HP - Chapter 14

Thank you Elaina for the Ko-fi 😄

Since this is the first Ko-fi we've received, there will be another bonus chapter! (1/2)

Typhoon Night Murder Files 09

Water pooled across the bathroom floor, and droplets fell from the showerhead with a steady “drip—drip” sound.

The beam of a flashlight shone out, illuminating the scene at the sink.

Lin Huaiping lay slumped over the sink, his entire face submerged in the water. Steam billowed up from the basin—it was boiling.

People who had arrived one after another stood by the door, finding the scene utterly horrifying.

Mu Xingchao turned and stopped Xu Shuangyuan, who was approaching, saying in a low voice, “Don’t look.”

Xu Shuangyuan’s face was stricken with fear, and she halted. “I heard Xu Hangjia’s scream... Lin Huaiping, he...?”

Mu Xingchao said gravely, “He was held down in boiling water.”

Several boys carried Lin Huaiping to the floor.

Although hope was slim, Zhou Zhi, as a medical professional, still dutifully performed CPR.

Everyone’s gaze unconsciously avoided Lin Huaiping’s face. His face was scalded from the boiling water—a grotesque, horrifying sight.

In the end, Zhou Zhi had no choice but to give up.

Although he and Lin Huaiping had been at odds not long before, seeing Lin Huaiping die so tragically before his eyes—who could bear it?

Liang Qing said emotionally, “The killer’s target isn’t just one person!”

Everyone quietly exited Lin Huaiping’s room and gathered in the first-floor living room.

Everyone sat in stunned silence, still reeling from the horror. They almost intentionally kept some distance from each other.

After all, the killer who had already murdered two people was sitting among them, and no one was sure whether they would be next.

The first to speak was Xu Shuangyuan, who asked, “I stayed in my room until I heard Xu Hangjia’s scream before leaving. Were you the first to discover it?”

“Not my sister, it was me.” Xu Hangquan looked dazed. “Regarding Jiang Zhi, I still had some questions I wanted to clarify with Lin Huaiping... I knocked for a long time… I thought he was ignoring me on purpose, so I angrily pushed the handle—didn’t expect it to be unlocked… I went in… I heard water sounds in the bathroom and thought he was smoking in there… The room was dark, so I turned on my phone’s light and walked over, but I didn’t expect...”

He described it slowly, likely because the impact of what he had just seen was so intense that it blurred his memory.

Xu Hangjia, pale, added, “I knew my brother was going to find Lin Huaiping, and I was afraid they might fight, so I followed…”

As for the others, some, like Xu Shuangyuan, had come because they heard Xu Hangjia’s scream; others had been completely unaware of the commotion outside until Ji Zhou knocked on their doors.

Xu Shuangyuan said with lingering fear, “If Xu Hangquan hadn’t happened to want to talk to Lin Huaiping, we probably wouldn’t have found out until tomorrow morning... Who knows what other accidents might have happened in the meantime?”

Everyone couldn’t help but imagine themselves dying silently in the dark, perhaps not even knowing who the killer was—it was truly terrifying.

Just then, Liang Qing’s voice rang out: “Can everyone be sure Xu Hangquan isn’t lying?”

His sparse, faint eyebrows looked somewhat distorted in the candlelight, and his downturned eyes brought out the darkness in his expression.

Hearing this, Xu Hangquan’s face changed. “What do you mean? You think I did it?”

Suddenly, someone cut in: “Doesn’t Lin Huaiping usually lock his door when he sleeps?” It was Ji Zhou’s voice.

Who would know for sure? But there was a small latch on the inside of the door—something people generally locked out of habit.

Liang Qing continued, “Xu Hangquan knocked on Lin Huaiping’s door—but unlike what he claimed, Lin Huaiping opened the door, and the two of them entered the room to talk. The conversation didn’t go well. After confirming that Lin Huaiping held a grudge against Jiang Zhi, Xu Hangquan carried out the killer’s plan. He brutally murdered Lin Huaiping, then left the room and pretended he had just knocked. Xu Hangjia might have sensed something, or maybe not—but either way, he’s her brother, so naturally, she’d take his side.”

