Falling Prices

In the afternoon we planned to go to the real estate agency to check it out. When we arrived, a salesperson greeted us enthusiastically and asked if we were looking to buy or rent. Huang Xiaotao took out her police ID: "Neither, we just want to ask you some questions!"

The salesperson led us into a meeting room and explained why we were there. After flipping through a thick book, he said, "What a coincidence, officers. That house is no longer listed with us."

It turned out the owner had called a few days ago asking to lower the price from the original 3 million to just 1 million. This would mean a smaller commission for the agency, so they naturally refused. They pointed to the contract and tried to reason with him, but the owner paid a 20,000 RMB penalty fee and terminated the contract.

Huang Xiaotao asked, "Do you have the owner's contact information?"

"Yes, let me find it for you," the salesperson said as he flipped through his book.

The owner was named Jin Baoshan, the same person our junior colleague had discovered. He was a manager at a foreign company.

We went directly to his company. On the way, Wang Dali clicked his tongue, "A two-story townhouse selling for just 1 million? That's crazy cheap!"

I said, "I know, it's practically being given away. There must be a scheme behind Jin Baoshan suddenly lowering the price like that."

Soon we arrived at the company and asked Jin Baoshan to come down. He was a refined middle-aged man who didn't seem flustered to see the police. He smiled and asked, "Officers, what can I do for you?"

Huang Xiaotao said, "No. 81 Xinjian Road is your property, correct?"

"It was, but I sold it a couple days ago..." Jin Baoshan replied.

"How much did you buy it for and how much did you sell it for?" Huang Xiaotao continued asking.

Jin Baoshan frowned, "How much I bought it for and how much I sold it for are my personal affairs. It's not illegal, is it?"

"We just want to understand the situation. We hope you'll cooperate!" Huang Xiaotao said sternly.

Jin Baoshan said he had originally bought it for 2 million and sold it for 3 million. But his lies were too obvious, I didn't even need to use my power to see through them.

Huang Xiaotao told him we had already been to the agency. Jin Baoshan remained calm, "Alright, I admit I took a loss on the sale. I don't have good business sense and tried flipping a house like others do. I ended up losing money and take responsibility for my own bad luck. But isn't this my personal matter?"

Huang Xiaotao sneered, "The police don't care about buying and selling houses, but if a corpse is discovered inside, then it becomes a police matter."

Jin Baoshan was shocked, "What? A corpse was discovered in my house? Officers, you can't joke about this. Is it true?"

I discreetly used my power and saw that his shock was just an act. Also, he seemed a bit nervous.

Jin Baoshan kept asking about the corpse, but of course we couldn't reveal details to him. Huang Xiaotao said, "Mr. Jin, I want to know the reason you suddenly lowered the price."

"There's no real reason. I just felt like China's housing bubble won't last much longer. If I didn't sell now, it would just rot in my hands." Jin Baoshan sighed helplessly.

His reasoning seemed far-fetched, but no matter how Huang Xiaotao pressed him, he kept beating around the bush. This guy is pretty crafty. I thought about how to pry open his mouth, when I suddenly remembered something. I signaled Huang Xiaotao to let me ask the questions.

I got straight to the point, "Mr. Jin, what shoe size do you wear?"

Jin Baoshan got inexplicably nervous, "What does my shoe size have to do with selling the house, officer?"

He refused to answer, so I peeked under the table and said, "Size 39, right?"

Jin Baoshan shifted his feet nervously. I deliberately asked Huang Xiaotao, "Didn't we find a size 39 shoe print at the scene?"

Huang Xiaotao looked confused for a moment, then played along, "Oh right, we did!"

Of course I was just bluffing him. There were over a dozen shoe prints collected from the scene last night, we hadn't analyzed them at all yet. I stared into Jin Baoshan's eyes and asked, "Did you go to the scene yourself?"

He broke out in a cold sweat, "I'm too busy with work to have time to look at that wretched house."

This guy is so stubborn. Huang Xiaotao hinted that we should take him back to the station.

"No, I won't go. I still have work to do," Jin Baoshan refused firmly.

"Then explain to us why there was a size 39 shoe print at the scene."

Jin Baoshan suddenly stood up, "You're clearly framing me! There are countless people wearing size 39 shoes on the street. How can you determine it was mine? Although the two dead people were in my house, I have nothing to do with it."

I laughed coldly, "Then how did you know there were two corpses in the house?"

Jin Baoshan's eyes widened as he realized he had let something slip. Extremely frustrated, he sat back down and admitted he had gone to the house a couple days ago and discovered two discarded corpses inside. He figured if this got exposed, not only would the house lose value, but he would also get into trouble. So he hurriedly sold it at a low price.

What he said sounded plausible, but I sensed he was still lying. I said, "Stop covering it up. If you don't tell the truth, you'll be eating prison food starting tomorrow..."

Jin Baoshan grimaced, "Officers, everything I said is true."

I scoffed, "Then why are your legs shaking? And why do you keep rubbing your hands on your thighs?"

Lying is a kind of performance, and liars tend to focus their mental energy on facial expressions while neglecting other parts like their hands and feet, which easily expose their guilt.

Jin Baoshan finally caved and told the whole story, just as I had guessed. He knew the two dead men.

Originally, he had been sweet-talked by the previous owner into buying this mansion, only to realize later he had been duped. This was no mansion at all!

He didn't dare live there himself, and couldn't rent it out either. It was a real headache.

So the house just sat there, a thorn in his side. Recently, an uncle-nephew pair had approached him claiming to be experienced in clearing out haunted houses. They had great reputation in the industry, and guaranteed they could take care of any evil inside!

Although it was his property, the house was worthless just sitting there. Jin Baoshan figured he had nothing to lose, so he paid them a commission and hired the two men.

These two had quite the mystical air about them. During the site inspection, they mystified Jin Baoshan with talk of feng shui, magnetic fields, and psychic energy. The pair planned to stay a few nights to observe.

The first few nights were uneventful, but on the fourth morning, when Jin Baoshan went to check and saw the charred corpses we had also witnessed, he was scared witless!

He considered his options and knew he absolutely could not call the police. If word of the dead bodies got out, his house would be finished. He decisively lowered the price to sell it off quickly. Sure enough, a buyer came right away and acquired the property.

What he said seemed truthful, but something felt off to me. I asked, "What was the buyer's name?"

"Ren Facai, someone from Wenzhou who wanted to settle in Nanjiang City." Jin Baoshan answered without thinking.

"What did he look like?" I asked.

"Chubby with a scar on his face." Jin Baoshan said.

"Do you have a photo of him?"

"No." Jin Baoshan shook his head.

"What about the contract?" I asked.

"It's locked up at home. I'll have to go back after work to get it." Jin Baoshan glanced at his watch.

"This Ren Facai bought a house with two corpses inside and it just transferred over? Buy one get two free?" I laughed coldly.

Jin Baoshan scratched his head. He said Ren Facai had eyed his house for a while but insisted it was haunted and tried to drastically lowball him. They hadn't been able to strike a deal.

After the two ghostbusters died mysteriously, Ren Facai suddenly contacted him again about buying the house. They came to terms right away at the rock bottom price of 500,000 RMB.

"500,000?" I was shocked. Along with the 20,000 RMB penalty Jin Baoshan paid the agency, this deal was a huge loss.

Jin Baoshan was also extremely ashamed: "I just lied to you all for the sake of face! There's no way I could have bought a two-story luxury house for 500,000 yuan, but I had no choice, I was forced by the circumstances."

I feel that this Ren Facai, who suddenly bought the haunted house, is very suspicious, and he may be the one who caused the deaths of the two haunted house trial residents!