At seven in the morning, the vibration of the alarm clock woke Wendy Lynch from her light sleep. Outside the window, the sky was just beginning to brighten. The entire residential area was still shrouded in tranquility, with only the occasional chirp of an early bird breaking the silence.
She got up and washed quietly, careful not to disturb her fast-asleep parents. After changing clothes, she chose a relatively large backpack and packed a flashlight and a large flathead screwdriver inside.
The morning air carried a hint of chill. Wendy pulled her jacket tighter and walked briskly toward the storefront at the entrance of the neighborhood. The area was very quiet, with only a few elderly folks on the road heading to the nearby park for their morning exercise.
Inside the empty shop, the light was still dim. The early-rising street cleaners hadn’t started sweeping yet, and there were barely any pedestrians outside. The main entrance of the shop was made entirely of glass, and the adjacent walls featured huge floor-to-ceiling windows. Anyone passing by could easily see everything inside. Climbing up to search the ceiling right now would be no different from performing in the center of a stage.
Setting down her tool bag, Wendy first took out a tape measure and made a great show of gesturing against the wall. She mumbled to herself as if she were seriously measuring the dimensions. She deliberately made a few moderate noises to make her actions look more like she was preparing for renovations.
A few minutes later, feeling the timing was right, she grabbed the broom she had left behind yesterday. Pretending to sweep away cobwebs, she deliberately thrust the end of the broom handle hard against the aluminum drop ceiling.
CLANG.
An aluminum ceiling panel was easily pushed aside, revealing the pitch-black space above. She changed positions and continued poking. Most of the aluminum panels were very light and opened with a single thrust. That was until she moved to the innermost corner of the shop. When the broom handle pushed up this time, the tactile feedback was completely different. It was heavy, as if something substantial was pressing down on it.
She thought, "This is it!"
Wendy’s heart skipped a beat. She immediately dragged over the worn-out bar stool from yesterday and stepped onto it. The chair wobbled slightly, letting out a CREAK in protest. Steadying herself, she braced one hand against the wall and turned on the flashlight with the other, shining it into the dark crevice.
A beam of light pierced the darkness. Deep within the gap between the drop ceiling and the concrete ceiling, a black canvas duffel bag lay quietly, covered in a thick layer of dust.
She thought, "I found it!"
An uncontrollable surge of excitement welled up in her heart. But just as she reached out to pull the bag down, footsteps and muffled voices drifted in from outside the shop.
"Oh, Campbell, patrolling this early?"
"Yeah, Ms. Rhodes. Off to buy groceries? You’re out quite early today."
It was the security guard and a neighbor from upstairs who liked to get up early for grocery shopping!
Wendy’s heart clenched tight, practically leaping into her throat. She jumped off the chair almost subconsciously, moving so fast she nearly sprained her ankle. Grabbing the broom from the floor, she pretended to vigorously sweep up dust, though a fine layer of cold sweat had already broken out on her back.
She prayed inwardly, "Please don’t look over here, please don’t look over here..."
"Huh? Wasn’t Old Lynch’s shop just rented out? Why is someone here so early?" Mrs. Walker’s voice was tinged with curiosity.
Wendy’s heart was in her throat. The security guard, Mr. Campbell, peeked through the gap in the glass doors. Inside the dim shop, he could only see a petite figure squatting in the corner, sweeping diligently. He smiled, his tone carrying a hint of approval.
"Oh, that’s Old Lynch’s daughter. I saw her go in earlier this morning.
"She’s a very earnest kid. She’s probably trying to get the place cleaned up early so they can open for business. She came to clean right at the crack of dawn.
"You don’t see many young people working this hard nowadays."
Mrs. Walker agreed, "Yes, yes, she really is a good kid..."
Their footsteps and voices gradually faded into the distance until they could no longer be heard.
Silence returned to the shop. Wendy remained squatting on the floor, maintaining her sweeping posture for a full half-minute before she dared to slowly straighten her back. She let out a long breath, feeling her legs go a bit weak.
She thought, "That was a close call."
Not daring to delay any longer, she quickly climbed back onto the wobbly bar stool. This time, her movements were swift and steady. Stretching out her arm, she reached into the cold, dark gap, grabbed the strap of the duffel bag, and gave it a hard pull. The bag was heavy, much heavier than she had imagined. It took all her strength to drag the weighty bag out of the drop ceiling and clutch it tightly to her chest.
She thought, "I got it!"
She didn’t dare pause for even a moment. She immediately pushed the aluminum panel back into place, ensuring it fit perfectly. From the outside, there was absolutely no sign that it had been tampered with. After finishing, she jumped off the stool, walked briskly to the door, and took an extra-large black trash bag from her backpack, which she had prepared in advance. She stuffed the entire duffel bag into the trash bag and tied it tightly, disguising it as a bag of renovation debris waiting to be thrown out.
Carrying the bag of "trash," Wendy hurried out of the shop, her heart still pounding wildly. She didn’t head straight home. Instead, she took a detour to a secluded corner of the neighborhood. After circling the area to ensure no one was following or watching her, she avoided the neighborhood’s security cameras and safely made her way back home.
CLICK.
The front door opened. The house was dead quiet; her parents were clearly not up yet.
Wendy locked the front door behind her. Without even taking off her shoes, she sprinted into her bedroom with the black bag and bolted her door. Leaning against the wooden panel, she gasped for air. A mixture of tension, thrill, and sheer ecstasy swept through her entire body.
She ripped open the black trash bag, revealing the worn-out black duffel bag inside. Taking a deep breath, her fingers trembled slightly as she pulled the zipper open.
ZIIIIP.
There were no clothes and no miscellaneous items.
What greeted her eyes were neatly stacked bundles of hundred-yuan bills, all tightly bound with white paper cash straps! The brand-new currency exuded the distinct scent of fresh ink. That dazzling sea of red instantly filled the entire duffel bag and her entire field of vision!
Wendy’s eyes widened drastically, her breathing hitching for a moment. She subconsciously reached out and picked up a bundle. The texture was thick and crisp.
These were all brand-new bills, freshly withdrawn from the bank. One bundle was exactly ten thousand yuan.
One bundle...
Two bundles...
Three bundles...
She counted rapidly. Inside the entire duffel bag, there were exactly one hundred bundles, perfectly arranged!
One million!
A full one million yuan in cash!
A tremendous wave of ecstasy surged through her limbs like an electric current, making her head spin. She had originally thought there would be two to three hundred thousand yuan at most. After all, that was supposedly the amount the renovation workers had fought over due to an uneven split.
She never expected such a massive fortune to be hidden in the ceiling!