Chapter 69: Come, let me tell you a ghost story

  Dingdangdang, located five kilometers away from the old building where Yifeiyang and others took pictures on the highway, there is a small bar. This bar is mainly for the convenience of passing drivers and belongs to the type of highway restaurant.

  That day, a guy with a camera hanging from his neck, smoking a cigarette, with messy hair and a crooked tie, looked like one of those not-so-successful reporters.

  "Hey, buddy, get me a whiskey, yeah, with plenty of ice." The down-on-his-luck reporter said, waving his hand.

  Originally, as the most promising entertainment reporter for the newspaper, Ingrid could have easily and comfortably found material in the bustling Hollywood instead of coming to this desolate area with no outsiders or interview highlights.

  But who made him unlucky, bumping into the damn editor-in-chief and female secretary having an affair together. And he, out of habit as a journalist, couldn't help but spread the news. As a result, the editor-in-chief's wife came knocking on the door, slapping the female secretary and scolding her: "Whore!"

  In America, adultery, slander, insult and battery are basically a series of action plays.

  It's no wonder that the unluckiest one is the chief editor, who not only got scolded by his wife but also received a lawsuit from the lawyer, and to make matters worse, the secretary mistress even asked for economic compensation from him.

  The chief editor is a vengeful person, and towards Inger, he simply "loves" to death. As a result, the originally talented and promising guy was relegated to this marginal area, where he's either interviewing widows about their affairs or drivers who won't pay up, or it's just cats getting stuck in trees or stray dogs being run over by big trucks...

  "Damn it! Is this really my future?!" Ingel muttered gloomily as he drank his whiskey.

  Suddenly, a voice came from beside.

  "Hey buddy, can you buy me a drink?"

  The Englishman turned around and saw a black old man smiling at him, or rather, at the wine in his cup.

  "He's a drunkard." Ingel thought, ignoring him.

  That old black man, however, showed no signs of leaving, rubbed his nose and said: "Hey, you look like a reporter, right?"

  Ying'er let out a cold hum and didn't respond.

  The old black man chuckled again, with a mysterious air about him, and said: "Hey, buddy, don't be so cool... by the way, do you want some pretty good inside information?"

  "You also have explosive news?" Ingel looked at him with disdain and finally said a sentence.

  "Haha, I don't know if this news is good or not, but for you, it's just a loss of one cup of wine at most. Who knows, maybe you'll gain something unexpected." The old black man directly sat down beside Ingel with a plop.

  Yingge turned his thoughts over and suddenly snapped his fingers, calling out to the boss: "Give him a cup of wine too!"

  "Haha, thanks buddy! I don't need ice in mine, yeah, the purer the better, that's when it's got flavor!" The old black man's face lit up like a chrysanthemum.

  ……

  In an instant, "Wow, good wine, it's really strong!" The old black man wiped his mouth with relish, and a glass of whiskey was almost drained by him in one gulp.

  "This old man can hold his liquor." Engel thought. "Alright, friend, you've had a drink too, what's the scoop?"

  "Look, you're getting anxious, aren't you? Hehe. Actually, in this desolate mountain wilderness, there really isn't any good news... But, I heard that recently a film crew has been shooting at an old house nearby..."

  Ingle snorted, "A film crew shooting? Is that news? My God, don't you know this is Hollywood, where filming is a dime a dozen?" Ingle was now certain that this was just a drunk trying to scam a free drink. Damn it, he had actually believed him.

  "Haha, don't be in a hurry, my friend, I haven't finished speaking yet..." The old black man let out a belch and then leaned his old face close to Ingrid, whispering mysteriously: "You know, I heard that this film crew encountered a ghost while they were filming!"

  The last sentence made Engel involuntarily raise an eyebrow.

  Encountered a ghost?!

  Is this for real?!

  Ingelton suddenly became interested in this small rumor.

  As soon as Ingel perked up his ears, waiting for him to continue, the old black man cunningly shut his mouth and swirled his wine glass. "Wow, this wine is so good, unfortunately, it's all gone after just one sip..."

  Ingle pulled out a US dollar bill and said, "Boss, bring us another round!"

