Having understood the cause of the disturbance, it was no wonder the trio had been hounding the film crew.
They had desecrated their grave and broken the urn containing the ashes of their little one.
If they weren't harassing you, who else would they bother?
Even a clay figurine would show a bit of temper.
If they had been fiercer ghosts, people might have already died.
Fortunately, it was just minor trouble, no tragedy had occurred, and there was still room for resolution.
That was why I had approached the matter with such a conciliatory attitude.
Of course, this was assuming they weren't malevolent spirits or vengeful ghosts…
Upon hearing my explanation, the ghostly family exchanged glances.
Then, the male ghost spoke:
"If you want to settle this, you must restore our grave."
"Absolutely!"
I agreed without a second thought.
We had damaged their property, so we naturally had to compensate, even if they were ghosts.
"Also, get a new urn for my child."
The female ghost added.
"That can be arranged as well."
Old Mo chimed in with his agreement.
Seeing that we had both agreed, the husband and wife ghosts looked at each other again.
The male ghost then addressed us once more:
"Our final condition is that the film crew must offer sacrifices to us for ten years. On the first and fifteenth of every month, you must come and burn incense and kowtow to us."
Hearing this, Old Mo and I were slightly taken aback.
Then, I shook my head and said:
"Brother, this condition might be difficult to fulfill.
Look around, in this day and age, who still visits graves on the first and fifteenth of the month?"
"That won't do, we need compensation, otherwise we'll continue to haunt them."
The male ghost insisted.
I waved my hand:
"Brother, don't be so extreme.
Hounding living people will only diminish your own spiritual merit.
How about this, I'll have them burn more paper money and incense for you.
This will ensure you're wealthy ghosts when you descend.
And I'll have the director's team apologize and make amends to you in person.
This is the best solution I can think of.
If you insist on being unreasonable, my brother and I will have no choice but to forcefully send you on your way.
Ghosts like you, with established graves, should know that it's not as free and easy once you go down there."
Ghosts have spiritual lifespans; their lifespans are not how long they can live, but rather how long they can remain in the mortal realm and in the underworld.
Ghosts with sufficient spiritual lifespans can temporarily reside in their earthly graves.
Once their lifespan is exhausted, they must descend for reincarnation.
Otherwise, the underworld officials will come to claim their souls.
At that point, it would be a violation of the spiritual laws, and they would be punished.
Much like Ling Ling, the little ghost from Nanshan Mausoleum…
Now that I had made my position clear, I waited for the three ghosts' decision.
If they were truly stubborn and refused a peaceful resolution, and the 'gentle persuasion' failed, then 'forceful persuasion' would be necessary.
The ghostly couple conferred with each other.
They also knew that Old Mo and I were not to be trifled with.
After a brief silence, the male ghost said:
"Alright, but they must apologize in person.
Especially the director; he must kneel and kowtow three times to my daughter.
It was his command to erect scaffolding on our grave, desecrate our tomb, and puncture my daughter's urn."
This demand was not excessive.
Although it might bring misfortune to the prominent director, he had been incredibly reckless.
A peaceful resolution benefited everyone.
Therefore, I readily nodded in agreement:
"Agreed! If there are no other demands, then come with us! Let's get this sorted."
With that, I took out a cigarette and offered one to Old Mo.
Then, we both lit up again.
Our faces resumed their previous calmness.
The ghostly couple, pulling their little ghostly daughter along, drifted towards us.
For now, an agreement had been reached.
Seeing the three ghosts approach, Old Mo and I didn't hesitate, turning back to head towards the crew.
We passed through the small grove and quickly arrived at the film crew's previous location.
As the crane had collapsed, the night's shoot was certainly impossible.
Thus, out of the more than a hundred people, most had already departed.
Only the director's team and Li Shiyao remained.
Director Li was still quite nervous, pacing back and forth.
Upon seeing us emerge from the woods, he immediately became excited:
"They're back, they're back, Mr. Qin, Mr. Qin…"
Director Li waved enthusiastically.
This film was incredibly important to him.
The investors were putting immense pressure on him.
The frequent mishaps on set had already left him in a state of turmoil.
Now, seeing us return, he saw a glimmer of hope…
A moment later, Old Mo and I walked over.
Director Li hurried forward:
"Mr. Qin, Mr. Mo, how did it go? Has the matter been resolved?"
The rest of the crew also looked in our direction.
Shiyao, Sister Hong, Director Niu, and others gathered around.
Seeing that the extras and other crew members were gone, and only a few staff members remained, I spoke directly:
"We have understood the situation.
The incident originated from your crew desecrating a grave.
The family of three from the grave naturally began to haunt your film crew.
The frequent accidents your crew has experienced recently are related to them…"
At this point, those present couldn't help but gasp.
But Director Li frowned:
"Mr. Qin, I don't recall us desecrating anyone's grave?"
As soon as he finished speaking, a gust of chilling wind suddenly swept around.
It "whooshed" and blew onto him.
Scattered leaves whirled up and circled around the three ghosts.
Under the glare of the set lights, they formed three human-like figures of varying sizes…