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墨書 Inktalez
The house of Yilan Shan was quite spacious. Under the guidance of Mute Aunt, I wandered around for half an hour just to get a rough sense of my surroundings. Of course, this included the fact that two of the doors were locked, which gave me an inexplicable sense of mystery.
There was a small town not too far from Yilan Shan's home, but it was still quite a distance away. She and Mute Aunt would go shopping every Friday, and it was said that the round trip took about forty minutes.
Forty minutes was enough time for me to have a long phone call with Zhu Zhu. They didn't have any surveillance installed in their house, so on the surface, I promised not to make any calls. However, just seconds after they left, I couldn't wait to grab the phone and check in with Zhu Zhu.
"Zhu Zhu, everything here is fine, but it seems like the hostess and her aunt have something going on; they always act mysteriously."
Zhu Zhu replied, "As long as the family doesn't cut your wages, why do you care what they're up to?"
"That's true."
Zhu Zhu continued, "Hey! We're in a one-way communication here. You get information from me about the agency, and I get to know you're safe from you. They won't bother you anymore."
"Thank you, you're really my good sister."
Zhu Zhu laughed exaggeratedly on the other end, "Of course! It depends on who’s talking to whom."
I glanced at the time; I had inadvertently been chatting for several minutes. I couldn't continue; if Yilan Shan found out I was on the phone with someone from outside, it would be a disaster.
"Zhu Zhu, I can't talk anymore. You know..."
"Alright then... But remember, if you have any problems or difficulties, contact me in time."
"Of course. This number is my new mobile number; I lost my old phone along with the SIM card."
Zhu Zhu seemed quite surprised. "So you two really have no chance anymore?"
"Is there still any doubt?" I sighed. "What he and I had was merely a rumor. He’s a wild guy with both controlling and possessive tendencies, while I happen to love freedom and that pure carefree spirit. So you understand."
Zhu Zhu sighed softly again and said, "Take care of yourself then. Bye!"
After hanging up the phone, I found myself momentarily at a loss for what to do. I wandered into the study and noticed a copy of one of Shakespeare's four great tragedies: Hamlet on the bookshelf. I couldn't help but pick it up and flip through its pages. Taking a deep breath, feeling a bit stifled indoors, I decided to step outside for some fresh air.
The environment outside was truly vast, with sprawling plantations and scattered villas dotting the landscape. I was captivated by the natural scenery before me and couldn't help but step out onto a lush green lawn. Choosing a relatively sheltered spot, I comfortably leaned against a tree and began to leisurely read my favorite works of Shakespeare.
"Hey! Who are you?"
Who was shouting? I wondered, lifting my gaze to look around. After a while, a man emerged from behind a not-so-large tree. He appeared to be in his forties, lean and fit, as if he had been working hard. Sweating profusely, he approached and shouted, "Get out of here! This isn't Yilan Shan!"
"..." What bad luck to encounter such a rude person. I couldn't be bothered to respond and continued resting my head on my hand while reading.
"Hey, can you tell me who you are?"
"The butler of Yilan Shan." I barely glanced at him; he was the kind of person who would be indistinguishable in a crowd. My focus remained on the book.
"Butler? More like a nanny!" This man really deserved a slap; his slightly mocking smile completely irritated me.
"What about nannies? Are they not human?"
"New here? I don't want to argue with you, but how did you end up being a nanny for that Witch?" He seemed to doubt my claim, as if he believed I couldn't possibly be suited for such work.
Although I wanted to retort against his impolite remarks, the mention of "Witch" caught my attention. I stood up, brushed off the dirt from my pants, and asked in surprise, "Witch?"
"Yes, every year during Ghost Month, something happens at her place. Once, she got up in the middle of the night to burn Hell Money and ended up burning down the storage shed outside along with this whole area of trees. If it weren't for her using money to smooth things over, she might have ended up in jail."
Ghost Month? How could I have forgotten about that? My parents had repeatedly warned me not to wander around during Ghost Month. Yet here I was, not only far from them but also in this strange and eerie environment.
"Why do they have to burn paper in the middle of the night?"
"Maybe they have too many guilty secrets!"
To be honest, I didn't like people speaking ill of others behind their backs, especially without knowing the full story. The homeowner was being maliciously slandered by this stranger, which made me quite unhappy.
"Do you have any evidence that this isn't Yilan Shan's territory?" I deliberately changed the subject, wanting to confront him about Yilan Shan's claim that I would be part of their family from now on.
"Yilan Shan practices sorcery and is very wealthy. It turns out this land was all bought by her family. After that big fire, they sold off this piece of land."
“Did you really buy this piece of land?” I dismissed the old trick and turned to leave.
“Hey, I’m Yang Gang…”
I didn’t care who he was; it had nothing to do with me. His shout faded away with the wind as I walked past him, losing interest.
I couldn’t remember the exact days of the seasons throughout the 365 days of the year. On the fourth day of staying at Yilan Shan’s house, I recalled drinking too much soup that night and kept thinking about it. Stepping out of my bedroom, I sensed whispers coming from outside the door.
The time was probably around midnight. In the dark space outside the dining room, two figures were crouched down. If I hadn’t heard Yang Gang mention that something would happen in her family during Ghost Month, I would have been terrified by this strange scene that appeared before me in my half-awake state. They were earnestly praying, and what was burning was indeed Hell Money meant for the dead.
I quietly peeked from my corner and saw that they were Yilan Shan and that Mute Aunt.
Why not burn Hell Money during the day? Why create such a bizarre atmosphere in the dead of night? Curiosity aside, as a newly arrived maid, I shouldn’t interfere in my employer’s private matters. After watching for a while without catching what they were mumbling about, I felt bored and quietly returned to my room to sleep.
My parents also believed in the traditions of Ghost Festival; surely they wouldn’t insist on burning Hell Money at such an hour! Could it be that they really were like Yang Gang said, a bunch of Witches? But then again, Yilan Shan had been so warm towards me; it was hard to connect her with the term Witch.
After a night of restless thoughts, I wasn’t sure if I had dreamt or not, but when I got up and saw Yilan Shan, I hurriedly asked her a question.
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