"She... she’s dead..."
Seeing Alice covered in blood, Yu Yu was certain she had died.
But Alice wasn’t dead. She lay on the ground, breathing heavily. A minute or two later, she propped herself up with her hands and struggled to sit against the wall.
"Let them go!" Alice weakly raised her hand, pointing at Yu Yu and Su Xuan. She looked at the scar-faced man and said, "If you’re going to kill someone, kill me!"
Hearing this, Yu Yu stared at Alice in astonishment. Is she willing to sacrifice herself to save others? I can’t believe it!
The man squatted in front of Alice, his lips twitching.
Alice nodded. "One life for two. It’s worth it."
"Very well!" The man picked up the dagger and pressed it into Alice’s hand. "Do it yourself."
Alice looked at the sharp dagger in her hand and suddenly, with gritted teeth, lunged at the man!
He simply took a step back, easily dodging her deadly strike. Then, he taunted her with a cold laugh, "If you don’t obey, I’ll be happy to help you."
Alice fell silent, as if waging an internal war.
Seeing this, Yu Yu grew disappointed. See? You don’t have the guts to sacrifice yourself for others! You’re just as selfish as me!
But in the next second, Yu Yu’s eyes flew wide open.
She was shocked to see Alice plunge the dagger into her own chest!
STAB! Thɪs chapter is updated by 𝕟𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕝⚫𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕖⚫𝕟𝕖𝕥
She stabbed herself several times in a row! Blood gushed from beneath her jacket.
Alice weakly said to the man, "I’ve done it. Please... keep your promise. Let them go."
As soon as she finished speaking, her head slumped, and her eyes closed. She was motionless.
The scene made Yu Yu tremble with shock. She actually did it! She so tragically took her own life!
"Heh heh." Looking at Alice’s body, the man scoffed, "You’re a fool. A laughable fool. Did you really think I’d let them go just because you died? I’d rather more people die. The bigger the mess, the better. You aren’t even as smart as this little girl. You’ve lived all these years for nothing."
Yu Yu lowered her head, unsure of what to think.
After a moment, she suddenly raised her head and asked, "You’re not going to let me go either, are you?"
But the man shook his head. "That depends on how much money you can offer."
Yu Yu took a deep breath. "My parents are in another cabin! You can get money from them, but please, you have to let me go! I’m so scared... I’m terrified of dying! Waaah!"
"Don’t worry," the man said, glancing outside the cabin. "I know where your parents are. I’ve already sent someone to get them. They should be here any moment."
Yu Yu was shocked again. "You have accomplices?"
The man sneered, "Of course. It’s not just me. I have several brothers."
Yu Antai lay on the spacious wooden bed, fast asleep. His wife, Ma Lanfang, suddenly turned over and draped a leg across his stomach. He frowned and pushed it away. After nearly twenty years of marriage, only familial affection remained; the love was long gone. Sharing a bed with his wife felt no different than lying next to another man. He didn’t feel an ounce of desire for her. In fact, he was slightly annoyed.
Suddenly, Yu Antai felt a chill on his neck. He reached up to touch it, and his eyes snapped open! A shadowy figure stood before his bed, pressing a gleaming dagger to his throat. The figure wore a black hood that exposed only their eyes and mouth, dressed like a ruthless bandit. What he had just felt was the cold steel of the blade.
Yu Antai mustered his courage to ask, "What do you want?"
"Wake your wife and come with me," the shadowy figure commanded in a cold voice. "Disobey, and I’ll kill you both right now."
"Alright, alright! Don’t do anything rash!" Yu Antai said, waking his wife as he spoke. "Killing someone is illegal! If you want money, I can give you money..."
Then, he and his wife obediently followed the man out of the cabin.
Outside, he saw another person in a black hood. This one was holding two people captive—the pair of young siblings.
"Behave yourselves!" one of the figures ordered. " quietly! Anyone who causes trouble will be killed!"
Soon, the two hooded figures led them through the woods to another small cabin.
"Yu Yu!" As they entered the cabin, Yu Antai and his wife saw their daughter tied to a chair, sobbing uncontrollably. Then they saw Alice’s body and Su Xuan lying motionless on a workbench. They were frightened out of their wits.
"Second Bro, Third Bro, tie them all up!" the man with the scarred face ordered the two hooded figures.
"You got it, Big Bro!" The two men tied up Yu Antai, his wife, and the young siblings.
"You two, go stand watch outside," the Big Bro said, waving dismissively at his men. "I want to have some fun with these people."
"Understood!" they replied before heading out.
Once outside, they lit up cigarettes.
"Mr. Niu sure knows how to have fun, scaring that little girl into a crying mess."
"That scar-faced mask he’s wearing is professional-grade, for film and TV. It’s expensive!"
"Hey, you think this counts as overtime?"
"Definitely. It’s the middle of the night!"
These two were staff from the resort’s murder mystery game, as well as professional actors. Niu Dalei had specifically hired them to play these minor roles. And their "Big Bro"? It was none other than Niu Dalei himself.
Inside the cabin, the game continued.
Niu Dalei, playing the part of the scarred Big Bro, scraped the knife across his fake face. "Little girl," he asked Yu Yu, "I brought your parents here, just like you asked. How much do you think they should pay me?"
"What?!" Yu Antai and his wife were aghast, looking at their daughter in disbelief. "Yu Yu, you... You told these thugs to bring us here?"
"No, Mom, Dad, it’s not like that!" Yu Yu explained hastily. "They have a grudge against the resort! They want to kill a few people to cause a scene so that no one will want to vacation here anymore. I was just unlucky enough to get caught, so I wanted you to pay a ransom for me! I never asked them to capture you too!"
But Yu Antai and his wife could only manage a wry smile. Isn’t that practically the same thing?
"Sir!" Yu Antai pleaded with Niu Dalei. "How much money do you want? I’ll give you everything I have!"
Niu Dalei asked, "How much do you have?"
"I’m just a salaried employee. I only have two or three hundred thousand," Yu Antai said.
Niu Dalei shook his head. "Two or three hundred thousand? That can’t even buy a toilet in the city. I might as well just kill you all."
Yu Antai hurriedly added, "Wait, I just remembered! I can get twenty million!"
Ma Lanfang suddenly looked up at her husband. "Our family only has four or five million in savings," she asked. "Where are you getting twenty million from?"