Chapter 86: Diary Fragments of the Soul
The next day, after the alcohol had worn off, Lin Zhou's father came to his senses again and resolved to stop drinking. That same day, he packed up and prepared to leave the boat, sending his son back to school. Lin Zhou didn't even bother to tell him it was summer vacation, and the schools were closed.
But the drunkard would like to sober up one day at a time. It would certainly be better for him to go out on the boat than to be drunk and dreaming in the bridge hole.
His father went out, and Lin Zhou went downstairs to buy some buns. The bun shop was deserted, as the busy period had long passed.
This restaurant is one of the best in town for food, having been open for over a decade and through several different owners. The current owner, a fellow villager of the Lins, struck up a casual conversation while wielding a fly swatter, asking if he knew anything about the recent disappearance of a celebrity in Qingcheng Mountain.
Lin Zhou has a mobile phone, which he bought third-hand. It is a smartphone after all, although a bit slow. If he doesn’t play games, it’s okay for watching short videos.
He took a sip of porridge and said, "Didn't he find it later?"
The boss said, "Yes, but I heard from them that the filming crew disturbed the mountain ghosts. Later, the director bought offerings and apologized, and the mountain ghosts returned the people."
"Wow, is this hype?" Lin Zhou laughed, and suddenly thought, it's really interesting, there are mountain ghosts in the mountains, and there are water ghosts in the water. No matter what strange and unreasonable things happen in this world, it seems that they can be blamed on ghosts.
Uncle Liu said that Old Zhong ran into the lame masked woman again at the dock, but he was so frightened that he jumped overboard and ran away before answering her questions. He then developed a high fever that lasted for two days. In a daze, he told his wife about the incident, and that's when the story of the water ghost spread. Old Zhu was so convinced of this that he even brought yellow paper money, incense, candles, and black dog blood with him when he went out on the boat. If he encountered a water ghost, he would either offer some paper money to the ghost for safety, or, if the ghost didn't know what to do, he would throw some black dog blood on them to show them he wasn't someone to be trifled with.
It's really a perfect preparation.
Lin Zhou put down his bowl of porridge, wiped his mouth, took out his phone from his pocket and scanned the payment code on the table: "How much is it in total?"
The shopkeeper understood and said, "Four dollars and fifty cents for you, and five dollars for your dad."
Soon there was a ding sound, reminding him that the money had arrived. Lin Zhou said hello to his boss and turned back.
His father doesn't like using smartphones and usually only carries cash. Lin Zhou wanted to teach him how to use it, but he said he didn't know how and refused to learn. He never paid for his breakfast himself, but just told his son that he would come down and give it to him later, and then he would go to the next door Caishi Street to buy some liquor with the change.
Lin Zhou used to take care of him, but later he stopped caring and let him do whatever he wanted.
When his mother was still alive, he occasionally felt that the family of three had some hope. Later, his father was really not doing well, so his mother remarried and followed a root carving businessman to a southeastern coastal city. I heard that she later gave birth to a younger sister, and finally lived a good life.
Lin Zhou lives on Luhua Street. The town has developed well in recent years. A lot of buildings along the street have been demolished, various new buildings have been built, and many milk tea shops and gift shops have been opened. However, there is still a row of old houses left in the innermost part, which are seven or eight stories high. The outer walls are very old red bricks, which have been eaten away bit by bit by ivy. The whole tube building is strangled half to death, as if it has been stabbed by the vibrant appearance of the new city next to it, and it looks like it is dying.
This is Cuihu Community. Most of the buildings are empty, but there are still a few people living there. In the past few years, when policies allowed, there were still people from other places who came to buy houses. They probably thought that they could get some demolition compensation sooner or later.
However, times have changed. The dream of demolition is not very realistic, and the town cannot be developed in a short time. The community has become more and more desolate and deserted, and those who live in it feel abandoned by the world.
Lin Zhou changed his shoes and wanted to catch up on his homework, but the light bulb at home was broken again, so he prepared to drag a ladder to replace it.
The house was small, with a locked small door at the entrance, which served as a storage room. They'd bought the house seven or eight years ago at a foreclosure price, and the furniture was already there, so they hadn't replaced it. Even small items like needles, thread, and screws were piled in the storage room, and they rarely went in.
After Lin Zhou opened the door, choking dust hit his face. He coughed a few times and dragged the ladder out.
With a "clang", an iron box fell from some corner, the lid was opened, and a bunch of miscellaneous things poured out.
He was stunned for a moment, then bent down to pick up the pile of things. The outside of the tinplate box was covered with thick black ash, but the inside was clean. There were some cut stamps, unused needles and thread, a few candies and glass marbles, cartoon pinyin cards, some accounting papers and yellowed photos.
Lin Zhou was sure that this was not his own thing. When his family moved in, the old items used by the previous owner were packed up by his mother and sold as scrap. He didn't expect that there were still some in the utility room.
The account book records the trivial details of grocery shopping. Judging from the date, it must have been from more than ten years ago, when electronic devices were commonplace. This person still kept accounts by hand, which shows that he was nostalgic. The photo is also a film from the 1980s, but it hasn't been developed well, perhaps because it has been stored for too long. All you can see is a woman. The photo was taken by the river in Hulu Town. At that time, the ancient street had not yet been built, and there were only a few wrecked boats.
