Chapter 5: The Puppet Guides the Way

Pan Zi also sensed that something was amiss. He called out to the woman to stop and pointed behind him. The woman was quite clever; she understood what we meant. She explained that taking that dirt road would actually be a longer route, and that there was a shortcut here. If we followed her, we would be able to arrive in less than half an hour.

Surrounded by shrubs, I looked in that direction but could not see anything clearly in the distance. I pondered and thought, could it be that this scarecrow is a signpost, indicating that there is something strange over there

I know that neither of us can afford to waste time with a puppet like this. In the absence of any other options, I shifted my gaze and began to examine its entire form.

Seeing this situation, I thought to myself, well, here we are, the two of us, having a standoff with a scarecrow in the middle of the night

I was also afraid that she wouldn't be able to hear me clearly, so I deliberately cleared my throat and said that we came from Wuzhou City and were assigned to Suiyuan Village as intern teachers

Walking through the knee-high bushes is particularly exhausting for the legs, and traversing such waist-high thickets makes me feel fatigued all over, as if an invisible hand is constantly squeezing me, causing every muscle in my body to feel tense.

I also guessed, could it be that the ghostly laughter just now was summoned by this girl? But I immediately dismissed this thought; the place where the ghostly laughter occurred was far from here. Even if her voice were louder, having mastered the legendary Lion's Roar technique, she still couldn't project her laughter that far.

Before long, we had the second scarecrow appear.

I slowly regained my composure and turned my body slightly to let Panzi take a look at this strange face. Panzi's expression suddenly turned rather unpleasant as well, but neither of us said anything. Instead, we both took our knives and began to clear the area around the peculiar face.

Pan Zi could no longer contain himself. He looked around again; there were no small pebbles at our feet, but there were fist-sized stones. Pan Zi picked up a stone, intending to swing it around and throw it out, to test this woman.

Panzi and I said nothing, quietly waiting for her to finish reading

Upon hearing this, I thought to myself, well, that's great. Originally, Panzi and I had decided to stand by and watch her burn the paper, but she suddenly made a request for the two of us to join her in the burning.

The scarecrow is fine in other respects, but its hands are somewhat peculiar. Both of its plump hands, stuffed with straw, lean in one direction, as if indicating something.

I reached into my backpack, took out the introduction letter, and pulled Panzi along as I walked over to her, presenting the introduction letter for her to see

In order to burn it a bit faster, I grabbed handfuls of paper money and tossed them into the fire. During this time, the woman paused several times, turning her head to observe us. This made me feel that her request for us to burn the paper money was secondary; her true intention was to observe us up close.

In the dead of night, squatting in the graveyard, even with my boldness, I was instantly frightened and immediately thought of a female ghost

This area of graves is scattered and rustling, and in front of a new grave, there squats a woman in white, her back to us. She holds a wooden basin in her arms and is taking paper money out of the basin to burn as an offering at the grave.

This village clearly has no electricity, the entire area is shrouded in darkness, resembling the scattered graves from earlier. The woman, likely tired from walking, paused for a moment and took the opportunity to speak with us. She mentioned that she would first take us to get something to eat, then find us a place to stay. After resting for a night, she would take us to the school for registration in the morning. However, she cautioned us to be careful when entering the village, advising us to keep quiet; otherwise, the dogs in the village would wake up and start barking, which would be too disruptive to the residents.

This request is quite difficult for me; I do not know the grave owner, so what should I burn? However, seeing that the woman had a serious expression and did not seem to be joking, Panzi and I exchanged glances and had no choice but to comply with her once again

In front is a vast expanse of burial mounds. How should I put it? At a glance, these mounds clearly do not belong to the same era; some are so neglected that they are on the verge of collapsing, while others are pristine, indicating that they have only recently been erected.

Panzi and I walked in for about the time it takes to smoke a cigarette. Suddenly, as I pushed aside a patch of bushes, another strange face emerged from within.

I was half in doubt and wanted to ask a few more questions. However, after she finished speaking, she sulkily walked ahead, clearly indicating that she no longer wished to engage with us. Panzi and I had no choice but to follow her.

Once the paper money was burned and the worship ceremony concluded, she picked up the wooden basin and beckoned us to follow her. When I saw the direction she was heading, my heart sank, as she was leading us further inside. To put it plainly, if we continued down this path, wouldn't we be moving further away from that dirt road?

I noticed that the woman had a somewhat strange expression while looking at the letter of introduction, as if a hint of hesitation appeared between her brows. I wonder what she is pondering in her mind

After reading the letter, the woman folded it and handed it back to me, saying, "I am also a teacher from Suiyuan Village, so we will be colleagues from now on. How about this: after I finish burning the paper money, I will take you to Suiyuan Village."

