Chapter 11: Why Did She Die?
On the other side of things, Zhou Jiayi truly felt from the bottom of his heart that his Brother Jiang was an “important man with a poor memory.” Just a second ago, the man had clearly said he knew where the Academic Affairs Office was, yet he’d forgotten in the very next breath?
He scurried over, intending to do his good deed for the day. “Brother Jiang, didn’t you just say in the hallway—”
Before the boy could finish his sentence, Jiang Louqi clapped a hand over his mouth. He glared at him threateningly, his voice low and raspy. “Didn’t what? Shut your trap if you value your life.”
Terrified, Zhou Jiayi nodded frantically, not daring to even breathe too loudly.
Xie Jiuchen’s only goal was to get away from this man. He knew that if he didn’t agree, Jiang Louqi would likely just continue pestering him relentlessly. He knit his brows slightly. “Fine. I’ll take you there.”
“Teacher Xie really has a heart as beautiful as his face.” As soon as the words left his mouth, the surrounding atmosphere plummeted to absolute zero. Realizing he had misspoken, Jiang Louqi scrambled to correct himself: “I mean, it’s one thing to be so handsome, but to have such a good heart on top of that…”
Xie Jiuchen simply led the way in silence. He allowed Jiang Louqi to be as dramatic and silver-tongued as he pleased by his side; he simply wasn’t interested.
Several developed photos were spread out across the desk. The Director of Academic Affairs looked at them with trepidation, his finger trembling as he pointed at the corpse in the images. “This… this looks like the student from Class 1-3 who didn’t come home last night? I’m the supervising teacher for that class.”
“Has anything supernatural happened at your school, or specifically in Class 1-3?” Jiang Louqi tapped his finger on the desk, not noticing that Xie Jiuchen had quietly slipped away.
At his question, the Director’s lips turned pale. His brows twisted into a knot as he stared blankly ahead.
After a long silence, he finally stammered out: “Yes! Ever since that girl died, Class 3 hasn’t been peaceful. Students often see… ‘unclean’ things during the noon break or in the evenings…”
A dangerous glint flashed in Jiang Louqi’s eyes. He pressed further, “Which girl? Why did she die?”
“Her name was Ren Yu. As for why she died… I’m not entirely sure. Some students said she couldn’t handle the academic pressure and jumped off the building.” The Director stole a fearful, searching glance at Jiang Louqi, his heart fluttering with unease.
Jiang Louqi caught his gaze unexpectedly. Like a thief with a guilty conscience, the man quickly looked away, making him seem incredibly suspicious.
“Re… Report!” A male student suddenly appeared at the door holding a stack of documents. He tiptoed inside, but before he could set the papers on the desk, they all slipped from his hands and scattered across the floor with a loud clatter.
He stared at the photos on the desk for a long time, a film of tears covering his pupils. His eyes were filled with profound terror.
The Director barked at him, “What are you dazing off for? Pick them up, quickly!”
“I’m sorry! I’m sorry!” The boy crouched down to gather the papers one by one. Suddenly, a hand with well-defined joints held out some of the documents to him. Jiang Louqi gave him a small smile. The boy nodded hurriedly. “Th—Thank you.”
This voice… it sounds familiar?
Jiang Louqi pondered for a moment. A hazy blur of recollection misted his eyes as he dipped into his memories. He remembered!
This was the person who had called the agency this morning to report the supernatural case!
Was it this student right in front of him?
His memory generally wasn’t great—perhaps a side effect of the head trauma he’d sustained during that ghost-attracting incident in middle school—but when it came to cases, his mind was clearer than ever.
Snapping out of his thoughts, Jiang Louqi turned to find the boy, but the student had already vanished. Along with him, Xie Jiuchen had also left the office. An unbalanced thrum of agitation suddenly rose in Jiang Louqi’s chest—a lingering desire to have made them stay.
He swept the photos off the desk into a stack, shoved them at Zhou Jiayi, and hurried out in pursuit.
That boy definitely knew something! His reaction had been far too strange!
By the time Jiang Louqi ran outside, the male student was nowhere to be seen. He had no choice but to search for the haunted Class 1-3 one by one. The entire tenth-grade wing was gathered along the same long corridor.
It didn’t take long to find him. As expected, he was a student of Class 3. The refined-looking boy was curled up in a corner reading a book. Jiang Louqi beckoned to him from the back door.
Perhaps because Jiang Louqi had left a decent impression on him in the office, the boy hesitated for a few seconds before dragging his heavy steps outside.
Jiang Louqi was always gentle toward these quiet, scholarly types; he had a natural affinity for them. He even reined in his usually scatterbrained personality. “What’s your name? Were you the one who called the SNE Agency?”