Is it the lady from the previous house? Lin Zhou wondered.
He didn't pay attention and turned the account paper over, but found that there were words on the back.
[I can't escape either! ]
Lin Zhou's heartbeat quickened for some reason, and he held his breath. After a while, he pulled all the scattered accounting papers out of the box and flipped them over. Sure enough, they all had words on them, but some were scribbled and illegible, while others contained only fragments of writing, and the order was out of whack.
Lin Zhou suddenly had an idea and thought that maybe this woman had written a diary on the back of the account book, but for some reason she didn't want it to be discovered, so she tore up the book and somehow put it away in this box.
He quickly spread the pages of paper on the floor, and then pieced together the order based on his intuition and the relevance of the sentences. After a long while, he managed to straighten up, pinched his aching waist and shoulders, and looked down at the floor.
June 3, sunny
I can't stand him anymore, maybe I should keep that... number.
June 4, cloudy
It's always like this. He goes crazy when he drinks. He doesn't even care about the children. What's the point of living? I might as well jump into the river. Even if I become a ghost, I won't let him go.
June 5, light rain
I found the phone number, but it’s very strange. Should I dial it?
June 10, heavy rain
He hasn't been home for three days, which is a good thing for me.
June 11th...
No, no! It's alive! It's alive! What should I do? What should I do? ! !
【……】
I can't escape either!
【……】
This day has finally come.
The above is all the text on the back of the accounting paper. The handwriting on the last page was hastily written and there was no date, but the paper was obviously newer than the others, so Lin Zhou put it at the end based on his feeling.
It was a hot summer day and there was no fan in the room, so it should have been stuffy. However, at this moment, Lin Zhou felt a chill in his bones. He hugged his arms and looked at the strange diary entries nervously, feeling a little uneasy.
"It's alive!" What is alive? What did the diary owner encounter?
Combined with the previous text, perhaps "he" refers to "my" husband, an alcoholic who beats people when he is drunk. "I" have been subjected to domestic violence from "him" for a long time, and the two of them have a child.
What does it mean to leave a phone number? Whose phone number is it? I can't escape either. What kind of disaster will I encounter?
Lin Zhou's back was covered in sweat. He quickly lay on the ground, picked up the shredded paper, piled it up and put it back into the box.
Should I call the police?
He fell into deep thought. This kind of thing sounded like a fairy tale. The police wouldn't believe it, right? What if it was just a prank? Besides, this was written eight or nine years ago...
Lin Zhou suddenly realized a problem that could not be ignored: if the owner of the diary was really the previous owner, then the house was auctioned off after the other party's accident. Was it because of the "day" that "could not be escaped" recorded in the diary?
Before he could come up with a conclusion, someone knocked on the door twice. "Dong, Dong, Dong!" Lin Zhou was so scared that he quickly put the box under the coffee table.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
While he was packing up his things, the pounding on the door outside became louder and louder, shaking the entire door panel so that dust fell off.
Lin Zhou shouted, "Right away!"
He was about to turn the doorknob when he froze again, wondering who would come to his house at this hour? The town was small, with little going on, and not many acquaintances. They generally wouldn't come to his house.
He opened the door cautiously and found that the person standing outside was his father.
Lin Zhou called out suspiciously, "What's wrong?"
It's not even afternoon yet, and there's still a long time before the boat is collected. His father came back early. Could it be that he's drunk again and came to get the money?
Lin Zhou's father mumbled something and said, "We don't have money to buy a ticket."
Having said that, he pushed Lin Zhou aside without any hesitation and walked straight in.
Lin Zhou frowned and reminded him impatiently: "You haven't changed your slippers yet!" He bent down and picked up the pair of large black plastic slippers. Just as he was about to go into the house to get them, he suddenly saw a puddle of water near the floor.
Where does the water come from?
Lin Zhou followed the trail of water droplets and saw they led all the way back into the house. Puzzled, he didn't dwell on it, but slipped on his slippers and followed the trail. He pushed open the bedroom door and found his father still standing there, motionless. The source of the puddle was right at the bottom of his trouser leg.
Click, click.
Hey, is water dripping from his dad?
The light bulb was broken and the room was very dark. It took him a while to see clearly that his father was soaked all over. Water kept seeping out of his body and had formed a puddle at his feet.
Lin Zhou swallowed several times and subconsciously took a step back. He clenched the plastic slippers tightly in his hand and stared at the back of his father's head without blinking. His heart was beating fast in his chest. An unbelievable idea emerged from the dark corner, making him feel extremely panicked.
His father stood there for a long time and finally moved, walking forward in a stiff posture. There was a wardrobe there and he seemed to be preparing to change his clothes.
If it were the Lin Zhou of the past, he would probably help him find his clothes impatiently and then ask him what happened.
But now, he couldn't utter a word.
He stared at the middle-aged man's back, as if that was not his father, but something else.
Because his father's posture as he walked revealed a sense of strangeness and weirdness, and he limped with his right foot, as if he was... a lame person.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
