These two have become increasingly sharp. After so many years, they are no longer like before, always needing me to assign specific tasks. More often than not, they find things to do even without my instruction.
Liu Yuning and I were not idle either. Zhang Keying seemed to want to join us, so we set off. The place we were going was actually Dongyu Town.
We had investigated this town online. In 1998, for reasons unknown, perhaps a natural disaster or man-made calamity, its population sharply declined. It was said that an infectious disease had struck the town, but the authorities never disclosed the specific illness.
We drove across the Guangming City Bridge in a police car and reached the opposite side of a previous crime scene. We got out of the car at the town's entrance. Xia Hou and the others had been here before. We walked along a road by the sea and found many supermarkets and other buildings. I thought they must have obtained surveillance footage from here back then.
However, I had expected to find some signs of life here, but apart from us, there wasn't a single pedestrian on the street. Although the supermarkets and other establishments were open, when we went inside, there wasn't even a cashier.
The supermarkets and shops were all deserted, yet the merchandise was neatly arranged. Dust covered the floors and ceilings, suggesting that no one had been here for quite some time. I checked the doors and found a considerable accumulation of dust, meaning the doors had not been moved.
Some footprints remained on the ground. I remembered that Xia Hou wore Anta sports shoes, and these treads matched perfectly.
Some experts must have been here before. I wouldn't delve into every detail of that. Fortunately, we came to Dongyu Town; otherwise, we wouldn't have known the true situation here.
"Why does this supermarket look like everyone's dead?"
It was better that Zhang Keying didn't say it. The moment she spoke, Liu Yuning and I both felt a chill run down our spines.
"Don't talk nonsense. It's probably an unmanned store?" I guessed.
"Unmanned, my foot! Look at these old counters! Brother Hesheng!"
Zhang Keying examined the surroundings. Liu Yuning and I also saw the equipment on the counters. Forget old; this place actually didn't even have QR codes. Looking up at the surveillance cameras outside, they seemed quite dated. We went to the surveillance room, searched carefully, and turned on a computer. Inside, we found some footage that Xia Hou and the others had copied.
However, as I continued to examine the computer, I discovered a lot of data from 1998 on the hard drive. The owner of this computer should be named Tang Jinhai. In 1998, he had visited a mansion and taken many photos. The place looked quite ancient, with Rococo-style designs around it. Many walls were covered with oil paintings that seemed to be the work of a master. The floor was covered in footprints and some bloodstains. A woman, who looked very dignified and elegant, lay quietly on the sofa.
Kneeling beside her were several strange individuals covered in scales. Those figures were unclothed, and their scales were very deep, one connected to another, appearing much thicker than those of the previously discovered victims. The moment Liu Yuning saw these photos, he asked curiously, "How could this be? Did people like this exist in Dongyu Town back then?"
"It's too terrifying. It seems this case is truly not simple. It's been 24 years since then. I was only about six years old at the time. I don't think it was just a simple disease back then. It seems we need to find a way to unravel the mystery here."
"If it weren't for those two bodies, so many things wouldn't have been brought to light," Zhang Keying said.
Liu Yuning nodded. "But this has suddenly piqued my interest!"
"Let's go! I've copied this data. We'll go check out other places!"
Leaving the supermarket, we thoroughly searched nearby tobacco and liquor stores, hotels, and the like. But these places were not only desolate but also rather dirty. There wasn't even a ghost in sight.
Where had all the people gone?
After leaving a hotel, we regrouped at a crossroads. We shook our heads at each other, knowing the result was that we had found nothing.
We had no choice but to venture deeper into the town. This time, we didn't split up but instead headed straight down a road, wanting to find the mansion from the photos. Perhaps the secret was hidden there.
Just then, my phone rang. It was Xia Hou. I needed to ask him if he had encountered a similar situation when he was here in Dongyu Town.
As soon as I answered, Xia Hou said anxiously, "We've checked many cosmetic surgery clinics, but we haven't found any records of the victims visiting them. I suspect the place they had their surgeries might not be in Guangming City."
"We are currently in Dongyu Town. You guys should come over too. Oh, right, last time..."
I explained the situation I had encountered in Dongyu Town. Xia Hou made some sounds of surprise. He was about to reply, but for some reason, the signal seemed to be bad over there. After a moment, he hung up. The next time I tried to call, the phone indicated: "The number you have dialed is temporarily unavailable."
I frowned. Liu Yuning worriedly asked, "What's wrong? Did something happen over there?"
"I'm not sure, but they might be passing through a remote area. There's no signal!"
"Let's not worry about it for now and keep searching!" Zhang Keying suggested.
We continued forward. Passing through a crossroads, we found some shared bicycles and rode them. Before long, we arrived near a restaurant in the town. Unfortunately, we actually found people here.
Seeing people here was quite unexpected. We parked the shared bicycles. The reason we didn't drive the police car in was precisely to avoid drawing too much attention.
Seeing customers enter, a bald, stout man hurried over, a polite smile on his face. "Sirs and madams, would you like something to eat?"
"Boss, we have a question for you. Why is there no one in this town?" I asked.
"It seems you're new here. This place has been abandoned for a long time. In 1998, didn't something strange happen? More than half the people in Dongyu Town disappeared overnight, and then the rest gradually moved away. Now, almost all the old folks remain here. As for me, my family has been running this restaurant, and I have sentimental attachments, so I don't want to leave."
Although the bald man said this, I sensed a hint of deception in his reaction. But I didn't expose him at the time. "Is that so? Have you seen this mansion?"
I took out some of the photos I had seen on the computer and showed them to the bald man on my phone. When he saw them, his eyes flickered, but at the same time, he chuckled, "No, are you filming a ghost movie? How could that thing be artistically manipulated!"