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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter 86: The Mystery of the Deep Alley Continues (Part One)
Qin Jian handed a cigarette to Lai Shu, which he had specifically bought at the Smoke Shop in Taling. I refused to carry cigarettes; the last pack they gave me took me about half a month to finish. I'm stingy, and Qin Jian is frugal too. Neither of them knew my true intention was to avoid harming my organs with nicotine.
"I don't have any," I ignored the inconspicuous ghost and walked straight toward the parking area.
However, when this person appeared, Qin Jian shivered slightly and said loudly, "That guy looks like a ghost."
"Don't look at him, don't say anything," I instructed, continuing to walk straight ahead. Qin Jian was not an ordinary person; if a ghost wanted him to see something, he could see what I saw. I was aware of this, but I didn't know what he thought about it.
The car quietly parked in the Taling Parking Lot. We both got in, and the sound of the door closing echoed far away. A dark shadow darted toward us at a swift speed, slapping the car window and gesturing at me. It was the Addict who had asked me for a cigarette earlier.
His thin lips moved rapidly, but I couldn't make out what he was saying. I told Qin Jian to wait a moment and then rolled down the window to ask, "What do you want?"
"I know you're very capable."
I shot him a disdainful glance without looking at him directly and replied, "If you know I'm capable, why are you here looking for trouble?"
"I have something important to tell you."
What could an Addict craving for a cigarette possibly have that was important? I couldn't be bothered and said to Qin Jian, "Let's go."
"Does he know you?"
"No."
"Then how does he know you're capable?"
"Because he's not human."
Qin Jian was startled and asked, "Not a person, but a ghost?"
"Of course, what else do you think it is?"
"Fine! I'm speechless." After a moment of silence and a swift drive, the matter regarding Addict was pushed aside. It was so quiet that getting back to my rented place required winding through half the city. Qin Jian turned on the radio, and Teresa Teng's songs filled the air.
"If I were real
If the flowing water could turn back
Please take me away
If the flowing water could accept
No more worries
Some envy you
Flowing freely..."
Qin Jian couldn't stand the melancholic tone of the song and quickly changed the station.
After switching, he heard a news report.
Late-night news: A bizarre death occurred at Park Road, Fruit Street. A fruit vendor was found dead in the men's restroom, with the cause of death unknown. Our city's Sixth Police Station has taken over the case. I listened intently and hurriedly asked Qin Jian to replay what had just been broadcast.
Unexpectedly, this simple request earned me a scolding from him: "Do you think this is a disc I can control? This is late-night news. You are the great Ma Qi, the remarkable Mortician; you can command people to replay the news as you wish. I certainly can't do that."
"You old man, that's just how I am. You think you can bombard me with firepower and not pay the price for it?"
"Ma Qi, I'm driving, so stop arguing with me."
"Fine. I'll keep my mouth shut." I wanted to shut up, to doze off, but the scene I saw in the restroom on Fruit Street kept flashing in my mind. An old man, hunched over, sweeping the floor. I couldn't see the broom he was holding clearly, but how could this possibly be related to the woman who died mysteriously?
The hunched old man—suddenly a light bulb went off in my head. I shouted for Qin Jian to stop the car. The vehicle screeched to a halt, its brakes screeching loudly in the stillness of the night.
"Qin Jian, what's going on?" he asked gruffly.
I decisively replied, "Head back to Taling."
"What for?"
"I can't explain right now, just turn around quickly."
Qin Jian reversed the car and turned the steering wheel, making an eighty-degree turn (there weren't many people on the street anyway, and it wasn't a no-turn zone) as we headed back toward Taling. I thought to myself: I hope he's still there.
"Ma Qi, stop being cryptic. Just tell me what's going on."
"Well! On our way to Taling, I stopped by Fruit Street. There’s a restroom there, and when I went in there in the dark, I saw an old man hunched over sweeping..."
Qin Jian wasn't stupid; he quickly pieced it together. "You mean that mysterious death case mentioned in the late-night news is connected to that restroom you just went into?"
Exactly! Qin Jian had a point. There couldn’t be just one restroom along such a long street like Fruit Street. Was I being overly sensitive, linking unrelated events and scaring myself?
I chuckled foolishly, unsure of what to do next.
"Are we still going?"
"Forget it, let's head back!"
At that moment, I gave up on finding that Addict, but Qin Jian was still keen. He held onto a glimmer of hope, thinking that there shouldn't be any police around at this late hour to catch us drinking and driving. As long as he drove carefully and nothing went wrong, we would remain out of the police's sight.
Qin Jian suggested not going to Taling but instead checking out Fruit Street.
"Are you trying to confirm how many public restrooms are on Fruit Street?"
Qin Jian reversed direction and retorted, "Do you really think there would be two public restrooms on one street?"
Right! The other end of Fruit Street leads to a park, and where we were headed was the Farmers' Market. In fact, the Farmers' Market had long been transformed into a department store, with a flood of merchants revitalizing the economic development of Fruit Street. This indirectly boosted the entertainment industry and food scene along the street.
I agreed with Qin Jian's plan to go to Fruit Street.
Fruit Street was now eerily quiet, with only tree shadows and streetlights illuminating the area. Occasionally, a few foolish rats scurried out from the sewers onto the street in search of rotten fruit to eat. Ironically, it was these rotten fruits that sustained creatures that could only survive in dark corners.
In Qin Jian's words, this place truly lived up to its name—Fruit Street. Being here, a faint smell of decaying fruit lingered in the air, inevitably attracting rats and cockroaches.
Our shadows stretched and shrank under the dim light, unsure whether it was our footsteps or our shadows that frightened the rats into fleeing. The scurrying rats emitted squeaks. "There," I suddenly pointed out a restroom in the silence, realizing how eerie it felt at this time and place.
Qin Jian furrowed his brow tightly and followed my directions toward the restroom.
The restroom remained pitch black, and even from a distance, a pungent odor assaulted our senses. His brow furrowed into a deep crease as he muttered, "How can you even suggest a place like this?"
"When nature calls, any place that's not too embarrassing will do."
Qin Jian rarely refrained from analyzing or debating my words in detail. He nodded, "That's true. I once saw a woman in a hurry while riding in a car. She laid down a newspaper right there on the ground. At that moment, she didn't care about feeling embarrassed or ashamed; she just wanted to be comfortable and not suffocate."
"Absolutely correct."
As we approached the restroom, we noticed the caution tape fluttering alone in the cold wind. We stepped over the tape and entered the damp, foul-smelling restroom. Qin Jian covered his mouth and nose with his hand, his brow still furrowed, signaling me to go ahead.
I walked in and pointed to where I saw an old man sweeping the floor. "Look, there's the old man sweeping."
It seemed my words startled Qin Jian; he instinctively moved closer to me and wrapped his arm around mine. "It's a bit cold, huh?"
"A little." I continued walking forward, adding, "At that time, I thought the old man had gone inside, but then I saw this wall." I waved my mobile flashlight, pointing at the partition wall.
"You saw someone and hurried in after them, but that person disappeared?"
"Yeah." Qin Jian carefully examined the floor, where faint bloodstains were still visible. He jumped back nervously and solemnly checked the soles of his shoes to confirm he hadn't stepped in any blood before continuing, "Did you see the broom he was holding?"
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