The weapon by the pillow

Chapter 101 Human Life Is Like This

Cheng Tan's fingertips, glistening with a thin layer of cold sweat, trembled slightly. In his eyes, the fourteen dominoes had long lost their original structure, leaving only a blood-stained shadow.

He was plotting, plotting a way to survive.

Once the live stream starts, the higher-ups are definitely watching. What will Yang Hong do? Will she force her way in, shout messages from afar, or... simply turn this private room, inside and out, into a sealed tomb?

What exactly was the meaning behind the man's words, "You are all in my hands"? Besides the five living "actors" in this private room, did he also hold someone else by the throat?

Cheng Tan suddenly thought of Chen Ming. Sister Fang said that he "went into places he shouldn't have gone, looked at things he shouldn't have looked at, and took things he shouldn't have taken"... Where was he at that moment?

And Liu Li. Is that figure in the wheelchair still at peace?

"Mr. Cheng, it's your turn." The man's urging jolted him out of his deep thoughts.

Cheng Tan glanced at the cards in his hand and played a blank card—the safest approach.

On the phone screen, the words scrolling by like lightning had already pushed the number of views past 30,000.

On the sixth round, Cheng Tan drew a red dragon.

It was that blood-stained card again. This time, he stared intently at the ochre-brown color on the card—it had long since dried and hardened, seeping into the texture of the bamboo frame, faintly outlining the contours of a distorted human face.

He suppressed the chill surging in his heart and took the red brocade into his palm.

"Mr. Cheng seems to have a particular fondness for this red-center piece," the man's voice drifted over again, tinged with a playful coolness. "Why don't you all hear why?"

Cheng Tan raised his eyes, his gaze piercing the dark lens: "Because this card is stained with blood. Not just this one, but many cards on the table are stained. I want to ask, whose blood is this? And how... was it applied?"

The comment section immediately erupted:

"Blood?! Mahjong tiles?"

"Really? This is a terrifying card game! Is it scripted?"

"Thinking about it... it sends chills down my spine..."

"Why aren't you calling the police? This isn't a normal live stream anymore!"

The man chuckled softly: "Good question. Unfortunately, the rule is that only the winner can ask. Mr. Cheng, please continue playing the cards."

Cheng Tan suppressed the anger rising in his throat and played a four of a kind.

The game continued in silence, with only the crisp sound of dominoes colliding, one after another, striking the heart.

On the twelfth round, Cheng Tan's hand was ready; he needed three, six, and nine of bamboo. He drew a two of bamboo, which was useless. His fingers paused for a moment, but he still discarded the two of bamboo.

"Eat," Fangjie suddenly said, picking up the two of bamboo and combining it with the one and three of bamboo in her hand to form a sequence. Then, she discarded a nine of characters.

Cheng Tan's heart skipped a beat, then sank heavily. Nine of a kind—that was the hand he could win with.

But he hesitated. If he were to play the cards now, according to those chilling rules, he could ask one question. To whom? And what?

Ask Sister Fang about the origin of those thirteen white bone dice? Ask Director Sun about the crimson scheme he wrote about back then? Ask about the intricate web of interests between General Manager Zhao and Jin Dafu? Or... just ask this man with the gun, who he really is, and what he wants this bloodshed in the city to sacrifice?

Every question has the potential to reveal a corner of the truth, or it may push everyone to the brink of utter ruin.

"Mr. Cheng, you're hesitating." The man's voice, like a snake's tongue licking your ear, "To play or not to play? A single thought can lead to vastly different outcomes."

Cheng Tan looked at Fang Jie. Fang Jie was also looking at him, her eyes were unfocused, but deep down there seemed to be something hidden... a hint of expectation?

Was she hoping I'd win? Cheng Tan's heart skipped a beat. Why?

He looked down at his hand again. If he won with this nine of a kind, it would only be a mediocre hand. If he waited another round, perhaps he could win by drawing the winning tile himself, or perhaps he could get a higher score.

