Translator: CinderTL
Not long after, the video went dark again. When it lit up once more, the woman had already stood up, all within a matter of seconds.
The woman looked extremely frightened, constantly glancing around. From the shape of her mouth, it seemed like she was calling out someone's name, but unfortunately, the video had no sound.
"Look over there," Jiang Cheng pointed to a table in the corner, lowering his voice. "The people at that table are gone."
Now, in the video, the woman was the only one left in the café.
It was clear that the woman was panicking. She looked around, her mouth moving as if she was shouting something, but there was no response from the surroundings.
Finally, the group saw her gripping the hem of her clothes, seemingly ready to run and leave the place. But then, her gaze slowly lowered, and her movements came to a halt.
Her eyes were fixed on the table, where two cups were placed facing each other.
She must have been worried about the person she came with, which was why she chose not to leave.
However, during her hesitation, the surroundings changed once again. A lamp in the corner flickered a few times before silently going out.
The woman immediately turned her gaze toward that spot.
The woman's expression changed rapidly, shifting from initial confusion to deep-seated fear. Everyone could even see the despair beneath her terrified face.
Darkness crept toward her from the corner.
One by one, the lamps flickered and then went out.
The darkness brought with it an overwhelming sense of oppression, making Fatty, who was watching the screen, feel as if he couldn't breathe. Then, they saw something horrifying.
During the last few flickers of the light, they spotted a faint human figure in the darkness.
The figure was hidden deep within the shadows. Though it made no movement, it was clear that it was gradually approaching the woman.
The woman retreated in terror, crying out helplessly. But her legs gave way, and she fell to the ground, weakly pushing herself backward with her hands.
The figure remained at a distance, but every time it appeared, it brought a new wave of calamity for the woman.
Just like the previous video, it ended abruptly.
Banana Wolf clicked to exit and was about to open the next video, but Jiang Cheng shook his head, signaling that it wasn't necessary.
There was no need.
The remaining videos were likely more of the same.
By now, everyone had guessed the identity of this woman.
She was Li Maoshen's official girlfriend.
At least, that was what the woman believed.
And these seemingly paranormal videos were all the work of Li Maoshen and his Shen Wei Paranormal Team.
However, their filming method wasn't about exploring actual haunted houses with paranormal activity. Instead, it was a deliberate attempt to scare a poor girl to gain attention, views, and ultimately, the fame and money that came with it.
The room fell into a heavy silence.
After a moment, Wan Yuanning, who rarely spoke, broke the silence. "This woman probably didn't know about any of this. She thought it was all real, that there were actual ghosts. What she didn't know was that it was all orchestrated by the boyfriend she deeply loved, who even formed a filming team for this purpose."
This was already quite clear. Although the videos looked eerie, for people like Jiang Cheng who had actually faced ghosts, the flaws were obvious at a glance.
For instance, the crude setting and the poor, clumsy acting.
Of course, this referred to the "ghosts" in the video.
Those ghosts were likely played by Yu Youwei, Zhao Jiajia, Song Xiaoyou, Qiao Yu, and others. Li Maoshen was primarily responsible for bringing the woman to the prearranged scene and making sure she couldn't escape.
Otherwise, the filming effect would have been greatly diminished.
After all, in a confined space, the kind of despair that comes from being unable to escape is what truly grabs attention.
And indeed, Li Maoshen became famous because of these short videos.
Fatty, sitting in front of the computer, gritted his teeth in anger. What pained him the most was that in the second video, the woman had a chance to run away, but she missed it because she was worried about her boyfriend.
He clearly saw the worry in her eyes as she looked at the coffee cup across the table.
Perhaps this was exactly the effect Li Maoshen wanted.
To tell the woman a lie, saying he would be back soon, and then hide, watching from the other side of the screen as the lie unfolded, watching the foolish woman suffer for his sake.
Would this bring him immense satisfaction, or would it greatly boost his ego?
Fatty continued to ponder on his own. Perhaps this would even become a topic of conversation for Li Maoshen in front of his new girlfriend.
"Yu Youwei's colleague also told us that they once overheard Yu Youwei arguing with Li Maoshen on the phone, and the insults were particularly harsh. She was saying something about how she had put in so much effort but only received a small share, and she demanded that Li Maoshen send her money, or else she would expose his diary," Hua Luo said with a frown.
"Diary?"
"Yes," Hua Luo nodded. "Later, Yu Youwei actually did it. She posted a few screenshots in the group chat, showing a diary."
"The contents of the diary..." Hua Luo paused, pursing her lips, and didn't continue immediately.
"She deleted the post quickly after sending it, and only one screenshot was saved. Take a look," Banana Wolf's voice chimed in at the right moment. He took the tablet, tapped a few times, and then handed it to Jiang Cheng.
On the screen was indeed a page from a notebook, but the person who took the photo seemed to be in a hurry. Only about two-thirds of the page was captured, and the angle was a bit off.
It looked like Yu Youwei had taken the photo secretly while Li Maoshen was asleep.
The handwriting on the page was very messy, and Jiang Cheng slowly read through it.
"May 17th: The team is already formed. The location isn't urgent; the most important task now is to deal with her."
"May 21st: She's very resistant. It seems my approach is wrong. Maybe I should really listen to Song Xiaoyou's advice."
"May 23rd: Indeed, women understand women best! Song Xiaoyou was right—as long as she loves me, everything will be easy. I can threaten her with a breakup."
"May 24th: Damn, doing it myself is too slow. I'll follow Qiao Yu's suggestion and buy a video course online. Qiao Yu, if you dare lie to me..."
"May 27th: This stuff really works! She's starting to obey. Haha, tomorrow I'll try not letting her drink water all day..."
"May 31st: A bit troublesome, but when I mentioned breaking up, she got scared. Time to take the next step—yes, I need to uncover her deepest fears. It's crucial to make sure she obeys during filming!"
"June 5th: She's been crying for several nights, begging me not to leave her. I'm a genius. It's almost ready. I can start setting up the location."
"June 7th: Found the location. Zhao Jiajia and Qiao Yu can handle the equipment. They're professionals. Haha."
"June 10th: It begins..."
(End of the Chapter)
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