekeeper recalled, "There was a lot of flying ash and thick smoke all around. I could only vaguely see that the young lady was wearing a long skirt with a wide and long hem that dragged on the ground. She had a high bun on her head, and it seemed like there was a hairpin inserted in it." Fang Wei was about to refute Fang Tao and waved his hand to stop him. He said to the housekeeper, "Remember what you said today and don't mention it to anyone else. Wei'er, you deal with those annoying police reporters for me. You all go back. I want to be alone." Although Fang Wei was not convinced, seeing Fang Tao's solemn expression, he had to shut up and leave.
Fang Ying's death in an accidental fire naturally became the headlines of major newspapers. The Fang family remained silent about the incident. Fang Tao locked himself in the study and never left the room. Apart from instructing people to carefully collect Fang Ying's ashes, he mostly slept and stared at the books in the mahogany bookcase. Five months later, another piece of news made a sensation in the media. Fang Tao, who was deeply saddened by the loss of his daughter, took on the project of building the first classroom building of the university and devoted himself to it with great enthusiasm.
Fang Wei was shocked when he heard the news. He quickly put down his work and came to Fang Tao's study. He saw the housekeeper standing by and Fang Tao was carefully measuring a drawing on the desk. When he saw Fang Wei coming in, he nodded and said, "It's just right, Wei'er, I have something to tell you. Close the door first." Fang Wei closed the door and walked over. Fang Tao said, "Wei'er, you have studied in the UK for a few years. Come and see this design drawing for a class." Fang Wei smiled and said, "How dare a son comment on his father?" He took it and looked at it for a while. His face turned pale. After a while, he put down the drawing and looked at his father with a frightened look and said, "This…" Fang Tao said lightly, "You can say it." Fang Wei said, "My son is not very knowledgeable, but the design of this building does not seem to fit the layout of the classroom. Instead, it looks like…" Fang Tao smiled and said, "What does it look like?" Fang Wei saw that his father was not angry, so he mustered up the courage to say, "It looks like a mourning hall." As soon as he said this, the housekeeper couldn't help but screamed.
Fang Tao laughed loudly and said, "Yes, what I designed is not a mourning hall, it is a mourning hall! I thought hard for five months and finally figured it out. Ying'er still hates me after all. She hates me for forcing her mother away, so she is destined to leave me and give birth to me. I am so sorry for her! Doesn't she like it here very much? So I will build a mourning hall and classroom for her with my own hands and mix her ashes into concrete so that she can be influenced by the fragrance of books for generations and become a god. Haha…" The housekeeper was shocked and said, "Master, you are too sad!" Fang Wei said, "But they may not agree…" Fang Tao suppressed his smile and said coldly, "Don't worry, those idiots outside will only flatter me. If I don't say it and you don't say it, only God knows that this is not a classroom but a mourning hall."
The funeral hall classroom was completed as scheduled after a year and a half. Fang Tao did not attend the opening ceremony and his son Fang Wei cut the ribbon on his behalf. When the crowd of festivities dispersed and it was late at night, the weak Fang Tao struggled to get out of bed and called Fang Wei and the housekeeper, saying, "Let's go to the funeral hall and pay our respects to Ying'er." Fang Wei and the housekeeper knew that he had a stubborn temper and did not dare to persuade him too much. They could only support the staggering Fang Tao to the first class.
Looking at this outstanding building that embodies his efforts, love and hatred, Fang Tao could not help but sigh with emotion. After the three climbed to the seventh floor, Fang Tao ordered the housekeeper to set up the incense table and personally held three incense sticks to pray: "Ying'er, I know you hate me. If you forgive your father now and accept this mourning hall, please show your spirit to me. I miss you so much, Ying'er!" As he said this, he respectfully inserted it into the incense table. Suddenly, a faint sound of mourning music and crying came from the distance, as if coming from downstairs and step by step towards the seventh floor. The housekeeper shouted: "It really showed its spirit!" Then he was so scared that he curled up in a corner and trembled. Fang Tao was startled at first, then ran towards the stairs like crazy, staggered for only two steps and fell down. He struggled to raise his head and said with tears on his face: "Ying'er, are you here to see me? My dear Ying'er!" Fang Wei hurriedly helped his old father up and said sternly: "Who? Who is playing tricks there?!" As he said this, he was stunned.
