The fact is they were indeed making a fuss about me. I waited for three days, not to mention the police, I didn't even see a security guard.

They were so vocal in the group chat, but in real life, they were silent when confronted?

Coincidentally, that day a friend called me, asking how the red wine tasted.

It then occurred to me that I hadn't told him about that.

We talked on the phone, and I vented angrily about the old lady across the street to him, which made my friend burst into laughter.

As I scolded him, I said, "Laugh all you want, I'm so angry. Do you know they are the ones causing trouble first? They even threatened to call the police..."

My friend chuckled and said, "Now you have a chance for revenge, are you in?"

I saw a glimmer of hope.

It turned out, my friend was planning another trip to Thailand. They had recently acquired two orchid mantises but were worried about leaving them alone while away. They didn't want to waste money sending them to a pet store, so they thought of bringing them to me temporarily.

The mantises weren't the focus; it was what they ate – cockroaches.

I had no qualms about it. If I could help, that would be great, so I agreed right away.

My friend sent a mischievous emoji and said, "Imagine if you bought a bunch of cockroaches, and she stole them and opened the package..."

I paused for a moment, then burst into laughter along with him.

Mrs. Zhu, oh Mrs. Zhu, you will eventually pay the price for your curiosity.

Within a couple of days, he drove over and delivered the mantises to me – one larger, one smaller. It was my first time seeing such creatures. I hope I don't witness their mating process...

Seeing my curious expression, he chuckled, "Don't look, they're both males. The females are too brutal, I'm scared."

I rolled my eyes. Someone who keeps pets is afraid of mantises?

He gave me some instructions and then left the mantises with me, heading off for his trip.

That same day, following the link he sent me, I quickly ordered around two hundred cockroaches online, probably a week's worth of food for them.

Now, I just had to wait for the show to begin.

To receive the package, I hung a bag at the door for days, but Mrs. Zhu hadn't taken it. It seemed she was no longer daring to touch anything in my house.

I just wondered if her luck would hold this time.

To make it more convincing, I had the word "snacks" written on the delivery slip. Mrs. Zhu, who loves a bargain, wouldn't miss that.

Yes, mantis snacks, right?