"You're just playing tricks on your Uncle Wu," Wu Shu clearly didn't believe I would report him.
But I was just saying it for fun. I didn't want him to keep probing the topic we had just discussed.
"Alright, Wu Shu, I need to head to the crematorium to pick up the ashes. I'll be leaving now."
Before Zhang Yun's reminder, I used to walk down the hallway without a care. But now that I knew someone invisible was following me, my heart tightened with anxiety and fear.
Each step I took in the hallway, I felt like a pair of eyes was watching me from behind. I wanted to turn and look but couldn't bring myself to do it.
As I became more immersed in this world, I began to believe things I used to consider as just casual talk.
I had heard before that a person has three "fires" on their body—one on the top of the head. It is said that if you're walking at night and hear any sound, don't turn around. Even if something happens, keep walking. Turning back extinguishes one of the three fires, and when all three are extinguished, it's easy to attract evil things.
So even though I felt an icy chill behind me, I didn't dare to look back. I kept my head down and walked forward.
An invisible presence seemed dissatisfied with my ignorance, and I pretended not to feel it. Suddenly, I heard a child's voice near my ear.
"I got you!"
"Ah—" I screamed halfway and quickly covered my mouth with my hand, forcing my eyes straight ahead as I ran forward, not stopping until I reached the crematorium.
Zhang Yun saw me and approached. "What's wrong with you? You look like you've seen a ghost!"
I would have said, "I actually did see a ghost!" although I didn't see it with my eyes, but the voice was loud and clear. How could I pretend it wasn't real?
"Brother Yun, tell me—is there something unspeakable here?"
Zhang Yun's face immediately changed. He shook his head, saying there was nothing strange going on.
The way he reacted made me more suspicious. I frowned, "Brother Yun, I just encountered a child in the hallway. He..."
Before I could finish, he quickly covered my mouth, "Don't say anything, don't you dare talk about that here."
Seeing his nervousness, I was even more certain that something was wrong with the funeral home.
"Brother Yun, what exactly is going on here? I work here, shouldn't I be told everything? I need to mentally prepare myself!"
Seeing my persistence, Zhang Yun hesitated.
"Sometimes, it's better not to know. Are you sure you want to know?"
I had already been through worse, so I thought I had enough courage to hear it.
Noticing his hesitance, I quickly pulled out a pack of cigarettes—something I rarely smoked but always kept on me—and handed it to Zhang Yun.
"Brother Yun, tell me."
...
Zhang Yun told me that the funeral home was built on an old cemetery, so when night fell, strange noises were common. He explained that the reason people who worked in this place either went crazy or died was because they were constantly exposed to these eerie sounds. Over time, they experienced strange occurrences, like Zhang Yun's pale face and odd behavior after sleeping in the hallway.
When I heard the funeral home was built on an old cemetery, I felt a chill run down my spine.
So they had known all along that such things would happen here, especially for people working the night shift, which was when these things roamed.
Had I known this when I first joined, I would never have taken the job.
"Alright, now that you know what I know, don't think you can just quit. When you signed the contract, you probably didn't pay attention to the last clause."
This caught my attention, and I looked at Zhang Yun, puzzled. "What do you mean, I didn't pay attention?"
I really hadn't paid attention. At that time, I was just focused on the 9000 yuan salary, which was exactly what I needed to pay for my grandfather's urgent medical bills. I never looked at the contract closely. Was there something wrong with it?
Zhang Yun gave me a knowing look. "I can tell you didn't read it carefully. Like me when I first started, you were just focused on the salary. You never thought about what was behind it."
Curious, I asked, "So what was the last clause?"
"Our smart director knew we'd eventually find out what's going on here, so to prevent us from quitting, you signed a five-year contract. If you leave early, you'll have to pay a 1 million yuan penalty."
I couldn't believe my ears. Wasn't this financial fraud?
"Has it always been like this? Why hasn't anyone reported him?"
This time, Zhang Yun didn't answer. He took a drag of his cigarette and continued working.
That night, after a long day, I began to see Zhang Yun in a new light. Despite being distant at first, he seemed like a trustworthy guy. He noticed I was scared to carry the ashes alone, so he stayed with me until I delivered them safely.
Once the ashes were delivered and dawn was approaching, I felt I should at least show my appreciation by inviting him for breakfast.
"Brother Yun, how about we grab some breakfast? We can eat and then go back to sleep."
He looked at the sky and nodded. We went together for breakfast.
He ate nearly ten buns and a bowl of noodles with three portions. I was amazed. He was so skinny, yet he could eat so much. At least I could eat three buns, but he ate ten and still managed a whole bowl of noodles.
"Brother Yun, I'm impressed."
He shot me a glance, then lowered his head and kept eating.
Suddenly, my phone rang. It was an unknown number. I was confused, and when I picked up, I was surprised to hear the master's voice. I had saved his number, but it didn't show up on my caller ID.
The master explained that he was using a police station number, which was why it didn't display.
Before I could ask further questions, the master hurriedly told me to go to the police station. He said there was progress on the long-haired female ghost case and gave me an address.
When it came to that long-haired female ghost, I didn't hesitate for a second. I apologized to Zhang Yun, paid the bill, and hurriedly left.