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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter 10: Dead Loop (Part 28)
I was overwhelmed with work while he was idly causing trouble. I felt like beating him until he couldn't find his teeth, but I remembered my grandfather's last words. He hoped we could respect and love each other, complement each other's strengths, and help one another. Sigh! I couldn't be bothered. I left the dumbfounded Fat behind, hopped onto my vehicle, and drove off in a cloud of black smoke towards the Hongqiao Supermarket Entrance. Unfortunately, Chi Xinrong had her ways; she was suitable as a backup for general social occasions.
Under her guidance, I entered the office and shook hands with a big uncle who looked honest and had a strong grip. Then I sat in the monitoring room to watch footage from a certain date regarding the bystanders' inaction and the Hit-and-Run Vehicle incident at Hongqiao Supermarket.
I found it puzzling that part of the recording seemed to have been edited out; specifically, the segment where the Hit-and-Run Vehicle struck the girl was mysteriously missing. The rest of the footage showed passersby walking by without stopping. A tall figure caught my eye, and I quickly clicked the mouse to freeze that moment.
The tall person was holding a plastic bag containing Soy Milk and Fried Dough Sticks. He walked a few steps toward the girl who had collapsed on the ground, then abruptly stopped and hurried away.
"Do you know him?"
What a coincidence! I muttered to myself before replying to Chi Xinrong, "He just got hit by an Aluminum Composite Panel that fell."
"Ah-ha! Why doesn't he buy a lottery ticket? He'd surely win."
"Don't joke about this; it's related to life and death. Someone might die."
The uncle wasn't much of a talker; his eyes kept darting toward someone’s chest. When he got caught staring, he quickly looked away, embarrassed. Then he ambiguously chimed in on my conversation with Chi Xinrong, "That's practically a one-in-a-million chance unless something fell directly targeting him. But isn't that thinking a bit strange?"
The uncle had quite a logical mind. If someone really intended to drop something on that person, it wouldn't be 100% accurate during its descent. Not wanting to dwell on this topic any longer, I deliberately changed the subject and asked, "Uncle, since you're in charge of the monitoring room, didn't you edit this footage?"
The uncle revealed his yellowed teeth as he tried to appear calm despite beads of sweat forming in his furrowed brows. He smacked his lips and said, "I haven't been here long; they've changed staff several times before me. Anyway, I don't understand this stuff; I only know how to replay things—everything else is beyond me."
"Oh," I replied and continued watching the surveillance footage. Then I spotted Zhao Liu from the hospital along with a few others but couldn't find Lin Tai or Chiang anywhere.
The diary clearly recorded a certain event involving Chiang, though it did not explicitly state what it was. However, it gave off the impression that this event was not a good one. But why didn’t Chiang appear in the surveillance footage? Could it be that the vehicle responsible for Yuyaya's death was indeed him?
If that were the case, all doubts would be resolved. Yet, there was still one question lingering in my mind. I checked the timeline carefully and couldn't help but feel a shock.
To be precise, a year before obtaining his driver's license, Chiang had first hit Zuna's father and, in a panic, fled the scene, driving to the Hongqiao Supermarket Entrance where he struck Yuyaya, who was searching for her mother on the street.
Having hit someone, a terrified Chiang dared not linger. Taking advantage of the absence of witnesses, he fled the scene. However, instead of returning home, he went to inspect his vehicle and meticulously cleaned any evidence related to the hit-and-run.
Not far from the Hongqiao Supermarket Entrance was a construction site for an Electronic Mall. To facilitate workers, water was available twenty-four hours a day for cleaning purposes. Many people would often drive there to wash their cars for free.
So that was it!
Chiang received his just desserts, and those passersby who did nothing were also punished. I could no longer stand by idly. Saving a life is worth more than building a seven-story pagoda; I would accumulate virtue for my grandfather so that he might suffer less in that place and achieve rebirth sooner.
“What should we do next, Ma Qi?”
