Unterwelt

Kapitel 23

Lin Hong stood up and called out to Da Niu, who was climbing high up wiping the window glass, "Da Niu, come and help me, take your Auntie Piggy's things out of her room."

Lin Hong was able to give orders to Da Niu because long before Fu Xiuying agreed to come to the He family, they had already discussed it with Qin Fangcheng. They decided that no matter what, they had to get rid of this strange little nanny. If she stayed, who knows what other strange things might happen.

Da Niu agreed and went upstairs. Together with Fu Xiuying, they opened the pig's bedroom door and moved all the things in the room to the living room downstairs. Lin Hong sat there coldly watching. She waited until they had cleared everything out, but she still didn't see the big-headed strange turtle. She couldn't help but feel strange and looked up at the pig.

A cryptic smile played on the little pig's face. She said nothing, only maintaining this suspicious, chilling grin as she squatted down and slowly began tidying her belongings. She seemed to be intentionally making it clear to Lin Hong that, apart from the things she had brought from the countryside, nothing she owned had anything to do with the He family. She slowly unwrapped one floral cloth bundle after another, taking out all the wrinkled clothes inside, and then, with the same slow movements, placing them one by one into a large leather suitcase. She tidied for a long time, but the strange turtle still hadn't appeared. This made Lin Hong suspicious, unsure whether she should ask her a question.

He Zhenggang called out to Xiaozhu loudly from upstairs, his voice urgent. Xiaozhu slowly stood up and looked at Lin Hong. Lin Hong forced a smile at the country nanny, went over and opened the door: "Xiaozhu, be careful on the road, and don't forget to contact home often in the future."

Even the little pig smiled, which was rare for him: "Thank you for your care, big sister. If you ever need anything from me in the future, just ask Uncle He and you'll be able to find my house."

"It's still undecided." Lin Hong watched the little pig's lonely figure walk out the door, and felt an immense sense of relief, as if a heavy stone mill that had been pressing on her heart for so long had finally been removed, and the fear and desire she felt towards this house had completely vanished. She closed the door, went upstairs, and entered He Zhenggang's ward, who was shouting incessantly: "Dad, what's wrong?"

"Little Pig, Little Pig," He Zhenggang's eyes bulged outwards, and he tried his best to sit up, but he was too weak to do so. He could only look at Lin Hong with desperate eyes and plead: "Did you send Little Pig away? No, please don't, call her back, call her back quickly."

"Dad, take a break," Lin Hong slowly helped He Zhenggang sit up. "Xiao Zhu has told me several times that he wants to ask for leave to come home, but I can't just refuse him out of consideration for his feelings, can I?"

"No!" He Zhenggang was both anxious and angry, his trembling finger pointing out the window: "Call her back, call her back now, do you hear me?" Suddenly his body convulsed violently, and he fainted.

7)

Unable to find the piglet, He Zhenggang refused to listen to Lin Hong. Frustrated and angry, he fainted and was rushed to the hospital. Lin Hong ran around the emergency room, finally managing to get the old man into the operating room. Exhausted and mentally blank, she was about to sit down and rest on a chair in the hospital corridor when a doctor suddenly poked his head out from the resuscitation room:

"Little Pig, who's calling Little Pig? Little Pig's family member, come in here right now, the patient has something to say."

Lin Hong looked at the doctor, tears welling up in her eyes, unsure whether to agree or remain silent. Just as she hesitated, someone walked up from behind: "It's me." Lin Hong looked closely and jumped up in shock. This girl really was Xiao Zhu! She hadn't left at all! She wanted to stop her, but couldn't find a reason, and could only watch helplessly as Xiao Zhu was taken into the emergency room.

A while later, He Ming also arrived after hearing the news. He stared anxiously at the door of the emergency room: "How is he? My dad risked his life for you just for a little pig?"

"It's more than risking his life!" Lin Hong smiled bitterly. "I really doubt that Xiao Zhu is your biological sister. Didn't you see how he was after he realized I let Xiao Zhu go? Even if she were your own daughter, she probably wouldn't be this heartbroken."

"What can we do?" He Ming shook his head repeatedly. "He's become addicted to the bitter food that Little Pig makes. But at least you got rid of Little Pig. We'll adjust the old man's taste slowly." He didn't know that Little Pig hadn't left at all. Not only had he not left, but he was in the emergency room. But Lin Hong really didn't want to tell him. It seemed that this family was destined to suffer Little Pig's torment.

