Ning Hangyi: A game that must be fouled

Chapter 5 "A Game That Must Foul (Second Season)"

Nan Tian half leaned on the bed, with his hands behind his head, looking at the gray and white ceiling without any decoration, secretly surprised.

To his surprise, there were two things.

The first is that, in less than four days from the day he entered (or "brought into") this closed space to the present, he has burst out due to various hints or inspirations around him. There are actually more creative inspirations than those produced in the past one or two years.The special environment he is in now is like a machine that provides inspiration for horror and suspense novels-various story ideas are constantly produced like documents at the exit of a printer, requiring him to use his brain to catch them.Nan Tian felt that his mind was almost overwhelmed. He was often overwhelmed by the frame of another story before he finished thinking about it.Fortunately, he has a pen and a stack of paper by his side, allowing him to record all the ideas that come up——

A young couple loves each other so much that the wife sleeps with her husband every night.But after an accident, his wife's face was completely disfigured.No advanced medical technology can make her have the beautiful face before.The wife's heart became as distorted as her face, and she paranoidly asked her husband to fall asleep looking at her face every night-to prove that he still loved her as before.The husband had nightmares because of this, but he chose to suffer in silence.After a period of time, the husband gradually discovered that some unbelievable changes were taking place on his wife's face...

Several young people make an appointment to explore an old house that is said to be haunted, and they bring a video camera.After staying in the dark "haunted house" for a while, someone deliberately joked and pretended to see a ghost.Several people ran out, only to find that the turned on camera was left there.No one dared to go back to get it, so they had to wait until the next morning to get it.As a result, the person who retrieved the camera found that the camera had inadvertently recorded some horrible things...

The hero's family was murdered at home, all of them were killed, and only a black cat at home witnessed the murder.The police have no clue about solving the case.While the hero is grieving, he suddenly thinks of a crazy and bizarre method, planning to use the cat to find out the truth...

……

After recording all the story ideas, Nan Tian let out a sigh of relief.He reviewed it and found that each of these frameworks is a good story when it is expanded.As the storyteller on the last night, Nan Tian thinks he still has certain advantages—he can conceive many stories before, and finally choose one that is completely different from the previous ones to tell.

Looking at the pen and paper in his hand, Nan Tian suddenly thought - could these things be prepared for them by the "sponsor" for this purpose?Could it be that the sponsor had long anticipated such a situation?
Thinking of that mysterious "sponsor", Nan Tian shuddered in his heart—what kind of person is this?What kind of terrifying opponent was he and 12 others facing together?
This person can "get" 13 suspense writers (including celebrities such as Chris, Araki, Moby Dick, and Goth) into such a deserted prison without anyone knowing, and illegally detain them.They also want these people to play a cruel "game" with the rules he (she) made.He (she) knows all the guests he has invited, and he (she) is full of confidence in himself - he (she) blatantly informs everyone that he (she) is among the 14 people; The person who wins the game is himself (her), and no one else can leave alive.This person is daring, lawless, and behind his crazy actions, there is an incomparable calmness and cunning—otherwise, how could they still not be able to distinguish this person hidden beside them and appearing in front of everyone every day? Who is the "sponsor"?What is his real purpose?Everything is a mystery.

What's even more frightening is that the "rules of the game" made by this person-the following stories must not have any similarities in concept or plot with the previous stories.This rule seems not difficult to implement, but the reality is that the first three people who have told the story so far—Yu Chicheng, Xu Wen, and Xia Houshen—have violated this rule without exception!And, each fouled in ways that were simply unimaginable!Yu Chicheng, who told the story on the first night, had turned into a cold corpse, and was "out" in this horrible way—the remaining two offenders, although they are still alive, don't need to think about it. What will become of nervousness and fear.

Judging from all the things that have happened so far, if this mysterious sponsor is not a person with superpowers or ghostly magic powers, then he must be a dangerous character with high IQ, extremely meticulous mind and cruel character.Whether it is Nan Tian or the other 12 suspense novel writers, this sponsor will be their strongest opponent and the biggest challenge in their lives.