“Make a note of these people and see how many others have not been cursed by the Dead Loop.”
“One, two, three—have you seen this person?” Chi Xinrong pointed to a tall individual.
“I’ve seen him; Monkey Spirit. He’s currently in the hospital.”
“What a strange name; this person is half dead,” Chi Xinrong lamented. “But we don’t know the exact addresses of the others. How do we find them?”
"How about posting a notice?"
"It has little effect." Several times I felt as if the person discussing this with me was Han Mi, and several times I impulsively wanted to give her a hug to show my gratitude, but I managed to restrain that moment of impulse.
She is Chi Xinrong. Han Mi is currently being set up for blind dates by her parents, and she hasn't given me her phone number. I’m sure she has her reasons.
Chi Xinrong was busy jotting down a string of simple numbers, while my mind was filled with Han Mi's shadow, recalling everything that happened between us in the cave. She was gentle and charming, lacking the boldness of a woman like Chi Xinrong.
It felt somewhat cowardly; although I wanted to resist deep down, I could only endure in silence due to my weakness. Just like the incident from her childhood when that Grandfather pretended to help her straighten her collar but actually took advantage of her.
Thinking of Han Mi made my heart ache, stirring up feelings of anxiety. But when I remembered Lin Tai and that Monkey Spirit still teetering on the edge of death, I lost the will to continue thinking about Han Mi; saving lives was more urgent.
I said, "Take me to Lin Tai's house." My eyes remained glued to the screen, where a tall, thin figure was deliberately crouching down in a half-kneeling position, bending over to dip something into the blood on the ground with great seriousness.
Was it a Cleaner? But upon closer inspection, it didn’t seem like one. With my mind preoccupied with Lin Tai’s situation, I had no desire to continue observing. I turned away and quickly snapped a picture of what was displayed on the screen before rushing off to the hospital.
I didn’t want to be too close to Chi Xinrong. She swiftly snatched the keys to my dilapidated motorcycle and insisted on driving me to the hospital.
A motorcycle is still faster than walking. But now I couldn’t ride it. I had no choice but to leave it with someone else. I looked at the uncle who was still focused on the screen and pulled out a crumpled fifty-dollar bill. "Uncle, please keep my motorcycle here for now. Don’t sell it as scrap metal; I'll come back for it tonight."
"I'm really sorry about this," he said insincerely, forcing a smile as he reached out to take the fifty dollars from me. He cautiously checked it against the light before tucking it into his pocket.
Chi Xinrong seemed dissatisfied with this uncle's actions; she pouted and muttered something only she could hear.
Without asking, this girl was cursing at someone for being snobbish and lacking trust.
I found it amusing but didn’t laugh out loud. I got up and walked out of the surveillance room. The dark gray clouds rolled in from the south, moving northward. "Ah, it's going to rain," Chi Xinrong always liked to make a fuss. If it were Han Mi, she wouldn’t react like that; she would just smile gracefully and say, "It's raining, too bad I didn't bring an umbrella."
What’s wrong with me? Why do I keep comparing Chi Xinrong to Han Mi? I almost hit my own head in frustration, ignoring Chi Xinrong's surprised expression as I climbed into the car without saying a word.
Today is the second day of the Ghost Festival.
Chi Xinrong was captivated by something on the street, staring at it so intently. She was driving! Confident in her driving skills, she casually turned the steering wheel, taking advantage of the sparse pedestrians on the street to let her mind wander and gawk at oddities.
Damn it, honestly, I was more worried about myself than her. What if something went wrong because she wasn’t paying attention? Remembering last time made me uneasy. I shouted at her, “Hey, pay attention while driving!”
Maybe my voice was too loud; she jumped in surprise. I wanted to laugh, but before I could, her hand reached out toward me. Without hesitation, she pinched a piece of skin on my arm. Liu Mei’s eyes widened in anger as she exclaimed, “Did I scare your soul away?”
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