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墨書 Inktalez
I slept until noon, only waking up when the phone rang. Groggily, I opened my eyes and answered, "Hello?" On the other end was Lao Liu's voice, "What’s up? Still not awake? It’s already noon."
I rubbed my eyes and replied, "Yeah, it’s noon. Are we leaving now?" Liu Zhong said, "Yes, get ready and come to the office. We’ll be heading out soon."
"Okay, I’ll get ready and head out. By the way, do you need me to bring anything?" I asked. Liu Zhong replied, "Don’t bring anything; just come over."
"Alright, I’m on my way." I hung up the phone, stretched lazily, and got out of bed.
As soon as I opened the bedroom door, I saw Hu Fang and Li Zhisheng already sitting at the dining table, but they didn’t seem to notice I was up. I walked over and sat down at the table.
"You’re getting up so late! Don’t you have to go out today?" Hu Fang said while picking up a fried chicken leg from the table.
I scratched my head and said, "I was just too tired last night; there was nothing I could do. A friend just called to hurry me up." Li Zhisheng pointed at the food on the table and said, "You should eat something quickly; otherwise, you’ll be late."
"Alright, this one is mine then." I grabbed a hamburger from the table and stood up to leave. Seeing me take her hamburger, Hu Fang hurriedly shouted at me, "That’s mine! Give it back! You can eat another one!"
After changing my clothes, I said to her, "Don’t be so upset; I’ll treat you to a meal when I get back. Is that okay?" She calmed down a bit at my words.
Before leaving, I specifically reminded them, "Make sure to keep an eye on the house for me. And Hu Fang, don’t leave Li Zhisheng alone at home; he’ll starve." With that, I ignored Li Zhisheng's pale face and closed the door behind me.
Once outside, I hailed a cab straight to the gold company on Guoan Road where I used to work with Liu Zhong. As soon as I arrived, I saw Liu Zhong waiting for me at the entrance.
I hurried over to shake his hand and said, "It’s been a while since we last met; your belly seems to have grown again. You must have made quite a bit of money." Liu Zhong waved his hand dismissively and said, "While you were resting, many clients who originally came for you stopped coming. There hasn’t been much money to make."
As Liu Zhong and I exchanged pleasantries, we walked through the entrance. To my surprise, as soon as we stepped inside, the security guard recognized me immediately and smiled, "Oh Shen! You’re back!"
I nodded slightly in response and said, "Yeah, I'm back."
Liu Zhong and I made our way to the original office building. I was astonished and exclaimed, "It hasn’t been long since we last met; you’ve turned the original three-story building into a more than ten-story skyscraper! Have you made any money yet?"
Liu Zhong chuckled and pointed to a black truck about ten meters long parked beside the building. "Let's not talk about that for now. All the goods are in there—half a ton of gold bars worth 4k."
I was taken aback. "Wait, my friend, where did you find such a big client? This is a deal worth over a hundred million! You're just going to use this truck? Why not hire security?"
Liu Zhong patted my shoulder and replied, "You don't understand. If someone really wants to rob you, security won't help. Besides, I've insured this batch of goods, so don't worry."
Although I had some doubts in my mind, I decided not to press further since he was an old friend from our entrepreneurial days.
At that moment, a man got out of the truck. He was tall and muscular, with a broad back and a face full of rugged features. When he saw Liu Zhong, he walked straight toward us, and I couldn't help but feel a bit intimidated.
The burly man approached us, and Liu Zhong introduced him. "Come here, let me introduce you. This is the driver for this transport; you can call him Da Zhuang. Da Zhuang, this is Shen, who will be traveling with you."
Da Zhuang gave me a slight bow. "Hello, Shen!" I quickly held him up. "No need to be so polite! I'm not really the boss here; this guy is the real boss." I pointed at Liu Zhong while thinking to myself how fitting his name was.
