"Pfft." Xiao Fang couldn't help but say, "The hotel lobby isn't as big as the bathroom. Does he own a bathhouse? He talks and acts so casually."

Meng Chengxi: "Haha, it's so cold."

The already chilly hotel temperature dropped two degrees because of Xiao Fang.

Seeing that none of the three laughed, Xiao Fang scratched his head. "Ahem, I was just joking. But with him flaunting his wealth like this, could it be that the owner here is using money to coerce people's wives or something?"

“That’s one possibility.” Shi Jinzhe nodded and walked back. “Let’s go back to our room first, lest someone overhears us.”

On their way back, the four of them encountered the indigenous people who were having a team-building activity again.

The masked woman holding the cat pushed her suitcase and walked out of the 503 entrance alone.

The little black kitten in her arms seemed to really like Sher, stretching out its paws as if to jump out of the girl's arms.

The masked woman took the initiative to say to Shekh, "The little one likes you very much."

The first two times he ran away, she found him near this couple. Judging from his current reaction, it seems that he prefers the girl.

Sher picked up the cat with one hand and heard it purring.

She walked to the door of room 503, which was wide open, revealing the entire interior.

The kitten in his arms shrank back, and Shekh asked the masked woman, "May I go into this room and take a look?"

"I'm changing rooms, please make yourselves at home."

Shekh entered the room. There was a ghostly aura, but it was very faint. If she were still in a state of shielding her senses, she would definitely not have noticed it.

Unlike the female ghost in room 409, this one in room 503 must have been wandering around this room for a few days.

"You live here, and this cat meows every night, right?"

"...How did you know?" The masked woman was conflicted because her roommate had gone mad.

She didn't like her roommate, so she booked another room last night. Who knew that in just one night, she would go crazy.

Shekh solemnly informed him, "There's a ghost here, of course it will keep howling."

Most people would just think she was joking or trying to scare them, but the girl got goosebumps.

Lu Xiaohui's words still echoed in her ears. Perhaps they had attracted something unclean by playing the ghost-summoning game. Wasn't it because they had been calling for their baby for two nights in a row after they played the game?

"Actually... there's something I haven't told you."

The masked woman glanced down the corridor to make sure no one was around before speaking, "A couple of days ago, she woke up complaining that someone was touching her. Like...touching her breasts, touching her legs..."

Shekh frowned: "A lecher?"

“I don’t know either. She didn’t seem to care much, so I didn’t ask. But this morning she kept crying and screaming and wouldn’t let anyone touch her, especially men. I thought… maybe it’s related to this. Is that thing possessing her?”

"Is there anything else unusual about your stay here?"

The masked woman thought for a moment, "Hmm... I can hear a ticking sound occasionally, but nothing else. Although the hotel's decor is gloomy, the service is alright."

"May I ask why you're playing this ghost-summoning game here?" Shi Jinzhe leaned against the doorway, not going inside.

The girl's knuckles were turning white as she gripped the lever; she was afraid of men, so it was best if the three men didn't come in.

Out of respect for Shekh, the masked woman replied to Shi Jinzhe, "We're a horror game project team, and we're out looking for inspiration."

Shi Jinzhe: "Then how did you end up here?"

"The team leader said that a murder had occurred at this hotel, so coming here would make us feel like we were there. Plus, it's close to the hot springs and inexpensive, so we thought we'd treat this as a team-building trip for a few days."

The masked woman stared at the little black cat being petted so tenderly in Shekh's arms, then looked up at Shekh again.

She had a fleeting doubt: if the kitten's constant meowing meant it could see ghosts, then if she hadn't impulsively taken it away yesterday, and if the kitten had been there to warn her, would her colleague have been safe?

Although she didn't like that person, she never intended for her colleague to become like that.

After a few seconds of thought, the masked woman said, "The case at this hotel a few years ago is very similar to the story we're going to write. The wealthy and powerful owner took advantage of a woman's lust and forced himself on her, and was eventually killed by the woman's husband."

"Killed by the husband? Wasn't it said that the owner here was bitten to death by a snake?"

“That’s the version we heard. Apparently, the wife,” the masked woman said softly, “was a good friend of the landlady and had been her bridesmaid before.”

Every time I think of that photo, I immediately think of the bridesmaid whose lipstick was even brighter than the bride's, making her the center of attention.

Dressing up to be more eye-catching than the bride at someone else's wedding banquet, especially in bright red, is something no adult with basic manners would do.

People who do this are either trying to show off or have low emotional intelligence and don't know how to handle different situations.

But if she could be invited to be a bridesmaid, then the bridesmaid's character must at least be acceptable to Lu Xiaohui; she's probably just not very good at handling things.

Do you know anything else about this?

"I don't know about the rest; these are all things I've heard secondhand." The masked woman pulled the handle of her suitcase, called out to the little black cat twice, and said, "If there's nothing else, I'll be leaving now."

The little black cat meowed at Sheh, then snuggled out of her arms and left room 503 with the masked woman, glancing back every few steps.

After the person and the cat had walked away, Shi Jinzhe went back into the room.

He took Shech’s hand again, just at the five-minute mark.

Shi Jinzhe: "Is there anything special in this room?"

“Yes.” Shekh walked to the bedside. “Close the door.”

Meng Chengxi, who was closest to the door, closed it and turned around to catch the two pillows.

"Help me take these two pillows apart," Shi Jinzhe said, already lifting the mattress.

The heavy mattress was lifted up, and underneath it was a soapberry tree.

The leaves are still green and very fresh; they haven't been there long, no more than two days.

Meng Chengxi pulled off the pillow and found several soapberry fruits inside the pillow core.

He pressed hard with his fingers; the yellowish-brown peel was still firm, indicating it was fresh.

"Xiao Fang, go after that girl and ask her if she knows the room cleaning schedule."