Chapter 20

Qi Xu’s brain wasn’t too stupid. After a moment’s thought, she figured out the key point—it had passed midnight, which meant it was already the fourteenth, the Lunar Taboo Day. The sky hadn’t brightened yet, and the moon hadn’t set; it was the early hours of the fourteenth.

“Despicable.”

Qi Xu cursed, then froze in place, at a loss for what to do.

Qi Xu wasn’t much of a horror movie buff—not too few, not too many—but she did watch some of the more famous ones each year. She was the type who hid under the covers in fear while peeking out with just her eyes.

If something got too scary, she would pause it, mute the sound, and then continue.

She was a bit of a coward, but she had accumulated quite a bit of knowledge from horror movies. In a situation like hers, the worst thing to do was run around randomly.

Besides, Xia Zhiming was so strong that she might just punch the ghost to pieces and come back to save her dog life. So, it was better for Qi Xu to stay put obediently and wait for Xia Zhiming.

Standing there idly was a bit boring, though, and Qi Xu didn’t want to look up, in case she accidentally saw something terrifying. She kept her head down and naturally noticed the carpet at her feet. That carpet was identical to the ones laid in the hallways of Vivid Red Hotel—dark red, plush, soft underfoot, but always feeling somewhat dirty.

Qi Xu had listened obediently, but the ghost didn’t like how obedient she was and actually came to bother her.

She had been counting the carpet fibers with her head down when she suddenly heard the door creak open. The sound was familiar; the past couple of days, every time they opened the door to their rundown room, it made that exact noise.

This meant a door had quietly opened behind her.

Qi Xu swallowed hard. Then, she heard particularly heavy footsteps. Thud thud thud thud, like someone deliberately stomping on the carpet. She knew the sound came from behind her, but she couldn’t gauge the distance. The hallway was especially long and empty, creating echoes that made it even harder to pinpoint where the sound was coming from.

She couldn’t just stand there waiting to die. Qi Xu’s legs felt a little weak, but she lifted her foot and started walking forward.

Her pace wasn’t fast, but it wasn’t slow either. She was afraid that if she walked too quickly, the ghost behind her would suddenly sprint after her; if she walked too slowly, it would catch up. No matter her speed, Qi Xu felt like there was a problem.

The thud thud thud thud followed right behind her, getting closer and closer. The pressure was overwhelming, leaving Qi Xu unsure of what to do. Under that urgency, her speed gradually picked up.

Just as she feared, as her pace quickened, the speed of that ghostly thing sped up too.

Qi Xu knew she couldn’t keep running like this forever. She tried pushing open the doors beside her as she walked, and unexpectedly, the first one she tried swung open. With the speed of lightning, she darted into the room and quickly slammed the door shut.

She pressed her entire back against the door, not daring to move a muscle, ears perked for sounds outside. Surprisingly, the thudding stopped. Qi Xu waited a long time before daring to turn around and peer through the peephole at the scene outside.

She knew this action was a bit suicidal. But whether that ghostly thing was still out there was crucial to her!

From the peephole, everything was pitch black; she couldn’t see a thing. Qi Xu turned back and began inspecting the room. She was still a little scared, afraid she might have stumbled into the super big boss’s lair by mistake.

After circling the room, Qi Xu breathed a sigh of relief—there was nothing inside.

The room was the same size as their Room 301, just with a double bed replaced by a king-sized one. On the small table sat a white envelope.

Qi Xu warned herself: Don’t touch anything you shouldn’t!

So many Western horror movies had protagonists inexplicably entering some dark little room—like a basement—and then, with their itchy hands, they had to touch everything! And boom, they summoned a ghost that stabbed them to death!

Qi Xu absolutely wouldn’t do something that stupid! She just wanted to rest here for a bit.

But while she wasn’t touching the envelope, the envelope came to touch her. Qi Xu stood dazed near the door, waiting to head out later. Though it was safe for now, such a cramped space wasn’t good for escaping. What if she got blocked in?

