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墨書 Inktalez
At the Post Office, people came and went as Ding Li stood beside Xiao Qiang. She clenched her fists to suppress the fear rising from within and whispered, "Is this the place?"
This was the Green Store. Xiao Qiang looked up with a smile, nodding happily, "Yes, my home is right over there."
Xiao Qiang's head turned, twisting to look back at the nape of his neck, his face positioned above his back, his hollow eyes staring intently at his home.
Of course, this scene was witnessed only by Ding Li.
She nervously swallowed, unable to look at Xiao Qiang, and walked ahead on her own, muttering, "Then let's go take a look."
"Auntie, wait for me!"
How could Ding Li, with her innate maternal instincts, resist the call of that tender voice? Still not daring to face Xiao Qiang directly, she instinctively stopped, her hands hanging down. A sudden chill washed over her as a shiver ran through her; Xiao Qiang had taken hold of her hand.
Right now, Xiao Qiang relied heavily on Ding Li; in his world, she was the only one.
Without Ding Li, Xiao Qiang would lose his sense of direction and security.
His small hand felt cold, like ice—like a frozen corpse.
Ding Li tried her best not to think about these terrifying things. She didn’t dare to look at Xiao Qiang for too long; she feared seeing his head still at the nape of his neck, with his face beneath it.
Finally, they arrived at the tree that Xiao Qiang had mentioned.
Under the flourishing tree in full bloom, many white petals had fallen.
Ding Li bent down to pick up the petals, her fingers brushing against them, sending a chill through her. What kind of flower was this? It felt almost as cold as Xiao Qiang's hand. Remembering Xiao Qiang, she looked at her fingers. She realized he had disappeared without her noticing. The white petals scattered on the ground were as white as Silk Cotton Flowers, unnaturally so.
“Xiao Qiang,” Ding Li called out nervously, feeling a strange sense of loss, as if she had lost her own child in an instant.
She felt very cold.
The white petals danced in the wind, and a chilling breeze seeped into her skin, raising goosebumps. It was still early spring in March, with the sun shining above; how could it be this cold?
Ding Li did not recognize the tree and had no idea what kind of flower it was.
She called out for Xiao Qiang again, and someone approached her.
“Miss, who are you calling?”
The question came from a middle-aged woman who seemed to be selling goods from a stall. Ding Li had noticed many small items laid out on the ground when the woman passed by earlier.
“A child. He said his home was here and asked me to bring him, but now he’s gone.”
“It’s been half a month; this matter hasn’t passed yet. Alas… such misfortune.”
Ding Li gathered the petals in her hands and said to the middle-aged woman, “He said this tree is a Pear Tree, but I don’t think so; it looks more like something called Higanbana.”
The middle-aged woman glanced at Ding Li's hands, fear and unease flickering in her eyes. She hurriedly turned back towards where she came from; her stall was across the street. She made an excuse about needing to tend to her business and quickly left Ding Li behind.
Ding Li looked strangely at the middle-aged woman, then glanced at the Higanbana in her hand. Suddenly, she shivered and hurriedly ran away. Just moments ago, the Higanbana she had been holding had vanished in an instant, no wonder that middle-aged woman was frightened.
Looking back at the tree, it simply did not exist.
An illusion!
Ding Li dared not linger and retraced her steps as night fell.
On her way back, she continued to ponder this matter. Xiao Qiang was a Ghost Child; it seemed he wanted to tell her something. Was it that her mind was too dull to understand, or had she missed something due to being overly nervous?
Ye Chenfeng returned home from work to cook dinner.
Ding Li couldn’t cook; he had to do it himself.
The door opened, and a weary Ding Li said, “I’m back.”
Hearing this, Ye Chenfeng instinctively rolled up his sleeves and stepped out to give her a hug. However, as he stepped forward, he suddenly shouted, “Who are you? Get away from her immediately, or I won’t be polite!”
Ding Li was startled and quickly turned around to look behind her. The door that had already closed opened automatically and then slammed shut heavily again. A ghost had followed her in, and she hadn’t even noticed—what kind of ghost was it?
Ye Chenfeng embraced the frightened Ding Li and whispered, “You forgot to wear your protective talisman again.”
“Yeah, I found it troublesome,” Ding Li replied. Feeling the warmth radiating from Ye Chenfeng, she began to feel a bit of comfort; his words were also very heartwarming. She cherished this feeling and was reluctant to let go of his strong arms for a long time.
"Today, nothing strange is going to happen again, right? You look unwell, and there's a bit of a dark aura around you."
"Ye Chenfeng, if one day I suddenly disappear, would you come looking for me?"
Ye Chenfeng cupped Ding Li's face, surprised. "What are you talking about? Disappear? If something happened today, you need to tell me right away."
Ding Li looked into Ye Chenfeng's eyes; he was genuinely worried and cared for her deeply.
"Tell me, what was that thing that came with me just now?"
"A filthy ghost, a beggar in life, and now he's so poor that even the Underworld's Yin Chai won't come to collect him."
A filthy ghost? How did I attract a filthy ghost!
Ding Li remained silent, her face pale. With Ye Chenfeng's support, she sat down on the sofa. After recounting the strange encounter from earlier in the day, Ye Chenfeng listened intently, his brows furrowed as he gently ran his fingers through Ding Li's hair.
