Chapter 120: The Haunted Amusement Park
Although everyone wanted to find the exit and leave the haunted house, forcing Ou Wendong—a living person—to consummate a marriage with a corpse was simply too unethical. None of them could bring themselves to do it.
"What if he’s willing?" After a moment of silence, Han Wenlin couldn’t help but whisper, "He wants to leave here alive too. He can’t actually stay here and be a ghost couple with a dead person, right?"
You Jingmeng shot him an exasperated look. "Easy for you to say. Would you be willing?"
Han Wenlin lifted his chin. "Of course! As long as I can leave here alive, I’d do anything!"
Chi Yi ruthlessly mocked him. "You say that now, but if you’d actually drawn the groom’s role, you wouldn’t be so bold."
The live chat erupted into arguments over this scene:
[Han Wenlin’s right. When your life’s on the line, who cares about the rest? Staying alive is what matters!]
[Would you rather die or... y’know... with a corpse? That’s the ultimate question.]
[At the end of the day, Ou Wendong’s just unlucky.]
[Our poor Ou Wendong might’ve actually benefited from this. Look how fast his votes are climbing—all sympathy votes!]
[Unless you’re in his shoes, it’s hard to understand his terror. That’s not just any corpse—it’s one wearing embroidered shoes and sneering at him!]
[A red wedding dress and embroidered shoes? Absolute nightmare fuel. I’d rather die!!!]
[No one can truly understand another’s suffering. Casting my sympathy vote for poor Ou Wendong.]
On screen, Han Wenlin opened his mouth to argue, but Li Zhi cut him off. "This is just my speculation. It might not actually require consummation. The exit could also be tied to Pan Qiping’s real cause of death, the truth behind the ghost wedding, or even the seal on her body."
"Seal?" The three who hadn’t heard about Chi Yi’s experience in the bridal chamber asked, "What seal?"
Chi Yi nearly choked at the mention. "There’s a steel pipe stabbed into Pan Qiping’s body. Zhi and I think it’s the murder weapon. That pipe is sealing her, preventing her from attacking us. If it’s pulled out, she’ll probably turn into a vengeful spirit and slaughter everyone."
The trio’s faces fell in despair.
Li Zhi glanced at the dusky sky and said to the group, "I’m going back to the Pan residence to see if I can uncover the truth behind Pan Qiping’s death. The rest of you stay here and adapt as needed."
They were all experienced players—they couldn’t rely on the pros for everything. Everyone nodded in agreement.
Qi Yongyi stepped forward. "I’ll go with you."
His and Li Zhi’s roles were the most likely suspects in Pan Qiping’s murder, and they faced no restrictions entering the Pan residence. Li Zhi didn’t refuse. The two headed to the front hall and summoned a servant to prepare a carriage.
While waiting, the elderly matron approached. "Madam, are you returning to the estate?"
Li Zhi replied calmly, "Yes, I’m a bit tired. I’ll rest for a while."
Earlier that afternoon, she’d explored the wedding venue. Aside from the guest reception area and the bridal chamber’s courtyard, there was no place for her to rest here.
The matron nodded, then added, "Once the wedding night is over, the young miss will be buried tomorrow. All funeral arrangements are ready. Madam should rest well—tomorrow will be busy."
Li Zhi smiled at her. "Thank you for your hard work."
The carriage rounded the corner. Li Zhi motioned for Qi Yongyi to follow, but just as they were about to board, the matron suddenly called out, "Madam!"
Li Zhi turned back. The old woman’s wrinkled face twisted into an eerie smile as she whispered, "Ghosts with a home do not turn fierce. Now you can rest easy."
Ghosts with a home do not turn fierce.
Li Zhi’s expression remained unchanged as she stepped into the carriage.
The wheels rattled over the cobblestones as the carriage swayed toward the Pan residence. Only once they were far enough away did Qi Yongyi lower his voice and explain, "In feudal beliefs, women who die unmarried have no husbands—they’re considered masterless spirits. Ghosts without a home become vengeful and wreak havoc, so a ghost wedding is held to marry them off. Once wed, they have a place to belong and won’t turn into malevolent spirits."
So that was why the Pan family had arranged this ghost wedding for Pan Qiping.
They were afraid—afraid she’d become a vengeful ghost.
"After Pan Qiping was killed by the steel pipe impaling her, the Pan family covered up her real cause of death and held this ghost wedding to prevent her from seeking revenge as a vengeful spirit."
Murder was illegal in any era, let alone for a prominent family like the Pans, who drew attention. They had to fabricate a plausible reason for Pan Qiping’s death to avoid suspicion. Claiming she’d died suddenly of illness, then using the ghost wedding as an excuse to prop up her corpse with steel rods—this perfectly concealed the real murder weapon.
"Madam Pan went to such lengths to arrange this ghost wedding, not only failing to avenge her daughter but even helping the killer cover it up." Qi Yongyi said, "The killer is either her or the Pan family’s young master."
