Spirit
Before the Bridge of Helplessness, Gu Lili, who had been on sick leave for two days, picked up her soup ladle again. She dropped a drop of fluorescent green into the pot, but then realized something was wrong. She had been told that her soup was too bland, so she added another drop.
As usual, after swinging the ladle 20 times, 389 took the ladle and began to ladle the soup.
"Lady Meng Po has finally arrived. I thought I would have to wait for several years."
Hearing someone speak, Gu Lili looked up at the ghost. The person was a middle-aged man with dark, rough skin, wearing a dark cloth shirt and shoes that had faded a bit. He was staring blankly at the soup pot. Gu Lili stared at him for a long time, but he did not say a word.
Gu Lili thought to herself, "Maybe it was one of the ghosts at the back of the line who said it."
"I've lived my whole life in a daze, and now that I'm done, I just want to be reincarnated as soon as possible, study hard in my next life, and then walk out of this remote mountain village to see the world."
Gu Lili was startled. This time, she clearly heard the voice coming from the ghost in front of her.
"Do you want to be reincarnated quickly? Study hard in your next life?" Gu Lili asked the ghost in front of her, puzzled.
"Lady Meng Po...you...you know what I'm thinking, my lady? I was wrong, my lady. Please don't refuse to give me the soup."
Suddenly, a whisper came from Gu Lili's ear: "Lady Meng Po, don't panic. You've mastered mind reading. But don't reveal it yet, otherwise, if the higher-ups investigate, they might expose my existence."
"You exist? Does nobody know you?"
"Well, no one but you knows what my true form is. I was not born by the call of heaven and earth, and the way of heaven would not allow me to exist."
"Well... I'll go to work now."
Gu Lili glanced sideways and saw Fangfangfang walking slowly towards her. She immediately severed the spiritual connection with Qinglian. Then she turned to comfort the departed soul before her and handed it a bowl of freshly served Meng Po soup.
The departed soul stretched out its deeply furrowed hands to take the soup bowl, and resolutely drank it all in one gulp, without the slightest hesitation or lingering attachment.
"Follow me." Fangfangfang raised the summoning banner to guide the souls, and the departed souls followed her toward the Bridge of Helplessness.
Gu Lili suddenly felt a little dizzy, so she slowly walked to the big stone pier by the Naihe Bridge and sat down. These days she often sat on this big stone pier in a daze.
The time calculation method in the underworld is different from that in the human world, and it is not converted between days and years as in legends. Ting Fangfang explained that this concept is like the operation of time in different dimensions, which cannot be effectively converted. Only the special mobile phone used by the underworld can show that she has been in office for one month, while three years have passed in the human world.
It was a very ordinary-looking flat stone bridge, so ordinary that there was such a small stone bridge in the ditch near Grandma's house. That little bridge accompanied her throughout her school years. After school, she would always sit there for a while, thinking about what delicious food Grandma would make that day, wondering why there was so much homework, calculating how old Mom was in heaven, and guessing if Dad would ever think of his little brother and his older sister.
Later, she would always sit a little longer, because she wanted to think about whether her mother had received her grandmother in heaven, what it would be like when they were reunited, and whether they missed her.
Gu Lili was lost in thought until Fangfangfang returned, holding a soul-summoning banner and waving it in front of her, calling out to her, which brought her back to her senses.
"Sir, are you feeling unwell?" Fangfangfang asked.
"I feel a little dizzy, but it's nothing serious."
Gu Lili looked down from the bridge and saw a boatman rowing his wooden boat across the river. The waters of the River of Oblivion were as still as a mirror, with the small boat lying there. Several souls with blank stares sat quietly on the boat, their expressions unreadable.
"When will the cycle of reincarnation for the dead ever end?"
“Until they gain some enlightenment, like some cultivators or those who accumulate a certain number of points, they will have the opportunity to transcend the cycle of reincarnation.” Fangfangfang paused, shook her head, and then said, “Sir, haven’t you looked at the employee handbook yet?”
