I, the screenwriter, have experienced a resurgence of inspiration.

"Knock knock knock".

Chen Xi knocked on Grandma Li's door, and Kang Xiaojia stood half a step behind her.

The two people had a rope tied around their wrists, connecting them together.

Soon, the sound of slippers stepping on the wooden floor came from inside the door, followed by about three seconds of silence—the person inside was looking out through the peephole.

The door opened a crack.

Li Yafei's face appeared behind the crack in the door. Her suspicious gaze fell on Chen Xi's face—a woman with unfamiliar features, sharp eyes and brows, but no sense of familiarity.

"...Who are you?"

"It's me, Chen Xi."

Chen Xi immediately spoke up, "My face was taken by Sister Fang, so you don't recognize what I look like, but you should recognize my voice."

Li Yafei didn't move. Her gaze shifted from Chen Xi's face to Kang Xiaojia behind her, lingering for a second.

Kang Xiaojia quickly nodded and explained, "Miss Li, it really is Captain Chen. Sister Fang needed her face, so she had to get it changed to come back alive. I didn't recognize her at first either, but it really is her."

The metallic clanging of the door chain rang out, and the door opened fully.

Li Yafei looked at Chen Xi with curiosity and unfamiliarity, and let the two of them in:

"Sister Fang can peel off people's faces? That's terrifying! Come on in and play, my mother-in-law said she'd treat you to sweet soup."

As Chen Xi stepped across the threshold, the chill of the hallway was instantly shut out.

An old-fashioned round wall clock hangs on the wall, and the air is filled with the sweet aroma of red beans and dried tangerine peel, mixed with a hint of the pungent heat of old ginger.

The kitchen was at the far end, separated by a curtain, behind which stood a ghostly figure.

Short and hunched over, he stood there in front of the stove.

A section of her feet peeked out from under the curtain, wearing a pair of old-fashioned black cloth shoes with a few drops of blood on the surface.

Chen Xi tried her best not to think in strange ways.

"Sit down. I'll serve you some sweet soup."

Li Yafei happily turned and walked into the kitchen. Through the swaying curtain, Chen Xi caught a glimpse of the scene inside:

A deep iron pot sat on the stove. Grandma Li had her back to the door and was slowly stirring the pot with a wooden spoon in one hand.

She was wearing a gray cloth shirt, and her gray hair was tied up in a bun at the back of her head.

If Chen Xi hadn't seen the two corpses with his own eyes, he wouldn't have believed that such a kind old woman could be a vengeful ghost who killed people.

Soon, Li Yafei brought out two bowls of red bean and tangerine peel sweet soup. A few whole red beans and two pieces of tangerine peel floated in the bowls, and the steam rose, filling the whole room with a sweet and fragrant aroma.

My mother-in-law said that the postman has been very efficient these past few days, delivering things quickly and in good condition.

Li Yafei inadvertently revealed another piece of information, which Chen Xi silently noted down. Looking again at the two bowls of sweet soup, he saw words floating on top:

[Grandma Li's Red Bean Paste Sweet Soup: After drinking it, it increases movement speed by 15% and health regeneration by 15%, lasting for half an hour (Grandma Li cooked it for a long time, so it's best not to waste it)]

! !

Chen Xi and Kang Xiaojia exchanged a glance, forcibly suppressing the urge to pack the sweet soup into their backpacks and take it with them, and reluctantly drank the sweet soup while holding the bowl.

This isn't drinking sugar water, it's drinking props!

It's still an excellent healing tool!

The two picked up their bowls and took a sip at the same time. The sugar water melted in their mouths and tasted just like the food.

The red beans were smooth and creamy, the dried tangerine peel was slightly bitter, and the rock sugar was sweet. The chill that had been lingering around me was largely dispelled by this heat.

……

……

"Thank you, little sister, thank you, Grandma Li."

Chen Xi gave a slight thank you towards the direction of the curtain, and Kang Xiaojia also shyly followed suit with a thank you.

"Good girl, I only treated you to dessert because my sister said you're very loyal."

A laugh came from behind the curtain, and the sound of the wooden spoon stirring in the iron pot continued, but the rhythm was a little faster than before.

Chen Xi placed the bowl on the table, leaned forward slightly, and lowered her voice so that only Li Yafei could hear her:

"Little sister, yesterday Sister Lan told me that there are four evil spirits in the building and told me to keep an eye out. Could you ask Granny Li about the evil spirits for me?"

As she said this, her right hand hung naturally at her side, her fingers slightly bent, and her weight shifted to the balls of her feet.

This position would ensure that she could grab Kang Xiaojia and rush out the door from the chair within 0.3 seconds—if Grandma Li's reaction was wrong.

Chen Shulan had given her information at the tailor shop.

Her task was to find the four evil spirits hiding in the building, but after more than half a year of tracking, she had only managed to register two of them.

A water ghost that can spray water in the stairwell and move through the water to kill people.

A ghost that burned to death blocked the stairwell and devoured little ghosts; she recorded it but could not kill it.

She has a clue as to the location of the third evil spirit and is currently tracking it.

Only the fourth one had no clue whatsoever from beginning to end.

Chen Shulan speculated that it was hiding on the rooftop, and felt that living people had strong yang energy, making them the best bait.

Chen Xi agreed to cooperate, betting that he would use himself as bait to find the last evil spirit and exchange it for the resident information in Chen Shulan's hands.

Complete information on forty-four ghost households—although she is currently progressing slightly slower than another team, she is faster overall.

……

Li Po's shadow moved slightly behind the curtain, and the stirring with the wooden spoon slowed down:

"Young woman—"

Grandma Lai's Cantonese had the distinctive accent of an old-style tenement building resident: "There are many taboos in the building, let me tell you a few."

"Don't go near Sister Fang's tailor shop. She was very pitiful. She was deceived by a married man before she died. She felt ashamed and lost all face."

Grandma Li paused for a moment, then tapped the wooden spoon lightly against the edge of the pot twice.

"Also, if you see puddles in the stairwell, it's not safe to step in them. Take a detour because there are ghosts in the water."

"The rooftop isn't easy to get to either."

"If Uncle Biao finds out, he'll kick you out."

[Taboo 6: Do not step on puddles in the stairwell.]

[Taboo Seven: Do not go to the rooftop.]

Chen Xi stared at the numbers, while Kang Xiaojia tugged at her sleeve. Both of them immediately realized something else:

There is no taboo number five.

This means that another team has already found a taboo in such a short time.

Chen Xi pursed her lips in thought, considering two taboos and two warnings.

Don't step in the water in the stairwell—it matches the information Chen Shulan gave us: evil spirits are killing people through watermarks.

Don't go to the rooftop—Chen Shulan also suspected that the last evil spirit was hiding on the rooftop, and there was definitely something there.

Grandma Li did not directly reveal the name and location of the evil spirit, but she sewed the information in with a warning.

"Thank you, Granny Li." She stood up and bowed slightly to the curtain.

Li Yafei escorted the two to the door. Chen Xi paused at the door, her tone serious:

"Little sister, are you really not planning to go back? Back to reality, at your age, you should be like a doctor, going to school, studying, and making friends."

The sound of spoons in the kitchen stopped.

Li Yafei glanced back at the kitchen curtain.

Behind the curtain, Granny Li still stood hunched over in front of the stove.

"I'll stay here," she said, her tone unwavering. "I have my mother-in-law, that's enough."

Chen Xi nodded and didn't ask any more questions.

Kang Xiaojia tugged at her sleeve very gently.

The two walked out of Grandma Li's house, the door closed gently behind them, and the sound of a spoon stirring the bottom of the pot resumed.

……

……