Chapter 106: The Second Employee! (Fifth Update, Subscriptions Please!)
Wang Xin’s emotions grew more intense as she read the lines on the white paper. Slowly rising, she took the initiative to grasp the ballpoint pen in Chen Ge’s hand.
Her slender, icy-cold fingers slipped between his. It seemed to be the first time she had felt warmth from someone else, her arm trembling continuously.
She wanted to say something, but the words wouldn’t come out.
The three minutes were nearly up. The pen turned again between their fingertips, this time writing only two words.
“Good night.”
Wang Xin’s composure completely shattered. The thorn in her heart had been pulled out. Gripping Chen Ge’s hand, she pressed her forehead against the worn-out pen, as if unwilling to let anyone see her pain.
“All the lights in the world have gone out. Everyone’s voices have shattered into pieces. I don’t know what to do. Everything feels wrong, every path leads to getting lost. I don’t understand why I’m in so much pain. I’ve become a monster that doesn’t fit in anywhere.”
Wang Xin finally shouted out everything she had kept inside. Staring at the words on the paper, she slumped over the desk, her voice growing softer: “Help me. Pull me out of this world. I don’t want to suffer like this anymore. Help me…”
Her head pressed against the back of Chen Ge’s hand, her body lying on the mattress, breathing evenly, as if she had fallen asleep.
“Good night.”
Chen Ge gently withdrew his hand, covered Wang Xin with a blanket, and walked out of the room.
Dr. Gao and Wang Xin’s foster mother were both crowded outside the door. Both were desperate to know what had happened inside but afraid to disturb Wang Xin, so they asked in hushed tones.
“How is Wang Xin now?”
Chen Ge pointed toward the room. “She’s already asleep.”
“Really asleep?” Dr. Gao could hardly believe it. He knew well how painful severe depression could be; sleep usually relied on medication. “How did you manage that?”
“It’s a long story.” Chen Ge spoke half-truthfully. “While searching for haunted house material at the old site of Muyang Middle School, I stumbled across some things about Wang Xin’s past. I learned that her trauma stemmed from playing a spirit-writing game and then actually witnessing a friend in her dorm die. So I thought I’d treat the cause by mimicking her roommate’s handwriting. I played the spirit-writing game with her again just now and told her it was all just a coincidence.”
“That actually worked?” Dr. Gao was deeply impressed.
The middle-aged woman beside him had tears in her eyes. “Thank you! I doubted you before—I’m sorry!”
“It’s nothing. If anything, you two are the remarkable ones. One chose to adopt Wang Xin despite her depression and gave her unwavering care, and the other stepped up in a critical moment to help.” Chen Ge praised them both, which significantly improved their impression of him.
Wang Xin’s foster mother wanted to keep them for a meal, but Chen Ge declined. Ever since Wang Xin had fallen asleep, his black phone had vibrated twice in quick succession. He was eager to leave and check the messages.
Leaving Fanghua Garden, Chen Ge said goodbye to Dr. Gao and boarded the bus back to New Century Park.
Sitting in the last row, he took out the black phone and began to check it when no one was looking.
“The hidden task for the two-star horror scene Muyang Middle School—The Spirit’s Wish—has been completed! The next stage of the hidden task is activated! Create dolls imbued with lingering thoughts for the twenty-four names!”
“Having successfully fulfilled the spirit’s wish, though she still doesn’t want to see you, she has developed a sense of gratitude. Would you like to hire the spirit as a member of the Horror House?”
Chen Ge selected “Yes” without hesitation. Hadn’t he worked so hard for this very moment?
“Lucky favored one of the vengeful spirits, congratulations on successfully hiring the special type of vengeful spirit—The Spirit!”
“Chen Yalin (The Spirit): Has one chance to predict per day (the question asked must not exceed the spirit’s ability; the probability of a successful prediction is fifty percent)!”
“Note: Tourists’ screams excite the spirit. Feeding the spirit with tourists’ fear can enhance its abilities. If the spirit remains in low spirits for an extended period, it may leave you.”
Flipping to the last page, Chen Ge read all the information about the spirit several times. His heart stirred with excitement. He had finally hired his first ghostly employee, proving that all his previous conjectures were achievable. He could even build a park that required only one person to operate!
“The first step is always the hardest. From now on, my haunted house will have more new employees joining.” Chen Ge was quite satisfied with the spirit. She could manage a small scene on her own, and she had a special ability to predict within a certain range. If used well, this ability could save him a lot of trouble in the future.
Scrolling through the black phone, Chen Ge saw the next stage of the Muyang Middle School hidden task: creating dolls for the lingering thoughts in the last classroom to attach to.
He would have done this task even without the black phone’s prompt.
After speaking with Officer Li, Chen Ge learned why the twenty-four students had returned to the classroom after death. They were originally orphans with no home—Muyang Middle School was their home.
Now that the new scene had opened, they had already taken Chen Ge’s two-star horror scene as their new home, much like Yin Xiaoxiao’s family.
“In the future, I’ll keep completing trial tasks, and the underground horror scene will grow larger. Then I can let these twenty-four lingering thoughts help me manage it—everyone gets what they need.” Chen Ge had a good plan, but it depended on gaining the approval of those twenty-four lingering thoughts.
Back at the haunted house, Chen Ge collapsed into bed and slept. The day and night had truly exhausted him.
He had been asleep for who knows how long when he suddenly felt something burrow into his arms, like a clingy little cat.
Half-awake, he opened his eyes to find a small doll in his arms.
“Xiao Xiao?” He rubbed his eyes, grabbed the doll by its neck, and set it aside. “What kind of situation is this? A grown man sleeping with a cloth doll in his arms—what will my future spouse think of me?”
Stretching, Chen Ge checked the time. It was 11:59 PM.
Putting on his shoes, he left the staff break room and entered the first-floor restroom.
He had only intended to use the toilet, but as soon as he stepped inside, he felt something was off.
The stall door was gently swaying. Beneath the black cloth covering the mirror, faint traces of blood-red light seeped out.
“The door in the mirror has appeared again?” He walked over to the mirror and lifted a corner of the black cloth.
In the cracked mirror, the red door was half open.
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