"I've seen some, and they're just some inhumane clauses," Gu Lili scoffed. "All I see is that no matter how hard I work, or how high a position I become, I can't abuse my power to inquire about my family and friends. I even thought that once I accumulated enough points, like Number 94, I could see how my family is doing after their reincarnation..."
"My lord, this is indeed against the will of Heaven."
Gu Lili didn't respond, but smiled and asked again, "Sister Fangfang, how long have you been here?"
"It's been almost a thousand years."
Haven't you thought about a promotion?
“I’m not qualified, and I don’t have enough points. Promotions require not only points, but also letters of recommendation from superiors and colleagues. Besides, I’m not good at networking, and the places I’d be working in after a promotion would be full of gossip, which I don’t like.”
"Sir, is this what you're asking about?"
"I'm just thinking that the so-called modern underworld only provides conveniences to those with high points and to officials, while the loopholes are exploited by clever people."
Gu Lili turned to look at the line of souls, who stood in neat order, awaiting their fate.
In front of the soup pot, 389 was holding a soup bowl and wielding a soup ladle, preparing to serve soup to the next soul.
At the front of the line was a hunched old man with deep furrows on his face. He had lost all his hair, but still had some stubble on his lip, making him look quite old.
389 handed the soup bowl to the old man: "Here you go, number 302, have some soup."
The old man seemed not to hear and remained standing in the same spot without moving.
389 put down the soup bowl, walked to the old man, and called out again, heavily, "Number 302?"
The old man slowly raised his head, his white eyes staring blankly ahead, his face deeply etched with wrinkles, which was somewhat frightening.
After a long while, the old man stretched out a hand and waved it in front of 389: "I don't want to be reincarnated."
Upon hearing this, Gu Lili propped herself up and headed towards 389: "Let's go, we have work to do."
"What, is there a wish you haven't fulfilled?" Gu Lili asked.
The old man shook his head: "Alas, I have no wishes. This life has been too bitter. I don't want a next life."
Suddenly, a bright light appeared in the dark underworld—it was a projection screen. This time, strangely, Fangfangfang actually activated the holographic projection screen on her own.
A hospital appears on the screen. Follow the camera into a ward, where patient number 302 is lying on the bed.
The person lying in room 302 was breathing rapidly, and the features on their face were contorted as if they were straining.
"Oh dear, look at this mess... Hey old man, why did you pull out the urine bag again?" A nurse walked in from outside the ward, carrying a stainless steel tray with various iodine, cotton swabs, needles, and medical tape. She was about to draw blood from patient 302 for a test, but as she approached the bed, she stepped on a puddle of liquid. After a closer inspection, she realized it was from the patient in the bed who had pulled out the urine bag again.
The patient on the bed remained silent, ignoring the nurse's grumbling and complaints, stubbornly turning his head to the side.
"Old man, why are you so disobedient? How many times have I told you not to damage the urine bag and IV tubing? Otherwise, you'll get an infection and die." The nurse lectured irritably, then called out to the door, "Aunt Liu, could you come and clean this up? The patient's urine bag has fallen out."
Nurses are only responsible for the patient's physical health; the cleaning staff are responsible for the hygiene of the ward.
"Hey, coming!" The cleaning lady outside the door responded, went to the cleaning room to get some tools, rinsed the mop, and walked into the ward.
"Sigh, why are you always causing trouble? Do you know how many people envy you for having children willing to pay for your treatment?" The cleaning lady's first words upon entering the room were also a scolding of patient number 302 in bed: "What, are you afraid your children will spend money and don't want to get treatment?"
Number 302 remained silent, his head turned away.
"He's just a bit short-statured. He has a perfectly good life, but he doesn't know how to enjoy it." The nurse picked up the iodine, impatiently wiped it to disinfect it, and then inserted a new urine bag.
"Tsk tsk tsk, if I had his good fortune, I wouldn't dare to cause trouble for my children anymore, they don't know what's good for them."
"Alright, Aunt Liu, let's leave it at that for now. When her son arrives later, I'll ask them if they want to hire a caregiver."
After cleaning up, the two talked as they left the ward. As the ward door closed, patient 302 turned around, two streams of hot tears slowly flowing down his cheeks and landing on the white hospital pillow, forming two striking dots.
