SITS CH25

Chapter 25: Precious Five Hundred

The next afternoon, the group appeared outside the escape room entrance right on time.

Zhao Rui had researched it in advance, explaining that this escape room was horror-themed and exceptionally well-produced, making it very hard to book. The full playthrough took five hours, featuring live-action NPC actors throughout.

After finishing his introduction, he looked at Shen Man: “Shen-ge, you’re not afraid of ghosts, right?”

Shen Man was expressionless: “If I were afraid, would I be standing here?”

Zhao Rui: “Hehe, that’s good.”

Beside them, Xu Zhouye raised his hand like an obedient child toward Shen Man: “Ge, I’m scared.”

Zhao Rui mocked: “Hahahahaha, you’re a grown adult, how are you still scared of this?!”

Shen Man shot him a glance: “Don’t scream later.”

Zhao Rui: “Hmph, I definitely won’t scream!”

Zhang Chaoyun arrived with his team. Surprisingly, they were short one member compared to ACE; apparently, someone had a prior engagement and couldn’t make it.

The ten of them were given two walkie-talkies. After being briefed on safety instructions, they were blindfolded one by one and led inside by the staff.

The starting area of the game was a hospital with extremely dim lighting.

Shen Man had Xu Zhouye in front of him and the coach behind him. Resting a hand on Xu Zhouye’s shoulder, he walked forward slowly.

Footsteps suddenly halted, followed by a loud door slamming shut. An announcement broadcasted that they could remove their blindfolds.

Pulling off the blindfold, Shen Man found himself standing in a cramped, narrow room. Surrounding him were Xu Zhouye, Zhao Rui, and Luo Zhile; everyone else was nowhere to be seen. Along the room’s walls were about five or six iron drawer-like cabinets. He immediately realized they were in a morgue.

Without any hints, the puzzle-solving had already begun.

Zhao Rui, who had sworn he wouldn’t scream, silently shuffled to the very back of the group. Paying him no mind, Shen Man walked up to the iron cabinets and pulled them open one by one.

Clearly, he truly wasn’t afraid, his face devoid of any expression.

After opening three or four, Shen Man discovered that the back of one cabinet was empty. The cabinet wasn’t large, but just big enough for a person to crawl through. Bending down to inspect it, he confirmed it was a passageway.

“Let’s go,” Shen Man said.

“Wait, we have to crawl in?” Zhao Rui laughed dryly. “This passage is way too narrow.”

Shen Man said, “Didn’t you say you weren’t scared?”

Zhao Rui said, “Well, not scared exactly, but…”

Shen Man said, “Since you aren’t scared, take up the rear.”

Zhao Rui: “?”

Xu Zhouye whispered from the side: “Ge, I’m scared.” Leaning close to Shen Man, he genuinely looked a bit frightened.

Ignoring the hesitant Zhao Rui, Shen Man was the first to crawl inside, followed by Xu Zhouye, then Luo Zhile. Watching this, Zhao Rui’s vision darkened, his legs trembling; he thought to himself that he truly shouldn’t be here today.

The tunnel was long and pitch-black. Halfway through, they could distinctly hear someone deliberately banging on the pipes. It wasn’t the pipes being struck—it was Zhao Rui’s soul. Crawling at the very back, he suddenly felt something grab his foot. A blood-curdling howl instantly echoed back and forth down the narrow tunnel: “HELP ME—PLEASE DON’T GRAB MY FOOT I BEG YOU—”

The three in front: “…”

Xu Zhouye whispered, “I think I was grabbed just now too.”

Luo Zhile: “Me too.”

Shen Man: “…” So in reality, all three of them had been grabbed, but only Zhao Rui fully immersed himself into the environment, successfully becoming a general of the ambiance-boosting squad.

Inside the tunnel, the most terrifying thing wasn’t the staff playing ghosts, but Zhao Rui trailing behind them.

Realizing this, Shen Man closed his eyes in agony.

Crawling out of the tunnel, the three looked back at Zhao Rui. Zhao Rui had lost three souls and six spirits, standing frozen in place with a vacant stare.

“Should we send him out?” Shen Man asked Luo Zhile. “How much is this escape room per person?”

Luo Zhile answered weakly, “Five hundred.”

Five hundred? Shen Man said, “Let’s keep playing, then…”

Zhao Rui: “?” Wait, is my life not worth five hundred?!

Xu Zhouye patted Zhao Rui’s shoulder, consoling him: “You can do this.”

Zhao Rui: “…” These two bastards.

At five hundred yuan per person, this escape room was indeed quite expensive, but its quality definitely justified the steep price. The sets were massive and intricately designed, with omnipresent background music cranking the horror atmosphere to the max.

Passing through a narrow alleyway, Zhao Rui suffered a total mental collapse. Truly, one couldn’t blame Zhao Rui; after all, just when they all assumed this path would at most feature an ankle-grab, a staff member wearing a black wig and a white dress suddenly dangled upside down from the ceiling, upper body swooping right down on them—

Zhao Rui merely felt his neck tickle. Reaching up to scratch it, his hand grasped a fistful of long black hair. His brain bluescreened for three seconds. Lifting his head stiffly, he locked eyes dead-on with a pair of eyes hidden amidst the hair right above him.

