"We've been waiting for you. The presidential suite is too big; we can't manage it all."
"...What are you busy with?"
Lu Mingran said, "Let's tear down the wallpaper."
Hearing this, Old Yan's lips twitched slightly. He wanted to return the strange little shovel to Lu Mingran, but at that moment Lu Mingran suddenly stood up and headed straight for the bathroom.
His pockets started to get hot.
To be precise, it was the hotel invitation that started to feel hot. Lu Mingran took it out, and saw a line of small, gold-embossed text appear on the cover:
“Dear applicant, you need to go to room 304 and get a well-fitting suit. Note that you can only take one suit from there.”
Now Lu Mingran understands a little why he got on this ship.
It sounds simple: go to 304, get your clothes, but who knows what might happen there? If Lu Mingran were a typical male protagonist from a ghost story novel, he would silently go alone.
But he was Lu Mingran. After reading the mission instructions in the bathroom, he immediately told them about it, saying that he had gotten himself into trouble.
In Lu Mingran's view, honesty is essential; otherwise, many problems will arise, and it's even more likely to implicate his companions. And just as the system said, the male protagonist of the ghost story will help him.
——————
304. The door is open.
As soon as they reached the door, Lao Yan, Xu Lingqiu, and Lu Mingran all had their pupils dilate in shock.
The wallpaper used to decorate the cramped room was torn to shreds, revealing long, red marks.
That would be one thing, but the paintings in the frames hanging on the wall were rapidly yellowing, and the edges were starting to curl up, making them look like they were from more than a decade ago, giving one the illusion of having stumbled into a room on a cruise ship from many years ago.
In the very center of the room, a short man was biting the back of his hand, staring blankly at the wall and smiling. Lu Mingran felt nauseous at the sight, but Old Yan interjected:
“I saw this on the way here, and many people’s rooms are in this condition now.”
Lu Mingran looked around and found three black suits in the room.
One set was hanging on the coat rack, another was what the man was wearing, and the third was what the man in the largest painting on the wall was wearing.
Lu Mingran understood what the invitation meant by "choose one set".
"This might be a bit difficult; I don't know which approach is correct," Old Yan pondered.
In response, Lu Mingran said, "Well, if each person takes one set, that doesn't count as me breaking the rules, right?"
Xu Lingqiu crossed his arms and laughed: "Hmm, good idea."
Let's get right to it.
Lu Mingran took the set from the coat rack.
Xu Lingqiu took the picture frame away.
As for Lao Yan, he called to his two men, who worked together to hold down the still-mad man. He went over and personally ripped off the man's clothes.
Just then, Xiao Shuang ran over. As soon as she entered the corridor, she saw the three men walking towards her side by side.
Lu Mingran was holding a suit jacket, Lao Yan was carrying another, and Xu Lingqiu had a painting tucked under his arm. Their faces were filled with the satisfaction of having robbed someone else's room.
Chapter 88 Want to fight a mysterious creature? No way (4)
No one knows what terrible things that poor man went through: three men with fierce faces and menacing smiles broke into his room, took the suit from the easel on the wall, and even stripped him of his clothes.
At this moment, if it weren't for the bizarre state of things in the man's room, Xiao Shuang, seeing the three of them looking so happy, would have wanted to pack them up and send them to the sea.
"Little sister," said the brother inside Xiao Shuang's body, "you must remember to stay away from them."
——————
They returned to the enormous presidential suite with three suits and spread them out on the table.
Later, for some unknown reason, Lu Mingran gradually stopped hearing these people's voices. He slowly stood up, his gaze involuntarily drifting to the inner room.
The door was ajar, the deliberately exposed crack seeming to have been waiting for him. In a daze, Lu Mingran realized that his actions were out of control, and his feet moved toward the door uncontrollably.
"Lu Mingran, Lu...!" He vaguely heard the system's voice.
But stopping was incredibly difficult; it felt like an immense force was pulling him down, and every resistance brought pain. Left with no other option, Lu Mingran gave up.
To be precise, it's about giving up on yourself, going with the flow, and then reaching out and grabbing something hard...
Lu Mingran grabbed Xu Lingqiu's arm.
At that moment, Xu Lingqiu was drinking coffee and looking at suits, pondering which one was the right one, when Lu Mingran grabbed her arm without her noticing.
It wasn't unintentional, it was deliberate. Lu Mingran thought to herself that the mortality rate of being seduced alone like this was too high. Bringing someone else along could at least act as a counterweight to keep her grounded.
However, Xu Lingqiu was not fat, and this weight couldn't hold onto Lu Mingran. She was just pulled away by Lu Mingran in a daze.
No matter how Xu Chengtuo shouted, Lu Mingran remained unmoved.
