Chapter 2, Introduction - Part Two

Moreover, I saw that his eyes had unexpectedly opened, staring blankly at the ceiling, devoid of focus. I remembered that his eyes were clearly closed after his death. Upon witnessing this scene, I already knew what had happened—Grandfather had risen from the dead

I hurriedly rushed to the door, just as my father had stepped out. The place was eerily silent, leaving me all alone. I could only hear the sound of a coffin moving behind me, followed by a rustling noise that kept trailing me. I dared not turn around to look. I had heard my father, and even my grandfather, recount real stories of corpses rising. Generally, if a corpse rises and is not discovered in time, it can turn everyone in a large mansion or even an entire village into corpses just like itself. The rustling noise continued to follow me, and I dared not turn around to look. I had heard my father, and even my grandfather, recount real stories of corpses rising. Generally, if a corpse rises and is not discovered in time, it can turn everyone in a large mansion or even an entire village into corpses just like itself.

At this point in the story, it is necessary to mention the passing of my grandfather, as it was the first time I felt that his death was profoundly connected to this jade figurine.

This is indeed an exquisitely beautiful piece of jade. In my youth, I was almost completely captivated by it, to the extent that I forgot to ask my grandfather how he later obtained the fragments. I simply kept running my fingers over the surface of the broken jade, unable to part with it.

I saw my father turn pale with shock. He placed me on the ground and quickly examined my right hand, but after a while, he questioned, "Xiao Yuan, are you sure you didn't remember incorrectly? There are no bite marks on your right hand."

I saw a pool of blood beside the coffin, which must have flowed from my hand. So I moved my hand, but felt a piercing pain in my right hand where my grandfather had bitten me. I said, "Grandfather has risen from the dead; he bit my right hand."

About four years later, my father fell gravely ill and soon passed away. When he realized that his time was near, he insisted on returning to his hometown. Even in his final moments, when his consciousness was very unclear, I heard him utter a phrase: "If you are destined to die at the third watch, who would dare to let you live until the fifth watch"

Grandfather always looked at me with that expression, and I felt he had tacitly agreed to my request. So, I reached my hand towards his mouth, but at that moment, he suddenly opened his mouth and bit my hand. In that instant, I saw that his mouth was completely empty; the fragments of jade that had been in his mouth were nowhere to be found. Even more astonishing was that I saw his tongue was green, exactly like the pieces of jade I had seen before

At that time, my grandfather's coffin had not yet been closed, so a piece of black cloth, known as a spirit-covering cloth, was used to cover it. I did not think much of it at the time; it had been placed there properly, so I stepped forward to cover it again.

I originally thought that my grandfather would transform me into someone like him, but his hands merely stroked my face over and over again. When I looked at his face, I discovered a faint tenderness mixed with a hollow and numb expression in his eyes. At that moment, my first thought was—Grandpa Tu Shu is not dead; he is still alive!

My grandfather passed away when I was sixteen years old; that year he was exactly ninety-one years old. To outsiders, he seemed to be a relatively long-lived person, but who knows that behind this longevity, there were actually hidden circumstances.

Moreover, his cooing voice constantly echoed in my ears. I felt as if he had something to say to me, but it was blocked by this piece of broken jade, preventing him from speaking. So, I mustered my courage and asked him: "Grandfather, what do you want to tell me?"

However, I saw that his face was covered with blood vessels, red like threads spread all over his face, or more precisely, like a net. Moreover, it was not just his face; his hands were also affected, as I could see his hand reaching out towards me.

As I was about to reach the door, my shoulder was suddenly grabbed with great force, causing my forward momentum to come to an abrupt halt, and I found myself rooted in place, being pulled back.

Finally, I reached the edge of the coffin, and the force pulling me came to a halt. My grandfather's hand, which was gripping my shoulder, also loosened significantly. I curled up at the edge of the coffin, too afraid to move. I saw him bend down towards me, his eyes wide open, his facial expression rigid, just like when he passed away.

