Chapter 91: The Eighth King's Blessing
Lin Zhou hasn't been able to leave the house for two days.
This feeling was very strange, but what was even stranger was that he was able to remain calm and think in this state - perhaps he just thought he was thinking, but in fact he was just doing something according to his body's instincts.
After the woman with red stitches on the corners of her mouth dismantled the massage chair in the utility room into pieces, something unusual happened.
Lin Zhou couldn't get out of this small one-bedroom apartment.
"Unable to get out" is purely literal meaning.
When I opened the iron gate, what appeared before me was not the corridor railings and the building opposite, but a house with mirrored symmetry, like a nesting doll. The room layout, even the furnishings and furniture were a one-to-one replica of my own home.
He calmly used a mop to clean the bloodstains at the door of the utility room, and calmly searched through the pile of leather debris to see if there were any body parts belonging to his alcoholic father. As a result, he found no human tissue except the bloody striped T-shirt.
Of course, it could also be digested.
But this is still very strange. Since there was no one hiding in the chair, where did the bloodstain come from?
The pile of things that the woman had chopped into pieces was just broken leather and rusty hardware. How could such a thing be "alive"?
He didn't dare to think too much about it, and locked the storage room where the debris was stored again. He wondered if the police from the building opposite found something and came looking for him, how would he explain all this?
However, he should be more worried about whether the police can still find him.
During these two days, Lin Zhou also tried to climb through the window.
Although this is the fifth floor, when people are in desperate situations, they always feel that no matter how dangerous the method is, there is still a chance of survival.
He opened the window and shouted, trying to attract the attention of the neighbors on the street, but inexplicably and predictably, they all ignored Lin Zhou's cries for help, as if they were in two different worlds.
There is a window behind the TV in the living room and a window in the bedroom, but the walls outside the windows are bare, without even an external pipe running down.
Lin Zhou tried for a whole day but failed.
He lay dejectedly on the sofa, staring at the strange woman before him. For the past two days, she had been following him everywhere, even standing at the door when he went to the bathroom. Lin Zhou was terrified at first, but eventually he became numb and used to it.
Lin Zhou thought, it only took two days to go from being shocked to accepting it.
Unexpectedly, after chopping the chair into pieces, the woman did not try to hurt Lin Zhou. And for some reason, Lin Zhou always felt that the look in the woman's eyes when she looked at him was kind, even gentle and loving.
Lin Zhou felt that he might really be mentally ill. No one could remain rational in such an environment, right?
In order to avoid becoming a madman, he forced himself to think and tried to communicate with women.
But the woman didn't speak, or rather, she couldn't speak. The red threads seemed to have life. Whenever she opened her mouth, they would surge and wriggle, pulling the stitches more densely, so that the corners of the woman's mouth were almost sewn up.
Lin Zhou couldn't help but wonder, what would happen if those threads were really sewn up?
Time passes quietly.
There was not much food left in the refrigerator. Although the woman didn't need to eat, he tried his best to save more food. But if he couldn't get out, he would suffer from hunger starting tomorrow night.
When he ran out of ammunition and food, would he die here? It was ironic that his alcoholic father had always said, "I must buy a house twice as big as this in the future." He never expected that this wish would come true today in this way.
Just as I was watching the clock tick by second by second, a loud noise suddenly came from outside the wall.
Lin Zhou hadn't reacted yet. Wasn't the other side of the wall still "home"? How could there be other people's voices? Huh? No—he really heard other people's voices!
Lin Zhou jumped up from the sofa in ecstasy and put his ear against the wall, trying to listen carefully to where the noise came from. However, the next second, there was a loud bang and someone rushed over and pushed him, preventing him from being hit by the rubble in the wall that was suddenly broken.
He sat on the ground blankly, looking up at the large hole in the wall. It was filled with the long-lost afterglow of the setting sun. A person stood in that halo, holding something like a mop in his hand. He spoke weakly, "Who placed an order for recycled furniture?"
Lin Zhou opened his mouth wide, his mind wandering for a while. One second ago, he thought that the person standing in the light was a god who came to save him, but the next second, this person's words awkwardly extinguished his hope.
A little Taoist boy rushed forward through the crowd around him, his eyes moistened as he looked at the person behind Lin Zhou. He shouted, "Mom!"
The strange woman who saved Lin Zhou instinctively raised her head and slowly stood up in disbelief.
