This was really… very bad.
The change in Xu Hao’s smell meant that Lin Jing would have to find another job again.
The mere thought of having to start searching for work all over again made Lin Jing let out an involuntary groan of distress.
At some point, he had suddenly discovered that whenever he stayed in one place for too long, disgusting creatures that no one else could see would begin appearing around him.
For example, strange white, translucent gels would start appearing in the sink. They looked like water balloons, with pale gray internal organs curled up inside them in a tangled mass, resembling countless earthworms twisted and intertwined with one another. Irregular patches of water would also begin appearing on the floor, and no matter where he went, these bizarre phenomena seemed to follow him like a shadow.
More importantly, it wasn’t just the surrounding environment that changed. The human beings around him would gradually begin to change as well, and the first thing to change about them was their smell.
It was as though their bodies underwent some subtle chemical reaction because of his presence. The invisible transformation began from within, with the flesh and blood inside their bodies gradually changing into something else entirely. And whatever those things were, they possessed an almost irresistible appeal to Lin Jing, something disturbingly similar to the allure of food.
Lin Jing really didn’t want to wake up one day to find himself sitting at his dining table at home, staring at a grotesque human head arranged on the plate in front of him, while a pot beside him simmered with a thick, meaty human leg…
He had absolutely no interest in human flesh, and he certainly had no desire to go to prison because of it. Therefore, for the safety of the people around him as well as his own, Lin Jing had no choice but to change jobs frequently.
Lin Jing felt that he had been terribly wronged by fate.
His life, from childhood to adulthood, had been no different from that of an ordinary person. The only thing that might have set him apart was that his parents had committed suicide when he was in high school.
But that wasn’t particularly rare, was it?
After all, anyone who invested their entire fortune in the stock market, only to lose everything overnight and end up owing several million yuan in debt, would find the situation difficult to accept. Under such circumstances, even suicide could be considered a somewhat understandable response.
So why, of all people, had he become the source of these bizarre phenomena?
“Ah…”
By now, Lin Jing had completely lost the inclination to concern himself with Xu Hao’s newly acquired smell. What worried him far more was the state of his wallet.
No decent, stable, well-paying full-time job would want an employee who spent every day wrapped up so thoroughly that he looked like someone suffering from a contagious disease. Lin Jing didn’t possess any particularly remarkable abilities either, so all he could do was take temporary jobs wherever he could find them. On top of that, he was constantly making plans to move somewhere else and disappear whenever things started getting strange.
Naturally, he hadn’t managed to save much money.
Wait a minute. The will!
He had just inherited an estate!
Lin Jing’s eyes immediately lit up at the realization. The inheritance included an entire apartment!
There really was a way out after all!
His mood improved considerably, and he began to feel that perhaps he could finally make some proper plans for his future.
“Hey, buddy.”
Lin Jing’s arm moved slightly. Not only did he neatly evade Xu Hao’s greasy hand as the man reached out to grab him, but he also managed to push him two steps away without any apparent effort. A few strands of hair fell aside from his forehead, revealing a pair of beautiful eyes that glittered with a sly, mischievous light. Even his voice suddenly became considerably lighter.
“Stay away from me, please. We’re never going to see each other again.”
…
At two-thirty in the morning, Jingjing Food Stall, located on Student Street in A City’s university district, was already preparing to close for the night.
The street fell under the jurisdiction of the university district community, which required all night-market businesses to stop operating by three in the morning. Once it was past two-thirty, the vendors were allowed to begin packing up and preparing to finish work for the night.
Before his shift ended, Lin Jing went to speak with his boss.
His boss was named Zhang Xiong, and he certainly lived up to his name. He was a tall, imposing man with a broad frame and a face covered in thick, fleshy features that made him look rather intimidating. Despite his appearance, however, he was unquestionably a devoted husband who spoiled his wife rotten. The food stall itself had been named Jingjing Food Stall after his wife, Wen Jingjing.
After listening to Lin Jing explain that he wanted to resign, Zhang Xiong simply stood there with a cigarette between his lips, remaining silent for quite some time. Only after a long pause did he finally ask, “You’re not coming back at all after this? Did someone bully you?”
