My House of Horrors

The camera was placed on top of the television, meaning the video on screen was the image that Chen Ge would see if he turned around. With the flickering light, squatting before the television, Chen Ge felt as if he was not looking at a recorded video but what was happening behind him.

The lights continued to flicker, and the flickering in real life started to match the tempo of the flicking in the video. When the light dimmed in the video, it also did in reality. Then, the light came back at the same time.

The video is influencing reality? No, the ghosts are playing tricks on me.

Chen Ge did not turn around but kept his focus on the bedroom door in the video that was slowly opening. Whenever the light turned down, the door would open several centimeters. When the light flickered for the seventh time, Chen Ge saw a head of black hair poking out from behind the door.

The hair is long, should be a woman. Could she be the second tenant?

Chen Ge still did not turn around, but his grip on the hammer did tighten. When the light flickered for the eighth time, the hair swayed in the wind, and half an exposed face reached out into the living room. Chen Ge stared at the face in the video, and he counted silently. The time between each flicker seemed to be constant.

When the face in the video was about to show itself, the light in the video and in reality suddenly shut off at the same time!

“Xu Yin!” Chen Ge reacted in seconds and swung the hammer behind him!

The hammer landed on the soft cushion, and Chen Ge looked around him. The room was dark, and something seemed to be moving. Several seconds later, the light came back on. Nothing changed in the living room in reality, but the bedroom door was open, just like the one in the video!

Chen Ge turned back to look at the television. The screen was white; the video had ended. Kicking the sofa aside, Chen Ge looked at the slowly turning tape. When Xu Yin’s voice returned, he moved toward the bedroom slowly. The wooden door was half open, and there were several strands of long hair on the floor. Chen Ge picked them up and rubbed them between his hands.

“If you are intent on trying my patience like this, I might just torch the whole place down.”

Walking into the bedroom, Chen Ge was greeted by a mess. Various trash littered the ground, and there were wooden planks on the dresser. Even the bedside table was sealed up.

Everything that can be opened is sealed up. What is this furniture hiding? Which tenant left the videotapes behind?

Looking at the sealed furniture, an idea appeared in Chen Ge’s mind. Did the tenant find the reason of the haunting from the videotapes, so he closed up all the drawers and dressers?

The more he thought about it, the more convinced he became. The tenant probably saw the ghost crawl out from a piece of furniture, and to prevent that from happening again, they sealed up all the furniture that could be opened.

Chen Ge stood in the middle of the bedroom, and he thought of another problem. Counting that female ghost, I’ve met three ghosts already. All of them can move through the room freely, meaning sealing up the furniture was pointless. This means that the tenant probably missed a drawer, and this drawer is probably the one I’m looking for.

He placed Xiaoxiao on the bedroom door to act as a lookout, and he used the hammer pry open all the drawers and dressers. All the furniture is sealed tight. Could the drawer be in the other bedroom?

Xiaoxiao collapsed onto the ground like she was trying to crawl out. When Chen Ge picked her up, he realized her hand was pointing outside of Room 304. Initially, he did not pay it much attention, but when he passed the living room, he glanced out the door accidentally.

The doors to both Room 304 and 305 were not closed, and in the middle of the two rooms stood an old woman with a hunched back. The old lady did not say anything as she faced Room 304. The wrinkles on her face were like tree rings; she looked quite scary. Chen Ge stood where he was and unconsciously moved the hammer to hide behind him.

“Elder, are you a tenant here?” Chen Ge kept his voice calm and collected. The old lady did not answer Chen Ge. She was not even looking at Chen Ge but at the drawers that Chen Ge had pried open with force.

“It’s getting late. Elder, your family will be worried about you if you don’t return home.”

An old lady standing quietly in the dark, there had to be something weird about her. If this was someone younger, Chen Ge would not have hesitated to reward them with a hammer to the face.

“Was it you who opened these drawers?” The lady’s voice was hoarse. It sounded like tree bark grinding against each other.

“Yes, I plan to buy these two rooms, and now I’m arranging the furniture.” Chen Ge kept his gaze on the old lady. If she did anything suspicious, he would summon Xu Yin.

“You’d better leave immediately. Find a good doctor to look at you—perhaps you’ve been haunted by her already.” The old lady gave Chen Ge this advice before turning to walk away. She moved slowly, her footsteps wobbly.

“Haunted by her? What do you mean‽” Chen Ge followed her to the stairs. The old lady pointed at Room 304. “Before this, an English teacher stayed in that room. She was very pretty and had a sweet voice.

“In the end, she was killed by her lover. She was chopped into pieces and hidden inside the drawers. She was discovered a long time after her death, so she bore great resentment. She haunts everyone who lives here.”

“English teacher?” Chen Ge realized that the old lady’s story match what he knew. She probably was not lying, but the problem was… why would an old lady stand outside the door in the middle of the night‽

“Elder, why would you tell me all this?” Chen Ge stood under the light and did not follow her down the stairs. He asked, “Can you tell me how you know these things?”

“I live in the next building; the English teacher was my daughter.” The old woman’s face fell, and even her tone turned sad.

“You’re the third one. She has done many bad things, and I don’t want her to do it anymore.

“Leave, don’t stay in that room any longer.”

The old woman continued down the stairs. She walked slowly like she was waiting for Chen Ge to catch up.

“But I still have a question.” Chen Ge was about to ask who the other two victims were when he received a message on his phone. It was from the female agent.

“Do you know why the tenants at that residential area don’t dare make any noise and turn off their lights so early at night? There’s an old lady haunting the place, and she tries to find her way home by following the light and noise!”

After reading the message, Chen Ge raised his head. The old woman stood at the corner of the stairwell. The wrinkles on her face were folded together, and she said in a creepy voice, “Come with me. That room is very dangerous.”

Chen Ge’s gaze flitted between the phone and the old lady. Chen Ge suddenly dropped his backpack as a story slowly formed in his mind. None can be trusted, but there’s no need for me to trust anyone.

He summoned Xu Yin and tightened his grip around the hammer. “I’m just here to retrieve the thing that I’ve won. I’m really not interested in your stories.”