Cheng Jun was no blockhead. He guessed that after learning his identity, the aunt seemed to regret taking him in and now clearly did not welcome him staying any longer.
Before long, the uncle and aunt outside the room even argued a few words.
Since that was the case, Cheng Jun felt it inappropriate to trouble them further. Just as he was about to get up, however, the uncle came in first and hurriedly covered Cheng Jun with the quilt again. “Child, you just drank that soup. You can’t get up yet. Lie down quickly!”
“I’ve caused enough trouble, uncle. I can’t inconvenience you and aunt any longer!”
This uncle was simple and honest in nature. Thinking that Cheng Jun had overheard his conversation with his wife, he felt somewhat embarrassed himself. “No trouble, no trouble,” he repeated several times, then urged, “Tuck the quilt in tightly!”
The uncle was also somewhat stubborn and insisted that Cheng Jun continue lying down. Strangely enough, after drinking that bowl of peculiar hot soup, Cheng Jun felt his whole body warm and cozy, and before long, he fell asleep again…
In a daze, he saw a black figure emerge from the mist. “Guo Guo…”
Hearing that person call out his childhood nickname, Cheng Jun was immediately stirred with excitement. “Crazy Demon Moth, is that you, Lin Feng?”
“Why didn’t you wait for me to come back! How dare you stand me up again and leave alone! Just like back in the day!” A young man, filled with anger and resentment, bore a striking resemblance to Lin Feng. Though fifteen years had passed, Cheng Jun recognized him at a single glance—still the same, with a lean, tall frame and a swift, wind-like gait.
Though clad in black clothes that covered half his face, making it hard to see clearly, Cheng Jun still caught the slight curve at the corner of his mouth. His eyes remained bright as stars, though tinged with a hint of cold severity, they could not conceal the resolute spirit of his childhood.
“Yes, that’s Lin Feng!” Cheng Jun affirmed with great certainty in his heart, overwhelmed with excitement, almost leaping for joy. He took a step forward. “Lin Feng! Crazy Demon Moth! Wait for me…”
“You untrustworthy thing, don’t follow me! Get lost!” The young man glanced back, cold as a frosty star. With a “slap,” an invisible force transformed into a palm wave, sending Cheng Jun flying several meters away.
Falling to the ground, Cheng Jun felt as if all his bones were about to shatter, the pain unbearable, beads of sweat breaking out on his face. The young man cast a cold glance back before turning and leaving.
“Crazy Demon Moth, stop right there!” Cheng Jun struggled to get up, urgently calling out, “Lin Feng, listen to me…”
The young man in black vanished like a wisp of green smoke. Cheng Jun stumbled as he tried to chase after the shadow, rising and falling. “Lin Feng, Crazy Demon Moth…”
“If you want to see me, tonight at Yidu Chaihuo Alley!” The black-clad figure left these words behind, leaving Cheng Jun alone.
“Lin Feng, Lin Feng…”
“What’s wrong with this child?” As soon as the aunt entered the room, she felt a chilling gust of wind pass through. Seeing Cheng Jun’s face covered in beads of sweat, his brows tightly furrowed, and an expression of intense pain on his face, she heard him continuously calling out “Lin Feng.”
“Xiao Cheng, child!” The aunt reached out to touch Cheng Jun’s forehead, then quickly withdrew her finger, startled. “Good heavens, this boy! His face is drenched in sweat, yet he’s frighteningly cold!” At a loss for what to do, she hurriedly called out toward the outside, “Old Zhao, Old Zhao…”
Her shout startled Cheng Jun awake at the same time. He opened his eyes to see the aunt staring at him in alarm. It turned out he had been dreaming, and his entire body was soaked in sweat.
“Child, what happened to you?” the aunt asked.
“I had a dream.”
“A dream?” As soon as she entered the room, she had felt a chilling gust of wind pass by, and Cheng Jun’s whole body radiated a cold, unsettling aura. The aunt couldn’t help but feel a bit superstitious. “I heard you calling someone’s name over and over. Could it be…?”
“It’s Lin Feng.”
“What? Lin… Lin Feng…” The aunt’s eyes widened, and for a moment, her lips trembled so much she couldn’t speak.
Thud! Just then, the uncle also happened to enter the room and heard Cheng Jun’s words. The bowl he was holding slipped from his hands in shock, shattering on the ground and spilling hot soup everywhere.
“What’s wrong, uncle, aunt?” Seeing their reaction to the name “Lin Feng,” Cheng Jun sensed there must be more to the story and quickly asked.