Outside the ward, inside the medical station, the nurse who had just been there was on the phone, her tone tinged with complaint: "Yes, they pulled it out again today. It's not that we find it troublesome, but this increases the risk of infection for the patient. Yes, it can't be left unsupervised. You guys should discuss it quickly."
In the evening, a middle-aged couple rushed into ward 302. The man spoke first: "Dad, the nurse said you're causing trouble again. What can I do?"
"Yes, Dad, it's not that I'm criticizing you, but we have a long day of work and we also have to take care of the kids..."
“Dad, Xiaohao is graduating from university soon and getting married. He said he wants you to hold your great-grandson next year,” the man added, trying to make amends.
Seeing that patient 302 remained silent, the woman picked up the thermos from the bedside table and said, "Let me get you some water, Dad." As she spoke, she winked at the man, and the two of them slipped out of the ward together.
The woman carried a thermos and walked into the stairwell, with the man following her sheepishly.
"What exactly does your dad want? He keeps causing trouble like this every now and then."
"Sigh, he still wants to go home. Dad has mentioned it to me several times."
“Why go home? Who will take care of you if you go home? Besides, how long can your father hold on with this illness? You need to know that every extra month your father lives means an extra 10,000 yuan in pension. With that money, your son will be able to get married.”
"Sigh." The man sighed as he rummaged in his pocket and pulled out a pack of cigarettes. He hurriedly took one out, glanced through the glass window at the door to make sure no one was watching, then quickly lit the cigarette with a lighter. After taking a deep drag, he said, "The doctor said that if he can keep going like this, he might be able to hold on for a few more years, but... he's so old, it's really suffering for him."
The woman's face hardened: "Suffering? Does your son suffer because he can't afford to get married? Huh? Now you're pretending to be a good person. Whose idea was that in the first place?"
"Stop talking!" The man threw his cigarette butt on the ground and then stomped on it. "Go get some water, I'll go back and try to persuade the old man."
The man returned to the ward alone. When he saw that his daughter-in-law was not there, the patient in bed 302 reached out and touched him, then slowly said, "Son, Dad is in too much pain. Dad doesn't want to live anymore. Please let Dad go."
The man pushed away No. 302's hand and pretended to cover him with a blanket: "Dad, what nonsense are you talking about? Get well soon and take good care of yourself. Next year, I'll bring your great-grandson to visit you."
Upon hearing this, Number 302 burst into tears. "Son, I've never shed a tear or begged anyone in my life." Number 302 pulled his hand out from under the covers and wiped the tears from his face. "Son, I'm begging you. Your mother left early, and it wasn't easy for me to raise you all by myself. Now I'm riddled with illnesses. Don't make me suffer anymore. Just let me go."
"You're getting senile, why are you saying such things again?" The daughter-in-law pushed open the door, strode to the bedside, and slammed the thermos on the bedside table.
When No. 302 saw his daughter-in-law arrive, he turned his head away and remained silent.
“Dad, just stay here and rest. I just spoke to the nurses. With your temper, even if we hire a caregiver, they won’t be able to keep an eye on you. We, the family, agree to put a restraint belt on you!” The daughter-in-law glanced at room 302 and said.
The son was startled: "Huh? The restraint belt is for..." Before he could finish speaking, his daughter-in-law's fierce glare stopped him from saying anything more.
"My son..." Number 302 cried out in resentment before fainting.
The son and daughter-in-law panicked when they saw this and rushed to call the nurses and doctors. The son, whether out of guilt or his obsession with his father's pension, kept begging the doctors to save him. But when all the rescue methods were exhausted, the life-supporting dots on the monitoring instrument did not move. Only a straight line announced the passing of patient number 302.
The holographic projection gradually dimmed, and the underworld returned to its former darkness. This time, Fangfangfang used greater privileges to project the final moments of the departed souls in the mortal realm, as well as the reasons why the souls were unwilling to be reborn.
“Number 302, reincarnation is the final destination for every departed soul, whether you like it or not,” Fangfangfang said calmly, frowning.