Furious, Xu Hangquan jumped up from the sofa, ready to swing at Liang Qing, but his sister grabbed his arm tightly and held him back.

Liang Qing, even more pleased with his own theory, said smugly, “See? He’s furious because I hit a nerve!”

Just as he was gloating, he sensed a brief but unmistakable look of contempt cast in his direction. Though fleeting, he caught the source.

He turned to glare at Zhong Xu. “What kind of look was that?”

“The kind you give a dead man,” Zhong Xu said with a faint, ambiguous smile.

“You cursing me?”

“Weren’t you the one acting like, ‘I’ve got a big mouth—come kill me’?”

Liang Qing shot her an angry glare but held his tongue.

“Shouldn’t we rule out the girls first?” Xu Shuangyuan spoke up. “To hold a man down in boiling water—none of us girls has the strength to do that.”

“Not necessarily,” Liang Qing couldn’t resist interjecting again. “What if he was drugged unconscious first?”

“If someone was hiding nearby, waiting for Lin Huaiping to let his guard down before pushing him in... considering it was boiling water, he probably wouldn’t have had much strength left to fight back,” Mu Xingchao added. “Naturally, though, the odds are still higher for a man than a woman.”

“Let’s clarify a few things first.” Everyone’s eyes turned to Zhou Zhi as he raised a question. “Why was there boiling water at all? Didn’t the water and power go out?”

Ji Zhou raised his hand. “There are big bottles of mineral water in the guesthouse. I used the kitchen gas to boil some.”

Cui Shuying nodded, pointing to Zhong Xu. “I wanted to take a shower, and Song Musi told us there was mineral water. That’s why the water was boiled. Before going upstairs, I took a pot of it.”

Zhou Zhi couldn’t help but say, “So there was water? I wanted to shower too… How much did you boil?”

“I figured others might want hot showers too, so I boiled extra—filled five thermoses,” Ji Zhou replied, then paused. “I just thought of something. I saw two thermoses in Lin Huaiping’s room. When I came downstairs earlier, I made a point to check the kitchen—now there’s not a single one left. I didn’t take any of them. So who else did? Or at least, who else knew about the hot water?”

“I took one,” said Xu Shuangyuan.

Mu Xingchao added, “I knew. After I finished talking with Xu Shuangyuan, she mentioned she’d heard there was hot water for showers. I watched her go into the kitchen and then went back to my room.”

“I knew too…”

Countless surprised eyes turned toward Xu Hangquan.

He looked both helpless and uncomfortable. “I originally came downstairs to get some drinking water and happened to see the hot water. So I brought a pot upstairs for my sister to wash up.”

Xu Hangjia nodded to confirm this, and then spoke up in defense of her brother: “None of this proves anything. Anyone could lie—pretend they didn’t know when they did, say they didn’t take water when they did. Someone could’ve even taken more than one pot.”

“What I want to know now,” Ji Zhou asked dejectedly, “is whether the killer will strike again.”

Zhong Xu had no idea where Ji Zhou’s misplaced sense of trust came from. Aside from the Xu siblings, who were bound by blood, everyone else was watching each other warily—yet he always insisted on staying close to her.

Did he actually think she was some kind of veteran player?

“Have you seen And Then There Were None?” Zhong Xu said in a low, almost ominous voice, clearly intending to frighten him. “There’s a high chance the killer wants us all dead.”

Ji Zhou didn’t reply. He just silently shifted his position—getting even closer to her.

Just as Zhong Xu was about to scoot away in irritation, she felt a gaze land on her.

"Actually, one person is more suspicious."

She turned and met Mu Xingchao’s eyes—others were starting to look at her as well.

