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墨書 Inktalez
"What's wrong?"
As everyone boarded the car one after another, Jun Chong still hadn't let go of my hand. I cautiously asked, while Jiao Jiao waved her phone at me from a distance. "Anxin, hurry up! What are you waiting for over there?"
"I'll be right there."
Jun Chong remained silent. Following his gaze, I looked toward the back of the car and vaguely saw a transparent figure sitting beside Brother Rong at the very end. The figure sat quietly, eyes fixed on Brother Rong, who was animatedly chatting away.
"Is that... a ghost?"
I rubbed my eyes, and the transparent figure became clearer. It was a woman with long hair, dressed in red.
"Yeah."
"I need to warn Brother Rong. What if she harms him?"
Jun Chong released my hand and took mine as we got into the car. "Don't worry. She won't hurt anyone."
"Why not?"
"I just emitted so much negative energy, and she didn't react at all. It's like someone who has nothing to hide, so there's nothing to fear. Look at her eyes; she seems to deeply love that man."
As he finished speaking, I found myself seated in the car, watching the female ghost in the corner of the last row. Her gaze shifted from Brother Rong to us, and then she stood up from her seat. She bowed slightly to Jun Chong and opened her mouth, but no sound came out. Apologetically, she pointed to her mouth, which was dark inside without a tongue.
"Her tongue was cut out; she can't make any sounds."
Jun Chong nodded at her and found a seat next to me. The female ghost sat down again, and I turned to see her gazing affectionately at Brother Rong, her eyes filled with love, yet she did not move closer.
"Ghosts are too close to humans, which can drain their yang energy and lead to death. So even if she is reluctant, she must maintain a certain distance."
I nodded, pretending to look out the car window, and quietly said, "Then how come I'm fine?"
"Although I am not the King of the Underworld and cannot control all life and death, your life is still in my hands. Without my permission, you absolutely cannot die."
I was taken aback and turned my head. Jun Chong was now leaning back in his seat with his eyes closed, as if the serious person speaking just moments ago was not him at all.
A smile crept into my eyes, and I wanted to kiss him, but with so many people in the car, I held back, fearing they would think I was a monster.
The journey was filled with laughter and chatter. Jiao Jiao had prepared a lot of snacks for everyone. Three hours later, we arrived at the Four Sisters Spring resort, where a feast awaited us.
"It smells so good; I'm starving."
I picked up my chopsticks but hadn’t made a move before Qianqian swatted them away. She held up her phone and said, "We have to take pictures of the food first."
The second-in-command of the publicity department, Sister Fang, waved her hand dismissively. "Alright, enough already. Let’s eat; everyone is hungry. We can take pictures of the leftovers afterward; that’s more unique."
"Long live Sister Fang!"
Everyone laughed and prepared to dig in. Qianqian insisted on taking pictures before eating; she was one of those phone addicts who couldn’t live without her device. Aside from sleeping, she spent almost all her time on it.
Just before we entered the hotel, Jun Chong kept gazing at the mountains behind the resort and then told me he needed to step away for a bit. He urged me to enjoy my meal and get some rest.
I wanted to follow him but knew it wasn’t possible at that moment.
"Ah! What is this?" Qianqian suddenly exclaimed, startling us all. The little flower from the publicity department shot her an annoyed glance. "What are you making such a fuss about? Can’t you let people eat in peace?"
Both of them were aware of the tension between their departments, so it was indeed strange for them to participate in this event together.
At that moment, Xiaohua shot out a remark, and Qianqian did not retort as she usually would. Instead, she stared at her phone, her eyes trembling as if she were scared.
"What’s wrong?" Lin You leaned closer. Qianqian shook her head and stuck out her tongue, saying, "It's nothing. Someone probably sent this to scare me."
She raised her phone, and on the 5.5-inch screen, a large number "4" dominated the display. Red blood appeared on the white number, then spread out, eventually engulfing the white completely. Suddenly, a face appeared on the screen—Qianqian's face, covered in blood, mouth agape with her tongue cut out and her eyes gouged out. It was terrifying.
"Who is so bored to send such a photo to scare people?"
"Seriously, it gives me the creeps! It's late at night; just delete it!"
"Yeah, I think someone is deliberately causing trouble."
"What are you talking about!" Xiaohua slammed her chopsticks down and stood up from her chair, pointing at Qianqian and shouting, "Don’t think just because you’re pretty that you can say whatever you want! Let me tell you, I can’t stand people like you! You’re such a shameless flirt."
"Hey, who are you cursing? What have I done to you? Did I say someone was targeting you? If you can't keep your man in check, why blame me? Why don’t you go blame your man!"
