Chapter 23
At 8:45 p.m., the supermarket's evening rush hour had passed, and there were only one or two customers occasionally passing by after browsing the fruit and vegetable section.
Xu Qingzhou skillfully cleaned the blackfish, packed it in a bag, and handed it to the customer with both hands.
After the other person left, Xu Qingzhou turned around to go back to the control room to tidy up. Just as he turned around, someone called out from behind, "Xiao Xu, come and help me."
Xu Qingzhou turned her head and saw the aunt who was also responsible for delivering goods in the fresh produce section.
Right now, she was pulling a box full of ice and seafood. She tried several times to get over a raised spot on the ground, but she just couldn't get over it.
Xu Qingzhou quickly stepped forward, rolled up his sleeves, and helped push her from behind.
Pull and push simultaneously.
The wheel finally rolled over.
Xu Qingzhou, however, lost his balance in time and fell to the ground.
"Oh, are you alright? Let me see if you're okay?"
Hearing the noise, the aunt quickly came around the box to check on her.
With her help, Xu Qingzhou stood up from the ground, subconsciously patted his knees, and shook his head with a smile.
"Are you really alright?"
Xu Qingzhou shook his head again.
"It's alright, look how thin you are," the aunt squeezed her wrist a couple of times, "there's just bone left here."
Xu Qingzhou smiled, but before he could respond, he suddenly heard a voice calling out—
"Xu Jun!"
She paused for a moment, then instinctively looked in the direction of the sound, only to see an unfamiliar boy walking behind the health product shelf; Chi Jun was nowhere to be seen.
You must have misheard.
Or perhaps... it's just a coincidence of names.
"What's wrong? What are you looking for?"
The aunt followed her gaze and looked in that direction, but Xu Qingzhou looked away and shook her head.
The aunt smiled and patted her arm: "Just bear with it a little longer, there's only half an hour left before you get off work."
After saying that, he waved his hand and went to pick up the goods.
*
At the self-checkout machine, Li Rui piled all the sanitary napkins she had chosen onto the counter, entered her membership phone number, and casually asked Chi Jun while scanning the code:
"Didn't you just say you were going to the restroom? Why did you go there?"
Chi Jun casually picked up a box of chewing gum hanging nearby, glanced at it, and replied casually:
"I came in to find you."
"Hey, you can't live without me that much?"
"That's right."
"Since that's the case... are you coming home with me tonight?"
As autumn arrives, the temperature difference between day and night becomes more pronounced, and the clear moon hangs in the sky, adding a touch of coolness to the night.
Li Rui was carrying a large bag of sanitary napkins. As she and Chi Jun came out of the supermarket, a gust of cool wind hit them and made them shrink back.
"Damn, it's a bit cold. No wonder my mom made me wear long johns this morning."
After muttering to himself, he looked at Chi Jun and said, "I'm serious, come to my place tonight. I just got a big screen monitor, it's so awesome for gaming, we can play all night long."
In the darkness, Chi Jun walked forward with his hands in his pockets, kicking pebbles as he went.
Seeing that he didn't respond for a while, Li Rui simply grabbed his arm and shook him: "Hey, come on, come on, I'll order some late-night snacks later, how about your favorite fried chicken?"
"Seriously, playing games on a big screen is so much fun. My dad loved it as soon as we bought it. The two of them played all night, and we almost got a beating from my mom."
"Xu Jun! Are you fucking going or not?"
"Brother Jun...Master Jun...Brother Jun~~~"
The cheesy, affected address echoed in the night sky, causing people waiting for the road to turn their heads to look at him. Chi Jun pushed him away in disgust.
"Shut up, I'll go, okay?"
Li Rui chuckled and immediately shut his mouth, knowing when to stop.
After crossing the road, the two headed east together.
In Chi Jun's memory, apart from special holidays, this town basically has no nightlife. After 8:30, when you stand on a high place and look down, it is mostly dark, with only the streetlights emitting a faint light.
However, the shops on both sides of the road I walked on tonight were bustling with activity and filled with noise.
To the left is basically a row of barbecue stalls, with tables and chairs covered with disposable tablecloths outside the shops, where people are eating, drinking, laughing and joking. Lobster and seafood skewers are piled up all over the tables, and there are a bunch of empty bottles lying around on the ground. Occasionally, someone will burp as they pass by, and you can smell the unpleasant odor even from three meters away.
On the other side of the road, neon lights flickered, and bars, KTVs, and all sorts of internet cafes were clustered together. Small groups of young people huddled together in twos and threes in front of the shops, smoking and chatting, occasionally bursting into laughter or shouting and cursing in drawn-out tones.
Seeing Chi Jun staring at the shops over there, Li Rui said:
"Don't be fooled by how lively it is now. Last year, there wasn't a soul in sight here at midnight."
There's a story behind those words.
Chi Jun glanced at Li Rui.
Li Rui pursed his lips and pointed to a telephone pole with a red advertising sign hanging on it: "See that red sign? There's an alley right next to it, see it?"
Chi Jun narrowed his eyes: "I saw it."
"A terrible incident happened there. A girl was walking home alone after her evening tutoring class when she was... assaulted. A few drunk men, under the influence of alcohol, dragged her inside."
There are various versions of the specific details, and opinions vary widely.