From that day on, He Zhenggang was admitted to the hospital with Xiaozhu by his side. Fu Xiuying and her daughter, Daniu, moved into the He family home to take care of He's mother and He Jing. Initially, Fu Xiuying prepared meals and had Daniu deliver them to the hospital because He Zhenggang couldn't get used to the hospital food. However, He Zhenggang also couldn't swallow Fu Xiuying's cooking, so Daniu and Xiaozhu had to take turns each day, so Xiaozhu could come back to rest and prepare meals for He Zhenggang. Fu Xiuying was very unhappy about this. She repeatedly tried to get Lin Hong to go to the hospital to take care of He Zhenggang, but Lin Hong pretended not to understand. She simply didn't like this family.

Several times, Lin Hong wanted to leave Fu Xiuying and Daniu at the He family's house so she could go back and rest, but Fu Xiuying stopped her each time. Fu Xiuying said, "You can ignore your sister-in-law, you can ignore your father-in-law's illness, but your mother-in-law is sick in bed, you have to take care of her, right? What's the use of studying so much if you're so heartless?"

Lin Hong was so angry by his words that she turned red in the face, but she had no words to say back, so she had no choice but to stay.

The day He Zhenggang was admitted to the hospital, Fu Xiuying and Lin Hong were eating in the living room. While they were eating, Fu Xiuying suddenly said, "When you go out in a little while, remember to buy some firecrackers."

"Why are you buying firecrackers?" Lin Hong asked, puzzled. "Fireworks and firecrackers are banned in the city."

"Ignore all that," Fu Xiuying waved her hand casually. "Buy some firecrackers and set them off to ward off the evil spirits."

"What kind of evil energy?" Lin Hong asked, puzzled.

"What evil spirit?" Fu Xiuying looked at Lin Hong with disdain: "Your house is unclean, there are dirty things inside. We adults can't see them, but Da Niu saw them yesterday and told me about them."

"Big Girl... what did she see?" Lin Hong suddenly became nervous.

Fu Xiuying fiddled with the food on the plate with her chopsticks for a few moments and said, "Let's not talk about this anymore, it's too dirty."

Lin Hong was furious: "Sister Fu, you'd better tell me. I've been married into the He family for so long, and I've never seen anything strange."

Fu Xiuying snorted, "You didn't see it? That's because you're lucky. If you keep asking like that, you'll regret it." After saying that, she ignored Lin Hong and started eating her meal by herself.

Lin Hong made a fool of herself, but she didn't take it to heart. After dinner, while Fu Xiuying was upstairs wiping He's mother's body, she quietly called out to Da Niu, who was on her way to the hospital to relieve Xiao Zhu, and said, "Da Niu, come here, Auntie has a question for you."

Fu Xiuying's five children, born into a homeless family, are young but have experienced far more than other children their age, perhaps even more than Lin Hong herself. So when Da Niu heard Lin Hong's words, she knew perfectly well what was going on, but pretended to be innocent and naive, skipping and hopping to Lin Hong: "Auntie, what is it?"

Lin Hong squatted down and took Da Niu's arm in her hand: "Da Niu, tell Auntie, did you see something here?"

The girl blinked: "My mom told me not to talk nonsense."

“It’s okay to tell Auntie,” Lin Hong comforted Da Niu. “Auntie won’t tell anyone.”

"Hmm," Da Niu hesitated slightly, "I know Auntie is good to me. If Auntie asks me, I will definitely tell her. Our teacher told us that good children should tell the truth and should buy a new schoolbag. My schoolbag is too old. And my dad is biased and only loves San Niu. Auntie, you won't tell my dad what I said, will you?"

"No, no," Lin Hong hurriedly shook her head: "How much would a new schoolbag cost?"

The girl replied, "The teacher asked everyone to buy the one with Mickey Mouse on it, which costs 180 yuan."

Lin Hong thought to herself, "Why is a schoolbag so expensive?" She was only focused on getting the child to tell the truth, completely unaware that Da Niu was no less cunning than San Niu. Lin Hong had been tricked by San Niu before, so how could she possibly be a match for Da Niu? After she took out the money and handed it to Da Niu, Da Niu gave a mysterious look, then suddenly exclaimed, "Oh no! Auntie, I have to hurry to the hospital! I'll tell you when I get back!" With that, she bypassed Lin Hong and ran away.

When Da Niu returned in the afternoon, Lin Hong tried to ask her about it again, but Da Niu avoided her, leaving Lin Hong frustrated and helpless, and she could only admit defeat.

At night, Lin Hong slept alone in one room, while Fu Xiuying and Da Niu slept in another. This clever country woman had installed a doorbell by each of He's mother and He Jing's beds, so that if anything happened at night, they could be woken up by ringing the doorbell. But things were strange; ever since she arrived, He Zhenggang had fallen seriously ill and gone to the hospital, while He's mother and He Jing had become incredibly well-behaved, sleeping soundly through the night without ever having their doorbells ringing in the middle of the night.

