Chapter 29 The Third Door
Ruan Nanzhu slept in the hospital for a whole day and woke up the next day.
Lin Qiushi stayed by his side the entire time, worried that something might happen to him. Everyone in the villa went to the hospital and only left the ward after learning that Ruan Nanzhu was not seriously injured.
When Ruan Nanzhu woke up, Lin Qiushi was watching the news on his phone. He didn't know if it was his imagination or what, but there had been a lot of accidents in the past two days, and the causes of death were all too strange. There was even one case where a few people were riding in an elevator during a fire, and the elevator got stuck mid-air, burning all three people inside.
After reading the news, Lin Qiushi looked up at Ruan Nanzhu, only to find that he had already woken up. However, he did not speak or move after waking up. He just stared at the ceiling above his head in silence.
"Nanzhu!" Lin Qiushi was very worried about his condition and called his name carefully.
Ruan Nanzhu didn't say anything, but his eyes slowly shifted to Lin Qiushi. His black eyes held an emotion that Lin Qiushi couldn't understand.
"Are you thirsty?" Lin Qiushi noticed his lips were dry, so he stepped forward to help him up, then handed a cup filled with warm water to his lips. "The doctor said there's nothing serious wrong with you, just too tired. A few days of rest will be fine."
Ruan Nanzhu swallowed the water mouthful by mouthful, closed his eyes, and said, "I understand."
Lin Qiushi said, "Are you hungry? I'll go get you a bowl of porridge."
"I'm not hungry." Ruan Nanzhu said, "You're sitting next to me. Where's my phone?"
Lin Qiushi handed Ruan Nanzhu his phone and watched him dial the number. He didn't know what was said on the other end of the line. Ruan Nanzhu hummed twice and then hung up.
"The clue for Cheng Qianli's fifth door has appeared." Ruan Nanzhu said, "You will go in with him in five days."
"Okay." Lin Qiushi was willing to follow Ruan Nanzhu's arrangements.
"I'll check out the situation here. If possible, I'll take you two with me." Ruan Nanzhu half-closed his eyes. "But I'm not sure about the situation yet, so I'll try my best."
"Don't force yourself," Lin Qiushi said. "I can do it on my own."
Ruan Nanzhu shook his head and did not answer.
Later, Lin Qiushi learned that this was Ruan Nanzhu's tenth door. The man who entered with him was a man from another organization who also entered the tenth door. The two had a good relationship, but from this tenth door, only Ruan Nanzhu emerged.
"In the end, only I and a woman I don't know survived." After returning to the villa, Ruan Nanzhu briefly described what happened inside the door. "That woman must be no ordinary person."
Anyone who can survive to the tenth door is definitely not an ordinary person.
"Cheng Qianli, did you get the clue?" Ruan Nanzhu seemed unwilling to talk more about the door and changed the subject.
"I got it." Cheng Qianli said, "I got it the night you were unconscious, Brother Ruan." He took out a piece of paper from his pocket and said, "Mmm."
Ruan Nanzhu finished reading the note and then handed it to Lin Qiushi, who was sitting next to him. "Look, this is also your next door."
"Oh." Lin Qiushi took it and saw three words written on the note: Sister Drum.
"What is this?" Lin Qiushi didn't understand the meaning of the note. "Is it a musical instrument?"
"No, it's the title of a song." Cheng Qianli had roughly checked the meaning of the note. "The lyrics are about a little sister looking for her sister..."
"Just that?" Ruan Nanzhu said.
Cheng Qianli said, "There must be other meanings." He scratched his head embarrassedly and smiled, "I haven't had time to check yet."
Cheng Yixie said indifferently, "I hope you can be this calm when you die."
Cheng Qianli: "Wow, how can you say that? There are still several days left!"
Seeing that the two were about to quarrel again, Ruan Nanzhu made a stop gesture: "Hurry up and figure it out for me. The time you enter the house is not very stable now, don't make any mistakes."
"Okay." Cheng Qianli responded obediently.
