Shinnshiow froze for a moment in front of their fence. He was so tense. Yesterday's experience still left a lingering trauma within him.
"Don't worry! No one seems to be watching us." Jenqyih patted Shinnshiow's shoulder gently. He seemed to notice the anxiety that plagued Shinnshiow.
"I hope you're right." Shinnshiow nodded doubtfully.
<>
Jenqyih was carrying a medium-sized backpack. Shinnshiow brought nothing. The street in front of their house was empty. Quickly, Shinnshiow and Jenqyih walked to the left. The direction led to the highway in front of their housing complex.
<
They had only walked a few steps when someone rebuked them from behind. "Good morning!"
Simultaneously, they both looked back. It turned out that behind them stood Horngshi Gauchyh, their neighbor who occupied the house to the right of their house. The man's face brightened.
"Good morning Mr. Horngshi." Shinnshiow smiled kindly. "Do you want to go somewhere too?"
"Absolutely not," Horngshi replied with an equally friendly smile. "I just want to walk around this housing complex."
That's not a strange thing. As Shinnshiow recalled, Horngshi Gauchyh walked around their housing complex almost every morning. The time was uncertain. Sometimes early in the morning. Sometimes around eight o'clock. In fact, not infrequently, Shinnshiow saw the person at ten or eleven in the morning.
Horngshi was a man who was roughly in his mid-sixties. Shinnshiow actually didn't know how old Horngshi Gauchyh was. He was only guessing based on the person's appearance.
The three of them then walked together.
"You are very diligent in exercising." Jenqyih opened his mouth.
"Not really," said Horngshi. "Sometimes, I'm too lazy to move. Just like most other people."
"But I always see you walking around this housing complex." Jenqyih turned to Horngshi. "Did you really like to walk every morning since you were young?"
"Not like that." Horngshi chuckled. "Back then, I was too lazy to get up in the morning. I started getting a bit of a routine in the morning recently. It was since about twelve or thirteen years ago."
"Yeah, that's been a long time too, Sir!" Shinnshiow laughed. Horngshi Gauchyh reminded himself of one of his father's cousins. From behind, the two of them were so similar.
Shinnshiow noticed the clothes that Horngshi was wearing. Because he saw the Horngshi walking almost every day, he almost memorized the clothes that person always wore. The man always wears the same clothes. Not that every day he always wears the same clothes. However, it seemed that the old man only had five or six sets of clothes. The coat he wore, also never changed. However, at that time, he looked different.
"I've never seen this coat. Did you just buy it?" The curious Shinnshiow finally let out the question.
Horngshi Gauchyh laughed. "No! Yesterday a friend gave me this coat as a gift. I almost never buy clothes myself. All my clothes are gifts from other people."
Shinnshiow and Jenqyih laughed. Shinnshiow thought of Shannchyuan. Their dahge also seldom bought clothes. As far as Shinnshiow knew, the clothes Shannchyuan had were gifts from his younger sisters.
"Your friend is very kind. Maybe because he knows that you rarely buy clothes, he buys them for you," said Shinnshiow.
"Not really. I've been friends with him for a long time, but this is the first time he's given me an outfit."
"Or maybe it's a birthday present?" Jenqyih asked.
"My birthday was a few months ago," Horngshi laughed heartily. "Usually, he never buys me a birthday present either."
<
A small child about five years old ran up to them. After getting close, the boy stopped in front of them.
"How are you today?" Horngshi smiled.
"Very good! Grandpa Horngshi, I can write my name, parents' names, and home address fluently!" The little boy handed a piece of paper to Horngshi.
The man happily accepted the paper. He read it aloud.
<
"Nothing's wrong, right?" The little boy's face was so bright.
"Everything is correct! Smart boy!"
The little boy laughed. He raised his hand to Horngshi Gauchyh. "Now I want the prize!"
Apparently, Horngshi promised the boy a reward if he could write his name, home address, and the names of his parents. Shinnshiow nodded. He agreed that young children should know their parents' names and home addresses. So, if at any time they get lost, people who find them would easily contact the family.
Horngshi laughed out loud. The boy's style of speaking was indeed funny. The old man reached into the dark green coat he was wearing. From his coat pocket, he took some candy. After giving the sweets to the boy, Horngshi Gauchyh reached into his trouser pocket. He took out some banknotes. He also gave the money to the little boy.
"Wow! That's a lot!" The little boy was jumping for joy.
"Now you go home."
"Okay, Grandpa Horngshi." The little boy ran home right away.
Shinnshiow and Jenqyih laughed at the boy's antics.
<
Since Horngshi Gauchyh was walking with them, Shinnshiow and Jenqyih couldn't walk too fast. Unlike them, that person was walking at a reasonable pace. They are also reluctant to leave the old man. Shinnshiow and Jenqyih could only wait until the person left them.
"Okay! I'll go around the complex. You guys want to go to the station, right?"
"That's right, Sir!" Jenqyih's face turned even brighter.
"See you later!" Horngshi Gauchyh waved to them. He continued what he was doing, walking around their housing complex.
<
Jenqyih laughed. "Your prayers have been answered!"
Shinnshiow was surprised that Jenqyih once again seemed to be able to read his mind.
Because they could walk freely, they had arrived at the highway in an instant. The bus stop where Jenqyih and Shinnshiow had started their adventure yesterday was still standing tall. It's like Déjà vu. Shinnshiow felt restless again after getting there. He wanted to look in all directions, but for some reason, his neck felt so stiff. Shinnshiow's neck seemed to have a mind of its own. The neck resisted orders from Shinnshiow's brain.
"Don't worry. Things are still the same as before. No one is following us." Jenqyih put his ass at the stop.
"In that case, good!" Shinnshiow took a deep breath. Jenqyih's words somewhat relieved him.
Shinnshiow waited until the bus that would take Jenqyih arrived. While sitting at the bus stop, they were silent. Six other people at the stop were also waiting for the bus. The two of them were engaged in an exciting conversation.
"What do you think caused the fire?" One of the two turned to the other.
"I don't know. But according to the news I heard, last night there was a party at the house that was thought to be the source of the fire!" His friend answered in a tone that sounded absolutely certain. He was a man in his late thirties. He wore a white shirt. Looked in contrast in his light blue trousers.
"Where did you get the news?"
"My cousin work in a catering company. Yesterday, they delivered orders to that house," said the man in the white shirt.
"Which cousin?"
"Son of my father's younger sister."
"The one you invited to our friend's birthday party?"
"That's right! That younger cousin."
"What did he see there?"
"That's where the problem lies! My cousin didn't dare to say too much. He and the other people who deliver the food there had to sign a Non Disclosure Agreement."
"What kind of party is that? It's like a secret meeting!"
"Looked like it was a closed party. The people who came were all wearing masks. Even my younger cousin and other coworkers were required to wear masks."
"It looks very mysterious. Could it be some kind of meeting held by a secret society?"
Shinnshiow and Jenqyih looked at each other after overhearing the conversation. Shinnshiow was eager to hear the continuation of the man's story, but the bus that would take Jenqyih had arrived. Jenqyih promptly got on the bus. The two people who had been conversing next to them also boarded the bus.