Chapter 74

The emo ghost girl’s script relied entirely on atmosphere and narration, making it hard for Shi Jian to get into character. But with just her expressions and tone, Shi Jian’s performance made the viewers feel like it was actually believable.

Truthfully, Shi Jian’s made-up script was just as ridiculous. But that’s what acting is all about!

【No wonder she’s a big star, an actress—pros reveal their skill with just a glance… Honestly after all that, I just want to ask one thing: Can I escort my wife? May this honor fall upon me.】

【I’m an early follower—let me do it!】

【I’m a primary schooler—let me do it.】

【? This is something people can compete over too? And even apply what they learned?】

Perfect application of the bratty kid technique.

【No wonder I felt like her script sounded oddly familiar—it’s Legend of the White Snake, tsk tsk.】

【That “starving beggar x rich heiress” setup… what kind of past life was that, where she already foresaw the invention of trains? The streamer said it so convincingly, I almost bought it. (dog head)】

【Family, can we start shipping this now? Past life: starving beggar x rich heiress. Present life: overacting emo ghost girl x beautiful actress. The actress even personally tutors the ghost in acting. Ah, what a perfect love story.】

【Ghost girl: You guys calling my scam “acting lessons”? Thanks a lot, really.】

【I don’t care, ghost bride yyds*! I will forever support the dumb ghost bride and her wicked, wicked master as they bang their heads into walls together.】

(*yyds = “eternal god” / “forever the best”)

……

Shi Jian really just wanted to try and see—like she said:

What if?

But the emo ghost girl wasn’t the ghost bride—she had brains.

So when she realized that Shi Jian not only criticized her thoroughly, but flipped the power dynamic and demoted her from “elder sister” to “starving beggar,” she was furious.

Unable to attack Shi Jian within the illusion, her anger manifested as Shi Jian being kicked out of the dreamscape.

The emo ghost girl vanished from the “dream.” Even while resting with her eyes closed, Shi Jian maintained perfect facial control—absolutely no drooling or snoring—but her long, dark lashes trembled uneasily.

Shi Jian felt a strong sense of malice and being watched bearing down on her.

She forced herself to open her eyes at top speed—

And was met with a grotesque, upside-down face, and a pair of hands stretched out, just about to grab her neck.

Opening her eyes to that scene, Shi Jian’s heart skipped several beats. She nearly screamed out loud.

It was the emo ghost girl. She was standing right behind Shi Jian’s seat, reaching down with both hands, trying to strangle her from above.

The emo ghost girl hadn’t expected Shi Jian to wake up so quickly. But what really made her hesitate was Shi Jian’s reaction: she didn’t flinch, didn’t move—she simply stared at her with calm, sharp black-and-white eyes.

Shi Jian’s voice was faintly cold, a regal chill in her tone as she warned the ghost.

“You’d better think carefully before you act. I, myself, am worth far more than the clothes I wear.”

The emo ghost girl suddenly recalled the time in the train bathroom when she tried to tap Shi Jian’s shoulder and got scolded into retreat. She hesitated again.

Should she do it? She really did look expensive.

But Shi Jian seized that moment of hesitation and slipped downward like an eel—Slurp—

Shi Jian smoothly slipped out of the ghost's grasp.

Classic diversion tactic—just another standard move from a big star.

Shi Jian could feel that the emo ghost girl had genuinely tried to strangle her just now. And there was no need to imagine—being strangled by her would’ve looked far from elegant. Even if she didn’t die, there would’ve been deep marks on her neck.

Shi Jian didn’t even have a single neck wrinkle.

So Shi Jian, furious, launched a counterattack. As she slipped away, she grabbed the nearest object and swung it at the emo ghost girl’s head.

“Who the hell are you trying to strangle!”

But the emo ghost girl wasn’t weak—she had already reacted. So what if Shi Jian hit her? She was already dead. It’s not like she’d have to pay compensation to another dead person.

The emo ghost girl cursed loudly and lunged at Shi Jian again.

“Give me your body—now!”

“If I can’t trick you into giving it, then die! I can use it once you’re dead too!”

The emo ghost girl seemed like she’d just taken a hit of something—wild-eyed and frenzied. She lunged again, arms stretched out, once more going for Shi Jian’s throat.

Shi Jian rolled her eyes and switched to taunt mode. “Keep dreaming in broad daylight. You? You think you’re worthy?”

“Better to rot in the dirt than let you use me.”

