Chapter Seven, Tiptoeing, Slippers, Floral Garments

I saw his body begin to sway as if someone were pushing him. This was the most bizarre scene I had ever witnessed, for Tan Dongyu stood upright like a roly-poly toy, yet his body would topple forward, backward, and sideways. At times, his face would even touch the ground, only to bizarrely bounce back up.

She was a woman, her face as white as if covered in powder. She opened her eyes, yet her pupils kept rolling upwards, and her lips were painted a deep crimson. Today, her body was not upright; instead, she swayed slightly. I saw her grab the collar at the back of Tan Dongyu's neck, and with a single pull, she dragged him into the room. What was chilling was that her face remained directed towards me

I was extremely anxious and kicked the wooden door with all my might. The door seemed as if it had been nailed shut, and no matter what I did, I couldn't break it open. Tan Dongyu had been talking beside me, which only made me more irritated, so I shouted at him, "I can't get out!"

I just remembered that Jiang Xiu mentioned that I absolutely cannot say anything else in the house, I can only say that I am here to deliver rice and am staying for one night

Time swiftly passed by as I arrived at the entrance of the old house, carrying my belongings. Today, Tan Dongyu was not present, and I had no interest in him. After entering the house, I poured the rice into a bowl, then lit incense and placed it on the ground, setting the paper boat beside it, quietly waiting and silently praying.

I did not write a letter home because I was unwilling to leave my parents just like that. So in the afternoon, I went to find my parents who were farming and spoke to them. When they learned about this matter, I initially thought they would ask me not to leave, but unexpectedly, my mother immediately reddened her eyes and cried, saying that she had not spent enough time with her child

Tan Dongyu seemed to have walked around inside again, and then he walked to the door. This time, he did not come over to my side but stood still at the doorway, staring at me intently.

It is not about delivering rice

Run, run for your life, do not look back

I waited until the evening, and when my phone rang, I was surprised to receive a text message. I excitedly picked up my phone and discovered it was a message from my mother. As soon as I opened it, my heart suddenly sank.

At that moment, I suddenly heard footsteps behind me. I turned my head and found that it was Tan Dongyu who had arrived. He had lost quite a bit of weight, to the point where his eyes seemed almost to bulge out of their sockets. He looked at me, moved his Adam's apple, and said, "Jiang Cheng, do not burn incense, Jiang Cheng, do not burn incense"

I will help you go out, I will help you go out, I will help you...

Mom, I beg you, please don't come back, we ... ...

Suddenly, I heard the sound of paper being blown by the wind beside me. I quickly looked at the paper boat, only to be astonished to find that it had eerily floated up by itself, swaying in the air.

After speaking, he turned around and walked into the room. At that moment, I noticed that Tan Dongyu's walking posture was truly peculiar; he tightly shrank his neck, as if trying to hide his head in his shoulders, and his toes were pointed up, making him look just like the person from yesterday. I swallowed nervously, not daring to follow him, and I could only hear him walk into the room, seemingly circling around inside, before he walked out again and stood beside me

As the incense burned halfway, Tan Dongyu suddenly spoke again: "Don't follow me, just run away. Don't follow me, just run away. Don't..."

I felt a chill run down my spine; Tan Dongyu, who was possessed, surely knew something but had not told me everything. At that moment, he waved at me and pretended to be mysterious, saying: "Follow me, I will take you to see that mother-in-law and daughter-in-law; they are getting dressed."

I hope everything is fine I hope everything is fine

Tan Dongyu's expression changed slightly; he had originally worn a calm demeanor, but now his face was contorted with rage. He approached me step by step, causing me to feel somewhat anxious. When he reached the door, he suddenly stopped and, to my astonishment, began to ram his head against the wooden door

I subconsciously observed the incense, which burned rather slowly, and this relieved me; the second condition mentioned by Jiang Xiu should not hold true

At that moment, a hoarse and aged voice suddenly came from the second floor: "It is the rice delivery."

By the fourth day, I was already very anxious, because if there was still no news on that day, according to Jiang Xiu, I would no longer be able to return.

