Translator: CinderTL
Jiang Cheng glanced at Banana Wolf, then grabbed Fatty and left.
As they reached the door, they noticed a black bag that seemed to contain trash. "Sister Qing," Jiang Cheng called out cheerfully, "I'll take the trash out for you."
Hearing no objection, Jiang Cheng picked up the bag and left.
As soon as they stepped out, the door slammed shut with a loud bang.
Standing in the corridor, Fatty was still catching his breath, the chilling aura from Weng Qing lingering in his mind.
Knowing this wasn't the place to talk, the two turned and headed toward Room 707, where the rest of their team was waiting to assist them.
Just as they reached the door, it was pulled open. "Get in quickly," Wan Yuanning said swiftly as she opened the door.
Inside, they saw Chu Jiu.
"Where's Hua Luo?" Jiang Cheng asked with a frown.
"He went out. Said there was news from the other side."
After briefly explaining the situation in Room 717, the group's expressions turned grim. But there was nothing they could do—some risks were unavoidable.
"What's this?" Chu Jiu asked, eyeing the bag in Jiang Cheng's hand.
Jiang Cheng placed the bag on the floor and told Fatty to find something to lay underneath it. After all, no one knew what was inside this so-called trash bag.
As soon as they opened it slightly, a foul smell hit them—like rotting meat. Everyone had a bad feeling.
The contents were a mess: rotten fruit, a half-moldy cake, and at the bottom, they found a piece of meat.
A large piece, so decayed it was almost unrecognizable.
Putting on gloves, Wan Yuanning, usually cold and detached, seemed like a different person. She poked at the meat with her finger and said, "It doesn't look like human flesh."
Fatty's heart settled back into his chest.
But a moment later, he suddenly looked up, his gaze filled with uncertainty as he stared at the calm Wan Yuanning.
If it wasn't human flesh...
Had she seen large pieces of human flesh before?
Unlike her usual demeanor, Wan Yuanning seemed professional and composed with the gloves on, as if she'd done this kind of thing before.
Fatty began to suspect her real identity might be something like a forensic examiner.
"These things seem to have appeared in the room recently," Wan Yuanning said, picking up a fruit pit with a bit of flesh still attached. "No more than ten days ago."
Logically, Weng Qing had been dead for a while. So where did the fruit and meat in the room come from?
The group worked together to sift through the trash carefully. On a crumpled white bag, they found a half-torn sticker.
The sticker was from a fresh produce supermarket called "Hospitable Fresh."
There was also a phone number on it.
Unfortunately, the last digit was missing. But Jiang Cheng went to the phone and tried each number from 0 to 9. Finally, when he reached 9, the person on the other end confirmed it was the supermarket.
The supermarket said they offered delivery services, but when Jiang Cheng gave the address as Room 717, Building 1 of Peace Apartment, they said they'd never delivered there.
They also politely mentioned that because Peace Apartment was old and the elevator often broke down, they didn't deliver upstairs.
If someone needed a delivery, they'd have to come down to get it.
But Weng Qing obviously couldn't come down to pick up groceries. Someone must have brought them up for her—like the disabled old man who had drawn their attention to Room 717.
They were in it together.
This was confirmed by the supermarket, who said they'd asked the delivery person and learned that a disabled old man had picked up the goods for Building 1.
Now it was clear why Weng Qing had let them go so easily, leaving only Banana Wolf behind.
Because most of the time, a ghost only kills one person at a time.
They also understood why Weng Qing's room had been handed over to the disabled old man to manage.
This was a deal.
One wanted money, the other wanted money—and more.
"What about Banana Wolf?" Fatty's expression tightened. He had a good impression of the young man—someone who knew what was important and had a kind heart. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been left behind alone.
"Fatty, you and I will go downstairs to find the landlord," Jiang Cheng said, then turned to Wan Yuanning. "You and Chu Jiu stay here. If there's still no movement after a while, go to 717."
"Probably unnecessary," Wan Yuanning said, her eyes calm as the sea. "Banana Wolf is already dead. We can't save him."
"Now he can only rely on himself." Wan Yuanning's attitude was cold, but everyone knew she was right.
She was a woman with a very calm mind.
"I'll go with you to find the landlord," Wan Yuanning said, turning to Chu Jiu. "You stay here alone and keep an eye on 717, okay?"
"Okay," Chu Jiu nodded.
When the landlord saw them enter, his face instantly paled, but he forced a natural smile, put down his large teacup, and greeted them, "You're back? I thought you'd already moved out. How's everything going—"
Before he could finish, Jiang Cheng walked over and punched him in the face, sending the landlord sprawling to the ground.
Fatty also rushed over, and the two of them began beating the landlord mercilessly. Jiang Cheng grabbed the crooked cane leaning against the wall and started hitting the landlord with it.
Wan Yuanning stood outside the door, keeping watch.
Worried that the old man's screams would attract attention, she slightly closed the door until the noise was just right.
Finally, Jiang Cheng threw the broken cane aside. Without him even needing to speak, the landlord, barely clinging to life, grabbed his leg and began spilling everything in a desperate plea.
When they heard the disabled old man say this wasn't the first time he'd done something like this, Fatty stepped forward and kicked him hard.
If it weren't for the fact that they still needed him, Jiang Cheng wouldn't have given him a chance to speak.
Wan Yuanning also stepped forward, first glancing at the landlord, who was lying on the floor, his face covered in blood, then lowering her voice to say to Jiang Cheng, "Let's keep him alive for now. Killing him rashly might cause trouble."
The landlord pitifully begged for mercy, saying he didn't want to do this either, but he had to make a living. And if he didn't, Weng Qing wouldn't let him go.
He swallowed a mouthful of blood and quickly said, "Your... your friend might not necessarily die. Not everyone who goes in gets killed."
"Weng Qing only kills those who are smooth-talking and enjoy playing with others' emotions—like the man who once deceived her."
After hearing the landlord's words, Fatty couldn't help but glance at the Doctor with relief. Thankfully, he had come out. Otherwise, with the Doctor's way with words, his head would probably have been smashed.
"Who's the woman in Room 808?" Wan Yuanning asked coldly, her expression equally unfriendly toward the landlord. "What exactly happened there?"
"Ah! I really don't know!" The landlord, now without his cane, struggled to stand, blood still streaming from his nose. "I only deliver things for Weng Qing and help her rent out the rooms. I don't dare ask or say anything else."
(End of the Chapter)
---
Read (NS) on Pa.treon@CinderTL - c500. [+2] 🎉
Early Access at $1.
Translated (5) Series, (2.5K+) Chapters, (3.4M+) Words.