White temples
"There's still no news about that child." The man sighed. "No wonder you were able to find out; this matter has caused quite a stir."
Wen Ya and Si Mucheng exchanged a glance, then the man continued, "But after a brief period of great commotion, it all died down. After all, there's so much news in this society every day; even if a living person disappears without a trace, the hype will eventually fade. But the child's father, with all the heart of a parent, has been waiting on this road every day, asking around, hoping some witnesses can provide some information. Sigh!"
Upon hearing him mention his father, Shi Lu, who had been floating, showed a stunned expression. Si Mucheng frowned: "In this day and age, are there still people who go missing and can't be found?"
"Hmph," the man said dismissively, "there are plenty. Although technology is advanced now, cities still have blind spots and filth hiding places. Nobody can say for sure. Otherwise, how could so many people be abducted and never found again?"
He was telling the truth, and for a moment Wen Ya and Si Mucheng remained silent.
"Besides, the place where the child disappeared was a blind spot for surveillance cameras. The police investigated for quite some time but couldn't find a single trace. At that time, we neighbors were all discussing that the person must be very familiar with this area. Although this is an old town, we shop owners are becoming more aware, and every household has installed surveillance cameras in front of their doors. In places where official surveillance cameras haven't been installed, some shops with their cameras can still capture the footage. But that shop at the corner of that alley had just turned out, and all the old things had been demolished, so neither the front nor the back cameras could capture it. It was the only spot on the whole street that couldn't be seen, yet the child disappeared right there, without a trace. We said privately that he might really have been abducted by human traffickers. It's really... what a mess!"
The man seemed quite moved and genuinely regretful, and once he started talking, he poured out everything like beans. He probably realized this himself, paused in his fanning motion, glanced at the two people in front of him, and seeing Wen Ya and Si Mucheng's solemn expressions, remembered their purpose, and quickly tried to salvage the situation, saying, "But it's very safe now, and nothing like this has happened again in the past two years. Don't worry, it's even safer if your sister stays at school. At other times, just be careful, watch out for nighttime walks, and as parents, all you need to do is pick her up and drop her off every day."
"However," the man thought of something else, "I heard that the child comes from a single-parent family, and her father didn't pick her up that day. I heard he was delayed because he went to the hospital, and then, of all things, the accident happened that day... Sigh!"
The pale sunlight made the cicadas' chirping sound even more scorching. Wen Ya's long hair had been pulled up into a bun, but her bangs were still damp with sweat in clumps.
Si Mucheng's neck was also sweaty. He let out a breath, having asked everything he needed to know. It was too hot, so he took two bottles of iced cola from the beverage cabinet at the convenience store entrance. Just as he was about to pay, Wen Ya spoke up: "I want water."
He then replaced it with water. The man on the recliner glanced at it and said lazily, "Five yuan. Put it on the door. Scan it yourself."
After paying, Si Mucheng handed the water to Wen Ya and said to the man, "Brother, thank you for today."
“It’s nothing,” the man said, still fanning himself. “Don’t worry too much… No. 2 Middle School is good, let your sister study hard.”
"Oh, thank you."
Si Mucheng clearly had something to say to Wen Ya, but this wasn't the place to talk, so they turned to leave. In that instant, Wen Ya suddenly sensed something and turned her head to look.
Next to the convenience store was a fried food stall. Apparently, there was no business, so the owner opened the door and was sitting outside. Seeing Si Mucheng and Wen Ya, two strangers, lingering there, he stared at them curiously.
But Wen Ya sensed something else in his eyes, something she couldn't understand, but she simply felt a bit disgusted.
Seeing her look back, the owner didn't avoid her gaze, but simply opened his mouth and smiled, revealing yellowed teeth. With a heavy accent, he greeted her, "Little sister, would you like some fried skewers?"
Wen Ya suppressed her unease and was about to refuse when Si Mucheng spoke up, "Fried skewers?" He hadn't eaten enough for lunch and was already hungry, so he asked Wen Ya, "Do you want some?"
Wen Ya shook her head, and Si Mucheng headed towards the fried food stall: "Then I'll get some to go and eat at home."
The boss laughed even harder. He had small eyes, so when he smiled, you could see his teeth but not his eyes, and his teeth weren't very nice either. He wasn't tall, and he was a bit fat. Perhaps because of his job, he looked very greasy, with a shiny face and even greasy hair.
But Wen Ya wasn't one to judge people by their appearance. Over the years of exorcising souls, she had met all sorts of people, including some who were far more unkempt than this boss. But she had never felt anything like this before.
Seeing that she didn't come in, the shopkeeper said to her, "Little sister, come in and have a look. What would you like to eat? Don't be shy, I'll bring you a drink."
Before Wen Ya could speak, the shop owner opened his mouth, but he sneered, "Old Sun, don't get all smitten just because you see a pretty young girl. Calling her 'brother'? Have you no shame?" His voice was lazy, but not very aggressive. The fried food stall owner's smile remained unchanged, and he didn't reply. He just continued to say to Wen Ya, "Don't listen to him, little sister, come in and have a look."
Wen Ya paused for a moment before speaking in a cool tone: "No need."
