Chapter 1

When I discovered my landlord had installed a camera in my room, I didn’t call the police.

I’d disguised myself as a woman to rent this place. As it happened, I could use the landlord to help me kill two people.

1

I’d never told anyone about my disguise.

I had delicate features and a slender build.

With my soft, versatile voice, the right makeup, and the right clothes, anyone who saw me would take me for a young woman in the bloom of youth.

My new landlord was no exception.

2

I moved into the Juyuan residential complex this morning.

The landlord who greeted me was a middle-aged man with a full beard.

His name was Deng Bing, and he was already waiting at the entrance.

He was extremely friendly, asking me all sorts of questions as soon as we met.

Not only did he offer to pull my suitcase, he kept telling me how pretty I was.

Occasionally, he asked if I had a boyfriend.

I pretended to be shy, merely smiling.

A boyfriend?

A man named Li Yong had confessed his feelings to me last night.

But Li Yong was dead.

I’d stuffed his body into my suitcase.

The very suitcase my landlord was pulling for me.

3

“Your suitcase is heavy, young lady!”

Walking ahead with it, the landlord suddenly turned to me.

I quickly gave him a bright smile.

“Yes. I have rather a lot of clothes. Shall I take it?”

“No need. I can handle a little weight.”

As we talked, we arrived at the house.

It was a two-story residential building.

He said he lived upstairs and rented out the ground floor.

He unlocked the ground-floor door, then carefully hauled my suitcase inside.

He was clearly struggling.

After all…

It weighed as much as a grown man.

He took a few panting breaths, then began showing me around.

The ground floor was a self-contained apartment with its own bathroom and kitchen.

It was fully furnished, clean, and tastefully decorated.

The bedroom’s light and layout were particularly good.

What pleased me most was the large, multicolored chandelier.

The landlord said it was a very fashionable model.

Luxurious and elegant. Perfect for a young woman like me.

I looked up at it.

It really was beautiful.

But I knew…

There was a camera hidden inside.

And that wasn’t all.

I also knew there was one on the kitchen water heater.

And another inside the electrical socket beside the bathroom sink.

As for this room’s secrets…

Perhaps I knew more than the landlord did.

4

Because it was on the ground floor, the landlord specifically reminded me to keep the doors and windows shut.

He said stray cats and rats often climbed in through the windows around here.

I nodded absently.

I told him I was generally very satisfied with my new home.

My only regret was that the refrigerator looked rather old.

I wanted to replace it.

Actually, I didn’t mind its age.

I minded its size.

After all…

I intended to put a person inside.

Once I’d seen the landlord off, I got busy cleaning.

I didn’t plan to stay long.

But I still had to act like a normal tenant.

At this very moment, the landlord might be watching my every move through those cameras.

By the time I finished, it was dark.

The refrigerator was too small, and it was too late to buy a bigger one.

That left me with no choice but to dump the body.

Anyone who’s killed someone knows a dark, windy night is the best time to dispose of a corpse.

At about ten, I pulled my suitcase out of the house.

Then I drove to a patch of woods behind the hill.

I chose a secluded spot, dug a hole, and buried the whole suitcase.

Sweat poured off me.

As I paused for a rest…

I wasn’t sure whether I was imagining it.

For an instant, behind a large tree not far away, I thought I saw…

A flash of white.

Gone!

I shuddered.

But when I stared in that direction, there was nothing.

Only an endless, deathly stillness.

I hurriedly finished what I was doing and retraced my steps.

By the time I reached my rented room, it was nearly midnight.

5

What an exhausting day.

Moving in the morning, cleaning in the afternoon, disposing of a body at night.

Not a moment’s rest.

I decided to take a good shower first, then sleep properly.

Entering the bathroom, I casually set a bottle of shampoo on the sink.

I deliberately placed it close to the wall, beside the electrical socket.

Just enough to block the camera hidden inside.

After my shower, I changed into pajamas and came out. I lay on the bed, played with my phone for a while, and soon fell asleep.

I had no idea how long I’d slept.

Through the haze, a whisper from under the bed woke me.

“I think… someone’s following me!”

I jolted and sat bolt upright.

I quickly switched on the light.

At that moment, a black cat shot out from beneath the bed.

“What’s following me… isn’t human. It’s a… hanging ghost!”

I heard the voice again.

Incredibly, it came from the cat’s mouth.

The cat crouched in a corner, apparently holding something between its teeth, staring at me in alarm.

My sudden awakening must have startled it.

It looked around, flicked its tail, and set the thing on the floor.

Then it stuck out its tongue and kept licking it.

It made no attempt to flee.

It wasn’t afraid of me.

I slowly got out of bed, picked up the object, and gathered the cat into my arms.

The thing was only about the size of my little finger. Blood-red all over, it felt sticky.

I raised it to my nose and immediately smelled an unpleasant tang of blood.

Looking closer, I realized it was a voice recorder.

The cat must have accidentally bitten the play button.

The voice coming from it belonged to a trembling woman.

A loop of cord extended from one end.

The recorder had been fashioned into a collar and worn around the cat’s neck.

I glanced around and remembered I’d forgotten to close the window before bed.

Apparently, the landlord’s warning had been accurate. The cat must have climbed in.

6

“The hanging ghost… is outside the door!”

The recorder in my hand suddenly spoke again.

The same trembling woman’s voice.

I’d just paused it when a soft knock came from outside.

I shivered.

Quickly setting down the cat, I went to the door.

Through the peephole, I saw a woman in a white dress.

She knocked twice more, then spoke.

“Is anyone home? I think my cat came in here. I’ve come to find it.”

The moment I opened the door, the black cat darted out and leaped into her arms.

The woman outside was extremely beautiful.

About thirty.

Her skin was fair, though under the light she looked a little drawn.

Stroking the cat, she repeatedly apologized.

“I’m so sorry. This cat of mine keeps wandering. I hate to disturb you so late.”

Her voice was gentle and soft, very pleasant to hear.

I smiled and shook my head.

“It’s all right. I like cats too. Though I feel as if I’ve seen this one somewhere before.”

She smiled as well.

“I found it in a ditch nearby not long ago. It looked so pitiful that I took it home.”

I only smiled. Then she added:

“Oh, you moved in this morning, didn’t you? We’ll have to look after each other.”

As we talked, she told me she lived right upstairs.

Her name was Liu Min. She was Deng Bing’s wife.

More precisely, I ought to call her my landlady.