“Tell me who it was. I want to see which blind fool had the nerve to mess with you.”
Lin Jing merely smiled and replied, “No, nobody bullied me. I’ve just decided to look for another job. I can’t keep doing this forever, after all.”
Zhang Xiong obviously didn’t believe him. He stared at Lin Jing intently, clearly trying to determine whether he was telling the truth.
“Are you sure nobody gave you a hard time?”
“Absolutely.” Lin Jing raised four fingers and solemnly swore to the heavens.
“All right, then.”
Zhang Xiong wasn’t the type to beat around the bush. He immediately turned toward the inside of the shop and called out, “Jingjing! Bring some money over here! Lin Jing’s leaving…”
Less than two minutes later, a petite woman emerged from inside. She was barely half Zhang Xiong’s size, with delicate features and a gentle, agreeable expression. The moment she spotted Lin Jing, a warm smile spread across her face.
“Xiao Jing, why are you leaving? Has Zhang Xiong been treating you badly? Just tell your big sister, and I’ll give him a good beating for you.”
Lin Jing had no choice but to explain the same reason all over again. “No, no, Sister. Brother Xiong has been treating me very well. I’ve simply decided to change jobs.”
“That’s good, then. Oh, right, this is a little something from us. Take it with you. I also made some steamed buns today, so I’ve packed a few for you to bring home and eat.”
Wen Jingjing handed him a thick stack of cash. Judging by its thickness, there appeared to be two or three thousand yuan in it.
Lin Jing didn’t stand on ceremony. He reached out and accepted the money directly, then sweetly called her a wonderful big sister several times, successfully charming Wen Jingjing into an even better mood.
The two of them continued exchanging affectionate words, calling each other big sister and little brother as though they were genuinely related. Zhang Xiong couldn’t bear to watch any longer.
He reached over, snatched the bag of steamed buns out of Wen Jingjing’s hands, and stuffed it into Lin Jing’s arms. Then he pushed the young man toward the exit.
“All right, all right! It’s the middle of the night, and it’s not as though Xiao Jing will never come back again! You can chat again next time!”
Lin Jing let out a small exclamation, still wanting to say something more. However, Zhang Xiong shot him a glare, and he immediately closed his mouth.
“Bye-bye! Come visit us whenever you have time!”
Zhang Xiong stood at the entrance, holding Wen Jingjing’s hand as he waved enthusiastically at Lin Jing.
Lin Jing: “…Bye-bye.”
The entire street was lined with food stalls. Although most of the vendors had already packed up for the night, the air was still saturated with the overpowering aroma of grilled food. Carrying the bag of steamed buns, Lin Jing walked slowly along the street, and the lingering smells in the air stirred his appetite.
He wasn’t sure whether he was simply hungry or whether the smell emanating from Xu Hao earlier that day had awakened another, much more unusual kind of hunger inside him.
He reached into the bag, took out a steamed bun, and began nibbling on it as he walked.
He continued eating until he had finished three buns. By then, his stomach was already full, yet his brain was still urging him to keep eating.
Only then did he finally confirm that what he was experiencing was a different kind of “hunger.”
“What a nuisance.”
Lin Jing frowned slightly and muttered under his breath before quickening his pace toward home.
After passing Student Street, he came to a small commercial district. The area was located right beside A City’s Academy of Fine Arts, and it seemed to have absorbed some of the artistic atmosphere of the institution. The buildings throughout the district featured unusual architectural and decorative styles, while brightly colored murals, sculptures frozen in all kinds of peculiar poses, and plants trimmed into bizarre shapes made the place a distinctive sight in A City.
During the day, the district was bustling with students from the several nearby universities. It was also a popular check-in destination for tourists visiting A City, who came to take photographs and admire the area’s unique artistic character.
But it was already three in the morning.
Everyone who needed to leave had long since gone home, and only a sparse handful of shops remained open, their lights still glowing against the darkness.
As Lin Jing passed through the middle of the commercial district, he happened to encounter a young couple being affectionate beneath a bright blue sculpture of two kissing fish.
