Could the flute-playing woman truly be a ghost? Otherwise, how could she have come to such a haunted old mansion in such fierce weather to play the flute?
"Perhaps," Jack said, trying to sound casual, "the ghostly woman was lured by my charm and came specifically to entice me."
"Is that so?" Lee replied. "Then why don't you descend into the underworld and keep her company?"
As soon as Lee finished speaking, the sound of a bell suddenly echoed through the air.
The bell's tone was heavy and jarring, resonating ominously through the night. "Dong," "dong," "dong"—it struck twelve times in total.
Jack felt a shiver crawl down his spine. "This can't be real."
"It's said that ghosts only emerge after midnight," Lee remarked with a sigh. "Otherwise, why would the clock chime at twelve? Besides, I've been here for over an hour, and the clock didn't strike at eleven."
Jack glanced out the window. The rain had ceased at some point, and even the wind had subsided, becoming much calmer.
"Isn't it said that ghosts prefer to appear under the moonlight?" Jack said with a nervous chuckle. "And that they like to rip off their faces and craft a new one, giving themselves an ethereally beautiful appearance."
Lee knew Jack was joking. It was an old Chinese tale about a faceless female spirit who, to lure men, would craft herself a new face during a full moon, transforming into a stunning beauty.
"Perhaps," Lee said, "the moon will rise soon. You might as well wait a bit longer."
Jack fell silent, gazing out the window in deep thought. Time passed slowly, and the thick clouds in the sky gradually began to part. In just over ten minutes, a luminous, silvery moon emerged like a crescent, casting its light softly over the land.
The two men exchanged glances, both visibly stunned. Could it be that the tale was true? Had everyone who ever visited this old mansion been cursed by the mountain deity? If so, was the bell they had just heard their death knell?
Both Lee and Jack were men of exceptional bravery; otherwise, they wouldn't have come to Stamford's old mansion to investigate the truth behind Lawrence's disappearance. Yet, from the very beginning, the mansion had radiated an eerie and unsettling atmosphere.
After the torrential rain in the night, a brilliant moon had appeared. While such weather changes weren't impossible, the fact that it happened at Stamford's old mansion made it feel even more inexplicably ominous.
Lee reached out his hand, and the moonlight streaming gently through the window danced like water between his fingers, accentuating the ghostly pallor of his palm.
"What magnificent moonlight!" Jack gazed at the radiant moon outside the window, his spirits suddenly soaring. "With such glorious moonlight, it's the perfect time for a moonlit treasure hunt. If we're lucky, we might even find the priceless jewels and treasures that vanished along with Lawrence."
With that, Jack gave Lee a knowing look and ventured deeper into the mansion.
Lee knew Jack was searching for the mansion's hidden underground chamber. Someone like Lawrence, who always had a contingency plan for every important matter, would undoubtedly have built a secret chamber as a safeguard against disaster.
But the question remained: Why had Lawrence suddenly disappeared, along with his most trusted assistants and servants? Although the political climate had been unstable over a decade ago, and many things had gone unexamined, Lawrence's status and position would have made his disappearance a major case that rocked the entire city.
While Lee was deep in thought, Jack made a discovery.
Jack found a ventilation shaft in the kitchen, clearly designed to vent fumes from a hidden chamber. Though it was pitch-dark and its end was not visible, it undoubtedly led to the secret room.
"Lee!" Jack called out loudly, summoning him for assistance.
Lee followed the sound and joined Jack. Together, they found tools in a cluttered storage room and began breaking through the walls of the old house in the direction of the ventilation shaft.
It was almost unbelievable! Beneath the ventilation shaft, there was a hidden tunnel, with its exit cleverly concealed in a corner of the kitchen where firewood was piled.
As it turned out, the firewood in the far corner was loosely arranged, with only some lighter twigs on top. Moreover, the smooth, dust-free surface of the twigs indicated that they had been frequently handled.
Following the tunnel, they came upon a wooden door just a dozen meters in, which led into a small kitchen. The ventilation shaft was used to vent fumes from this very kitchen.
But that wasn't all. Beyond the kitchen was a small, fully furnished living space. It had a living room, a bedroom, and a bathroom, complete with a color TV, refrigerator, washing machine, and computer. There was even a small well for water supply and a generator for electricity.
The more they looked around, the more perplexed they became. Lawrence had disappeared over a decade ago, yet the furnishings and appliances here were modern, suggesting that someone had been living here recently. But now, the place was completely deserted.
The other exit of the tunnel led to a forest not far from the Stamford family's old mansion. Jack stepped out first and suddenly let out a sharp, urgent scream as if he had seen something utterly unimaginable.