Yesterday, when Secretary Jin sang this song on the stage, his Cantonese was perfect, and his performance was professional, but the boy didn't really like it.
Right now, Secretary Jin’s Cantonese might not be standard, but the feeling he evoked was like water flowing smoothly into a channel after a dam was opened, a natural and effortless flow.
The thing about singing is truly magical; despite the disguise, one can recognize the essence. When Secretary Jin had both hands resting on his shoulders, a familiar feeling told Li Zhuiyuan who he really was.
Likewise, the true creator of the terrifying bloody scene from last night should, without a doubt, be the presence beneath Ding Dalin’s human facade. It was the true authority here.
This meant that the crisis Li Zhuiyuan faced had not been averted, as little nightingale remained merely a secondary figure beside it. The water monkeys they unearthed… should indeed be it.
Suddenly, Li Zhuiyuan realized that he, the little nightingale, and the water monkeys—originally the intended main characters—had all become mere supporting roles, or rather, even less than that, mere background figures.
Whether he and his grandfather could keep their skin now depended entirely on its wishes. Thus, the current song and earlier actions were all little nightingale’s subtle hints to him.
In an instant, the guard he had momentarily relaxed due to little nightingale’s presence was once again sharply raised.
Li Zhuiyuan suddenly realized something: that entity from last night, if it could control Secretary Jin to send signals to trick the six water monkeys on the perimeter into collectively flaying their skins, how could it not have noticed him and Runsheng on the roof?
Was their safe return really just due to their speed? The water monkeys, apart from Ding Dalin, were all outsiders, and the only person Ding Dalin knew in this village, with whom he had even bought a house under that name, was Li Sanjiang.
If it wanted to fill in the fish pond, to plant peach trees on this contracted land, it would need to go through Li Sanjiang.
So, all along, it was still their own grandfather who had been holding the situation together to prevent it from collapsing.
Once Secretary Jin finished singing, Li Zhuiyuan led the applause. Seeing this, Tan Wenbin also clapped along, repeatedly praising, “Good, good, good!”
Li Sanjiang then reached out to touch the sound system and said, “Alright, pretty good. When I send the mule to fetch the tables and chairs later, I’ll have it take this back too.”
“Ha, as long as you’re satisfied.”
Li Zhuiyuan innocently asked, “Ding Grandpa, how much is this?”
Li Sanjiang furrowed his brows slightly. This was originally a chance to take advantage. I brought it back and asked how much it costs—this child, is he simpleminded?
But soon, Li Sanjiang relaxed his brow again: How nice, this child is honest and kind, truly different from those ingrates.
Li Zhuiyuan asked intentionally. Having gone through so much, he had vaguely touched upon the principles of "cause and effect," especially when dealing with the existence beneath another shadow; its things were not so easy to acquire.
Better to hear the other party’s requirements first.
“Right, Lin Hou, how much did you spend to buy this from the troupe? Come, I’ll give you this. I can put it to good use, renting it for half a year will already recoup the cost.”
“It would hurt our feelings to talk about money between us.”
Li Sanjiang wrapped an arm around Ding Dalin’s shoulder and shook him slightly, “Alright, when you first returned, I misjudged you. You, Lin Hou, are truly a good man; I am not as good as you.”
At their first meeting, Li Sanjiang thought Ding Dalin was deliberately putting on a big show of extravagance.
But alas, with a house, land, and this sound system being given, it was difficult not to change that impression, after all, way too much was given.
“Actually, Sanjiang Hou, I have something I also wish to ask you for help with.”
Seeing the other party smoothly playing along, Li Sanjiang subconsciously dug at his ear with his little finger, “Well, feel free to ask me in the future when you have business.”
Li Zhuiyuan spoke up, “Ding Grandpa, if you have something you want to say, you can tell me directly now.”
He couldn’t let the tone of his grandfather draw it out until later, as failing to meet his requests would likely mean there would be no future for him and his grandson.
Li Sanjiang gestured with his lips; he held no anger towards the little distant lord and simply replied, “Right, Lin Hou, you say.”
“Sanjiang Hou, it’s like this: I originally planned to stay here for a long time, but I received news from back home. I’ve got some matters to handle, so I’ll need your help watching over this house.”
