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墨書 Inktalez
The house at Tian Tian's home was an old two-bedroom unit, and I had to stay overnight, which meant I would share a room with Tian Fu while Tian Tian stayed with her mother.
After dinner, I took the opportunity to digest my food and pulled Tian Tian out for a walk outside the neighborhood.
Due to the demolition, almost everyone in the area had moved away. The pale streetlights cast a dim glow, stretching our shadows long behind us as we walked.
The only sound echoing through the empty neighborhood was the sound of our footsteps, creating an eerie silence.
“Tian Tian, be careful tonight. If anything happens, shout loudly,” I instructed her. Then I took a piece of yellow talisman paper, bit my middle finger to draw some blood, and marked it on the paper.
Tian Tian held the talisman tightly in her hand and asked worriedly, “Ling Feng, my mom won’t have any problems, right?”
I nodded. “Of course not. Don’t worry.”
Even though it was only around eight o'clock, the area had already fallen into a deathly silence. The flickering streetlights buzzed intermittently, sometimes bright and sometimes dim.
Tian Tian rubbed her arms and glanced around nervously before whispering, “Ling Feng, let’s go back.”
There wasn’t much to see in such a small place anyway; it would be better to return and get some sleep.
Tick-tock… tick-tock…
The alarm clock in the living room ticked away tirelessly, its sound growing louder in the stillness of the night.
Using the light that filtered in through the window, a figure moved mechanically around the house. Despite being in the dark and squinting slightly, it somehow managed not to bump into any furniture.
The shadow walked straight toward the kitchen and skillfully turned on the gas stove, blue flames flickering to life.
The light illuminated Tian Mu’s expressionless face. I couldn’t shake off the feeling that Tian Mu looked oddly like a Paper Man.
I went to bed and quickly fell asleep. After a few hours, I woke up right at midnight, stealthily hiding behind the sofa, my eyes fixed intently on the door of Tian Tian's room.
Just as I was about to doze off again, the door to Tian Tian's room creaked open gently.
Tian Mu walked into the kitchen as if in a trance. She retrieved a deep pot from beneath the cabinet and placed it on the stove.
Before long, the sound of bubbling and boiling filled the air, accompanied by a sweet and savory aroma of meat wafting through the house.
The delicious scent was overwhelming, and I couldn't help but swallow hard.
In the kitchen, Tian Mu paused her movements and turned to look in my direction.
Her eyes were completely white, and she stared at the sofa for a long moment before turning back to continue simmering the soup in the pot.
The aroma grew stronger, and then a nimble figure leaped onto the kitchen windowsill.
A slender body squeezed through the gap in the window and jumped into the steaming pot with a splash.
It was a black cat, its shiny fur glistening under the dim light.
The black cat seemed hypnotized, making no sound as it plopped into the scalding pot.
Every hair on my body stood on end. What was she doing?
After a moment of unpleasant odor, the house was once again filled with the mouthwatering scent of meat—more delicious than any chicken soup I had ever encountered.
After simmering for nearly an hour, Tian Mu finally stopped her work. She knocked on both Tian Tian's room and Tian Fu's room doors in succession.
A total of six knocks shattered the night's silence, like an unknown signal awakening those who were asleep inside.
Tian Tian and Tian Fu emerged from the room like marionettes after the knock on the door.
They walked stiffly to the dining table and sat down, their postures upright. They resembled prisoners in a television show waiting for their meal, backs straight against the chairs.
After a clatter of pots and bowls from the kitchen, I saw Tian Mu approaching the table with three steaming bowls of soup.
Since the sofa was not far from the dining table, I straightened my body slightly and caught a glimpse of what was in their bowls.
The murky broth shimmered with grease, and a few strands of black hair floated up and down within it.
Suddenly, an eyeball rolled in the soup, its green iris staring directly at me.
I gasped and quickly covered my mouth to stifle the scream that was about to escape.
The green eyeball bobbed in the broth like a living black cat winking at me.
Just as I felt a cold sweat trickling down my back, Tian Tian picked up a spoon and delicately sipped the soup. The glassy eyeball was chewed up by her and swallowed down.
I fought against the urge to vomit; I simply couldn’t bear to watch any longer.
On such a night, a sweet girl sat leisurely at the dining table, drinking a soup whose origins I could only guess at.
Tian Tian wore an expression of pure enjoyment as she finished every last drop of her bowl before contentedly strolling back to her room to lie down.
Once Tian Mu had tidied everything up, she too returned to her room for rest.
The lingering aroma of meat broth filled the air, and I could no longer stay inside for even a moment longer.
I quietly opened the iron door and ran to a distance, crouching down as I began to retch violently.
What on earth happened to them? How could they engage in such strange behavior in the dead of night?
All these thoughts tangled in my mind as I pulled out a bottle of liquor from my Qiankun Bag and took a big swig. The fiery sensation burned down my throat.
I coughed several times, trying to recover from the shock.
What kind of family were they, really? I had never noticed that Tian Tian had such issues before.
I held the plane ticket tightly in my hand; it was about to expire soon. If Tian Tian's situation wasn't resolved by then, I certainly wouldn't be able to leave.
The morning sun shone brightly, and the chirping of birds filled the air. I had somehow fallen asleep leaning against a utility pole.
After getting up and exercising for a bit, I returned, drenched in sweat, just as Tian Tian's family was waking up.
“Ling Feng, how come you’re back from outside?” Tian Tian asked curiously.
I wiped the sweat from my brow. “I’m used to getting up early to exercise.”
Tian Tian smiled. “No wonder! I thought you had left without saying goodbye.”
I winked at her, signaling that I wouldn't leave until things were resolved.
As we walked to buy breakfast, Tian Tian asked, “Ling Feng, did you notice anything last night? My mom...”
I scratched my head. “I’m really sorry; I was too tired last night, so…”
Tian Tian shrugged it off. “That’s understandable. You just got hurt; you should rest more. If it weren’t for me…”
I chuckled awkwardly. “Don’t worry; I’ll definitely wait until your family’s issues are perfectly resolved before I leave.”
As I sat down to breakfast, I felt completely unwell. Just the thought of that strange meat soup from last night made my stomach churn.
Now, wasn't I indirectly consuming it again? The pot for cooking porridge, the bowl and chopsticks in my hands...
I couldn't hold it in any longer and rushed to the bathroom, throwing up violently.
Tian Tian looked at me with concern and asked, "Ling Feng, are you okay? Do you need to go to the hospital?"
After I finished throwing up, I felt much better. "I'm fine, just a bit unaccustomed to the food here."
To avoid raising suspicion with Tian Fu and Tian Mu, I made an excuse and left the Tian family after breakfast.
I would come back later at night to investigate further...
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