Mu Xingchao spoke calmly: “No one here knows Buji Island—or this guesthouse—better than you. You were the one who invited everyone here. You were involved in the dinner that caused Luo Fang’s fatal allergic reaction. The fork that injured Lin Huaiping in the living room? You bought it. You were also present when the hot water was being boiled. All of that… is a little too convenient.”

Before he could even finish, Liang Qing eagerly jumped in, “And you were best friends with Jiang Zhi! This is all about getting revenge for her, isn’t it?”

Zhong Xu didn’t even have time to respond. The person beside her suddenly stood up, blocking her with their body and saying coldly to Liang Qing, “You really have no fear of dying, do you? Throwing out accusations like that. We’re all suspects—you included.”

“Oh? Playing the hero now?” Liang Qing sneered. “What suspicion could I possibly have?”

“I don’t know if you had a motive to kill Luo Fang or Lin Huaiping, but I do know you harbored deep resentment toward Jiang Zhi,” Ji Zhou said icily. “The award-winning photo series Jiang Zhi submitted was about your mother. You were furious about it. You even said, once, that you wished she was dead.”

A collective shift rippled through the room—everyone’s expressions changed.

Liang Qing hadn’t expected him to know that. His gaze instantly darkened.

“When Jiang Zhi first took photos of my mom and proposed entering them into the competition, I flat-out refused. My mom became permanently disabled after an accident. Life’s already been hard enough for us—we didn’t want people to see us in that miserable state. But she went behind my back and brought money to my mom, convincing her to sign a portrait release! Like I needed her damn money. What kind of person uses a classmate’s suffering to win awards? She was never a good person to begin with.”

Mu Xingchao said evenly, “Jiang Zhi was in the wrong there, no doubt. But I don’t think that alone is enough for you to want to kill her.”

“Don’t defend me!” Liang Qing suddenly snapped, his voice rising, as if something inside him had snapped entirely. “Of all the people here, you’re the most hypocritical! You had money, but you kept making excuses to delay helping me. Because of that, we couldn’t afford proper treatment in time, and my mom ended up permanently disabled! The doctors said if we’d acted sooner, it wouldn’t have turned out like this. You did it on purpose, didn’t you? You wanted to see me panic, to see me humiliated. You’re rotten at your core!”

Cui Shuying stared at him in disbelief. “And that’s your conclusion? Based on what—your own assumptions? He tried to help you, and you accuse him of causing it? That’s like the dog biting Lü Dongbin…”*

“You’re suddenly speaking up for Mu Xingchao now?” Liang Qing turned on her with a mocking tone. “You’re not even related by blood. Weren’t you always saying how much you hated him?”

“Oh, I see. Now that you’ve realized you’re useless in the Mu family and will have to rely on Mu Xingchao to keep your rich-girl lifestyle, you’re trying to cozy up to him? No wonder Jiang Zhi kept lecturing you. Honestly, you deserved those lectures.”

“You’re unbelievable,” Cui Shuying trembled with rage, gritting her teeth. “Are you trying to make everyone your enemy?”

“Well, if I end up dead, it’ll definitely be because of you people!”

Zhou Zhi tried to drag the group out of this spiraling mess. He cleared his throat and turned to Ji Zhou. “This clue—where did you get it?”

“From an extra task,” Ji Zhou answered bluntly.

Everyone’s expressions shifted in response.

Even Zhong Xu was surprised.

She hadn’t expected Ji Zhou to step in and take a blow for her—much less reveal information gained from a bonus task. Everyone else had been hoarding theirs like treasure.

The game rules had made it clear: if the killer learned too much, it could very well put you in danger.

She couldn’t tell if he was being naive… or just plain stupid.

Wait—did he actually think something like “honesty is the best weapon” would move her? That she’d be touched enough to team up with him to solve the mystery?

Clearly, he hadn’t suffered enough.

A pleasant chime broke through the tense silence—the next round of evidence gathering had begun.

Mu Xingchao had already stood up, his probing gaze locked onto Zhong Xu.

“This round,” he said, “I vote for Song Musi.”