Liu Zhong quickly interjected to ease the atmosphere. "Come on, no need for formalities. It's getting late; you two should head out. My truck might take a little longer to arrive. Otherwise, it will be dark soon and hard to navigate." With that, I said goodbye to Liu Zhong and drove off with Da Zhuang.
On the road, Da Zhuang drove in silence for two hours until he finally broke the silence. "Shen, let me tell you a story."
I perked up at the mention of a story and smiled. "Sure! What kind of story?"
Da Zhuang grinned mischievously. "You'll find out soon enough." And then he began his tale.
"Years ago, when I was still driving a taxi, I encountered something terrifying that still gives me chills when I think about it. To this day, I'm not sure if it was just my imagination or if I really encountered something unclean."
Before Da Zhuang could finish, my curiosity was piqued. "What kind of terrifying event? A supernatural incident?" Perhaps it was my eagerness to dispel lingering fears that made me particularly interested in ghost stories these days.
Da Zhuang leisurely lit a cigarette and blew out a smoke ring before continuing. "I'm not sure either; since you're interested, I'll share it with you."
"I vaguely remember being in a northern city one December night. The winter wind was biting cold; it must have been at least minus ten degrees Celsius, but strangely enough, it wasn't snowing. Fortunately, the car had heating that kept me insulated from the howling wind outside. After finishing my shift and preparing to head home late at night, the streets were deserted; all the shops were closed, leaving only two rows of streetlights illuminating the way. Feeling bored and tired from driving alone, I decided to turn on the radio for some music to relax. Just as I switched it on and looked up, I noticed what seemed like a figure waving its arms under one of the streetlights ahead. I wondered who would be hailing a cab at this hour?"
Da Zhuang took a puff of his cigarette, paused for a moment, and continued, "I drove up to that person and stopped the car. Under the streetlight, I saw it was a young woman with long, sleek black hair, wearing a long white down jacket. She opened the car door and sat in the back seat. I pressed the gas pedal and asked her where she was going. She told me a place, her voice soft and fragile. I can't remember exactly where that place was now; I only recall that the road was in the same direction as my home but rather secluded." He glanced at me in the passenger seat, and I gestured for him to go on.
"Maybe it was because she had just opened the door, but I felt the temperature drop significantly. We drove in silence; I really wanted to ask her why she was out alone so late in the dead of winter. After all, it was almost New Year's, and it wasn't safe for a girl to be out by herself. Just then, I wanted to check on her through the rearview mirror. As I glanced sideways at it, I was shocked to find that there was no one sitting in the back seat?! My heart raced, and I slammed on the brakes, quickly turning around to look behind me. She lifted her head and asked why I had suddenly braked. Thinking I must have been too tired and mistaken something, I apologized to her and continued driving."
"Just as I was about to reach my destination, the road suddenly became bumpy, causing the car to jolt back and forth. I worried that the girl in the back might not handle such violent shaking well, so instinctively, I glanced at the rearview mirror again to see if she was okay. But when I looked, my whole body went cold; through the mirror, I saw that the girl's head was gone!? All that remained was her bare neck, which was continuously spewing blood. She held her own head in her hands and brought it closer to me, repeatedly asking, 'Do I look pretty? Do I look pretty…?' In a moment of distraction, it felt like I crashed into a tree by the roadside and lost consciousness. When I woke up again, I found myself lying in a hospital bed. Even now, thinking back on it sends chills down my spine!"
"Were there any strange occurrences around you afterward?" I asked curiously.
Da Zhuang shivered slightly and said, "I can't remember clearly; all I know is that after being discharged from the hospital, I told my relatives about this incident. They brought in many shamans and performed seven rituals before it was over."
After hearing this, I comforted him, saying, "It's fine; it's all in the past now. Just be careful from now on and try not to drive at night." At that moment, Da Zhuang looked at me with hopeful eyes and said, "Shen, do you have any interesting stories? Share one with me."
I smiled and replied, "I do have one; just let me think for a moment." To myself, I thought that what I've experienced couldn't be shared with him directly; instead, I'd tell him a story I'd heard from the older generation…
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