One night, the power suddenly went out in the small town and everything was pitch black. Dogs of all ages barked wildly together.
There were sounds of chaotic footsteps running around, adults calling for their children, and flashlights swaying back and forth in the night sky...
People with phones called the power station one after another to inquire about the situation but it was always busy and they couldn't get through.
Some households lit candles which gave off a dim light. The whole town seemed to be half asleep.
Zhang Gu had an important report to write as he was a secretary at the town government and it needed to be submitted tomorrow. However, his computer could not be used due to the power outage so he was very anxious.
He walked out of his house intending to go ask at the power station what happened.
His friend Feng Jing happened to be on duty there today. He was a few years older than Zhang Gu but both of them were internet addicts.
Three neighboring women are sitting in the yard to cool off. There is no electricity, so it's boring inside the house.
They joked with Zhang Gu: "Young man, we only have you left as our protector in 17th row houses. It's so dark tonight that you can't escape!" Zhang Gu laughed: "I'm still counting on several sisters-in-law protecting me!" The houses in this small town were connected by roofs with five families per row. Zhang Gu lived in 17th row houses located at the northernmost end of town next to vast farmland. In recent days, except for Zhang Gu himself, other men from several households just happened not being home.
The substation is located on the outskirts of a small town, about one kilometer away. Zhang Gu ran there quickly.
He walked into the duty room and sat down casually on a chair, asking, "Feng Jing, what's going on?"
Feng Jing said, "I don't know either. I called the county but it was busy and couldn't get through."
"Will we have power tonight?" Zhang Gu asked.
"That's hard to say for sure."Feng Jing kept dialing the phone repeatedly.
Zhang Gu said, "It seems that I can only write my report at work tomorrow." After speaking, he got up and walked outside.
As he reached the door, Feng Jing suddenly asked him from behind: "Zhang Gu, what is three minus one equal to?" Zhang Gu turned around and saw Feng Jing looking at him seriously waiting for his answer. He felt that Feng Jing's expression was somewhat different from usual. He was a bit puzzled: "What do you think?"
Feng Jing replied: "Of course I know. Now I'm asking you." Zhang Gu calculated seriously for a moment before saying: "I can't figure it out." Then Feng Jing burst out laughing.
Zhang Gu asked impatiently," What are you trying to do?"
"It's like this - I thought of a name to use online called 'what is three minus one equal to'. Before confirming it as my username though,I want to ask ten people this arithmetic question first.If all ten people blurted out an answer immediately,it would mean that this name has no interest or appeal.I won't use it then.You're the first person I've asked,and since you couldn't solve it,I don't need to ask anyone else.I'll just call myself by this name now." explained Feng Jin
Zhang Gu listened impatiently and said," How boring!" before turning around and walking away.
There was still some distance left until he reached the town. It was very dark, with wilderness on both sides and not a single person in sight.
Zhang Gu walked along the road wearing his headphones, turning up the volume of his music.
- I warn you that this world is not safe. You must always keep your vision, hearing and touch sensitive so that if anything unexpected happens,you can react more accurately.
Zhang Gu didn't have a girlfriend yet. His biggest hobby at this age is listening to music, rock music, the deceased American King of Rock and Roll that deafens the ears.
Suddenly, he saw something moving faintly on the roadside in the darkness. He stopped and took a closer look, only to find that it was a small baby.
Zhang Gu was startled. The music had occupied his ears and he couldn't hear anything else. He hurriedly turned off his Walkman.
The baby sat there without crying, looking up at Zhang Gu and babbling in baby talk.
Zhang Gu leaned in close to the baby's face and looked carefully.
It was a boy of about one year old, naked from the waist down.
To be honest, this little boy was very ugly with a narrow forehead, unusually large eyes, a flat nose and thin yellow hair...and he was dirty from head to toe.
Zhang Gu looked around but there were no adults nearby - only this little boy. He bent down and asked: "Where is your mother?" The little boy continued to babble incoherently; obviously he couldn't speak yet.
Zhang Gu looked around anxiously but there wasn't anyone around for miles. He shouted loudly: "Hey! Whose child is this? Who does this child belong to?" But the open field was deserted; there wasn't even a shadow of another person anywhere nearby.
He wanted to take the baby home with him but his parents weren't home - they had gone to visit his sister's family in Manchuria for an entire year. And since he himself wasn't married either, how could he raise him?
After much thought, Zhang Gu realized that he had no choice but to go back into town and report what had happened so someone else could adopt the child instead.
With heavy heartedness weighing on him heavily ,he left behind the infant by itself before walking away quickly.
As soon as Zhang walked out several steps away ,he turned back again just see that infant staring at him quietly within darkness .There seemed some complexity within that gaze which made him inexplicably nervous, so he quickened his pace and left.
Several neighbor women were still chatting in the yard.
Zhang Gu stood at the gate and said to them, "I saw a child in the suburbs, I don't know whose it is, no one is taking care of him." Mrs. Li said to the other two women, "Is that so? Let's go take a look!" Her husband was called Li Ma and he was a butcher at the slaughterhouse. He was big and strong. It should be noted that he had a pig-killing knife with an excellent steel blade passed down from his ancestors. They say that this knife can cut through bones like mud and he relied on this knife for his livelihood. Recently, he went to another county to collect pigs and has been away from home for over a month now. Mrs. Li is a kind-hearted woman who is broad-minded and plump.
Mrs. Bian asked Zhang Gu, "Where is the child?" Zhang Gu replied: "On the roadside leading to the substation." As she got up angrily, Mrs. Murong exclaimed: "Some parents are really heartless nowadays; they're willing to throw away their own flesh and blood! A few days ago on TV there was news about an evil mother..." Mrs.Murong happened to have an under-one-year-old daughter named Chaochao at home; at this time women are most maternal - tenderhearted as water - even if an unrelated child suffers it will prick her heart.
The group of women went together.
When Zhang Gu returned home, he reached out to turn on the lights but they didn't come on; then he remembered there was no electricity.
The house was pitch black so he felt his way onto bed.
Thinking back on tonight's events made him feel somewhat suspicious: power outages were rare in town yet tonight just happened to be one such night when it occurred; moreover,he saw that inexplicable male infant again - as if the power outage was to cover up his appearance.
Also, before he met that male infant, Feng Jing seemed to have been possessed by something and asked him nervously what three minus one equals.
Zhang Gu felt that this arithmetic problem was ominous.
Outside, none of the dogs barked anymore; only one dog outside Zhang Gu's door kept barking. The sound was very lonely.
There was only him in the house now.
This trip left only a spineless man in the house.
He felt like it was an empty house.
He felt that male infant was somewhat ominous...