The Eldritch Files

It was her.

When she shook his hand, Han Su noticed a small scar on her forehead.

That face finally overlapped with the image of the shivering little girl in his memory.

’Is she going to be a big star now?’

Han Su didn’t follow such things, but he wasn’t unfamiliar with them. At some point, every city had started holding ”Empress” beauty pageants. Each Empress’s term was three years, during which they would become the city’s spokesperson, gaining immense fame and fortune.

And this was the only path for a woman of ordinary birth to cross class divides.

”You like her type?”

Only after Wei Lan had disappeared from view did Xu Ji glance at Han Su curiously. ”It’d be tough,” he said. ”Girls on their path are hard to pursue. Once they’re chosen as an Empress, you can forget about them dating, at least during their term.”

”Even after their term, it’s hard to get close to them. Plenty of rich kids in Qinggang City have had their legs broken by the old men in their families for going after them...”

”...And I mean literally broken!”

”...”

Han Su came to his senses. Noncommittally, he asked, ”Families like yours are afraid of a minor celebrity?”

”A minor celebrity, no. But an Empress is different.”

Xu Ji shook his head. ”Even my dad flew back just because of her. He specifically warned me not to get too close to them, saying they’re too dangerous, that ordinary people can’t handle their beauty...”

”...And their love!”

Xu Ji’s brow furrowed, as if he also found the words strange. ”I shot my mouth off, and my dad just stared at me for three seconds. He said they aren’t even the same species as us, and if I didn’t listen, he’d break my legs.”

”Scared the hell out of me! I thought he was just going to dock my allowance!”

”Of course, the Wei Family isn’t to be trifled with, either. That goes without saying.”

Listening to Xu Ji ramble on, Han Su also felt something was odd, but that was all.

Before, when he couldn’t find her, he’d longed to. Now that he’d seen her and confirmed she was doing well, he felt there was nothing left to say. Instead, this whole ”Empress” pageant thing gave him a strange sense of bewilderment.

It just felt completely out of place, not like a normal commercial event.

Just as he was thinking this, he saw Special Assistant Xu walk back, looking utterly dazed. He was holding his phone, his expression like someone who’d seen a ghost in broad daylight, filled with the shock of having his worldview shattered.

He said numbly, ”The master... the master agreed...”

”Huh?”

Xu Ji and Han Su both turned to him with astonished gazes. Special Assistant Xu was clearly trying to compose himself, but he still looked bewildered as he said, word by word:

”The master... the master said, we’ve troubled Mr. Han.”

As he spoke, he tried to regulate his emotions. ”The Ghost Truck has had a negative impact, so of course it must be dealt with as soon as possible.”

”This is a mess the young master made, and he must take responsibility for it. Mr. Han is a professional, so the master’s meaning is this: he asks that you do what you must. The young master will cooperate with your actions, and so will the Xu Family.”

”...”

”What?”

This time, Han Su was truly taken aback.

He had long since considered Xu Ji’s role in this mission, but had been reluctant to bring it up because of his status.

And now the Xu Family was being this generous?

The Xu Family had employed the highest level of security measures for their precious son—measures so extensive they even covered Han Su himself.

They were actually willing to let him take this big, foolish son of theirs to confront the Ghost Truck directly?

”Right.”

Special Assistant Xu, having regained his composure, continued, ”There’s one more thing. I just received a report. On the Black Table platform, the bounty for your kidnapping case has increased again, Mr. Han.”

”The person who posted the bounty has raised the reward from the original three million to thirty million.”

”I think you might want to be careful.”

”...”

”Thirty million?”

Han Su hadn’t expected this. He frowned slightly. The previous bounty hunters had already suffered significant losses and had all but vanished. Now there was a new wave?

’The person behind this bounty has deep pockets...’

After joining the Disaster Management Bureau, he had considered using the Bureau’s power to find that person, but it wasn’t easy.

The Black Table was a world-class secret website. Even the most powerful people in Qinggang City could only manage to obtain a high-clearance account on the Black Table; they couldn’t directly investigate the bounty posters whom the Black Table deliberately protected.

Thinking of the trouble this bounty could bring, he frowned. ”I have a new job now, and my information is quite confidential. Do you think those people would dare to come after me?”

”It’s hard to say.”

Special Assistant Xu’s expression was grave. He said in a low voice, ”From a purely business perspective, Mr. Han, the cost of coming after you now far exceeds thirty million. A smart person wouldn’t do it.”

”But this city is too big, and it’s full of all kinds of people. You can’t be sure someone won’t do something incomprehensible. The threat might not be great, but it will be very annoying.”

He sighed softly. ”I’ve always felt that, compared to those things that penetrate reality, money is the most corrupting and maddening thing in this world.”