“You still want to leave? How long will you be gone?”
“Hard to say. If things go smoothly, I might be back in half a year, but if things don’t go well, considering my age, I might never return.”
“Then you must come back alive early.”
“Why, do you not want me to leave?”
“It’s not that I don’t want you to leave. You procured so many things in my name; if you never return, it would be too embarrassing for me to collect this foreign estate.”
“I truly do wish to return; I really want to spend my old age well here.”
“I genuinely hope to see you through to the end. If I were to leave first, then just have the little distant lord arrange it. Otherwise, you won’t feel at ease holding onto these things.”
“Sanjiang Hou, once the village’s contracting agreement is settled, I’ll pay the contracted fees first, and then leave some funds behind for you to organize people to fill in this fish pond and plant the peach trees, so we don’t delay things.”
Li Sanjiang rubbed his forehead; planting trees was hard work.
This was not just a matter of money; as the landlord, it required his mental and physical exertion as well.
“Alright, Ding Grandpa, rest assured. You handle your matters; when you return, you’ll get to enjoy the peach blossoms.”
Li Sanjiang nodded, “Rest easy, Lin Hou, this matter, I’ll take care of it.”
It wasn’t really being coerced by his great-grandson; one cannot bite the hand that feeds. Li Sanjiang understood that since the other party had opened their mouth, he couldn’t refuse; he wouldn’t want to give back the land and house under his name.
Li Zhuiyuan sighed inwardly in relief; he was not afraid of demands but rather feared the absence of them.
Just planting trees isn’t much, especially since the land was already rented, and the money would be left behind.
“Good, thank you, Sanjiang Hou.”
“Look at you, what’s there to thank? All of this ought to be, then this… Zhuangzhuang.”
“Hey.”
“Run back and call Runsheng over to move things.”
Last night nearly twenty water monkeys met their end, and at this moment, adding another person wouldn’t make much difference aside from perhaps peeling another shrimp.
“Hey, alright.”
Blinblin left.
“Little distant lord, I’ve noticed, the mule at home listens to you, but why does Zhuangzhuang also listen to your commands?”
“Ah, does he?” Li Zhuiyuan appeared bewildered.
“Hey, quite good.” Li Sanjiang patted the boy’s head, “This shows my little distant lord was born to be a leader.”
The will had already been established; the great-grandfather’s feelings towards his great-grandson had shifted from bias to a natural inclination.
Ding Dalin remarked, “This shows the child has organization skills; he’s indeed fit for officialdom.”
Li Sanjiang adjusted his trousers' string, “Lin Hou, is there any paper over there by the ceramic jar?”
“There’s some in the basket.”
“Then I’ll go use the ceramic jar.”
Li Zhuiyuan wanted to follow, but after taking two steps, he was stopped by Ding Dalin: “Little distant lord.”
He hesitated, unwilling to feign ignorance, and paused on the spot.
“Ah?” Li Zhuiyuan faced Ding Dalin, “What is it, Ding Grandpa?”
“Your great-grandfather didn’t misjudge. You truly are a kind-hearted good child.”
Li Zhuiyuan bowed his head, revealing a shy smile.
The reason he didn’t show his most adept bashfulness of eye contact was that the skin on Ding Dalin’s brow was peeling.
It was very much like a torn garment, not completely ripped, but the hue exhibited a fracture.
The performance was about to conclude, and he needed to avoid any mishaps.
Ding Dalin reached up to touch his brow. Secretary Jin came over, wanting to help, but was instructed, “Get a basin of water; I need to wash my face well.”
“Alright.”
Secretary Jin fetched a basin of warm water, with a towel hanging from its edge. She stood there, acting as a human platform.
Ding Dalin walked up to the basin, bent down, and let his face fall forward, fingers tapping lightly on his face repeatedly.
This scene resembled city women touching up their makeup in front of a mirror.
Li Zhuiyuan wanted to leave the room, but the position of Secretary Jin blocked the door. In order to avoid seeing anything inappropriate, he turned to face the sound system and reached out to touch its cover.
“Little distant lord, is your local dialect newly learned?”
