Chapter 138: It’s a Trap—All Forty Gigabytes Are Nothing but In the Night Garden!

Silence. Awkwardness. This was embarrassing to the extreme.

"Damn, wrong place?" Old Wang blurted out. He stood up immediately. "Sorry, we might be at the wrong banquet."

Though he appeared calm, internally, Old Wang was kicking himself. He had neglected to confirm whether it was a funeral or a wedding banquet before entering—a basic mistake he should never have made. Damn, at least he’d been slow enough not to pull out his plastic bags for leftovers, or he’d never have been able to explain that.

Hearing this, the others sat back down. Since they were at the wrong place, it was a non-issue. The two men slunk out of the lobby.

"Brother Wang, let's just call it a day. Tell me what you want to eat, and I'll treat. Money is no object." Bai Qingming wanted to give up, but Old Wang wouldn't hear of it.

"Don't be like that, brother. Trust me one more time. I’ll definitely get you into a banquet." This wasn't a failure, he reasoned; it was just a bit of carelessness. Next time—next time he would definitely succeed.

Insisting, Old Wang led them to the second floor. As soon as they reached the top of the stairs, they were met with a loud, chaotic din. On the right was a banquet hall; on the left was the hotel’s residential wing, a long corridor lined with guest rooms.

"Brother, wait here. Let me go scout the situation." Having learned his lesson, Old Wang left Bai Qingming behind and headed toward the crowd. Before leaving, he handed his live-streaming phone to Bai Qingming, asking him to keep the stream running for a while.

Bai Qingming waited and waited, but Old Wang didn't return. Bored, he wandered a few steps into the guest corridor on the left. It was broad daylight, and there were few guests checked in. Just as he reached the middle of the hallway, he heard a strange sound.

"Ah..."
"Don't..."
"I beg you..."
"I can't take it anymore..."

The whimpering was accompanied by a woman’s cries.

Bai Qingming’s nerves tightened instantly. Subconsciously, he thought someone was calling for help. Just as he hesitated about whether to call the police, the live stream’s chat section exploded.

"Suggest the streamer go check it out, someone might need help!"
"Exactly, the way she’s crying is so pathetic, she must be waiting for someone to save her."
"Helping others is our duty. Don't hesitate, streamer, go knock on the door! One second later and it might be a matter of life and death."
"Guys, I’m done."
"???"

While the viewers were chatting heatedly, the woman's voice suddenly changed.

"Hmm..."
"Ah..."
"Oh..."
"Harder!"

The pace intensified until the woman let out a loud cry, like someone suffering from constipation finally finding relief, and then fell silent.

In an instant, it clicked for Bai Qingming. These viewers were truly wicked. He had almost called the police. It turned out he’d stumbled upon someone getting lucky. That said, the woman’s voice was quite pleasant. Thinking this, Bai Qingming couldn't help but walk toward the source of the sound. He spotted a hotel room door that wasn't locked, just left slightly ajar.

"Well, they didn't even lock the door in broad daylight. No wonder it was so loud."

No sooner had Bai Qingming finished speaking than the door swung open. Luckily, it wasn't because someone was coming out, but rather a draft that pushed the door wider.

At this moment, the viewers in the live stream grew excited. Could they be about to see something good? Just as everyone collectively had the same thought and began hunting for tissues to handle their "traditional arts," *click!*

The screen went black. A single line appeared: "This live stream has been temporarily suspended for violating platform regulations!"

As the text appeared, countless users began to curse.
"Damn it, just a second away!"
"I was almost there, and you tell me this?"
"Super-moderator, come out here, I promise I won't kill you!"
"Brothers, I’ve got hundreds of deepfake celebrity videos, five bucks a pack, DM me."
"Trash, you're charging for that? Here's a cloud link, 40GB of torrents, help yourselves!"
"You deserve to find a girlfriend!"
"Stop, everyone, don't download it, it's a trap! All 40GB is just *In the Night Garden*!"

...

On the other side, Bai Qingming stared at the black screen on Old Wang’s phone, feeling dazed. He hadn't done anything! The door had just cracked open, and he hadn't seen a thing. Why the ban?

"Forget it. It’s Old Wang’s channel anyway, and it's only temporary," Bai Qingming thought.

Just then, a conversation drifted from the room.
"I have to go. The wedding is starting soon; I'm the bride, and everyone is waiting for me."
"What's the rush? The wedding isn't for another hour. By the way, your husband doesn't know you're pregnant with my child, does he?"
"He knows, but I lied and told him it’s his."
"Well played."
"Of course. The only reason I'm marrying him is because you said you liked married women. Otherwise, he’s not good enough for me. Besides, honest fools like him deserve to be cuckolded."
"Put this inside and don't take it out. I want to see you wearing it during the wedding."
"You're so bad~ I love it."

The sound of clothes being put on followed. The amount of information in that conversation was so massive that Bai Qingming couldn't process it for a moment. Just then, the door was pulled open from the inside, and a woman in a wedding dress stepped out.

Bai Qingming quickly pretended to be just passing by. Upon seeing him, she nearly wet herself, thinking her husband had come to catch her in the act. Realizing it wasn't her husband, she breathed a sigh of relief, patted her chest, and walked away in her high heels. For some reason, Bai Qingming noticed her walking posture was strange, as if she were clenching something between her legs.

Mulling over the conversation, Bai Qingming absentmindedly returned to where he was supposed to meet Old Wang. Just then, a man walked past him, headed toward the guest rooms. As he passed, something fell from him onto the carpet without a sound. The man didn't notice and kept walking toward the lobby.

Bai Qingming turned and saw the object on the floor. It was a tiny, tiny remote control. It had only three buttons, each with a small label: *Speed Up, Pause, Slow Down.*