  ……

  With a refill of whiskey, the old black man savored a sip before releasing his intoxicated brow and said: "I also heard from someone that there was this film crew for 'Ghost Shadow Record' who came to shoot in an abandoned building nearby... then they encountered terrifying things... In the middle of the night, they heard someone secretly crying, white figures appeared on the windows, faucets would quietly flow water, and the power would suddenly go out in the room... In short, it's really scary, yeah, even I'm getting goosebumps now."

  "Hmph, these are just ordinary rumors, who knows if it's the crew themselves trying to create a stir." Engel was an experienced journalist, having seen and heard much. He had encountered crews before that claimed they "encountered ghosts" and invited him for interviews, all for the sake of publicity.

  "Oh no, no, no! Good Lord, you don't know about that, do you? That old building has a very scary legend." The black old man shook his head, "You know, a long time ago, someone actually died there!"

  "Has anyone died here?" Ingel's chilled heart warmed up again. Compared to that "ghostly" crew, this house with a history of death was more convincing. Moreover, Ingel was well aware that American readers were most interested in those "haunted houses", "haunted buildings", and "haunted villas". If what the old man said was true, it might just be possible to write something here after all.

  "What's this I hear?" Inger asked.

  "Ah, this is a long story." The old black man took a swig of strong liquor and then began to tell a frightening tale.

  The old building was originally built fifty years ago and has been rebuilt many times over the past decade. Legend has it that the owner who built this old house was a drug lord from Mexico who escaped to the United States. With his wealth, he built the house lavishly and secretly constructed an underground room where he hid his ill-gotten gains from smuggling. Later, the drug lord and his family were murdered, their bodies hidden away, allegedly by a hitman from Mexico seeking revenge for the stolen money... After that, the place became desolate. Occasionally, someone would rent it, but strange things kept happening: snakes, rats, and frogs kept appearing one after another; bloodstains often seeped out of the rooms and bathrooms; dark winds howled through the house, and eerie shadows loomed everywhere. No one who rented this place was not scared away...

  Can't help but say, this old black man tells stories really well, with a lot of feeling and flavor, and most importantly, he grasps the plot accurately. Even Inger, an old hand at arranging stories in newspapers, was attracted to him and couldn't help but listen.

  What a great ghost story... if it's true... countless thoughts flashed through Inger's mind.

  Why are Americans fond of "vampires", "zombies" and "werewolves"?

  To put it bluntly, they have a strong curiosity mentality.

  And this haunted house legend is just what readers are looking for.

  "Was everything you just said true?" Ingel asked the old black man, suppressing his excitement.

  "Oh, that? I said, I just heard... Yeah, buddy, I ain't never seen no ghost! Dammit, who knows what them spirits look like?" The old black man took a big swig of liquor.

  Ingrid was super interested, "Dear friend, can you help me with something?"

  "What?" The old black man stared at him, "Speak up, as long as it's something I can do, I'll definitely help you. Not for anything else, just because you treated me to these two cups of wine!"

  "I really want to go take a look at the scene, yeah, take a look at that old building you mentioned, huh, how about it? Can you help me?"

  "Well, anyway... it's not far from here, but I'm not going to get close to that damn place. Only those idiots would film there."

  ……

  Driving an old Ford car, the black old man took Inger to that old building.

  About a hundred meters away, the old black man said: "Look, it's that old building. See those moving figures? They're the film crew. Haha, this bunch of unlucky eggs has no idea what kind of place they've rented!"

  "Thank you so much, really, thank you!" Ingel got off the car, "I might be back in about an hour, can you pick me up?"

  "This..."

  Just as the old black man hesitated, Ingles handed over $50. "Help me out, buddy, it's hard to get a cab around here too, you can wait here for a bit and I'll be right back."

  "Ah, you're too polite! Go ahead, I'll just stay here and soak up the sun... it's not often we get good weather!" The old black man put the money in his pocket, kindly, benevolently, and with a smile said.

  "Alright then, it's settled." With no more worries holding him back, Engel slung his camera around his neck and headed towards the rumored "haunted house".

  Behind him, the old black man was complacent, Oh God, dear Easy's guess is really good, made a profit of 50 US dollars, and also drank two cups of fine wine. This stupid reporter, haha!

  ……

  In front of him, Yi Feiyang was arranging people to prepare for the next shot when suddenly a commotion broke out.