It would have been fine if he hadn't checked it, but when he found out the specific hidden meaning of the lyrics, Lin Qiushi felt a chill on his back.
The first few lines of the lyrics of Sister Drum are:
My elder sister could not speak since she was a child, and she left home as early as I can remember.
From then on, I thought about it every day
Sister
I always thought of my sister as big as her
I suddenly understood her
From then on, I searched for it every day.
Sister
An old man sitting on the Mani pile
Repeating a sentence over and over again
Om Mani Padme Hum
At first glance, this seems to be just a story about a little sister searching for her mute sister, but after looking up the background of the story, I discovered that the song is about a human skin drum.
A long time ago, a certain religion had a custom of peeling off the skin of a virgin alive and using it as the drumhead to make a drum. It was said that the sound of such a drum could connect life and death and transcend reincarnation.
The mute sister in the lyrics is said to have volunteered to be made into a drum, but there are different opinions on whether it was voluntary or not.
"The human skin must be from a young girl who has never experienced love. This is the purest. If she is mute, it is even better, because a mute has never told a lie and her soul is not tainted." Cheng Qianli read the content he found: "And it must be skinned alive. This kind of human skin drum will have the best sound..." He shuddered after reading it, "Fortunately, we are now in a society ruled by law."
Sometimes, what people can do is always scarier than ghosts.
Lin Qiushi said, "The creator of this song said that while traveling, he met a younger sister who was looking for her older sister. The younger sister didn't know why her sister suddenly disappeared, until she heard a "Om Mani Padme Hum" and the sound of drums coming from the horizon."
Ruan Nanzhu listened quietly, without comment. His face wasn't looking good either. Although the doctor said he wasn't seriously injured, the mental damage was difficult to quantify.
"I'll go in with them this time." Cheng Yixie, who was sitting next to them, suddenly said, "You take a rest for a while."
Ruan Nanzhu asked, "Are you going?"
Cheng Yixie nodded. Although he looked about the same age as Cheng Qianli, his temperament was much more stable than Cheng Qianli's. He didn't look like a teenager of seventeen or eighteen at all. In a way, he and Ruan Nanzhu looked quite similar at first glance.
"I'll think about it." Ruan Nanzhu glanced at Lin Qiushi and did not agree directly.
Cheng Yixie frowned slightly, as if he didn't understand Ruan Nanzhu's hesitation, but he didn't say anything else and just responded with "OK".
Fortunately, although Ruan Nanzhu was in a bad condition, he finally came out of the dangerous door.
In the evening, everyone planned to celebrate. Lu Yanxue cooked a table full of delicious dishes, and Lin Qiushi helped her. He found Lu Yanxue's cooking skills amazing. Upon asking, he learned that Lu Yanxue used to run a private kitchen, but later encountered financial difficulties, so she closed the shop and moved into the villa.
"Actually, my cooking skills aren't the best," Lu Yanxue said. "Zhang Jiao's cooking skills are better than mine, but he's away for a while. You'll be in for a treat when he comes back. You seem quite skilled, though. Do you cook often?"
"I live alone." Lin Qiushi lowered his head to cut vegetables. "I have to be able to cook something."
The food was served and a few bottles of good wine were opened. The atmosphere at the table was very relaxed, with everyone chatting and laughing, and there was no sign of any hidden gloom.
Lin Qiushi also drank two glasses, but didn't touch the glass too much. He had something on his mind and was afraid of getting drunk.
Ruan Nanzhu has a good alcohol tolerance and drank a whole bottle of red wine by himself.
After eating and drinking, everyone went their separate ways. Lin Qiushi also returned to his room. He took a hot bath and when he came out, he saw Ruan Nanzhu sitting on his bed waiting for him.
"Nanzhu, is there something wrong?" Lin Qiushi walked over while wiping his hair.
"I need you." Ruan Nanzhu said shockingly.
Lin Qiushi was stunned when he heard this: "What...does that mean?"
"Literally," Ruan Nanzhu said, "You can't die."
