Chapter 5: Three Strings of Numbers Worth Two Small Targets
Standing in front of the men’s locker room, Fang Xiaocao took several deep breaths before gritting her teeth and charging inside!
Amidst the startled shouts and crude jokes from the men, Fang Xiaocao’s face turned crimson as she quickly located locker 305. She swiftly entered the code, grabbed the contents without even glancing at them, hugged them tightly to her chest, and bolted out of the Red Romance Bathhouse.
Back in the car, she finally exhaled in relief.
The item in her arms was a crossbody bag.
She unzipped it to find several stacks of cash and a palm-sized notebook.
The money wasn’t of much interest to her—she wasn’t lacking it at the moment—so she tossed it onto the passenger seat and picked up the notebook to flip through it.
Inside, there was a website address and three sets of numbers.
“What is this?”
Fang Xiaocao blinked, murmuring in confusion.
Ding-dong!
Your friend has sent you a message.
Just as she was puzzling over the notebook, her phone screen lit up with a notification.
She tapped the message open, and the chat interface popped up.
[Scalding Noodles]: The first set of numbers is the public key, the second set is the address, and the third set is the private key.
This is a Bitcoin account. Enter the website, and you’ll gain access. Whoever has these three sets of numbers owns the account.
As she read the message, Fang Xiaocao’s heartbeat quickened. If her future self had gone through so much trouble to orchestrate this, the account had to be far from ordinary.
She drove to the commercial district, bought a laptop, and hurried back to her car. Using her phone’s hotspot, she connected to the internet and eagerly followed the steps she had found online.
One by one, she entered the numbers…
Staring at the balance of 1,000 Bitcoins, Fang Xiaocao fell silent.
If she remembered correctly, she had just glanced at today’s Bitcoin price—over $20,000.
$20,000 × 1,000 = …
Her brain short-circuited.
“One, two, three, four…”
“So many zeros!”
She was completely stunned.
Converted to RMB, that was two small targets!
Her hands trembled with excitement as she realized the sheer fortune sitting in front of her.
“This insane wealth… just landed on my head like this?”
Her eyes widened like saucers, sparkling with tiny stars.
She felt dizzy.
The weight of that much money was enough to knock her out!
After going wild in the car for a while, she forced herself to calm down and snapped out of her euphoric daze.
“I need to think this through. These Bitcoins can’t be touched for now.”
Staring at the laptop, she muttered to herself.
With such a massive sum, no wonder people had died over it.
There were definitely others watching this account. She decided to lay low and not touch the money unless absolutely necessary.
Ding-dong!
Just then, another WeChat notification popped up.
She didn’t even need to check—she knew it had to be from her future self.
Sure enough, when she opened WeChat, her guess was confirmed.
[Scalding Noodles]: Congratulations on resisting the temptation of money. If you had chosen to sell the Bitcoin just now, we would have spent the rest of our lives on the run.
“I knew it!”
Fang Xiaocao muttered.
“When can I use it?” she asked.
[Scalding Noodles]: I’ll tell you when the time is right.
Seeing the message, she shrugged and replied with a wry smile, “Alright, I’ll listen to you!”
After putting away her laptop, she started the car and drove toward a hotel.
After parking in the underground garage, she took the elevator up.
Ding-dong!
Your friend has sent you a message.
Just as she stepped out of the elevator, another WeChat notification chimed.
She paused mid-step and opened the chat.
[Scalding Noodles]: There’s an emergency. Do NOT go back to your room. Leave the 10th floor immediately.
Reading the message, Fang Xiaocao’s eyes widened in fear.
She was just an inch away from scanning her keycard to unlock the door.
Slowly, she backed away from the door.
She didn’t dare make a sound, fearing that at any moment, the door might burst open, and a hand would yank her inside.
Step by step, she retreated until she reached the elevator. Only then did she let out a breath.
Ding-dong!
Another message popped up.
Just as she was about to press the elevator button, her phone vibrated again.
She immediately stopped and checked WeChat.
[Scalding Noodles]: Don’t take the elevator. Use the stairs. Go down to the 8th floor and take the janitor’s service elevator to the 1st floor.
As if shocked by electricity, Fang Xiaocao retracted her hand from the elevator button.
Her eyes darted to the floor number display—someone was coming up.
The danger is inside the elevator!
He’s coming up!
She gasped in realization.
As the elevator reached the 8th floor and began approaching the 10th, she slipped into the stairwell, gently closing the door behind her.
Moving cautiously, she crept down the stairs and emerged onto the 8th floor. Just as she stepped out, she saw a cleaning lady pushing a cart into the staff elevator.
At the same time, the guest elevator—coming from the 10th floor—was also descending.
Without hesitation, Fang Xiaocao rushed into the staff elevator and pressed the button for the 1st floor.
As the doors closed, she caught a glimpse of a man in a yellow delivery uniform stepping out of the guest elevator. He scanned the hallway, then re-entered and pressed a button.
The LED display showed: Going up to the 10th floor.
That delivery guy is suspicious!
He’s the one my future self warned me about.
That realization sent a chill down her spine.
When she reached the lobby, she hesitated.
That delivery guy was very likely the one who had murdered her neighbor.
Clearly, this hotel was no longer safe.
But… this hotel was the closest one to the police station. Should she book another room or leave entirely?
She thought about reporting to the police, but she had no evidence proving that the delivery guy was the killer.
Ding-dong!
Another message.
Fang Xiaocao immediately unlocked her phone.
[Scalding Noodles]: Get in the car and leave the hotel NOW!
Without hesitation, she turned and entered the elevator leading to the underground parking lot.
She got into her Mini and drove out of the garage.
Ding-dong!
[Scalding Noodles]: Go back to your rental apartment.
Fang Xiaocao hesitated.
The mention of her apartment brought back the horrific memory of her neighbor’s murder. She couldn’t stop trembling.
After a brief internal struggle, she ignored the message’s instructions.
Instead, she turned onto another street and headed for a smaller hotel nearby.
It was still relatively close to the police station.
She didn’t know how the killer had found her, but she still felt that a hotel was safer than her apartment.
(End of Chapter 5)
