Blood spread on the ground. Painful whimpers sounded like crying. The streetlight near the trash bin was bright. Everything was still in the white falling snow.
Su Baixue stood there.
White breath dispersed in the air.
Near the garbage collection point in the old neighborhood stood several large green trash bins. In the cold winter, they weren't very smelly, but still filthy and messy.
A person lay there abruptly beside the trash bin.
Su Baixue could hardly believe her eyes.
The first thing that came to her mind was the news Su Cui had told her.
"There's a gang of criminals who often lie beside trash bins holding knives."
Lying beside the trash—matches!
Su Baixue took a step back.
"And they prepare blood packets!"
Su Baixue looked at the blood on the ground.
Blood—is it a blood packet?
Matches again!
She took another step back, her legs trembling.
"They trick people into coming closer to scam money. For safety, don't go out alone to throw away trash recently!"
The time on her phone had passed midnight!
She was alone now!
A trash bin!
Was this person on the ground about to jump up and hurt her???
Su Baixue was terrified.
She couldn't help but shiver, her teeth chattering.
Go away, go away.
Su Baixue tightened her grip on the umbrella handle. She no longer thought about throwing away the trash; the trash she had picked up now seemed troublesome. She decided to take it home and throw it in her own trash can!
She backed away step by step. After moving two meters away, she turned and ran two steps.
A very weak voice came from behind.
"Help..."
Su Baixue shuddered and sprinted toward her building. Perhaps the sound of her footsteps on the snow made the person by the trash bin move.
"Help! Save me... I don't want to die!" The person lying by the trash bin raised his voice a bit.
His voice wasn't loud.
But the old neighborhood was even quieter.
On such a snowy night, perhaps the sound of dew falling on leaves could be heard clearly.
Su Baixue's soul was being tested.
She didn't look back. She rushed straight into the stairwell. The motion-sensor light flickered on with a buzz.
She stepped onto the stairs but stopped.
But that cry for "Help" echoed in Su Baixue's heart.
If he really was a thug, why didn't he chase her? If he had chased her, Su Baixue felt she wouldn't outrun him. And the snow on her nose made it especially cold and sharp; she could smell the metallic scent of blood.
What if he wasn't a fraud?
Su Baixue couldn't help but think.
She poked her head out of the stairwell. Her long hair lay softly on her shoulders. Her hesitant gaze fell on the light near the trash bin not far away.
Because she kept still, the motion-sensor light went out.
"Hey!"
Just as the light went out, a voice said from close behind.
A very close voice.
Su Baixue held her breath and whirled around. Seeing who it was, she let out a big breath.
The motion-sensor light came back on!
"Xiao Qin!" Su Baixue patted her chest. "...You scared me to death."
"You scared me to death!" Xiao Qin was genuinely frightened. "You were hiding in the stairwell with your neck stretched out. If someone passed by and saw a head poking out of the dark doorway, they'd be scared senseless!"
Su Baixue smiled apologetically.
With someone else around, she felt braver.