Chapter 351: The Thread is Clear! The Truth of the Fierce Ghost

Unexpectedly.

Li Jianye took a step forward and pulled a badge from inside his clothes.

“Jiangsan City Criminal Investigation Division.”

“Get your manager. There are some things we need his cooperation on. If he refuses…”

“He’ll face the consequences!”

Besides the regular staff, the bar also had people working off the books.

Like the drink promoters.

Generally, both men and women did this job, though it was mostly women. Their targets were people who came in alone, and they’d use conversation to entice them into buying drinks.

Their pay was primarily commission-based, so they would often push the most expensive options.

Of course, there were also people who were genuinely broke and just wanted to freeload drinks.

But there was no doubt.

The woman who had just approached him was one of these hidden, off-the-books employees.

A so-called “wine shill.”

The moment she saw the police badge, her expression changed instantly, and she spoke up.

“This way, Officer.”

With that, she hastily led the way, her heart filled with regret.

‘I thought I’d hooked a rich guy. It seemed like a sweet gig. He looked loaded, and honestly, with looks like that, it wouldn’t have been a loss even if I had to pretend to be drunk and sleep with him…’

‘But instead, I ended up messing with a cop…’

Despite her frantic inner complaints, she didn’t let any of it show on her face. She led them backstage, spoke with someone, and that person’s face immediately paled before they rushed off to get the manager.

The manager was a young man, about twenty-seven years old and reasonably good-looking, who seemed to be in charge of the floor.

“Officers, are you here because of…”

the manager asked tentatively.

“I hear you have strippers here?”

Xu Huo said with a smirk. He sat down on a nearby sofa, surveying his surroundings.

“Quite the high-class dance.”

Hearing this, the manager’s eye twitched, and he quickly waved his hands in denial.

“No, no, absolutely not! That was a temp. She was just trying to get some tips and broke the rules. The bar has already fired her!”

These days, many performance industries had shows that weren’t exactly respectable.

Take traditional opera, for instance. It might seem grand and sophisticated.

But in reality, it was also one of the Lower Nine Professions, because a type of opera called “erotic opera” existed…

Erotic opera… could be understood as “bed scenes.”

The same went for circuses.

The performances of traveling circuses, which roamed the country to make a living, could also be very lewd.

They would set up a hidden stage, admitting only adults, while children couldn’t sneak in no matter how hard they tried.

On this stage, they would perform stripteases or other extremely vulgar acts, sometimes even taking off all their clothes.

And that was to say nothing of a place like a bar. Women in lingerie trying to be seductive was practically an everyday occurrence.

“Tsk. I also hear you provide prostitution services?”

Xu Huo narrowed his eyes.

“You’ve got it all wrong, Officer! I run a legitimate business here!”

The manager grew frantic.

“You know how it is. This is a service industry, so we hire girls, and the girls have to be pretty. And you also know what the men who come here are thinking.”

“Add the atmosphere of the place, and it’s easy for something to happen between a man and a woman. A little money changing hands once they’re out the door is normal. It has nothing to do with the bar!”

“Easy, easy.”

“It’s just something I heard. Besides, we didn’t come looking for you because of that.”

Xu Huo said reassuringly.

The manager let out a sigh of relief. But in the next second, Xu Huo’s words froze him in place.

“I hear…”

“…that you sell drugs here?”

As soon as the words were spoken,

the atmosphere in the room instantly tensed. It became so silent you could hear a pin drop.

Li Jianye’s gaze grew sharp.

“You must be joking, Officer. The Eastern Country’s drug laws are so strict. We wouldn’t dare do something like that, even if we had nerves of steel…”

The manager was starting to panic.

If he got pinned with a drug-related charge, the trouble would be immense.

“If you don’t believe me, you can drag everyone in this whole bar for a medical exam. I guarantee you won’t find a single user!”

“Oh? Is that so?”

Xu Huo smiled.

“What if I told you… this is a drug that can’t be detected by tests?”

‘A drug… that can’t be detected?!’

In a daze, Li Jianye recalled the tests performed on Wang Wei and Shen Fei.

The next second, he was on full alert. His hand moved toward his waist as he scanned his surroundings warily.

‘What does an undetectable drug mean?’

‘If it’s a new type of drug and our detection methods are just outdated, that’s one thing. But if it’s something that can’t be detected at all…’

‘Then the problem is far more serious!’

“Mm, if I’m not mistaken… you’ve probably found a legal loophole.”

Xu Huo was still smiling, his expression relaxed, not at all what one would expect when dealing with drugs.

“Go get it yourself. It’ll be too late if I’m the one to spell it out.”

The manager’s fingertips went cold, and he felt like he couldn’t breathe. After a long moment, he numbly started to walk out.

‘It’s obvious he knows what it is. Arguing any further will only make him angry…’

Seeing him disappear, Li Jianye couldn’t hold back any longer.

“What is it?”

“Captain Li, based on the circumstances of Zhang Jiayu’s death, do you think the deceased saw a person or a hallucination?”

Xu Huo looked at him and said slowly.

“A hallucination, of course.”

“Then why are they only seeing it now?”

“The person has been dead for six years. Theoretically, the memory should be clearest closer to the time of death, and the clearer the memory, the easier it is for the hallucination to be seen.”

“So why, six years after the death, are they only seeing it now?”

Xu Huo looked at him and spoke slowly.

“Or rather, why are they able to see it now?”

“For the first five and a half years, there were no problems. Everything was stable. But six months ago, when they started splurging their money, this situation appeared in less than half a year.”

“Without a doubt, this happened because Wang Wei and the other three must have gotten into something.”