Translator: Cinder Translations
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"Could it be that abused girl's?" the girl analyzed. "The girl was abused to death, her resentment became a vengeful ghost, and the middle-aged man killed at dawn is her."
So far, her analysis seemed reasonable.
"It's possible, but we still need some evidence," the burly man who had just come out of the bathroom said, his imposing presence diminished, revealing fine beads of cold sweat on his forehead.
Jiang Cheng understood that he wasn't as calm as he appeared.
The task of preparing lunch was left to the fat guy, while the girl helped wash the vegetables.
Before long, a delicious meal was ready, and despite the grim surroundings, everyone finished every last bit of food, a testament to the fat guy's cooking skills.
"Are you a chef?" the burly man asked, taking a sip of hot soup, his gaze toward the fat guy softening considerably.
"No," the fat guy scratched his head, a bit embarrassed. "I just run around doing various jobs, so I've picked up a few things."
"What do you all do?" The burly man set his bowl down, his gaze becoming gentler. "I'm Fan Li, a bodyguard."
"I'm Xie Yu, I work at an insurance company," the male clerk said quietly.
"I'm Chen Xiaomeng, studying law at university," the girl introduced herself.
Then it was the turn of the woman with a mole on her lips. Initially, everyone expected her to dismiss them, but she spoke slowly, "You can call me Sister Nuan, I'm older than you all, and my profession..." she smiled subtly, "I sell goods."
Everyone looked at her with a mixture of curiosity and uncertainty; her aura was anything but that of a regular merchant, and what she meant by "goods" likely had its own story.
However, no one pressed her on this topic. They all turned their curious gazes to Jiang Cheng, their interest in him surpassing even that in Sister Nuan.
Jiang Cheng straightened up and said seriously, "I'm Hao Shuai, a male model."
TL: Hao Shuai means "Good Looking".
"You're a model?" The girl seemed a bit incredulous. "At a film company?"
Jiang Cheng slowly turned his head, giving her a meaningful glance. "I work the night shift at a KTV."
Everyone stared at him in surprise, but no one commented. Everyone had the right to choose their profession, and they felt Jiang Cheng indeed had the physical attributes for it.
In this world, daytime seemed exceptionally short. After chatting a bit more, the sky darkened again.
The burly man walked to the window, glanced outside, then returned to say, "It's not going to rain; the sky has just turned dark."
As he said, half an hour later, night fell once more.
The group sat around the fireplace in the living room, warming themselves while analyzing the clues they had gathered.
For safety, they moved some firewood from the storage room to the living room during the day, so they wouldn't have to go out in the dark later.
The fat guy sat closest to the fire, occasionally tossing in a log.
The fire burned brightly, casting a red glow on everyone's faces.
Chen Xiaomeng insisted on her earlier view that other family members must have abused the girl, ultimately leading to her tragic death; the ghost in this villa was the girl from the four-member family.
She seemed fixated on this idea, her emotions becoming agitated whenever she discussed it, contrasting sharply with her previously gentle demeanor.
Jiang Cheng, recalling that she was studying law, thought she might have an interesting backstory.
After several rounds of discussion without any new progress, someone yawned, indicating that it wasn't just Jiang Cheng who had trouble sleeping last night.
Fan Li stood up, stretching his slightly numb legs, and suggested, "Let's go to bed."
His suggestion was quickly agreed upon.
Since the middle-aged man had died mysteriously on the first floor, everyone decided to sleep on the second floor that night.
Xie Yu quietly suggested that they should all stay together for safety, but before she could finish, Sister Nuan denied it, saying they might miss something.
Xie Yu's eyes widened in fear, but in the end, no one asked Sister Nuan what she meant by "something."
Regardless, everyone tacitly avoided the girl's bedroom.
They planned to split into two groups: one would sleep in the boys' room, and the other in the master bedroom.
Since Sister Nuan and Chen Xiaomeng were both women, they naturally chose to stay together in the master bedroom, where the male and female owners had slept last night.
The fat guy insisted on sharing a room with Jiang Cheng, so they both entered the boys' room.
Then it was down to Fan Li and Xie Yu, who both seemed to want to stay in Sister Nuan's room, as those two seemed more experienced, increasing their chances of survival.
After discussing, Sister Nuan and Chen Xiaomeng chose Fan Li, and the three of them entered the room, closing the door behind them.
Only Xie Yu remained alone in the corridor.
A gust of cold wind blew, making him instinctively hug himself, goosebumps rising on his arms.
He quickly ran to the door of Jiang Cheng's room, knocking rapidly.
"Bang! Bang! Bang! It's me, open the door!"
While Jiang Cheng leisurely checked the room, he casually replied, "Weren't you going to leave me alone in the bathroom? You can go stay next door."
Xie Yu stared at the slightly ajar door next door, which trembled gently with the breeze, as if something were about to rush out at any moment.
That was the girl's bedroom.
Xie Yu shivered in fear, turning around with a quivering voice, pleading, "I'm sorry, I was wrong! I shouldn't have said that, please forgive me!"
After checking the room thoroughly, Jiang Cheng finally sat down comfortably, casually opening a new bottle of mineral water and taking a small sip. "What did you call me?"
"Hao Shuai! Hao Shuai!"
Jiang Cheng narrowed his eyes in satisfaction.
"Hao Shuai! Hao Shuai!"
The fat guy: "..."
"Ahh—" Jiang Cheng let out a satisfied sigh, then waved his hand, signaling the fat guy behind the door to open it.
As soon as the door opened, Xie Yu rushed in like a gust of wind and then slammed the door shut with a bang.
After the earlier incident, Xie Yu didn't dare to breathe loudly, shrinking into the corner of the room, afraid that Jiang Cheng might throw him out in anger.
Jiang Cheng pulled out a blanket and glanced around the floor as if looking for a place to sleep.
"Bro," Xie Yu asked in disbelief, "aren't you going to sleep in the bed?"
"Not sleeping." Jiang Cheng didn't even look at him, answering casually, "I'm used to sleeping on the floor at home."
"Is it because your sister-in-law is strict with you?" Xie Yu asked softly.
"None of your business!"
(End of this chapter)
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What happened Next?
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