Chapter 3: The Corpse Came Back To Life Aaaah!!
This was the second time Zheng Feiyu had heard Nan Yuanman say this.
He found it funny and annoying at the same time, not taking her words to heart: “You mustn’t let my aunt hear you say that, or she’ll chase you ten li with a broom.”
Yuanman grabbed his hand, frowning her little brows: “I’m serious, big brother. The Zheng family used that sister’s money and got tangled in karma. If you don’t leave tonight, you’ll die.”
Grandpa said that those whose glabella is black like charred coal have bad luck clinging to them. In the Zheng family, everyone who used that sister’s money has a blackened glabella.
If Zheng Feiyu didn’t leave tonight, he might not be able to leave later.
Zheng Feiyu hummed perfunctorily twice, getting up while asking her: “Are you full? Do you want me to bring you some food later?”
Yuanman saw through his perfunctory attitude, pursed her lips, looked at the small coffin in her hand, and reluctantly shoved the coffin into his hands: “Big brother, you buy me a meal, and I’ll lend you this small coffin once. Take this small coffin tonight. If you hear any sounds while sleeping, don’t go out, got it?”
Zheng Feiyu’s body shivered, and he nearly threw the small coffin out of his hands. He forcibly suppressed his fear and squeezed out a smile at her: “N-No need, right…”
“No, you use it.” Yuanman said solemnly with her small face.
Zheng Feiyu looked at the small coffin coated with dark red wood lacquer in his hand, trying to comfort himself that this was just the child’s kind intention—don’t disdain it, don’t disdain it…
He closed his eyes and shakily stuffed the small coffin into his pocket, instructed Nan Yuanman a few times, then turned around and left.
Nan Yuanman straightened her messy hair, reacting belatedly that she seemed… to have other relatives.
She tilted her head, recalling Jiang Lixuan’s behavior just now, disdainfully furrowed her little brows, and muttered softly: “Whatever, better no such relatives than that.”
“Better go feed Grandpa first. He’s been waiting so long, he must be hungry.”
She ran back to the yard on her short legs, pattering away, then just as Grandpa taught her, grabbed a small stool nearby to step on, inserted the door bolt, and ran into the mourning hall to continue what she hadn’t finished earlier—
Lifting the coffin lid.
As soon as the coffin lid was lifted, it revealed the shriveled old woman lying in the coffin wearing burial clothes.
At that moment, the old woman’s eyes were tightly closed, two sharp little fangs protruded from her shriveled closed mouth, and the fingernails on her hands placed at her sides were black, extremely long and sharp.
This sight was very terrifying, but to Nan Yuanman, it was exceptionally ordinary.
She lay by the coffin, broke off a steamed bun, and stuffed it bit by bit into the old woman’s mouth, chattering away: “Grandpa, two big brothers came outside earlier. One big brother called Xuan Bro said he was my uncle and wanted to take me back to the Jiang family.”
“Hmph, I don’t believe he’s my uncle at all. I still remember you saying, Grandpa, that all Mom’s relatives are no good, they’re beasts.”
“Don’t worry, I didn’t agree to go back with him. I want to stay, to be with Grandpa forever…”
She said many, many words, but Grandpa still didn’t respond to her today.
Nan Yuanman felt inexplicably upset, her nose souring. Her eyes reddened slightly, she touched her neck, and her childish voice carried a hint of crying: “Grandpa, he bullied me too. When will you get up and help Yuanman fight back?”
“Yuanman… Yuanman misses you…”
“Talk to Yuanman, please…”
The mourning hall was silent.
The old woman lying in the coffin suddenly twitched her hand placed at her side slightly…
–
Meanwhile.
After Zheng Feiyu returned home, he saw Jiang Lixuan standing in the corner of the yard smoking. Behind him was the mourning hall where Grandpa Zheng’s wake was being held.
Zheng Feiyu called out to him: “Brother Xuan.”
Jiang Lixuan turned his head with the cigarette in his mouth and handed him one: “What did that little brat say?”
Zheng Feiyu paused, then said casually: “Yuanman said she’ll think it over carefully.”
Jiang Lixuan recalled how Nan Yuanman had been wary and resistant toward him earlier and couldn’t help saying somewhat sarcastically: “She’s nice to you, though.”
But full of defenses against him, her uncle.
Zheng Feiyu didn’t dare respond.
“Whatever.” Jiang Lixuan tsked, then asked him: “Where am I resting tonight?”
After a whole day of hassle, he was tired too. Better rest well first, then figure out how to persuade that stubborn little one tomorrow.
Zheng Feiyu glanced at the bustling mourning hall and hesitated before saying: “My aunt cleaned up a room for us upstairs, but this is the countryside, so the accommodations aren’t like in the city. Also, my grandpa’s wake is tonight, the last day.”
By custom, Old Master Zheng’s wake lasts seven days. On this final day, the mages performing religious rites won’t stay overnight, leaving the Zheng family descendants to guard the coffin and see Old Master off on his last journey.