Li Zhi agreed. "Only those two would be worth protecting like this." She showed Qi Yongyi the flyer You Jingmeng had found. "If our speculation is correct, the sequence of events is roughly this: After learning the war was about to reach their region, Madam Pan decided to marry Pan Qiping off to a warlord for protection to preserve the family’s wealth. But Pan Qiping refused."
Recalling Pan Qiping’s accusation to Chi Yi—Why did you betray me?—Li Zhi continued slowly, "So she planned to flee. She couldn’t let her mother or brother find out, but she couldn’t do it alone, so she turned to her personal maid, Hudie, for help. She thought Hudie would assist her escape, but Hudie betrayed her and told Madam Pan."
"Pan Qiping’s escape failed, and she was captured. Before the official wedding, the Pan family likely locked her up. Both Madam Pan and the young master would’ve tried to persuade her to comply—after all, delivering an unwilling bride might anger the warlord instead."
"But Pan Qiping, who’d dared to flee, wasn’t the type to submit meekly. Her mother and brother’s persuasion would’ve only fueled her fury. During one of these confrontations, an argument broke out, and someone likely killed her by accident. Because they still needed her marriage for protection, they wouldn’t have wanted her dead."
After Li Zhi’s analysis, Qi Yongyi sighed and pointed at himself. "Looks like I’m probably the killer. Madam Pan is an older woman—she wouldn’t have the strength to accidentally kill her daughter."
This also explained why Pan Qiping harbored such hatred for her brother and mother. One was the killer, the other an accomplice—and they were her closest family.
The carriage stopped at the Pan residence’s main gate.
Qi Yongyi had already scouted the estate that afternoon and knew the layout better than Li Zhi. Avoiding the servants, the two returned to Pan Qiping’s chambers, where she’d prepared for her wedding that morning.
This was where she’d lived. Though now decorated as a festive bridal suite, traces of daily life remained. The curio shelves held not only exquisite, luxurious ornaments but also many foreign novelties of the era.
The bookshelf contained classical texts as well as modern literature—Li Zhi even spotted a few fully English works. It was clear that, at least before the tragedy, Pan Qiping had been dearly loved at home.
But perhaps that was why being abandoned and betrayed had hurt her so deeply. She’d been her mother’s favorite daughter, yet she couldn’t compare to the family fortune or her brother. When interests clashed, she was always the first to be sacrificed.
"Pan Qiping’s actual death likely didn’t happen here," Qi Yongyi said after thoroughly searching the room. "A young lady’s chambers wouldn’t have sharp steel rods capable of piercing her body."
"If a daughter disobeyed, simply locking her in her room might not be enough to intimidate her." Li Zhi thought for a moment. "To force her submission, they’d probably make her suffer. Let’s check the woodshed or similar places."
Viewers felt their brains working overtime:
[Suddenly feels like we’ve switched to a crime drama.]
[Hearing ‘primary crime scene’ in a period setting is so disorienting. Qi Yongyi’s dead-serious detective act is killing me.]
[Just checked—Li Zhi’s team is progressing way smoother than Pei Hongyu’s. His team’s stuck.]
[Came from there too. Even though both haunted houses are called The Red Wedding Dress, the plots are totally different. No way to guess which team will clear it first.]
[Over there, Tang Nanshan drew the bride role, so they’re dealing with a ghost groom.]
[Hard to say which is scarier—ghost bride or ghost groom.]
[Trust me—both! Chinese ghost weddings don’t discriminate!]
Just as the two were about to leave the eerie chambers to search for where Pan Qiping might’ve been imprisoned, Li Zhi’s gaze caught on a small sachet hanging from the red bed curtains.
The delicate blue sachet looked like a decorative tassel, quietly dangling by the bedside, easily overlooked. But amidst the sea of celebratory red, this tiny patch of blue clearly didn’t belong to the wedding decor.
It was almost certainly Pan Qiping’s personal belonging.
Li Zhi called Qi Yongyi over and took it down. The sachet still held dried flowers or herbs, emitting a faint floral scent. One side was embroidered with a lotus, the other with a koi fish. And in the center of the lotus side, a small character "Qing" (青) was stitched in green thread.
"Qing?" Qi Yongyi also noticed it. "Could that be Pan Qiping’s nickname?"
Li Zhi turned to the bookshelf. "Look for any letters inside."
The two resumed searching the shelf. Moments later, they found several letters exchanged between Pan Qiping and her friends.
In the letters, her friends addressed her as "Qingqing."
Qingqing was Pan Qiping’s childhood name.
Qi Yongyi heard Li Zhi murmur, "Qing Garden..."
He paused, then understood. "The ‘Qing’ in Qing Garden’s name (圊) is the character ‘Qing’ (青) enclosed by the radical for ‘mouth’ (口). Symbolically, it means ‘Qing’ is trapped on all sides."
Li Zhi took a deep breath and said slowly, "I think I know how to find the exit now."