Ming Shu forced herself to send that message before collapsing onto the bed and falling asleep. When Lin Xi saw her reply, her brow twitched involuntarily.
Da Mingbao arrived just then, fresh out of the shower, her hair still damp. She plopped onto the sofa in front of Lin Xi and pulled out her phone to order takeout. Though she’d just eaten, Da Mingbao felt her mouth craving something—chicken feet, duck necks, anything to satisfy the itch.
And milk tea. There was a particularly good roasted tea shop in Wufeng Town, run by a local granny for years. She only delivered to regulars, and her stock sold out fast. Da Mingbao couldn’t go more than a few days without craving it.
After placing her order and seeing it confirmed, Da Mingbao finally remembered why she’d come.
"You saw Actress Lin and that auntie, didn’t you? Otherwise, I doubt you’d care about this kind of thing." Having known Lin Xi for years, Da Mingbao prided herself on understanding her. Lin Xi had few hobbies. Back in middle school, when the entertainment industry was booming, with Taiwanese, Japanese, and Korean dramas airing nonstop on TV, every teenage girl had a favorite celebrity—except Lin Xi.
She never joined their discussions, never chased the hottest stars. Over the years, Da Mingbao’s favorites changed like the seasons, but if asked about Lin Xi’s preferences, she could rattle off a list of older celebrities without hesitation.
As for current stars? Lin Xi could barely recognize them. One moment she’d hear a name, the next she’d watch a drama and still not place the face—especially now, with so many looking like they’d rolled off an assembly line.
Since Da Mingbao had arranged Lin Xi’s room, she obviously knew who lived nearby. Lin Xi didn’t deny it. "I heard noise outside earlier and went to check. That’s when I overheard them."
Da Mingbao shot her a knowing look and launched into gossip. Well-connected in Wufeng Town’s circles, she knew all about Actress Lin’s scandals—things the media kept quiet but whispered about endlessly behind closed doors.
Lowering her voice, she said, "Rumor has it, Actress Lin had a close friend named Ming Shu, a dance student at Yunnan University. Gorgeous, sweet personality. They both joined the same drama crew as actresses."
"Ming Shu landed a great role thanks to her looks and talent, and it made her pretty popular. Later, she and Actress Lin signed with Douchuang Media—back then, it was just a no-name agency."
"But these past few years, Douchuang caught every trend and became a powerhouse in the industry. Actress Lin is their top star now." Da Mingbao had a habit of rambling off-topic, but she always circled back.
"Still, old-timers at Douchuang say Ming Shu was the one their boss really bet on. But she vanished at the worst possible moment."
"It was huge back then. She disappeared right after checking into a hotel here in Wufeng. Police shut the whole place down."
"Honestly, that incident is the only reason Xianquan’s family’s hotel got its big break."
Lin Xi waited for her to finish before asking, "And they never found her? Even after searching the entire hotel?"
Da Mingbao shook her head. "Nothing. They combed every inch, checked every security cam within three kilometers—twenty times over."
A knock at the door interrupted them. Da Mingbao sprang up, fetched her takeout, and had the lid off before even reaching the table.
"People say she met a ghost. Oh, and when Ming Shu vanished, Actress Lin was sharing her room. Later tests found traces of sedatives in Actress Lin’s system. She’s been under suspicion ever since—Aunt Ming watches her like a hawk, and police still call her in for questioning every now and then."
"No solid evidence, though?"
Da Mingbao tossed Lin Xi a glove. "If there were, would Aunt Ming still be stalking her after all these years? Actress Lin’s been careful. Never slipped up."
"Plus, whispers say she’s got some mysterious sugar daddy bankrolling her career. Some think she offered Ming Shu to him—that he kidnapped her, then killed her."
No one was stupid. The dots weren’t hard to connect, but like always, proof was the problem.
Lin Xi took a deep breath.
Between bites of chicken feet, Da Mingbao added, "After all this time, it’s probably going cold. Unless Ming Shu rises from the dead to tell her story."
Lin Xi glanced at her silent chat window. The world’s cruelest joke—asking the dead to speak.
The milk tea arrived. Da Mingbao handed Lin Xi a cup. The rich scent of roses filled the air. One sip brought floral sweetness, warm and perfectly balanced. As the rose faded, a delicate tea fragrance lingered.
Truly excellent milk tea. They turned on the TV, snacking until nearly 11 p.m., when Da Mingbao left after a call from Sun Xianquan.
