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墨書 Inktalez
Aunt Ma was indeed Marin.
After winding through the streets, she finally returned to what could only be described as a tiny rental apartment. She didn’t look as old as Ye Chenfeng had described; she knew how to apply makeup and deliberately made herself appear older. However, after washing her face and removing her makeup at home, she revealed a radiant and beautiful young woman in her thirties.
Marin was thirty-four years old and had met Xiong Biao in a café in 2012.
At that time, Marin was young and beautiful, working as an accountant at Minengjia Company. Being an older single woman, she was three years older than Xiong Biao. While sipping coffee in the café, a well-dressed middle-aged man approached her uninvited and sat down beside her.
“Miss, are you waiting for someone?”
The man clearly misunderstood that she was expecting someone, which prompted him to say such inappropriate things. Marin ignored him, stirring her coffee with restraint while looking elsewhere.
“Miss, are you waiting for someone?” The man thought Marin hadn’t understood him and leaned in closer. His sly eyes followed her long neck downwards, lingering too long—
Marin suddenly stood up and slapped him hard across the face— the crisp sound of the slap echoed in the air. The man, enraged and humiliated, bared his teeth and cursed, “Aren’t you just a green tea bitch? What’s with the attitude?”
“You jerk,” Marin retorted before attempting to leave.
But the man grabbed her arm, pulling her closer. With a swift motion, he tore at her shirt, causing it to rip with a sharp sound, exposing more than intended and making him drool with desire.
To flirt with a woman so openly in public was audacious enough.
Fortunately, there were hardly any customers in the café at that moment; only the bartender witnessed the incident and was too frightened to intervene.
It was unclear whether the onlookers were more afraid of the man or simply shocked by the scene. In any case, Marin had been entangled with this disgusting man for quite some time when suddenly a loud shout came from the entrance. A figure darted in swiftly and delivered a powerful kick—there was a loud crash as the once arrogant man was sent flying against the wall, collapsing to the ground where he lay motionless for quite some time.
"Are you okay, miss?"
Marin looked at the man who had helped her escape her predicament. He was loud and boisterous, with a sturdy build and a fierce scar running across his brow. If he hadn't come to her aid, she would have surely mistaken him for a bad guy, or perhaps even one of the men who had been harassing her.
"I'm fine, thank you," Marin replied, watching as the man who had fallen to the ground painfully struggled to get up, clutching his chest before hurriedly fleeing through the door.
The man who had helped Marin quickly moved to pursue him.
"Don't chase a desperate foe," Marin called out, expressing her gratitude.
The man smiled sheepishly and said, "It's nothing, just a small effort."
As he spoke, he walked over to the bar and slapped his hand down on it, startling the waitress who had been hiding beneath it. She quickly lifted her head and asked, "Sir, would you like some coffee?"
"Coffee? What the hell was that all about? Your customer was being harassed and you hid away? Let me tell you, that's unethical. You owe me some compensation for emotional distress; otherwise, I'll report that you're in cahoots with that jerk from earlier."
The waitress was taken aback, trembling as she stood up. She stammered, "I'm sorry! I was scared. That guy is a bully; his family is wealthy and powerful—who would dare provoke him? Besides, our manager and store owner aren't here. What could I do alone?"
Marin shook her head. Seeing that the waitress was indeed in a tough spot, she turned to the man who had helped her and said, "Never mind. Thank you for your assistance earlier. May I ask your name?"
The man who had come to her aid was Xiong Biao.
Xiong Biao had been wandering around aimlessly when he happened to witness the earlier incident where Marin was being bullied. Without hesitation, he stepped in to help her. Little did he know that by aiding Marin, he would earn her favor and spark a connection between them.
Marin and Xiong Biao met in this way.
At first, Xiong Biao was very insecure, claiming he was ugly and came from a poor family, repeatedly rejecting Marin's advances.
One thing Marin said ultimately touched him.
She said, "You can't judge a person by their appearance, just like you can't measure the sea with a bucket. Some people may look good on the outside, but their conscience is rotten. Although you might be the kind of person who would get lost in a crowd, ordinary to the core, you have a heart of gold."
It was because of Marin's words that Xiong Biao turned his life around.
He began to realize that the path he was on only led him further away, a path that harmed others without benefiting himself. He sincerely wanted to change and start a business to earn money and support his family, becoming more obedient to Marin.
It's worth noting that Marin was a woman of great poise. With a decent job, she had many admirers.
Even the handsome men in the company were fond of her.
Yet Marin rejected all suitors and found herself drawn to Xiong Biao, whose looks were far from impressive and whose family background was dismal.
Some people drove by deliberately in front of Marin and Xiong Biao, mocking Xiong Biao with a sneering tone: "Marin, you really are a flower growing in cow dung; such a fine cabbage being trampled by pigs..." Because of this incident, Xiong Biao got into a fight with that person and vowed to earn money and become wealthy, promising to treat Marin well for the rest of his life.
Marin fell into reminiscence, her eyes reddening and her nose turning pink, clearly showing her deep feelings for Xiong Biao. Her narration suddenly halted as she choked back tears and turned away to wipe her eyes.
Ye Chenfeng felt awkward; he wasn't good at comforting people. He offered a bland remark: "I can't call you Auntie, so how about I just call you Sister Ma?"
