Chapter 288: Friends?
Translator: Lonelytree Editor: Millman97
The wooden hut was completely silent. Chen Ge stayed at the door for about ten seconds until Xu Yin’s suppressed voice came out from the recorder. “So painful…”
The old man probably was still awake because when Xu Yin spoke, there was a commotion inside the hut. The old man heard the noise coming from outside the door, but he did not come out to take a look. Instead, he buried his head deeper under the covers.
He must be very afraid.
The door of the second wooden hut was also locked from the outside. Chen Ge tried to wiggle the lock loose, but the door only moved a centimeter before it got stuck on something. Chen Ge looked through the gap, and the second wooden hut was filled with more furniture than his hut. There was a wooden bed, a wooden table, a chair, and a dresser without the doors. A bunch of clothes that had been washed a few too many times were hanging inside it.
Looks like he has lived here a long time already.
Chen Ge could not understand it. The old man was obviously afraid, so why did he move to live at the crime scene? Even more curiously, why did go digging at the peach plantation at night? It was not yet time to demand an explanation from the old man. Chen Ge retreated silently and headed for the third wooden hut.
There was no moon or stars, and the rain made the night even darker than usual. Chen Ge did not turn on the flashlight, but his Yin Yang Vision allowed him to see clearly in the dark. He soon arrived at the third wooden hut. The third wooden hut was the largest. There was a rusted lock on the door. Chen Ge pushed on it slightly, and to his surprise, the lock was just for decoration.
The door creaked opened, and this door of the third wooden house was different from others because it could be locked from both inside and outside. Chen Ge felt confused by this anomaly.
For a normal village house, there would be locks on both sides. Even if there was not a lock on the inside, there would be a door bolt so that the person inside could lock the door if they wanted some privacy. However, it was not like that for the first and second wooden huts. The inside of the door was completely blank.
It feels like the first and second wooden huts act as a livestock pen, and the lock is on the outside to prevent the animals locked inside from getting out.
Chen Ge entered the third wooden hut. The hut was separated into two rooms. There was a large wooden bed in the inner room, and the outer room had a wooden table and a simple hearth.
This should be the house where Jiang Ling’s parents died.
Chen Ge did not feel uncomfortable—perhaps he had gotten used to it. He ransacked the place and realized that there were many hemp ropes hanging on the walls, and he found a set of carpentry tools under the bed.
The layer of dust is very thick, meaning that the tool box hasn’t been touched for a long time already. It probably belonged to the victims. Chen Ge replaced the box and looked at the wooden hut. Jiang Ling’s father was probably a carpenter. Did he build these wooden huts himself? So, were the doors of the first two huts designed like that on purpose?
Chen Ge left the third hut and headed for the last one. The hut was situated at the deepest part of the plantation. It seemed isolated from the other three, and it sat at least ten meters away. Chen Ge treaded along the muddy path before he reached the fourth wooden hut. There were two locks on the door, one rusted and the other new.
The new lock should be the old gentleman’s doing. What kind of secret is this hut hiding?
Chen Ge walked around the hut, but the house did not even have a window. It was completely sealed. He leaned at the gap of the door and looked into the room. There were plenty of nails in the walls, and several hemp ropes hung from them. The corners were filled with spider webs.
There was something that looked like a medieval torture device in the middle of the room. It was built from several wooden parts, and it could shackle someone in the middle of it, to stop said person from moving.
“So painful…” Xu Yin’s voice came from the recorder. Different from the earlier voice, this time he sounded like he was warning Chen Ge.
This is weird. There’s not even a table or bed in this fourth hut; what is the purpose of this place?
Chen Ge took out his hammer, and after a short hesitation, he convinced himself not to smash the wooden door.
I shouldn’t act too brash; it might leave a bad impression.
The rain continued to pour, and lightning occasionally crossed the sky. Chen Ge did not find anything. He returned to his own room. There’s nothing here other than the bed. It’s hard to even block the door.
He was worried that someone might sneak into his room at midnight, so he moved the bed to the door. Looks like that’s all I can do.
Chen Ge curled up in bed, holding Xiaoxiao while he kept his eyes on the small window of the hut. The window was about the size of a basketball. Living inside the wooden hut felt like he was trapped inside a prison. If nothing happens, I’ll go ask the old gentleman for an explanation when the sun rises.
The rain picked up the pace outside the window. The wind caused the branches to creak, and their shadows looked like small hands reaching for the wooden huts. Chen Ge was looking through his phone at 2 am when he heard the sound of a door opening. It did not sound like it came from the hut next door but the third wooden hut.
The old man didn’t leave his room, and it was someone else who opened the door. Looks like the thing that he is afraid of has finally appeared!
Chen Ge took in a deep breath and grabbed the sheets that were covered with spider webs. Ignoring the dirt, he covered his body with them, only leaving his eyes outside. He kept his eyes on the window.
The rain kept falling, and it sounded like something was moving outside. The footsteps were rushed and irregular like a crowd was bustling to get somewhere. It’s coming!
There was scratching on the wooden door next door; it sounded like several hands were scratching the wooden door. It lasted for a whole minute ,and Chen Ge suddenly heard a woman’s voice coming from the old man’s hut. “Save me, save me.”
The woman was crying, and from the voice, it sounded like she was young.
This is the thing the old man is afraid of?
Chen Ge’s mind turned. The old man seemed to know that the woman would appear, so he pretended to be asleep inside the hut and did not respond in any way. The voice lasted for about ten minutes before it disappeared. The irregular footsteps began again, but this time, they were heading toward Chen Ge’s hut.
The scratching sound began outside the door. The other party seemed to realize something because it increased its strength until the wooden door started to swing. Curling inside the covers, Chen Ge was thankful to have moved the bed to block the door.
The wooden door could not be opened, and the monster scratched madly. After several seconds, the woman’s crying voice started. “Save me, save me, save me!”
The door continued to swing. Chen Ge reached into his backpack to grab the hammer. He was ready for the confrontation, but the voice only lasted for several seconds before it disappeared alongside the scratching noise.
I don’t hear footsteps; she hasn’t left yet! Such a cunning creature.
Chen Ge stayed inside the covers. He wanted to poke his head out to look at what was happening, but when his gaze swept across the window, his breath stopped.
A woman’s head hung outside the window. Her eyes were completely white, and blood red spider silk dangled from her lips, intertwining with her black hair.
“Save me, save me!”
The woman opened her lips, and the blood red spider web climbed into the hut. Numerous hands gripped the edge of the window.
Chen Ge tossed the backpack aside after grabbing the hammer. He looked at the woman and walked toward her voluntarily!