  "Hey, what are you sneaking around doing?"

  "Are you secretly taking pictures?"

  "Damn it, bring me the camera!"

  ……

  Then Cindy and others were surrounding a man with a messy hair, shouting.

  "What's going on?" Yì Fēi Yáng walked over and asked.

  "We saw him taking pictures with his camera here, I suspect he's a reporter!" Cindy said to Yifeng.

  Ingel was surrounded by people, worried that he couldn't find a leading explanation, and saw Yifei Yang coming, "Hey, buddy, this is a misunderstanding."

  " Misunderstanding?" Yi Feiyang furrowed his brow.

  "Yes, no problem, I'm a journalist... but I wasn't sneaking shots of your crew, I was taking pictures of this old building."

  Yingge tries his best to make things clear.

  If Yifei Yang and others didn't pay attention to him taking random shots here, it's possible that Ingel would suspect them of trying to hype things up; but now it seems like the other party doesn't have this intention at all, so they need to make things clear to avoid misunderstandings.

  "Taking pictures of this old building? Sorry, my crew has already rented it out, so I'm afraid you'll have to leave...". Yi Feiyang put on a look that showed he didn't want to bother with the other person.

  Ingle is anxious, what a broken crew, many crews invite me to go, I'm not even happy, you actually drive me away?

  "Hey, friend, I'm really interested in this building... how about we make a deal? You tell me the story of this building and I'll help you with an interview for the film you're shooting?"

  Yi Feiyang stopped in his tracks just as he was about to turn and leave.

  Ingle looked at it and said, "Maybe you're still doubting my identity. Look, this is my business card. I'm a reporter for the Los Angeles Entertainment Star News. My name is Ingle. Yes, friend, I specialize in entertainment news. I think it's very interesting that you're filming in such a gloomy and terrifying place... I've heard, just heard, that you've encountered some strange things or paranormal events. I'm very interested in this..."

  Yi Feiyang smiled, "Alright, since you're so sincere, I can have a good talk with you."

  ……

  As a journalist, apart from reporting the news accurately, what's more important is to have the skill of rendering, turning an originally insignificant small story into a widely known major event.

  As a seasoned journalist, Ingle undoubtedly has this talent and means.

  So when Yi Feiyang linked the "Ghost Recording" shot by his crew with this legendary "haunted" old building, Mr. Ingel's rich imagination was immediately activated.

  What a vampire-like "Surprise 400 Years", what a supernatural "Ghost House", all sorts of strange and bizarre materials emerged from his mind, and involuntarily "enriched" the story that Yì Fēi Yáng had said.

  This world originally had no ghosts or spirits, but there are some idle people who, in order to cater to the low tastes of certain readers, concocted a number of frightening ghost stories.

  Mr. Ingraham is a good journalist, and because he's a good journalist, he'll grab the reader's heart even more tightly, adding flavor to the stories he hears, cooking them into a big feast.

  For example, now Yi Feiyang just briefly and implicitly told him about the "bizarre" events encountered during filming, Mr. Ingel immediately spontaneously linked it to "ghosts".

  Oh God, what great material!

  Ingel, who knew the reader's interests well, was completely shocked by the news revealed by Yifei Yang.

  The United States is not lacking in various kinds of haunted houses, nor is it lacking in various kinds of haunted house stories. What's missing is this kind of "real-life" filming opportunity.

  What's more sensational than a film crew encountering a ghost while shooting?

  Ingel's brain was absolutely quick-witted and he immediately understood that he had encountered a very strong explosive.

  Of course, this explosive revelation is like a time bomb that needs someone to add fuel to the fire and ignite it. If done well, it will attract attention and make headlines in the entertainment section.

  Yes, this person can only be himself.

  Ingel thought.

  Who else but me? Haha, my miserable life is finally going to take a turn for the better!

  (My mom has been in the hospital for only three days, and the medical expenses have already exceeded 2000 yuan. Specifically, it's infusion, infusion, penicillin, gentamicin... I don't understand why medical expenses are so expensive nowadays. Fortunately, there is still the new rural cooperative medical system. But what about those who are truly poor? They can't afford to see a doctor and can only prepare their own coffin... I saw a man squatting on the ground crying, his wife's medical expenses couldn't be reimbursed!)