At first glance, these words did sound somewhat ambiguous, but Lin Qiushi, being a straight man, didn't think too much of it. He said, "Can you explain it more clearly?"
Ruan Nanzhu only said one sentence at the end. He said: "Some people are born to be gatekeepers."
After he said this, he left, leaving Lin Qiushi with a bewildered look on his face.
Lin Qiushi always felt that some changes had occurred in Ruan Nanzhu, who came out of the tenth door, but for a moment, he could not figure out what the changes were.
After resting for a few days, Ruan Nanzhu's condition gradually recovered.
Lin Qiushi knew that he would be facing his third door in a few days, so he had been actively making preparations.
It was said to be preparation work, but in fact it was just watching a horror movie with Cheng Qianli at night.
"Will this really work?" Lin Qiushi expressed his doubts.
"It's useful, it's useful. We won't be afraid after seeing it enough." Cheng Qianli was still holding a bag of potato chips in his arms.
"Don't we need to look at that clue again..." Lin Qiushi still felt it was unreliable.
"Now the door is simple, there are only so many clues, and there is nothing to find out if we investigate further." Cheng Qianli said, "Oh, look, the female ghost has come out."
While the two were watching TV, Toast was lying on the cushion next to him and secretly looking at Li Zi. Li Zi was lying in the corner of the sofa, wagging his tail leisurely.
When Yi Manman passed by and saw Lin Qiushi watching TV with Cheng Qianli, she sighed deeply.
Lin Qiushi was still wondering why Yi Manman sighed at first, but three minutes later, he knew the answer - Cheng Qianli was particularly afraid of ghosts.
As soon as the ghost came out, he started screaming like a castrated chicken, and tried to squeeze into the crack of the sofa.
Lin Qiushi was shocked: "Are you that scared?"
Cheng Qianli trembled: "Aren't you afraid?"
Lin Qiushi: "Although I'm scared, I'm not as scared as you. Could you please stop holding my arm..." He felt like he was about to be strangled by Cheng Qianli.
Cheng Qianli let go of Lin Qiushi and was about to turn around to hug Li Zi, but Lin Qiushi quickly stopped him and said, "You should hold me."
Cheng Qianli was moved and said, "You are such a good person."
Lin Qiushi: “…” If I don’t act like a good person, I’m afraid I’ll lose my cat.
As a result, before the last horror movie was finished, the whole building was filled with Cheng Qianli's screams. Lin Qiushi was already numb, and his first reaction when he saw the ghost was to stay away from Cheng Qianli.
The cry was so miserable that it attracted all the people who had gone upstairs to sleep to come down.
"What are you yelling about? Does Cheng Qianli deserve a beating? He's yelling like a ghost in the middle of the night." Lu Yanxue had a green mask on her face. When she walked down the stairs, she scared both Cheng Qianli and Lin Qiushi.
"I'm scared." Cheng Qianli said.
"If you're scared, why are you still watching horror movies?" Lu Yanxue said, "If I were a ghost, I'd be scared to death by you if you scream like that."
Cheng Qianli: "But if you don't see me, I'll be going in two days."
Lu Yanxue: "Then why not wait until you get inside and then yell. No one else will be able to hear you then, so you can yell for them to hear."
Cheng Qianli: "I won't, I'm going to scream for you to hear—Ahhhhhhh!"
Lu Yanxue: "Cheng Yixie, you need to take care of your naughty little brother, he's going to make a scene!!"
Cheng Qianli: "..."
At Lu Yanxue's call, Cheng Yixie finally arrived. He was wearing pajamas and said to Cheng Qianli expressionlessly, "If you utter another word tonight, you will have to go through the next door by yourself."
Cheng Qianli: "..."
Cheng Yixie turned to look at Lin Qiushi: "Good night."
Lin Qiushi didn't know whether to laugh or cry: "Good night."
With just one sentence, Lu Yanxue got rid of a screaming chicken. Before leaving, she told Lin Qiushi not to accompany Cheng Qianli to watch horror movies next time.