The ambiance-boosting Zhao Rui flexed his might once more. His shrill scream made everyone’s hair stand on end.

“AAAAAAAH~!!! HELP!!! A GHOST!!!” Zhao Rui bawled at the top of his lungs. If not for people blocking him in front and behind, he would have bolted straight out. “THERE’S A GHOST!!!”

Xu Zhouye and Shen Man were standing very close together. When Zhao Rui let out his ghost-wailing howl, Xu Zhouye distinctly felt Shen Man’s body jolt, his breathing quickening by a few beats—clearly startled by their ambiance-boosting squad leader, Zhao Rui.

Zhao Rui cried, “MOMMY!!! I WANNA GO HOME!!!”

The three: “…”

Ignoring him, the three silently shoved him forward, exiting the alleyway.

Leave? Leaving was impossible. Zhao Rui was destined to bury his life here today.

Shen Man and Xu Zhouye were the main puzzle-solvers, and Luo Zhile could offer some ideas. As for Zhao Rui—the only thing they expected of him was to stop adding 360-degree reverb to the background music; that would be the greatest help of all.

A few more rooms later, they finally heard the voices of their other teammates behind a mirror, and they managed to reconnect via walkie-talkies. The next segment required cooperative puzzle-solving between both groups.

However, the difficulty here was significantly higher than before. They had to enter a pitch-black room and find the key to unlock the door based on descriptions from their teammates on the other side.

Naturally, it was impossible for Zhao Rui to go in, and Shen Man didn’t expect him to anyway: “I’ll do it.”

Xu Zhouye said, “I’ll go with you.”

Shen Man said, “You aren’t scared anymore?” When they first entered, Xu Zhouye had claimed he was scared, yet making it all the way here, he hadn’t heard a single peep from Xu Zhouye.

Xu Zhouye said innocently, “I’m scared! But two people makes it faster, right?”

Fair enough.

Shen Man walked inside.

The room lacked a single trace of light, pitch-black to a deadly degree. Zhang Chaoyun’s intermittent voice crackled through the walkie-talkie: “After entering the door, turn right. On the wall, there’s a pull-ring you can pull open.”

Hearing this, Shen Man groped his way to the right, while Xu Zhouye stood beside him, searching in the same direction.

In total darkness, human senses grew muddled. Shen Man felt from top to bottom but couldn’t find the pull-ring Zhang Chaoyun mentioned.

Just as he was about to speak up and ask again, Xu Zhouye’s delighted voice sounded from behind him: “Found it!”

Shen Man straightened up and took a step back, unexpectedly backing straight into Xu Zhouye’s chest. Xu Zhouye let out a muffled grunt from the impact, but didn’t step back; instead, he reached out and wrapped his arms around him: “Ge.”

A soft “ge“, carrying a breath of scorching heat, fluttered directly against Shen Man’s ear. He felt himself entirely enveloped in Xu Zhouye’s embrace. Through the thin fabric of their clothes, he felt Xu Zhouye’s burning skin and violently pounding heartbeat—

Shen Man’s breathing quickened slightly, whispering, “What are you doing?”

Xu Zhouye’s voice was right by his ear, dangerously close. He said softly, “Ge, be careful. It’s dark in here, don’t trip.” With that, he let go, as though the ambiguous atmosphere just a moment ago had been nothing but an illusion.

Xu Zhouye pulled the ring on the wall, and the room was illuminated with lights.

The sudden brightness made Shen Man shut his eyes involuntarily. By the time he opened them again, he saw Xu Zhouye staring at him with eyes brimming with smiles.

Shen Man asked, “Why are you looking at me?”

Xu Zhouye raised a hand and brushed Shen Man’s cheek: “Got some dust on it.”

Shen Man: “…”

Just as he was about to say something, Zhao Rui and Luo Zhile walked in from outside.

Shen Man pursed his lips, swallowing whatever he was about to say.

The key to the next room lay inside a hidden compartment behind the pull-ring. Shen Man retrieved the key, and the four of them headed toward the next room.

The moment they stepped into the next room, Zhao Rui chickened out, standing at the doorway shivering.

The environment in this room was set up in an incredibly eerie manner. The entire room was draped in stark crimson; the lantern ornaments were all crimson, yet the “Double Happiness” character (囍) pinned squarely in the center was ghastly white, lit by white candles. Beneath the character sat two red kneeling cushions. The background music featured a woman’s intermittent laughter and sobbing, along with manic, crazed murmuring.

In the flickering candlelight, everything turned sinister and terrifying.

Finding no clues, Shen Man held up the walkie-talkie to ask the other side what they were supposed to do.

“Let me check,” the other side replied. “It says the owner died with regrets and wanted to make up for a missed wedding…”

The hint was obvious enough: they had to re-enact it.