“Um, yes. I’m not very good at it yet.” Li Zhuiyuan fiddled with the microphone.
“Where did you live previously?”
“In the capital.” Li Zhuiyuan spoke into the microphone, “Hoo hoo… hello hello.”
“Jian Kang?”
The boy’s hand holding the microphone trembled.
Jian Kang? Li Zhuiyuan knew that Jian Kang was the ancient name for Nanjing, the capital during the Six Dynasties.
Eastern Wu, Eastern Jin, Liu Song, Southern Qi, Southern Liang, Southern Chen…
So, which era was he from?
“Oh, you’re from the capital, ha ha, I didn’t catch that at first; I misheard.”
Ding Dalin laughed, seeming to dismiss his earlier faux pas.
Li Zhuiyuan felt a complexity within. Even if he was from the Southern Chen period, it had been nearly one thousand five hundred years.
Could it also mean that the tomb in the fish pond had such an extensive history?
He didn’t know whether to call the water monkeys fortunate or unfortunate for discovering such a premium water burial tomb.
Though, it seemed more unfortunate for him; he had only just picked up a book and had not spent much time learning.
In today’s popular martial arts novels and action films, the protagonists usually faced local rascals and bullies as practice targets after years of secluded training.
But for him, he hadn’t even learned much yet; he merely pushed open his own door to get some sun: only to find the Eastern Factory right across.
“Little distant lord, you promised your grandpa you would help him plant peach trees, alright?”
“Um, I will.”
“Speak up, Grandpa is a bit hard of hearing.”
“Don’t worry, Grandpa.”
“Turn around and talk to Grandpa.”
Li Zhuiyuan turned around.
Directly facing him was a red-skinned face without any skin!
In that instant of shock and contemplation, as he lifted his hand and opened his mouth, about to scream, this face suddenly pressed right before him:
“Little distant lord, you were a step too slow.”
Li Zhuiyuan’s expression froze, his hand halted halfway, his mouth agape but unable to scream.
“Little distant lord, were you just thinking whether to scream in fear?”
Li Zhuiyuan didn’t know how to answer.
“You child, why do you look as if you don’t recognize me?”
A similar phrase was said by Ding Dalin that morning when he was out walking with his great-grandfather.
It had indeed seen him and Runsheng on the roof last night.
“I will help you plant the trees.”
“Hahaha…”
Its hand touched the boy’s face and patted him gently.
“You acted so well, I almost couldn’t tell who was wearing the human skin—the two of us, who is who?”
“Beeep!——”
The sound of electricity jolted Li Zhuiyuan awake. He looked down at the microphone in his hand.
“Little distant lord, turn off the microphone; it hurts my old ears.”
Li Zhuiyuan turned off the microphone, the electricity crackling ceased, and he turned to look at Ding Dalin.
Ding Dalin lifted his head, a warm towel laid across his face, completely covering it.
His voice came from beneath the towel, “Little distant lord, is your local dialect something new you learned?”
The same question.
Li Zhuiyuan was puzzled, was the earlier scene merely an illusion?
“Um, just learned it.”
“Where did you live before?”
“In Youzhou.”
“Hahaha…”
Ding Dalin laughed again, removing the towel from his face, revealing beautifully flushed skin from the hot compress.
“You’re indeed a clever child.”
Ding Dalin moved to Li Zhuiyuan’s front, once more reaching out to touch the boy’s face.
“Grandpa likes you a lot.”
“I also like the red envelopes and gifts you sent me, Grandpa.”
Ding Dalin’s hand drifted down, grasping the boy’s right hand, spreading it open.
In Li Zhuiyuan’s right palm was a burn mark and five blood scabs.
Ding Dalin ignored the five blood scabs, touching the burn mark with his fingertip with feigned surprise, “Look at this, your skin nearly burned through?”
“It was my mistake, I got careless while having fun.”
“Be careful; if the skin rips, it’s hard to patch up. Even if you find new skin, it won’t be as good as the original; wouldn’t you agree?”
“Um, you’re right, Grandpa.”
Ding Dalin smiled, his left hand raising, slowly forming a fist.
Back then, Ah Li could tell that this burn was self-inflicted by Li Zhuiyuan; how could it not see it?