I silently calculated in my heart that we encountered a total of four scarecrows in this thicket, and after we squeezed past the last scarecrow's indicated path, we unexpectedly emerged from this patch of bushes

I shared this speculation with Panzi, who frowned after listening and retorted, "So are we going to take a look? Or are we not going?"

The woman observed that we were silent and asked again, smiling slightly, as if to mock us for our timidity from the bottom of her heart

Pan Zi and I have nothing to hide from each other. He leaned in and whispered, "Du Rui, why do I feel something is off? You mentioned that the layout of Suiyuan Village is so similar to that of the cemetery; could it be that this village is actually that cemetery?"

I did not pay attention to Panzi's expression at that moment; my focus was entirely on the woman. Although I was not close, I could still see that she was quite delicate in appearance, with the most noticeable feature being a large black mole between her eyebrows

Panzi did not act with such cruelty; upon seeing the woman speak, he quickly flicked his wrist, causing the stone to veer off and fly away.

In the thicket, I had been smelling a slightly moldy scent of decayed grass. The moment I stepped out and inhaled the fresh air, it sent a jolt through my entire being. However, when I looked ahead, that invigorated spirit vanished without a trace.

I was provoked by Panzi's words, my nerves were all in a frenzy. I recalled the old man's words about the haunted village of Suiyuan, but even if it truly is a ghost village, we cannot back down for the sake of the mission

In fact, this is akin to the *picture* book where the scarecrow can still laugh during this period. Although it is quite strange, it at least proves that the laughter is emitted by it. However, the two of us waited for a long time, and it just stood there quietly.

It appears that it looks exactly like the previous scarecrow, except that its arms are pointing in a different direction, still towards a thicket we have never traversed before

I have been leading the way for a long time and am already exhausted. This time, Panzi will switch places with me and take on the role of the vanguard.

I recently had a similar experience, and this time I was well-prepared. I did not allow its face to come close; instead, I promptly spread my palm and pressed it against its face.

His words were spoken with hesitation, indicating that he was deeply conflicted. We arrived at this thicket, and logically, having escaped danger, we should have quickly returned to the dirt path to continue our journey. However, the series of experiences we had previously suggested that this place was unusual, and it was even highly likely that there were clues we needed here

I thought to myself, since I have come here by such a twist of fate, I might as well take some time to have a look and understand this place thoroughly

The woman walks in a peculiar manner, taking particularly small steps, reminiscent of the tiny, delicate steps that were only fashionable in ancient times. As a result, Panzi and I can only leisurely follow behind her. I especially noticed that we cannot focus on her footsteps, lest we feel an urge to imitate her walking style.

Panzi and I unconsciously leaned closer together, both coldly staring at the woman in white. After enduring this for a while, the woman did not turn to look at us, nor did she say anything, as if we did not exist at all.

As I moved a little closer, I noticed that the woman's face was illuminated by the flames of the sacrificial fire, giving it a rosy glow, which eased my reservations somewhat. After receiving the letter and the book, she opened them right in front of us and examined them carefully

Both Panzi and I nodded in agreement, and I noticed that Panzi seemed a bit distracted. When we continued our journey, I took the opportunity to ask Panzi what he had been thinking just now

If it weren't for her strange gaze, I would suspect she works at the neighborhood committee. It feels like a household registration check. This is the first time Panzi and I have come to such a remote area. If we could find someone to ask, it would save us some unnecessary trouble. Although I don't want to show her the introduction letter, I have no choice but to endure it in order to strike up a conversation with her.

Both of us remain vigilant; should we encounter anything amiss, I can assure you that we will turn around and flee at the first opportunity

Just as Panzi swung his arm, the woman sighed, turned her head, and spoke. She asked us, "Who are you?"

At this moment, if Panzi were to recklessly throw this stone, it could very well hit her on the head, and this single act could even result in a fatality

I cannot say that I am a male chauvinist, but when she laughed like that, I felt a surge of anger inside me. I thought to myself, whether she is a person or a ghost, she is still just a woman. Both of us were so frightened by her that it was utterly embarrassing.

After approximately twenty minutes, we arrived at a downhill slope. I looked down the slope and realized that the woman had not deceived us; indeed, there was a village before us.

The woman became even more interested after hearing this and then asked me, "Do you have a letter of introduction?"

I expressed my stance and instructed Panzi to follow me. Together, we continued on our path, guided by the direction indicated by the scarecrow

I replied to Panzi with a disingenuous remark, "You are overthinking it!"

Panzi and I stared at the scarecrow's face together