Chapter 23 Paper Man City 20
"How can I get him to talk?" Chen Chuan was puzzled.
After turning into a skeleton, Zhang the Butcher looked like a body without two souls and five spirits, and was quite similar to the zombies in the movies.
They only act on instinct, without being able to think or judge. Just like just now, they pounced on and bit a stranger when they smelled him, without even thinking whether it was a trap.
Now that he was caught by them, he was not afraid. He became bored after chewing the talisman paper for a while. His dark empty eye sockets looked ahead dully and let Chen Chuan yell in his ears, wave wildly in front of him, and even twisted and turned to dance a Korean dance, but the skeleton turned a blind eye.
Chen Chuan collapsed, "Brother Lu, think of a solution!"
Jiang Yuelu walked back from the city gate. The mist seemed to favor him, gently circling around his waist. He half-knelt in front of the bones, staring into the pair of empty eyes, but he knew in his heart that the butcher was not looking at him at all. His thoughts had long since spread to who knows where.
"I heard that if you want to make the dead speak, you can let a ghost possess him. But he is not dead now, so this method cannot be used."
Leng Jing nodded in agreement.
Jiang Yuelu looked at Zhang Hu's skeleton. The mouth without flesh and blood became wider and bigger. Even though he could no longer think, the skeleton in front of him was still subconsciously opening and closing, calling out the name of his deceased wife.
If we can’t use the methods we use to deal with ghosts, then we can only use the methods we use to deal with people.
"Lin Wan." He read the name.
The name of the old man brought a gust of lonely wind in the desolate old land, the white mist was blown all around, and the skeleton's eyes widened.
"What does she look like?"
-
Every night when it fell, he would walk in a vast empty snowy land, where there were no flowers, no companions, and even no roads.
He walked slowly, unable to tell the difference between the front and the back. Occasionally he raised his head to look at the snow falling quietly, but most of the time he was just mechanically repeating the movements of walking.
He walked and walked. He still couldn't see the existence of others, and he didn't think about why. Once he entered this deep snow country, he seemed to be drowned by a huge silence. He raised his head slowly, took steps slowly, and missed someone slowly... Missed? The falling snow swallowed up the darkness of the earth and also ate away his few memories, but it seemed that there was one person he had never forgotten.
On this day, a sound suddenly came from the sky where only snow was falling.
"Lin Wan."
He stopped walking for ten years without feeling tired, and looked up blankly.
Ah...that person’s name...is Lin Wan.
"What does she look like?"
"Butterfly." He opened his mouth subconsciously.
"Butterfly?"
"Little one."
"Small shoulders, small body, small her. Dare not move, the strong wind will blow away the butterflies." He repeated the confusing words many times, and finally he could slowly hear the logic, "Green dress, she was wearing a green dress...standing on the bridge, getting wet...I lent her a green oil-paper umbrella...she said." The slow voice drowned out the sound of falling snow.
“She loves it.”
Clusters of green buds emerged in the snow-white world. He looked at the sudden emergence of life in confusion. Suddenly, a bright and plump red flower caught his attention.
Memories that faded away year by year like quicksand kept flowing back, and the picture gradually became clearer.
"Red flower... On the day of the proposal, I gave her a red flower."
"Everyone laughed at her, saying that the man she married was ugly and the flowers she sent were tacky." A snowflake flew into his eye socket, looking like a tear mark from crying, "...but she said she liked it very much."
The petite woman in green raised her head, with the red flower she had just inserted in her hair, and her smile was very bright.
"I always wear green hairpins, and this is the first time I wear red flowers. But it's fun to change things up. So... we're going to start a different life next."
"I am very happy to marry you!"
Her bravery and her shyness are much more real than this vast snowy country.
"Where is she now?"
"Become..." His voice died away.
"become?"
"I turned into a butterfly." He looked up. The wind blew strongly from the other side. The silent ice and snow earth shook as if in anger. He was confused again and again in the violent shaking.