Thinking of this, Nan Tian was secretly excited, even his blood boiled - this was the second thing he was surprised by.It stands to reason that in his current state, fear, depression and helplessness should be more in his emotions, but why—he couldn't figure it out himself—he was more excited, excited, and even... Still have some expectations?

Do others feel the same way?Or is it just me?Nantian is unknown.But no matter what, I will definitely do my best in this extremely challenging and exciting game. I want to win—he secretly ruthlessly—not only to get out of here and escape, but also to prove myself.He took another look at the story ideas that had been put on paper—for the wonderful stories, for my wit and my talent.

He was so engrossed in his thoughts that even the sound of knocking on the door failed to disturb his thoughts. It wasn't until the man stepped up his efforts that he realized that someone was knocking on the door.

"Who is it?" Nan Tian asked alertly and stood up.

"I, Ryoma."

Nan Tian judged that it was indeed the voice of Long Ma, and he opened the door.

"It's time for dinner." Ryoma stood at the door and said, "Let's gather in the lobby."

Nan Tian glanced at the electronic watch on his wrist. It was 10 minutes to six o'clock, and his heart skipped a beat—the time for that "game" was coming again.Whose turn is it tonight?

"Today we have to go down earlier." Ryoma said.

"why?"

Long Ma looked at the southern sky. "Did you forget? The story of 'Riddled Dream' hasn't been graded yet."

Nan Tian let out a "huh".He remembered that they gathered together this morning and planned to rate the story Xia Houshen told last night, but something unexpected happened[3]... Afterwards, Xia Houshen returned to his room in a daze, The door was closed.The rest of the people were also shrouded in clouds, and the matter of scoring was not mentioned for the time being.Now after a few hours, everyone seems to calm down a bit, realizing that the game is going to go on no matter what.They have no choice, not in the first place.

Nan Tian walked out of the room and looked down from the second floor. Eight or nine people had already gathered in the hall on the first floor.What surprised him was that Xu Wen, who had previously announced that he would not continue to participate in the game, was also below, and sat in his seat ahead of time.

Nan Tian was curious: "Didn't Mr. Xu Wen say that he didn't want to participate? Why did he come down again?"

Longma said: "Think about it, he didn't come down to listen to Xia Houshen's 'mysterious dream' last night, and ended up getting himself into trouble and getting into a disadvantageous situation. He obviously didn't want to arouse any doubts and misunderstandings , only continue to participate.”

"This is an inescapable game." Nan Tian sighed, "No one can escape unscathed."

The two walked up the stairs to the first floor, after which Qianqiu and Dark Fire also came down the stairs.The remaining 13 people have gathered again.Everyone seemed to be still immersed in the panic and tension of the morning, and they didn't say much to each other.Everyone silently went to the cupboard to get something to eat for dinner.

Nan Tian only took a bag of bread and a bottle of purified water, he just wanted to fill his stomach and that was enough.Just after taking a few bites of bread, Sajia walked towards him, holding an opened can of sardines in her hand, and said to Nan Tian, ​​"Let's have some fish."

"Thank you." Nan Tian said politely, but did not take the canned fish. "I'll just eat the bread."

"It's not nutritious."

Who cares about nutrition at a time like this?Nan Tian smiled wryly, then pointed to Xia Houshen who was squatting in the corner with his back to them, and said, "I'm fine. Mr. Xiahou is more to worry about. You see, he didn't take anything to eat, he only drank a little Water. It looks like he has no appetite at all. Sajia, you might as well persuade him to eat this can."

Saka persistently held the can of sardines, looking a little displeased. "I can't control everyone...I, hope you eat it."

Nan Tian is not a piece of wood. In fact, he has also noticed before that Sajia seems to have a good impression of him and always takes extra care of himself.Seeing that Sajia insisted on him eating the can, he stopped pushing, took it, and said, "Okay, thank you."

