The little secret in the fireworks
The morning sun shone through the curtains, casting tiny specks of light on the quilt. Lu Ye was awakened by the sound of birdsong outside the window. He opened his eyes, but there was no one around him. Only Qi Chen's warmth remained on the pillow.
"Awake?" Qi Chen's voice came from the kitchen, with a faint smell of fireworks, "Hurry up and wash up, breakfast will be ready soon."
Lu Ye got up and walked to the kitchen door. Qi Chen was wearing gray house clothes and frying eggs. The sunlight fell on the tips of his hair, like a layer of gold dust. The frying pan sizzled, and the aroma of eggs mixed with the sweet scent of milk filled the entire apartment. It was the smell of home that Lu Ye had never experienced before.
"You can cook too?" Lu Ye leaned against the door frame and said with a smile, "I thought you only knew how to use the Soul-Calming Bell."
Qi Chen looked back at him with a smile in his eyes: "When I lived alone before, I always had to cook for myself. Try it and see if it suits your taste." He put the fried eggs on a plate and sprinkled some black pepper on it. It looked very delicious.
Lu Ye walked over, picked up his fork and took a bite – crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, with just the right amount of saltiness. His eyes lit up: "Delicious! Even better than the ones at the breakfast shops out there!"
Qi Chen handed the milk to Lu Ye and took out the toast: "Eat slowly, don't choke. After eating, let's go buy some strawberry cake and then go to Chen Zhe's house."
After finishing breakfast and packing up, they went to a nearby cake shop. Lu Ye stood in front of the counter, struggling for a long time: "I want this strawberry cake and that chocolate mousse. Lele likes strawberries, and Chenzhe likes chocolate."
Qi Chen smiled and nodded, then took out his phone to pay: "Buy them all, we can eat them anyway."
The owner of the cake shop looked at them and said with a smile, "You two are so close, just like brothers."
Lu Ye's face flushed slightly, and he remained silent. Qi Chen, however, took over the conversation: "He's not a blood brother, but someone more important."
Walking out of the cake shop, Lu Ye couldn't help but ask: "What did you mean just now?"
Qi Chen looked at him seriously: "It means exactly what it says."
Lu Ye's heartbeat suddenly quickened, and he quickly changed the subject: "Let's go, don't let Lele wait anxiously."
When they arrived at Chen Zhe's house, Lele was already waiting for them at the door. He saw the cake in Lu Ye's hand and immediately ran over, hugging Lu Ye's legs: "Brother Lu Ye! Brother Qi Chen! You are finally here!"
Chen Zhe opened the door with a smile: "Come in, I made your favorite braised pork."
There are Lele's paintings in the living room, some of which depict the scene of them in the tailor shop, and some of which depict Grandma Chen's ragdoll rabbit. The top one depicts two adults holding a child, with the background of an old alley at sunset, and "Lele and his brothers" written next to it.
"This is what I drew!" Lele took Lu Ye's hand and pointed at the painting. "I want to go to the old alley to play with my brothers."
Lu Ye squatted down and touched Lele's head: "Okay, we will take you there on the weekend."
Lunch was lively, Lele chattered about kindergarten, Chen Zhe picked up food for them, and occasionally talked about the recent situation of the tailor shop - since Grandma Chen's obsession was resolved, the "Button Wish" theme of the tailor shop has become a popular check-in spot. Many people come to play and give flowers to Grandma Chen's stuffed rabbit.
"It's all thanks to you," Chen Zhe raised his glass. "If it weren't for you, Grandma's obsession wouldn't be resolved, and I wouldn't be able to rest in peace."
Qi Chen shook his head: "Grandma let it go on her own, we just helped her find the truth."
After dinner, Lele pulled Qi Chen to teach him how to do a puzzle, while Lu Ye and Chen Zhe sat on the balcony and chatted. "Has anything strange happened in town recently?" Lu Ye asked casually, remembering the sound of the Soul-Calming Bell yesterday.
Chen Zhe thought about it and frowned. "It's true. A few nights ago, when I got up to go to the bathroom, I saw a black mist at the entrance of the alley, like smoke, floating around. It was gone the next day. I asked my neighbors, and they said they saw it too. They also said they heard strange noises at night, like someone whispering."
Lu Ye's heart skipped a beat: "Black mist? Whispering sounds?"
"Yeah," Chen Zhe nodded, "but it's nothing serious. It might be because of the bad weather and heavy fog recently."
Lu Ye didn't ask any more questions, but he felt a little uneasy. He looked at Qi Chen in the living room. Qi Chen was helping Lele with the last puzzle piece and didn't seem to notice their conversation. But Lu Ye knew that Qi Chen must have heard it too - he had always had very sharp ears.
Lele was reluctant to leave Chen Zhe's house that afternoon, so he held their hands and walked them a long way. "Be sure to come this weekend!" He waved his little hand and didn't go back until their car was out of sight.
"The black fog Chen Zhe mentioned," Lu Ye asked as he sat in the car, "is it related to the movement of the Soul-Calming Bell yesterday?"
Qi Chen gripped the steering wheel, his expression a bit more serious than before. "Maybe. I recently checked previous cases and found that witnesses at Jingyuan, Wangchuanyuan, and Qiming Middle School all mentioned 'black mist'. But at the time we thought it was just a normal form of resentment and didn't pay much attention to it."
Lu Ye felt even more uneasy: "You mean, these mists didn't appear by chance?"
"Yes," Qi Chen nodded, "It seems like there is a source that is constantly releasing mist, affecting the wronged souls around. But we don't know where the source is yet, nor do we know what its purpose is."
