Chapter 2: The resurgence of nursery rhymes
Chu Yun lay on the cold ground, motionless. The singing outside the window continued, and each word clearly penetrated his ears: "Can't find, can't go back... Red clothes, turned into black robes." The singing stopped, and the shadow of the red clothes on the window pane disappeared. Chu Yun still didn't move. He didn't even rush to get up to see what was going on. He just kept his eyes open, staring at the dark ceiling, listening to his heart beating wildly. Everything last night was not a dream. He lay like this for a long time, until the first rooster crowed outside the window, and then he used all his strength to prop up his body from the ground. He walked to the window and opened it. It was empty outside. The bluestone road in the alley was damp in the morning light, leaving no trace. Chu Yun closed the window expressionlessly, changed into his washed-out blue cloth long gown, picked up the wooden box on the table, opened the door and walked out. He showed up at Manager Qian's rice shop on time. "Mr. Chu, good morning!" Shopkeeper Qian's voice sounded muffled, and there were dark circles under his eyes. "Good morning." Chu Yun nodded and sat down at his desk. "Hey, Mr. Chu," Shopkeeper Qian came closer and lowered his voice, "did you hear any strange noises last night?" Chu Yun raised his eyes from the account book: "What noises?" "It was... singing." Shopkeeper Qian rubbed his hands, his face full of anxiety. "I was woken up in the middle of the night by the barking of dogs in the backyard, and then I heard a child singing outside. The tune was very weird. My wife is timid and was so scared that she couldn't sleep all night." Chu Yun didn't answer, just looked at him quietly. "It's not just me," Shopkeeper Qian added hastily, seeing he remained silent. "This morning, when I opened the shop, Wang the blacksmith next door and Liu the peddler across the street both said they heard the singing. They all said it felt like they were singing right outside their own doorstep." Chu Yun picked up a pen and wrote a line in the account book before slowly speaking, "Maybe a child was talking in their sleep last night." "Talking in their sleep? How could all the children in the town talk in their sleep together?" Shopkeeper Qian was clearly unconvinced. "Shopkeeper, weigh me five pounds of rice!" a man interrupted them gruffly. "Okay!" The rice shop returned to its normal bustle, but the oppressive, uneasy atmosphere lingered. All morning, the townspeople who came to buy rice discussed the eerie nursery rhyme from last night. Some said they had misheard it, some said it was a ghost, and some swore they had seen a shadowy figure in red drift over the wall. Panic, like an invisible mist, quietly spread across Qingxi Town. At noon, the town...
Chu Yun lay on the cold ground, motionless.
The singing outside the window continued, each word clearly entering his ears: "Can't find it, can't go back... Red clothes, turn into black robes."
The singing stopped, and the red-dressed figure on the window pane vanished. Chu Yun remained motionless, not even hastily getting up to see what was going on. He simply stared at the dark ceiling with his eyes open, listening to the thumping of his own heartbeat.
Everything that happened last night was not a dream.
He lay there for a long time, until the first rooster crowed outside the window, and then he pulled himself up from the ground with all his strength. He walked to the window and opened it. It was empty outside. The bluestone pavement in the alley was damp in the morning light, leaving no trace. Chu Yun closed the window expressionlessly, changed into his washed-out blue cloth gown, picked up the wooden box on the table, opened the door and walked out.
He showed up at Manager Qian's rice shop on time.
"Mr. Xiao Chu, good morning!" Shopkeeper Qian's voice sounded a little muffled, and there were two thick dark circles under his eyes.
"Good morning." Chu Yun nodded and sat down at his desk.
"Hey, Mr. Xiao Chu," Shopkeeper Qian came closer and lowered his voice, "Did you hear any strange noises last night?"
Chu Yun raised his eyes from the account book: "What's going on?"
"It was... singing." Shopkeeper Qian rubbed his hands, his face filled with anxiety. "I was woken up in the middle of the night by the barking of dogs in the backyard, and then I heard children singing outside. The tune was very eerie. My wife is timid and was so scared that she couldn't sleep all night."
Chu Yun did not answer, but just looked at him quietly.
"It's not just me," Shopkeeper Qian added hastily when he saw he was silent. "This morning when I opened the door, Wang the blacksmith next door and Liu the peddler across the street both said they heard the singing. They all said it was as if it were being sung right in front of their own doorsteps."
Chu Yun picked up a pen and wrote a line on the account book before slowly speaking: "Maybe it was a child talking in his sleep at night."
"Talking in sleep? How could all the kids in the town talk in their sleep together?" Shopkeeper Qian obviously didn't believe it.
"Boss, weigh five kilograms of rice for me!" A man interrupted their conversation in a gruff voice.
"Okay!"
The rice shop returned to its normal bustle, but the oppressive and uneasy atmosphere could not be dissipated.
All morning, townspeople coming to buy rice were discussing the eerie nursery rhyme from the previous night. Some claimed they had misheard it, others that it was a curse, while others swore they had seen a shadowy figure in red drift across the wall. Panic, like an invisible mist, quietly spread across Qingxi Town.
