A trace of excitement unexpectedly appeared on his face.
He even dabbed a bit of saliva and slicked his hair, attempting some kind of hairstyle.
Then, rubbing his hands together like a fly, he jogged to the door, muttering:
"My dear receptionist sister~"
The door opened.
A thick cloud of smoke blew straight into his face.
"Cough cough cough—"
"Cough cough cough—"
He coughed violently from the irritants.
Then he heard a very mature voice saying:
"You're the one who made the call, right?"
"Alright, let's get this over with. Do you want a bath before or after?"
The smoke cleared, and the man took deep breaths of fresh air.
Then, he saw an older woman with a mole on the corner of her mouth and obvious crow's feet, looking at least over fifty.
She wore a tight pencil skirt and fishnet stockings standing at the door.
Just those strong legs of hers seemed thicker than his.
And most impressively, she had a Ta Shan cigarette dangling from her mouth, confident and unyielding.
He was dumbstruck on the spot!
Almost reflexively, he took three steps back, stiffly staring at the woman in front of him, his voice trembling from what seemed to be fear:
"Um..."
"Are you at the wrong door?"
"No mistake." The older woman blew out a ring of smoke, then pulled out a phone from her possibly fake Chanel handbag, and checked the details:
"Room 208, right here, you're the one who called for the service, aren't you?"
The man's expression froze: "But I distinctly asked for an English tutor! I want to learn a foreign language!"
"Sorry." The woman took out an item from her bag and held it up:
"Well, that's me; this is my teaching certificate, I am the English teacher!"
"I'm from Rain City No. 34 Middle School, my name is Zhang Liling. If you don't believe me, you can check the school website, that's me!"
"Thirty years now, the most senior English teacher at No. 34, guaranteed genuine!"
After saying this, she ignored the man's terrified reaction and walked in.
She even slammed the door shut with a "bang."
Then, she tossed her handbag to the floor and started undressing right in front of him.
Goodness, it scared the man so much, he kept retreating and nearly jumped out the window!
"Oh my god! Is this a joke?!"
The man let out a terrified howl:
"Why do you look nothing like the photo? This is fraud!!"
To his surprise, the woman in front of him didn't care about his cries and said:
"Damn it!"
"For only one hundred and fifty, you expect the person in the picture?"
"You're lucky to get me for one-fifty!"
"Hurry up! I'm in a rush for my next gig!"
"If you've got a problem, let's just turn off the light; after all, it's all the same!"
With that, she deliberately turned off the lights in the room.
Instantly, the room was pitch black, unable to see a thing.
About three seconds later.
A man's cry of agony filled the air:
"No!!!"
"Help!!!"
"Someone save me!!! Where are the police?!!!"
He was probably concerned for his "life's safety."
He even forgot to lower his voice to avoid being heard by the two targets in the neighboring room.
However, he didn't know.
The two targets he was following were no longer in the room.
At this moment, Zhang Feng and Shen Xing'Er had arrived at the apartment building where the incident took place, based on the location recorded in the case files.
Just as they arrived downstairs, Zhang Feng's eyebrows raised slightly, pausing in his tracks.
Shen Xing'Er turned to Zhang Feng and asked:
"Zhang Feng brother, what's wrong? Isn't this the place? Aren't we going up to take a look?"
Zhang Feng squinted his eyes slightly and then spoke in a low voice:
"I recall the case files mentioned... Since that bizarre locked-room murder happened seven years ago, and since all conclusions reached were suicide, this apartment building was blacklisted by the locals."
"For years, not a single unit has been sold. So, it's long been without water and electricity and is nearly demolished..."
Shen Xing'Er listened to Zhang Feng and was initially stunned, then nodded, saying:
"I remember too, it should be like that."
Zhang Feng slowly lifted his finger, pointing to the building above and said:
"Then why are there still lights on in two windows?"
Hearing Zhang Feng, Shen Xing'Er was stunned too.
Then she looked up, sure enough!
Shen Xing'Er hesitantly said:
"Hasn't it already been cut off from water and electricity?"
"Could it be... homeless squatters? But that's not right, why are there lights? And also..."
As she spoke, Shen Xing'Er pointed her fingers as if counting beans:
"One, two... six, seven!"
"The seventh floor? Isn't that where the incident happened?"
Zhang Feng slowly nodded and then said:
"And there's a window with no light between these two lit ones, which could be the crime scene."
Why do these two lighted rooms surround the crime scene?
"Could it be..." Shen Xing'Er also realized the issue:
"This place is being watched?!"
Indeed, it's being monitored.
It seems like someone is worried about people coming to investigate this place.
Even the dropping property prices, lack of buyers, cutoff water, and electricity are all false pretenses!
Moreover, as soon as Shen Xing'Er and I landed, someone started tailing us!
Indeed, Shen Hanshan's concerns were not unfounded!
This matter likely has significant ties with someone influential in Rain City!
The victim's identity is not ordinary!
If it relates to someone influential here, it would be akin to treason!
If discovered, it could lead to major trouble!
That influential figure would surely keep all information tightly sealed.
It's just that...
If they want to monitor this place, why not demolish the building for good measure?
Why does this Ghost House still stand after seven years?
Zhang Feng couldn't figure it out for the moment.
But he knew, they couldn't just walk upstairs openly.
He could easily avoid the surveillance using the Qimen Dunjia Technique.
But Shen Xing'Er....
Zhang Feng turned to Shen Xing'Er and said:
"Here's the plan: you wait here, and I'll go up alone to check it out!"
"I..." Shen Xing'Er wanted to say something, but Zhang Feng quickly interjected:
"Weren't you wanting to help?"
"Help me keep watch then. This place is being monitored. Someone might come shortly, so just keep a lookout for me and alert me at the first sign of trouble!"
To ensure Shen Xing'Er would stay put, Zhang Feng added a stern note to his voice:
"That's a very crucial task. Can you handle it?"
You could say, Zhang Feng's words had the intended effect.
Hearing the phrase "crucial task," Shen Xing'Er's spirits lifted, and she crisply replied standing upright:
"I promise to complete the mission!"
But while she said so, given Shen Xing'Er's temperament, could she really stay put?
...