Waves of Memories
In the afternoon at Wangchuan Sea, the fog had finally thinned somewhat, but it still hung like a thin veil over the surface, filtering the sunlight into tiny golden specks that fell on the black rocks of the submerged reef. Lu Ye stood on a relatively flat rock, his trouser legs wet from the waves, bringing a biting chill. He looked down at the old diving suit in his hands—it had been found in a wooden box at the fishing hut. The dark blue rubber surface was covered in cracks, the cuffs worn to reveal the canvas underneath, and the zipper was rusted, requiring repeated force to close.
"This suit is too old," Qi Chen's voice came from the Soul-Calming Bell, his worry evident. His outline swayed slightly within the bell, and his furrowed brow could be seen. "There are many hidden reefs underwater. If it gets scratched, you'll catch a cold. How about we go back and borrow a new one from the old fisherman?"
Lu Ye squatted down and used the gravel on the reef to scrape off the rust on the zipper of his diving suit. His fingertips rubbed the rough rubber, and he suddenly remembered that in late autumn last year, when he and Qi Chen were looking for Xiaoyu's diary by the pond of Qiming Middle School, Qi Chen also squatted on the ground like this, helping him clean the muddy trouser legs, and said with a smile, "Xiao Ye, why do you always get yourself so dirty?"
"No need," he smiled at the outline of the bell, and gently touched the cracks on the diving suit with his fingertips. "Although this suit is old, it can be worn. Have you forgotten? The last time I was looking for Su Qingyuan's hairpin in the ancient well of Jingyuan, the diving suit I was wearing was even more worn, and it was fine, wasn't it?"
Qi Chen was silent for a moment before he whispered, "At that time, I was by your side and could watch over you. Now..." His voice trailed off, with a barely perceptible grievance, "I can only stay in the bell and can't do anything."
Lu Ye's heart felt like something was gently tugging at him. He pressed the Soul-Calming Bell against his cheek, the warmth of the bell radiating through his skin, like the touch of Qi Chen's hand on his face before. "You've always been with me," he said softly, afraid to be drowned out by the sound of the waves. "With you here, I'm not afraid. And I remember all the diving techniques you taught me—inhale slowly and deeply, maintain balance when diving, and adjust to the direction of the current when encountering undercurrents. I haven't forgotten any of that."
Qi Chen's silhouette slowly relaxed within the bell, his brows furrowed. His fingertips (albeit shadowy) seemed to want to touch his cheek, but could only stop mid-air through the wall of the bell. "Then you must be careful," his voice softened. "There may be undercurrents underwater, and the remains of the sunken ship. Don't get scratched by the sharp planks. I'll keep calling your name. If you can't hear clearly, just shake the bell. I can feel it."
Lu Ye nodded and clumsily began to put on his wetsuit. The rubber material clung to his body, causing pain in his shoulders. The zipper got stuck just as he reached his chest. He bit the zipper head with his teeth and tugged with both hands until it finally reached the top. As he straightened up, he heard the familiar sound of oars behind him—it was the old fisherman, his wooden boat paddling toward the reef. The red lantern on the bow cast a faint light in the fog.
"Young man, are you really going down?" The old fisherman stopped the boat by the reef and pulled out a black waterproof bag from the cabin, handing it to Lu Ye. "Inside is a diving mask and snorkel, and a multi-purpose knife—there's a lot of broken wood from sunken ships under the reef. If you get hooked, you can use the knife to cut it open."
Lu Ye took the waterproof bag, his fingertips touching the old fisherman's rough palm, which smelled of the salty sea breeze and tobacco. "Thank you, sir," he said softly. "I'll return these to you when I get up."
The old fisherman waved his hand, squatted at the bow, and untied a small brass bell tied with a red string from his waist. The bell was engraved with simple wave patterns and was a common "peace bell" used by fishermen. "Here," he said, stuffing the bell into Lu Ye's diving suit pocket. "This bell can ward off evil spirits from the waters of Wangchuan Sea. It also allows me to hear you from the boat—if the bell rings quickly, I'll go down and fish you out."
