Chapter Thirty: Resolution

For a moment, the atmosphere was stifling. The portly man woke up, stretched lazily, and seeing the expressions on Song Nianqiang and his companion’s faces, asked curiously, “Qiangzi, what happened?”

Song Nianqiang didn’t hide anything and recounted the events in detail. Hearing this, the fat man was shocked; he hadn’t expected such things as zombies to still exist in the twenty-first century. As the two spoke, the door to the ward swung open and two middle-aged men entered, one after the other.

Song Nianqiang recognized the man with gold-rimmed glasses; he had seen him on television before—he was the county magistrate. As for the other, he guessed he must be the county party secretary. Not long after, the colonel arrived as well.

Scar had no place in this matter; he was merely a bodyguard, and his special status made it unsuitable for him to mingle with these officials. So, after exchanging a few words with the sallow-faced man, Scar took his leave. Now that the key figures were present, it was time to discuss how to resolve the situation.

“I think we should excavate the tomb. After all, it’s the only ancient tomb ever discovered in our county,” the magistrate said after a brief exchange of greetings with the colonel. In this setting, Song Nianqiang and the fat man had no voice; these were all people of importance. Though no one knew the sallow-faced man’s true identity, the colonel gave him a slight nod upon seeing him.

“There’s a zombie inside. While I don’t know how old it is, I can assert that if it’s released, the consequences will be unthinkable!” The sallow-faced man disagreed with the magistrate. He was a professional, holding more authority in this field.

“A zombie! Can it withstand bullets? Send in a squad, and before it even emerges, it’ll be riddled with holes!” The magistrate seemed to scoff at the sallow-faced man’s words, but as he spoke, he glanced towards the colonel.

“Hmph! Even if you bring artillery, you may not subdue that zombie. If it’s ancient enough—say, over a thousand years—modern weapons are powerless against it!” The sallow-faced man gave the magistrate no leeway, pointing at him as he spoke.

“You…” The magistrate was momentarily speechless. “Enough arguing. Who are you, and how do you know there’s a zombie inside?” Clearly, the party secretary was more astute than the magistrate. As he spoke, all eyes turned to the sallow-faced man. If he didn’t reveal his identity, the officials would not abandon their plans to excavate the tomb.

“I’m from Hunan, specializing in the art of corpse-driving. I came to your county for a major job, but I don't engage in anything illegal. As for how I know—ask these two young men.” He pointed at Song Nianqiang and the fat man, who lay on the hospital bed.

“Don’t look at me like that. We just caught a Five Wonders Ghost for the hospital. As for the tomb, we know nothing about it,” Song Nianqiang shrugged, preparing to lie back down and sleep. “Can you show us your ghost-catching skills? Let us see the Five Wonders Ghost you caught.”

Song Nianqiang understood the secretary’s intention perfectly—it was to hear the Five Wonders Ghost personally confirm the tomb’s existence. “Simple. Tonight, come to our rented place. Anyway, both of us are fine now, and staying in the hospital any longer feels suffocating.”

“Very well, tonight we’ll meet at your place. I have other duties to attend to, so I’ll take my leave.” With that, the party secretary turned to go, pulling the magistrate along with him. The magistrate understood his meaning; there was no use staying, so better to leave early.

“Take care and recover well. We’ll see you tonight.” The colonel departed after saying this. Song Nianqiang finally sat up and asked the sallow-faced man, “Why do you need our help? Can’t you handle this yourself?” By now, Song Nianqiang understood a bit. When they had gone to the school to catch ghosts, Scar had led them to meet someone—the same man responsible for corpse-driving.

“Each craft has its specialist. On this journey to Hunan, who knows what monsters or spirits we’ll encounter? We can’t travel openly, nor during the day. As the saying goes, the more you walk at night, the more likely you are to meet ghosts. We only drive corpses, not catch ghosts.”

With this explanation, Song Nianqiang finally understood. “There are at least thirty in that house. If you want our help, you should show some appreciation!” The fat man, understanding the situation, spoke up; it was not in his nature to work for nothing.

“Don’t worry. All your expenses on the road are covered, and after the job is done, you’ll receive a hundred thousand yuan as a reward,” the sallow-faced man assured him.

“Wow! That much? No wonder people say ghost-catching is the most lucrative business. It seems to be true!” The fat man smacked his lips; a hundred thousand was a fortune for the two of them. With that money, they could indulge themselves and try all the things they’d never dared before.

“No problem. When do we set out?” The fat man was already giddy at the thought of the money, but Song Nianqiang was more cautious. “You must have handled the aftermath, right? Two students vanishing for a month or more—any teacher would be suspicious.”

“Don’t worry, your mother has been notified, and we’ve prepared a solid excuse for the school,” said the sallow-faced man with a smile. Song Nianqiang nodded in acknowledgment.

After leaving the hospital, Song Nianqiang and the fat man enjoyed a lavish meal at Yiyuan Grand Hotel—the finest establishment in their county. Normally, small fry like them wouldn’t even dream of dining there, only joking about it on occasion.

Of course, this time the sallow-faced man was treating them. He booked a private room, ordered the best food and drink, and they indulged to their hearts’ content. Since there was still business to attend to that evening, none of the four drank much. Yet Song Nianqiang was amazed to see Scar drink beer like water, pouring it into his stomach with ease. Looking at Scar’s impressive physique, he wondered how big his stomach really was.

As they left the hotel, Song Nianqiang felt the food inside wasn’t as good as his mother’s cooking—no better than a street stall, yet the prices were astonishingly high. Perhaps that was the effect of a famous brand.

Upon returning to their rented apartment, they found the place utterly transformed, as if it had been redecorated from scratch. Branded sofas and branded tea tables adorned the room. Though their quarters were small, the new furnishings lent it a distinctive charm.

But the most important item remained in place—the altar meticulously crafted by Song Nianqiang and the fat man. In their line of work, a personal altar was essential, a place to burn incense and pray to the gods, known as the “immortal table.”

They carefully checked their equipment for any damage, for after last night’s events, they couldn’t be sure everything was still intact. After twenty minutes, Song Nianqiang breathed a sigh of relief; nothing was broken. Confident, he took out the talisman paper and placed it in the tea bowl wrapped with red thread. As soon as he did, the talisman ignited with a “pop,” and the weakened Five Wonders Ghost appeared inside.

Scar called the colonel, and by now it was past seven thirty in the evening. He asked the colonel to notify the two officials to come to Song Nianqiang’s apartment.

About half an hour later, three cars arrived almost simultaneously outside the apartment. The three men got out and entered.

Song Nianqiang pointed to the outline formed by swirling smoke. “That’s the Five Wonders Ghost. Now I’ll ask it whether there really is an ancient tomb and a zombie.” He walked to the altar, forming a ritual gesture with his hands. The ghost, utterly subdued, answered Song Nianqiang’s questions one by one.

“It seems there truly is an ancient tomb. As for the zombie, I still reserve judgment—perhaps we should use modern weapons,” said the magistrate, now that the matter was confirmed. But the colonel, who had remained silent until now, spoke up: “Let this matter rest. Do not mention it again!”