Chapter 23

One late summer night in 1997, the eleven o'clock chimes seemed to sink like a pebble into the water, disappearing into the vast silence of the Huaxing Machinery Factory's residential compound. The daytime hustle and bustle and heat had faded, leaving only the occasional moonlight filtering through the clouds, painting a cool, silvery glow on the crisscrossing clotheslines on the red brick buildings and the silent outlines of the factory buildings in the distance. In the depths of this silence, on the flat rooftop of Building No. 3, two figures sat in a blurry darkness: Li Muxue and Xu Chen.

When school let out in the afternoon, since it was the weekend and she could sleep in the next day, Xu Chen smiled easily as he saw her to the gate of the yard: "Wait for me on the rooftop of your house at 11 p.m.!"

Xu Chen's words clearly startled Li Muxue, who panicked and exclaimed, "Huh? What are you doing? Why aren't you sleeping in the middle of the night!"

Xu Chen replied mysteriously, "Don't ask so many questions yet. I'll show you something fun. I'm hearing about it for the first time myself; Wang Lei recommended it to me. I can't really explain how fun it is right now, but you'll find out tonight."

Li Muxue was bewildered by Xu Chen's reply, but it also piqued her intense curiosity and a touch of girlish rebellion. She thought: [What can you do on a rooftop at 11 PM? Oh well, whatever, I'll try it first. Anyway, Xu Chen wouldn't hurt me!]

So she nodded in agreement, and as she watched Xu Chen ride his bicycle and quickly disappear around the corner of the alley, a faint sense of anticipation arose in her heart.

When Li Muxue finished working out the last math problem, the quartz clock on the wall had just struck 10:30. The ticking of the hands was exceptionally clear in the quiet room.

She glanced at her mother, who was sleeping soundly on the bed due to the day's fatigue, and a faint smile appeared on her lips. She closed her book, put away her pencil and eraser, then tiptoed out of the house, closing the door gently behind her. The whole sequence of actions resembled a kitten stealing fish.

The hallway was quiet, save for a single, dim 15-watt lamp hanging at the end of the corridor, stubbornly defying the darkness. The air was thick with the mingled scents of coal ash, dust, and engine oil—the peculiar smell of a heavy industrial area. When she reached the iron gate leading to the roof, Xu Chen was already waiting there.

Seeing Li Muxue arrive, Xu Chen's eyes sparkled with a small, joyful light: "Why are you here early? Luckily, I arrived even earlier than you. Go on upstairs."

Li Muxue said coquettishly, "What's wrong with you? What are you trying to do? I don't have time to play around with you here. I'm going back to sleep!"

Xu Chen was a little anxious: "Hey, we're already here, let's go up and give it a try. If you don't find it interesting, I'll buy you five pieces of Big Bubble Gum tomorrow." After saying that, Xu Chen waved the old-fashioned "Panda" brand radio he was holding.

The roof of the red brick building was made of poured cement, scorching hot during the day, but gradually cooling in the night breeze. In the corner lay several bundles of wires of various colors, and some old flowerpots that had been discarded by someone. Xu Chen had already laid out a clean old sheet, next to which were two cans of a newly released beverage called "Zhenzhen," supposedly lychee flavored. He opened the oil paper package; inside were several peach shortbreads wrapped in newspaper. "And this, your favorite."

"Hey Chen, are you alright? Going up to the rooftop in the middle of the night just to listen to the radio, drink beverages, and eat cookies? My god..."

"Don't rush, don't rush, it'll be time soon. Let me change the channel..."

Xu Chen skillfully turned on the radio; the tuning knob emitted a clear, buzzing sound in the quiet night. He turned it carefully until a deep, slightly hoarse male voice rang out: "Listeners, welcome to 'Midnight Surprises'..."

The story begins. It tells of a legend in an old dormitory building, about a female college student who, while combing her hair in the rooftop washroom, would always see a blurry figure in the mirror. The sound, filtered through the unique texture of a radio, carried an eerie, ethereal quality, echoing across the dark rooftop.

The scenes in the story were so similar to their own environment that with each plot development, Li Muxue involuntarily tensed her shoulders. When the radio's description of "wet footsteps approaching from afar" stopped behind the protagonist, a night breeze blew by, ruffling the work clothes left hanging on the clothesline. The sleeves fluttered, creating shadowy, ghostly figures. Li Muxue gasped softly and instinctively grabbed Xu Chen's arm. Her fingertips were icy cold; the moment they touched, Xu Chen felt his heart pound violently. The sound seemed louder than the ghost story on the radio, reverberating in his eardrums.

“Don’t be afraid,” Xu Chen’s voice was lower than usual, with a slight, almost imperceptible tremor, but he tried to make his tone sound reliable. “It’s all fake.” He didn’t pull his arm away; instead, he adjusted his posture to make her lean against him more securely. He wanted to give her a sense of comfort amidst the fear. The story on the radio continued, recounting inexplicable injustices and obsessions.

The host's deliberately drawn-out tone and the sudden silence made the two hold their breath, as if even the faint whistle of a train coming from the distant railway line had become part of the story.

The program finally ended with a piercing sound effect. The familiar melody of the instrumental piece "The Original Scenery of My Hometown" began to play, gently soothing the previous tension. Xu Chen snapped the radio off, plunging the surroundings into deeper darkness. His eyes needed a moment to readjust. Silence returned like a tide, but the previous terror had quietly subsided, replaced by a sense of relaxation and indescribable feeling after sharing the experience.

"Actually... I was a little scared just now too," Xu Chen suddenly spoke, breaking the silence. "But knowing you were here made me feel much better."

Li Muxue's heart skipped a beat, as if something had gently bumped into it. She lowered her head and whispered, "Me too."

"It's time to go back," Li Muxue said softly, releasing her grip on his hand, but the warmth from that brief touch lingered for a long time.

"Mmm," Xu Chen replied, groping to his feet. His hand was warm and strong as he gently pulled her up, then asked, "Would you... like to hear it again in the future?"

Li Muxue nodded, a smile involuntarily creeping onto her lips: "Mm."

As they went downstairs, Xu Chen walked ahead, carrying the old-fashioned radio in his left hand and a flashlight in his right. The darkness in the stairwell receded under the beam of the flashlight. When they reached her door, Xu Chen stuffed the remaining peach shortbread from the oil paper package into her hand: "Go in quickly, don't let Aunt Qiao find out."

"You too, ride your bike slowly on your way home. Your home isn't close anymore, it's several streets away."

Li Muxue gently pushed open the door. The room was still pitch black, but she could hear her mother's soft snoring. She felt her mother would never know the harrowing experience she had just gone through on the rooftop…

(To be continued)