Back at the apartment, Qi Chen dug out all the case files from the previous incidents and spread them out on the living room carpet. The photos, testimonies, and their sketches of the scene were spread out one by one, like a giant net. Lu Ye squatted beside him, helping him sort through the testimonies. Sure enough, every witness in every case had mentioned "black mist" or "strange whispers," but they had previously ignored them.
"Look at this," Qi Chen pointed to the testimony from Qiming Middle School. "An old school worker said that the night before Lin Wanqiu died, he saw black mist in the teaching building and heard whispers of 'he's coming.'" He then pointed to the Jingyuan files. "Su Qingyuan's neighbors also said they saw black mist drifting into Jingyuan, and Su Qingyuan died the next day."
Lu Ye's hands felt a little cold. "You mean, the deaths of these wronged souls are all related to this black mist?"
Qi Chen didn't say anything, but took out a piece of paper and marked the location of each case on it - Qiming Middle School, Jingyuan, Wangchuanyuan, Laoxiang Tailor Shop, abandoned hospital, abandoned theater. These locations were connected into an irregular circle on the map, with the center of the circle pointing to the "Clock Tower Square" in the center of the city.
"All the fog comes from Bell Tower Square," Qi Chen said in a deep voice. "It's the oldest place in the city. During the Republic of China, it was where criminals were executed. There's a lot of resentment there, so it's very likely the hiding place of the source."
Lu Ye looked at the center of the circle on the map, his heart tightening. He was about to speak when Qi Chen's phone rang. It was someone from the Cultural Relics Bureau calling, their voice urgent: "Mr. Qi Chen, something bad has happened! Something's happened in the museum's Republican-era exhibition area! Su Qingyuan's diary and Su Manqing's porcelain vase fragments have suddenly been shrouded in black mist, and we can hear strange whispers. Our people don't dare approach!"
Qi Chen and Lu Ye exchanged a glance, each seeing a solemn expression in the other's eyes. "Let's go now," Qi Chen said, hanging up the phone and grabbing his coat. "Bring the Soul-Calming Bell and Soul-Calming Talisman."
Driving to the museum, Lu Ye looked out the window at the street, feeling a mixture of emotions. He had just been enjoying his daily life with Qi Chen, but now he had to face unknown dangers. Qi Chen seemed to see his uneasiness and reached out to hold his hand: "Don't worry, we'll face this together."
Lu Ye nodded and held Qi Chen's hand tightly. He knew that no matter what dangers lay ahead, as long as he was with Qi Chen, he would not be afraid.
When they arrived at the museum, someone from the Cultural Relics Bureau was already waiting for them at the entrance. "The fog inside is getting thicker," the official said, looking pale. "We tried using a fire extinguisher, but it didn't work. It only made it thicker."
Qi Chen and Lu Ye entered the Republican era exhibition area, which was indeed filled with black fog. Visibility was very low, and they could only see a faint light from the display case of Su Qingyuan's diary in the distance. A strange whisper could be heard from the fog, as if many people were talking at once, but the content was unclear.
"Be careful," Qi Chen took out the soul-calming bell and shook it gently. With a crisp "ding" sound, the mist dispersed a little. "There is a strong resentment in this mist, stronger than any wronged soul we have encountered before."
The two slowly walked into the mist, Lu Ye's hand tightly grasping Qi Chen's arm. Suddenly, he saw a vague shadow standing in front of Su Qingyuan's diary display case—it was Su Qingyuan! She was wearing a light blue cheongsam, her face pale, her eyes empty, as if controlled by the mist.
"Su Qingyuan?" Lu Ye called softly, but the shadow did not respond, but just mechanically repeated "He is coming."
Qi Chen immediately took out a soul-soothing talisman and placed it on the display case. The talisman glowed golden, pushing the mist back slightly. "She's been controlled by the mist," Qi Chen said. "We must find the source quickly, otherwise more wronged souls will be controlled."
At this moment, the display case containing Su Manqing's porcelain vase fragments also made a "crackling" sound, and the fragments began to shake, as if trying to be put back together. The whispering in the mist became louder and louder, as if urging something.
"Let's go out first," Qi Chen pulled Lu Ye, "The fog here is too thick. We'll suffer if we fight head-on. Let's go back and check the information on the Bell Tower Square and find the source of the weakness."
As the two exited the exhibition area, the Cultural Relics Bureau immediately closed the door and sealed it. "What should we do?" the person in charge asked anxiously, "Will these cultural relics be in danger?"
"Not for now," Qi Chen said, "The Soul Calming Talisman can temporarily suppress the fog. We will find the source and solve the problem as soon as possible."
By the time they left the museum, it was already dark. The city lights were on, but they couldn't dispel the faint black mist in the air. Lu Ye looked at the Clock Tower Square in the distance. The clock tower there looked particularly gloomy in the night, like a huge black hole waiting to swallow everything.
"What exactly is the source you are talking about?" Lu Ye asked.
Qi Chen looked towards the clock tower with a serious expression. "It could be a huge wronged soul that has accumulated for a hundred years. It has absorbed the resentment of countless wronged souls and is now awakening. Its purpose may be to destroy the entire city, or even more."
Lu Ye felt a chill in his heart. He looked at Qi Chen and suddenly felt that their previous sweet daily life was like the calm before the storm. But he was not afraid, because he knew that no matter how powerful the wronged spirit was, he and Qi Chen would face it together.
Back at the apartment, Qi Chen spread the information about Bell Tower Square on the table. Lu Ye made two cups of hot coffee and placed them next to him: "Let's investigate together. We will definitely find a solution."
Qi Chen looked up at him with warmth in his eyes: "Well, let's check together."
The two of them sat at the table, the light illuminating the text on the document. Lu Ye looked at Qi Chen's serious profile and suddenly felt that no matter how many dangers there were in the future, as long as there were nights like this and people around him, it would be enough.
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