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10th Day
Alas, when Guo Jia passed away, Jia Xu didn't even get to see him for the last time. He hurried back but only made it to the funeral. A living person turned into a handful of ashes, mixed with crushed bone fragments. Xun Yu sat in the hall of the crematorium, holding a number tag to collect the ashes. The death was so sudden that even the funeral items were prepared hastily. The search history on the phone was full of queries about what to do when a loved one suddenly passes away, how to make a reservation at the crematorium, regulations for purchasing a burial plot, how many people to invite to the funeral, whether to hire mourners, taboos during the funeral procession, and recommended shopping guides for funeral items.
Jia Xu sat down next to Xun Yu and after a moment of silence, asked what had happened. Xun Yu opened his mouth and after a while, said it was a car accident. He died trying to save a little girl, but the rescue efforts were in vain. The girl's family was also present. Jia Xu found it absurd that the person who disliked children the most would die trying to save one. He had just received an award for his work after three years. Following Xun Yu's gaze, Jia Xu saw the little girl being held by her parents. When the parents noticed Jia Xu's gaze, they smiled in a pleasing manner, but Jia Xu's expression grew even darker.
The crematorium is far from the city, surrounded by mountains and trees. The decor exudes a bleak silence, and the metal benches are freezing as if on fire. Jia Xu stood up and walked outside, feeling a bit more real under the sun. Every face here seems numb, either alone or huddled together. Jia Xu lit a cigarette and leaned against the wall, taking a few puffs before choking and coughing. When he tried to light another, his vision suddenly blurred, and tears fell heavily on the steps. Jia Xu covered his face and slowly crouched down. How absurd, this world is so absurd.
After crouching for who knows how long, his legs went numb. Xun Yu held the urn, but it's unclear how long he had been standing behind. Seeing Jia Xu stand up, he softly said, "Let's go." It wasn't a holiday, so the cemetery was empty. Xun Yu drove with a stern face, while Jia Xu sat in the back with the seatbelted urn. Looking at the urn, Jia Xu thought, "Wasn't Guo Jia a social butterfly? How come no one came to send him off?" So Jia Xu asked, "Didn't you notify anyone else?" Xun Yu turned the steering wheel and replied, "No," without even explaining why. Sporadic firecrackers mixed with heart-wrenching cries. Jia Xu held the urn and followed Xun Yu up the hill, while Xun Yu silently carried a photo and paper money.
Opening the tombstone, Jia Xu gently placed the urn inside, and Xun Yu put in a group photo, a house key, and a red string. Finally, following an online suggestion, he placed a red paper on the urn and added some soil from the family's doorstep. There was no photo on the tombstone, no parents' names, no fancy epitaph as Guo Jia had said to have his life story engraved with a QR code. There was only Guo Jia's name, along with Xun Yu and Jia Xu's names. Closing the tombstone, Xun Yu squatted and burned the paper money, not saying a word. Jia Xu stood beside him, watching the flames flicker and the ashes circle and fall on his head. Jia Xu thought, "Even in death, people are so bothersome, blowing ashes onto his head."
After the incident, Jia Xu did not travel with Xun Yu, but took a taxi and left on his own. Xun Yu sat in the car and watched Jia Xu get in before starting the car and driving out of the parking lot.
After that, Jia Xu began to frequently dream of Guo Jia. At first, it was just dreams, but later he could see Guo Jia - lying on the sofa smoking, basking in the sun on the windowsill, squatting in front of the refrigerator digging into the ice cream, sitting silently on the bed looking at him, not saying anything, just smiling. Sometimes, when Jia Xu passed by a mirror, he could always see Guo Jia sitting not too far away, looking at him from the mirror. When he went to take a closer look, Guo Jia would disappear. Jia Xu kicked a stool thinking, "Damn, he's playing hide and seek again, always hiding, hiding, hiding, hiding." Jia Xu told Xun Yu about this, and Xun Yu remained silent for a long time before suggesting that Jia Xu should see a psychologist. Then he saw Guo Jia sitting at the dining table saying that Jia Xu should be the one to see a psychologist. Jia Xu repeated, saying that Guo Jia said, "You should be the one to see a psychologist."
Jia Xu looked up spiritual communication guides online and tried them repeatedly. When he found no response, he overturned the things on the table. Guo Jia, sitting on a picture frame, thought, "Why is Jia Xu's temper getting worse?" and blew the remaining cards on the table to the ground. Jia Xu casually picked up something nearby and smashed it towards the direction of the wind. The doll passed through Guo Jia and fell to the ground. Jia Xu didn't say anything, with a cold face, and went back to the room, closing the door. Guo Jia couldn't get through, so he could only lean against the door and ask Jia Xu not to be angry. The ghost spoke like the wind, whistling like a passing cold wind, making Jia Xu toss and turn and unable to sleep. So Jia Xu got up, opened the door, and said, "If it's really not working, just drag me down, why bother following me and acting crazy."
Guo Jia sat on the ground and looked up at Jia Xu, sighing and saying, "If I get too close to you, you'll be in trouble. Just touching your hair, and the streetlight will fall down. I can't bear to see you die early, so I can only follow you from a distance, secretly watching you in the mirror. See how kind I am, right Wenhe?"
Jia Xu couldn't hear, only the sound of the wind. After a long silence, Jia Xu asked, "Does it hurt?" Then even the sound of the wind disappeared, replaced only by the ticking of the clock. So Jia Xu said to himself, "That means it hurts a lot. You fear pain the most."
Guo Jia sat on the ground feeling a bit amused and sad, stood up and gently hugged Jia Xu, whispering in Jia Xu's ear, "I knew you loved me the most."
The touch of the ghost was very real, and Jia Xu clearly felt being embraced, with the sound of the wind in the ear. So Jia Xu asked again, "Can you not leave?" Guo Jia said, "The seven days are up Wenhe, I have to go, I have to go. Don't cry Wenhe, don't cry, tears are very heavy." The embrace lightened a little bit, and after Guo Jia disappeared, even the room seemed to brighten up. Jia Xu didn't speak again, didn't ask any more questions, but lay quietly on the couch where Guo Jia often lay smoking, all night long.
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