On a calm night, Zhi Xian rested in bed, holding Tong Xiaosong in his arms.
Suddenly, the phone on the nightstand lit up and began to buzz.
Zhi Xian, alert, opened his eyes and picked up the phone, quickly silencing it.
“Mmm…” Tong Xiaosong, who wasn’t sleeping deeply either, opened his eyes drowsily. “Who’s calling?”
Zhi Xian gently patted Tong Xiaosong’s back and glanced at the phone screen. “It’s He Bing.”
“He Bing?” Tong Xiaosong took a moment to remember; he remembered He Bing as the owner of the store where he bought the ring.
Since the incident with the ring last time, there had been no contact at all. Why would He Bing suddenly call?
Zhi Xian had already answered the call and put it on speakerphone.
Intermittently, a weak and feeble voice came from the other end of the line: “Help… Help me… Save me… Help—”
The call abruptly ended, leaving only the beep of the disconnected call.
Tong Xiaosong instantly became alert. He got up and asked, “What’s going on?”
“It’s nothing,” Zhi Xian reassured Tong Xiaosong first, then tried to call back, but the other end played the sound of the phone being switched off.
Tong Xiaosong looked serious, nervous. “Let’s call the police!”
Zhi Xian stood up. “I’ll call the police and check his shop. You stay here and rest assured, nothing will happen with me around.”
Tong Xiaosong quickly got up to dress. “Since we have a day off tomorrow, I’ll go with you. Otherwise, I won’t feel at ease.”
What could have happened for someone to seek help from them without calling the police or family?
He had a bad feeling that the person might be facing some unsolvable trouble, hence reaching out to them.
Thinking about the bizarre and weird things the person collected, Tong Xiaosong couldn’t help but shiver.
Zhi Xian draped a coat over Tong Xiaosong’s shoulders. “It’s cold tonight, wear more layers.”
***
They first went to the police station to report the incident, then followed two on-duty policemen to He Bing’s shop.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
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“Who’s there!?”
Through the safety door, the police officers took out their credentials and stuck them to the door for the person inside to see.
In a loud voice, they said, “We’re the police. Open up! Your boss is in trouble! We’re here to investigate!”
The person inside carefully examined the credentials and then glanced at the few people outside. After a moment’s thought, he said, “Wait a moment, I’ll make a call to the boss!”
After a few minutes, the safety door inside was opened, and the man on duty said, “Come on in. We couldn’t reach the boss by phone. What happened to him?”
Several people entered the shop, and the man on duty turned on all the lights.
The police asked, “Do you know where his house is? Who are his family members, and who can we contact now? Also, when was the last time he was seen? Did he mention where he was going or what he was doing?”
“His house…” The man on duty seemed puzzled, then pointed upstairs dully, “It’s upstairs, but he’s not often at home, and he doesn’t have many family members. Among our staff, we’re the closest to him. The last time he was seen… Wait a moment. I’m the night security guard, not here during the day. Just wait, I’ll call a store employee over. They know more than I do.”
With that, the security guard took out his phone and dialed a number.
In less than five minutes, a female store employee crawled in from outside.
“What happened? Is something wrong with the boss?”
Zhi Xian and Tong Xiaosong stood aside, and the police asked, “When was the last time you saw the boss? Did he mention where he was going?”
“The last time I saw him…” The female store employee was stunned for a few seconds, then suddenly remembered, “The boss left a note when he left. Let me get it for you…”
With that, the female employee ran behind the counter and searched for a moment before coming out with a piece of paper. She said, “There’s an address written on it. The boss said if someone comes looking for him, give them this note.”
The police took the note and opened it, frowning. “Why did your boss go to such a desolate place? It’s in the middle of nowhere…”
He sighed and looked at Zhi Xian and Tong Xiaosong. “You two go back. We’ll go to this place and have a look.”
Tong Xiaosong exclaimed, “Can’t we go together?”
He had a feeling that if the police could resolve this matter, He Bing would have called them first instead of calling them.
Zhi Xian said, “Let’s go together. He is our friend, and we are very worried.”
The two police officers hesitated for a moment, exchanged a glance, and then said, “Alright, let’s go together.”
***
The police car drove into the mountains, with dense trees on both sides. Branches stretched out and tapped against the windshield. Outside the range of the headlights, it felt like another world, dark and obscure, with no road ahead in sight.
