See the Law of Deception

Chapter 6 Summoning Ghosts (5)

What did she see?
Standing at the entrance of the alley, Lu Jinzhao stared intently at Cen Duo, who was still in a head-down position inside the alley.

One second, two seconds, three seconds, four seconds, five seconds.
Six seconds! Seven seconds! Eight seconds!

Cen Duo remained motionless.

Twenty seconds passed before the stiff figure swayed unnaturally, as if the brain was congested with blood from maintaining the posture for too long and could no longer control the limbs, and it stood up with some difficulty.

The people at the alley entrance were still observing; no one spoke, and no one called out Cen Duo's name.

Only when Cen Duo picked up the incense sticks stuck in the ground and came out, and everyone saw that she looked no different than before she went in, did they breathe a sigh of relief and ask:

Why did you stare at it for so long?

Cen Duo was taken aback upon hearing this: "Has it been a long time?"

"Anyway, it wasn't short. Did you see something?"

She held the incense and candles in her hand, her expression momentarily dazed, as if recalling the scene she had witnessed after her nostrils were filled with the scent of the incense and candles. A hint of fear appeared on her face, and she slowly replied:
"I think I saw many figures. The wall disappeared and turned into a road. There were many shadows on that road. I saw them, and they saw me too."

Cen Duo's voice suddenly stopped, paused for a few seconds, and then continued, "I was terrified at the time. I never thought I would actually see those things. My mind went completely blank."

"It was probably after a while that I remembered what was in the book, so I quickly got up."

Not quite right.

Looking at Cen Duo's slightly frightened expression, Lu Jinzhao realized that it was indeed the expression one would have after encountering a supernatural event, but something was off.

Cen Duo's explanation was very simple, and she finished recounting her experience in just a few words. In fact, her ghost-seeing ritual was also very short, and everyone witnessed the whole process, so her account seemed to be without any problems.

However, Lu Jinzhao believes that Cen Duo is lying.

At least, she didn't tell the whole truth.

She deliberately used concise language to gloss over the details, even just using vague phrases like "I was frightened" to describe her feelings at the time.

Did she see something she couldn't say?
For a full twenty seconds, all I saw was a silhouette, I was startled, and that was it?
How can it be!

Lin Shuyue is still trapped in that house.

Something is wrong, absolutely wrong.

Cen Duo saw a figure, and the figure saw her too, but did she really get up in time?

Did those passersby see her as an unborn baby and "reincarnate" in her?
No one knows.

Lu Jinzhao kept sounding the alarm bells in her mind. On the way to the next ghostly location, she deliberately walked at the back, far away from Cen Duo.

Besides her, Jiang Yingzhi did the same.

"You're quite clever," Jiang Yingzhi said in a low voice at the very end.

She was quite down, which is not surprising; anyone who drew her lot would not have been in a better mood.

Lu Jinzhao didn't reply immediately, and Jiang Yingzhi didn't intend to listen to her answer either. She just said to Lu Jinzhao as if giving her last words, "It's best to stay away from her in this instance."

"If you see Lin Shuyue later, and she comes out alive but is about to die, you can stay a little longer. She has something very good on her. If you can save her life in exchange for that thing, that would be best."

"Even if we can't save it, we'll try our best to get our hands on the items."

Lu Jinzhao felt increasingly uneasy as she listened, and she interrupted Jiang Yingzhi, asking, "Why are you telling me all this?"

This is inconsistent with her repeated emphasis on trying to convey the idea that "there is no friendship among passengers, only self-preservation."

“Because I’m probably going to die.” Jiang Yingzhi looked up at Lu Jinzhao.

"If I had any hope of living, I wouldn't be telling you these things, but since I'm going to die, I might as well do one good deed before I die."

"Although I don't know why I'm experiencing all this."

No matter how she thought about it, Jiang Yingzhi didn't know how she could leave this place alive. She had only been through two stations and was not a seasoned ordinary passenger. The only person who might be able to help her, Lin Shuyue, with whom she had a certain relationship, was still trapped in the room.

She had given up hope.

Before she died, she didn't mind revealing some information to Lu Jinzhao, whom she found somewhat agreeable.

Lu Jinzhao looked at her and asked, "If you don't die later, and I'm in danger, would you be willing to save me?"

Jiang Yingzhi blinked: "I probably wouldn't want to. Even though I'm going to die, I still don't have any intention of sacrificing myself for others."

“What if…” Lu Jinzhao stopped in her tracks and turned to look at Jiang Yingzhi. Her expression was no longer the gentle and harmless one she had been before, but had become calm. Her tone was not loud, but it carried an indescribable certainty.

"I have a way to help you complete your task," I said.

What are you willing to sacrifice for this method?

Jiang Yingzhi froze, her expression frozen for several seconds before she finally spoke, slightly bewildered, "What did you say?"

Then his voice suddenly became urgent: "Do you have a way?"

"any solution?!"

“It’s not a good idea.” Lu Jinzhao’s expression remained unchanged: “But it’s still an idea.”

"I'm willing to pay any price, as long as the mission is completed and I don't die, I'll do whatever you say."

What can she do for you, to give hope to those in despair?
Lu Jinzhao has now witnessed it.

But she wouldn't believe it immediately. Instead, she asked, "How can I be sure you won't lie to me or go back on your word?"

Jiang Yingzhi hesitated for a moment before taking out her train ticket.

"Normally, tickets are not lost or stolen, but those that you give away yourself are an exception."

"Of course, getting someone else's ticket won't do you any other good; the only thing you can do with it is..."

"rip off."

Lu Jinzhao understood.

“However, you have to return the ticket to me after we get back on the train.” Jiang Yingzhi hesitated for a moment and said, “If we are assigned to the same platform again, I can listen to you within the limits, but I can’t keep giving you the ticket.”

Lu Jinzhao understood: "Then that's settled."

After receiving the ticket, Lu Jinzhao looked towards the roadside under Jiang Yingzhi's eager gaze.

The layout of Chinatown is not complicated. The path they took was the one they had taken on their way here, which Lu Jinzhao had observed back then.

The Chinatown was brighter now than when I arrived, but the streets did not become any brighter because of the lights.

Lu Jinzhao's voice sounded deep and resonant in the dim light: "Pregnant woman, what do you mean?"

"A woman who is pregnant with life."

"To complete this task, all you need to do is have a life of your own, right?"

Jiang Yingzhi frowned, her expression one of surprise and uncertainty: "I don't understand what you mean. I simply can't make myself feel better in a short time."

Lu Jinzhao glanced at her and looked towards the street: "Why does it have to be yours?"

There were puppies from a litter of stray dogs, and they looked to be in good spirits.

Jiang Yingzhi's gaze followed Lu Jinzhao's, and then she heard the girl's light, emotionless voice.

"If you have a baby in your uterus, then you're pregnant, aren't you?"

(End of this chapter)