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墨書 Inktalez
Liu Er's mouth bit down hard on my hand, her body twisting and turning as she tried to break free from my grip. I glanced around warily and quickly led Liu Er out of the house.
In front of Liu Er's home was a slope, with a patch of grass at the bottom that was taller than a person. I nearly lifted Liu Er off the ground and hid us both in the grass.
"Liu Er, calm down. Don't make a sound. If we get caught, your grandfather will have died for nothing, and there will be no one to collect his body," I urged, my voice laced with the calmness of Fo Nian.
With tear-filled eyes, Liu Er nodded at me. I slowly removed my hand from her mouth. After all, she was just a girl, and the horrific death of her loved one had left her in a state of shock. She trembled uncontrollably, biting her lip to stifle any sounds.
Feeling a pang of sympathy, I pulled Liu Er into my embrace and gently patted her back. "Liu Er, did your grandfather offend someone?"
She shook her head and replied in broken sentences, "I live deep in the mountains with my grandfather. We rarely see anyone except when we trade game for daily necessities in town."
I frowned slightly; the circumstances surrounding Liu Er's grandfather's death were indeed strange. It seemed he had been tortured by insects burrowing out from within him, leading to his agonizing demise.
What could possibly drive someone to inflict such torment on an elderly man?
As I pondered this, I suddenly heard faint footsteps approaching. I quickly covered Liu Er's mouth again and raised my finger to my lips to signal her to be quiet.
"Hey? Why is the door open? Did that girl come back?" a woman's suspicious voice rang out.
Then a deep male voice responded, "Let's go in and take a look. It's just a girl; how could she escape our grasp?"
After some rummaging sounds, the woman continued, "Could it be that this girl saw her grandfather dead and then ran away?"
The man laughed, "Any ordinary girl would be too scared to move after seeing something like that; she'd just cry without knowing what to do. There's no way she could have gotten far. Let's split up and search; she's definitely hiding nearby."
"You're right. If we come back empty-handed this time, Helmsman won't let us off easily," the woman replied with a quiver in her voice, as if Helmsman were some kind of monster.
Realizing the danger we were in, I signaled Fo Zhang to quietly create some noise outside to divert their attention.
Fo Zhang obediently leaped out and ran a distance before making a commotion. I listened carefully to their footsteps until I was sure they had moved away before picking up the trembling Liu Er and running into the opposite thicket.
I had no idea how long we ran until we found a cave. I entered first to ensure there were no wild beasts inside before carrying Liu Er in and using some wild grass to cover the entrance.
Fearing that a fire would be too conspicuous in the dark night, I decided against lighting one. Liu Er continued to shiver against me, her body weak as she choked out, " Ling Feng, my grandfather is dead. I'll never have a home again. No one will love or care for me anymore."
I had only ever interacted with women from my village, particularly Fei Fei, so the idea of how to comfort a girl truly gave me a headache. It was even more challenging than deciphering Buddhist Scriptures.
Curiously, I asked, “What about your parents?”
As soon as I asked, Liu Er's sobs grew heavier, and before long, I felt my shoulder getting soaked.
After a long while, Liu Er choked out, “I don’t know. Grandpa never talks about my mom and dad. Whenever I ask him, he just sighs deeply, so I stopped asking. Even though I don’t have parents, Grandpa loves me very much. He buys me new clothes and pretty skirts. Whatever I want, he always manages to get it for me.”
Perhaps recalling happier times, a sweet brightness shone in Liu Er's Eyes. Even in the dark cave, it sparkled with light.
“Is your grandpa really that wealthy?” Growing up in a rural area, I understood how hard it was to earn money. Especially for an old man living deep in the mountains. How did he make a living?
With pride in her voice, Liu Er replied, “Grandpa is amazing! He can find treasures wherever he goes in the mountains—things like Wild Ginseng and Mo Fox Pelt. He’s always spot on. Just one wild ginseng can support us for quite some time.”
I asked again, “And who does he sell these things to?”
“To the Guan Shu in town; they specialize in buying from my grandpa. But the Guan Shu people are really nice,” she said. Though young, Liu Er was clever enough to quickly grasp the implication of my question and shook her head in denial.
I continued, “Does your grandpa have any treasures? Something particularly valuable?”
After thinking for a moment, Liu Er shook her head.
This left me puzzled. If it wasn’t for wealth, then what was it for? From the conversation between the man and woman earlier in the house, it seemed their target was Liu Er.
Even in the pitch-black cave where I could barely see my hand in front of my face, I carefully looked in Liu Er's direction. She appeared to be around twelve or thirteen years old and was quite pretty—a real beauty in the making. She would surely be remarkable when she grew up.
However, with so many people in the world and countless beauties among them, mere looks didn’t seem like a strong motive.
Suddenly, there was a rustling sound at the cave entrance. I pulled Liu Er behind me and kept a vigilant eye on the entrance. It wasn’t until a soft creature darted into my arms that I relaxed. Stroking Fo Zhang’s fur, I whispered, “Did those people find you?”
Fo Zhang chirped a few times to indicate that it hadn’t been discovered yet and then nestled down to sleep in my embrace.
I gently placed Fo Zhang into Liu Er's arms and said, "Take good care of it. I'll keep watch at the cave entrance."
Liu Er tugged at my sleeve and said, " Ling Feng, I'm scared to be alone."
I went to the cave entrance and set up a simple trap, stringing a line of bells across the opening. It would serve as a warning if anyone approached. After that, I returned to Liu Er's side and asked, "Those bad people seem to be looking for something. They probably won't leave anytime soon. What should we do about your grandfather's body?"
Being a young girl, Liu Er shook her head while wiping her tears. I thought for a moment and said, "It seems you can't stay in that wooden house anymore. Tomorrow, I'll secretly set it on fire; it will be a way to give your grandfather a proper cremation."
Liu Er had initially wanted her grandfather to be buried peacefully, but the image of his decayed body and the wriggling insects in her mind made her silently nod. " Ling Feng, can I go with you? I want to take my grandfather's ashes with me."
Her voice was soft and weak, and I couldn't bear to refuse her. "Alright. Tomorrow, I'll send Fo Zhang to scout the situation first. I'll do my best to let you see your grandfather off one last time."
Liu Er whispered, "Thank you, Ling Feng."
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