Lu Ye gripped the bell tightly, the cool metal feeling reassuring him. He walked to the edge of the reef, the sea surging beneath his feet. Beneath the black reef lay the bottomless water, like a giant piece of black jade. Occasionally, a school of silver fish would dart out from the cracks in the reef, only to quickly disappear into the depths.
"I'm going downstairs," he lowered his head and touched the soul-calming bell, "when I come back, we'll go make sweet osmanthus porridge."
"Okay," Qi Chen's voice was filled with a gentle smile, "I'll wait for you."
Lu Ye took a deep breath, bent over, and dove into the water. The sudden chill sent a chill through him, and the salty, astringent taste of the water seeped into his nostrils. He quickly bit down on the breathing tube and adjusted his breathing according to Qi Chen's instructions—inhale slowly and deeply, filling his lungs with air, then exhale slowly, letting his body sink with the force of buoyancy.
The lens of his diving goggles was a little blurry, and he rubbed it with his fingers, barely able to see his surroundings clearly. The underwater light was dim, with only the sunlight from overhead filtering through the two-meter-deep water, illuminating a hazy patch of light. The black reef looked even more sinister underwater, its surface slick with dark green moss. Fingernail-sized shells, their edges sharp as knives, nestled in the crevices.
He gripped his multi-purpose knife, carefully avoiding the rocks and swimming deeper into the reef. The deeper he went, the dimmer the light, the colder the water, and his fingers began to numb. Suddenly, a faint piano sound reached his ears—not from the surface, but from deeper underwater. It sounded like someone playing an old piano, the keys clacking slightly as they were pressed. The melody was melancholic, the same song Lan Yin had sung earlier.
"Qi Chen, did you hear that?" Lu Ye asked softly into the soul-calming bell. Qi Chen's response came from the bell, his voice tinged with nervousness: "It's the piano. It should be the piano in Lan Yin's lover's sunken ship! Be careful, we may be nearing the destination."
Lu Ye sped up his dive. The sound of the piano became clearer and clearer, mixed with Lan Yin's singing. This time, he could finally make out a few words of the lyrics: "Looking at the river and the sea, the waves are surging. I'm waiting for you, but your return is far away..." The singing was accompanied by a strange echo as it spread underwater, as if countless Lan Yins were singing softly in his ears, making his temples throb.
Suddenly, a white shadow flashed across the water before him, swimming past his arm at breakneck speed. Lu Ye stopped abruptly, gripping his knife tightly. He peered through the faint light of his goggles—a half-meter-long fish, its body snow-white, its eyes seemingly covered by a film of white. It stared intently at him, its tail gently swaying in the water, as if waiting for something.
"Ignore it," Qi Chen's voice became urgent. "It's the 'guide fish' of Wangchuan Sea. It follows those with obsessions. If you get entangled by it, you will be led into a deeper trench. Swim towards the direction of the piano sound and don't look back."
Lu Ye nodded and was about to continue diving when something suddenly got tangled around his ankle—a thin, long strand of seaweed, dark green and sticky with juice, that was winding its way up his calf. He quickly used a knife to cut it, but the more he cut, the more seaweed grew, constantly emerging from the cracks in the reef and soon entangling his knee.
"What's going on?" Lu Ye's breathing began to quicken, and a gurgling sound of bubbles could be heard from the breathing tube. "Why are there so many seaweeds?"
"It's Lan Yin's obsession that's affecting the things underwater," Qi Chen's voice was filled with anxiety. The bell was burning intensely in Lu Ye's pocket. "She wanted to see her lover so badly that her obsession attracted all the surrounding seaweed! Don't panic, use a knife to cut the seaweed at the roots, where it's thinnest!"
Lu Ye followed Qi Chen's instructions, extending his knife to where the seaweed met the reef and slashing vigorously—the seaweed snapped, its dark green liquid spreading through the water like a cloud of inky mist. He quickly broke free of the remaining seaweed and swam toward the piano sound. The guide fish still followed, but didn't come any closer.