Suddenly, footsteps echoed in the room, and I looked toward the door in terror, only to see a shadow appear at the entrance. Dressed in a floral cloth outfit, wearing slippers, tiptoeing, with a large bosom, but this time, the person's face was no longer shrouded in shadow, allowing me to see it clearly.

He kept repeating this phrase, and I do not know how hard he was trying to slam his head against the wooden door, but soon his head was broken. Once the blood started to flow, he stopped banging on the door and instead picked up my black umbrella, standing at the entrance of that room

The woman looked up at the floor above, and then she spoke, a scene I will never forget for the rest of my life

The incense burned slowly, and the old house was particularly quiet. Today, for some reason, the village was unusually silent; usually, at this time, there would be the shouts of people returning from the fields and the barking of dogs.

Is there someone upstairs? That is impossible; apart from myself and Tan Dongyu, there cannot be anyone else in this old house. Yet at that moment, a sharp sound that I had been hearing for the past two days suddenly echoed in the room

As I ran, the dogs in the village began to bark loudly, and all I could think of were the words spoken by Jiang Xiu

I have been running approximately 3 miles, panting heavily, and finally reached the outskirts of our town. Subsequently, I took a motorcycle taxi and asked the driver to take me westward. Although he was puzzled, he complied with my request.

I wonder what exactly is in that old house, along with the beautiful older sister, my parents, and Jiang Xiu. But for now, there is nothing I can do but wait for news from home

On the second day and the third day, there was still nothing

At that moment, she dragged Tan Dongyu into the room as if she were dragging a dead dog. Subsequently, the room fell silent, eerily quiet.

I thought he was going to say something, but he moved his Adam's apple and unexpectedly said: "Follow me, I will take you to see that mother-in-law and daughter-in-law; they are putting on their shoes."

On the first day, there were no phone calls from home

That sound is still so piercing that it makes my scalp tingle, yet I am already so frightened that I feel as if my courage is about to shatter

I stood there like a fool watching them cry, and only now do I realize that things are not as simple as I initially thought. Why is that? Why is it that everyone else is doing well, yet I have to be inexplicably entangled in such matters

After speaking, he surprisingly shrank his neck and tiptoed inside, as if everything was being replayed on television before my eyes. The only difference was that I felt he was walking much faster this time, and his body was standing very straight as he walked

My father also had a grim expression, but he wanted me to listen to Jiang Xiu. Although my mother kept wiping her tears with the towel on her shoulder, she also wanted me to be obedient

This is a message that was sent before I had the chance to finish writing it. My body trembled, and tears immediately flowed down my face. I cried out for my mother, then rushed out of the hotel, completely disregarding Jiang Xiu's words, and ran in the direction of home

I do not know how far I ran, but the motorcycle kept going for ten minutes before it finally stopped. I found a hotel to stay in, feeling very scared and constantly thinking about what had happened before.

It is for delivering rice

I recalled Jiang Xiu's words and hurriedly dashed outside, but at that moment, the door of the old house inexplicably closed on its own. I anxiously tried to open the door, but it wouldn't budge, and in my frustration, I began to curse.

At this moment, a sudden cold wind inexplicably blew behind me, and the wooden door of the old house creaked, sending chills down my spine. I stared intently at the incense and paper boats, praying that such a situation would not occur.

I forcefully tried to open the door, but unexpectedly, after Tan Dongyu was dragged inside, the door opened automatically, causing me to fall onto the ground. At that moment, the woman surprisingly walked out of the room, approaching me step by step

She did not speak, her lips tightly sealed, yet a sharp voice emanated from her body: "I already said, it's not about delivering rice."

In an instant, the room fell silent

The day before yesterday and yesterday, it could still be understood as someone entering the room and then speaking to me. But now I can confirm that there were two people who appeared out of thin air in the room.

I was so frightened that I quickly stood up and ran desperately outside, not daring to look back at all

But once I light this incense, it becomes eerily quiet

Tan Dongyu stood at the door of the room, and at that moment he spoke again: "Jiang Cheng, you should run quickly. Jiang Cheng, you should run quickly."

At this moment, the aged and hoarse voice from upstairs came down again