A hint of excitement crossed her dazed face. She trembled as she walked over, opened her arms, and embraced Wang Tianfu. She placed her hand on the top of his head, gently and carefully stroking it. Her eyes greedily lingered on his fully grown features, examining them again and again. Tears dripped from her long-dried eyes, and her cold, pale hands were a little stiff, but Wang Tianfu felt that they were the softest and warmest thing in his life.
She lowered her head with tears in her eyes, her lips moving as if she wanted to say something.
Wang Fengxu opened his eyes wide: "You——"
He subconsciously wanted to stop her, but Meng Caiyun held out his hand to stop her: "Let her speak. She'll have to speak sooner or later."
Wang Fengxu was stunned for a moment, then silently lowered his hands.
The woman curved her lips and said with difficulty but determination: "...I miss you so much."
When Wang Tianfu heard this, he could no longer suppress his tears and his collar was wet with tears.
The woman wanted to speak again, but her chances of speaking had already run out. The red threads struggled frantically, each one like a worm, weaving and weaving, stitching until they completely blocked her mouth, preventing her from making a sound.
Lin Zhou, standing nearby, had just imagined what would happen once the red thread was fully sewn, but now he knew the answer—the woman had completely lost her spirit and expression, her hands drooping dejectedly, her entire form no different from a mannequin in a shop window. Without warning, she fell backward, and amid Wang Tianfu's cries, she clattered to the floor like a plastic marionette, her left leg completely broken at the joint. True to form, not a drop of blood remained on the fractured surface.
Wang Tianfu sat next to the doll, sobbing and wiping his tears with his sleeves.
Wang Fengxu sighed, walked over, squatted beside him, and silently patted his shoulder.
Wang Tianfu sobbed and said, "I know... my mother passed away a long time ago, but I am very happy today..."
"I'm so happy that I can actually hear her talking to me again...even if it's just four words, 'Alas, Uncle Master!'"
Wang Fengxu rubbed his head, his eyes rarely free of those calculating thoughts. He smiled wryly and said, "Don't talk so presumptuously, you fourteen-year-old boy."
"You..." Lin Zhou beside him came to his senses: "Who are you? How did you find my house?"
Long Zhu blinked, walked up to him, lowered his head and said, "501 recycles used furniture. Wasn't that the order you placed?"
This question actually confused Lin Zhou. He opened his mouth for a long time without answering. It took him a long time to come back to his senses: "No, you have already smashed through my wall. Is now the time to worry about recycling furniture??"
Long Zhu was startled and thought, could this kid be trying to complain about me tearing down his door? He wasn't going to ask her for compensation, was he?
Meng Caiyun walked over and patted her shoulder. He cleared his throat and stepped forward, his face full of concern as he said to Lin Zhou, "Hey, young man, these past few days haven't been easy, have they? You must have encountered a lot of incomprehensible things. Don't worry, we specialize in this. Just now, for your safety, we had to make an explosive action. Come on, let's have a good chat. Besides this lady, has anyone else entered your house?"
The guard on Lin Zhou's face gradually faded, and he was filled with a touching expression, "The country really hasn't given up on me." After confirming that the person in front of him was a real "human", he finally breathed a sigh of relief and replied with a complicated expression, "I, I can tell you, but this story is very long."
Meng Caiyun pointed at the sofa, made an inviting gesture, and said with a smile, "It's okay, we have plenty of time."
Long Zhu stood in the living room and looked around. He walked to the iron door, opened it tentatively, and found that it was still the same entrance and living room.
She was a little surprised, thinking: This family buys furniture in even numbers, how can they use it all? No wonder they have to ask for recycling.
But which one should be recycled?
-
One early winter eight years ago, a retired senior leader of a leather factory in the town passed away. His family took him back to his hometown from the sanatorium, set up a tent as a Taoist temple, and specially invited a Taoist priest from Qingcheng Temple to bury him.
That was Wang Fengxu’s first time coming to Hulu Town.
The altar date was already in the altar calendar, but they still had to wait two days. Wang Fengxu was familiar with the area and found a thirty-yuan guesthouse to stay in. It was near the farmers' market, diagonally across from the Cuihu residential complex. Next to the main gate was a bun shop. The owner was a young woman, and while she worked, her five- or six-year-old son would help with the bills.
Steam was rising from the steamer, and the aroma of the buns aroused the young Taoist's greed. He couldn't help but sniff, then took out his wallet with a frown and took a look at it. Finally, he calmly asked for a basket of braised pork.
