They stayed outside until dawn before returning. Recalling what had happened during the night, Fatty still felt lingering fear. A gust of wind blew, and Fatty shivered from the cold.

His costume was soaked through, but he didn't dare take it off. It clung to his body, wet and uncomfortable.

"Doctor, you don't know, Shi Liaozhi's body was right under the boat, wearing a bright red opera costume. At the time... at the time, we were this close!" Fatty gesticulated wildly as he excitedly told Jiang Cheng, who was sitting at the table, "It scared me to death!"

"I thought at the time that you doctors must have been set up. Shi Liaozhi is a ghost," Fatty said with certainty.

Immediately after, Fatty put on an expression that he thought was natural, but was actually quite proud, and stole a glance at Jiang Cheng, saying, "Then I was thinking about how to notify you, Doctor, but after thinking it over, there was no other way, so I had to make up the reason that Young Master Huang was seriously ill." He licked his lips, revealing an expression of expecting praise, "How about it, Doctor, not bad, right?"

Leaning by the window, watching the scenery outside, Xia Meng seemed to have grown tired of Fatty's nagging. She turned her head to glance at him, and said, "Whether you came or not wouldn't have made a difference." She snorted coldly, "You don't actually think he didn't see that Shi Liaozhi was a ghost, do you?"

Hearing this, Fatty was stunned for a moment, then looked at the doctor with a questioning look. After a moment, Fatty visibly deflated.

With even a little bit of thought, anyone would know that a smart person like the doctor would have seen through Shi Liaozhi's flaws long ago. Did he really need his reminder?

It seemed like he was just being presumptuous again. Fatty drooped his head, thinking that his actions were not only useless in the doctor's eyes, but also particularly stupid...

Drawing himself in, shrinking into the chair, Fatty stopped talking.

A hand rested on Fatty's shoulder, and the latter's large body stiffened. He raised his head to meet the doctor's calm eyes.

"Thank you, Fatty," Jiang Cheng said very naturally. There was no affectation in his eyes, as if Fatty's actions had really given him great help.

He squeezed the latter's shoulder forcefully, nodding and saying, "Well done."

A light began to flicker in Fatty's dim eyes.

Xia Meng stared at the two of them, a hint of surprise flashing in her eyes, especially towards Jiang Cheng, as if she was seeing him for the first time.

"Shi Liaozhi was hiding very deeply," Jiang Cheng said, withdrawing his hand. "I was careless this time."

After a brief daze, Fatty quickly waved his hand, replying in a somewhat flattered manner, "Don't say that, Doctor. You've always been helping me before. It's only right that I help you this time. And this mission is so dangerous..." Fatty said, his face flushed, "Even the wisest person is bound to make a mistake. You've already done very well, Doctor."

"Next time, if you discover anything again, remember to remind me in time."

Fatty nodded repeatedly, "Okay, Doctor."

"Doctor," Fatty craned his neck and asked, "What do we do next?"

Although the ghost didn't kill anyone during the play last night, Shi Liaozhi died during the day. Fatty remembered the doctor saying that as the mission progressed, the ghost was gradually perfecting itself, and its methods were becoming more and more bizarre.

"First, help me keep watch outside," Jiang Cheng glanced at Xia Meng by the window. "I have something to say to her."

"Okay, Doctor." Fatty immediately walked towards the door. He had developed a conditioned reflex-like obedience to Jiang Cheng's words. After opening the door, Fatty first looked left and right, making sure no one was there, before turning back to ask, "Doctor, you should hurry. Someone might come in a while."

Jiang Cheng patted his hands as he got up, while adjusting his belt, saying, "Don't you know me? A few minutes is enough."

Fatty slammed the door shut.

"What do you want to do?" Xia Meng looked at the man walking towards her, her confidence clearly lacking. She pursed her lips. "What happened last night has nothing to do with me. You should understand that if I came back to report, I might have been targeted by the ghost, or even killed directly." She said quickly, "You can't ask me to be like that fatty..."

Before she could finish speaking, her throat was grabbed by a hand. The scene that had happened in Little Stone Creek Village was replayed here, except that the person being threatened had changed from that woman to herself.

With Xia Meng's skills, she shouldn't have been subdued so easily, but Jiang Cheng didn't say anything and just attacked. She hadn't expected it, after all... after all, he had already reached an agreement with her.

If she were to have any mishaps during the mission, he and that fatty would not have a good ending after they got out.

Jiang Cheng stared at her coldly, gradually increasing the force in his hand. Xia Meng felt her feet leaving the ground. This man, who didn't look strong, had actually lifted her up with one hand.

"Cough... cough..." Xia Meng coughed violently, but even so, the sounds she could make were extremely limited. She stared at Jiang Cheng with terrified eyes, thinking he was crazy.

"I gave you a chance," Jiang Cheng said very calmly, "But you didn't cherish it."

Two hands weakly tore at the hand that was strangling her throat. That hand with distinct knuckles was like an iron clamp. Xia Meng's mind was blank at this moment. The feeling of oxygen deprivation suffocated her, and black shadows were already appearing before her eyes.

She didn't know where she had offended this lunatic.

That was what frightened her the most.

Xia Meng's lips kept moving, watching her struggle weakly, Jiang Cheng said indifferently, "If you're still thinking about your Uncle Gong, then I advise you to give up on that idea."

"First, he's not here," Jiang Cheng said. "Second, even if he were here, your situation might not be much better than it is now. I advise you to be a little smarter."

"I like smart people," Jiang Cheng continued, "Because they live longer."

Just a second before Xia Meng felt she was about to be strangled to death, the force that had been tightly gripping her neck disappeared. She fell to her knees with a thud, then fell forward onto the ground.

Her messy hair was stuck to her face with sweat, she lay on the ground, panting heavily, more disheveled than ever before.

Jiang Cheng's shoes were tapping the ground 10 centimeters in front of her face, she could even feel the vibrations coming from the ground.

Madman...

He's a madman!

If she didn't have accurate information, she would have suspected without hesitation that Jiang Cheng... was the Crimson who infiltrated the mission.

"It's getting late, I'll only ask the following question once," Jiang Cheng looked down at her, then slowly squatted down, with not a trace of pity in his eyes, "Besides Zuo Jing and An Xuan, are there any other people who came in with you this time?"

Hearing this, Xia Meng, who was trembling violently, immediately stopped moving. She tried her best to look up, and the look in her eyes changed as she looked at Jiang Cheng.

"Who exactly are they?" Jiang Cheng continued, "Don't lie to me just to protect you. You and I both know that you're not worth that price."