Qianqian was not one to back down either. The previously cheerful atmosphere at the table turned chaotic as the two faced off against each other, neither willing to concede.
"We came out to relax; there shouldn’t be so much animosity. Just let it go; a little laughter can clear the air. Let’s all say less."
"There are plenty of scary photos online; don’t take it to heart. Let’s eat."
Everyone chimed in to mediate. In the end, Lin You and I took Qianqian upstairs first. She was crying from anger, hugging Lin You tightly as tears streamed down her face.
"It’s her man who can’t control himself and got involved with me; now I’m the one accused of seducing him. Why doesn’t she blame her man instead? Am I really that detestable? I might as well be dead. Even as a ghost, I wouldn’t let her off."
"Stop saying such silly things! Just ignore it; it's all the men’s fault; you can’t be blamed."
Lin You comforted her while I went to the restroom to wet a towel for her face. I didn’t know much about the situation between Xiaohua and Qianqian, so I didn’t want to say too much.
Once a third party gets involved between a man and a woman, many things are no longer as simple as they seem. Everyone has their own struggles, and everyone has the right to like someone else. As outsiders, it's really not appropriate to interfere too much.
After all the commotion, it was already late when Lin You and I returned to our room to sleep. Since we had booked double rooms, we naturally stayed together.
I slept soundly until dawn. I'm not someone who can't sleep in a new place, but that night I felt restless. I kept hearing screams and the sound of running footsteps. It wasn't until the morning that I finally managed to fall asleep.
But I hadn't slept long when Lin You shook me awake. " Anxin, something's wrong, get up."
"What happened?" I rubbed my eyes and yawned, feeling groggy from lack of sleep. "It's still early; let me sleep a bit more."
"Don't sleep! It's serious—Qianqian is dead."
"What?" The sleepiness vanished instantly at her words. I sat up straight in bed, my hair a mess. "How could she be dead?"
"I don't know either. This morning when I got up and saw you still sleeping, I planned to grab some breakfast and check on Qianqian. But her door was ajar, and when I pushed it open, she wasn't there. Her roommate Jiahua was sleeping like a log. I thought Qianqian had gone out, so I called her phone but found it lying in the corner of the hallway. She's someone who never leaves her phone behind; there's no way she would just leave it there unattended, especially since the screen was cracked. Worried, I asked the hotel staff if they had seen her, but they hadn't. So I decided to ask the manager if we could check the surveillance footage. As I walked down the corridor on the first floor, a door suddenly opened by itself, and a woman collapsed out of it—her head was severed."
"Was it Qianqian?"
Lin You nodded, sitting on the bed with a grave expression. Anyone would feel terrible if a friend suddenly died. Lin You looked pale, reminding me of how Ling Feng had died beside her; I feared she might relive that pain.
I quickly took her hand to comfort her. "Don't think too much; let's go check it out, okay?"
Lin You managed a faint smile, though her eyes were heavy with despair. " Anxin, are you worried I'll remember Ling Feng's death?"
I paused for a moment before nodding. "I don't want you to live in the past."
"But that's an undeniable fact." Lin You stood up from the bed and looked out at the sunlight streaming through the window with a bittersweet smile. She shook her head, clenching and unclenching her hands for a while before continuing, " Qianqian's head was hanging on the door; her severed tongue and gouged-out eyeballs were nailed to the doorframe, and she was covered in blood. There was a '4' carved right in the center of her forehead. The police are already collecting evidence."
I was horrified—how could someone die in such a way? How much pain must that have caused?
After quickly tidying up, I went out with Lin You. The corridor on the first floor of the hotel was already controlled by the police, preventing anyone from getting close. Qianqian's body had been taken away, leaving only a pool of red blood on the ground, with a large "4" etched into the wall, stained in crimson.
The number 4 was just an ordinary digit, but some people considered it unlucky, as it sounded like the word for death in Chinese, symbolizing mortality.
"Good riddance; she deserved to die," Xiaohua said coldly from the side, her eyes gleaming with an unprecedented joy as she gazed at the crime scene, as if she had personally killed the woman herself.
"Enough! Can’t you say a few less words now that someone is dead?" Sister Fang pushed her lightly. "We should show respect for the deceased."
"I can respect anyone, except for her."
Xiaohua's attitude was resolute. She shot Sister Fang a glare before turning to leave.
The police investigation was still ongoing. They had questioned us, Qianqian's friends, but there seemed to be nothing unusual.
I stood aside and heard a young officer rush over to his captain, saying, "We've found the last number dialed on her phone. It's a person named Lin Hua. The call was made after midnight last night, just half an hour before the time of death."
"Lin Hua?"
Lin You and I were startled. Lin Hua was Xiaohua's full name.
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