Chapter 67 The scenes in my dreams are always disjointed. One second Qiao Yanyu was still...
The scenes in my dreams are always disjointed.
One second Qiao Yanyu was waiting in the snow for her mother to communicate with the villagers, and the next second she was in a dimly lit basement. The basement was full of talismans and various ritual props, which made Qiao Yanyu feel physically uncomfortable just looking at it.
There are reasons why some factions are disliked by others.
In modern society, no one would talk about such things in a proper way, but some unorthodox, inherited things can make people frown just by hearing about them. For example, human skin drums, children's skulls... Even today, Qiao Yanyu thinks that any wizard who uses these things as magical artifacts must have something seriously wrong with their head.
Even the beads on their hands were made using human bones.
Moreover, that faction wasn't used by just one person; it was used by almost everyone from top to bottom. It's no wonder that such a faction is criticized.
If it were now, Qiao Yanyu would punch the person using this magical artifact in the face to teach them that modern society is governed by law. But in the dream, Qiao Yanyu was still too young, and her mother told her to hide well and wait for her to return. But in the end, Qiao Yanyu never saw her mother again.
She only received her mother's body and the police chief who came to collect it. She saw her mother lying on the cold gurney, covered with a white sheet. She wanted to rush to her, but the police chief grabbed her and hugged her tightly. The police chief comforted her, telling her not to be sad and that he would take good care of her.
In her dream, Qiao Yanyu just stared blankly as the flatbed cart was finally pushed away by the funeral procession and laid to rest.
The dream was like a black tunnel, narrow and crowded, with no end in sight. Only Qiao Yanyu was trapped in the pitch-black dream, spinning around and around. Her mother's figure kept growing larger and larger in front of her, until finally, it became a distorted, blood-soaked face.
In her dream, she screamed. She didn't want to see her mother like this. Her mother couldn't be like this; even if she were to die, she would face it with equanimity. She couldn't accept her mother's face full of resentment. Her mother was a hero, a hero who had saved countless lives.
Even when Qiao Yanyu had nightmares, she would only furrow her brow slightly in reality. She was a very quiet person; even if she was crying and screaming in her dreams, she remained calm in reality.
But even in this desperate dream, she heard sounds coming from outside. Soft, fragmented sounds, like tiny, quiet murmurs. Even in her dream, Qiao Yanyu tried to discern where the sounds were coming from and who was speaking.
She pondered for a long time, and suddenly, as if struck by a divine inspiration, she knew what the sound was.
He Zhao seemed to be chatting with someone else, her voice soft, as if afraid of disturbing her sleep. The sounds were faint and indistinct, making it difficult to understand what they were saying. Yet, Qiao Yanyu's heart sank sharply, as if falling to the ground. In her dark and hopeless dream, it was as if an eggshell had suddenly cracked, revealing a small gap through which light streamed in.
Because, what could He Zhao possibly talk about? She's a person with no worries. She might have a sharp tongue, but she doesn't seem to have any troubles. Even if she's exchanging sarcastic insults with someone in a game one second, she can be sitting next to you with a big smile the next.
No matter what happens, I won't overthink it; I'll only care about what I want to eat today.
Every time Qiao Yanyu was by He Zhao's side, she felt extremely relaxed, including now. The dream dissipated, and the next moment, the scene shifted dramatically. She didn't know what kind of shop it was, but it was a food stall. He Zhao stood behind the counter, discussing what she wanted to eat with the owner. Having decided what she wanted, she turned to look at Qiao Yanyu: "Sister Qiao, what do you want to eat?"
Qiao Yanyu stepped forward and spoke to He Zhao.
Qiao Yanyu slept until He Zhao was about to close up shop. He Zhao didn't want to leave yet, but it was already dawn, so she could only nudge Qiao Yanyu and whisper, "Sister Qiao, wake up, we have to go back, go home and sleep some more."
Qiao Yanyu was a quick-witted person. Before He Zhao could finish speaking, Qiao Yanyu opened her eyes and immediately regained her senses.
She paused, then realized that the sky was already beginning to lighten with the first light of dawn. She unconsciously yawned, "I slept for ages."
“Yes,” He Zhao said with a smile, “Sister Qiao slept so soundly, she usually only sleeps for a short while.”
"Because I had a dream." Looking at He Zhao's face, Qiao Yanyu couldn't help but say these words.
He Zhao would naturally ask her, "What did you dream about?"
Qiao Yanyu tried to recall for a while, but still couldn't remember exactly what she had dreamed about. She only remembered fragmented memories of He Zhao. The previous nightmare was long forgotten. This is also a protective mechanism of the human body; people can't remember every dream.
So she honestly told He Zhao, "I forgot."
"How could I forget? But Sister Qiao woke up with a smile, so it must have been a good dream."
Qiao Yanyu nodded: "It was a good dream."
The two of them then headed home together.
Qiao Yanyu followed He Zhao to the entrance of the residential area. Seeing that he was about to go in, she did not intend to go in herself: "He Zhao, you should go back first. I have to work."
