Klasse 0 der 10

Kapitel 3

The policeman looked at Yang Mei with a slightly shy expression, and Yang Zheng finally understood why he had come here.

Yang Zheng slowly walked to the door, watching the snowflakes fluttering lightly in the courtyard outside, turning the world white, like a fairytale. At that moment, a sense of unease suddenly arose in his heart, as if something was about to happen.

The policeman finally left after dark. He tried to take Yang Zheng to the only tavern on the old street, but Yang Zheng refused. He needed to develop photos that night, and a customer would be picking them up the next day. The reason seemed weak, but Yang Zheng's attitude was firm. The policeman left, looking helpless, his figure disappearing into the night and snowflakes, appearing somewhat tragic.

Night fell, and the city, draped in snow, slept soundly. Only the faint light filtering through the windows offered a comforting allure to the homeless still wandering the streets.

Perhaps such a snowy night is not as quiet as people feel.

Yang Zheng sat in front of his computer, browsing photos taken that day using ACDSee. The two young women from the afternoon shoot were quite expressive, quickly grasping and conveying the photographer's intentions. Their exaggerated yet appropriate movements, coupled with their varied expressions, pleased Yang Zheng. They were introduced by a friend; they weren't short of money, but they shared the common flaw of young women: a love of beauty. Their friend had probably praised Yang Zheng quite a bit, which had convinced them. Upon receiving Yang Zheng's call, they readily agreed to come.

Yang Zheng wanted to create a new set of sample photos. Since he couldn't afford to buy them from large photo studios, he had to find models to shoot them himself.

Yang Zheng was very satisfied with the film he made in the afternoon, but he had some ideas that he hadn't had a chance to implement before the policeman ruined things, which was a bit of a pity.

This is a room on the second floor, a bedroom. The doors and windows are tightly closed, a heater is blowing warm air nearby, and people are talking. The young female host's voice sounds somewhat ambiguous, while the man telling the story has a rather magnetic voice. About two weeks ago, Yang Zheng accidentally found the website address of an online radio station, and since then, he likes to open it when he goes online late at night. The late-night talk show is quite interesting; most of the callers are young kids, either in unrequited love, heartbroken, or having feelings for their friends' boyfriends or girlfriends, or asking about puberty-related physiological issues. Although it's boring, it's entertaining to listen to.

Tonight, the man who called the hotline to tell his story seemed quite excited, eager to share his joy. He later mentioned a website with pictures of his girlfriend who had returned from abroad. After a devastating fire, the girl not only lost her boyfriend but also her beauty. Fortunately, she had a man who loved her at the time. Now, after plastic surgery, has she regained her beauty?

Yang Zheng casually opened his browser, skillfully entered the website address, and then pressed enter.

The webpage was unusually clean, a white page with only a video window in the center. First, it displayed a message indicating it was connecting to the server, then buffered, and finally, the video began to play in the video window.

I thought it was a photo, but it turned out to be a video. The video is even more anticipated than the photo.

Sure enough, there was a girl in the picture, wearing a loose white robe, her entire head wrapped in white bandages, with only a slit visible below her nose. The picture was blurry at first, probably because the focus wasn't right, but it became clear after a moment. At this moment, Yang Zheng suddenly perked up, his eyes widened, and he stared intently at the picture, seemingly holding his breath.

The girl in the picture was tightly tied to a chair with a rope.

Chapter 2

Qin Ge had a dream where the snow outside had been falling for a year and wouldn't stop. The snow blocked all the doors, and people had to climb ladders and open skylights inside their houses to get to work in the mornings. That day, he felt particularly heavy, and he fell off the roof as soon as he got on, smashing a hole in it. He thought his buttocks must be split into four pieces, and he wanted to call his wife to come and help him, but he was a little embarrassed.

Just then, he heard his wife calling him loudly. He opened his eyes; it was still dark outside. Dong'er was sitting in front of the computer, talking incessantly, but her body was still facing the screen. He guessed she had found something interesting online.

Qin Ge didn't want to move. The bed was warm and cozy, and his bottom was still fine, so he felt relieved.

"The snow outside hasn't stopped yet, has it?" he asked lazily.

"Never mind whether the snow has stopped or not, come and take a look." Dong'er's tone was a little excited. She quickly turned around and glanced at Qin Ge, then casually remarked, "There are so many weird things online."

Upon hearing this, Qin Ge was wide awake. She threw off the covers and rushed behind Dong'er, peering at the monitor.

The opened page contained a small video player, barely larger than a deck of cards. The video showed a woman bound to a chair, her white robe torn open to reveal black underwear.

The camera slowly pans across the young girl, revealing her to be a fully developed woman in her prime, with firm breasts and radiant skin. The camera finally focuses on her face, which is completely wrapped in white bandages, obscuring even her eyes and leaving only a slit below her nose for breathing.

"Where did you find this?" Qin Ge asked casually, clearly enjoying the sight.

"During the late-night talk show, a listener called in and told a love story, leaving a website address at the end. I opened it and saw this." Dong'er laughed, "What do you think will happen next?"