After diving about three meters deeper, the remains of a sunken ship finally appeared before their eyes. The hull was severely deformed, and most of the wooden planks had rotted away, leaving only a black frame, like a giant sea monster sunk to the bottom of the sea. A tattered wooden sign hung on the bow, on which the words "Lan Yin" could still be clearly seen. This was the ship Lan Yin had once traveled on.
The piano music came from the cabin of the sunken ship. Lu Ye swam to the breach in the cabin and carefully crawled in. The cabin was small and filled with rotten wooden boxes and broken porcelain. A rusty copper table lamp fell to the ground, the glass lampshade was shattered, and the light bulb inside was long gone.
In the center of the cabin sat a black grand piano, its body swollen from the seawater, its paint peeling in large sections, revealing the wood grain beneath. A thin layer of sea mud coated the keys, yet a few still shone with a faint blue light, flickering softly to the rhythm of the piano music. A white figure sat at the piano—Lan Yin's deceased spirit. Her skirt fluttered gently in the water, and her fingers pressed against the keys, but they had no physical form; they simply passed through them and landed in the empty piano case.
"He's not here..." Lan Yin's voice was filled with tears, squeezed out of her throat, as if choked by the sea water, "I have been looking for him for a hundred years, but still can't find him... My Song Heart, my Brother Mo..."
Lu Ye swam to the piano and his eyes fell on the gap in the piano case - there was a small bone stuck there, which looked like a human finger bone, with a strand of black hair wrapped around the bone. Next to it was a long-withered gardenia. Although the petals were shriveled, they still emitted a faint white light. It was exactly the "heart of song" that Lan Yin mentioned.
"Miss Lanyin," Lu Ye said softly, trying to make his voice more clearly heard underwater, "Your brother Mo is here. His bones and the Heart of Song you're looking for are all in the guitar case."
Lan Yin's head whipped around, and black tears instantly welled up in her hollow eyes, sliding down her cheeks and dispersing in the seawater. She rushed to the violin case, reaching out to touch the bone, but her fingertips repeatedly pierced through, leaving her scratching in vain at the air. "Brother Mo... He's my Brother Mo... I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have let you go to the bow back then, and I shouldn't have left you alone to face the reef..."
Lu Ye slowly reached out and carefully took the bone and the gardenia out of the guitar case. The moment he touched the gardenia, the sea surface suddenly shook violently. The water in the reef area began to spin wildly, forming a huge whirlpool, pulling the wreckage of the shipwreck towards the center of the whirlpool!
"It's an undercurrent!" Qi Chen's voice exploded through the bell, with unprecedented urgency, "Get out of the cabin quickly! The whirlpool will suck you in!"
Just as Lu Ye was about to turn around, a wooden plank on the cabin roof suddenly broke and fell towards him! He quickly dodged to the side, but the edge of the plank still scratched his shoulder, instantly ripping the rubber of his diving suit. The cold seawater immediately poured in, seeping through the wound into his skin, causing a sharp pain.
"Xiao Ye! How are you?" Qi Chen's silhouette swayed violently in the bell, and the blue light became dazzling. "Your shoulder is bleeding! Don't worry about anything else, just swim upstream!"
Lu Ye gritted his teeth, clutching the bone and the gardenia tightly in his hands, and swam towards the breach in the cabin. But the whirlpool's suction grew stronger, and his body was pulled back by an invisible force. His ankles were once again entangled in seaweed—this time the seaweed was thicker, covered with tiny barbs that dug deep into his skin, causing excruciating pain every time it was pulled.
"Qi Chen..." Lu Ye's breathing became increasingly difficult. The air in the oxygen tank began to run low, and the scene before his eyes gradually blurred. "I seem to...can't hold on any longer..."