Old Yan across the street was stunned as he watched Xu Lingqiu being forcibly dragged away by Lu Mingran and headed into the inner room without looking back.
...I want to see what good stuff is in that room.
With that thought in mind, Lao Yan followed behind them, and the three of them rushed into the room.
The moment they entered, the bed was covered with a complete, freshly peeled human skin, but this scene vanished in an instant, and the things on the bed suddenly transformed into a suit.
At this moment, Lu Mingran's consciousness finally cleared.
Ten minutes later, the three went out and found that the suit worn by the man in the painting was gone. Remarkably, the man himself had also disappeared, leaving the canvas empty.
It seems this is the one; it's black with rose embroidery on the left chest.
"Lu Mingran," Xu Lingqiu looked at him, rubbing her arm, "what have you done to deserve this?"
Old Yan didn't ask him, but from his strange look, Lu Mingran could see his confusion and a hint of doubt.
However, Lu Mingran couldn't tell the whole truth. He evaded the question, packed his suit into his suitcase, and gave a polite smile with a complex meaning:
Enjoy your time on the ship.
What's so enjoyable about a ghost ship?
But this is truly the last time we can enjoy this joyful gathering.
That night, Lu Mingran slept at Lao Yan's place. As he listened to the sound of the waves, his eyes were wide open, and the image of the pair of white porcelain dolls kept flashing before his eyes.
She didn't know when she fell asleep. When Lu Mingran woke up, the announcement over the ship's loudspeaker had been repeating itself over and over again:
"Everyone, hurry to Nightingale Cinema!"
——————
There's a movie theater on this cruise ship, which is nothing special, but what's interesting is that it's also one of the surprise activities.
Lu Mingran and Lao Yan quickly packed up and rushed over. By then, Xiao Shuang and Xu Lingqiu had also arrived. They squeezed around the crowd and watched indifferently as the clown on the platform announced the rules.
The Joker said that whoever can stay in the theater until the end of a movie can have one wish granted. Of course, you can also team up.
"As for the movie's title, everyone..."
The clown grinned, revealing his red lips: "There are many movies that you've never seen before. We won't use lotteries or competitions to select them."
As he spoke, the clown opened his arms, and dozens of photos suddenly appeared on the electronic screen behind him.
"These are photos of the male lead in each film. You need to pick out the male lead you like and watch the films he starred in. Just a heads up, some of these images... may not be from movies."
Perhaps it was a real murder scene?
Everyone looked at each other, and some of the young people became restless, seemingly unable to wait and wanting to see it for themselves.
Some people tried to judge how scary the film was based on the male leads' photos, but that didn't work at all. These male leads all look sunny and cute, like ordinary everyday photos. Besides, they aren't big stars; no one could guess what movies they've acted in.
One after another, eager young people entered the venue, but within ten minutes, staff received their distress signals. Under the watchful eyes of a crowd, they were helped out, pale-faced and with their eyes closed.
I heard that the smiling young man is actually a serial killer with a chainsaw.
Photo number 4. Some people thought he looked like a bad guy but was actually a good guy, but after watching the movie, they realized that he was bad in a simple and brutal way.
"That's a little scary..."
Lu Mingran sighed, her gaze falling on one of the photos.
His gaze was suddenly fixed on the photograph.
Ah, this.
Lu Mingran got excited and nudged Lao Yan next to her several times: "Let's go in and watch a movie."
"Huh? I'm still choosing..."
“I’m not choosing,” Lu Mingran said decisively. “Listen to me, I definitely won’t make the wrong choice.”
Since only two people could team up, Lu Mingran had no choice but to go in with Lao Yan. Before they left, Xu Lingqiu looked at the two of them, pulled Lu Mingran aside, and whispered, "Are you really sure about your choice?"
Lu Mingran did not answer, her expression firm.
Photo number 43. This is the one Lu Mingran chose.
After settling into his seat in the movie theater and as the lights went out, Lao Yan asked him a question: "Why?"
Old Yan sat down next to him, drew the blood talisman, and after making thorough preparations, took a deep breath and asked him, "Why?"
Was it a different aura, or...?
Lu Mingran looked up, recalling the person in the photo. Gentle and refined, with impeccable manners.
Actually, there's no other reason.
The movie started, and Lu Mingran quietly watched the male lead on the screen.
He was waiting for the male lead to surprise him.
Finally, the male lead revealed a refined face, smiled at the camera, and said his first words: "I want to come back to teach."
Old Yan saw the opening credits:
Documentary: The Most Beautiful Rural Teacher - An Interview with Lin Jiansheng
Author's Note: You might not believe it, but we watched a documentary in a horror movie theater...