But right now, Li Zhuiyuan couldn’t fathom its temperament. Logically, he had already persuaded his great-grandfather to agree to help plant trees; this matter should have been settled.
But it seemed to want to continue interacting with him.
Li Zhuiyuan began to envy Tan Wenbin; sometimes knowing too much had no real meaning and was not as good as being muddled through.
Suddenly, a sharp pain surged through him.
Li Zhuiyuan looked down to see the previously healed burn scar reopening; the flesh in his palm was breaking apart.
His heartbeat quickened. Watching the flesh split open was too horrifying.
It was as though in the next moment, it would spread outwards, with his skin being flayed away, and himself walking out all bloody.
Li Zhuiyuan’s peripheral glance caught Secretary Jin; she was still standing there, holding the basin, unmoving, and not here.
Ding Dalin’s tongue darted out, licking his lips, revealing struggle in his eyes.
Then, his neck began to twist from left to right, his expression shifting from kindness to calm, then to gloom and finally greed.
At last, he suddenly threw back his head:
“Beast, you’ve tricked me terribly.”
“Bang!”
The microphone fell to the ground.
Li Zhuiyuan swallowed hard; he turned around to see Ding Dalin washing his face.
He scooped water into his hands and splashed it on his face, rubbing it, then finally drying his face with a towel.
This was the third time.
However, this time, Ding Dalin didn’t ask about his accent; he remained silent.
The door swung open, colliding with Secretary Jin’s back.
The door rebounded, but Secretary Jin didn’t budge.
“Hey?”
A voice came from outside; it was Li Sanjiang.
Li Zhuiyuan realized that those previous instances weren’t an illusion, because his great-grandfather’s trips to the toilet couldn’t happen in such a quick succession; some time had indeed been spent.
Secretary Jin stepped aside, the door opened, and Li Sanjiang commented to Ding Dalin, “The mule from my house has arrived, so I’ll start packing things up now.”
“Okay.”
Li Sanjiang turned and stepped out again, not calling Li Zhuiyuan to come outside; he wasn’t willing to let little distant lord work.
This appended to Li Zhuiyuan remaining in the room once more.
However,
“Bang!”
The door swung open once more, this time with more force. Runsheng stood at the door, face tense, holding a shovel.
One could see he was very frightened; the tense expression served as his protective guise.
But he still came; he was here to rescue people.
“What are you doing?” Li Sanjiang’s voice resounded. “Move the tables and chairs first; the sound system last.”
Runsheng looked toward Li Zhuiyuan, waiting for a glance; as long as they exchanged knowing eyes, he would swing the shovel without hesitation at the two in front of him.
In any case, either they would bleed or he would.
Ding Dalin extended his hand towards Li Zhuiyuan, “Come, follow me upstairs. I have some snacks I brought back from abroad in my room. I’ll let you take them.”
Though, truly, there was no option to refuse.
Li Zhuiyuan grasped Ding Dalin’s hand, and the two of them brushed past Runsheng and climbed the stairs.
Downstairs, Runsheng received a whack on the back of his head from Li Sanjiang and was scolded, “What are you standing there for? Little distant lord is getting his stuff; you should be about your work, moving things!”
Runsheng felt deep conflict within, but since it was little distant lord’s choice, he put down the shovel and started moving the tables and chairs.
However, the courage he had previously mustered couldn’t last; the scenes from last night started replaying in his mind, and as he moved, his body began to tremble.
Seeing this, Li Sanjiang hurried over, asking, “Are you still feeling unwell?”
“Huh?”
“Forget it; you sit there and rest. I’ll handle it.”
Upon reaching the second floor, Ding Dalin still held onto his hand, and Li Zhuiyuan sensed it was sticky in his grip. He was afraid that if he let go, he would peel off a piece of skin.
And indeed, this was true.
As they entered the room, Ding Dalin voluntarily released his hand, and his skin stuck to the boy’s hand, stretching slightly with the pull, until at last…
“Snap!”
The sound was loud enough to jolt Li Zhuiyuan into confusion; when he gathered his bearings again, he noticed the room was dim, and it had turned dark.
The furniture was still present, but Ding Dalin was missing.
