Chapter 33: Chase
The woman in the qipao was certain that with the girl’s courage, she wouldn’t leave the bed, much less check the door after she left. She didn’t have much time to think. The strange noise came from behind her like centipedes. As the sound approached her and was about to catch up to her, the light suddenly appeared before her.
Different from the other light sources, the light was very bright and carried a warm feeling. It was like a ray from heaven. It was a door, a half-open door.
A familiar face appeared behind the door. Jiang Cheng stood there. Behind him, a round head poked out. Fatty looked at her unblinkingly. Then, his pupils trembled like he had seen something terrifying. The woman in the qipao knew that Fatty probably saw the thing chasing her.
Fatty spoke to Jiang Cheng anxiously, but Jiang Cheng ignored him. Eventually, Fatty became so anxious that he skipped over Jiang Cheng to close the door. This caused the woman in the qipao to worry.
“Don’t close the door!”
She shouted loudly. The door before her was her only hope. She could sense the cold presence of the thing coming from behind her. Thanks to Jiang Cheng stopping Fatty, the woman managed to squeeze through the gap in the door. Jiang Cheng stepped back, and the woman clashed with Fatty.
Caught off guard, Fatty tumbled to the ground. The next second, the woman in the qipao slammed the door close.
She was saved…
Strangely enough, once the door closed, the rapid footsteps in the corridor disappeared.
The night returned to silence again.
Holding the door, the woman gasped for air. Her body shook endlessly.
By then, Fatty had gotten up from the ground. He rubbed his bruised shoulders and stomach. His eyes shone with dissatisfaction and confusion. In comparison, Jiang Cheng was calmer. He studied the woman and waited for her to catch her breath before asking about what had happened.
The woman took a deep breath and calmed down. She slowly turned around and met Jiang Cheng’s gaze. “Thank you.” She nodded. Her hair stuck to her face, and she looked rather haggard.
It only took a few seconds to run from her Room 407 to Jiang Cheng’s Room 404, but this period felt so long for the woman. It was a life-or-death chase.
Jiang Cheng lifted his chin. “Tell us. What did you run into?” He paused before adding, “You are safe now, so I need you to give us the details.”
Jiang Cheng stayed a safe distance away from the woman in the qipao, probably because he still had suspicions about her identity. The woman didn’t think there was anything wrong with that. Honestly, she was shocked that Jiang Cheng would let her into his room. Even though she was saved because of it, her impression of Jiang Cheng worsened. Of course, she didn’t show the disdain on her face. This was because if she were in his shoes, she would not let someone being chased by a ghost into her room. It was like inviting the wolf into her room. Furthermore, one couldn’t tell if the person being chased was a ghost or a human. Therefore, the best solution was to pretend not to hear anything.
After the woman settled down, she started to tell the story in her room with the girl with the pyjama, including the fake Room 407 that appeared to trick her and the thing that chased after her. She didn’t say it was a ghost who was chasing her, but that was a given.
After hearing that, Fatty frowned, “So… According to you, those who heard the scratching sound were not targeted, but those who didn’t hear the scratches are the ghost’s real targets…”
The woman nodded with her pale face, “I think so.”
“That’s strange,” Jiang Cheng thought about it and announced.
“What do you mean?”
“I’m wondering the goal behind it.” Jiang Cheng explained, “Did the ghost make the sound to scare its target?” Jiang Cheng’s question raised the woman’s intrigue. She curled her hair out of habit and then turned to look at the door. Then, her body chilled as she realised something. Her blood froze over. Only her brain was working. The scene from a few minutes ago flashed in her mind. Just as she was about to be captured by the ghost, it was Jiang Cheng who pulled open the door to save her.
Jiang Cheng, who was behind her at that moment, pulled the door open for her.
But she remembered… all the doors didn’t pull in but could only be pushed out from the inside…
Damn…
The next second, Jiang Cheng’s eerie giggle came from behind her. The serenity in his eyes disappeared to be replaced by suppressed madness.
“Why aren’t you speaking?” Jiang Cheng asked darkly.
The woman in the qipao trembled, and she was rendered speechless.
Fatty also spoke up. His tone turned sharp and twisted, “Why aren’t you speaking?”
“Speak! Why did you stop speaking?” In the end, the voice became so shrill that it could pierce through one’s eardrums.
Venom, hatred and resentment… were entangled together.
It was a woman’s voice. The woman was not old, but her voice was filled with hatred.
The woman in the qipao could not stand it anymore. She wanted to open the door, but the door was welded shut. It didn’t move.
As the sound behind her crept up to her, she turned around and screamed. By then, the clean room had already changed. The wall was corroded by mould. A bunch of blackened stuff piled together. The broken furniture was scattered around the room. The moonlight shone in through the window. There were traces of blood on the ground. The room radiated the presence of abandonment.
Jiang Cheng and Fatty disappeared.
As the woman’s expression changed from fear to confusion, she heard a strange sound. It sounded like teeth grinding or giggling.
It came from above her head.
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