At noon, the mayor and Sun, the lawyer, returned to the rice shop. This time, the mayor's expression was even uglier than Sun's. He was a small, fifty-year-old man, usually cheerful, but today his brows were furrowed.
"Mr. Chu." The mayor walked directly to Chu Yun's desk, his voice filled with a hint of pleading. "It was Mr. Sun who was ignorant yesterday. I apologize to you on his behalf. Today, the town really has an urgent matter, and I'd like to ask for your help."
Chu Yun stopped what he was doing and said, "Mayor, please speak."
"The town's property tax accounts have been in disarray for three months. The previous accountant passed away, leaving behind a mess. We were at our wit's end, so we thought of you." The mayor sighed, "The wages are negotiable, as long as you're willing to contribute."
Chu Yun looked at the mayor, knowing full well that the reconciliation was a sham. The real reason was likely related to last night's events. He knew the official process for handling such incidents: the first step was to find a trustworthy, clear-headed outsider, place him at the scene of the incident under a pretext, and observe. It seemed Qingxi Town had already reported the incident.
"Okay." Chu Yun nodded, "But I have one condition."
"You say it, you say it!"
"I want to live in the archives room of the town government office. I need to check old files to reconcile accounts, so it's convenient to live there." Chu Yun said calmly.
The mayor and Mr. Sun exchanged a glance, both a little surprised. The archives room was small and damp, and usually no one wanted to be there. "Of course... no problem!" The mayor agreed immediately, eager to have this seemingly calm person under his watch.
That same day, Chu Yun moved into the archive room of the town hall. The room was indeed small. Apart from a hard bed, there were only two rows of huge wooden shelves that reached the ceiling, which were piled with dusty old files.
Chu Yun ignored the account books. He closed the door and pulled a blank piece of talisman paper from his pocket. He wanted to investigate the nursery rhyme, especially the last line, "High Stone Platform." The word triggered a vague fragment deep in his memory. He remembered that in his father's study, there was a rare book on ancient sacrificial rituals, which seemed to mention a similar scene.
He closed his eyes, and the power in his chest, dormant for the entire morning, stagnated as his mind stirred it again, a faint tingling sensation. Chu Yun endured the pain and concentrated a trace of strength into his fingertips. This time, he wasn't going to draw a "Calming Talisman," but a more complex one—the "Tracing Talisman." This talisman could trace the origins of sounds, breaths, and even memories. It was the first time in thirteen years that he had actively used this type of exploratory technique.
His fingers moved swiftly across the talisman paper, an invisible force sketching a complex pattern. When the last stroke was complete, the talisman paper silently crumbled into dust. The scene before Chu Yun began to shift, countless distorted shadows flashing by. He seemed to be standing in a river of sound, hearing the sounds of wind, water, people talking, and the cries of livestock...
He focused his mind on the nursery rhyme he had heard last night. In an instant, all the chaotic sounds faded away, leaving only the little girl's innocent yet eerie singing.
He saw the singing rising like red lines from all directions of the town, eventually converging into one place: the mass grave in the north of the town. In the center of the mass grave stood an ancient altar built of huge stones, long abandoned.
The image of the altar flashed by. Chu Yun's eyes snapped open, beads of sweat forming on his forehead. "High Stone Terrace"... so that's where it meant. He didn't act immediately, but sat back on the bed and began leafing through the dusty files. He needed to understand the history of Qingxi Town.
As night fell, the town hall runners brought dinner.
"Mr. Chu, it's time for dinner." The yamen runner placed the lunch box at the door, but didn't leave immediately. Instead, hesitantly asked, "Mr. Chu, do you think... is this town really haunted? This afternoon, the cow from Butcher Zhang's house on East Street crashed its head into the wall and died. Its eyes were wide open, and its death was exactly the same as the pig from Butcher Li's house a few days ago."
"I don't know." Chu Yun took the lunch box.
"I... I'm a little scared." The bailiff's voice was trembling.
"If you're afraid, go home early and lock the doors and windows." Chu Yun said and closed the door.
He sat at the table, but didn't pick up his chopsticks. He pulled another piece of talisman paper and a small inkstone from the wooden box. He dipped his finger in some clean water and slowly ground the ink in the inkstone. He wanted to create a "hiding talisman," and going to a place like a mass grave required thorough preparation. He held his breath, lifted his pen, and hovered the ink-drenched tip above the talisman paper, memorizing the order and pressure of each stroke of the rune.
Just as he was about to put pen to paper, a soft "dong" sound came from outside the door. The sound was very soft, like someone tapping the door with a fingernail.
Chu Yun's hand, gripping the pen, froze instantly. He didn't look up, didn't even shift his posture, but every muscle in his body was tense to the utmost. He sensed a faint, icy presence outside the door, with a faint scent of herbs. This aura was completely different from the red-clad figure from last night; it was something else entirely.
“Boom.”
There was another soft sound.
Chu Yun slowly put down his pen, stood up, and walked towards the door step by step without making any sound. He did not open the door, but gently put his ear to the door panel.
He heard a very light, receding sound of footsteps outside the door, and a faint, almost sighing sound:
“…It’s too late…”
The voice was as light as a feather, but it hit Chu Yun's heart hard.
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