Lin Qiushi nodded heavily, indicating that there would definitely not be a next time.
Poor Cheng Qianli had a resentful expression on her face, like a poor wife betrayed by her husband.
After Lu Yanxue left, Lin Qiushi and Cheng Qianli said a few words. Cheng Qianli didn't dare to speak and could only take out his mobile phone and type.
Lin Qiushi: "You're really silent? Isn't your brother joking?"
Cheng Qianli typed: He never jokes.
Lin Qiushi: "...Then I'll go to bed too. Good night?"
Cheng Qianli typed: Good night.
Lin Qiushi was able to escape and quickly went back to sleep.
The next morning, Chen Fei asked Cheng Qianli if he had watched a horror movie yesterday. Who was so free to accompany him to do this?
Lin Qiushi pointed at himself embarrassedly.
Chen Fei was silent for three seconds: "Sorry, I forgot to tell you about this. Actually, everyone in our villa has some quirks. You will understand after getting along for a long time."
Quirk? Lin Qiushi's first reaction was to glance at Ruan Nanzhu.
His eyes betrayed his thoughts, and Cheng Qianli said in a barely audible voice, "Isn't it a quirk to like wearing women's clothes?"
Lin Qiushi: “…” He couldn’t even refute it?
Ruan Nanzhu suddenly put down his chopsticks: "Cheng Qianli."
Cheng Qianli: "Ha...haha? Brother Ruan?"
Ruan Nanzhu said, "It's okay." He wiped his mouth and smiled, "I just wanted to call you."
Cheng Qianli instantly became cowardly, and judging by his expression, he wished he could sew his mouth shut.
Lin Qiushi found them amusing. He had expected the atmosphere in the villa to be tense and serious, but after spending time together, he found that everyone was more like a group of friends. Aside from the first few days after entering the villa, everything else was very relaxed.
Time passed little by little, and it was almost time for Lin Qiushi to enter.
The night before entering, Ruan Nanzhu finally decided to take Lin Qiushi and Cheng Qianli in person.
Cheng Yixie disagreed with him on this matter, saying that Ruan Nanzhu's health was not fully recovered and he could also do the job.
"I'm worried." Ruan Nanzhu said these four words very calmly, "You don't want anything to happen to your brother, do you?"
Cheng Yixie was silent. Cheng Qianli was sitting in the living room downstairs, holding Toast and happily rubbing its butt, looking like a young man who didn't know the feeling of worry.
Cheng Yixie asked, "If Lin Qiushi wasn't here, would you insist on leading the team?"
Ruan Nanzhu said: "No."
Cheng Yixie said, "What's so special about him?"
Ruan Nanzhu smiled and said, "Is being cute considered special?"
Cheng Yixie raised an eyebrow, clearly not believing Ruan Nanzhu's words. After spending so much time together, he knew full well that Ruan Nanzhu wasn't someone easily swayed by emotions. He must have a reason for valuing Lin Qiushi so much. However, he didn't yet know what that reason was.
The matter was settled, and Cheng Yixie did not continue to pester him.
Because they were going to Cheng Qianli's house this time, the three of them were together almost anytime and anywhere for the next few days, and even had to make an appointment to go to the bathroom together.
Fortunately, this didn't last long. On the afternoon of the tenth day, Lin Qiushi was reclining on the sofa playing games with Cheng Qianli. Ruan Nanzhu sat beside them, reading a book with a cat in her arms.
Cheng Qianli, who was having a lot of fun, seemed to sense something. He suddenly stopped and said, "Here it comes."
Ruan Nanzhu said, "Where is it?"
Cheng Qianli said: "Second floor."
"Let's go." Ruan Nanzhu put the chestnut down, and the three of them stood up and walked towards the second floor together.
After turning the corner of the stairs, Lin Qiushi saw that the original corridor had been transformed into twelve neatly arranged iron doors, four of which were sealed.
"Go." Ruan Nanzhu looked at Cheng Qianli.
Cheng Qianli's face turned slightly pale. He forced a smile, walked forward and pulled the fifth door.