Lin Xi ordered more tea and snacks, splitting them into portions for Xu Huanhuan and the others. A late-night treat, but most shops in the ancient town had closed by then, leaving only bars and night stalls open.
After a shower, Lin Xi got another call—Da Mingbao inviting her out for drinks. Dressed, she met Da Mingbao and Sun Xianquan at the stairwell, and they headed down together.
This time, they exited through the hotel’s back door. Across the way stood an imposing, old-fashioned structure, its grandeur long faded under the glow of surrounding lights.
The words "Garden Hotel" hung on a weathered plaque, its paint peeling, a swallow’s nest tucked into the top right corner.
Under the cover of night, the trees grown wild within the garden hotel loomed like the gaping maw of an abyss. The timid Da Mingbao quickened her pace as she walked.
Only after leaving the eerie entrance behind did Da Mingbao finally speak: "This is the hotel I told you about. It's enormous, and the interior is stunning—designed like a classical garden. The owner is Futian Group from Jing City. Rumor has it the boss has military and political connections. After the incident, the hotel was abandoned."
"It's deserted now," Da Mingbao said, tugging Lin Xi toward the street.
Lin Xi followed her lead but glanced back several times, unable to shake the feeling that something was off about the place. She even had a premonition that stepping inside would unravel the mystery of Ming Shu’s disappearance.
At the small bar, a folk singer poured his heart out onstage under dim lighting. Da Mingbao ordered two cocktails, while Sun Xianquan spotted an acquaintance and went over to chat.
Da Mingbao wasn’t fond of his friends, so she stayed behind with Lin Xi, swaying to the music and clinking glasses now and then.
Lin Xi rarely visited places like this, and she found it all fascinating, drinking one cocktail after another. Her tolerance was good—even the strong, slow-burning cocktails felt like nothing to her.
But after a while, the mellow folk tunes began to weigh on her. Excusing herself to the restroom, Lin Xi stepped outside for fresh air.
At the street corner, a barbecue stall was still open. It had been years since Lin Xi had tasted her hometown’s grilled skewers, and she couldn’t resist approaching. She ordered two sausages, two tofu sticks, two zucchini slices, and some mushroom stems.
The vendor, an elderly woman in traditional ethnic attire, handed Lin Xi a small dish of dipping sauce before brushing oil over the skewers. The aroma burst forth instantly, curling into thick wisps under the lights.
Lin Xi texted Da Mingbao, who joined her within minutes, shivering. "The wind’s picked up—it’s chilly."
But sitting by the grill, warmed by the charcoal, they soon felt cozy again. Da Mingbao ordered her favorites.
The elderly woman flipped the tofu. In their province, grilled tofu was different—fermented, carrying a faint tang, though milder than Hunan’s stinky tofu.
Crisp and golden on the outside, tender within, the tofu was dipped in an extra-spicy sauce that set taste buds ablaze. The contrast was so perfect Lin Xi nearly stomped her feet in delight.
The zucchini’s sweetness, the mushrooms’ earthy richness, the sausages’ savory grease—each bite was irresistible.
They weren’t even hungry, yet they kept eating. Da Mingbao dunked a tofu piece and groaned, "It’s unfair. There’s so much delicious food in the world, but my stomach’s so small!"
She’d already eaten plenty that day, so even the tantalizing barbecue couldn’t tempt her further.
Lin Xi, however, had a stronger appetite. She asked the vendor for a braised pork tail—soft and fall-apart tender—to grill and dip in chili.
"Eat less tomorrow," Lin Xi teased.
Da Mingbao refused. Even if she was full, she had to taste everything. Left with leftovers, she called her boyfriend—wasting food was unthinkable, drilled into her since childhood.
Sun Xianquan finished the last bites, and the trio headed back to the hotel, Da Mingbao and him walking hand in hand while Lin Xi trailed behind, phone in hand.
They entered through the rear door again.
The elevator stopped at their floor. Stepping out, Lin Xi instinctively glanced down the hallway. Through the window at the end, she spotted a slender, indistinct figure moving through the abandoned garden hotel.
Lin Xi focused—then saw another emerge from the shadows, following the first.
When the second figure’s jawline caught the light, Lin Xi’s heart leaped.
She recognized her: Ming Li, Ming Shu’s mother. That meant the first figure could only be one person.
But the question remained—why would Actress Lin be sneaking into that derelict hotel in the dead of night? Lin Xi clenched her fists. The moment Da Mingbao and Sun Xianquan disappeared into their room, she rushed for the elevator.
