Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
Yang Zhi Kui raised his ring finger high, a sparkling platinum ring adorning it. Jiang He carefully examined the ring; indeed, it appeared to be platinum and was likely worth around five or six thousand yuan. However, according to Boss Wang, Yang Zhi Kui's monthly salary was only three hundred.
If it were a pair of wedding rings, the price would probably be around ten thousand yuan. If Yang Zhi Kui had saved up for it himself, it would take him many years to afford such a pair. But the ring itself wasn't the main focus; the person wearing it was what truly mattered.
Yang Zhi Kui looked very happy. "Look, I have a ring now! This means we are practically married. I don't have any money left lately, so you all can be our witnesses. Once I've saved up enough, I'll treat you all to a meal. You can eat whatever you want then!" he said with a giggle.
The others looked at Yang Zhi Kui with mixed feelings. It was unclear whether he was pretending or genuinely oblivious to the current situation's seriousness.
Yang Zhi Kui smiled as he walked over to the cabinet. As soon as he opened the cabinet door, he turned and shouted, "Did you all touch my treasures? Did you touch my treasures?"
With that, he knelt on the ground and pulled out a storage box. Holding it tightly like it was his child, he used one hand to clutch the box while rummaging through various plastic bags and containers with the other. He muttered to himself as he finally counted everything inside the storage box.
Seeing that nothing was missing, Yang Zhi Kui let out a sigh of relief and carefully closed the box again before placing it back.
"I'm sorry," Yang Zhi Kui said while still kneeling on the floor. He addressed the group, "I thought you were going to take my treasures away. You can't take them; I've spent a long time collecting these. They are my life—without them, I wouldn't want to live."
Xu Yiman looked at Yang Zhi Kui, unsure of how to respond.
Old Shao finally spoke up, "Yang Zhi Kui, what were you doing just now?"
Yang Zhi Kui pointed at his bed and replied, "Could I sit on that? I feel cold."
The others looked at him in confusion. Yang Zhi Kui was only wearing a short-sleeved shirt on top and autumn pants below. It was late autumn now; temperatures had dropped significantly, especially at night when the cold wind could chill one to the bone. Yet here was Yang Zhi Kui acting strangely in such thin clothing; no wonder he felt cold.
Old Shao regarded Yang Zhi Kui for a moment before finally saying, "Alright."
Yang Zhi Kui nodded and quickly dove under the covers, leaving only his head poking out. The electric blanket was warm and cozy, and it seemed that Yang Zhi Kui felt quite comfortable. He pulled out his right hand from under the blanket and admired the ring in the light as if it were his favorite new toy, unable to sleep from excitement like a child who had just received something special.
“Can Obsessive Love Disorder really make someone like this?” Old Shao couldn’t help but glance at Xu Yiman standing beside him.
Xu Yiman shook her head and said, “No, Obsessive Love Disorder only affects those who are secretly in love. When they interact with others, they can communicate normally about any topic except for the misguided belief that others like them. But look at Yang Zhi Kui right now; he’s always answering questions incorrectly. He’s either pretending to be foolish or genuinely a bit slow.”
With that, everyone fell silent, observing Yang Zhi Kui, trying to discern whether he was truly foolish or just pretending. While others were quiet, Yang Zhi Kui seemed quite content, still staring at his ring as if he could find something extraordinary in it.
Old Shao sighed and asked, “What did you go out for just now? Yang Zhi Kui.”
Yang Zhi Kui looked at Old Shao and replied, “I just got married.”
From Yang Zhi Kui’s demeanor, it didn’t seem like he was faking his foolishness. In fact, they could communicate with him; it was just that Yang Zhi Kui appeared to have become a more extreme version of Jiang He, unable to grasp the deeper meanings behind words.
Realizing this, Shao the Elder asked, “When did you buy the ring?”
“Two days ago,” Yang Zhi Kui said excitedly upon hearing the topic. “There weren’t many cars that afternoon, so I told Master I was going out to buy this ring. The woman who sold it to me said everyone loves this ring; it’s affordable for working-class people and not overly expensive, plus it looks great, so I bought it.”
“Today,” Yang Zhi Kui continued, “I married her.”
“But she’s already dead,” Old Shao said heavily.
“Dead?” Yang Zhi Kui asked. “Who?”
“Zhu Liang,” Old Shao said, looking directly at Yang Zhi Kui, the name slipping from his lips.
Upon hearing Old Shao’s words, Yang Zhi Kui dropped his hand. He stared wide-eyed at Old Shao, seemingly unable to believe what he had just heard. But the problem was that Jiang He had already made it clear; he had even carried Zhu Liang’s body to the crematorium himself. How could he possibly not know that she was dead?