"His name is Xiaoqiang. He lives across from the Post Office in an alley called Broom Street. At the entrance of the alley, there's a tree with white flowers that looks just like Higanbana." Ding Li spoke as if she were talking to herself, adding details she hadn't finished earlier.
"Higanbana?"
Ye Chenfeng's brows knitted tighter as he paced back and forth in the living room. He forgot about the food burning in the kitchen until a burnt smell wafted out. Both he and Ding Li exclaimed in unison and rushed to the kitchen.
"It's burnt! This was your favorite Sweet and Sour Ribs." Ye Chenfeng grimaced as he looked at the charred ribs with regret.
"It's fine, the burnt food is still edible; it might even be delicious," Ding Li said, picking up a piece and bringing it to her mouth.
"Don't! Eating burnt food can cause cancer."
Ding Li refrained from eating the charred ribs and watched Ye Chenfeng wash the pot. He mentioned he would make another dish to make it up to her.
"Ye Chenfeng..."
Ye Chenfeng froze. His waist was embraced from behind by Ding Li, her hands dirty and reeking of burnt ribs.
"Look, my hands are filthy. Why don't you sit on the sofa for a bit? Just give me a few minutes, and you can eat."
Ding Li released her hold on Ye Chenfeng and obediently walked out of the kitchen. She grabbed a soft cushion and leaned back on the sofa, closing her eyes. It felt so comfortable. As soon as she shut her eyes, a voice echoed in her mind, and the little pest from her memories seemed to stand before her, pitifully pleading, "Auntie, help me. I can't find my way home."
Ding Li suddenly opened her eyes; the room looked just the same, with Ye Chenfeng's busy figure clearly visible in the kitchen.
In the air, there was still a faint smell of burnt food.
She got up to grab an air freshener and sprayed it around the room. The fresh scent spread, finally driving away the burnt odor. Only then did she feel at ease enough to set the table and prepare for dinner.
Ding Li didn't like this kind of intimate dinner for two.
She really liked having another person between the two of them.
This extra person could be similar to Ye Chenfeng or even resemble herself. This person was the child she had always wanted, and her disappointed gaze flickered to the empty seat. The fragrant dishes before her tasted like cardboard.
"What's wrong with you today?" Ye Chenfeng asked as he served food into Ding Li's bowl, concern etched on his face.
Ding Li smiled apologetically and said, "It's nothing, just some memories." She was thinking about that unfortunate incident, the child who had died in her womb. If that child had survived, they would be a few years old by now.
"Don't dwell on those unhappy memories. I feel like I've told you this a thousand times, and I've even explained the pros and cons to you. Why can't you just let it go?" Ye Chenfeng said, a hint of frustration in his voice. He had lost his appetite and looked at Ding Li's gloomy expression, asking with concern, "Are you worried about Xiao Qiang?"
"Maybe. Just now, when I closed my eyes, I saw him begging me to take him home," Ding Li said symbolically as she took a bite of food. As she chewed slowly, another thought struck her, and she quickly added, "There was a woman selling things across from that Higanbana flower. She said something strange."
"What did she say?"
"She mentioned that it has been half a month and that this matter hasn't passed yet, then sighed."
"She must know something. Don't worry; we'll check it out after we eat."
Ye Chenfeng knew that Ding Li couldn't let go of certain matters, especially regarding opening the Paper Craft Shop. Initially, he had disagreed with her decision because Ding Li was too sensitive; he didn't want her to engage with things meant for the dead, fearing it might attract some bad entities. The idea of her managing the Paper Craft Shop alone was unacceptable to him.
However, he was taken aback when Ding Li secretly rented a storefront and bought the materials needed for paper offerings. Seeing her determination to open the Paper Craft Shop left Ye Chenfeng with no choice but to compromise.
Not long after opening the Paper Craft Shop, Ding Li attracted some unwanted entities that began to follow her.
If it weren't for Ye Chenfeng, Ding Li would now be surrounded by a hundred demons, gravely ill.
After dinner, Ye Chenfeng took Ding Li downstairs and headed straight for Ximen Road.
To get to Ximen Road, they had to pass through Yangxi Road.
On Yangxi Road, there was a Temple, the Centennial Temple, which housed an Enlightened Monk. He was an old acquaintance of Ye Chenfeng; they could be considered friends across generations!
Ye Chenfeng had come to terms with not having children thanks to the insights provided by this Enlightened Monk.
The High Monk mentioned that in his past life, Ye Chenfeng was not ordinary; if one traced back even further, he had been a capable general skilled in both literature and martial arts.
Ye Chenfeng did not believe in past lives or reincarnation; he believed in reality and the events happening before him.
He brought Ding Li to see the High Monk in hopes that Ding Li could emerge from the shadow of that incident.
The High Monk was meditating in his Zen room and instructed his disciples to treat Ye Chenfeng and his wife with great care.
The Centennial Temple had witnessed many events, and countless rumors surrounded it. The ancient temple was said to be filled with spiritual energy, deterring ordinary evil beings from approaching.
In an era when all sorts of malevolent spirits roamed freely, the Centennial Temple nearly fell victim to destruction. It was only due to the manifestation of the Bodhisattva within the Temple that those who came to wreak havoc were struck with madness, scaring off the rest and ultimately abandoning their plans to destroy the Centennial Temple.
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