Marin forced a smile and said, "Do as you please." Then she took a deep breath, pretending to be calm, and added, "No one knows why Xiong Biao would borrow money for gambling. The interest on that money is terrifying. He excitedly told me he was going to open an internet café on University Road, claiming it was a prime location—right by the university, with a vocational university and a technical high school nearby. But instead of good news, I waited for him only to receive the terrible news that he died in a fire, leaving no trace behind."
"Xiong Biao is dead?" Ye Chenfeng was stunned, cursing himself silently; how could he not have thought that Xiong Biao was dead?
"Do you think there are ghosts in this world?" Marin sighed and continued, "I always wanted to ask him what I meant to him."
"Of course, you were his beloved. He liked you so much that he tried to turn his life around for you."
Marin's emotions suddenly shifted, her eyes reddened with tears as she almost shouted in anger, "Love me? Why did he do those things behind my back? He was using drugs and gambling—none of this I knew about. What was I to him? He was nothing but an irresponsible con artist when it came to love."
Xiong Biao was using drugs too? Ye Chenfeng was at a loss for words.
Marin continued, "For him, I fought with my family. For him, I lost face at work and had to quit to run a small business just to pass the time. But what did he do? He went off borrowing money for gambling. I thought he had turned his life around for me and wouldn’t betray me, but he still did it secretly. Xiong Biao has ruined my life... sob sob sob..."
Seeing Marin cry heartbrokenly, Ye Chenfeng felt a lump in his throat. He made an excuse to go to the bathroom and stood there for a long time, staring at himself in the mirror.
After a while, Ye Chenfeng came out.
Marin was already busy preparing lunch.
"Don't trouble yourself, Ma Jie. I feel embarrassed."
"What’s there to be embarrassed about? Xiong Biao is dead, and here I am like this; no one has come to see me. You're the first," Marin said as she finished tidying up and brought out the dishes. She politely asked, "Can I call you Ye Chenfeng?"
"Sure, Sister Ma, if you have no family, you can consider me your brother."
"That sounds good." Marin quickly picked up her chopsticks and served some food to Ye Chenfeng, then said, "Xiong Qisheng is Xiong Biao's biological father. He never mentioned this to me, so I had no idea he was in the hospital."
"Xiong Qisheng has been dead for over a year."
Marin was taken aback, speaking to herself as much as to Ye Chenfeng, "Xiong Biao has also been dead for over a year."
"2015?"
"Yes."
"March 14, 2015."
Marin was surprised. "Xiong Biao also had his incident on March 14, 2015."
"What a coincidence?" Ye Chenfeng pondered over the incident involving Xiong Biao while chewing his food.
"Yeah, what a coincidence." Marin noticed Ye Chenfeng lost in thought and reminded him, "Hurry up and eat; the food will get cold and won't taste good."
"Sister Ma, can you go with me to University Road?"
"What for?" Marin ate gracefully, chewing slowly and savoring her food with an air of restraint. She was the kind of woman with timeless elegance.
"We should try to communicate with him."
"Xiong Biao is on University Road; can I see him?" Marin was clearly surprised. Since Xiong Biao's death, she had never dreamed of him or seen his ghost. Therefore, Marin wasn't very convinced that ghosts existed in this world. She slowly ate her food, thought for a moment, and said, "Let's go."
"That's good. I'll help you see him when the time comes, but don't be afraid. Also, don't tell anyone about what you see."
"Okay."
The meal didn't take long, and they talked quite a bit, all of it useful conversation. Ye Chenfeng glanced at Marin and thought of Ding Li; she should be with Su Mother now.
After the last incident, Su Mother had been even kinder to Ding Li.
For this visit, Su Mother spent a considerable amount of money to renovate Ding Li's bedroom, choosing the color scheme herself. She also bought many expensive clothes for Ding Li. It was clear that Su Mother truly regarded her as her own daughter this time.
"What are you thinking about?"
"Thinking about her, my wife."
"Your wife must be very beautiful!" Marin asked casually while tidying up the dishes.
"She's just okay, but I love her very much."
"Mm, I'm really envious of your love." Marin spoke from the heart.
Marin went to wash the dishes while Ye Chenfeng was preparing to head to University Road.
The Ghost-Collecting Gourd was nowhere to be found, and Xiang'er had no updates on Qin Keqing either.
Thinking of Qin Keqing, Ye Chenfeng hurriedly dialed her number.
After a long wait, there was still no answer, so he called again.
This time, the call was answered, but it wasn't Qin Keqing on the other end. There was silence, not a single word spoken—this was not Qin Keqing's style.
"Hello?" Ye Chenfeng asked, straining to listen in the quiet.
"Ha ha, thank you for sending me such a wonderful offering. The game isn't over yet; don't think it's finished."
Ye Chenfeng jumped up in shock. "Who are you?"
There was no response from the other side, and the call wasn't disconnected.
In the kitchen, Marin heard Ye Chenfeng shouting and quickly came out to see what was happening. Noticing he was angry at the phone, she teased him, "Have you two been apart for too long? Getting all worked up over a conversation isn't good."
Ye Chenfeng covered the mouthpiece and said to Marin, "No, I'm just talking to a friend."
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