"...alive, yes still alive...she's gone, gone, disappeared..." As he kept asking questions, Luoxue roared wildly, as if he was constantly roaring at him.
-
"Not good!" Jiang Yuelu reached out to press the trembling skeleton, but he suddenly changed his previous slowness, jumped up, and landed behind them in the blink of an eye.
Without launching a counterattack against those who had captured him, the Skeleton kept staring at the city gate in front of him and walked towards it as if possessed by a ghost.
"What's wrong with him?" Chen Chuan said, "It doesn't look like he's running away."
Zhao Xiaoxuan shouted, "Flowers, there are flowers over there!"
The white fog not far from the city gate had mostly dissipated, revealing the abandoned streets and houses, with bricks and tiles without even moss. But in the direction where the skeleton was walking, there was a small patch of green and bright red, a patch of green grass and red flowers that was carefully cared for.
The skeleton stared blankly for a long time, then suddenly raised its head to look deep into the south city, and uttered two quick calls from its chest:
"Lin Wan, Lin Wan!"
Before he finished speaking, he ran towards the city like crazy. No one was prepared for this. Jiang Yuelu was the first to react, but just as he was about to open his mouth, another black shadow flashed past him.
"Lin Shenyin!"
Lin Shenyin didn't even look back and followed the skeleton into the city.
"I'll go after them." Jiang Yuelu said without hesitation, "You three stay here." He turned around and glanced at Leng Jing, "You stay too."
Without waiting for Leng Jing to answer, he rushed into the Night City like an arrow. The white fog was blown away by his speed and spread everywhere. After his figure disappeared, it covered up layer by layer, completely obscuring this dark city of the dead.
-
The courtyard of the old house was overgrown with weeds. A rough stone mill table was placed next to the fence. Lin Wan was sitting on the stone bench, lying listlessly.
She seemed... growing weaker.
Is she sick? Or is it like what Aunt Siyu said, that an evil spirit has come to visit her?
Maybe it was the ghosts. For the past ten years, the only people in Nanzhen who survived had lived a depressed and boring life in the inner city, relying on the suppression ritual of the wizard Qin Xue. Even if they tolerated it to this extent, the evil ghosts transformed by the bandits still refused to let them go.
I'm afraid this is the end of my life... She thought confusedly.
It’s a pity that no one will help Madam in the future...Madam, she is actually a very pitiful person.
The dim moon was reflected in the sticky puddle, and a small ripple passed by. For some reason, she suddenly noticed a person beside her. Was it Aunt Siyu who came back?
She forced herself to get up, but didn't see the familiar woman.
Beyond the fence was the old city street, which was always foggy and empty. But Lin Wan could still hear the hollow sounds of "ring" and "ring". She glanced down at the muddy puddle. No one visited the old city, and even the stagnant water had become foul-smelling. But now, it was miraculously clear. When the phantom bell sounded, the ripples in the water spread out layer by layer.
"Who is it?" She was too weak to speak.
"You're going to die soon."
A slightly amused voice came from above.
Lin Wan raised her head with difficulty and saw a dark shadow standing on the eaves. The dim moon was blocked behind him, carefully outlining his outline and half of his scarlet clothes.
He looked down at Lin Wan with a smile on his face.
"safflower?"
Lin Wan subconsciously touched the pearl flower in her hair, and the visitor's smile became more obvious. "I like red, but this flower is too ugly."
How could it be ugly... She couldn't even utter a word of rebuttal, and finally, unable to bear the overwhelming exhaustion, she fell to the ground. At the same time, a burst of dense footsteps broke the calm, the sound of chasing footsteps made the blue bricks shake, and the mist dissipated completely.
A skeletal skeleton appeared on the street.
His pace suddenly slowed down, he looked around, and finally stopped in front of the fence where Lin Wan had fallen.
"stop!"
Jiang Yuelu chased all the way and finally caught up.