Saka turned and left with satisfaction.She said that she couldn't take care of everyone, so she went to get some food from the cabinet and walked to Xia Houshen's side.But Xia Houshen declined, it seems that what happened in the morning hit him hard.

While eating, Nan Tian secretly observed everyone in the hall.The organizer is in it, right in front of you!At the moment, I am eating with them as if nothing had happened!Thinking of this, Nan Tian felt itchy, but there was nothing he could do.

At about [-]:[-], everyone finished their meal and sat on the leather chairs in the hall one after another. The positions were the same as before, and it seemed that everyone's seats had been fixed.

Araki cleared his throat and said, "Before tonight's story begins, let's score the 'mysterious dream' that Xia Houshen told last night. As for the question we discussed earlier about the authenticity of this story, I There is no need to pursue it any further. If you think it is true, then treat it as true; if you don’t believe it, just treat it as a fictional story and rate it.” He looked at the middle-aged man next to him, “Mr. Xiahou, Don't you have an opinion?"

"Whatever you want." Xia Houshen said weakly.It can be seen that he no longer cares so much about the scores he gets.What he cares most about now is not whether he can win, but whether he can live——leave here alive.

"Okay then, let's start scoring now." Arakaki said.

Like the previous few times, Beidou went to the cabinet to take out a pair of signature pens and a stack of white paper, and distributed them to everyone next to each other.Since Longma relayed the story of Mimeng to Xu Wenting who was not present last night, he also participated in the scoring.

Ryoma and Beidou are responsible for the final statistics of the scores scored by the 12 suspense novel writers.Under the watchful eyes of everyone, they calculated the final average score of Xia Houshen's "Mystery Dream" - 8.4 points.

Xia Houshen snorted, obviously dissatisfied with the result, but he didn't say much.

Nan Tian silently wrote down the current scores of the three on a piece of paper——

On the first night, Yu Chicheng (already dead): 8.8 points

The second night Xu Wen: 8.7 points

Xia Houshen on the third night: 8.4 points

When it was close to seven o'clock, everyone's eyes were on Lake, who was going to tell the story tonight.

At this time, Lake's brows were tightly furrowed, his face was pale, and he looked a little nervous and anxious—it's no wonder that the three storytellers in front violated the "rules of the game" without exception.How could he remain unhurried?
Seeing Lake's restless look, Beluga Whale couldn't help worrying about him, and asked, "Lake, have you thought about the story yet?"

Lake looked up at the white whale.Everyone was looking at him at the same time.Lake glanced at everyone, and said something surprising: "I... haven't thought it through yet."

"What?" Ryoma was taken aback, and he looked at his watch. "It's five minutes to seven, what story are you not ready to tell?"

"You don't want to abstain, do you?" Araki Zhou stared at him and asked.

"No, that's not what I meant." Lake tightened his jaw, showing some hesitation. "I prepared a story...I said I didn't think about it, which means that I didn't fully predict the ending of this story, including some plots in the middle. I can only improvise and supplement it after I start telling it for a while. use up……"

What he said shocked everyone present.The handsome "idol writer" Gott put his slender fingers to his lips, and asked worriedly: "Aren't you afraid that if you improvise, there will be bottlenecks or loopholes in the middle, and it will be difficult to justify yourself in the end?"

Lake didn't speak, but bit his lips even tighter.

"Forget it, let's not put pressure on Lake." Beidou said in a sympathetic tone, "Think about it, to conceive a wonderful suspenseful story in such a short period of time, but also to ensure that it does not repeat the previous story, This is already a very difficult thing. If it were me, I might not be able to think it through completely. Lake, don’t panic, tell the story clearly slowly, and just try to play it well.”

When Beidou said this, Chris, who was sitting diagonally across from him, burst out laughing.All eyes were on him.

Qian Qiu asked in a charming voice: "Little genius, what are you laughing at?"

Chris had a shrewd smile on his face. "Do you think Lake is incapable of conceiving a complete story? That would be too naive."

