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墨書 Inktalez
After having breakfast, I bid farewell to Tian Tian's family. As I walked out of the area, I couldn't help but glance back. All around me were remnants of walls and ruins, with several bulldozers moving back and forth amidst the debris, raising clouds of dust.
Only one building, Tian Tian's Home, stood like a solitary giant amidst the desolation.
Before leaving, I had secretly pocketed the spare key from the drawer of Tian Tian's Home. I initially thought my visit was just a quick hello, so I hadn’t brought Ruo Yu along. Little did I expect to encounter such strange events.
Once outside the area, I found a phone booth to call the nursing home and report my safety. The voice on the other end belonged to a sweet-voiced receptionist. I asked her to summon Ruo Yu to take the call.
“Hello!” Ruo Yu's deep voice came through the line.
I explained apologetically, “Ruo Yu Brother, I've run into a bit of a tricky situation and won’t be able to return for now. Just stay at the nursing home, and once I sort things out here, I'll come back immediately.”
“Do you need any help?” Ruo Yu asked.
I thought for a moment. Ruo Yu was somewhat reserved and only knew me at the nursing home. Leaving him there alone didn't seem right. “Actually, I do need your help. Could you take the bus from the nursing home to the city? Let’s meet at the bus station.”
Upon hearing he could assist, Ruo Yu quickly hung up. “Okay. See you soon.”
We agreed to meet at a nearby food stall by the bus station. Ruo Yu had somehow found a set of camouflage clothing that made him look even more imposing with his strong physique—quite intimidating.
I chose a table towards the back and ordered some snacks to go with our drinks as we began to drink together. Although Ruo Yu wasn’t much of a talker, after three cups of alcohol, he started to open up.
“Ling Feng, I think it's exciting to be with you. We just got out of one mess and now we're facing another,” Ruo Yu said while trying to pick up a peanut with his chopsticks. After several attempts, he finally managed to grab one and tossed it into his mouth.
Was that meant as a compliment?
I chuckled, “I have this once-in-a-lifetime fate of running into trouble wherever I go.”
Ruo Yu raised his head and downed a glass. "At first, when Master asked me to follow you, I was a bit unconvinced. But after this period of time, I can sum it up in one word: impressive!"
Ruo Yu gave me a thumbs-up. I smugly replied, "So he is the Master, and you are the apprentice. Just based on vision alone, you're not as good as my brother."
We drank from noon until night. I noticed the boss of the food stall glancing at us several times. Although his face showed displeasure, he didn’t dare come over to chase us away.
It seemed that Ruo Yu's imposing figure had a bit of a deterrent effect. After it got dark, Ruo Yu and I staggered out of the food stall.
The boss watched us drunkenly leave, respectfully escorting us to the door without daring to ask for payment, rubbing his hands together with a smile that looked more painful than crying.
Ruo Yu was a bit tipsy, but I was quite sober. I asked, "Boss, how much is the bill?"
The boss trembled and held up one finger. "One hundred."
As a good young man of the new era, I couldn't engage in such behavior as taking advantage of hardworking people. So I pulled three hundred bills from Ruo Yu's pocket and handed them to the boss. "Boss, sorry for staying here all afternoon."
The boss insisted on giving me change, but only after Ruo Yu let out a loud roar did he obediently accept the money.
Ruo Yu and I walked down the street with our arms around each other's shoulders. One by one, the streetlights lit up, and Wan Jia's lights flickered on as well.
I shouted loudly, "I want to make money—lots of money! I want to have my own light shining in this tall building!"
Passersby looked at us like we were crazy and quickly moved away from us, probably afraid we would cause a scene due to our drunkenness.
We stumbled our way to Tian Tian's Home area and found a dilapidated building with only a few holes left in it. We crawled inside and fell into a deep sleep.
It was already past midnight, and I was still busy with important matters.
“Meow… Meow… Meow…”
A sudden cat's cry startled me awake. My mind was filled with images from the previous night, those glassy eyes floating up and down in the milky broth.
I stretched lazily and said, “Ruo Yu, wait outside and keep watch. I’ll go in and check the situation first.”
The light was too dim, and I struggled several times to align the key with the lock. After a gentle twist, I opened the door just a crack to avoid making too much noise, then squeezed into the room.
As soon as I opened the door, a familiar smell hit me—the greasy aroma of meat. It nearly made me vomit what I had for lunch. I tiptoed and hid in my usual spot behind the back of the sofa.
Tian Mu was still stirring the pot with a ladle. This time, there were no stray cats; instead, Tian Mu had placed a live chicken into the boiling broth.
Everything else was just as it had been last night. I had initially thought they were possessed by ghosts, but after checking, I found no trace of any malevolent spirit in the house.
If it wasn’t a ghost causing this, then what was happening? Why were they drinking such a broth?
“Mom, I don’t want to drink this disgusting stuff anymore,” Tian Tian's voice dripped with disdain.
Tian Mu comforted her, “My dear daughter, please listen to me. It’s not easy for your mother to have you back. I want to see my precious girl get married and have children.”
Tian Tian didn’t respond but lifted her bowl and gulped down the soup in one go.
Tian Fu sighed deeply, “What a sin, what a sin.”
I thought to myself, so there’s more to this than meets the eye. I felt around for the switch and turned on the light. The white glow instantly illuminated the room.
The three members of the Tian family shielded their eyes as the light flickered on. After a moment, once they adjusted to the blinding brightness, they looked at me, the uninvited outsider, in surprise.
“Ling Feng, didn’t you leave? How come you’re here?” Tian Tian stared at me in disbelief.
I shouted, “Actually, I sensed something was off last night. I just didn’t expect that you all would willingly eat such disgusting things.”
Seeing my anger, Tian Tian immediately covered her face and buried her head on the table, sobbing softly. Her tears made my frustration dissipate.
Tian Mu explained, “A few days ago, I went to Wong Tai Sin to make a wish and pray for our family’s safety. I didn’t expect to come back to this situation. We didn’t dare tell anyone else for fear they’d think we were monsters. My husband and I are old enough to handle it, but it’s pitiful for our Tian Tian. After suffering so much, she finally came home only to encounter such strange happenings again.”
I quickly apologized, “Tian Tian, I’m sorry. I was just a bit anxious. Why didn’t you tell me about this?”
With tear-filled eyes, Tian Tian looked at me and said, “Ling Feng, you don’t owe us anything. You saved my life before, and we’re already grateful for that. This situation is so bizarre; I didn’t want to drag you into it.”
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