Li Zhuiyuan closed his eyes, trying to find that floating sensation; he found it, feeling himself begin to rise.
He quickly opened his eyes, interrupting his awakening.
Yes, he had entered the realm of Yin, but not by his own will; he was pulled in by Ding Dalin.
Since this were the case, it would somewhat be disrespectful to awaken actively at this moment.
Stepping out onto the balcony, Li Zhuiyuan wanted to search for Ding Dalin; since he had pulled him in, he must have had his purpose.
In the pitch-black night sky, a moon hung high, appearing large enough to reveal its pockmarked surface.
Li Zhuiyuan’s gaze dipped down to the ground ahead, blinking hard.
What was originally the fish pond restored to life in reality had now reverted to the state after the water monkeys’ hectic activity from last night, with the water drawn out, leaving deep pits.
He began to suspect where he ought to find Ding Dalin.
Descending the stairs, the underbelly remained as it was after the feast had ended last night; the tables were still there and had yet to be cleaned.
As he stepped out from the hall, Li Zhuiyuan paused, stepping back two strides and lifting his head.
He saw a small nightingale hanging from the hall’s ceiling.
With her long hair cascading down, one needed to step into that specific narrow space for their eyes to penetrate through the veil of hair to see her face.
She kept her eyes shut, her expression indifferent.
Li Zhuiyuan did not know whether she had been hiding there the whole time or if she was simply already here now.
The small nightingale kept her eyes closed, providing no reaction.
Li Zhuiyuan did not linger; he stepped out of the hall, down the embankment, jumped into the fish pond, and approached the edge of the pit.
Only by observing closely could he deeply feel just how deep this pit was. Turning back, he looked at the roof of the big-beard family behind him, the place where he had concealed himself to observe last night.
Crouching down, he carefully slid down the slope of the pit; he slid down for quite a distance before finally reaching the bottom.
Before him stood a tower's apex that had been excavated.
A dark gaping hole lay open.
Grabbing hold of the wall, Li Zhuiyuan slowly ventured inside; with every step he took, lamps flickered to life. As the tower tilted, the lamps inside appeared to slant as well.
On the surrounding walls, no murals adorned them, appearing quite monotonous. It seemed the tomb owner did not intend to cultivate artistic sentiment even in the underworld after death.
Or perhaps this tomb was constructed before the owner passed, for if it were built by others, it would eventually leave behind words or illustrations documenting their life.
Fortunately, since the tower was tilted, it allowed for a place to walk; otherwise, entering straight from above would likely be akin to jumping into a well.
The deeper he walked, the colder the light colors became, transitioning from a bright yellow to green.
Eventually, Li Zhuiyuan arrived at the base.
He saw a massive stone sarcophagus fixed into the tower's floor; it appeared now as if glued against the wall.
Surrounding the stone coffin were some pieces of furniture, still affixed like the coffin and not scattered away, with gold inlay, silver, and precious jade gems glowing brightly.
These were all fine items; it was no wonder the two water monkeys that descended last night were so excited upon returning, and he understood why they came up empty-handed, saying they couldn’t move them.
Yet, even having reached the bottom, Ding Dalin was still nowhere in sight.
Li Zhuiyuan’s gaze turned to the stone coffin.
He couldn’t be… still inside it, right?
Chains bound around the sarcophagus, runes decorated the edges, in line with the characteristics of temple tombs, warding off evil spirits.
“Clatter… clatter… clatter…”
The chains began to tremble; something inside seemed to want to escape.
Li Zhuiyuan stood still, not moving; though he wasn’t sure if opening the coffin while in the Yin realm would have consequences in reality, he would not dare take that risk.
It wasn’t out of concern for his own safety; after all, this was Siyuan Village, and who knew what consequences would arise from releasing whatever lay within this coffin?
He had risked his life to come step by step here, but even with a threat, he would never open the coffin.
But soon enough, he wouldn’t need to worry.
With a crisp sound, the chains on the stone coffin fell away entirely.
Following that came the dull scraping sound as the lid of the coffin slowly slid off.
There was no need for him to help; it was able to come out by itself.
Li Zhuiyuan held his breath, focusing intently, waiting for the person inside the coffin to sit up.