When it came to surviving horror movies, Qi Xu had unusually sharp instincts. She was focused on listening at the door when suddenly she felt her back get patted. In that instant, her hairs stood on end. She froze in that undignified pose, not daring to move.

After a while with no further movement, Qi Xu slowly, cautiously turned her head.

She was truly terrified, scared of a jump scare with some ghost lurking right behind her.

Fortunately, after turning, she saw nothing. Still, she felt the situation wasn’t great and that staying wasn’t wise. She shifted slightly to leave, but in that moment, she felt she stepped on something.

A faint rustle made her look down, and there was the white envelope she had deliberately ignored on the table—now right under her foot.

Qi Xu nearly lost her temper. She hadn’t even touched the white envelope, yet it flew over, patted her back, and now lay on the ground playing the victim!

No choice. Qi Xu crouched down and picked up the white envelope. Since she’d already touched it, it would be rude not to open it and see what this thing playing victim was. She simply took the envelope back to the table, pulled over a chair, and sat down.

Qi Xu figured she must have entered the plot now and wouldn’t die for a while, so she could relax.

The envelope wasn’t sealed with glue and opened easily. Qi Xu shook it over the table, and soon its contents spilled out—a bunch of photos. She had no idea how such a thin little envelope held so many.

She reached out and picked up one.

Then, she raised an eyebrow. The photo looked odd—not physically, but in its content.

The background was the entrance to Vivid Red Hotel, which she passed in and out of these past couple of days and wouldn’t mistake. But the people in it were Xia Zhiming and a man Qi Xu didn’t recognize. From their positions, one in front of the other heading toward the hotel, not too close, not too far—it could be them entering together, or just strangers.

Qi Xu picked up the next photo. More of the same: Xia Zhiming and the man leaving the hotel, or talking at the entrance, or about to enter. But the man was different in each.

Qi Xu pulled out all the photos, even sorting them a bit. There were many, with some men repeating, so she grouped the duplicates. The photos covered the entire table, quite a spectacle.

Qi Xu crossed her arms, sat in the chair, and examined them calmly. She didn’t understand what they meant, but they instinctively repulsed her. The shots were suggestive, as if deliberately leading her to think: Xia Zhiming entering and exiting the hotel with different men—who knew what they were up to.

But Qi Xu just thought the ghost behind this had ulterior motives.

First off, Xia Zhiming absolutely wouldn’t do something like that; these photos were one hundred percent fake. How long had they been at Vivid Red Hotel? Where would Xia Zhiming have the chance to go in and out with others so many times? Even if real, and Xia Zhiming had done this before with other men, Qi Xu figured it was probably work-related. Even if hidden from her, it was likely something that couldn’t be said outright.

Most importantly, didn’t she know what kind of person Xia Zhiming was? She blushed and her eyes grew moist even from a kiss—how could she believe these photos?!

Stepping back ten thousand steps, even if Xia Zhiming had a very open view on sex, what did it have to do with Qi Xu? They weren’t a couple; Qi Xu wasn’t her mom. What did other people’s views have to do with her? Even if they were lovers, as long as it wasn’t cheating during their relationship, Qi Xu saw no issue.

In the end, the ghost making these fake photos was just too malicious!

Qi Xu took a deep breath, gathered the photos, put them back in the white envelope, and stuffed it into her pocket. She had to take them away. True or fake, if someone else saw them, it would cause big trouble for Xia Zhiming! She didn’t want anyone gossiping about Xia Zhiming.

For now, she needed to find Xia Zhiming quickly. After some thought, with no more sounds at the door, Qi Xu prepared to make a dash.

She cracked the door open, confirmed no ghost outside, and stepped out. After a couple of quick steps, she heard the thud thud from behind again. But now, Qi Xu’s mood was different. Before, that ghost had terrified her, but now it just seemed petty!

She whirled around aggressively, only to nearly scare the soul out of herself.

By moonlight, she saw a woman hanging upside down from the ceiling, strands of hair dangling, face hidden in shadow, features invisible. Her feet were rigidly nailed to the ceiling, stomping hard as she moved toward Qi Xu.

“…” Saved her dear mother’s life!