Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
Chapter 47: Human Nature Reasoning
I raised the dagger and lunged at my grandfather, who wore a sinister smile. Just as I was about to strike, a Awakening Talisman was pressed against my forehead, and then a pair of strong hands from behind grabbed me tightly, shouting, “Ma Qi, are you crazy? She is Rongrong.”
With Qin Jian bursting in and the Awakening Talisman he had placed on me, my mind suddenly cleared. I looked at Chi Xinrong, who was frozen in shock with tears streaming down her face, utterly confused about what had just happened. Why did I see my grandfather? Why did I see him crawling out of a coffin?
The truth was that the figure I saw as my grandfather was actually Chi Xinrong. She had gone to the restroom and, curious about the dark room, couldn’t help but step inside. Upon hearing my footsteps, she had jumped into the coffin and lay down.
Seeing me regain my senses, Qin Jian released his grip and sniffed the air. “This scent is suspicious.” Thinking about the scent, I recalled how my grandfather used to love picking a certain type of wildflower that emitted a fragrance. He would use these flowers to brew something; back then, he didn’t want me near it because the scent could numb a person’s senses.
If I wasn’t mistaken, the fragrance was coming from the coffin. It had dulled my judgment and created an illusion, making me mistake Chi Xinrong for my grandfather.
Moreover, this coffin was quite sinister. With Chi Xinrong lying inside it, she must have absorbed some of that Evil Energy. The presence of my grandfather’s Evil Energy around her made me see his shadow.
In simple terms, it was my grandfather’s shadow that clouded my vision and nearly cost Chi Xinrong her life.
Seeing Chi Xinrong’s pale face, terrified and sobbing uncontrollably because of my earlier actions, made me realize how close I had come to a grave mistake.
Qin Jian noticed the coffin and walked over to inspect it. “Coffins aren’t really in vogue anymore; why are you still selling them?”
The Awakening Talisman had been handed to Qin Jian by Fatty. He had come with Liu Chunhan, and thankfully no outsiders were around during the incident; they dared not enter the dark room but stayed at the door.
“Yeah. If someone buys them, I’ll sell them. This place has been cremating for many years now, but there are still people who buy coffins. Besides, there aren’t any regulations from the government mandating cremation in certain areas, right?” My statement was factual, leaving Qin Jian with nothing to say.
The room fell silent. The dark room felt too cold; it seemed that Qin Jian was reluctant to stay there any longer and pretended to leave.
"Can I be alone with her for a moment?"
Qin Jian surveyed the dark room, which, upon closer inspection, revealed little more than a chilling coffin. The scent in the room had not faded; the presence of the coffin ensured that the fragrance would linger indefinitely. With this in mind, I instructed Fatty to bring a bundle of incense to mask the scent of the alluring fragrance, preventing a repeat of my earlier experience.
I was unsure how Chi Xinrong had triggered the mechanism within the coffin that released such an enticing aroma.
Qin Jian agreed to let me spend some time alone with Chi Xinrong. Mi brought in water and glanced at me before stepping outside.
I called out to Mi, "Don't go."
"Brother Qi, if you have something to ask, just do it. I won't overthink it."
"Alright."
Once Mi left, I turned to Chi Xinrong and asked, "What did you see inside the coffin?"
"Nothing. I lay down inside and didn't feel anything unusual." Oh my gosh, Han Mi lay in a stone coffin, while Chi Xinrong directly lay in Grandpa's coffin. Where did that empty shell go? Seeing my scrutinizing gaze filled with helplessness, Chi Xinrong shrugged and asked, "Do you think there's something wrong with me?"
"Dear lady, that's not amusing. Why would you play in a coffin? What if you accidentally triggered a mechanism inside..." Right, this coffin has mechanisms; perhaps Grandpa's corpse was moved elsewhere. With this thought, I decided to send Chi Xinrong away. Only when she wasn't here could I search for Grandpa's corpse in peace.
After Chi Xinrong left, I meticulously re-examined the coffin. Finding nothing conclusive, I attempted to lift it. To my surprise, as I reached underneath, my fingers brushed against something solid embedded in the ground.
No matter how much force I exerted, the coffin remained utterly immovable.
"Should I pry it open?"
The thought startled me. I went to the storage room and found a Steel Pry Bar, a twisted one at that—this would do nicely.
Fatty was busy with Chi Xinrong and Han Mi. Making a floral wreath is quite a task, especially since several families needed them. As Qin Jian put it, our Ma Wu Funeral Home had hit the jackpot this time. He even joked that after this, I could proudly bring Mi back to the Funeral Home as my bride. The thought of marrying her had never left my mind; I dreamed of having her as my wife.
As the saying goes, it's better to share a bed than sleep alone. In the cold winter, having someone to warm the blankets is comforting, and sometimes we even playfully discuss plans for starting a family.
But back to business!
I tried to pry open the coffin with the Steel Pry Bar, but it was no use—just like when I tried to lift it with sheer strength before.
Unable to move it, I decided to check from above, feeling around each layer. There were two layers, so I inspected the second one; then there were three layers, and I checked the third. I refused to believe that Grandpa's research would have any flaws. After some time of banging and knocking around, I realized I had spent too long inside. Outside, Qin Jian was growing impatient and started knocking on the door; I still hadn't found any weaknesses in the coffin.
"Ma Qi, what are you doing in there? Open the door!" Qin Jian shouted through the crack.
The door was supposed to be a sliding one, but it had been broken by Li Gui, so I had asked a carpenter to make a Double Door as a temporary fix until I could sort out Grandpa's affairs and use this space for storing other things.
With Qin Jian calling out urgently, I had no choice but to abandon my search for weaknesses in the coffin. I restored it to its original state and opened the door, pretending everything was fine.
"What were you doing in there? You took forever to open the door," Qin Jian said, peering into the room.
"Nothing much, just reminiscing about Grandpa," I replied.
"What kind of person was your grandfather?"
"Good person."
"Well, if he weren't a good person, how could he have worked with Station to solve some of the backlog of unsolved cases?"
"Really?" I replied absently, fumbling for words as I prepared to close the door and leave.
Qin Jian, however, showed no intention of leaving. His attention was completely focused on the coffin. Ignoring my gaze, he walked straight up to it. "This coffin, Ma Qi, must be an antique! Look at its ancient charm and the carvings. If you examine it with a magnifying glass, there’s definitely something special about it."
"What are you trying to do?" I became wary. What was Qin Jian up to? Was he really planning to call in an antique dealer to appraise this coffin? After all, this coffin had been in the dark room since I could remember; my grandfather treated it like a treasure. When I was young and chubby, I didn't even dare to touch it.
My grandfather said that if you touched it, your hand would rot away.
Yet after countless times of touching it myself, my hands were just fine, which showed that most of what adults said was just a way to scare children.
Comment 0 Comment Count