1. 心肺复苏 (Xīnfèi fùsū) - Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR)

2. 无人生还 (Wúrén shēnghuán) - The Chinese title for Agatha Christie's "And Then There Were None," directly referencing the classic murder mystery trope the story emulates.

3. 老玩家 (Lǎo wánjiā) - A "veteran player" or "old hand," a term from game culture used metaphorically to imply someone experienced with the "game" of solving murders.

4. 闺蜜 (Guīmì) - A "best friend" or "close confidante," specifically between females, indicating a deep personal relationship that could be a motive for revenge.

5. 狗咬吕洞宾 (Gǒu yǎo Lǚ Dòngbīn) – An idiom meaning to wrong or harm a well-intentioned person, similar to “biting the hand that feeds you.” It refers to Lü Dongbin, a famous Taoist immortal known for his kindness and wisdom. The phrase symbolizes someone who fails to recognize or appreciate goodwill and instead reacts with ingratitude or hostility.

6. 额(外)任务 (É(wài) rènwù) - (Extra) Task, a key game mechanic where players perform actions to earn additional clues, central to the interactive mystery plot structure.

7. 投...一票 (Tóu... yī piào) - "To vote for someone," a direct reference to the game-like process of accusing and eliminating suspects.

Characters (Players)

• 终栩 (Zhōng Xǔ)

  • Role: Protagonist 

  • Game Role: Later assumes the identity of 宋慕思 (Sòng Mùsī), the idealistic guesthouse owner with a hidden agenda tied to her friend’s death.

• 季舟 (Jì Zhōu)

  • Role: Self-proclaimed "萌新" (newbie)

• 老玩家 (Lǎo Wánjiā, Veteran Player)

  • Role: Experienced survivor

• 瘦弱男人 (Shòuruò Nánrén, Thin Man)

  • Role: Terrified newbie

• 眼镜男 (Yǎnjìng Nán, Glasses Man)

  • Role: Silent observer

~~~~~~

• 宋慕思 (Sòng Mùsī) – The protagonist; a quiet, introspective young woman who organized the friends' gathering and owns the 民宿 (guesthouse). Hides complicated past relationships.

• 江栀 (Jiāng Zhī) – Outgoing and sociable; Song Musi’s close friend (闺蜜) but also entangled in a love triangle involving Sang Long.

• 崔书颖 (Cuī Shūyǐng) – Another extroverted friend in the trio; makes Song Musi feel like a third wheel at times.

• 桑隆 (Sāng Lóng) – Jiang Zhi’s current boyfriend and Song Musi’s ex; their past relationship is a hidden source of tension.

• 骆方 (Luò Fāng) – A timid, cowardly classmate whom Song Musi dislikes. Later revealed to have a peanut allergy. [Dead]

• 徐杭泉 (Xú Hángquán) & 徐杭佳 (Xú Hángjiā) – Self-centered siblings; both are classmates disliked by Song Musi.

• 周至 (Zhōu Zhì) – A smooth-talking, socially adept classmate (possibly a surgeon); Song Musi finds him insincere.

• 梁青 (Liáng Qīng) – An insecure and overly sensitive classmate; another person Song Musi dislikes.

• 牧星朝 (Mù Xīngcháo) – A hypocritical rich kid (富二代) with a photography hobby; Xu Shuangyuan’s boyfriend.

• 许双园 (Xǔ Shuāngyuán) – Proud and arrogant; Mu Xingchao’s girlfriend, whom Song Musi resents.

• 林怀平 (Lín Huáipíng) – Jiang Zhi’s cousin who joins the group through her; displays incompetent arrogance, disliked by Song Musi. [Dead]

• 陈警官 (Captain Chen) – A recently acquainted police detective; annoys Song Musi by replying slowly to messages.

Sevyn here ~~~

Went to update the character death and realized I was missing LHP and Captain Chen. Info about the characters were from when they were first introduced in ch7. Enjoy!