As she dodged, Shi Jian also grabbed for the ghost’s hair, completely unrestrained. She wanted this ghost to know that dreams were best kept to a minimum.

However, Shi Jian realized that the emo ghost girl was surprisingly strong. Several times, Shi Jian nearly got slammed to the floor.

Head-on confrontation wasn’t working.

“……”

Sensing the tide turning against her, Shi Jian decided to retreat.

Live to fight another day.

……

There weren’t many male ghosts who could shrug off a lethal nut punch, and there weren’t many female ghosts who could stay calm with Shi Jian yanking at their hair. Taking advantage of the ghost’s distraction, Shi Jian gave her a solid kick and then prepared to bolt.

She’d already been wary that things might get weird at night, so she was wearing Barbie-pink high heels. Right now, she felt very justified in that decision.

But just as she was about to run, she noticed something float out from the ghost’s pocket.

Shi Jian thought it looked like a train ticket, so she instinctively snatched it mid-run.

Even while sprinting, Shi Jian didn’t forget to glance at what she had grabbed.

It was a ticket.

The information on it—

Name: Wang Shufen

Sex: Female

Seat: Soft sleeper, from the starting station all the way to the final stop.Shi Jian was slightly moved: Is this train ticket the emo ghost girl’s? Her name is Wang Shufen?

The emo ghost girl hadn’t even noticed she’d dropped the ticket. After recovering, she resumed her chase after Shi Jian.

Shi Jian didn’t get far before a female high school student from another car, Jiang Xinyue, rushed over.

Jiang Xinyue shouted anxiously, “Sister Shi Jian, I’m here to help you!”

Jiang Xinyue was the one closest to Shi Jian’s car when the danger struck. Her older brother, Jiang Hai, was completely unaware, but Jiang Xinyue had come running to help.

Shi Jian tried to grab Jiang Xinyue’s hand, breathing unsteadily as she warned, “She’s really strong.”

What she meant was—they’d better run first.

Shi Jian had already tested the waters. A wise warrior avoids a losing battle. She planned to drag Jiang Xinyue away and escape together.

But Jiang Xinyue, after taking a quick look at the charging emo ghost girl, shook her head and gestured, “Sister, get behind me. I should be able to hold her off for a while. You run first.”

Shi Jian: ?

In her impression, Jiang Xinyue was young, seemed introverted and shy, and normally didn’t even speak above a whisper.

Yet this very same shy little sister—this petite girl—suddenly pulled out a massive, colorful shield completely mismatched with her frame and personality. It was at least half her size.

Shi Jian was shielded behind her as Jiang Xinyue slammed the shield forward—so hard that the train car floor even shook.

The emo ghost girl was stopped cleanly on the other side—physically blocked.

“What the hell is that?!” the ghost cursed furiously from the other side. Shi Jian could only see her upper half now.

Judging by her voice, the ghost was extremely agitated—she couldn’t get through.

Shi Jian was in awe. Wow! That was pretty badass!

But the moment she realized the ghost was physically blocked, the emo ghost girl started ramming into the shield.

Each time she slammed into it, Jiang Xinyue was hit with the recoil. She didn’t budge an inch, but Shi Jian could see her petite figure starting to strain under the pressure.

Jiang Xinyue was silently panicking inside.

The ghost really was strong.

She gritted her teeth and called back to Shi Jian, “Sister Shi Jian, go! Don’t worry about me!”

Shi Jian didn’t waste time being amazed that Jiang Xinyue’s item was such a wildly contrasting shield. The situation was urgent.

There was no way Shi Jian would leave a high school girl who came to help her to face a ghost alone.

Shi Jian reached out with one hand and braced the shield, helping Jiang Xinyue absorb some of the weight. She quickly and quietly asked, “Can you hold on just a bit longer?”

“I’ll be fast.”

Jiang Xinyue nodded. “I can.”

She focused all her attention on holding the shield against the ghost. She had no idea what Shi Jian was doing behind her—she just vaguely heard the sound of scribbling, fast and sharp—but for some reason, Jiang Xinyue felt inexplicably at ease.

And also…

Jiang Xinyue’s face flushed slightly red as she screamed internally with excitement.Sister Shi Jian smells so good! And her hands are so slender, so long, and so pale! And they’re standing so close together!

When Shi Jian said she’d be quick, she meant it. She should’ve pulled something out right away, but seeing that the emo ghost girl was still ramming into the shield, Shi Jian got a mischievous idea.

“What if we just moved it away?”

