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墨書 Inktalez
"I heard the peaches in the back mountain are ripe. You're taller, so take me to steal some peaches," I said shamelessly.
"Just the two of us?" Qiao Lianjiu asked, slightly taken aback.
"Yeah," I wasn't lying; it was indeed just the two of us who were human.
Qiao Lianjiu was truly a straightforward creature, easily fooled. It didn't take long for him to agree to meet me on time. I happily high-fived Rice, saying, "Rice, it's all up to you tonight."
"Mommy, did you really risk yourself just to help Aunt Siyuan? Did Daddy really agree to this?"
"Daddy said he supports whatever I do, so you don't need to worry."
"That's good! Daddy won't be back tonight anyway, so we can have some fun!" Rice exclaimed joyfully.
"Do you know what Daddy is doing?" He really comes and goes as he pleases.
"I think he's out making money. Daddy said we don't have enough money to spend."
"Rice, how does your daddy make money in the human world? Do you know where he works?"
Rice tilted his head in thought and then shook it vigorously. "I don't know. Daddy never tells me. He says I don't need to know how money is made, just enjoy the results. As long as there's money, I can spend it freely."
"He really is extravagant. We clearly don't have much money; there's no need to spend it recklessly. A little spent and it's gone," I muttered.
Rice leaned closer and asked, "Mommy, what are you talking about?"
"Nothing, I'm just thinking about tonight."
"Oh," Rice said, not suspecting anything, quickly getting back into an excited state. "Mommy, should we bring the bodyguard along?"
"We don't need the bodyguard for this. It's better if fewer people know about it. After all, it's not exactly something to be proud of."
"But I think it's really fun!"
"Then wouldn't it be better for you to enjoy it alone? Besides, if those two come along, they'll be too conspicuous and easily expose us. Have you remembered everything I told you? Just play it up as scary as you can; your target is..."
"To scare Qiao Lianjiu so much that he wets his pants!" Rice eagerly finished.
"Exactly."
As it approached eight o'clock, I arrived early at the back mountain of the school. Chen Siyuan had hidden himself as I instructed, and Rice was just going to improvise, so there was no need to worry.
Everything was ready; we were just waiting for Young Master Qiao.
I sat on the stone steps at the entrance of the back mountain, watching the occasional couples passing by, feeling inexplicably excited. Soon Siyuan would be able to hold hands with Qiao Lianjiu like that too; just thinking about it made me a bit thrilled.
At exactly eight o'clock, Qiao Lianjiu's figure appeared in my line of sight right on time. He was actually running over—was he in such a hurry?
Wait...
Why does he have a rose in his hand?
Oh no, this is a big misunderstanding! I quickly hid.
Before he could see me, I immediately got up and slipped into the nearby woods, crouching down to watch Qiao Lianjiu through the bushes.
Qiao Lianjiu stood at the stone steps, looking around, clearly searching for me.
I quickly silenced my phone and sent him a text:
"There's a big peach tree up the steps. You know? I'll be waiting for you under the peach tree."
Soon, he replied: "I'll be there soon."
Then I saw Qiao Lianjiu hurriedly making his way toward the peach tree. Although I felt a bit guilty for what I was doing, I steeled myself for Chen Siyuan's sake. Besides, Qiao Lianjiu had tricked us before, so this time it felt like we were even.
The ghost was played by Rice; in any case, I wouldn't let anything really happen to him.
I calculated my next move in my mind, thinking about how to reach the peach tree without following closely behind Qiao Lianjiu. I decided to take the small path through the woods.
The sky was pitch black at eight o'clock; if it weren't for the faint light coming from the dormitory building nearby, I probably wouldn't have been able to see the path at all.
I squatted down, my legs starting to feel numb. As I struggled to stand up, an elderly voice suddenly called out from below, "Miss, you've stepped on my face."
