INSIDER Chapter 22

7 was the first person Lu Chu saw and the only one he trusted now. He knew about his past and confusion, and they had once escaped together from dire situations. Even though he had agreed to cooperate with Song Gui, it was simply the best choice under the circumstances, without any real trust. The rules prohibited them from harming each other, which was enough.

Though they had known each other for less than a month and had only been out of touch for a few days, Lu Chu felt as if he had known the man for decades due to the trials of life and death they had faced together. The second “round” had only lasted a night, and the time in the illusion and room was less than two days. Yet seeing 7 now, Lu Chu felt as if they were old friends reunited after many years.

Most importantly, Lu Chu had many questions to ask the man.

No matter how turbulent his thoughts were, Lu Chu maintained a facade of curiosity and innocence, blending in with the crowd as the five young men passed by.

Neither Song Gui nor 7 hesitated or lingered as they walked past Lu Chu, acting as if they were complete strangers.

The village wasn’t large, and it didn’t take long for the village head to lead the five young people around. Song Gui, seemingly the leader of the group, smiled broadly and said to the others, “How about we stay at this house? It’s close to the village entrance and looks spacious enough for our equipment.”

The others looked into the courtyard and nodded in agreement. “You’re our director, Xiao Song. You decide, we’ll follow your lead.”

Song Gui then turned to the village head and asked, “Who lives here? Would it be convenient for us to stay?”

“Convenient, very convenient!” the village head laughed. “This house is large with many rooms, but only two people live here—Grandma Lu and her grandson. Grandma Lu has a very good temperament. Let me go ask for you.”

Song Gui nodded. “Thank you.”

“No trouble at all,” the village head said, heading into the courtyard.

The onlookers whispered among themselves about the good fortune of this household.

Song Gui shot a sly look at Lu Chu, confirming that the chosen house was indeed where Lu Chu was staying.

Soon, the village head returned with the elderly woman, who immediately spotted Lu Chu and lovingly called him to her side before turning to the five young men, smiling, “You must be the kids from the city?”

Song Gui smiled politely, “Yes, Grandma. We would like to stay at your house for a while. Will that be too much trouble?”

“Not at all,” the elderly woman waved her hand dismissively. “Our house is big with few people. If you don’t mind, you can stay.”

She genuinely thought it would be good for her grandson to have some company.

The young men thanked her politely.

“Don’t mention it,” she said, pushing Lu Chu forward to introduce him. “This is my dear grandson, Lu Chu. You can call him Xiao Lu.”

Lu Chu smiled warmly and nodded at the group. “Hello, I am Lu Chu.”

“Song Gui.”

“Yang Cheng.”

“Li Jia Peng.”

“He Ming De.”

“Qi Li.”

They introduced themselves in turn.

Lu Chu looked at 7 a few more times. “Qi Li”… It started with 7, but was it his real name? He remembered that when they first met, the man had said he only remembered his name as 7 and had forgotten everything else. So, the likelihood of “Qi Li” being his real name was very low.

With that, they got acquainted. The village head called over some strong men from the village to help move the equipment, and Lu Chu joined in.

During a break, Lu Chu quietly asked Song Gui how he knew he was staying there. Song Gui exaggeratedly replied, “I’m always keeping an eye on you, Chu Chu!” Lu Chu turned and walked away.

After much hustle, they finally moved everything into the house, parking the two cars outside the courtyard. They weren’t worried about theft, as few people in the village could drive.

After the move, well past lunch, everyone returned home. The elderly woman had prepared a large batch of dumplings, and they had a hearty meal.

In the afternoon, the five young men carried their equipment around the village again and decided to use the abandoned school courtyard as their main filming location. They managed to persuade the village head to give them the keys to the office and another room.

Lu Chu thought to himself that he had made the right decision not to break the windows in his previous investigation.

They spent the rest of the day preparing for the shoot, and by the time they were ready to film, it was the next morning.

Due to the lack of room, the five of them squeezed into two rooms. During this time, Lu Chu hadn’t found an opportunity to talk alone with either 7 or Song Gui.

The next morning, after breakfast, Song Gui used the excuse that he wanted Lu Chu to be his assistant for a while, assuring the elderly woman they would pay him fairly. He took Lu Chu along as they carried their equipment to the abandoned courtyard.

Lu Chu asked curiously, “What kind of movie are you shooting?”

Apart from Song Gui, Yang Cheng was the most talkative of the group. He laughed and whispered mysteriously to Lu Chu, “We’re filming… a ghost story.”