But time waits for no one. The live stream light is still on, but it could go out with a "snap" at any moment.

Cheng Tan took a deep breath of the stale, smoky air, pushed the tiles aside, and the tiles collapsed: "Hu. A regular hand, one point."

The score is tallied. The dust has settled. Cheng Tan has won this round.

"Congratulations, Mr. Cheng," the man said, tilting the gun slightly. "You know the rules. Now, you can ask your questions. Ask whom? Ask what?"

The messages in the live stream chat were flooding in like crazy, and the number of viewers jumped over the 50,000 mark.

Cheng Tan's gaze slowly swept over every face around the card table, finally settling on Fang Jie's pale face.

"I asked Sister Fang," he said softly, "thirteen bone dice, each one carrying a life. Tell me, the thirteenth—the one made from a little finger bone—what was the name of its owner, that twenty-year-old girl? How...did she die?"

Fangjie's face instantly lost all color.

Her lips trembled.

The man gently pointed the gun at her: "Sister Fang, please answer. Answer in front of this camera."

Fangjie closed her eyes, her eyelashes trembling violently. A few breaths later, when she opened them again, her eyes were a dry well.

"Her name is Lin Xiaoyu." Sister Fang's voice was as light as a wisp of smoke, yet heavy enough to crush one's heart. "Twenty-one years old, a junior at Jiangcheng University. Her father was a long-time resident of Anping Lane. During the demolition, he was crushed by a collapsing wall... She didn't believe it was an accident, so she appealed everywhere, begged everywhere, clutching some evidence she had found herself. Later... she disappeared."

Fangjie paused, her Adam's apple bobbing. "Three days later, she floated to the surface of the river. The official explanation was that she accidentally fell in. But her little finger on her left hand... was gone. It couldn't be found at the scene. A month later, I received a package containing this die and a letter. The letter clearly described the torture Lin Xiaoyu endured before her death—how she was bound, how she was tortured, how she was forced to reveal the whereabouts of those pieces of paper. In the end... while she was still breathing, her finger was cut off."

The comment section of the live stream went blank for a moment, followed by an even more frantic scrolling:

"Really?! That's terrifying!"

"Lin Xiaoyu...that name sounds familiar..."

"It's Anping Village again! They just won't leave!"

"Where are the police? Is this case just going to be left unsolved?"

"Dice made of bone... My back is completely soaked..."

Cheng Tan looked at Fang Jie, at the unfathomable regret and hatred in the woman's eyes.

"You know her?" Cheng Tan asked.

Fang Jie nodded, then shook her head: "I saw her once. She came to the teahouse looking for me, begging for my help. She said she knew who I was and knew I was involved in those projects. She begged me to tell her the truth. I... I chased her away."

"Why?" Cheng Jing couldn't help but ask.

"Because I dare not." Fang's tears finally streamed down her face like a broken string. "Because those people had warned me long ago that no matter what happened, I would be the next one to 'disappear.' Because I... am a spineless coward."

She raised her head, her pale face facing the camera, and said, word by word, "Lin Xiaoyu, I'm sorry. I'm sorry to everyone who lost their lives because of Anpingli. I... am guilty."

After saying that, her body went limp and she slumped into the chair.

Inside the private room, only the faint glow of a mobile phone screen illuminated the frantically moving notes.

But... the wind changed direction the next moment.

"Urgent Notice! Urgent Notice! Following instructions from higher authorities, due to an unknown hacker attack on the city's online live streaming platforms, in order to ensure network security and stability, all live streaming platforms in the city are temporarily shut down immediately for a comprehensive investigation!"

Suddenly, two lines of glaring scarlet characters exploded on the live stream screen. Immediately afterward, a huge red "X" mark, accompanied by a chilling whistling sound, crashed down like a guillotine, cleanly and decisively severing all the noise and prying eyes!