Li Rui couldn't bear to recount such a tragic event in detail, so he paused and said:
"Anyway, because of this incident, the girl jumped off a building and died. Within three months, one of her parents drank pesticide, and the other got drunk and crashed his motorcycle into the river. The family of three was destroyed."
"This incident caused such a big stir back then that not only families with daughters, but even elderly people refused to walk this way at night, saying that a homeless man had encountered a ghost here at night."
"In short, a large number of shops here collapsed at the time, and it took a while for them to recover."
As Li Rui spoke, he gestured with his chin to the left front: "See that police station? It was just built here last year to make it easier to manage the security in this area. But it's useless. There are still plenty of people drinking, causing trouble, and harassing others."
After that, Li Rui asked:
Does your sister usually take this route?
"Um?"
Li Rui rolled his eyes and solemnly warned, "Anyway, whatever you do, don't let her walk this road tonight."
"oh."
*
At 9:20 p.m., the lights in each area gradually went out, and the supermarket was closing time.
There was a rustling sound in the changing room as several people chatted and laughed while changing their clothes, preparing to go home and rest. Xu Qingzhou took off her heavy black leather apron and boots, and the fishy smell made her frown, but she didn't have time to care.
As Xu Qingzhou stepped out of the supermarket, a gust of cold wind hit him, and he couldn't help but pull his coat collar up.
To the left is Anxi Road, the closest road to my home. It stretches straight eastward, and at the end, turn left and walk about a kilometer to reach the rental compound.
Compared to other routes, taking this route can save at least 10 minutes.
However, gazing at the rising smoke from the barbecue and the flashing neon lights under the night sky, Xu Qingzhou stood there for a while, then silently turned around and walked onto the road heading north.
It takes about half an hour to get from here to the rental compound.
Xu Qingzhou would not let this time go to waste.
She put on her headphones and practiced her English listening skills whenever she could while walking back quickly.
There are still many exam papers waiting for her to finish when she gets back.
The streets were deserted at night, the shops were already closed, and only a few shop names were lit on the thick roller shutters. The streetlights on both sides were listlessly open, and occasionally a car would speed by, disappearing from sight with a "whoosh".
When the female voice with standard pronunciation in the headphones paused for the fifth time with a slightly longer pause, Xu Qingzhou finally returned to the rented courtyard.
Standing downstairs, I didn't rush up.
Xu Qingzhou took out some floral water from his bag, sprayed it on himself a few times, then put it back in his bag. He sniffed his body to make sure the scent wasn't too strong but could still mask the fishy smell before stepping onto the first step of the stairs.
The small window on the door of the small rental room was black.
Xu Qingzhou guessed that Chi Jun was probably already asleep.
She took out her keys and gently opened the door.
However, upon opening the door, they were taken aback.
The back window was open, the curtains swayed gently in the evening breeze, and moonlight streamed quietly through the window. The blankets on the bed were neatly folded, their outlines faintly visible.
Chi Jun was not in bed.
Xu Qingzhou suspiciously turned on the light.
The dim light illuminated every corner of the cabin, yet Chi Jun was still nowhere to be seen.
This is the first time that Chi Jun is not in the house at this time.
Xu Qingzhou stared blankly at the pillows and blankets on the bed, then suddenly remembered something, and a sense of panic belatedly welled up in his heart.
She first glanced behind the door, then bent down to look under the bed, under the table, and even rummaged through the large cardboard box containing miscellaneous items in the southwest corner.
Chi Jun is not included.
There were no foxes either.
Xu Qingzhou didn't even put down his schoolbag before turning around and walking out.
However, just as she stepped out the door and turned to lock it, she caught a glimpse of a figure coming up the stairs to the second floor. The person was whistling a cheerful tune and casually tossing a bunch of keys in their hand.
As the footsteps drew closer, their faces became clearly visible.
It's Chi Jun.
Xu Qingzhou lowered his head and breathed a very soft sigh of relief.
Upon approaching, seeing Xu Qingzhou still holding the keys, Chi Jun casually asked, "Just got back?"
Xu Qingzhou didn't mention that she was just about to lock the door and go find him; she only nodded, and as she pushed the door open, she glanced at Chi Jun again.
You seem to have come home very late tonight too.
Chi Jun grunted in agreement, tossed the keys onto the small dining table, and walked straight to the foot of the bed to retrieve the small basket containing toiletries.
"I went to a friend's house and played games for a while."
I see.
Xu Qingzhou nodded.
Seeing that Chi Jun was going to take a shower, she put her schoolbag on the desk and prepared to do some homework first.
As she was taking out workbooks and test papers from her schoolbag, she caught a glimpse of Chi Jun suddenly stopping beside her, as if he were staring at her.
Xu Qingzhou, confused, turned to look at Chi Jun.
But she found that his gaze was fixed directly on her—
On the shoulder?
Then, Chi Jun reached out and took something off her shoulder.
Upon seeing what it was, Xu Qingzhou's brow twitched instantly.
Fish scales!
At that moment, Chi Jun held the fish scale in his hand, even raising it up to the light, examining it suspiciously for a moment, before shifting his gaze downwards to Xu Qingzhou's eyes.
"You went to kill fish?"
Xu Qingzhou: "..."
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