"Don't sleep! Lu Ye, don't sleep!" Qi Chen's voice was filled with tears. The bell suddenly emitted a dazzling blue light and flew out of Lu Ye's pocket, hanging in front of him. "Have you forgotten our agreement? We want to open a bookstore together, cook sweet osmanthus porridge together, and go to see the sea together! You can't stop here!"
In the blue light, memories flooded into Lu Ye's mind like a tide -
It was the first time he and Qi Chen met in the inn in the ancient town. Qi Chen was wearing a black coat, holding the soul-calming bell in his hand, and smiled and said to him, "You have a clean aura, suitable to investigate the case with me."
They stayed up late in the study room of Jingyuan to sort out Su Qingyuan's account books. Qi Chen put the hot milk next to him and said, "Don't stay up too late, your eyes will hurt."
It was on the opening day of the Chenyuan Secret Room that Qi Chen placed a mahogany plaque in the glass cabinet at the front desk, with the words "Chenyuan" engraved on it, saying "This is our home, we will protect it together in the future";
And that day at the Bell Tower Square, Qi Chen protected him behind him, his body slowly becoming transparent in the white light, and finally he said to him, "Xiao Ye, live well"...
"I haven't forgotten..." Lu Ye's tears mixed with the seawater, but his vision gradually became clear. He clenched the multi-purpose knife in his hand and forcefully cut the seaweed wrapped around his ankle. "I haven't forgotten our agreement... Qi Chen, wait for me..."
Protected by the blue light, he swam with all his might towards the surface. The vortex's suction remained, though it seemed to be somewhat blocked by the blue light. Just when he was two meters from the surface, he suddenly saw a red shadow floating on the water—the old fisherman's peace bell, gently swaying with the waves. The ringing sound carried through the water, clearly falling on his ears.
"Young man! Come up quickly!" The old fisherman's voice came from the sea with anxiety, "I'll give you a hand!"
Lu Ye stretched out his hand, and just as his fingertips touched the rope handed down by the old fisherman, he suddenly felt the gardenia in his hand emit a strong white light - the white light spread along his arm and penetrated into the soul-calming bell! The outline of Qi Chen in the bell instantly became dazzling, and the blue and white lights intertwined to form a beam of light, illuminating the entire reef area!
"Xiao Ye!" Qi Chen's voice no longer came from the bell, but rang clearly in his ears, with a familiar warmth and trembling, "I feel... my emotions... are back..."
Lu Ye's heart skipped a beat. Just as he was about to look back, he was pushed forward by a huge force—it was Lan Yin's wronged spirit! Her figure became transparent, but with a relieved smile on her face, she pushed him toward the surface of the sea: "Thank you... for helping me find Brother Mo and fulfilling my obsession... You must be well, and stay with him..."
The figure vanished in the white light, leaving behind only a gentle blessing. When Lu Ye was pulled aboard the wooden boat by the old fisherman, he still clutched the soul-calming bell and the bone tightly. The gardenia had transformed into light, completely merging into the bell. He lay on the side of the boat, gasping for breath. The wound on his shoulder was still bleeding, but he felt no pain—because the outline of the soul-calming bell was slowly emerging from the bell. Although it was still translucent, the complete figure could be seen: a black coat, a thin face, tears in the eyes, reaching out to him.
"Qi Chen..." Lu Ye's voice was choked with sobs. He stretched out his hand, and his fingertips finally touched real temperature - it was Qi Chen's hand. Although it still had the coolness of sea water, it was really holding him.
"I'm here, Xiaoye," Qi Chen's voice was filled with tears. He hugged him tightly in his arms, resting his chin on the top of his head. "I'm back and I will never leave you again."
The wooden boat rocked gently on the sea. The white light from the distant reef gradually faded, leaving only Lan Yin's gentle final song emanating from the surface, as if blessing their reunion. Lu Ye leaned into Qi Chen's arms, feeling the familiar heartbeat and body warmth. Finally, he couldn't help but close his eyes, letting exhaustion and peace of mind overwhelm him—he knew that this wait, spanning life and death, had finally come to a happy ending.
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