With a soft creak, the seemingly heavy iron door before him was easily pulled open. Lin Qiushi felt a force pushing him inside. His vision shifted, and the scenery before him changed dramatically.
The corridor of the villa disappeared, and before Lin Qiushi appeared a dense jungle. He looked around, but Ruan Nanzhu and Cheng Qianli, who should have been standing beside him, were nowhere to be seen. Before him stood tall, lush trees, with a small stone path leading deep into the jungle.
Lin Qiushi took out his phone and checked it. Unsurprisingly, there was no signal at all. He followed the only path forward, but after a few steps he saw a girl sitting by the roadside, crying.
The girl curled up into a ball, crying breathlessly. Lin Qiushi's first reaction upon seeing her was that the scene looked so familiar. Thinking carefully, he suddenly remembered that his first encounter with Ruan Nanzhu seemed remarkably similar to this scene...
Could this person be Ruan Nanzhu? Lin Qiushi stood still, observing the weeping girl for a moment with a complicated expression.
The girl cried for a while, then looked up and saw Lin Qiushi frowning at her. She was so frightened that she quickly took a few steps back, her face filled with fear: "Who are you? What are you going to do to me—where is this place—"
Lin Qiushi breathed a sigh of relief when he heard her words. He knew she wasn't Ruan Nanzhu. He asked, "Did you just get here?"
The girl nodded pitifully. She looked very cute, not very tall, and her small size made her very adorable.
Lin Qiushi said, "Come here! It's getting dark, and we need to hurry to our destination."
The girl said, "Destination? Where is the destination? Who are you? Where is this place? Am I not home?"
This series of questions made Lin Qiushi feel quite overwhelmed. Now he finally understood why the people in the villa were so disgusted with newcomers in the beginning, because every newcomer meant a book of 100,000 Whys - and the kind that could be torn up at any time.
"Let's talk while we walk." This was the only explanation Lin Qiushi could give.
Perhaps it was Lin Qiushi's non-aggressive appearance that gave the girl courage. Although she still had some doubts, she still followed Lin Qiushi.
As the two of them continued along the path, Lin Qiushi briefly explained the world beyond the gate. Of course, he didn't go into too much detail, as a detailed explanation would likely take an entire day. The girl introduced herself as Xu Jin. She had been walking along the path just fine, but when she reached her building, she entered the stairwell and saw twelve iron gates...
Half an hour later, the two arrived at the end of the trail, a village nestled in the lush jungle.
This village is full of exotic style. Almost all the houses are wooden stilt houses. There are some bone products hanging outside the stilt houses, but it is not known what bones they are made of.
"You're here." As soon as they arrived at the village entrance, someone greeted them warmly. It was a young woman who greeted them. She said, "They have all gone into the house and are waiting for you." As she spoke, she pointed to a large wooden building next to them.
"Excuse me, where is this place?" Xu Jin continued to ask.
The woman didn't answer, but simply looked at them with a beaming smile. At first, Lin Qiushi thought her smile was quite welcoming, but upon closer inspection, he felt it was truly strange. No matter what they said, the woman didn't reply, maintaining the same expression from beginning to end.
Lin Qiushi guessed that this woman was probably not someone outside the door, but an NPC inside the door.
Xu Jin was also a little frightened by her laughter and took two steps to the side. Lin Qiushi said, "Let's go in and take a look first."
Xu Jin nodded slightly.
The two went up the stairs to the wooden building next door, but before they entered, they heard a fierce quarrel coming from inside.
"Fuck you, where the hell is this place? Don't try to fool me, I've already called the police!!" - This line really sounded familiar, and Lin Qiushi instantly understood what was going on.
The author has something to say: Hahahaha, I saw a comment yesterday and learned a new word: 嘤雄救美.
Lin Qiushi: Stop crying.
Ruan Nanzhu: If you don’t make any whimpering sounds, then I can only do it hard, hard, hard.
Lin Qiushi: ………嘤嘤嘤 is actually quite good.
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