Everyone froze for a moment, including Lake himself.Sajia asked puzzledly: "Then what do you mean? He deliberately didn't think through the story completely?"

Chris stared at Lake and asked, "What do you think, Lake? Am I right?"

Lake lowered his eyes, opened his lips slightly, looked directly at Chris, and did not speak.

Beidou felt that they were playing charades, which puzzled him, and he couldn't help asking: "What do you mean? Can you explain clearly? Why did Lake purposely not complete the story? Is there any point in doing so?"

Seeing that Lake hadn't spoken, Chris said, "Let me explain—the three people who told the story before had all thought about the story beforehand. But after they finished telling the story, they found that Something similar to the story I told has already happened around me before."

Having said that, Xia Houshen and Xu Wen shuddered at the same time. They stared at Chris with wide eyes, looking terrified.

The 18-year-old genius boy continued: "So, Lake came up with a method, that is - even he himself doesn't know some specific plots and endings of the story he is telling! The idea! He believes that only in this way can the similarities between the story and the real experience be avoided!"

The people present were so shocked by Chris's explanation that they didn't speak for a long time.After a long silence, Gott asked in horror: "According to what you think, even what we imagined in our hearts may be leaked? If this is the case, who is this 'sponsor'?"

No one can answer this question.Beidou eagerly asked another question: "Lake, do you really think so?"

Lake no longer hides his inner thoughts, he admitted: "Yes, that's what I planned." He looked at Chris with some admiration, "As expected of a genius boy with an IQ above 150, even my thoughts like this You can see it all."

"Thank you. You can come up with such a method, and you have the courage and ability to take on this kind of challenge, which proves that you are not an ordinary person." Chris's words are quite meaningful. "If it wasn't for this, we probably wouldn't have discovered that you, who have been unknown all this time, are actually not mediocre."

Everyone heard the strong hint in Chris's words, and everyone looked suspiciously at Lake like a spotlight.Lake immediately became unnatural. He twisted his body uneasily, and he didn't dare to look at anyone: "What do you mean by saying that? You don't doubt that I am..."

At this time, someone suddenly changed the subject and pointed at Chris: "Why do you know Lake so well, Chris? You have only been with him for three days, how can you guess what he is thinking?"

The speaker is Nan Tian.

Chris was taken aback. He obviously didn't expect the situation to reverse so quickly, and now everyone's eyes were on him again.But he did not show any embarrassment, but replied calmly: "It's not surprising, I read a book written by Lake before, and it was called "Dark Dust". At that time, I knew that this author must be not simple, no The kind of general."

"Why didn't you say it at the beginning?" Nan Tian asked, "Why didn't you tell Lake that you had read his book before?"

"Is it necessary?" Chris asked back, "Why do I have to say it?"

"Have you read the books of our other authors?" Araki asked in an interrogative tone, narrowing his eyes, "Do you know us well?"

Chris shook his head, smiling slightly. "I didn't expect that I would be interrogated. Many of you are well-known and influential writers. I have read your books. Is this strange? You must have read each other's works, right?" .It would be far-fetched to use this as a reason to judge the 'sponsor'."

"Chris, in fact, I just asked why you know Lake so well. I didn't say that I suspected you as the organizer. You don't have to be so sensitive." Nan Tian said.

Chris shrugged. "But Mr. Araki Shune seems to have this meaning, so I just have to explain it."

At this time, Ryoma looked at his watch and reminded: "It's already five past seven, anyway, let's listen to Lake tell his story first."

"Are you sure?" Darkfire asked.

"I believe in my ability," Lake said. "To tell you the truth, I have been able to improvise stories since I was a child. Even if I were asked to make up one impromptu, I wouldn't feel embarrassed. Besides, I still have some ideas for this story. Yes, it is a suspenseful story with a strong atmosphere of horror, I believe it will not let you down."

An elusive smile flickered across Chris' lips.

Lake began:
"The title of the story is 'The Psychic'."

(*Every story told has a significant bearing on what happened next.)
(End of this chapter)