“If Brother Xuan minds the… uh, bad luck, do you want to head back to the city first?”
“What kind of talk is that? Am I some eldest young master who can’t rough it?” Jiang Lixuan rolled his eyes, stubbed out his cigarette, pocketed one hand, and jerked his chin at him: “Lead the way.”
He was a staunch atheist.
It was just a dead body in the mourning hall, Zheng Feiyu’s grandpa at that—what was there to fear?
He didn’t dare go back to the city either. He’d finally found news of Bai Wenyin’s child. If he went back and Nan Yuanman ran off, what then?
If Old Master found out, he’d be beaten to death.
Zheng Feiyu didn’t insist and led Jiang Lixuan upstairs.
As they passed by the corpse, the white cloth covering it suddenly lifted at one corner in the wind, and an inexplicable chill spread up his spine.
Jiang Lixuan suddenly felt his hairs stand on end and couldn’t help shivering, instinctively looking down.
He happened to meet the gaze of Old Master Zheng’s corpse under the white cloth.
Those terrified wide-open eyes full of red bloodshot veins scared him into yelling: “Holy shit!”
Zheng Feiyu followed his gaze and couldn’t help yelling “holy shit” too, shakily pulling the white cloth back down and pushing Jiang Lixuan’s back: “Brother Xuan, let’s go, go.”
Jiang Lixuan hurriedly turned his head and trotted upstairs after Zheng Feiyu.
Neither noticed that the white cloth Zheng Feiyu had just covered was blown open again by the wind at some point, and those eyes full of red bloodshot veins were now fixed deadly on Zheng Feiyu’s back.
In a place they couldn’t see, a red figure floated up from Old Master Zheng’s body and silently approached Zheng Feiyu.
But just as it was about to stick to him, a burst of golden light suddenly repelled her.
The red ghostly shadow cried out in pain.
Zheng Feiyu shivered, inwardly muttering strangely that he seemed to have just heard someone scream?
But listening carefully, there was no sound.
Zheng Feiyu shook his head. Probably just a hallucination from being too tired today…
The red ghostly shadow, unwilling to give up, turned and stuck to Jiang Lixuan’s back instead…
–
Village self-built houses are usually two to three stories. Zheng Feiyu’s house was three stories, and he and Jiang Lixuan were staying in a bedroom on the third floor.
Perhaps from all the rushing around today, after asking Aunt Zheng to deliver dinner to Nan Yuanman, Zheng Feiyu hastily ate something with Jiang Lixuan and they each went back to their rooms to sleep.
Country meals tend to be salty, and Jiang Lixuan drank a lot of water before bed. In the middle of the night, he groggily woke up needing to pee.
He rubbed his eyes, gathered his wits, got up, turned on the light, and went out to use the toilet.
“Click”
The room remained pitch black.
Jiang Lixuan frowned: “Power outage?”
He tsked in dissatisfaction. Staying in the countryside was so inconvenient.
Jiang Lixuan was full of grievance. It was all Nan Yuanman’s fault. If she’d agreed to go with him, he’d be home by now instead of suffering here.
Jiang Lixuan scowled and used his phone’s flashlight to go use the toilet.
Unfortunately, the third-floor toilet door was broken at some point and couldn’t be opened from outside.
Jiang Lixuan irritably pinched his nose bridge, turned around, and went downstairs to use the toilet below.
He had just reached downstairs when he suddenly realized the night watchers had disappeared at some point.
The mourning hall held only Old Master Zheng’s corpse covered in white cloth and the white candles flickering in the wind. The pale mourning hall looked especially weird.
Jiang Lixuan, who had been about to go find the toilet, suddenly felt afraid and turned to find Zheng Feiyu to go with him.
But at the moment he turned, Old Master Zheng, who had been lying steadily on the wooden board, suddenly sat up.
All sleepiness fled Jiang Lixuan’s mind in fright. He froze at the staircase entrance, not daring to approach, holding his breath and staring at the back of the corpse’s head.
The sitting-up Old Master Zheng made no move.
Jiang Lixuan breathed a sigh of relief: “Damn, just residual muscle nerves. Scared me.”
He’d thought it was a zombie rising.
Jiang Lixuan walked to the corpse, clasped his hands, and bowed three times to Old Master Zheng: “Old Master, sorry, pardon the offense.”
After bowing, he carefully stepped forward to lay Old Master back down.
But at the instant his hand was about to touch Old Master.
The previously still Old Master Zheng suddenly reached out and grabbed him tightly.
Jiang Lixuan: “!!!!”
He couldn’t help screaming: “Holy shit—ghost!”
On the third floor, Zheng Feiyu, who had been fast asleep, was jolted awake by the scream.
“Brother Xuan?!” He hurriedly rolled out of bed, forgetting Yuanman’s warning, opened the door, and ran out.
He had just taken a few steps when a head suddenly dropped from above, face-to-face with him.
A female ghost with a ghastly pale face, a bloody hole in her head, and bloodied clothes stared at him and slowly grinned.
Zheng Feiyu: “!!!!”