Yang Cheng, though honest and simple in appearance, had an outgoing personality and loved to tease others. He Ming De, who had a scholarly look and demeanor, pushed up his glasses and said to Yang Cheng, “Stop scaring the kid.”

Li Jia Peng, who was easy-going, also chimed in, “Yeah, yeah.”

As they chatted, they arrived at the classroom door.

A gust of wind blew, rustling the weeds and leaves, creating a spooky sound, and the classroom door creaked.

Yang Cheng remarked, “This place has quite the atmosphere.”

With that, Song Gui pushed open the door and led the way inside, followed by the others.

Lu Chu and 7 were the last to enter. As 7 passed by Lu Chu, he whispered, “Be careful.”

Lu Chu smiled and whispered back, “You too.”

After entering, Song Gui, like Lu Chu had done before, searched the classroom, flipping through the piles of ungraded homework on the teacher’s desk and pulling out a few keys. “The atmosphere is great. Let’s check out the other two rooms.”

They first opened the office, and a mix of dust and decay hit them, causing them to cough. The office was cluttered. Song Gui looked around, casually chatting with the others while discreetly searching through the items.

In front of the others, Lu Chu was just an assistant chosen by Song Gui, so it wouldn’t be appropriate for him to search openly. He watched Song Gui while the others curiously examined the room.

“Do you have any actors for your movie?” Lu Chu, knowing they were teammates, steered the conversation to give Song Gui more time to search without seeming too conspicuous.

Yang Cheng, who enjoyed teasing Lu Chu, joked, “We haven’t found the right people yet. How about you be our lead? You might become a big star and thank us someday.”

Lu Chu quickly shook his head, “I really can’t do that.”

Yang Cheng continued to joke, “You’re young, but let me tell you something important. Never say you can’t do something.”

Li Jia Peng nudged Yang Cheng, “Get back to work. Stop messing around.”

He Ming De patted Lu Chu, “We’re shooting a documentary, so we don’t need a lead actor. The more real, the better. We might interview people in the village, and maybe even you. Who knows, you might become a star.”

7, as usual, was quiet, staying aside and fiddling with the camera, seemingly uninterested in the conversation.

While they chatted, Song Gui had finished his search. Lu Chu noticed him discreetly pocketing something, likely a clue.

Next, they opened the room Guo Jianping had used for lodging.

Although Guo Jianping had only stayed there when he first arrived, it was clear the room was used frequently, despite being dirty and filled with dust. It contained seasonal clothing, daily necessities, and even some female items.

Yang Cheng joked, “I heard this village had strange events, which is why we chose it for filming. I heard about the incident twenty years ago. Supposedly, the man who died mysteriously was always thinking about his first wife. Men often value what they can’t have.”

The others didn’t comment.

After exploring this room, Song Gui, as the director, suggested, “Let’s film the daytime scenes here. We’ll come back tonight for some eerie night shots.”

Everyone agreed and got to work.

After filming, they returned home and had a quick lunch before heading to the village head’s house for the first interview.

The village head, inexperienced with cameras, felt awkward at first but soon settled down.

Song Gui began the interview, asking, “How long have you been the village head?”

“Over ten years.”

“How is the current situation in the village?”

“Not bad. Young people have left to seek opportunities…”

“…”

They continued the interview, and then Song Gui asked, “Have any strange events happened in the village?”

“Strange events?”

Song Gui smiled, “We’re curious about such stories. They make our film more interesting.”

“I see…” the village head said, sharing some local folklore.

Hearing no mention of the incident they were interested in, Yang Cheng, impatient, interrupted, “Do you know what happened in the village twenty years ago?”

At the mention of “twenty years ago,” the village head’s expression changed. He sighed, “Indeed, something strange happened back then, but it’s all in the past. You young people are curious, but it’s best not to dig too deep.”

Yang Cheng wanted to ask more, but Song Gui stopped him.

Song Gui politely thanked the village head and packed up the equipment.

On the way back, Yang Cheng asked, “Why didn’t you let me finish? The more secretive they are, the more interesting it gets. We can’t miss out on such good material.”

He Ming De answered for Song Gui, “We’re not just here for a day. We have plenty of time. If the village head doesn’t want to talk, we can ask others. We can’t risk being kicked out because of this.”

Li Jia Peng added, “Besides, we need to prepare for tonight’s shoot. That abandoned courtyard is creepy. Whether you believe in ghosts or not, it’s better to be safe than sorry.”

Lu Chu didn’t join their conversation but glanced at 7, who nodded at him, reassuringly.

For some reason, Lu Chu felt at ease.