But after waiting for quite some time, nothing happened.
The scene fell into an eerie silence.
Gradually, the tower began to stir with wind; at first, it was weak, merely causing the lights to flicker. Then, the wind grew stronger, producing a howling whistle within the tower.
The whistle gradually morphed into a refined murmur, eventually forming human speech, gritty and reminiscent of an old, poorly maintained phonograph.
“Are you not curious?”
Li Zhuiyuan responded, “I’m very curious.”
“Then why don’t you dare step closer?”
“Because I’m scared.”
“Do you fear?”
“Yes, fear is a basic instinct, akin to pain.”
“Let’s speak plainly without the human skin.”
“What does that mean?”
“Take off the skin on your body; I don’t wish to converse with a child.”
“No, I am me; I am who I am right now.”
“Some wear their skin on the outside, while others bear it within their hearts.”
Li Zhuiyuan understood that the other party was mocking him, but he didn’t mind; all his efforts were to keep this skin for himself, as well as for Ah Li.
“Even if I don’t want to peel off my skin, don’t converse with me in a childlike tone.”
“I’m but a child; fine, I’ll try.”
“Do you know where this is?”
“A kind of… temple tomb.”
“Correct, a temple tomb. Now do you know who suppressed me here?”
“It's you yourself.”
The wind seemed to halt momentarily.
But soon, it began to howl again, forming words:
“Did you guess?”
“I don’t know who you particularly are or the era you were born in. Since you asked me that question, the answer must fall within the scope of my options; leaving only you.”
“You’re similar to someone I knew; he also, in childhood, possessed your same overwhelming cleverness.”
“Can you tell me his name?” Li Zhuiyuan probed, “That way, when I plant trees in the future, I can look him up.”
“You won’t find his name.”
“Oh.”
“He is a beast.”
“It was he who deceived you?”
“It was I who trusted him too much. Although he was nearly the same age as me, I’ve always regarded him as a model. I was to him as those two around you are to you.”
Li Zhuiyuan understood that those two individuals referred to Runsheng and Tan Wenbin, as there were hardly any other options.
“Being betrayed by someone you trust indeed brings great anger.”
“He didn’t just deceive me; he deceived all of us—those who followed him.”
“He was truly vile.”
“Like you, he knew how to disguise himself.”
Li Zhuiyuan worked to steady his emotions. The greatest harm to someone with mental illness is to keep reminding them of their condition.
Now, conversing with the being inside the sarcophagus seemed to bring him back to the night he spoke on the phone with Li Lantong.
“Disguising is an instinct for you all; you seem to be born with it.”
“Do you have any final words?”
Li Zhuiyuan proactively shifted topics, feeling cautious as he worried his cold emotions would be provoked further.
“Fill in the fish pond and plant peaches.”
“Don’t worry, we will do it.”
“In fact, I should have left long ago.”
“Where to?”
“Can you guess? Still needing to ask, truly similar to him; hypocrisy is indeed your instinct.”
“Can we avoid specifics in describing him, or at least not bind me to him when you describe me? I came here obeying your wishes only out of fear.”
“And then?”
“But some things, I’d rather die than give up.”
“He once said…”
The wind stilled once more.
After a long moment, the wind began again.
“Alright.”
“Thank you.”
“No need to thank me; I originally intended to summon you to share a burial with me.”
“Thank you for that original intention.”
Seeing the other party lapse into silence yet again, though the wind continued,
Li Zhuiyuan took the initiative, “How did he deceive you?”
“He taught me a method to control the dead.”
Li Zhuiyuan felt a jolt internally; in the books he had read, countless methods to deal with the dead were recorded, but there was no mention of controlling the dead.
“I was thrilled and excited. I believed in and respected him so deeply that I learned.”
“And did you succeed?”
The wind continued to howl, but at that moment, noise emanated from within the sarcophagus.
A man sat up from inside the coffin.
Since the coffin was suspended atop its base, the man was now facing Li Zhuiyuan.
With long hair, a cool expression, and an otherworldly demeanor, he merely kept his eyes shut; the subsequent sounds still flowed through the wind rather than his own speech.
“I learned; I too can control the dead.”
