At 10 p.m., a bright flash of lightning streaked across the night sky of Binbei City, followed by a deafening clap of thunder. The long-awaited torrential rain finally began to pour down in buckets.
The sound of thunder startled Jiang Xiaofen, who was working at her desk. She shivered uncontrollably.
Regaining her composure, she stood up from her desk with a dizzy head, took off her glasses, and rubbed her temples vigorously.
One word: Tired!
Since Chu Xuelin's business trip, all the internal and external affairs of the company had fallen on Jiang Xiaofen alone. After a few days, she felt utterly exhausted.
She massaged her sore waist and walked over to the water dispenser to pour herself a cup of hot water.
Just hold on a bit longer, she thought. In about half an hour, she could finish her work, then go home, take a comfortable hot bath, and fall asleep in her soft, cozy bed.
She smiled wryly, sat back in the sofa chair, leaned her head back against the soft backrest, and closed her eyes. After resting for a moment, she reopened her eyes, sat up straight, and reached for her glasses on the desk, ready to resume work.
Just as her hand touched the glasses, another loud thunderclap sounded, so immense that it made her eardrums buzz. Her hand shook violently, and then the lights in the office went out, plunging the room into total darkness.
Jiang Xiaofen didn't bother to pick up her glasses but instead stood up fumblingly and staggered to the door. She pulled it open and shouted into the pitch-black hallway, "Xiao Ma? Xiao Ma!"
After a few calls, the light of a flashlight shone from the end of the corridor, and she heard Xiao Ma's voice: "Manager Jiang, I'm here!"
"Xiao Ma... what happened?" Hearing Xiao Ma's voice, Jiang Xiaofen felt somewhat relieved.
"It seems like a power trip," Xiao Ma said. "I'll check it out, don't worry!"
Saying this, Xiao Ma flashed his torchlight and quickly walked towards the stairwell, his footsteps echoing as he descended the stairs.
Why am I so jumpy lately? Jiang Xiaofen thought, feeling increasingly restless and unnerved.
She rubbed her chest and slowly groped her way back to the desk, sitting down in the chair.
The rain intensified, and the lightning and thunder became even more fierce.
Looking into the pitch-black room, fear once again spread through Jiang Xiaofen's heart, rapidly engulfing her entire body.
Especially when the bright lightning illuminated the God of Wealth statue above the water dispenser, she had a strange feeling. The statue that usually brought her wealth seemed to be laughing, a sinister laugh!
It seemed to mock and sneer at her: Hmph, don't think I don't know how you acquired your wealth...
This feeling grew stronger and clearer. Jiang Xiaofen curled up, resisting the cold that crept from her head to her toes.
Cold sweat soaked her thin clothes, clinging to her sensitive skin, like... the wet and passionate lips of that man.
Li Tian...
Seven years ago, the resentful look Li Tian gave her when he was taken away by the police, and a few nights ago, his fervent expression in front of the villa...
Another thunderclap, louder than any before, seemed to split the world in two. The windows and the cup on the desk rattled loudly. Jiang Xiaofen curled up in her chair, covering her buzzing ears. She tried to control herself, not to look towards the God of Wealth statue, but the harder she tried, the less she could resist. This time, she even seemed to hear the laughter of the God of Wealth! Sinister, eerie, resentful, angry, distant yet approaching, as if turning into tangible threads, penetrating her palms, drilling into her ears, spreading rapidly in every cell until it engulfed her whole body, making her muscles stiffen, skin taut, hair stand on end, and cold sweat pour down...
Finally, Jiang Xiaofen couldn't bear it any longer. This bone-deep fear was about to break her. Without hesitation, she leaped up, knocking over the chair, and stumbled out of the office towards the stairwell.
"Xiao Ma! Xiao Ma..."
Since the main switch was in the basement, it was impossible for Xiao Ma to hear her shouting.
Her voice, hoarse from screaming, sounded so empty and bizarre in the deserted corridor.
The corridor was even darker than the room, so dark that she couldn't see her hand in front of her face.
It's better to stay in the room for now, the power will be back on soon...
Comforting herself with this thought, she hugged her shoulders tightly and groped her way back to the room.
Bang...
She bumped into the chair that had fallen on the floor, causing a sharp pain in her knee. She moaned softly, her hands instinctively reaching for the tabletop.
Her phone!
Her hand happened to touch the phone on the table. Right, I can make a call! Trembling, she picked up the phone and began to dial in a frenzy.
But before she could finish dialing, the phone rang. The sharp, clear ringtone of a multimedia message startled her so much that she almost dropped the phone.
The text message was from an unknown number. With trembling fingers, she opened the multimedia message.
On the shiny black screen, a new grave gradually appeared, and then, a line of text appeared on the tombstone: "I heard that wronged spirits can claim lives, so I've decided to become one, Li Tian!"
The text was red, as red as fresh blood.
Just as she finished reading this sentence, a sharp and eerie laugh suddenly rang out. Then, an image of a hanged ghost with bulging eyes and a tongue lolling onto its chin appeared on the phone screen! Its twisted face was still laughing triumphantly, its hands flailing wildly, as if trying to reach out of the screen and strangle Jiang Xiaofen's throat!
"Ah!" Jiang Xiaofen completely collapsed. She threw the phone to the ground and rushed out of the office towards the staircase.
The ghost's eerie laughter hauntingly chased her from behind. Crying and shouting, she rushed downstairs, but in her panic, she missed a step and tumbled down the stairs...
When Xiao Ma restored the power and the whole office building was lit up again, he hurried upstairs only to find Jiang Xiaofen lying at the bottom of the stairs, bruised and swollen, unconscious.
A few minutes later, Jiang Xiaofen was taken to the hospital. On the way, she regained consciousness and immediately started screaming, "There's a ghost! There's a ghost!"
Meanwhile....
Mu Zi lay on a brand new sofa, answering the incessantly ringing phone: "Uncle Li, how did it go?"
On the other end, Li Tian's voice was somewhat muffled by the sound of the rain, "It worked... The effect was better than expected, Jiang Xiaofen is now on her way to the hospital."
"Good," Mu Zi said with a smile, "You can come back now."
Li Tian paused, a bit puzzled, and asked, "Is the play over just like that?"
Mu Zi picked up a glass of red wine nearby, savored a sip, and then slowly said, "No. The real show has just begun."