”In any case, you should still be careful.”

”...”

”...”

Meanwhile, as Han Su and the others were talking, Wei Lan had gone to a dressing room on the other side of the hall. After the makeup artists and others had left, leaving only her and her assistant, she stared blankly at her reflection in the mirror. Her assistant gave her a nudge. ”What were you just thinking? You went over to shake someone’s hand with your face half-done, covered in foundation. Where’s your professionalism?”

Wei Lan scoffed. ”Maybe because he’s handsome?”

”Who in our circle isn’t more handsome than him?”

The assistant pouted. ”You’ve been getting stranger and stranger since a month ago. You had a 100% chance of being elected in Ti City and joining the Queen’s Organization, but you just had to drop everything there and come back to Qinggang City. Your chances of success have plummeted to less than 70%...”

”What for? And don’t tell me it’s because of some family ties...”

Wei Lan just smiled. ”I just had a feeling that if I came back, something wonderful would happen.”

...

...

”I understand.”

Han Su nodded slightly, a question occurring to him. ”Right, Special Assistant Xu,” he said suddenly, ”do you know of a place called Dingxiang Mansion?”

”Hm?”

Special Assistant Xu froze for a moment. Beside him, Xu Ji’s head shot up, and he grinned. ”Old Han, you’ve fallen! You’re starting to think about this stuff too?”

”Fallen? What do you mean?”

Han Su hadn’t expected Xu Ji to say that, and his expression was one of surprise.

Xu Ji winked and grinned slyly. ”Dingxiang Mansion! Isn’t that the place I wanted to take you to have some fun?”

”Hm?”

Just as Han Su was feeling puzzled, Special Assistant Xu stopped Xu Ji. ”Mr. Han, Dingxiang Mansion is the club I mentioned to you before. Do you recall? The place where you can find drunk Investigators telling stories about strange incidents?”

With that reminder, Han Su understood. ”Why couldn’t I find it on a map?”

Special Assistant Xu shook his head. ”Many people don’t like their private properties appearing on public maps. The owner of Dingxiang Mansion is one of them.”

”The club under his name isn’t open to the public, either. They only issue invitations for occasional auctions or entertainment. If Mr. Han is interested, I can help you...”

”...”

”Yes!”

Hearing this, Han Su nodded directly, then smiled. ”You can give it to me later. I want the invitation, and the address. And if it’s not illegal, it would be even better to know what the owner does and what their background is...”

”Of course, for now, we need to focus our energy on solving the Ghost Truck problem.”

”Yes!”

Hearing this, Special Assistant Xu also grew tense. ”Mr. Han,” he said hurriedly, ”this matter... it’s too important.”

His gaze couldn’t help but fall on Xu Ji, who was acting as if it were no big deal. He sighed, ”I never imagined that an anomaly like the Ghost Truck could have such a huge impact on the fate of those who encounter it.”

”The master just told me on the phone that the influence of Mysterious Power on one’s fate is inescapable. Rather than keep running from it, it’s better to face it and resolve it directly.”

”I approve of your plan, and of course I believe in your abilities, but...”

”...is there anything we can do to help?”

”...”

Han Su had unexpectedly gained Xu Ji’s support and already had an idea in mind. Now, seeing Special Assistant Xu’s nervous expression, a thought suddenly stirred within him.

He looked up at Special Assistant Xu and said, ”Since Uncle Xu has said so, I won’t be polite.”

”Since the Xu Family was able to find that Mysticism expert from before to deal with Xu Ji’s problem, can you find more people who can help deal with an anomaly like the Ghost Truck?”

”What I need right now is reliable manpower!”

”...”

”Manpower...”

Special Assistant Xu considered Han Su’s words for a moment. When he looked up, his expression was serious. ”Mr. Han, any kind of bounty can be posted on the Black Table, both reasonable and unreasonable.”

”And I happen to know a friend who has very high clearance on the Black Table. A VVIP.”

”So, theoretically, I can post any kind of mission!”

”Perhaps Mr. Han isn’t aware, but since the Disaster Management Bureau was established, Qinggang City’s control over those who’ve had contact with anomalies has become increasingly strict. But before the Bureau appeared, many experts and scholars in Mysticism had already emerged, and they also need to make a living.”

”Most of these people are registered, and most of them don’t like dealing with the Disaster Management Bureau. But if the bounty is high enough, perhaps some will be willing to come and earn some extra cash...”

”It’s just that, I’m not entirely confident we can hire top experts, especially on such short notice.”

”...”

”So, it turns out money really is the greatest corrupting force...”

Hearing this, Han Su couldn’t help but laugh. ”Just being able to hire anyone is good enough. As for whether we can get top experts, well, we’ll leave that to fate!”