After days of hard work, the exhaustion had seeped into Lin Hong's heart. She lay in bed, feeling weak all over and extremely sleepy, but she just couldn't fall asleep. It was as if her subconscious was waiting for something, and this waiting made her extremely tense.

Just after midnight, as Lin Hong was about to fall asleep, a soft footstep suddenly sounded in the quiet building, startling her awake.

The heavy footsteps grew clearer and clearer as they approached.

Thump, thump, thump, light footsteps slowly descended from the second floor. In an instant, Lin Hong was drenched in sweat. This terrifying midnight night had actually been spent walking down from the third floor step by step.

Something was lurking on the third floor, and now, with the terrifying power bestowed upon it by the darkness, it emerged from the He family's nightmare and stepped into reality.

8)

The thing slowly walked down the stairs, step by step. Lin Hong was so frightened that she was covered in sweat. She hurriedly tried to call out to Fu Xiuying, but because of excessive fear, she and her body were trembling. The thing walked to her door. She remembered locking the door before going to bed, but when the thing outside pushed, the door opened silently.

The thing came in! Lin Hong screamed, sat up abruptly, and quickly turned on the wall lamp.

There was nothing in front of her except for the open door, through which a cold wind blew in, making her shiver even more violently.

Hearing her scream, Fu Xiuying put on her clothes, got out of bed, and came over: "What happened?" Lin Hong pointed outside in terror: "Just now, something came in." Fu Xiuying said "Oh," glanced around Lin Hong's room, and said, "Wait a moment." Then she went back, and when she came back, she was holding an embroidered image of Guanyin. She said to Lin Hong very seriously, "If you worship Guanyin, you won't be afraid of evil spirits. You've read so many books, but they're all useless."

Da Niu followed, carrying a small incense burner. Fu Xiuying instructed, "Come here, light an incense stick, and pray to Guanyin for your protection. Guanyin is compassionate and merciful, and will grant all requests."

Lin Hong was both amused and exasperated: "Will this really work?"

These words made Fu Xiuying's expression change drastically: "If that's what you mean, then burning incense won't help. Sincerity is key. You've blasphemed Buddha, so of course evil spirits will try to harm you."

Although she knew it was ridiculous for Fu Xiuying to confuse Guanyin with Buddha, Lin Hong still panicked when she heard it and hurriedly jumped off the bed: "Sister Fu, if that's how you put it, then I'll light incense. How should I do it?"

“No matter what I do, it’s no use,” Fu Xiuying told Da Niu to take the incense burner back. “Look at me, I’m immune to all evil, that’s the real face that brings good fortune to my husband. If you promise me that you’ll break off all ties with the father of my child, I’ll help you. Besides, you’re married into a wealthy and powerful family, why would you compete with a country woman like me? I’m illiterate, and my child is always crying. The whole family depends on the father of my child to support us. Please have pity on me.”

Lin Hong was completely confused: "Who is the child's father? I don't know him!"

“It’s Lao Qin,” Fu Xiuying told Lin Hong, making Lin Hong roll her eyes in disbelief.

The night passed just like that. The next evening, Da Niu's school called Qin Fangcheng, saying that she had been skipping school for several days and that her parents should discipline her. Qin Fangcheng was very anxious when he heard this. He drove over, grabbed Da Niu, and gave her a severe scolding. Da Niu felt very wronged and cried, saying that her mother wouldn't let her go to school and made her come over to take care of Grandpa He.

Qin Fangcheng was very unhappy after hearing this, and scolded Fu Xiuying, who was hiding to the side pretending nothing was wrong: "What kind of garbage is in your head? The child is at the age of seeking knowledge. If you don't let her go to school, you will delay her future. How can you face the child?"

Fu Xiuying muttered, "What's the point of a girl knowing so many characters? Look at your little vixen, she knows quite a few characters, but what good is it? All she knows is dressing up and putting on makeup all day long, she doesn't even know how to offer incense to Guanyin."

Qin Fangcheng was so angry he was practically fuming. He stomped his foot, grabbed Da Niu, and dragged her away, saying, "Da Niu, Dad will send you to school so you can go to university in America."

Da Niu was overjoyed: "Yes, in the future, Da Niu will take Daddy to America to offer incense to Guanyin." Hearing this, Qin Fangcheng looked up to the sky and sighed helplessly.