While they conversed, Luo Zhile did a sweep of the room and found a chest containing two wedding garments. Pulling them out, he said, “There are two outfits here, take a look…”

“I can’t I can’t I can’t!” Before he even finished, Zhao Rui jumped eight feet into the air. “What if they take me away after I put it on??”

Shen Man said expressionlessly, “Don’t worry. As such a dedicated ambiance booster, they’d never bear to take you away.”

Zhao Rui cried pear-blossom tears: “Captain, you’re so cruel.”

Shen Man: “…Stop disgusting me.”

Taking one of the garments from Luo Zhile, Shen Man said, “I’ll do it.”

Luo Zhile said, “Then I can also…” He was about to offer his help when Xu Zhouye, standing nearby, suddenly stepped forward, reaching out to grab the remaining garment straight from Luo Zhile’s hand.

Xu Zhouye said, “It’s fine, I’ll do it. Just keep an eye on Zhao Rui.”

Luo Zhile paused, glancing at the nearby Zhao Rui as if wanting to speak but stopping himself—Shen Man guessed what he wanted to say, which was probably that bowing in a wedding ceremony was much easier than keeping an eye on Zhao Rui.

One really got what they paid for. For a five-hundred-yuan ticket, the props and costumes in this escape room were exceptionally exquisite. Factoring in that guests came in all shapes and sizes, the costumes were all provided in the largest size.

But now there was a problem: they were four guys, and the outfit in Shen Man’s hands was a beautiful red bridal gown…

Shen Man and Xu Zhouye locked eyes.

Though no words were spoken, both understood exactly what the other’s eyes were saying.

Xu Zhouye said helplessly, “Ge, I can’t fit.”

Shen Man: “Try?”

Xu Zhouye: “…”

Xu Zhouye read an emotion named ‘stubbornness’ in Shen Man’s eyes.

Try it is. Xu Zhouye tried it on helplessly. With his broad shoulders, he could only squeeze his head through; the rest simply wouldn’t fit. With the garment stuck around his neck, he called out “ge” aggrievedly, signaling that he truly couldn’t wear it.

A rare flicker of resignation surfaced on Shen Man’s face. He shifted his gaze toward Luo Zhile and Zhao Rui. Before he could even speak, his arm was held down.

“Ge.” Still using that same aggrieved tone, Xu Zhouye lowered his voice to a volume only the two of them could hear: “You just do it.”

Shen Man: “…”

He remained silent for a moment before taking the garment from Xu Zhouye’s hands.

Though tall, Shen Man’s build was slender and long; wearing a bridal gown didn’t look strange on him. On the contrary, his naturally fair, beautiful face gave it an entirely different flavor.

In a foul mood, he stood there expressionless, as though he truly had become the unwilling bride in the backstory forced to marry someone she didn’t love.

“Too bad I didn’t bring my phone.” No longer scared, Zhao Rui clicked his tongue while looking at Xu Zhouye and Shen Man. “If I could snap a pic, I could sell it for at least five thousand.” This was Shen Man cross-dressing in women’s clothes! Forget five thousand—he suspected if he priced it at ten thousand, the fans would still fight tooth and nail for it.

Shen Man let out a cold sneer and shot Zhao Rui a glance. Zhao Rui immediately shut his mouth, feigning a frail, helpless demeanor.

Once the two had donned the wedding garments, the background music shifted from the woman’s weeping to a mournful, piercing suona melody.

When the suona sounds, it’s either immense sorrow or immense joy.

Xu Zhouye and Shen Man knelt onto the cushions. A shrill female voice rang out like a life-claiming ghost: “First bow to Heaven and Earth—”

The two bowed in unison.

“Second bow to the High Hall—”

Another bow.

“Husband and wife bow to each other.” The two turned, facing one another.

Shen Man was expressionless; Xu Zhouye was brimming with smiles. Shen Man’s eyes asked, What are you laughing at? Xu Zhouye didn’t answer, though the smile on his lips deepened a few degrees—

Just as they were about to perform the final bow toward each other, the cushion beneath Shen Man suddenly moved.

Before Shen Man could react, he felt the floor drop out from under him. The cushion was a trapdoor, taking him plunging straight underground. In the instant before he vanished, he caught Xu Zhouye’s panic-stricken face. Yelling “Ge—!“, Xu Zhouye reached out a hand, desperately trying to pull him back, as though completely immersed in the act and forgetting they were just playing a roleplay game.

“Holy shit!!!!” Forget Xu Zhouye, even Zhao Rui and Luo Zhile beside them were scared out of their wits.

Shen Man was taken away, and the floor snapped shut instantly, leaving Xu Zhouye staring blankly at the empty ground.

The background music morphed from festive wedding tunes to a funeral dirge, accompanied by the woman’s blood-curdling screams and agonized wails, making everyone’s hair stand on end.

Flickering candlelight danced in the room. In that moment, they truly felt like witnesses to a tragedy.

Luo Zhile was the first to snap back to reality, murmuring faintly, “These five hundred yuan were way too well spent…”

Zhao Rui: “…” He silently raised a thumbs-up.