The skeleton had been running for its life all the way, and it seemed to be extremely exhausted. Now it finally lowered its head and half-knelt on the ground. It would not be able to make trouble in the short term. Jiang Yuelu breathed a sigh of relief and was about to go over when he heard a familiar voice.
"You're going to die too."
Who else but Young Master Xia would say such provocative words in such a gloating tone?
“…”
He suddenly realized that he didn't even know this Young Master Xia's name.
The young man standing in the yard was still wearing the red clothes. He didn't know if it was an illusion, but the color of the clothes seemed to have become more scarlet. The young man's attitude was the same as before. He didn't look at anyone else, and his mind was all on the two people who fell to the ground... Two?
Only then did he discover that there was a woman lying in the yard.
Compared with Zhang the Butcher, this girl has a nose, eyes, blood and flesh.
But he is not a living person.
He even looks less like a living person than the white-boned butcher Zhang.
The green dress, petite figure, and the red flower in her hair made it easy to identify the woman - Zhang the Butcher's first wife Lin Wan. She had been dead for ten years, so why did she appear in Nanzhen?
"What a pity." Young Master Xia said, "I wanted to ask her something."
His regret at the moment was genuine. Jiang Yuelu thought about it and decided not to ask, "What's the matter?"
"Private matter."
"Ah. Oh." It seemed inconvenient to tell him.
Jiang Yuelu nodded to show her understanding, and walked around Master Xia who was standing proudly with his hands behind his back to check on Lin Wan's body. Seeing him so tactful, she felt uncomfortable, and her scarlet eyes flickered back and forth at Jiang Yuelu's back, full of regret for not being able to make up for his shortcomings.
If I don't tell you, won't you ask?
Young Master Xia coughed forcefully, and Jiang Yuelu turned to look at him.
"Although it's a private matter, it's not inconvenient to talk about it." He pursed his lips, "I came here to look for someone."
Jiang Yuelu nodded, "Oh."
A crow flew by and there was another awkward silence.
Without waiting for anyone to ask, he began to share his personal affairs, "So, I'm not a wizard, nor am I from here."
"oh."
“…”
No more talking!
Jiang Yuelu burst out laughing and tried to comfort Master Xia, whose face was twisted by his anger. "Who are you looking for?"
I didn't want to answer him, but the words came out automatically: "A rebellious son."
Rebellious son? How old are you?
Jiang Yuelu was about to complain with a smile, but he caught a glimpse of Lin Wan's fingers moving while she was lying on the ground. Fearing that he had seen it wrong, he looked again, only to see that she suddenly opened her five fingers and quickly grabbed his neck!
After a long while without hearing a response, Young Master Xia turned around and his eyes darkened. Green flames began to flow on the ground again.
Jiang Yuelu had seen the power of this fire before. Although his neck was strangled, he still spoke with difficulty: "Wait..." He wanted to raise his hand to stop him, but the young man seemed to be very angry. The flames became more and more intense, and were about to engulf Lin Wan.
The skeleton, who had been kneeling outside the fence, suddenly stood up and staggered in front of the flames.
"You are overestimating your own abilities."
Young Master Xia snorted coldly, his eyes flashing red.
"Wait... wait a minute!" Jiang Yuelu struggled to free herself from Lin Wan's claws: "Look at her eyes!"
"Eyes?" Young Master Xia looked over and saw that the woman's eyes had lost focus, as if they were out of her control.
But if he is out of control, he can hurt others right under his nose? Since ancient times, he has always been the only one who hurts others!
"You're right, they're going to die soon!" Jiang Yuelu said anxiously, fearing that she couldn't stop him, "Before I die, I want to ask them a few more questions! Don't you have something you want to ask too?"
"They are already unconscious, heartless and emotionless. Even if you ask, you won't get an answer." Young Master Xia reminded coldly.
"What if I could somehow get them back to normal?"
Master Xia said without hesitation, "Then I'll do as you say."
Jiang Yuelu smiled slightly, "Deal."
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