Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
Chapter 4: Grudge (Part Three)
As soon as Li Aihong exclaimed, "She's here!" I turned around, and in that moment, it felt as if the entire world had come to a standstill. The person I saw was Zhang Xian.
Zhang Xian seemed not to recognize me. She was hugging Li Aihong, and the two girls were laughing sweetly, completely treating me like I was invisible.
"Is he your friend?" Li Aihong asked Zhang Xian.
Zhang Xian shook her head, indicating that I wasn't. Then they both left me behind and skipped off to play on the swings. I stood there in a daze, listening to Li Aihong say, "Is he still bothering you?"
"Yeah, Aiwen, I was thinking about moving in with you. Is that okay?"
"Sure! I've been telling you to move in for ages; you just can't bear to leave him."
"That's not it. I initially liked him, but later I realized he's really selfish—violent, domineering, and a typical male chauvinist. He has all the flaws that others don't have and none of the qualities that others possess."
"Sigh, when it comes to lifelong matters, you need to think twice before acting rashly for a moment's pleasure."
"Here you go again, just like my mom—always meddling in everything."
"I'm just looking out for you. The sooner you end it, the better. Don't drag things out and miss out on important matters."
"Yeah, definitely." Zhang Xian bit her lip, gripping the swing set with both hands. Her deep-set eyes held a complex expression, as if she were struggling to make a decision.
One was named Zhang Xian and the other Li Aihong.
I knew who Zhang Xian was but never imagined she would be staying abroad with someone named Li Aihong. The reason I thought this place was foreign was because of the English signs everywhere, like that Sophora Tree, which also had an English label.
Around the Sophora Tree, there were many unfamiliar climbing plants that were already entering a withering stage. I was surprised to sense something from abroad. For a moment, I was spinning in place, pondering this bizarre occurrence. Just then, a cold wind hit my face and body, causing me to shiver and snap back to reality. When I looked around again, there was no one else.
The swing, Li Aihong, Zhang Xian, and the Big Sophora Tree had all vanished, leaving only a cold face before me.
"What are you holding onto me for?" Li Mingliang asked, annoyed but not angry. Her tone grew heavier as she lowered her voice while walking away from my grasp. "She came and then left."
My hand hung in the air as I was taken aback by her muttering. I casually asked, "Who came and left?"
Li Mingliang smirked slightly, tidied up the photo in her hand, and tucked it into her bag without acknowledging me as she continued toward the single hospital bed. "My daughter," she said.
"Does your daughter know Zhang Xian?" Upon mentioning Zhang Xian, I noticed Li Mingliang's body tremble slightly. She still didn’t turn around but abruptly pulled back the curtain, revealing the bed. There was something on it! As I stood up, my mind raced to recall previous memories.
Initially seeing that splash of blood red seemed related to Li Mingliang; I had no idea what had happened to her. Covered in blood—it felt like an unconscious omen, something my brain had sensed. I stared blankly at the bed, lost in daydreaming.
I remembered that there was nothing on the bed before, and Li Mingliang wouldn’t have acted so quickly to place something there and then come back to pretend to be mad. I hurried over but didn’t have time to reach out before Li Mingliang grabbed the object and examined it closely in her hand.
She didn’t seem like someone who had placed it there herself; rather, she looked as if she had discovered a priceless treasure and was nervously guarding it from being taken away.
I asked her what it was.
She ignored me.
I moved closer to see—it was a bracelet, very delicate, with a round tag hanging from it.
The tag was a miniature photo frame containing a picture. I couldn’t see whose picture it was clearly, so I asked Li Mingliang to show it to me.
Li Mingliang neither indicated that she would not give me anything nor that she would. Instead, she silently pinched the bracelet that seemed to have emerged from nowhere and sat down on the bench. Then, with great care, she took out a set of blood-stained photographs. Her bony fingers moved slowly, and when they stopped, I saw that the same bracelet was also present in the blood-stained photo.
The girl in the photo was already dead.
The deceased girl was Li Mingliang's daughter, Li Aihong.
"Are they best friends?"
Li Mingliang remained silent and handed me what she was holding. I took it and examined it closely. Sure enough, the bracelet she handed me had a miniature photo frame attached to it, and inside that round frame was the girl I had sensed just moments ago—Li Aihong.
"Is she your daughter?"
"Yes."
In an instant, I seemed to understand. Zhang Xian was Li Aihong's best friend. What puzzled me was that if she was Li Aihong's best friend, why did she not know Li Mingliang and remained indifferent to her daughter's situation?
There were still more things I couldn't comprehend. About an hour after Zhang Xian left, someone came to knock on the clinic door. Was anyone still coming for treatment at this time? I exchanged glances with Li Mingliang; she looked fearfully at the door but showed no intention of opening it.
"Should we see who it is?"
Li Mingliang shook her head. Her attitude towards Zhang Xian now was completely different from before. What was there to be afraid of? It was just opening a door. I pulled the door open—only to be taken aback by the people outside. They were not ordinary individuals nor were they here for treatment; they wore uniforms with badges indicating they were from the Sixth Psychiatric Hospital.
I asked, "Who are you looking for?"
"We're looking for a patient."
I hadn't had the chance to respond that there were no patients they were looking for here, and that this was a clinic where having patients was quite normal. But unexpectedly, while I was speaking at the door, I suddenly heard hurried footsteps behind me, followed by a loud bang as the door slammed shut. I turned to look inside at the same time as the person outside.
Inside, Li Mingliang was gone. Actually, she hadn't disappeared; she had run into the back room to hide in her compartment.
They were looking for someone who probably had little to do with her! Why hide? This only drew the attention of those outside.
They ignored my attempts to stop and explain, pouring in like a tide. Suddenly, I felt like I had seen this scene before. A long time ago, on an afternoon just like this, Master Qin Ye had been taken away in a similar manner. Later, he inexplicably became my master, and now these people had reappeared. Could it be that they were targeting Li Mingliang?
"Who’s inside?" asked the leader of the group, a towering figure with eyes wide open like saucers, looking fierce as he stood in front of me.
"Who else could it be? It's Li Mingliang, an assistant from Zhang Xian Clinic."
Among them, someone chuckled softly and said, "She really has some nerve, pretending to be Li Mingliang to con people here..."
Comment 0 Comment Count