Initially, he had no intention of paying them any attention. However, just as he walked past the sculpture, he inadvertently caught sight of something moving in the shadows on the other side of the fish.
There were several small, furry creatures scurrying about.
Their sharp teeth gleamed with a snowy white light, and their piercing, squeaky giggles rang out from the darkness.
Lin Jing took a few more steps forward. In the end, however, he couldn’t resist the nagging call of his conscience urging him to do something good for once, and he stopped.
“Consider yourselves lucky.”
His eyebrows drew together even more tightly. Turning around with an increasingly irritated expression, Lin Jing called out to the young couple, “Which university are you from? It’s this late at night, and you’re still not going home?”
His sudden interruption startled the couple, who had been clinging to each other and kissing with little pecks like the two kissing fish beside them. The young man immediately wrapped his arms around his girlfriend protectively and turned to look in Lin Jing’s direction.
“Who the hell are you?”
A streetlamp shaped like a jellyfish stood beside them. Its light wasn’t particularly bright, illuminating only a small patch of the surrounding area in blue. Nevertheless, the color itself was quite beautiful.
The young man glared at Lin Jing, scrutinizing him from head to toe. Although Lin Jing had wrapped himself up so thoroughly that almost nothing was exposed, the man could still tell from his clothes and figure that he wasn’t anyone he recognized.
A complete stranger had the nerve to interfere in their business and lecture them!
The realization made the young man even angrier. With his girlfriend standing right beside him, he could barely suppress the urge to demonstrate his so-called masculinity.
He immediately shouted at Lin Jing, “I’m warning you, don’t stick your nose into other people’s business! Just look at how pathetic you are. You’d be better off taking care of yourself!”
Lin Jing: “…”
He genuinely didn’t know what to say. He had never encountered anyone quite so stupid before.
Fortunately, the young man’s girlfriend was rather timid and cautious. Perhaps she felt that getting into an argument with a stranger in the middle of the night was a terrible idea, so she immediately tugged at her boyfriend’s sleeve and quietly urged him, “Let’s go. It’s really late.”
“Xiaohui, don’t be scared. I’ll make sure I get you home safely. This guy’s just jealous, that’s all. Just watch me. I’m going to teach him a lesson right now!”
Lin Jing’s temper had begun to flare as well. He irritably raised a hand and swept all the loose strands of hair away from his forehead, revealing the extraordinarily beautiful eyes and eyebrows that had been hidden behind them.
The jellyfish-shaped streetlamp cast a pale blue glow over him. Meanwhile, its thin, trailing tentacles seemed to writhe and wave above his head, creating an inexplicably eerie and fantastical atmosphere around his figure.
The woman let out a small gasp of surprise, while the man simply froze on the spot.
Lin Jing’s eyes curved slightly. His long eyelashes fluttered as he looked at them with a gentle expression, but the words that came out of his mouth were cold enough to pierce straight through to the bone.
“Little boys and girls shouldn’t be wandering around this late at night. If you don’t go home, you’ll fall into a black hole and die. Have you ever seen a black-and-gray rat? The rats will eat you up. No, wait… those things might not even be rats…”
“Motherfucker, what the hell are you talking about?! Are you fucking crazy?!”
Whether out of fear or for some other reason, the young man suddenly flew into a rage. He roared at Lin Jing before grabbing his girlfriend by the arm and hurriedly dragging her away.
The way they fled into the distance made it look as though an actual ghost were chasing them.
“Fine, then.”
Having done a good deed without receiving so much as a single word of thanks, Lin Jing resumed his journey home.
Unfortunately, his appetite had yet to subside, and his mood had deteriorated to the point where he was practically a walking powder keg, ready to explode at the slightest provocation.
As he walked, he used his feet to kick the giant rats emerging from the shadows and the strange crevices formed where walls met the ground, sending them scurrying back into the darkness from which they had come.
Their squeaky giggles and whimpering groans echoed through the deserted streets.
Author’s Note:
Xiao Jing’s personality seems to be a little wicked. He’s such a cute little troublemaker~.