"Lady Meng Po, perhaps you could kill my soul too. The human world is too bitter; I don't want to go back." Number 302's eyes were white, indicating some kind of eye disease, and he could hardly see people clearly anymore. He just stared blankly ahead as he spoke.
“Number 302 only has 90,000 points, so he can’t create any dreams.” Fangfangfang knew that Gu Lili planned to let Number 302 create dreams, since this was the only way Meng Po could fulfill dreams at the moment.
She already owed Guan Nan an unpayable amount of points for No. 93, so he certainly wouldn't lend her any more. Sweet Dreams and Nightmares require 1-2 million points, and No. 302's 90,000 points are an astronomical difference. Besides, given No. 302's condition, it seems there's no dream suitable for someone in such despair.
"Lady Meng Po, the Meng Po soup must be drunk voluntarily by the deceased in order to cross the River of Oblivion. Otherwise, even if we force him to drink it, he will not be able to cross the River of Oblivion. In that case, let the Bai family's PR team send him to the Special Management Office for Living Souls."
Since Gu Lili took office, the Bai family's public relations team has stopped coming to Huangquan to supervise. Originally, Huangquan was not under their jurisdiction. They only made private deals with the dead to cut in line, and then lied about coming to Huangquan to help maintain order for convenience.
Since the matter of No. 302 cannot be mediated, Gu Lili can only follow Fangfangfang's suggestion and hand it over to the Bai family's public relations department to send it to the Special Soul Management Office.
Fangfangfang dialed the phone, and soon the black smoke representing the transmission appeared beside Gu Lili.
"Manager Bai," Fangfangfang greeted the newcomer.
The newcomer was dressed in plain white clothes and a white skirt, waving a staff in her hand. She had a white face and red lips and was none other than Bai Muyu, the head steward of the Bai family.
"I thought Lady Meng Po was capable of solving anything in the Yellow Springs, and that we were going to be laid off."
The speaker was Bai family PR who came with Bai Muyu. He was quite tall, but looked like a skinny monkey with a pointed mouth and monkey cheeks. He had a mean-spirited look, and his half-length hair was tied into a small bun. He spoke in a high-pitched voice.
Since Gu Lili replaced the former Meng Po, the Bai family's public relations team has toned down its control over Huang Quan and rarely interferes in Huang Quan anymore.
However, Bai Muyu is the head of public relations for the Bai family, and with the support of her family's power, she naturally wouldn't take a mere mortal who had cleverly become Meng Po seriously. Furthermore, her personal PR assistant is a trusted confidant of the so-called number one lackey in the underworld, who knows that anyone who dares to lay a finger on Lord Guan Nan, whom Bai Muyu admires, will not have a good time.
Gu Lili was about to step forward to argue when 389 blocked her with his arm and stepped forward first, looking her up and down and saying, "Oh, how come the Bai family produced such a effeminate old man like you, neither male nor female, acting all effeminate, daring to speak to our adults like that."
"You...who do you think you are? How dare a nobody assistant be so insolent in front of our Bai family's PR team." The skinny PR guy was clearly furious with 389. The Bai family had considerable prestige in the underworld, and even colleagues of equal rank usually gave them some respect. Yet now, he was being ridiculed by this lowly assistant who had been promoted from an ordinary dead soul.
"Chief Steward Bai, 389 has been staying in the Yellow Springs for a long time and doesn't quite understand the rules and system of the Underworld. It was my oversight. Don't worry, I'll go and teach her a lesson right away." Seeing that the situation was not good, Fangfangfang was about to pull 389 away. Everyone in the Underworld knew that Bai Muyu was ruthless and that anyone who offended her would suffer the consequences.
The moment proved that Fangfangfang's idea was indeed accurate. Before 389 could even take a step, Bai Muyu cast a spell to freeze them in place.
"You're an old man from the underworld, so I won't hold it against you. But that lowly brat who dared to defy me will be utterly destroyed today." Bai Muyu's chilling voice came through the eerie white face and red lips mask.
"Let's see who dares to touch her."
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