Chapter 137: Fine Wine And Story
There was no word more fitting than “shiver with fear” to describe everyone’s feeling at that moment; the terrifying part behind the story, upon careful thought, made one feel as if thorns were pricking their back, as if they could even feel a non-existent being blowing air in their ears, and the chill in their hearts froze everyone’s heartbeat for an instant.
Why was heaven in Brother Yu’s daughter’s mind their home’s attic? Heaven is where the dead go, so in Xiao Peng’s eyes, was there also some “person” in the attic that shouldn’t exist in this world anymore?
“So… that’s why you sent Xiao Peng to your parents’ home?” The white-collar beauty difficultly swallowed the air stuck in her throat and asked.
“Yes.” Brother Yu gave a bitter smile. “I asked her why she drew heaven as the attic at home, but Xiao Peng countered by asking me, ‘Didn’t you say the place where Mommy goes is heaven?'”
“…Sister-in-law, sister-in-law, in the attic?” The best friend tremblingly guessed.
Brother Yu shook his head, his facial expression complex as he said: “I don’t know, can’t confirm, but she did suddenly fall ill and die in the attic, and I haven’t told anyone about this, including Xiao Peng. Xiao Peng was being cared for by her grandfather and grandmother at the time.”
Hearing this, everyone fell into silence again. They found it hard not to believe that this world indeed had some eerie things that couldn’t be explained by common understanding.
Brother Yu sighed; he had indeed been worrying about this matter recently.
“Deep Sea Martini.” Brother Season the bartender placed a freshly mixed glass of deep blue cocktail in front of Brother Yu, a faint smile on his lips. “Nice story, worth a Goddess of Fortune.”
Hearing this, Brother Yu looked at Brother Season in astonishment for a moment, then shook his head somewhat helplessly. “I’d rather hope this was really just a story.”
“I’m not saying you made it up; I just think your experience is interesting.” Brother Season realized his words had caused a misunderstanding and explained with a smile.
Seeing the usually taciturn Brother Season rarely chatting with someone, the white-collar beauty immediately teased: “Hey, so Brother Season likes horror stories? Should’ve said so earlier. If you like these, let me tell you, we’ll take turns telling all kinds of them from now on. I can tell one right now; see if you can mix me another Goddess of Fortune.”
“Afraid not.” Brother Season said calmly. “I’m only interested in real experiences and the corresponding emotions. Even the scariest fabricated stories won’t stir much in me, because anything created will have flaws—after all, it’s built on lies.”
“In that case, Brother Season, you’ve mixed so many Goddesses of Fortune, so you must have heard plenty of these ‘real stories.’ Mind sharing one with us?” The white-collar beauty lightly bit her red lips, looking at Brother Season’s sturdy upright figure and exceptionally handsome face, her heart leaping with excitement. She couldn’t wait to interact more with this rare hunk and even had ideas of developing deeper with him.
In response, Brother Season smiled and said: “If it’s guests’ stories, that involves other guests’ privacy, so I won’t say. But I do have a special story here; wonder if you’re interested in hearing it?”
When he smiled, the upward curve of his lips was sharper than a sickle, revealing a trace of unsettling meaning.
“Uh, I have something to do, so I’ll head out first.” Whether intentionally creating space for the pair to chat or sensing the anomaly hidden under the flirtatious atmosphere, the guests at the bar suddenly got up one after another, successively announcing their departure.
But the white-collar beauty and Brother Yu stayed until the end; only the two of them were very interested in the story Brother Season mentioned.
“Right, I haven’t introduced myself yet. I’m Linda, or you can call me A Lin like others.” A Lin smiled.
“Zheng Yu.” Brother Yu honestly gave his real name.
“Just call me Season.” Brother Season nodded, giving a slight smile, as if acknowledging these two guests as friends.
A Lin smiled mischievously, pursing her red lips. “Season bro, Brother Season, even if you don’t want to give your real name, sharing a surname should be fine, right?”
After a brief moment of contemplation, Brother Season replied: “My surname is Wu.”
“What was the story you wanted to tell earlier? Come on, tell us; we want to hear it too.” A Lin cupped her chin with both hands and said expectantly.
Brother Season gave the two a deep look, then began to narrate the prepared story: “Once upon a time, there was a man named Li Nuowei…”
Whether it was Brother Season’s magnetic voice that was intoxicating, or the two were immersed in the ups and downs of the story he told, their eyes suddenly lost focus, their faces expressionless like sculptures, fixed in place, their breathing seemingly becoming faint, just quietly listening.
When the two came back to their senses, the bar was almost at closing time. They checked out and left in a daze. As they went out, facing the cold night wind, the cold sweat soaking their backs became even chillier.
“Was the story he told real or fake?” A Lin suddenly asked.
“…I don’t know.” Zheng Yu shook his head vigorously. A story about merman and sea monster was indeed too bizarre, bizarre enough that he didn’t want to believe it, but why did he have the feeling of having experienced it personally?
Ding bell—
After A Lin and Zheng Yu left, Brother Season was doing the final cleanup before closing. He always stayed a bit longer in the shop at the end of each day, leaving only after cleaning the bar. However, just as the bar’s front door clearly had the closing sign hung up, a young man and woman pushed the door and entered.
It was the combo of an ordinary male supporting character and a stunning beauty. The man, like his plain face, was dressed ordinarily too, while the stunning beauty beside him wore a deep green qipao that was clearly expensive from the fabric. The qipao matched her willow waist and flower-like charm, exuding boundless allure, utterly captivating.
But miraculously, for some reason, when they stood together, they had an eerie inexplicable compatibility, despite the chasm-like gap between them in gait, voice, demeanor, and so on.
“Drake, we’re here for a drink.” Xin Junmao chuckled as he sat at the bar, ordering familiarly, “Two of the best-tasting Goddesses of Fortune for us.”
Brother Season and Xin Junmao seemed already quite familiar with each other. Hearing Xin Junmao’s address and order, Drake said: “You’re in luck; there are just two Goddesses of Fortune left today.”
Miss Zhao took a deep breath, as if sniffing some fragrance, narrowing her eyes with a smile: “I smell the scent of curse. Looks like you told stories to other resentful souls today?”
Drake neither confirmed nor denied, saying: “Just stabilizing the seal and letting Li Nuowei, who lives in the story, get some air.”