Finally, Old Shao understood why Yang Zhi Kui was in this state. According to Xu Yiman, even if someone had Obsessive Love Disorder, they could still communicate normally with others. But looking at Yang Zhi Kui, it was evident that he was incapable of any meaningful interaction, let alone helping anyone fix a car.
Old Shao, previously unaware of the reason, now understood.
He walked up to Yang Zhi Kui, grabbed his collar, and delivered two sharp slaps. The suddenness of the blows left everyone stunned, unsure of Old Shao's intentions.
Holding Yang Zhi Kui by the collar, Old Shao shouted, "Wake up! Zhu Liang is dead."
With those words, it seemed that Yang Zhi Kui finally came to his senses. He glanced at the ring on his finger and then at Old Shao, who was gripping his collar. Suddenly, without warning, he burst into tears. He threw his arms around Old Shao and buried his face in his chest, sobbing uncontrollably.
Tears soaked Old Shao's clothes, and snot dripped onto him as well. Yet, Old Shao did not flinch; he held Yang Zhi Kui tightly without saying a word.
Through his sobs, Yang Zhi Kui cried out, "Yes, Zhu Liang is dead! I carried her to the crematorium; I placed her in the funeral home. Zhu Liang is gone; she’s really gone."
His cries were like a seismic shift, and even after his tears dried up and his voice grew hoarse, the sorrow lingered in the room. Everyone watched Yang Zhi Kui, unsure of how to feel.
Old Shao's slaps had jolted Yang Zhi Kui out of his stupor; only then did he grasp what had truly happened.
Three days prior, business at Old Wang's Repair Shop was slow. Eager to see Zhu Liang, Yang Zhi Kui had exchanged a few words with Master before leaving the repair shop early to search for her at the Sponge Factory. He knew that Zhu Liang should have finished work by then; he had left the shop at six o'clock sharp.
To save a dollar on transportation, Yang Zhi Kui decided to walk to the Sponge Factory. To take a shortcut, he bypassed the crematorium and headed towards the factory via Qingchun Road. This route took him an hour and a half. By seven o'clock in late autumn, it was already dark when he arrived at Qingchun Road.
Yang Zhi Kui paid little mind to this; he had walked this road countless times before. Normally, Zhu Liang would be at the playground behind the Sponge Factory at this hour. With many female workers at the factory and a large open space behind it, Director Wang had decided to turn that area into a playground equipped with various fitness equipment.
As a young woman in her twenties, Zhu Liang found it hard to connect with women in their forties. During her free time, she often strolled alone in the playground listening to music. Yang Zhi Kui was well aware of this habit and would often sneak into the Sponge Factory to hide behind a large tree in the playground to watch her.
If Yang Zhi Kui's guess was correct, Zhu Liang should be there now with her phone, enjoying music.
However, this time he was mistaken; Zhu Liang was not in the playground. Yang Zhi Kui felt like a child lost in a mall, fear and anxiety flooding over him. He dodged the female workers at the Sponge Factory while searching for Zhu Liang but spent several hours looking without finding her.
Yang Zhi Kui glanced at his phone; it was already around ten o'clock in the evening.
The last light in the dormitory had gone out, and Zhu Liang was nowhere to be seen. Yang Zhi Kui was certain that Zhu Liang was not in the dormitory. But if she wasn't there and hadn't returned by ten, where could she have gone?
After searching for Zhu Liang without success, Yang Zhi Kui had no choice but to return from the Sponge Factory, as he had to continue working the next day. Perhaps Zhu Liang had fallen ill and gone to the hospital, or maybe a relative had come to visit her, prompting her to take leave. Alternatively, it was possible that Zhu Liang was with another man. Lost in these thoughts, Yang Zhi Kui walked along Qingchun Road toward the repair shop.
Just as he exited through the back door, a van drove in.
Yang Zhi Kui paid it no mind; it was already past ten, and he needed to hurry back. After finishing work, he always helped Boss Wang take inventory of the car parts to check for any losses. At this hour, Boss Wang would be preparing to go home, and if Yang Zhi Kui didn't return soon, Boss Wang would likely be upset, jeopardizing his job.
Thus, he made a decision to cut across the fields directly back home, which would save him some time compared to going around the crematorium. He estimated he could make it back before eleven.
As he crossed the fields toward another street, he soon spotted someone lying on the ground.
The person wore a light blue dress and was not very noticeable in the dark. If Yang Zhi Kui hadn't been passing by at that moment, he wouldn't have seen her lying there at all. The girl lay beneath a tree, with a blood bag hanging from its branches; the needle at the bottom was still inserted into her wrist.
As Yang Zhi Kui focused on her, he realized that the person on the ground was none other than Zhu Liang—the very person he had been searching for all this time.
Comment 0 Comment Count