“No wonder I felt a chilling gust as soon as I entered the room!” The aunt didn’t answer Cheng Jun’s question immediately, muttering a few words under her breath first. With a reproachful look in her eyes, she glared fiercely at the uncle.
Though young, Cheng Jun could tell at a glance that the resentment in the aunt’s eyes meant she regretted letting him stay. But since these two clearly knew something about Lin Feng, Cheng Jun couldn’t give up this opportunity. He had no choice but to ask the uncle, “Uncle, what’s going on? What happened to Lin Feng?”
“He is an ill-omened man!” Even the uncle’s tone turned cold.
“What? An ill-omened man?” Cheng Jun was suddenly stunned.
The aunt looked nervous and conflicted. “Child, it’s not that I don’t want you to stay, it’s just…”
“Woman, it’s late. If this child goes out now and encounters something else, we won’t be able to bear the responsibility!” The uncle shot the aunt a glare, said no more, and forcibly pulled her out of the room. He then brought back another bowl of hot soup for Cheng Jun to drink.
Cheng Jun guessed it was just a stronger dose of cold-expelling herbal medicine. To get to the bottom of things, he couldn’t leave yet and had no choice but to stay, even if it meant being shameless about it.
Seeing that his clothes were completely soaked, the uncle prepared hot water for Cheng Jun to bathe and then gave him a set of young men’s clothes to change into. It was a tracksuit, even somewhat trendy. Though the color was dark and cold-toned, it looked comfortable and pleasing to the eye.
There was no third person in the uncle’s house. Staring at the tracksuit, Cheng Jun casually asked, “Aunt, whose clothes are these?”
“They belong to my son.”
“Where is your son? Why haven’t I seen him come out? It would be nice to have a brother to talk to.”
“He never came back after leaving!” The aunt’s tone turned cold.
“What? Never came back? What do you mean?”
“Don’t ask, child!” Tears welled up in the aunt’s eyes as she walked out.
Just then, a commotion erupted outside the courtyard. Many villagers rushed in one direction, and dogs all over the village began barking wildly.
“Dongdong, what happened?” The aunt rushed outside and called out to a young man.
“Aunt Zhao, three more floating corpses have appeared in the river!”
“What? Three floating corpses?”
“Indeed, he is an ill-omened man!” the aunt muttered under her breath, following the villagers toward the river.
Cheng Jun finished dressing and followed the uncle to the scene. Soon, the riverbank was crowded with villagers from the area.
The three floating corpses were pulled ashore by the villagers. Many stepped forward, and one person exclaimed in shock, “Ah! Aren’t these from Zhao Gan’s family?”
As they drew closer, everyone simultaneously recognized one of the corpses, and the entire scene erupted in chaos. “It really is someone from the Zhao family!”
“Who is it?”
“Zhao Gan’s only son, Zhao Yiran!”
“Ah, another one dead!”
“Who would have thought even Zhao Yiran couldn’t escape this!”
“What? Zhao Yiran?” Cheng Jun, hearing the villagers’ words, suddenly felt an ominous premonition.
But before he could react, the aunt had already rushed forward, unable to believe that the body before her was truly her son. Her eyes widened, her mouth agape, and it took a long moment before she burst into loud sobs. “Aah, my son! Oh, aah…”
“Xiao Ran!” The uncle dropped the kitchen knife in his hand and dashed over, howling in anguish. “Xiao Ran! My boy!”
Watching the two of them weeping uncontrollably, Cheng Jun didn’t know what to say or how to comfort them. He had just arrived at the uncle’s house, and now, in the blink of an eye, the uncle’s son had inexplicably died.
“No wonder the aunt also resents me as an unlucky person. Am I truly an ill omen?” Such a thought surfaced in Cheng Jun’s mind. He walked over to the three corpses, witnessing floating corpses for the first time with his own eyes. Even with his considerable courage, he was deeply shaken.
Two men and one woman, all around his age, each with eyes wide open as if they had been greatly frightened before death or had witnessed something terrifying. Even after being soaked in the river, the terrified bloodshot veins in their unseeing eyes were still visible.
Their lips were dark, tinged with a purplish-black hue, while their faces were deathly pale, like paper or frost. A few darkened veins extended all the way to their necks. Though somewhat afraid, Cheng Jun moved closer.
As he approached, he could hardly believe his eyes—the corpse lying in the middle was none other than his classmate from fifteen years ago, Zhao Yiran.
And the two bodies beside him were Liu Li and Wang Yusheng, both of whom had attended elementary school with him. When he clearly saw the three corpses, he felt his legs trembling uncontrollably.