Hesitating for a moment, we followed me to the opposite building. At this time, the mad security guard was sitting on the threshold in front of the pavilion, chuckling, holding a wooden stick in his hand, as if on guard.
Seeing us approach, he excitedly asked, "Are you all here for the job interview?"
"Crazy, we're the police. Do you know anything?" Lu Chusheng inquired.
"I don't know, I don't know anything. I don't want to leave here!"
"Why? The crematorium has already moved. Why aren't you leaving?"
"If I leave, I'll be out of a job. I still have to support my family!"
The mad security guard was rambling incoherently. If we hadn't been cut off from the outside world, I would definitely have asked He Xin to check his records. Seeing his state, I didn't expect to get anything out of him. I had no choice but to tell everyone to ignore him. We headed down the stairs next to the pavilion. When we reached the fifth floor of the staff dormitory, that hateful voice echoed again: "Alright! I see you've arrived. You're quite obedient, aren't you? Haha, policemen are nothing more than this, truly useless!"
"Don't talk nonsense. If you have any tricks, just bring them on. Otherwise, you won't have a chance once we arrest you. You lunatic!" I retorted loudly.
"Hmph, don't be in a hurry, officers. Aren't there many dormitories here? This time, it's not about finding bones, because there are quite a few people here who I've kidnapped. This time, I'll do you a good deed. As long as you rescue all of them within the allotted time, you can take them all away. Otherwise, the poison gas will erode you again!"
"You scoundrel, how did you kidnap so many people?" Lu Chusheng cursed.
"You don't need to know how I did it. That's my secret. Alright, time waits for no one. Let's get moving. You only have 30 minutes!"
We didn't dare to delay and immediately got to work. We went downstairs to search the rooms in the various dormitories. Lu Chusheng was very fast. In less than a few minutes, he kicked open several room doors. Then, the police officers went in for a thorough investigation. We, on the other hand, struggled to pull open doors. After almost all the doors on the fifth floor were pulled open, we found no victims inside.
"They should be downstairs. You all continue searching. Be careful and don't make any mistakes!" I instructed. Everyone agreed and split into several teams to start again. Liu Yuning and I walked together, while Lu Chusheng led the other officers.
The fourth floor had even more rooms. This crematorium was quite large, and it seemed capable of accommodating quite a few people. We first opened a few dormitory doors, but still, we saw no one. As more and more doors were opened, we started to feel like the victims might not be here at all. Was that guy deliberately tricking us?
But he clearly told us to search here earlier. If this was a trap, it would be troublesome, just like when we were in the tourist area before, where it was impossible to proceed.
As I was thinking, the door to the last room on the fourth floor was pulled open. This time, we suddenly noticed a burlap sack on the bed, tied with a red rope. It seemed to hide a person inside.
We walked over very nervously and reached out to untie the rope. However, what appeared before our eyes was nothing more than a stuffed doll, half the height of a person. She was wearing a tattered red dress, and many silver needles were stuck in her. Her eyes were poked out, and her hair was all gone. Someone had been so cruel to a doll. Who could have done this?
At this moment, that hateful voice echoed from somewhere again: "Haha, officers, I'm sorry, you've been fooled! How could the people be here! Several of your colleagues downstairs have already fallen for it. You really are stupid pigs. I didn't expect you police officers to have such low intelligence!"
This guy was deliberately mocking us. Anyone seeing a sack like this would assume it contained a person. Being ridiculed like this, I immediately got angry: "You scoundrel, don't make things up. Do you think you can demoralize us like this? Honestly, are you tricking us again? There are no hostages here at all?"
"Wrong! I wouldn't make things up. There are hostages, but not as many as you imagine. Actually, there's only a family of four. Alright, that's all the hints I can give you. I can't talk to you any further!"
No wonder. I ordered everyone to leave the room immediately and went downstairs to search again. The third floor didn't have many rooms. It seemed to be a mess hall, with tables and chairs arranged side by side in a large hall. In the distance, there was a counter, and a menu was posted on the wall behind it, with the kitchen next to it. To find the victims faster, we called out as we walked: "Is anyone here? We're the police, we're here to help you. If you hear us, please answer, and we'll come to help you immediately!"
We kept walking and calling out several times, but we still didn't hear any response, as if no one was here at all. I asked Liu Yuning to lead some people to search the hall, while I took a few people into the kitchen.
The kitchen looked like it hadn't been used in a long time. Dust was so thick that a light touch of a finger would leave a layer of residue.
There were some footprints on the ground. It seemed someone had been here before. I hadn't seen this type of footprint before. Could it be this guy who was playing mind games with us right now?
I took some photos of the footprints, and we split into teams, opening the refrigerator, cabinets, and other objects in the kitchen. We didn't find anyone, but a small dog was frozen in the refrigerator.
The officer who found it called me over. I put on rubber gloves and found that the refrigerator was still open. I asked someone to close it first. After the ice slowly melted, I took out the body of the small dog.
Based on the degree of decomposition and surface signs, the small dog had likely been dead for a week. The cause of death was freezing, meaning it died from the cold. Just as I was about to leave it, the voice reminded me: "No! No! No! Officer, you should call him Detective He, shouldn't you? The secret is hidden in this black dog. Investigate it carefully!"
"Is this another hint from you?" I replied. I turned the dog over and suddenly noticed that something seemed to be hidden in its mouth. Without a speculum, I pried open its mouth with my bare hands and found a finger-shaped stone lodged between its teeth. I took it and examined it carefully. The voice reappeared: "That's right, it's this one. It seems Detective He, your observation skills are indeed well-deserved of their reputation!"