The boy swallowed hard, keeping his head low as he answered in a very small voice, “Chen… Chen Peiwen. Yes, it was me…”
“Well then, Student Peiwen, can I ask you a few routine questions? It won’t take much time away from your reading.” Jiang Louqi tried his best to make his voice sound less forceful and serious.
Chen Peiwen nervously gripped the hem of his shirt. It took a long while before he gave a delayed nod.
Seeing him agree, Jiang Louqi didn’t beat around the bush and went straight to the point: “Do you know Ren Yu? Why did she die? And why was your reaction so intense when you saw the photos earlier?”
“Director Jiang, don’t scare the little brother.” Su Qian covered her mouth and reminded him in a low voice.
“It’s fine, I know what I’m doing.” Jiang Louqi kicked the dirt off his work boots, his gaze never leaving the boy for a single second.
Fine beads of cold sweat broke out on Chen Peiwen’s forehead. His fingers twisted together even tighter. An unknown terror weighed on his back like a massive boulder.
He kept backing away, shaking his head repeatedly, until he was soon pinned against a corner. He pressed his entire body against the cold wall behind him, trying to find a shred of security.
Jiang Louqi took in this expected reaction. He reached out a warm palm and gently smoothed down the messy strands of hair atop the boy’s head, showing unusual patience. “Running away won’t solve the problem. Whatever you fear will never let you go. But it’s okay—we specialize in solving those fears.”
Jiang Louqi’s words acted like a potent sedative. Chen Peiwen let go of his fingers, which he had scratched red, and slowly raised his tear-filled face. As the cold wind blew past, two dried tear tracks were left on his cheeks, leaving a bitter taste in his mouth.
He composed himself. Being comforted by this older brother made him feel as though he had a pillar of support, which put him at ease. Biting his lip, he finally spoke slowly: “I knew her… she was a girl who had good grades and was very quiet. She got the school scholarship every time. But… people who are excellent always attract jealousy.”
“You mean school bullying?” Jiang Louqi was sharp; he immediately pinpointed the core issue from that keyword.
Chen Peiwen nodded, revealing an unfiltered look of disgust and contempt. “The boys in class bullied her, and the girls isolated her. They were always looking for trouble—like reading Ren Yu’s diary out loud in front of everyone, or stuffing dead cockroaches and ugly rats into her backpack.”
“That’s too much! You humans are scarier than ghosts!” Zhou Jiayi kicked the wall in fury, his blood boiling.
“That wasn’t even the worst of it.” Chen Peiwen choked up, his eyes turning red. It seemed the next part was difficult to put into words.
He took a long time to steady himself before managing to squeeze the words through his teeth: “Ren Yu loved the piano. Because her family was poor and couldn’t afford one, she often practiced in the piano room. Those who couldn’t stand her used the back of a fire axe to smash her hands. It caused her knuckles to fracture and her tendons to snap. She… she could never play the piano again.”
“So she committed suicide after suffering all that humiliation, and now she’s come back as a ghost for revenge?” Jiang Louqi looked toward the rooftop across from them, his right finger reflexively touching his earring. “The one we saw today… he wasn’t the first to die, was he?”
Chen Peiwen shook his head, his gaze drifting toward Ren Yu’s former seat in the back of the classroom. “No. The others who hurt her have already been killed by her returning soul.”
“You seem to know her very well. Did you have a crush on her?” Jiang Louqi spoke quickly, not shying away from the sensitive topic.
At those words, the boy buried his head even deeper. He could only feel his heart thumping wildly against his ribs.
It felt as if the entire world was filled with the sound of that heavy, violent heartbeat. Every muscle in his body tensed up; his hands instinctively balled into fists, only to be released helplessly.
Translator’s Note:
- Ren Yu (任雨): Her name could be interpreted as “Gentle Rain” or “Enduring Rain.” Given her tragic backstory, the “enduring” part feels particularly poignant.
- Academic Affairs Office (教導處/教務處): This is the administrative heart of Chinese schools where student discipline and records are handled.
- Important people have poor memories (貴人多忘事): A common Chinese idiom used to poke fun at someone who forgets things easily, implying they are too “busy” with big affairs to remember small details.
- School Bullying (校園暴力): Literally “campus violence.” This is a recurring theme in many psychological horror stories in web novels, often leading to vengeful spirits.
- Class 1-3: In the Chinese school system, classes are often numbered. “High School Year 1, Class 3” would be the equivalent of 10th grade.
Recommended Reads
![[ABO] President Shou Is Not a Total Shou](https://beereads.space/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/the-shou-is-not-a-total-shou-214x300.jpg)
![Accidentally Turned a Tragic Romance Plotline into a Sweet and Pampering One [Transmigration]](https://beereads.space/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/ACCIDENTALLY.png)