Because at this time, a group of people in strange clothes had slowly walked out of the stairs. They all wore pointed hats and long white robes that reached the ground. Their eyes were dull and they walked slowly in a row of two. The two people in front were holding two white paper lanterns in their hands. The ones behind them were holding soul-calling banners, and some were distributing paper money, and some were carrying many paper figures and paper houses.
Then sixteen people carried a coffin covered with yellow satin and passed by Fang Tao and the other two solemnly. Fang Wei looked back in panic and saw the graceful Fang Ying following behind the three family members in mourning.
Fang Ying's outfit was even more strange. She was still wearing the light blue floral dress she wore on the day of the accident, but she had her hair tied up in a high bun, just like when she walked into the house on fire. She stared at Fang Tao and the other two as they slowly approached. Fang Tao said in a hoarse voice, "Ying'er, are you here to see me?" Fang Ying's eyes were filled with a deep coldness. She raised her right hand and pointed at Fang Wei and said word by word, "For Jiang Shan, you gave up on me. I cannot be forgiven!" Her voice was ethereal and had an extremely gloomy meaning.
Fang Tao was wondering what she was talking about when Fang Wei was so scared that she crawled backwards and cried, "I didn't want to do this, please let me go, sister! I'm a villain, not worth killing, I'm despicable, shameless, and vulgar…" He just kept on muttering, but Fang Tao suddenly realized and pointed at Fang Wei and said angrily, "So it's you, the beast!" Fang Ying slowly opened her right hand and whispered to the panicked Fang Wei, "Today I want you to enjoy the joy of grief and anger with me…" Fang Wei's whole body suddenly burst into flames, and after a few screams, there was not even a trace of ash left on the ground.
Fang Tao ignored Fang Wei's tragic death and looked at Fang Ying with pleading eyes, "Ying'er, do you recognize me? I am your father, Ying'er!" The housekeeper timidly grabbed Fang Tao and said, "Master, you can't go forward." Fang Ying looked straight ahead, as if she didn't hear Fang Tao's plea, and drifted away with the mourning team as coldly as ice. She turned around and looked at Fang Tao with tears in her eyes. Her figure gradually disappeared as the thick fog, and the funeral music and wailing also stopped abruptly.
Fang Tao stared at the direction where his daughter left for a long while, then suddenly laughed three times: "The funeral classroom really became a funeral classroom in the end!" He leaned to the side and passed away. The Fang family, which was famous at the time, soon died out.
Later, it was found out that Fang Wei heard that Fang Ying would never marry and was worried that she would want to fight for the inheritance. He was so desperate that he sneaked back to China and used his research on architecture to secretly place a small explosive in the practice room. The careful design minimized the explosion sound, and the fire inside the practice room destroyed the structure of the house at the same time. The fire would collapse in less than a minute. As long as Fang Ying entered the practice room, she would be dead. No one knew how she died . As for how Fang Wei placed the explosives and how he found out the structure of the practice room, it was impossible to verify.
(The above information was recorded and compiled by the Criminal Office based on the oral statements of the old housekeeper)
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Zhang Jianfeng and Xiaolan were both speechless after reading this long passage. Zhang Jianfeng said, "Wang Hongbin mentioned the issue of clothing once, and he mentioned it several times here. It seems that there is something strange about the clothing. As far as I know, no matter how grand the funeral is, white robes and long skirts will not be worn. Could these strange clothes have any special hints?" He glanced at Xiaolan who was in deep thought and said, "What are you thinking about?" Xiaolan said, "I'm thinking about Fang Ying. This woman has not been normal since the fire started – not to mention his two strange outfits, just the words she said to her brother in a class are incomprehensible." Zhang Jianfeng was surprised, "You are talking about…" Xiaolan said, "Her brother burned her to death in order to fight for the inheritance, but she kept saying 'for the country', 'you gave up me' – here he not only said the inheritance as the country, but also the tone of his speech was very different from that of a brother and sister. His brother just wanted to get all the inheritance, so what's the point of giving up or not?"