"Ah!" I jumped back in fright, completely forgetting about my numb legs. I stumbled and nearly fell to the ground, only then realizing that I had been squatting on a gravestone. I had often heard people say that our back mountain used to be a mass grave where many were buried and that their descendants rarely visited. As a result, some graves had been leveled, and some gravestones were even buried beneath the soil.
I frequently walked past the stone steps but had rarely seen any gravestones. Who would have thought today would start off so poorly?
"I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to!" I quickly bowed toward the gravestone and fled in panic.
But as I ran, it felt like I had returned to where I started, still standing on that gravestone.
Could it be that I've encountered the Ghost Wall?
How unlucky can one be? With Su Anrong not around, I couldn't handle something like the Ghost Wall at all. Despite all my calculations, who would have thought there would actually be a ghost here?
No wonder sometimes at night when we were sleeping, Fang Xiaonan would say she always heard a woman crying from the back mountain. At that time, we all thought she was just hearing things or that there was indeed someone crying. Now that I think back on it, it sends chills down my spine.
"Young lady, it's been a long time since I've spoken to anyone. Will you keep me company?" The ancient voice came again from beneath the gravestone.
I felt a surge of urgency. "Great-Grandma, please, I have things to take care of today. Can we talk another time?"
"What do you need to handle? I can help you."
"I can manage on my own, really." Half of the gravestone was buried in the earth, and the words inscribed on it were barely legible. Some moss clung to its surface. I tried to reason with her, "Great-Grandma, haven’t your relatives visited you in a long time? If you need money over there, I can burn some for you. Just tell me what you need, and I'll burn it for you. How does that sound?"
"I have no relatives left; my son died on the battlefield. It was the villagers who helped bury me after I passed. I just feel lonely down here and wanted someone to keep me company. Others can't hear me speak, but you can. That's our fate; just stay with me."
"But your son died, right? You should be able to see him in the Underworld. Why are you alone?"
"Ah, that's a strange story. My son was a general; he sacrificed himself for the country. Logically, he should have been reborn, but the King of Hell said his name isn't on the reincarnation list. I find that hard to believe, so I've been searching for him, but I've never found him."
I touched the gravestone and felt a pang of sadness. "Great-Grandma, how about this: if you let me go today, I'll find a way to help you reunite with your son. Would that work?"
"You can really make us meet?" Her voice trembled, and I could almost feel the gravestone vibrating beneath my feet. Was she about to rise from her grave?
Oh dear, is this really necessary? I found this situation hard to accept.
"Please relax and don't get too excited. I'm speaking the truth; while I can't guarantee success, I'm sure I can think of something." Of course, I had no idea how to help her, but Su Anrong should have some ideas.
The reason I said this was twofold: first, I wanted to free myself quickly to deal with Chen Siyuan's matter; second, I felt that her son deserved better treatment after sacrificing himself for his country. At the very least, I wanted to uncover what had happened so that a general wouldn't die in vain.
"Young girl, if you scrape some moss off my gravestone and apply it to your ankle, I'll believe your words and let you go."
I wiped the moss from the gravestone down to my ankles. What was the purpose of this?
Although I felt puzzled, I decided to proceed without wasting any more time.
Seeing that I did it without hesitation, she seemed quite pleased and said in a low, hoarse voice, "Little girl, if you keep your promise and let me see my son, this moss will not bring you any harm. But if you deceive me, this moss will grow into your flesh and cripple your leg. Alright, I've made myself clear; you can go about your business now."
I thought of it as an act of kindness, considering that she had made sacrifices for the happiness of our future generations. I wouldn't hold it against her.
The old woman wasn't entirely malevolent; the ghostly wall soon vanished. I cautiously made my way toward the peach tree, hoping that Qiao Lianjiu was still there.
Habitually, I reached into my pocket and was surprised to find a small photograph that seemed to have appeared out of nowhere. When I shone my phone's flashlight on it, I saw a black-and-white passport-sized photo that looked quite old. The picture showed a young man in uniform, with sharp eyebrows and bright eyes—he was remarkably handsome.
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