Shi Jian nudged the shield to the side.

Jiang Xinyue really lived up to her reputation as a smart student praised by Jiang Hai. Even though this was her first time fighting alongside Shi Jian, she immediately understood.

She quickly shifted the shield aside.

The emo ghost girl, who’d been slamming her body into it again and again, didn’t expect them to suddenly move the shield. Her brain had already gotten used to the rhythm of collision. So, once again, she hurled herself forward with all her might—aiming for where the shield had been.

But this time, there was no shield.

The emo ghost girl flew straight forward and hit the ground hard—faceplanting on the spot.

Emo ghost girl: ???

She let out a pained shriek, her head ringing.

Meanwhile, the instigator Shi Jian motioned for Jiang Xinyue to stow the shield and run. At the same time, she raised the train ticket in front of her and jogged backwards, waving it as she shouted at the emo ghost girl:

“Weren’t you dying to know my name? This is my train ticket—look!”

The emo ghost girl wasn’t actually great at close combat. Even after shouting Shi Jian’s name, she hadn’t gotten a response, and she’d been confused the whole time about what Shi Jian’s real name was.

Now, the ticket was being held up in midair. It was a bit far away, so a normal person might not have been able to read it…

But she was a ghost!

So the emo ghost girl’s heart skipped a beat. She instinctively read it out loud: “Wang Shufen… huh?”

Right after reading it, she realized something was wrong. Her pupils widened in shock as she stared at Shi Jian.

“You stole my train ticket—and altered it?!”

The first three characters were exactly her name, but now there was an extra “嗯”** tacked on. On closer look, it was clearly stuck on!

Shi Jian blinked innocently. “Mhm.”

Yeah, she did it. So what?

Earlier, while Jiang Xinyue was blocking the ghost with the shield, Shi Jian had picked up some scattered stationery from the floor. It was a full kit—pens, paper, even adhesive labels.

Shi Jian had remembered how the emo ghost kept trying to call her name. So what if she tricked the ghost into saying her own name—and answering it?

Once she had the idea, she acted. She added a little “嗯” to the end of the ghost’s name on the ticket.

After all, the ghost wouldn’t respond to herself. But if she said the name with the added character—it might just work.

Jiang Xinyue had already run a good distance away. Shi Jian was also widening the gap between her and the ghost, watching closely for a reaction.

But at first, all she saw was anger. Nothing else.

Shi Jian was slightly disappointed. She didn’t doubt that the name-answer mechanic was real—it just might not work if you respond to your own name.

But then…

The emo ghost girl’s body suddenly began to convulse violently.

Shi Jian understood.

It wasn’t that there was no reaction—it just took time for it to kick in. It was just a little delayed!Even so, the emo ghost girl hadn’t given up on the idea of killing Shi Jian. She staggered to her feet, but her movements were wobbly and unsteady.

At this point, even without using any props, Shi Jian could outrun her easily.

"I'm going to kill you!"

“Damn it!”

The emo ghost girl shouted in fury.

Shi Jian noticed that the ghost couldn’t catch up to her and finally let out a breath of relief.

When she realized that after walking through two train cars, the ghost suddenly stopped as if she’d hit a barrier and couldn’t take another step, Shi Jian’s smile was as bright as if she’d just won an award.

She even went over deliberately, cheerfully twisting the knife, and pointed out, “So you can only move across two cars, huh?”

Emo ghost girl: How can someone with a body temperature of 36°C say something so cold?!

And Shi Jian didn’t stop at just one stab. She added cheerfully, “You must be really mad... then go ahead and file a complaint against me.”

Once again, everything circled back to the complaint.

I, Shi Jian, request to be reported.

Since the previous train attendant might not have known how to submit a complaint, Shi Jian even followed up with a helpful question, “Do you know how to file a complaint? What’s the process?”

The emo ghost girl’s finger trembled as she pointed at Shi Jian. She threatened, “Get lost, or else…”

Leave her sight immediately.

Of course, Shi Jian wasn’t going anywhere. If she ran off just because the ghost told her to, wouldn’t that be embarrassing?

Besides, now that it seemed like the ghost’s movement range was limited to two train cars, and she couldn’t get out, Shi Jian definitely wasn’t going anywhere.

In the end, the emo ghost girl’s body twitched a few times, and she slinked away, tail between her legs. She was still suffering from backlash due to her own powers.

Jiang Xinyue: A real-life demonstration of “can’t afford to provoke, but can still dodge.”

