When Professor Lan Cheng opened the door, there were two of his students standing at the door.

He stared at the two big boys in front of him, his gaze unfathomable.

"Professor, I'm sorry, I'm sorry we didn't make an appointment with you." One of them, a thin boy in a checkered shirt, kept rubbing his hands together and said a little crampedly.

"But we really can't help it, we have to come to visit you, please forgive me." Another tall boy added.

The professor looked at them again for a few seconds and smiled slightly, "It's okay, please come in." ”

The two boys sat down on the professor's warm leather sofa, and the professor poured them two cups of boiling water, which they quickly took and thanked each other.

The checkered boy raised his hand and looked at his watch, and said a little apologetically, "Professor, it's only seven o'clock in the evening, and we didn't disturb you for dinner, right?" ”

Professor Lan shook his head gently: "I have already eaten it." What are you looking for from me? ”

"That's right, Professor. We are both Chinese students, and you gave us a psychology class...... Of course, you've taught so many students that you may not be impressed with us at all......"

The checkered boy paused, then said, "We came to you because we had some problems that were bothering us. ”

Professor Lan nodded, as if this kind of thing was commonplace for him and not surprising.

"Most of the people who come to me do so because they have a problem that is bothering them." The professor said with a pleasant face.

The square-checked boy seemed a little difficult to speak: "Professor, you know, the two of us are from the Chinese department, and we have always loved writing suspense and horror novels. Especially recently, we participated in a suspense fiction association. There, students with common hobbies often get together to discuss and communicate. At the end of last week, the members of the association gathered again. As is customary, everyone present must tell a horror story of their own new fabrication—"

Professor Lan nodded, motioning for him to continue.

The checkered boy bit his lower lip: "We do this kind of activity every week, but every time we hear stories that are mediocre and sometimes even make people want to doze off - but last weekend was different, we had a real, scary and nervous night!" ”

Professor Lan touched his chin with his hand: "It's because someone told a really creepy horror story, right?" ”

The checkered boy looked up: "Not one, but three." ”

"I guess you must have had a great night that night!" Professor Lan said with an eyebrow raised.

"Yes, actually, all of us almost forgot about our existence that night, and were engrossed in the stories, our moods ebbing and waning with the storyline. At the same time, we were deeply shocked and incredible. ”

"Why?" Professor Lan asked.

"Because every member of our Mystery Fiction Association is very aware of each other's strengths. The stories those three had written before were mediocre, even terrible – but that night, they unexpectedly told three such wonderful stories! ”

"What kind of stories are they?"

"Let me tell you," the tall boy continued, "that at the beginning of the evening, a female chemistry student told a draggy, tedious horror story. Before everyone was fully asleep, one of the members of the association said that now he was going to tell a story that would stimulate people's nerves, so he told a story called 'Nightmare'. ”

Speaking of this, the tall boy's eyes stared at Professor Lan's expression.

"Go on." Professor Lan clasped his hands to his chest and looked at him deeply.

"After he finished, and before we could get out of the horror, another guy started telling his story again, called 'Horror Movie' — and it sent chills through our bodies. Immediately afterwards, the third story that shocked us even more, 'The World of Dior', was brilliantly performed by another member - after listening to these stories, everyone present was stunned, and several students who prepared the story later did not continue to tell it because they were dwarfed. ”

"After that night, we both couldn't imagine how the three of them had come up with these stories. So, the two of us pestered them every day, asking them to pass on their creative experience. They were forced to do nothing, and finally admitted that all three stories were heard by Professor Lan—you. Professor, is that so? ”

Professor Lan smiled faintly and nodded slightly: "Yes, I told them about it." But I don't understand, what exactly are the 'problems that are bothering you' that you just said? ”

"Professor, we are here in the hope that you can give us some inspiration. If you can tell them such a great horror story, you can tell us what piques the most curiosity and curiosity. What is the most feared and feared thing in the human psyche? ”

Professor Lan stared at him for a moment, then burst out laughing.

"You know what? As for the two questions you just raised, if you explain them theoretically and systematically from the root causes, you can write two psychological works. ”

"What do you mean...... Is this question too complicated? The tall boy asked, a little worried.

Professor Lan waved his finger slightly: "Before we solve any problem, we must first look at its original intention. Going back to what you said at the beginning – your goal is to write a novel that is both suspenseful and terrifying, right? ”

The two of them nodded incessantly.

"That's going to be easy." "You don't need to delve into the secrets of the human psyche, you just need to listen to me tell three more stories," the professor said. ”

"Professor!" The two boys got excited, "So you have three other stories we haven't heard?" ”

Professor Lan nodded lightly with a mysterious smile on his face.

"That's great, Professor. Tell me about it! The two boys sat precariously and looked at Professor Lan motionlessly.

"But I have to make it clear first, these three stories are extremely terrifying, and listening to them can cause people to be nervous, anxious, and uncomfortable - are you sure you want to listen to them?"

"Of course! What we need, Professor, is to get inspiration from these stories. The checkered boy said urgently.

"Let me first, then, make one statement—if anything happens or anything happens after you have heard these three stories, it has nothing to do with me—because you yourself asked me to tell it. Is that right? ”

The two of them glanced at each other, and the tall boy frowned slightly, and said, "Professor, the two of us specialize in horror and thriller novels, and we have read hundreds of horror stories from all over the world...... Can the three stories you tell really achieve that amazing effect? ”

Professor Lan said noncommittally, "I can only tell you that the three stories this time are not quite the same as the previous ones. Before I speak, I won't make too many comments, you just have to listen or not. ”

The two boys looked at each other again, and finally said categorically, "Listen! ”

"That's good." Professor Lan nodded, "One last thing, I don't have to finish these three stories. ”

"Why?"

"As I speak, I will observe your expressions and movements. If I find that you are frightened after listening to the first story, you will not continue with the rest of the story. ”

"That'...... What if we weren't scared? The tall boy asked.

"I'll tell you a second story."

"Maybe the second story doesn't necessarily scare us either."

"In that case, I'll talk about the third."

The checkered boy was silent for a moment, then said, "Professor, you only have three stories in total. What I want to know is, what if none of the three stories scare us when they're told? You know, we're both notoriously bold. ”

After he said this, he raised his head to look at Professor Lan, with a hint of provocation in his green eyes.

Professor Lan held his chin with his left hand and looked at him for a while, then said slowly, "If that's the case, then I will only have to tell the fourth story, and my last story." ”

"Turns out, you have a fourth story!" The tall boy exclaimed.

"But I never told the fourth story to anyone else, because the average person insists on hearing the third at most, and then they can't stand it anymore and don't want to listen to it anymore. So, I haven't told the fourth story to anyone until now. ”

The two boys opened their mouths slightly, but did not speak. They were guessing in their minds what the fourth story would be.

A few minutes later, the square-squared boy looked at Professor Lan Cheng with blazing eyes and said, "Professor, it seems that tonight, we are going to challenge your 'fourth story'." ”

Professor Lan still maintained that meaningful smile and said, "Alright then, I'll start telling the first story." If you get scared in the middle of hearing this, tell me to stop, and I'll stop talking. Do you understand? ”