“Then how did he deceive you?”
“How did he deceive me?”
The man turned his head, the wind lifting the strands at the corners of his face, revealing two eyes, a nose, and a mouth—a human face.
As the man increased the incline of his shift, he revealed his back; the wind flared his long hair, revealing another woman’s face on the back of his head.
Such a truly eerie sight, such a handsome man, and yet so many faces emerged.
No, Li Zhuiyuan realized he was in the Yin realm, so what he saw might not be the truth. The faces now materializing could be reflections of the man’s inner self.
“Whoosh whoosh whoosh…”
The wind intensified; the man’s robe billowed, and every area of skin exposed—arms, chest—was covered in countless human faces.
Li Zhuiyuan instinctively stepped back a couple of paces, feeling an itch begin to rise on his body at the sight of this image.
Unconsciously, he glanced down at his arms, terrified that he too might develop unfamiliar faces at this moment.
“He didn’t tell me that while I can control them, they too can exert control over me.”
Li Zhuiyuan averted his gaze. When the wind quieted down somewhat, he shifted his gaze back over.
The man resumed his previous posture, his clothing and hair settling down as well.
“He said to eradicate all evil from the world and restore peace to the realm.
I believed in him and followed him, but the outcome was this: the more dead I dealt with, the more I became like one of them.
By the time I realized that point, it was already too late for me to turn back.
Thus, I built this tower, sealing myself away.
I planned to use time to grind them down while grinding myself down as well.
What you just saw, they all had their eyes closed; originally, they should have had them open, crying, wailing, roaring, and lamenting every day…
Now, they no longer exist; I succeeded.
Truly, had a few more years passed, I would have likely ground myself down too.
But who would know, a group of monkeys came.”
“So, to fill this place in and plant peach trees, you wish to continue suppressing yourself?”
“Do it quickly, for I am no longer the person I once was. The person I once was suppressed himself, to prevent harming the living; the current me longs to keep you here to bury together.
The true me has long since died, or perhaps, I can no longer discern which layer beneath this skin holds the real me.”
“I understand; I will arrange it immediately while you are still lucid.”
“You’re wrong. I’m not lucid; staying inside is because I have entered an unrecoverable end stage; going out will only bring about my rapid demise; I wish to keep my dignity.
In fact, while peeling the skins from those water monkeys, I felt joy. Nothing is more fun than playing with monkeys.
If their numbers were only a bit greater, and I could savor this joy just a little longer, I would have indeed emerged.
If only two more had been there last night, just two;
I wouldn’t now be conversing with you in such a manner here.”
Li Zhuiyuan silently breathed a sigh of relief; indeed, two water monkeys were now in the hospital.
Their accomplices originally intended to retrieve them from the hospital, judging by their usual style of operation; even injured comrades would be brought to this place, even if only to keep watch with a flashlight.
Thankfully, he had alerted the police in time.
In this unintended twist, it could be said he had saved his own life.
“And my shift in thought regarding sharing a burial with you isn’t out of pity; it’s because I discovered another, more amusing way.”
“What way?”
The wind shifted to a more seductive nuance, as if someone whispered temptingly in his ear:
“Shall I share the method he taught me with you?”
Li Zhuiyuan shook his head: “You’ve learned that sad thing; look at how you look now. The living example is right before me; how could I possibly want to learn?”
Seeing the other party fall silent, Li Zhuiyuan added, “You said you were going to disperse; I fill in the fishpond, planting peach trees above, whether I learn or not, you don’t know, and it’s impossible for you to come looking for me again, right?”
“Ha, you will learn. Once you’ve learned, you too will not be able to help but use it.
When I ‘saw’ you lying there watching from above, I knew this point for sure.”
Li Zhuiyuan fell silent.
“The thing is in the first drawer of the dressing table; whether you take it or not, it’s entirely up to you.”
After saying this, the man reclined back into the stone sarcophagus.
The method to control the dead…
Li Zhuiyuan approached the dressing table and placed his hand on the handle of the first drawer.
The wind made its presence known again: “Now, do you have anything else to say?”
Li Zhuiyuan pressed his lips together and replied, “You really can see people well.”
