Lub tub… lub tub… Hui Long's heart pounded loudly in his chest. Like a frozen statue, he watched the speeding bus come to a screeching halt at the bus stop nearby. If he had walked into the crossing just seconds ago, he would have been squashed to death. He would have passed without even realizing.
He clutched the silvery white feather tucked in his coat. "Is it the angels calling me to heaven…" mumbling, he crossed the road.
His panicked heart had stilled now. He could not feel anything. Like a soulless body, he wandered the dark streets.
His phone rang loudly, pulling him out of his dazed state. Clearing his throat, he connected the call.
"Hello, Mr. Lang. I got a message from you about your will… is something wrong, sir? Are you feeling okay?" his family lawyer said in a concerned tone.
Hui Long gazed into the distant sky with a sigh. "I'm good, Paul. I just wanted to make a will just in case something happens to me. Make sure to record this. This recording can be for legal use. After my death, I want you to donate all my assets to the Child Health Foundation."
"S-sir… yes, Mr. Lang. I'll make a legal document for this. But it might require your signature."
"I… I might not have the time to sign it, Paul." Hui hugged the feather. "I feel I might leave this world today… I just don't want my assets to be sent to those vultures. I want it to be used for good things. So send me a virtual signature document. I can sign it right now." He sat in the bus stand.
His lawyer did a quick job of making his will. He quickly signed it digitally and sent it to Paul to be notarized.
With his will set, he was finally ready to leave this world. After all, he was ready for his next adventure.
'Who knows what I will be born as? A human? A chicken? A horse?' he laughed at the thought of that.
In his life, he hadn't sinned much. He had never hurt anyone intentionally and also helped a lot of people. So maybe… his next life would be good as well.
But who was he to guess the wills of heaven.
All he could do was wait for a good end and live his next life happily content.
He stood up, patted his coat clean, clutched the angel feather in one hand, and happily continued his walk.
"Help…." A soft whimper was heard as he walked by an alleyway.
An old lady was seen clutching her bag in her embrace, and a young man was trying to pluck it off.
Hui Long quickly ran in and pushed the man away. The youngster seemed to be spooked by this. He quickly took off, leaving them alone.
"Are you okay, ma'am?" He helped her up.
The old lady panted, clutching her bag close. "Thank you.. thank you so much.. oh, I have my life savings here… thank you so much." She put her chubby fingers into her clutch and pulled out a folded note. "Here, take this."
"It's okay. I didn't do much." He tried to dissuade her, but the old lady insistently handed him the rolled-up ten-yuan note and walked away with a hop in her step.
Hui Long gazed at the crumpled note and the feather he had clutched in his other hand. "I guess my last act was to help others. This is also gratifying."
He walked out of the alley with a bright smile. Soon, he walked around helping old people carry heavy things and even helped a lost young boy find his parents.
Letting out a bright smile, he gazed up at the sky. "Why haven't I done this sooner? This feels so good."
Warm street light illuminated his face.
Without even realizing it, he had been walking around the dark streets being a helpful neighbor for about three hours.
Hui Long paused. "So much time has passed, yet I haven't died… maybe I wasn't meant to die today."
He gazed at the feather that shimmered slightly. "Then why? Why did I see that angel? Was I wrong?"
Just then, his phone rang loudly again, startling him.
Looking at the call log, Hui frowned. He still connected the call. "Hello?"
"How can you write your will like that!" an old voice croaked. "You should leave everything you have to your brother! How can you do this! You ungrateful swine! Is this how you repay us for raising you!!! You better change that will or else.."
"Or else what? Kill me? Oh dear, dear father. If I die, everything goes to charity. You can't do anything about it. What else can you do besides threatening me?" he let out a free laugh.
He had been dying to say these words to this annoying father of his.
"You… how dare you talk to me that way! You must have forgotten! I'm your father!"
"Yeah, not God." Hui Long happily twirled around the feather. "I have always hated that condescending tone of yours, dear dad. You have always treated me like shit. What on earth made you think I will give my fortune to your darling son? That degenerate deserves to rot in prison for what he has done."
"Shut up, you! Come change the will right now!"
"Nope. Bye." He cut the call stoically and placed it in his coat. "Haaaa, that felt refreshing. I should have done that sooner." He let out a deep breath of relief, looking up at the sky.
Lightning flashed brightly.
Right at that instant, he saw a flash of green and the next second he was out like a light.
A smaller angel fluttered down from the roof with difficulty with a panicked look on his face. "Oh my god, did I kill a human? Can humans die because of a flower pot?" The small boy squatted down and cleaned the sand off of the high-end coat.
To his surprise, he did not see a human rather… it was a pig inside the clothes.
"Oh thank god, it was just a pig or else I would have lost my angelic halo." The angel patted the pig clean, placed it in the alleyway nearby, and continued on his job monitoring his target.
4o