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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter 8: Illusion Lost (Part Three)
"Ah, big brother, to be honest, I went to find a doctor, and when I heard someone calling, I rushed over. Following the sound, I came out and saw that gentleman waving at me urgently. Then I followed him to this place. He told me to wait inside the room, and I waited for who knows how long. Eventually, I fell asleep. When I heard some noise and opened my eyes, it was pitch dark in the room, so I felt my way out and saw you..." At this point, she paused for a moment and added, "Oh, I remember now! The place I was in was very cold all around, and my hands felt very slippery, smooth like..."
I realized what she was referring to—the porcelain bottle that I had overlooked. It seemed that her soul had been drawn away before it could be put to use, and then the soul collector vanished again into the vast sea of people. If that were the case, it only raised one question: he was afraid of me. As I walked alongside Li Luwen's mother, I asked, "Auntie, do you remember what the person who helped Wenwen looked like?"
"He was tall and thin with very pale skin. He spoke in a weak voice. Right! If it weren't for my daughter's situation, I wouldn't have interacted with such a person; he just felt strange." Auntie had been dead for some time now; from her tone, she still didn't realize she was dead. If nothing unexpected happened, she would only come to know after her body began to decay.
The custom of keeping the body for three days before burial has long-standing reasons behind it. The so-called "three days" must be divided into major and minor categories based on the time of death. For instance, deaths occurring in the first half of the night are considered major, while those in the latter half are minor.
After death, the soul remains with a hazy consciousness, mistakenly believing it hasn't died. This reluctance to leave can be one reason for lingering; they want to stay for a while to observe their past life and loved ones.
This is one reason why bodies are kept for three days before burial.
Cutting to the chase, Li Luwen's mother didn't know she was dead. Due to Li Luwen's improvement, her mood was particularly good. After a brief rest, she became more animated and couldn't stop talking.
I only remembered her description of the person she had encountered; I didn't pay attention to anything else.
"Auntie, that person you mentioned earlier looked like a patient, didn't he?"
"Yes, he looked sickly—especially his eyes; they were gray..."
"Gray and murky?"
"No, completely gray without any black pupils."
What kind of eyes were those? I thought that aside from dead people's eyes which dilate after death, living people generally have black pupils. "Auntie, are you sure you didn't missee him due to poor eyesight?"
"No way! I remember clearly; just one glance was enough—I didn't dare look again. Also, the voice of the person who called me was definitely his—hoarse and weak."
"Auntie, please rest for a moment; we’ll head back soon."
"What about my daughter? Is she okay?"
"Yes." Just as I was talking with Auntie, my phone rang unexpectedly—Qin Jian had finally grown impatient and called me. I answered without having time to explain; he immediately started scolding me over the phone.
“Ma Qi, whether you are dead or alive, if you’re alive, tell me your exact address, and I will come to get you.”
“Auntie, where is this place?”
“Sanhe Village. I don’t know the exact location; I came here a long time ago. I came back for Wenwen.”
“I’m in Sanhe Village. Can you come pick me up?” We were on a road, and I thought Qin Jian would definitely not come to get me. Besides, there were hardly any people around; weeds were everywhere, houses were in disarray, and fields overgrown with weeds lay abandoned. Only someone with nothing better to do would come to such a godforsaken place.
Qin Jian asked on the phone, “How do you get to Sanhe Village?”
“Don’t come. I can walk fast by myself and will take shortcuts. I should be in front of you in less than an hour.” The auntie beside me heard this and got anxious, pointing at herself and mouthing, “You’re alone? Am I not a person?”
Seeing how insistent I was, Qin Jian went along with it: “Alright then, Rongrong and I will wait for you a bit longer. By the way, you must be starving; what do you want to eat? I’ll prepare something for you.”
“Wontons!” My stomach really started growling at the thought of wontons. Thinking about Qin Jian being with Chi Xinrong, I casually asked, “By the way, has Zhang Xian gone home?”
Qin Jian replied, “Why are you suddenly so concerned about Zhang Xian? Could it be that opposites attract and you’re interested in her?”
“Lao Qin, can’t you be serious? She’s my employer and the victim throughout this whole matter. Now that everyone is fine, she must be relaxed and ready to go home to rest. I just asked casually; why do you have to imagine all these things?”
“Alright, Lao Qi, just joking around. No, she hasn’t gone home; she’s in Rongrong’s office and doesn’t seem too well.”
“What do you mean by ‘not too well’? Does she still have unresolved issues?”
“Who knows? You should hurry back and see for yourself!”
“Is there anything going on with the others?”
“Sha Hong has been very quiet. Li Luwen is up; I didn’t mention her mother’s situation, so she’s relatively stable. Mo Feng is awake now; it seems like things haven’t worsened further, but I still feel uneasy…”
“It’s because I’m not there, right? Hahaha! Lao Qin, saying things like that will make people think too much.”
Lao Qin angrily retorted, “Shut up…”
I hung up the phone, and Li Luwen's mother glanced at me with a smile. "You must be very handsome, what's your name, Qin?"
I almost choked on my drink at her words. I quickly explained, "He's my boss; how could I like men?"
"Oh, so it's a man! Big brother, aren't you married?" Why was this old woman suddenly so concerned about my personal life? Seeing her eyes wandering over me, I pointed to the ground to remind her to watch where she was walking. She shrugged dismissively, "Don't think I'm blind; I can walk this road even with my eyes squinted. Big brother, you don't know how good I am at reading people. You and my daughter are a perfect match; it's just a pity you two met too late."
I couldn't believe it; it was like a thousand thoughts were racing through my mind, leaving me speechless.
I was stunned and didn't know what to say when Li Luwen's mother suddenly added, "It's strange; I can see clearly in this darkness. If I were back home, I'd probably trip over myself." I thought to myself, of course you can see; you're not alive anymore. Your spirit is out of your body, which is why you can see better than anyone else. As for me, I have Demon Eyes, so even if I waved my mobile flashlight around, it was just for show—I could see better than you.
"Auntie, that's a sign of good health," I blurted out, struggling to find something more pleasant or absurd to say. I decided to keep quiet and waved the mobile flashlight ahead of me to avoid her accidentally noticing that I had no shadow, lest it hurt her fragile old heart.
"My biggest wish is to see Wenwen get married and find her happiness."
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