Qin Ge slapped Dong'er on the forehead. This wife of his was daring; she loved watching horror movies, especially those with resurrected dead or monsters. The more disgusting and gory, the more she enjoyed them. After get off work, once she finished the housework, she'd either watch DVDs or go online, frequently visiting chat rooms like Biliao and Ehuatong. Whenever she saw a pretty girl with revealing clothes, she'd clamor for Qin Ge to come and see. If Qin Ge wasn't home, she'd take screenshots, waiting for him to come back and make him drool.

"This internet is becoming a pornography hotspot, why don't you police officers do anything about it?" she said.

"Can we even manage all of us?" Qin Ge replied. "We have cyber police now, specializing in internet control. Besides, aren't those women dancing in chat rooms all wearing little pieces of cloth? Furthermore, how many bored men in the world are completely controlled by their wives, their lives devoid of any fun? Having the opportunity to see beautiful women, especially those dressed so scantily, not only adds some color to their lives but also contributes to social stability and unity. If all the men in the world are at home looking at beautiful women, there will be less crime, and we'll have an easier time too."

"When have I ever cared about you!" Dong'er said, sounding quite aggrieved. "I save up beautiful women for you, and you're still making veiled accusations."

Qin Ge laughed, feeling that saying it like that was a bit unfair to his wife.

Police officers are human too; they need to eat, drink, and relieve themselves, and they have emotions and desires. Dealing with criminals every day, watching beautiful women dance at home is indeed a way to relax. However—Qin Ge cautioned Dong'er never to tell anyone that he also enjoys watching striptease performances at home, as it would damage the glorious image of our people's police.

The team just solved a major case a couple of days ago, and the captain is treating everyone to dinner tonight. The old man is almost retired, so he's suddenly become quite sentimental. At the dinner table, he reminisced about the past with everyone, and Qin Ge noticed his eyes were red. The old man has been with the team for over twenty years, and he's raised this group of people from the bottom up.

After drinking, Qin Ge went home and crawled into bed without washing his feet. A man who drinks a little, doesn't go to prostitutes or cause trouble, and just goes straight to bed is considered honest and the type every woman likes. He slept, while Dong'er listened to the radio online. Not many people listen to the radio these days, but Dong'er still had this habit from her university days. That night, afraid of disturbing Qin Ge's sleep, she put on small earphones.

Upon opening the page, Dong'er expected to see a photo of a beautiful woman, but instead, she found a video featuring a woman who was tied up. Intrigued, she then heard Qin Ge making noises from the bed and called him to come and watch.

The woman in the video kept writhing, as if she sensed something bad was about to happen. Suddenly, a figure appeared in the frame, slowly turning behind the woman and then turning around. It was definitely a man, wearing a black mask with three holes, revealing his eyes and mouth. The man was wearing a black robe, obscuring his figure.

By this point, Qin Ge had already guessed what was going to happen next—sexual sadomasochism. Now, you can download many videos of this type online; most of the servers are located overseas, and you can find links on some forums.

Watching a striptease was fine, but Qin Ge didn't want his wife watching this kind of film. He wanted to close the window, but he couldn't resist the urge. Just as he was pondering this, the man in the video pulled out a knife from somewhere and held it to the woman's neck. Although the woman couldn't see it, she could probably feel the sharpness of the knife, and thus struggled even more fiercely.

Qin Ge and Dong'er stared wide-eyed at the monitor. They knew it was fake, but they were still nervous.

The screen was too small and the resolution wasn't high enough, so neither of them could clearly see whether the man's knife moved against the woman's neck. After a moment, the woman stopped struggling, her head drooping, and her body motionless. Based on experience, they deduced that the woman was dead; that's how dead people are portrayed in movies and television.

The masked man disappeared, leaving only the woman.

The image was still, but it seemed as if something was moving. It was perceptible, yet invisible to the naked eye. This continued for about two minutes before the image suddenly cut off, and the video window went completely black. Qin Ge and Dong'er exchanged glances, wanting to say something, but before they could speak, the image in the video window reappeared.

The masked man stood behind the woman, slowly unwrapping the bandages wrapped around her head.

The image clarity seems much better this time, and some details can be seen very clearly.

The bandage in the man's hand grew longer and longer, and as the bandage came off, the woman's head swayed slightly. At this moment, Qin Ge and Dong'er both felt a strong desire to see the woman's true face.

The bandages were quite long, and much of them had already been removed, but the woman's face was still not visible.

At that moment, Qin Ge noticed a stain below the woman's neck. It was blood, slowly seeping out and flowing downwards. Qin Ge suddenly remembered that when the scene had frozen earlier, he had felt something moving—it was actually this blood!

—Is what happened in this video footage real?

The bandages on the woman's head were finally completely removed, but her head was hanging low, and apart from her disheveled hair, her true face was still not visible. Fortunately, the masked man was very understanding and promptly used both hands to support the woman's chin, turning her face towards the camera.

She couldn't be described as beautiful or ugly; her face gave the immediate impression of being eerie and terrifying. Her skin was deathly pale, the color only the dead possess. Furthermore, her face had previously worn makeup, but now it was all smudged, the heavy eyeshadow spreading out and contrasting with the crimson color at the corners of her mouth, making her look like a ghost from the underworld.