""You think you're so great, just because you're a college graduate and you look down on me, don't you? And now look... you've fallen into my hands!"
He had a smug look on his face, while Li Yaner secretly gritted her teeth and forced a smile as she asked him,
"Oh, really? Have you... Have you been to all the little hair salons in this town?"
Their small town was located on a major transportation route with many large trucks coming and going. For some reason, several hair salons had popped up one after another, frequented by truck drivers who liked to stop in town and visit these salons for "haircuts". Once Li's father had money, he often patronized them, and judging from his tone, this man was a regular customer as well!
Hearing her question, the man chuckled with pride as he undid his tie, boasting,
"Your man is talented. Those women, they're all like cats who've seen fish when they see me, eyes glowing green... I don't even have to pay..."
He spoke with such pride, while Li Yaner felt a surge of nausea listening to him,
The man then started to unbuckle his belt,
"Listen here... If you serve me well, and only because I respect that you're a college student, who the hell would marry you otherwise? Just bear me sons obediently... and you'll see what's good later!"
After saying that he reached out and pinched Li Yaner's chin, leaning in for a kiss as she pushed him away,
"Wait... hold on a moment... I... I have something nice to show you!"
As she spoke, she reached into her pocket, and the man, with drunken eyes, chuckled,
"What do you have to show me? Li Dazhuang was so stingy that he was sucking on his fingers, and he let you bring a dowry over?"
While he was speaking, he saw Li Yaner pull out a broken mirror from under her pillow,
"What's that?"
The man's reaction was slow due to the alcohol, so he squinted and leaned in to have a look, as Li Yaner said with a smile,
"Take a look, the thing inside can't be seen by others..."
As she spoke, she patted his shoulders and the top of his head,
"Now you can see it!"
"Pfft! You're playing with me!"
As he said that, he saw a pale face appear in the small broken mirror, eyes bulging out, nose mostly rotted away revealing two pitch-black holes, upper lip gone, showing the blood-red gums and bared white teeth,
"Hehe..."
The Female Ghost in the mirror smiled at him,
"Dear groom, congratulations! It's your wedding night..."
As she spoke, she reached out with one pale hand, with half-inch long black nails, shiny and sleek,
"Dear groom, give me a hand, let me join the fun too..."
The man looked strong and burly, but he was really a coward. Once he realized what was in the mirror, his eyes popped, he made a guttural sound in his throat, stood up staggering back two steps, and bumped into the dresser at the end of the bed. His face turned white as paper, eyes bulging, mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water, but no sound came out. Li Yaner, seeing him scared silly, felt a deep sense of satisfaction and moved closer with the mirror in hand,
"Have another look... isn't it fun? This ghost looks scary, but it's only been dead for a year, rotten like this. I've been able to see ghosts since I was a child, even attract them. Everyone in our village back home knew about it... But after coming to this town, my parents didn't want me to talk about it. Now that we're married, I can't keep it from you!"
As she spoke, the ghost in the mirror obligingly smiled at the man,
"Hehe..."
"You... you..."
The man's face stiffened, his eyes shifted to Li Yaner's face and he managed to squeeze out two words from his throat, then suddenly clenched his chest, gasping for air. Li Yaner watched as his eyes rolled back, his face turning from white to blue, his lips going dark, and his body limply slid from the dresser to the ground,
"Help... help... help me..."
The man writhed in anguish on the ground, calling for help. This young man, having indulged in eating, drinking, prostitution, and gambling, had already hollowed himself out. Appearing strong on the outside, he was weak inside. That evening, he had also drunk quite a bit, and being suddenly so frightened by Gu Shi Yi, he immediately had a heart attack,
"Help... help me..."
In a last desperate plea, the man's cries for help echoed towards the door..."