The boss smiled and asked him to sit down. He diligently picked out eight meat buns and handed him a plate of chili oil. He smiled and said, "Locals like to dip it in this."
Her hair was tied up, she had a small face and fair skin. She wore no makeup, only her eyebrows were drawn, but she was still stunningly beautiful.
This basket of braised pork buns is also steamed very well. They are white in color and soft in texture. The thin outer skin is firmer, while the inside is soft. When you bite into it, you can taste the rich braised pork filling. Unlike some unscrupulous merchants in the Qingcheng Mountain Scenic Area, the buns they sell taste like steamed buns when you take a bite, and you can't eat through the skin even after a long time.
Wang Fengxu ate with tears in his eyes, and was reluctant to put the food down even though it was hot.
After finishing their meal, the boy came over with his eyes wide open to collect the money. Wang Fengxu guiltily grabbed a handful of coins and handed them to him. Just as he was about to put his feet in the grease, the boy grabbed his sleeve. He spread out the coins in his hand and grabbed one of the golden coins: "Brother, you got the wrong one. This is a game coin."
Wang Fengxu coughed violently several times, squatted down and lowered his voice: "What game coin? Doesn't this have '5' written on it? That's five cents, don't you understand?"
The boy turned it over and asked, "But there's Mickey Mouse printed on the back?"
"What Mickey Mouse?" Wang Fengxu hurriedly snatched the game coin. "This is a collector's coin issued twenty years ago. The symbol of the great worker-peasant alliance is engraved on the back... Since you're young and don't understand, I won't bother with you."
The boy blinked and grinned. He moved closer and whispered, "Little brother, you don't have any money, do you?"
Wang Fengxu was horrified. "Poor? Who said I was poor? You can't say that casually. You have to avoid prophecies, understand?"
The boy waved his hand generously: "It's okay, just treat me! Mom said we should be generous."
As he was speaking, there was a sudden commotion outside the store.
A sharp, resounding female voice rang out, "Zhong! You're incredible! You walk ten minutes every day just to buy buns. Who on earth is it that you're so obsessed with? Huh?"
The man being pulled was embarrassed and annoyed: "Alright! What are you thinking! We are all old acquaintances, what's wrong with taking care of business?"
The aggressive curly-haired woman snorted coldly and said in a gloomy way, "Oh, old acquaintance, Meilan and I are old classmates, how can you be considered an old acquaintance? If her husband hadn't died, I don't think you would dare to be so attentive to her every day."
The young boss looked a little embarrassed and quickly tried to comfort the two of them: "Caifeng, it's okay, don't be angry, let's talk it over."
The boy quickly ran over and hugged his mother's legs, staring wide-eyed in an attempt to scare the person away. Xu Caifeng immediately calmed down and glared at her husband, "Go away!"
Lao Zhong wanted to reach out to take the buns he had paid for and put on a smile, but Xu Caifeng yelled at him. As soon as he stretched out his hand, he retracted it as if he had been electrocuted, and left while cursing under his breath.
In the corner, a diner with his back to the crowd suddenly stood up slowly, put the change on the table, and walked away slowly.
Wang Fengxu's eyes fell on the other person's back. The man was wearing a shirt and a sweater, and had an ordinary face. He looked very much like a small employee in some unit. But people who knew a little bit could see that the man was deliberately concealing his spiritual power.
The boy greeted the man: "Uncle, come again next time!"
Hearing him say this, Meilan smiled and touched his head: "Do you know him?"
The boy said, "That young uncle comes here every day."
Meilan was stunned for a moment: "Really? My little one is really amazing. Mommy didn't even remember this person."
The boy said proudly, "He even asked me how old I was!"
Meilan was silent and smiled stiffly: "Really? Did he say anything else?"
The boy was confused, and after a moment of recollection, he recounted the story innocently, "He said he was here to collect a debt."
Meilan subconsciously clenched her hands on her son's shoulders, and her expression froze for a moment, looking inexplicably ferocious.
Debt collector.
Wang Fengxu's expression grew serious, his brows furrowed. He calmly took the bun that Lao Zhong hadn't taken away and took a bite, muttering, "I didn't expect to run into those people here."
If the God of Wealth of the Three Death Gates does not appear, it will be fine. But if he appears, I am afraid that someone will die again.
I just don't know if all this is related to the mother and son in the bun shop in front of me.
After all, this woman whose husband was said to have died, looked like she would die before her husband, judging from her facial features.
However, he is not very knowledgeable and is not good at divination, so he might have made a mistake.
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