Chapter 6: A Message That Messes With the Mind
Fang Xiaocao parked her BMW Mini in the parking lot, carefully observing the surroundings. She wanted to ensure that if she needed to escape, there would be no obstacles blocking her way. Only after confirming this did she walk into the hotel.
The parking lot and the car were her backup plan.
She was gambling—gambling that since the car was newly purchased, the killer wouldn’t know about it yet and wouldn’t be waiting for her in the parking lot.
Besides…
With a warning from her future self, it should be safe.
“Welcome, ma’am. Good evening.”
As Fang Xiaocao entered the hotel, the front desk receptionist greeted her warmly.
“Hello, I’d like to book a room,” Fang Xiaocao replied politely, smiling.
“Of course, please scan this QR code to select your preferred room type,” the receptionist said with a smile, gesturing toward the code.
Fang Xiaocao nodded. “Alright!”
She took out her phone and scanned the QR code.
Looking at the different room options displayed on her phone, she skipped the cheaper ones and went straight to the premium selections.
“Do delivery workers have access to the upper floors?” she casually asked while browsing.
“Yes, they do. It makes things more convenient for our guests,” the receptionist replied with a friendly smile.
Fang Xiaocao nodded, but her heart sank.
What was meant to be a thoughtful service had now become a potential source of danger for her.
After a brief moment of contemplation, she abandoned the idea of booking a high-end room and opted for a more affordable yet comfortable king-size bed option.
Since they were all the same in terms of safety, there was no need to spend extra.
Once the booking was complete, she registered her ID, took her room card, and headed upstairs with her laptop in hand.
Her luggage was still at the previous hotel, but she wasn’t worried about losing it. The hotel was responsible for safeguarding her belongings until she either paid her outstanding fees or checked out.
She swiped her key card, opened the door, and inserted it to activate the power.
The room was not very big, but it was clean.
After taking a shower, Fang Xiaocao lay on the bed.
Today had been overwhelming. Even though she was physically exhausted, her emotions were running high, making it hard to fall asleep.
Ding dong!
Suddenly, the notification sound of her phone startled her.
She picked it up and saw that it was a WeChat message.
Excitement surged through her—whenever she received a WeChat message now, her first thought was that her future self had sent her another important warning.
But when she opened it, disappointment washed over her.
The message was from Han Xue.
Her excitement quickly faded as she opened the chat window with little interest.
[Han Xue: Xiaocao, are you free tomorrow night?]
Fang Xiaocao froze for a moment, recalling the message her future self had sent earlier.
“So she really is going to invite me?” she muttered.
Suddenly, curiosity got the better of her. Where was Han Xue planning to take her? And what kind of danger would she encounter?
She decided to reply: “I’m free. What’s up?”
[Han Xue: Let’s have a gathering tomorrow night. How about at your rental apartment?]
Seeing the message, Fang Xiaocao chuckled.
“So that’s it. The real danger is the killer,” she murmured.
*”Sure, just head over directly. I’ll leave the door unlocked for you.
I have a part-time job tomorrow night, so I might be home late. You guys don’t have to wait for me.”
After sending the message, she tossed her phone onto the bed and ignored Han Xue.
This was Han Xue’s usual trick. She would invite Fang Xiaocao to a gathering, but the real reason was to use her place as a venue.
Whether Fang Xiaocao actually joined the gathering or not didn’t matter to Han Xue at all.
Every time Han Xue and her friends finished partying, Fang Xiaocao was the one left cleaning up the mess.
“Hope you all have a great time this time,” Fang Xiaocao said sarcastically with a grin.
She figured Han Xue and her friends wouldn’t be in any real danger—at most, they’d get scared.
Unless the killer was suicidal, he wouldn’t attack a whole group of people at once.
Thinking about it, she picked up her phone again and dialed her landlord.
“Hello? Landlord sis, it’s Xiaocao.”
“Xiaocao? Calling this late—what’s up?” the landlord asked in confusion.
“I don’t want to renew my lease. Can I get my deposit back? There are still two weeks left, but I won’t be staying there anymore,” Fang Xiaocao explained.
After a brief silence, the landlord agreed. “Alright, I’ll refund you once I check the place.”
“Great, thanks, sis,” Fang Xiaocao said sweetly before hanging up.
“If the landlord decides to inspect the place early, well… not my problem,” she muttered playfully, sticking out her tongue.
Now that she had seen through Han Xue’s fake kindness, she decided to give her a small taste of karma.
There was no way she was letting Han Xue have a smooth and comfortable gathering.
Either they’d be scared by the killer or get kicked out by the landlord—no way was she letting them have a good time.
Ding dong!
Just as she hung up, another WeChat notification popped up.
She blinked and opened the app.
[Hot Noodles: Since you’ve canceled the lease, why not buy a house? A few million should be enough.]
This time, the message was from her future self.
Fang Xiaocao’s eyes lit up. “Got any recommendations for me?” she asked in reply.
“Just when I was thinking about this, the answer shows up,” she muttered to herself.
She had already considered buying a house, but before she could even start looking, her future self had already sent her a message about it.
Her past experiences had taught her that whenever her future self mentioned a “surprise,” it was bound to be something extraordinary.
[Hot Noodles: Are you afraid of ghosts?]
Fang Xiaocao shivered instinctively.
“Afraid of ghosts?”
“You should ask yourself that. Do you even think before speaking?” she retorted with a pout.
She was timid but loved reading ghost stories—a classic case of being scared yet unable to resist.
[Hot Noodles: After everything we’ve been through, I’m naturally not afraid anymore.]
[Hot Noodles: There’s a haunted house in the Junyue Villa district, across from the university’s south gate. You can get it for five million. If you can overcome your fear, I’ll give you an unexpected surprise.]
Seeing the words “unexpected surprise,” Fang Xiaocao hesitated.
Her future self’s surprises were never ordinary.
But… a haunted house? That was terrifying!
And this wasn’t just some baseless rumor.
She had taken a cleaning job in the Junyue Villa district before.
From what she overheard, the houses there were worth at least tens of millions.
Now, her future self was saying she could get one for only five million?
That could only mean one thing—the place was seriously haunted.
If it weren’t, who would sell a house at such a huge loss?
After hesitating for a long time, Fang Xiaocao couldn’t resist the temptation of her future self’s promised “surprise.”
“Alright, I’ll check it out tomorrow,” she typed and hit send.
[Contact does not exist!]
“Damn it!”
Seeing the error message, Fang Xiaocao cursed under her breath.
Her future self really knew how to mess with her mind.
(End of Chapter 6)
From this chapter onwards, the future version of Fang Xiaocao will be called Hot Noodles.