The police officer in the passenger seat couldn’t help but speak up, “Why does it feel a bit creepy…”
Tong Xiaosong looked outside and also felt a shiver run down his spine. However, with Zhi Xian beside him, he didn’t feel scared.
But the two police officers in front were quite nervous. They weren’t afraid of ghosts, but they began to suspect that there was some terrifying ambush in the deep mountains.
The driver whispered, “Maybe we should wait and call for more backup to conduct a joint investigation…”
Before he could finish his sentence, there was a loud thud, and the police car stalled.
The two police officers in front instantly fell silent. They cautiously observed Zhi Xian and Tong Xiaosong through the rearview mirror, fearing it might be a trap set up by the two.
Tong Xiaosong exclaimed, “What’s wrong? Did the car break down?”
Zhi Xian replied gently, “It seems like we ran over a big rock and the car stalled. How about this, you wait here for backup support, Officer, give me the address, I’ll go ahead and check.”
Tong Xiaosong couldn’t rest easy and quickly said, “Then I’ll go with you.”
The police officers were wary of any potential conspiracy from the two individuals, especially considering the possibility of others lying in ambush in the mountains. After a brief hesitation, one of them suggested, “How about we head down the mountain first, call for reinforcements, and then proceed together?”
Zhi Xian had already opened the car door. Upon hearing this, he sat back and took out his phone, saying, “Let’s exchange numbers, my partner and I will go in first and keep in touch.”
“Alright,” the police officer in the passenger seat agreed, exchanging contact information, and added, “I’ve sent the address to your phone. Stay safe.”
Zhi Xian and Tong Xiaosong got out of the car together, using flashlights to illuminate the dark path ahead.
Tong Xiaosong wrapped his coat tightly around himself and whispered, “There are many deserted graves in the mountains. Could He Bing have encountered something like being led astray by ghosts?”
“Hard to say,” Zhi Xian wrapped his arm around Tong Xiaosong’s shoulder and said, “I didn’t really want you to come along, but I also feel uneasy leaving you with those two police officers.”
Tong Xiaosong smiled, with a hint of obedience in his voice, “That’s why being by your side is the best.”
With Zhi Xian by his side, even in the face of endless darkness, he didn’t feel afraid.
Gradually, the dense jungle obscured the path ahead, and the mountain road beneath their feet became less discernible. They walked while using their hands to push aside obstructing branches.
Zhi Xian reminded, “Watch your step.”
“Okay,” Tong Xiaosong didn’t find it too difficult, and he added, “I’ve walked this kind of path since I was a child. You should be careful. Some rotting leaves might be slippery.”
As they walked and whispered to each other, supporting one another, they gradually reached the location mentioned in the address.
At the end of the mountain road stood a towering pagoda tree that blocked out the sun.
The surrounding jungle was dense, but around this pagoda tree, not a single blade of grass grew.
Zhi Xian furrowed his brow, “There’s a strong foul smell here…”
“Foul smell?” Tong Xiaosong sniffed, “I didn’t notice it. I just smelled a bit of mold and decay, which is normal for the mountains.”
Zhi Xian shook his head, “It’s a very strong stench. Hold on to me tightly, and whatever happens, don’t separate from me. In case we accidentally get separated, use the fire. If you see anything that can burn, don’t hesitate, just burn it all.”
Tong Xiaosong became nervous too, “Alright…”
The two of them circled around the pagoda tree, and after just half a circle, they noticed a large hole under the tree roots.
Zhi Xian held the flashlight and shone it inside, revealing a cave that seemed to have been artificially excavated.
The water inside was deep, and the space was vast. Shining the flashlight inward, they couldn’t see the end at a glance.
Zhi Xian remained silent for a while.
Tong Xiaosong hesitated, “Do we need to go down?”
Zhi Xian replied, “…It’s too dirty inside, but I can’t leave you up here alone.”
Tong Xiaosong was taken aback. So, the reason for the silence just now was to think about this issue?
He couldn’t help but laugh, “What’s so dirty about this? Things in the mountains may look dirty, but they’re not actually dirty. Just take a bath when we get back home. Let’s go down together.”
As he spoke, he was about to lower his leg.
The next moment, Zhi Xian stopped his movement and said, “I’ll go down first, and then you jump down, and I’ll catch you.”
With that, he didn’t give Tong Xiaosong a chance to argue back, and jumped down directly.
Thanks!
ˁ•ᴗ•ˀつ～ 💞
Uhhh, these kids, be careful 🤔