After Old Liu finished recounting his personal experience, he looked at me expectantly and asked if I knew what was going on, and how one could escape this calamity.
I analyzed his story and found one particularly striking similarity. Starting with the girl's words, she first said she was waiting there for her companion, but later she said everyone was lying to her, leaving her there alone.
Old Liu and his friends made a vow when they became sworn brothers, which was not to seek to be born on the same day, in the same month, and in the same year, but to seek to die on the same day, in the same month, and in the same year. They had all violated their oath and pledge.
As for how to break this curse, I really couldn't say, because I had never encountered such a thing. Perhaps my master would know, but he was nowhere to be found.
When Old Liu heard that I didn't know how to break the curse, he shook his head and sighed deeply, murmuring about fate and that it was all destined.
Of course, I knew what he meant by fate. He had already escaped a previous disaster, but at our insistence, he had bizarrely recounted his experience as a story to us. It just so happened that Xiao Yang's ghost learned of it and traveled thousands of miles to find this place.
I washed the towel on Old Liu's head once more and draped it over him again.
In his eyes, I saw gratitude, although I had done nothing at all. Maybe it was because I took his issue to heart.
Suddenly, Old Liu sat up and said they had already arrived and were standing behind me.
I turned around and saw nothing. If there were indeed any ghostly apparitions, I was certain I would be able to see them. I told him that I had opened my Yin-Yang Eyes and that there was no one else in the tent except the two of us.
Old Liu shook his head, insistent on his point of view, and said that they were laughing at him.
It occurred to me that perhaps Old Liu was having hallucinations due to his fever.
Suddenly, a strange feeling arose within me from Old Liu, perhaps that feeling was called liberation.
Old Liu laughed and said he probably wouldn't survive the night and that his three brothers were waiting for their reunion.
I comforted Old Liu, telling him I would stay with him that night to see which noble spirit was causing trouble again.
He squarely refused, saying that it was his own business and I needn't worry about it anymore.
As I was about to say more, Old Liu issued an eviction order, saying it was getting late and it was unsafe to travel at night, so I should head back earlier.
Feeling helpless, I left him a protective talisman, which, this time, he did not refuse. After receiving it, he placed it within his clothes.
On the way back to the Taoist temple, I felt quite upset. Was such an interesting old man really going to pass away like this?
As usual, I cleaned the courtyard, finished my homework, and started on my daily must-do practice. Lighting incense for meditation.
Late at night as I lay in bed, I kept thinking about Old Liu and hoped he could let go of his burdens and continue to live well.
At some point, I finally fell asleep. In my dream, Old Liu was lively and spirited, lecturing us. After the lesson, he also told us a story about the true and false Monkey King. Seeing his energized appearance, I felt extremely relieved. It seemed he had let go of his burdens and survived this ordeal.
After the story, Old Liu came to my side, patted me on the shoulder and said I should study hard to become a useful talent for the country. I was a bit puzzled at the time, wondering why he suddenly asked me to study hard, especially since I was already making a strong effort.
After Old Liu finished speaking, he turned into wisps of blue smoke and slowly dissipated in the classroom.
"Old Liu..." I muttered as I rubbed my bleary eyes. By that time, it was already light outside. It had all been just a dream.
Could the dream hold some meaning? Concerned about him, I got dressed and ran towards Old Liu's tent.
As I opened the tent flaps, a strong smell of blood rushed at me, and when I looked at Old Liu, I was stunned.
There lay Old Liu in a pool of blood, his abdomen slashed open by some object, with his intestines spilling out, his heart gouged out and missing. His hands were clasped desperately around his head, which was placed at his waist, a ghastly smile of relief on his face. And on his legs lay that talisman, now stained red.
I let the tent flap fall, turned around, and began to vomit, spewing out even the porridge I had eaten the night before. It was too revolting.
In the afternoon, wailing police cars arrived, and after surveying the scene and gathering information, declared it a homicide, possibly provoked by Old Liu's ghost story. After several rounds of questioning, suspicion fell heaviest on me.
About two hours later, I entered the city for the first time in my life, though it was to be taken to the police station.
After a day and night of interrogation, without a way to defend myself, I ultimately became a convicted murderer and was sent to a juvenile detention center.
Upon arriving, I even felt a flush of excitement as I observed each inmate with their buzz cuts, finding it all very novel. Soon enough, I joined their ranks, my hair shaved off to the scalp, fully sharing their misery.
I was assigned to a shared cell, and on the way there, I noticed a large empty cell. I asked the warden why I was being placed in a shared cell and why I couldn't be in that one instead.
The warden just smiled and said if I really wanted to stay there, he could put in a request for me.
Sensing something untold, I changed the subject and didn't pursue it further.
After the warden left, a group of inmates circled around me like curious children, peppering me with questions. When I told them I was just a kid from a poor mountain area, they seemed to lose interest and drifted back to their beds.
The Dormitory Head pointed to an empty bed for me to sleep in and then ignored me, enthusiastically chatting with others. No matter where you are, if there's a group of people, then the nightlife is always perfect.
They talked about everything from heaven to earth, and through chatting, we quickly became acquainted.
When they brought up the topic of dating, I was a bit surprised. Is this what life is like for city folk? Thinking about love at such a young age. I remembered that in the nearby villages, people usually waited until they were seventeen or eighteen to talk about marriage.
After they finished that topic, I asked them about the empty cell I had seen earlier, and why all seventeen or eighteen of us were cramped in this one.
They told me if I wanted to live there, I could, but that cell was said to be eerie. Whoever lived there either fell seriously ill or went straight to see the King of Hell.