Hearing Qiao Yanyu say that, He Zhao was actually a little unwilling. She pouted and tried to persuade Qiao Yanyu to stay: "Sister Qiao, you were sleepy just now. Why don't you go home and get some sleep first?"
Qiao Yanyu shook her head: "No, I slept for a long time last night and got plenty of rest." After saying this, Qiao Yanyu was a little embarrassed: "Sorry, I can't go back to sleep."
He Zhao sighed, "Hey, there's nothing to apologize for. Go ahead, and remember to eat well."
"good."
After a few simple words, the two said goodbye.
After setting up her stall for two more days, He Zhao took another break. It was alright while she was setting up the stall; Qiao Yanyu would come and watch over her, allowing her to rest for a while. But once she was on holiday, she hardly saw Qiao Yanyu at all. Qiao Yanyu wasn't home during the day, and when she came back at night, He Zhao was already asleep; the two hadn't seen each other for two days.
He Zhao even had some doubts about whether Qiao Yanyu had gone home or slept well while he was resting at night. But since Qiao Yanyu said she had, He Zhao had no choice but to believe her.
Because they wouldn't see each other sooner or later, He Zhao was actually looking forward to the start of a new round of stalls. But when the time came, Qiao Yanyu said she would be late.
"Everyone's busy, it's good to be busy," He Zhao sighed, unable to muster any enthusiasm even when setting up his stall. Today was a bit special, though, as the Mud Demon and the Tall Guy bumped into each other; the two customers arrived together, sitting on either side of each other with an empty seat between them.
It's rare for He Zhao's stall to have two customers at the same time, so she probably only has three seats. With them spread out like this, the empty seat in the middle probably won't be occupied by any more customers; they might wait until one of the two finishes eating and leaves before sitting down.
However, He Zhao's business has always been slow and quiet, so He Zhao didn't expect a third customer to come.
The Mud Demon was a show-off. Seeing that the tall guy had ordered two bowls of rice, it didn't want to lose to him, but it really couldn't finish the extra spicy version. So it could only boast about its good relationship with He Zhao to let the tall guy know who He Zhao's favorite customer was.
The Mud Demon immediately started showing off to He Zhao about the latest trendy ghost news: "Boss, there's something you definitely don't know about."
Qiao Yanyu hadn't arrived yet. He Zhao was staring at his phone, reading her messages, feeling annoyed. Hearing the mud devil's words, he only looked up and gave her a look: "Speak."
The Mud Demon spoke mysteriously, deliberately lowering his voice to the same volume as when Qiao Yanyu was sleeping, as if afraid the tall guy next to him wouldn't hear him, and then raised his voice a little higher: "Boss, you absolutely mustn't wander around at night lately, and don't go to deserted places during the day either."
"How so?"
“Recently, a ghost from out of town came. It cries all day long, driving us crazy. It also runs around everywhere, crying as it goes, making it impossible for us to sleep peacefully.”
"Huh?" He Zhao was shocked by the mud ghost's words. He was shocked because, "Are there ghosts that can run around freely? Aren't they supposed to be earthbound spirits? Is it that powerful?"
"It seems like it was being led away by someone. I don't know how it happened, but it has passed by the intersection where I died several times. Every time, I can hear it crying, crying very miserably. And it has a lot of yin energy. This will affect ordinary people who have been in contact with it for a long time."
Hearing this, the tall, usually calm and silent man next to him finally spoke up, simply stating, "This isn't good." After saying this, a hint of worry appeared on his usually unassuming face.
He Zhao understood; he was worried about his wife.
It's only natural to worry about your wife, and she was worried about her wife too.
Although her feelings were one-sided and Qiao Yanyu wasn't her wife, she was still worried. And for some reason, He Zhao had a feeling that this outsider might be part of Qiao Yanyu's current job.
He Zhao asked some more questions about the outsider ghost, but the Mud Ghost was, after all, a bound spirit, and could only stay at the intersection where it died. Moreover, because it was afraid of affecting others, it had been hiding under the hard manhole cover for many years, so it didn't know anything more.
Later, several more guests arrived, and He Zhao asked them all about the outsider ghost. To his surprise, a few of them actually knew something. These ghosts were mostly scattered throughout the city, far apart from each other, but for the past few days, they had heard the outsider ghost's loud cries during the day, meaning that the person carrying it around was running amok in the city.
Hearing this, He Zhao slapped his thigh: No wonder Qiao Yanyu has been so busy these past few days. Those guys are running around everywhere, which has also kept Qiao Yanyu very busy, having to follow behind them to investigate.
To He Zhao's surprise, the crucial information came from the old woman. Having been He Zhao's first guest and eaten there so many times, the old woman had become much more lucid. She was still wearing the winter clothes He Zhao had burned for her, which looked appropriate for the season. Her dwelling was in the suburbs, a place where she frequently encountered that stranger.
The old woman looked at He Zhao and couldn't help but say, "Girl, don't cause trouble or run around, and don't go to deserted places during the day. Those people are wicked; they're planning some kind of sacrifice, saying they're going to kill a lot of young and pretty girls."
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