Chapter 1: The Bizarre Friend Request and the Murder Case
In the elevator!
[Ding Dong!]
[Hot Noodles has requested to add you as a friend.]
Looking at the WeChat message on her phone, Fang Xiaocao subconsciously chose to agree.
Fang Xiaocao raised an eyebrow and muttered, "Other than me, someone else likes to use such a bizarre screen name."
That had been Fang Xiaocao's QQ name back in middle school, Hot Noodles.
Fang Xiaocao stepped out of the elevator, searching for her keys as she walked towards her apartment door.
[Ding Dong!]
[Your friend sent you a message.]
Just as she unlocked the door, her phone rang.
Taking out her phone, Fang Xiaocao saw that it was a WeChat message.
"Could it be that my salary is paid?" she wondered.
Muttering to herself, Fang Xiaocao opened WeChat.
[Hot Noodles: Danger, do not come home tonight.]
Looking at the WeChat message, Fang Xiaocao rolled her eyes and cursed, "Are you crazy?" and casually opened the door.
She kicked off her high heels and slipped into her house slippers.
Fang Xiaocao threw herself onto the sofa.
"I'm exhausted. Who on earth invented high heels? They're so tiring," she complained.
Sitting on the sofa pressing her sore feet, Fang Xiaocao continued to grumble.
Fang Xiaocao, a freshman at the School of Arts, usually worked part-time jobs to earn some pocket money.
For convenience, she had rented a small one-bedroom apartment near her work.
She had just accepted a job as a receptionist for a hotel opening and had finished her shift, now that the National Day holiday had started.
[Ding Dong!]
The phone screen lit up!
[Your friend sent you a message.]
Fang Xiaocao glanced at her phone, another WeChat message.
Picking up the phone from the sofa, she opened WeChat.
[Hot Noodles: At midnight 12 o'clock, when you hear knocking, if you don't want to die, don't turn on the lights and keep quiet!]
"Are you deranged?"
Seeing another nonsensical prank message from this person, Fang Xiaocao got angry and immediately made a video call back.
[Contact does not exist!]
The video call went through only to return this system prompt.
Fang Xiaocao furrowed her brows, guessing that the other party had set some sort of restriction, so she spoke into the voice input:
"Are you a bit loony? Is it microcephaly or just lack of love that you're seeking attention here at my expense with such low-grade pranks?"
[Contact does not exist!]
"Huh?"
Looking at her phone, Fang Xiaocao was stunned.
Trying to block the other person, she found that she was unable to use any functions other than the chat box, not even delete the friend.
"Could my phone have been hacked?"
"I didn't click any weird links, did I?"
Fang Xiaocao fell into self-doubt.
After some struggle and a headache, Fang Xiaocao gave up.
She was just too tired today and all she wanted was to sleep.
After taking a bath, Fang Xiaocao crawled into bed and fell into a deep sleep.
...
"Knock, knock, knock~"
In the silent midnight, rhythmic knocking sounds woke up the sleeping Fang Xiaocao.
The echoing "knock, knock" teased at her fragile nerves.
Awoken grumpy, Fang Xiaocao sat up irritably muttering, "Are they insane?"
She reached for the switch of the bedside lamp.
Suddenly...
Fang Xiaocao's hand shook as the image of that eerie friend from WeChat flashed through her mind.
Instinctively, she picked up her phone to check the time.
Midnight: 00:00:00
A shiver ran through Fang Xiaocao, and a sense of fear emerged within her.
With trembling hands, she opened WeChat.
Messages in the chat interface came into view...
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Just like the scene before me, it's exactly the same!
Fang Xiaocao instinctively wrapped herself tighter in the small quilt, daring not to move a muscle, straining her ears to listen for any noises outside the door.
The house Fang Xiaocao rented was in an old neighborhood, and the soundproofing wasn't good.
Then, Fang Xiaocao let out a sigh of relief.
It was the neighbor's door that had been knocked on.
"Click!"
The sound of the door lock turning was followed by the creaking of the door opening. Fang Xiaocao's heart skipped a beat, and she instinctively clenched her small fists.
At this moment, an inexplicable WeChat message surfaced in Fang Xiaocao's mind.
She wanted to warn her neighbor of the danger, but fear kept her eyes wide open like copper bells, terror written all over her face. She instinctively covered her mouth with her hand, stifling the impulse to scream.
"Who are you?"
"It's the middle of the night, don't you know you're disturbing the peace?"
From the hallway came the impatient shouts of her neighbor.
"Phew~"
Fang Xiaocao subconsciously let out another sigh of relief.
"Thank goodness, thank goodness, there was no violent break-in."
Fang Xiaocao patted her chest, comforting her frightened heart.
Just a moment ago, Fang Xiaocao had been so nervous she could hardly breathe.
"Ah~"
"What are you doing~"
Suddenly, the neighbor's screams pierced into her ears.
Fang Xiaocao's nerves, which had just relaxed, instantly tensed up again.
Cold sweat poured down, leaving her face ashen.
Fang Xiaocao's emotions changed in an instant.
Nervous, terrified, uneasy!
Her body began to shake uncontrollably!
Fearing she would scream out loud, Fang Xiaocao bit hard into the small quilt.
"Ah~"
"Mmm..."
The neighbor's screams cut off abruptly.
The sounds of a heavy object falling, dragging friction, a man's panting, and the pungent scent of blood mixed into a terrifying background score, continuously assaulting Fang Xiaocao's eardrums, teasing her sensitive nerves.
Fang Xiaocao subconsciously covered her ears, burrowing completely under the covers, as extreme fear caused tears to uncontrollably slide down, soaking the quilt.
Reason told her she should call the police!
But fear made her afraid to make the slightest sound!
She didn't dare gamble that the steadfast wooden door could hold off a furious murderer's onslaught until the police arrived.
Eventually, fear overcame reason, and the instinct to survive made her choose to be an ostrich.
The noises outside ceased, and the "thud, thud, thud" of knocking began again.
"This time, it's my own door!"
Fang Xiaocao's body shivered, she bit the quilt tightly, refusing to let herself scream out loud.
"Is there nobody home?"
A man's deep voice came through, unsettling.
Footsteps sounded, growing distant as if someone was heading downstairs.
Fang Xiaocao wanted to go out and check, but extreme terror sapped her strength.
Worn down by fear, unease, and exhaustion, Fang Xiaocao's awareness began to blur.
She didn't know how much time had passed when she was jolted awake by the noisy sounds outside and the intense knocking at the door.
She glanced at the time, it was 06:35 in the morning.
Day had broken!
Fang Xiaocao subconsciously let out a sigh of relief.
"Open up, police!"
The intense knocking continued.
Upon hearing the word "police," Fang Xiaocao's eyes lit up. She scrambled out of bed, barefoot, and ran to the living room.
Fang Xiaocao leaned on the door, peeking through the peephole to make sure they were the police before tremblingly opening the door.
"Good morning, ma'am, Criminal Investigation Team, Wang Qiang."
"There are a few things we need to ask you about!"
Wang Qiang took out his badge to identify himself.
"How is the neighbor... how is she?"
Fang Xiaocao asked with a trembling voice.
Upon hearing this, Wang Qiang frowned, signaling his colleague with a look and inquired, "What happened last night?"
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