“Hahaha… So, pulling you here to share a burial, how can it compare with letting you become like me, neither human nor ghost?
You could have simply gone on planting trees; if it’s to be blamed, it’s simply because you are truly too similar to him.
Yet, I can no longer take revenge on him; all that’s left is to transfer this hatred onto you.”
“Creek…”
Li Zhuiyuan opened the drawer, discovering it was empty.
Immediately, a strong sense of disappointment surged through him.
“Are you making a fool of me?”
“Have you forgotten where this is?
This place has already been restored; do you still need to dig it open anew to retrieve things?
I’ve placed it somewhere you would definitely see.”
Li Zhuiyuan pushed the drawer back and nodded, saying, “Thank you.”
“No need for thanks, for in the future, you will hate me, just as I currently hate him.
Once you learn of this, those dead you control will enter your heart, distorting and muddying all your feelings.
One day, when you look in the mirror, you’ll find the person in the reflection is so unfamiliar.”
Li Zhuiyuan: “…”
The wind completely vanished.
The iron chains on the stone coffin recaptured, locking the coffin once more.
The surrounding lights began to dim gradually.
Li Zhuiyuan hadn’t closed his eyes when a wave hit him; he didn’t resist, basking in this ascendant feeling.
Suddenly, the day lit up again.
Li Zhuiyuan found himself standing in the room, with the afternoon sunlight streaming in, delivering some warmth.
He once more saw Ding Dalin, but this time, Ding Dalin appeared very thin.
He looked like a shirt, neatly folded and placed on the ground.
Li Zhuiyuan bent down to pick up the “shirt.”
He couldn’t just leave him there, could he?
Also, though he hadn’t measured the weight of an adult’s skin before, he still felt it was a bit heavy.
He pressed on top, feeling some hard pieces.
Searching through, he couldn’t find any split open.
Finally, he could only take a deep breath, reaching his hand into Ding Dalin’s mouth, pulling downward until he gripped a hard, ice-cold object.
Pulling it out to inspect, it was a bright yellow, a large golden ingot.
This should be the land rental money as well as the funds for planting trees.
“You’re really quite generous.”
Downstairs in the courtyard, a voice called out:
“Xiaoyuan! Xiaoyuan!”
Li Zhuiyuan carried Ding Dalin to the balcony and looked down.
Runsheng stood in the courtyard, waving a piece of human skin; the skin spread open in tandem with his motions, and Secretary Jin danced elegantly in the air.
“I was so scared! Xiaoyuan, thankfully you’re alright. I worried you would become like this too.”
“What about Grandpa?”
“Grandpa pushed the cart back. What’s going on?”
“It’s all fine now, Runsheng. You come up for a bit.”
“Oh, okay!”
Runsheng quickly ran upstairs, not even taking the time to put the human skin away.
Presumably, it got tangled in some corner, but as Runsheng appeared on the balcony, the human skin in his hand had already torn.
“Xiaoyuan, you have one set here too. What should we do with these two skins?”
“Put them away first; tonight toss them in the workshop's furnace to burn them.”
“Good.”
“Runsheng, pass the ladder.”
“What for?”
“To the roof.”
“Right, nearly forgot; our stuff is still up there.” Runsheng adjusted the ladder, climbing up first. As Li Zhuiyuan followed, he turned back to lend a hand.
Two bags bundled with flags and equipment were still there, and next to them lay Runsheng’s high Yellow River shovel.
“Xiaoyuan, I’ll take them down.”
“Runsheng, wait a moment.”
“Oh, alright.”
Li Zhuiyuan approached the sack containing the equipment, crouching down to open the sack’s mouth, and inside was a black-covered ancient book.
This must be what it left for him…the method.
Taking the book out, the cover bore no title.
It hadn’t mentioned the word “book” before, only “method,” so this one should resemble a handwritten learning note.
Without hesitation, he flipped it open.
Then, Li Zhuiyuan froze—the familiar and beautifully crafted handwriting.
Immediately, he flipped through several more pages, ultimately confirming a fact.
Holding the book, he stood up, gazing down at the fish pond.
So,
the one who deceived you, his name wasn’t…
Wei Zhengdao.
(End of Chapter)