Translator: CinderTL
"What's going on?" Lin Wan'er asked, standing beside an old residential building, turning her face to look at Jiang Cheng.
Jiang Cheng was holding his phone alone, his expression somewhat peculiar.
His gaze kept scanning the surroundings, and only after a while did he finally look back and speak, "It's been too quiet along the way."
They had taken a taxi here, using the money Huai Yi had given them. Jiang Cheng had been extremely vigilant the entire journey, but nothing had happened by the time they got out of the taxi and it drove away.
Lin Wan'er seemed to have thought of something, "Are you talking about Xiang Nan?"
"Yes," Jiang Cheng nodded, his voice lowering, "Coming here is a crucial part of our mission, but Xiang Nan hasn't shown up at all."
"That doesn't make sense. I want to know where she is now. What could be more important than stopping us from getting the clues?" Jiang Cheng asked.
Lin Wan'er pondered for a moment before speaking, "Could she have gone to find Director Qi?"
Killing Director Qi would solve the problem at its root.
This assumption sounded reasonable, but Jiang Cheng shook his head, "I don't think so."
"Don't overthink it. Let's go up and look for clues first," Lin Wan'er suggested.
"Alright."
Following the address provided by Huai Yi, they arrived at the 13th floor of the residential building, facing a black iron Gate.
Unit 1, Room 1302, was Zhang Zhaowei's residence.
He had no children, and his wife had long passed away. The iron Gate exuded a sense of age, as if it hadn't been opened in a long time.
There shouldn't be anyone inside the room.
Lin Wan'er naturally reached out, took off her Hairpin, and within a few moments, opened the Gate that likely held secrets.
It was very dark inside, so Jiang Cheng and Lin Wan'er took out their phones for light.
Just as Lin Wan'er was heading towards the bedroom, a hand grabbed her arm, "Stay behind me. Don't touch anything without my permission," Jiang Cheng said in a low voice, his eyes scanning the surroundings, "Be careful. Something feels off here."
"Alright, I'll follow your lead."
The room's layout was very simple. From here, they could see the bedroom, which contained a bed.
Everything matched Zhang Zhaowei's description.
They went straight to the bedroom. Jiang Cheng glanced back at the Gate, estimated the position where Zhang Zhaowei had crouched, and then crouched down himself.
It was clear that Zhang Zhaowei's life had been simple. Although he was well-off, the room's setup was no different from that of an ordinary Old man.
The mattress was a regular foam mattress, very light. Jiang Cheng easily lifted it, but to his surprise, there was nothing between the mattress and the bed frame.
Could it be... under the bed?
Jiang Cheng changed his position, crouched lower, and inspected under the bed.
The area under the bed was clean, with no extra clutter.
There was nothing stuck to the old bed frame either.
How could there be nothing? Just as Jiang Cheng was pondering where things had gone wrong, Lin Wan'er walked over from behind and touched an inconspicuous spot on the mattress.
A few seconds later, she suddenly spoke, "It's here."
Jiang Cheng immediately reached out to feel it. Sure enough, there was a peculiar bulge, and upon closer inspection, there were stitch marks around it.
Zhang Zhaowei had sewn this item into the mattress.
They found a fruit knife in the kitchen, cut open the mattress, and between two layers of yellowed foam was an envelope.
Jiang Cheng felt something hard and square-shaped as he squeezed it with his hand.
Opening the envelope, he found an old-fashioned cassette tape inside, with a folded, handwritten letter beneath it.
For some unclear reason, most of the words on the letter had become blurred, and only the last paragraph was legible.
Between the lines, one could sense Zhang Zhaowei's fear and regret. He described bringing Xiang Nan to the hospital as the most regrettable decision of his life.
It was because of her.
That the doctors had died.
Following that was another vague passage.
"When the date arrives, and the real it descends, even more people will die."
"No one can stop her anymore."
"She has returned."
This passage, written in a tone reminiscent of a Western missionary, made Jiang Cheng frown.
He could understand the phrase "She has returned."
It likely referred to Xiang Nan, who had become a ghost. The Mad Nurse, who had been driven insane in the elevator, had also said something similar.
But the phrase "when the real it descends" was harder for Jiang Cheng to comprehend. What exactly did this it refer to?
Why did it seem that Zhang Zhaowei feared this it even more than the ghost?
As Jiang Cheng held the letter and pondered, Lin Wan'er handed him a box-sized radio.
There was no cord, so it must have been battery-powered. Jiang Cheng tested it, and it still worked.
After inserting the tape, there was first a stretch of meaningless static.
Then a man's voice emerged.
But it didn't sound like Zhang Zhaowei. This was a younger man, probably in his early 30s, no older than 35.
What caught Jiang Cheng's attention more was the man's tone. His voice trembled, and it seemed like he was hiding in a very cramped space, with echoes nearby.
"It was her... it was all her doing."
"Xuan Xuan wasn't... wasn't killed by a feral dog. I investigated. She had been married before and had a child."
"But that child also died. I looked into the child's records, and it turned out he was also killed by a feral dog."
Static. "I saw the photos. It was exactly the same as when Xuan Xuan died!"
"Both had their necks bitten off, and their heads disappeared. Those idiots actually said Xuan Xuan's head was carried away by a feral dog."
Static.Static. The man's trembling voice was mixed with the sound of static, making Jiang Cheng frown.
It gave him a sense of déjà vu, and it was a very unpleasant feeling.
"She's not right. I once woke up suddenly in the middle of the night and realized she wasn't beside me."
"I heard a noise outside, so I went to check, and the sound was coming from the bathroom."
"As I got closer, the sound became clearer. It was her, it was Xiang Nan's voice."
"Just as I was about to ask her why she wasn't sleeping so late, I suddenly heard... I heard another voice!"
"There was more than just Xiang Nan in the bathroom. There was someone else!"
"That person's voice was strange, indescribably strange. It was very low, as if their throat had been cut."
"I faintly heard them talking about... the body... letting go of the Gate..."
"Xiang Nan seemed terrified of it, as if it had some kind of hold over her. She kept pleading in a low voice, begging it to let her go or something."
"I couldn't tell the person's age, or even if they were male or female."
"I was so furious at the time that I didn't think much. Just as I was about to rush in, I heard the sound of flushing water. Then, within a few seconds, the bathroom Gate was pushed open, and Xiang Nan walked out."
"Brothers, I'm on a business trip today. Just got off the plane and arrived at the hotel."
(End of the Chapter)
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