Translator: CinderTL
"Hua Ren Hospital." Chu Jiu pondered for a moment, committing the name to memory.
"Thank you." Jiang Cheng looked at the woman with gratitude, then stood up naturally and said, "We still have to go to work, so we won't disturb you any longer."
"Stay a little longer." The woman, seeing them about to leave, wiped her hands on her sweater and stood up as well, urging them to stay. "It's been a long time since anyone visited me. Oh," she suddenly remembered something, patted her head, and said, "I still have a letter that the other residents wrote to that girl back then. Let me go get it for you."
With that, the woman headed toward the bedroom.
But Jiang Cheng was faster. He quickly walked a few steps and intercepted her. "No need to trouble yourself," he said with a smile. "I'm moving out today anyway."
Chu Jiu sat up from the sofa, her eyes filled with confusion.
It was clear she really wanted to see the so-called letter, especially since Chen Yi, who had lived in Room 710, had once saved her.
The sooner they could identify the ghost, its motives, and its methods, the better the chance Chen Yi had of surviving.
But Chu Jiu pursed her lips and looked at Jiang Cheng. His behavior suggested he had sensed danger, yet...
"Screech—"
A strange scraping sound rang out. It wasn't particularly loud, but in the quiet room, it was startling.
Chu Jiu's eyes froze for a moment, and the next second, she immediately looked toward the bedroom.
The sound came from the tightly closed bedroom door, as if someone was crouching behind it, scratching the door with sharp nails.
Chu Jiu's face turned pale. She immediately thought of the Nail Ghost from Building 2.
Unlike her, Jiang Cheng didn't even glance at the bedroom. His face still wore a kind smile, as if his ears were deaf and he hadn't heard anything.
The woman first glanced at the bedroom door, then mechanically turned her head back, staring at Jiang Cheng. In a hoarse voice, she said, "Sorry, my cats are shy. They must be hungry after hearing your voices."
After a pause, she added, "They haven't eaten in a long time."
Hearing this, Chu Jiu's hair stood on end, and her body began to tremble uncontrollably. Looking at the woman's increasingly pale face, Chu Jiu realized they had encountered a ghost.
Not only had they encountered a ghost, but they had also willingly walked into its home.
In fact, Jiang Cheng had already realized this earlier. The woman's collar hung loosely, and because her skin was so pale, a purplish-brown patch on the right side of her chin stood out starkly.
Jiang Cheng was familiar with such patches. They were caused by the stoppage of blood circulation after death, where blood, lacking momentum, pools along the vascular network and settles in the lower parts of the body, resulting in vascular congestion in those areas.
It even had a scientific name: Cadaveric Lividity.
TL/N: Postmortem lividity (livor mortis) is the settling of blood in the lowest part of the body due to gravity. This process immediately starts at the onset of death since the blood is no longer actively pumped through the body. The blood will start pressing on the skin leaving red/purple marks on the body. (sciencedirect.com)
The woman had already died. What stood before them now was a ghost.
The situation had instantly become critical.
Under Chu Jiu's gaze, Jiang Cheng slipped his right hand into his pocket, then pulled out a handful of something and stuffed it into the woman's hand. "That's all I have," he said, patting the woman's icy hand in a symbolic gesture. "Keep it to buy some meat for your cats."
Chu Jiu's eyes widened. She saw that Jiang Cheng had actually handed the woman a large sum of money, a mix of bills and coins, with a few shiny coins in the middle.
Immediately after, Jiang Cheng turned and pulled Chu Jiu toward the door. The woman didn't stop them, but the door refused to open, even though it wasn't locked.
Jiang Cheng didn't dare look back. As he struggled with the door, he said, "Sister, don't be like this. My friend has more. I'll bring it to you later."
As soon as he finished speaking, Fatty's surprised voice came from outside: "Doctor?"
Hearing this, Jiang Cheng immediately stopped what he was doing and shouted outside, "Fatty, do you have any money on you?"
A moment later—
After Fatty and Chen Yi rushed back to their rooms and rummaged through their belongings, they finally scraped together several hundred yuan, which they pushed through the door crack. Finally, they managed to "ransom" Jiang Cheng and Chu Jiu out.
"Doctor," Fatty said as they walked down the hallway, leaning in to whisper, "Did we just get extorted by a ghost?"
Chen Yi, who was comforting the terrified Chu Jiu, looked up at just the right moment and said, "It's just a little money. What matters is that everyone's safe."
After so many missions, this was the first time Fatty had encountered such a reasonable ghost—one that would let people go after receiving payment, with no room for negotiation.
"Principles!" he thought to himself, wishing there were more ghosts like this in the future, turning Nightmare tasks into a management game.
He wasn't cut out for business, but the Doctor was. He was shameless and knew how to deceive.
"Sister Chen Yi," Chu Jiu looked up at her and said urgently, "That woman just now said the long-legged ghost in your room is named Yu Youwei. She was a model."
"When she first moved in, she was fine, but later she somehow went crazy, shouting at night and throwing mirrors outside."
"And... and Hua Ren Hospital," Chu Jiu clenched her small fists and blurted out in one breath. "After Yu Youwei died, the police came to investigate and specifically mentioned this hospital. There might be clues there."
While it was still early, the group hailed a taxi and headed straight for Hua Ren Hospital.
Jiang Cheng shoved Fatty into the passenger seat and claimed the middle seat in the back row for himself, with Chu Jiu on his left and Chen Yi on his right.
Every time the taxi turned a corner, Jiang Cheng seemed unable to control his body, leaning toward either side. Chu Jiu squeezed herself into a tiny spot next to the door, but Jiang Cheng kept inching closer.
Finally, the driver couldn't take it anymore and coughed loudly. Only then did Jiang Cheng restrain himself.
Chen Yi, who should have been ready to punch Jiang Cheng for his behavior, was instead staring out the window, her delicate brows furrowed. From time to time, she reached out to rub her shoulder, as if something was bothering her.
Then she adjusted her posture, switched hands, and lightly pounded her lower back.
Gradually, Chen Yi suddenly felt a hand on her thigh, which then quickly rubbed a few times. "Yi Yi," Jiang Cheng blinked his charming eyes and asked with concern, "Are you feeling unwell somewhere?"
Chen Yi slapped his hand away and shot him a look that clearly said, "Get lost."
A moment later, that hand slowly crept up to her waist, giving it a squeeze. "Is it uncomfortable here?" Jiang Cheng swallowed, not hiding his eagerness, and said, "Turn around, and I'll massage it for you, okay?"
The driver glanced at the police station by the roadside, wondering if he should make a U-turn at the next intersection.
Fatty noticed the driver's unease and quickly changed the subject, asking the driver some ambiguous questions. The two of them chatted idly.
Finally, after another turn, the car came to a stop.
After paying the fare, they didn't even have enough money left for the return trip.
In front of them was Hua Ren Hospital. According to the driver, it was a county-level hospital. Jiang Cheng had been to many county-level hospitals, but in his memory, none of them were as impressive as this one.
"Let's go," Chen Yi urged. Her complexion looked even worse than before, and she was rubbing her shoulder again, her neck seeming stiff.
(End of the Chapter)
---
Read (NS) on Pa.treon@CinderTL - c482. [+2]
Early Access at $1.
Translated (5) Series, (2.5K+) Chapters, (3.4M+) Words.