I was so terrified that I could not utter a sound; in that moment, it felt as though my throat had lost its ability to produce any voice or sound. All I could hear was my own hoarse and barely audible cries as I was being dragged towards his coffin.

Father clearly returned later; upon seeing that I had regained consciousness, he lifted me out of the coffin and asked, "Xiaoyuan, what happened? Where is grandfather's body?"

However, just as I was about to cover it with the shroud, I suddenly saw a hand springing up from the side of the coffin. I was startled, and when I looked into the coffin, I discovered that it was my grandfather's hand. Moreover, both of his hands were already resting on the edge of the coffin, as if he was about to rise up from within.

I have no idea when my father arranged this matter; it was from that time onward that I realized my father had been keeping something from me.

When I woke up, I found myself lying in a coffin, and my father was squatting beside it, slapping my face. The first thing I asked upon waking was: "Where is Grandpa?"

As for what happened later, I seem to have some difficulty remembering. I only recall that when I woke up again, I was already in my own room. I inquired about my grandfather, and my father kindly told me that they had already buried him. When I asked about the matter in the mourning hall, my father said it was a delusion I had experienced.

I tried to sit up, but I felt extremely dizzy. In my daze, I indeed saw my intact right hand. There was not a trace of blood, not even a bite mark. I felt as if I had been struck by lightning; what on earth is going on m.hetushu.com.com ? !

However, soon after, I felt a piercing pain emanating from my hand, as my grandfather bit down hard on the hand I had extended. At first, I could feel a heart-wrenching pain, but gradually this sensation faded away, and I only felt as if my entire body was losing sensation, until finally, I lost consciousness completely.

This incident occurred during the vigil for my grandfather, when my father and I were keeping watch. It happened on the second night of the vigil, at midnight, when my grandfather rose from the dead

However, regardless of the reasoning, it is now impossible to verify. Yet, I have never doubted the authenticity of the story my grandfather told me, because at this point in the narrative, he would take out a piece of green jade and say that this was part of the jade figurine.

At that time, my father had just gone out; I no longer remember what he went to do. I only recall that after he left, there was a rustling sound in the mourning hall, which was not very clear. At the time, I did not pay much attention to it, but later I discovered that the shroud covering my grandfather's coffin had somehow been lifted.

Grandfather seems to understand my words; I can see the fluctuations in his eyes. So I try to reach out my hand while saying, "Shall I take the broken jade from your mouth?"

In a daze, I could only hear my grandfather's barely audible voice saying: "In the rain, it is indistinguishable from a person."

Later on, my grandfather said he would no longer communicate with Tu Shu. Even though I was only about ten years old at the time, I could tell that my grandfather's thoughts had clearly become disordered at this point. To put it bluntly, he sounded like a madman.

I dared not move, as his hand caressed my face, emitting a "cooing" sound, a noise as if something was lodged in his throat preventing him from speaking. I looked at his mouth and suddenly recalled that, in his final moments, my grandfather had requested that a fragment of the jade figurine be placed in his mouth, and now, it was evident that he was still holding this piece of jade.

After saying this, my father passed away. Later, after burying him, I went to Luoyang with my fourth uncle, who had a business here. I followed him and assisted him in his work. My fourth uncle said that this was my father's last request before he died, urging him to take good care of me.

He first said that he was dazzled, and that it was a strong man following behind who also wanted to take advantage of the jade figurine; then he said that it was indeed the jade figurine, but he did not know who had placed it in the rain; then he changed his mind again, saying that in fact there was nothing outside, and that he had misjudged. Moreover, as he continued to speak, he became increasingly agitated, and it was evident that something was seriously off with him.

Almost everyone in the family had the same opinion about this matter, and gradually I came to believe it as well. However, the experience of that night has left an indelible mark on my heart, and whenever I think of it, it feels as if it happened just yesterday