Seeing that she insisted, the fried food stall owner stopped talking and went to take the food that Si Mucheng had selected.
Wen Ya didn't understand what was so strange about it, but Shi Lu, who was floating beside her, timidly spoke up: "Sister, I don't know why, but I feel like this boss is weird."
Wen Ya raised an eyebrow and asked softly, "What's wrong?"
"I don't know," Shi Lu said hesitantly. "This fried food stall has been open for many years, but it changed owners in the middle. This Mr. Sun took over when I started my second year of high school."
Wen Ya narrowed her eyes. Shi Lu had her accident at the end of the first semester of her second year of high school. The timing was too coincidental.
She asked, "Have you eaten?"
Shi Lu nodded: "I've eaten there once." She looked a little embarrassed. "I don't really like this kind of food, but one time I was going to the noodle shop next door, but I was studying vocabulary on the way and went into the wrong shop. When I realized it, the owner greeted me and asked if I wanted fried skewers and gave me a Coke. Mr. Sun was so enthusiastic... I felt a little embarrassed, so I didn't refuse and had lunch here."
Wen Ya said, "He often gives people Coca-Cola as gifts?" That's quite generous.
Shi Lu said, "I don't know either, I haven't paid much attention, but this shop isn't doing very well. Every time I pass by, I see this Mr. Sun standing at the door greeting me."
Wen Ya was slightly surprised: "Should I greet you?"
"Yes, I felt bad ignoring them."
Shi Lu still looked timid. Wen Ya understood. This child had been raised to be too moral. Even if she was not familiar with the other person, she could not say no to certain requests and enthusiasm, even if she was unwilling.
Although she didn't quite understand, she didn't say anything.
The long-haired shopkeeper next door saw Wen Ya standing outside muttering to herself and couldn't help but purse his lips: "Hey, don't just stand there like an idiot, move inside and get out of the shade... You look like you have heatstroke, what are you muttering about?"
Wen Ya only glanced at him sideways.
The long-haired boss was so angry that he scoffed and muttered, "I guess I was just being nosy."
Meanwhile, Boss Sun struck up a conversation with Si Mucheng. Si Mucheng was outgoing but slippery, his words often a mix of truth and falsehood. Faced with Boss Sun's attempts to elicit information, he repeated the same story he had told the convenience store owner. Since the topic had been brought up, he intended to inquire further, and thus began chatting with Boss Sun.
Actually, Si Mucheng wasn't trying to hide anything from the shopkeeper while chatting with him. He wasn't sure if Mr. Sun had heard him, but Mr. Sun seemed completely unaware. When Si Mucheng mentioned the missing high school girl, he simply nodded and said, "I've heard of it, I've heard of it."
Wen Ya had been watching Boss Sun closely since they started chatting, carefully observing his facial expressions. However, when Si Mucheng mentioned it, Boss Sun's state was very natural, no different from others, and the information he provided was similar to that of the convenience store owner.
Si Mucheng lost interest, took the fried skewers packed by Boss Sun, and called out to Wen Ya, "Let's go."
Wen Ya looked away and walked out with him. However, after taking two steps, Boss Sun called out "Hey!" from behind. The two turned around, and the man's thick face was still all smiles: "Little sister, come and play again next time."
Wen Ya's eyes flashed with inquiry, but she didn't say anything. Si Mucheng, on the other hand, responded good-naturedly.
Wen Ya couldn't help but ponder; this person was indeed still not quite right.
Back at the hotel, Si Mucheng unpacked the fried skewers and started eating. After only a couple of bites, he threw them away with a bored look on his face: "They're really awful. No wonder there's no business."
Wen Ya glanced at the pile of food. Perhaps because it had cooled down, it looked dry and unappetizing. Seeing her staring at it, Si Mucheng assumed she wanted to eat and quickly waved his hand, saying, "Don't eat it, it's really not good. How can anyone make fried skewers so bad? His dipping sauce is tasteless, and he still has the nerve to serve it to us..."
While Wen Ya was still thinking about what was wrong with Boss Sun, she said to Si Mucheng, "That long-haired boss said the suspect is very familiar with their street."
“Oh right,” Si Mucheng also had his own guess, “I think the suspect must have been scouting the place for a long time. Do you think he had his eye on Shi Lu for a while, or was it indiscriminate?”
But Wen Ya had other questions for Shi Lu, so she got up and went to the small terrace. Si Mucheng quickly followed her. Pushing open the door, Shi Lu was indeed floating outside; "she" seemed to really like the view.
Wen Ya called out to "her" and asked, "Do you still remember what the murderer looked like?"
Shi Lu hesitated, "Actually, I didn't see the murderer because he blindfolded me from the moment he kidnapped me. After I died, my soul left my body, and before I could see anything clearly, I was buried underground. I only saw a dark figure wearing a black mask."
"What about his physique? What are his characteristics? Or his voice?" Si Mucheng asked urgently.
Shi Lu shook her head again after a long while: "He... touched me with his hand... I only felt that his hand was very oily..."
"Stop talking." Wen Ya stopped "her" and stared at "her" with a deep look in her eyes. "I just want to know, do you think that person's figure looks like Mr. Sun, the owner of the fried food stall?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