Watching the entire operation unfold, Jiang Xinyue felt that Shi Jian’s image in her heart had become even more godlike. She figured her brother should give up his hopeless fantasies already.

He wasn’t worthy.

…

Shi Jian and Jiang Xinyue once again dodged a disaster. The livestream exploded with gifts, the comment section bursting with excitement.

Everyone was hyped, talking about how adding a single character to the train ticket made the emo ghost shout her own name and suffer the consequences. That was just too powerful!

Viewers: What kind of evil thoughts could the streamer possibly have? She’s just curious and eager to run a few different experiments.

Even after the emo ghost girl left, Shi Jian was a little disappointed—could no one report her? Why wasn’t there a definitive answer?

But from this incident, Shi Jian did learn one piece of information. With her slender fingers, she flipped the ticket over. “So her name was Wang Shufen.”

The emo ghost girl’s real name was Wang Shufen.

Jiang Xinyue, however, had another concern. She tilted her face up to ask Shi Jian, “Sister Shi Jian, does this mean we can’t go back to our previous car?”

Because their original seats were just within Wang Shufen’s limited two-car movement range.Shi Jian was already considered tall among actresses, standing at 168 cm. With ten-centimeter heels on, Jiang Xinyue looked even more like a child next to her, needing to look up to her.

Hearing Jiang Xinyue's concern, Shi Jian’s red lips curled into a confident smile. “No need to go back to that car. Come on, big sis will take you to soft sleeper!”

Jiang Xinyue: ?

Shi Jian: With a soft sleeper ticket in hand, who’d go sit in hard seats?

Shi Jian hadn’t expected her long-desired upgrade to happen in this fashion.

She swaggered with Jiang Xinyue in tow and confidently unlocked the soft sleeper section. Wang Shufen’s ticket still worked here, and this area didn’t require an ID. However, the attendant in the soft sleeper section did show some skepticism.

“Wang Shufen?”

He hesitated, staring at the glamorous Shi Jian, trying to connect her with that name.

Shi Jian didn’t blink or flinch. “Yes, I’m Wang Shufen.”

Bullet comments:

【So Wang Shufen is the real victim of this new mission. Not only was she beaten, mocked, and taunted by the streamer, now even her name’s been hijacked!】

【Also her ticket, don’t forget that.】

...

At first, the attendant thought the name sounded plain. But once it was matched to Shi Jian, he suddenly felt the name had depth. Fashion is a cycle, after all—and the beautiful woman in front of him clearly led the wave.

Shi Jian successfully snuck into the soft sleeper compartment with Jiang Xinyue.

The difference between soft sleeper and hard seat was night and day.

Wang Shufen must’ve been a rich ghost—the soft sleeper was actually a deluxe cabin, with private compartments and its own bathroom. No bratty kids, no uncles blasting videos, and even the air smelled fresher.

The only other passenger was an elderly man who looked cultured and scholarly. He slept quietly the entire time.

Jiang Hai also found out that his sister was with Shi Jian and came by to check in. He was deeply envious of their environment.

But he didn’t linger long. One person coming by to visit is one thing. A group draws attention and could get them kicked out.

Now in a new space, Shi Jian finally felt alive again. She even changed into a new dress.

A white French-style bellflower dress that revealed her long neck and delicate collarbones—simple and elegant.

Shi Jian’s livestream viewers: Unlocking the superstar’s new outfit!

Were they watching a horror game stream? No, this was clearly a beauty dress-up minigame.

Shi Jian felt much more at ease after switching from hard seats to the private soft sleeper. In the hard seat section, she didn’t have the conditions to do her makeup carefully. But in her private cabin, she could even touch up her look.

So she did. While focused on her new look, she vaguely heard the train arriving at a station and then setting off again. She stayed focused on her makeup.

Then, a different kind of sound—unlike the train’s regular rumble—buzzed from somewhere nearby. Shi Jian didn’t notice it at first.

But then came a sudden shout—someone sounded like they were questioning something.

“What are you doing with—”

The man’s sentence cut off abruptly.

Shi Jian then heard the sound of a blade slicing through something, followed by a loud splatter as liquid sprayed against the wall—squelch.

Liquid?

Shi Jian’s hand, holding her eyeliner, froze.

She looked down.

A vivid red stream of blood was slowly seeping through the gap under the door, snaking its way into the cabin.

The blood was fresh, as if it still carried warmth.
**
The “嗯” was probably added at the end of her name to sound:

Cute