Da Niu was taken away by Qin Fangcheng, and now only Lin Hong and Fu Xiuying are at home to take care of the patients. Fortunately, there isn't much to do, and Fu Xiuying takes good care of the two patients. When Lin Hong has free time, she goes back to her room to sleep. In the evening, Fu Xiuying wakes her up, and the two of them eat their meal quickly before going back to their rooms to sleep.

Lin Hong thought that since she had slept a lot during the day, she would probably not be able to sleep at night, but that was not the case at all. As soon as her head hit the pillow, she immediately fell asleep.

Fu Xiuying first followed the old custom, respectfully offering incense before the embroidered image of Guanyin. Then, glancing at He's mother and He Jing, seeing them both sleeping soundly, she returned to her room. Lying on her bed, just as she was drifting off to sleep, she suddenly sensed something moving gently in the room. Fu Xiuying was startled, thinking to herself that this evil spirit possessed such a strong aura that even Guanyin's power couldn't suppress it. Suddenly filled with fear, she lay motionless on the bed.

The thing slowly crept towards the bedside. Fu Xiuying was terrified. She knew that by the time it touched her, it would be too late to scream. She immediately jumped up and screamed. Then she heard the thing turn around and quickly dart out the door, followed by a series of loud footsteps as it ran up to the third floor.

Even from that vague impression, Fu Xiuying had already seen it clearly. No wonder even Guanyin's magic was ineffective; it wasn't some evil creature at all, but a person.

Fu Xiuying jumped to the ground, grabbed a claw hammer—the same one she had used to injure Qin Fangcheng's ankle—and with the hammer in hand, she felt incredibly confident. She strode out, carrying a lamp.

She knocked on Lin Hong's door first, and heard Lin Hong's terrified voice from inside: "Who is it?"

Fu Xiuying snorted coldly, "It's me. I know what was in your room last night. Come out with me, we'll catch it." From inside the room, Lin Hong immediately screamed. Fu Xiuying was annoyed, "Can't you be a little braver? This is your home. The one who should be scared is the person who sneaked into your house. I'm here, what are you afraid of?"

Lin Hong cautiously pushed open the door and came out: "Sister Fu, you said that thing is a person."

“That’s right.” Fu Xiuying was too lazy to explain to Lin Hong, so she ordered, “Take this stick, and if you see anyone, ignore them and just hit them first.”

Lin Hong glanced nervously at the thin wooden stick, thinking that such a thin stick could hardly be used in a fight; it was more like a back scratcher. Even so, having a stick in her hand was better than being empty-handed. Looking at Fu Xiuying, who was tall and burly, with thick arms and legs that rivaled those of men, Lin Hong's courage finally grew, and she followed Fu Xiuying up to the third floor.

Reaching the top of the stairs, Fu Xiuying turned and asked, "What's up there?"

Fu Xiuying's question sent a chill down Lin Hong's spine. What was upstairs? She had never dared to ask, because she knew, she knew perfectly well, that she was upstairs, her hands and feet bound behind her back, surrounded by despairing darkness, from which echoed eerie laughter. This fear was deeply ingrained in her, tormenting her for over twenty years, yet she had still inexplicably come here. Fate's arrangement was so cruel, causing Lin Hong to tremble indescribably.

Seeing Lin Hong's deathly pale face, Fu Xiuying asked in surprise, "Why are you trembling so badly?"

The fear surged like a tidal wave from the depths of Lin Hong's heart, engulfing her in an instant. In terror, she screamed and turned to run to her room. Once inside, she quickly slammed the door shut, leaned against it, and felt her consciousness slipping away until she lost consciousness.

Looking at Lin Hong's appearance, Fu Xiuying shook her head repeatedly: "Such a vixen, born to seduce men, how can she do anything proper? Even here, Lao Qin is still infatuated with her. I, Fu Xiuying, am so much better than her. Sigh, I'll do it alone."

With a sigh, Fu Xiuying strode up the stairs: "Who's hiding up there? Come out here, or I'll make you regret it for the rest of your life."

She shouted something to bolster her courage; after all, she was a woman, and her fear was no less than Lin Hong's. However, Lin Hong had been born into hardship and was destined to find no one to rely on. With sighs and lamentations, Fu Xiuying went up to the third floor.

Upon receiving Lin Hong's distress call, He Ming and Qin Fangcheng arrived at the He residence almost simultaneously. As they got out of the car, they glanced at each other, neither of them speaking, and hurriedly went to knock on the door.

Lin Hong opened the door for them, sobbing. Her face was covered in tears, and her body trembled like a leaf in the cold wind. Qin Fangcheng instinctively reached out to help her, but his hand barely touched Lin Hong's body. Suddenly, he saw He Ming's slightly displeased look and realized that this should be within He Ming's rights. He then realized his lapse in composure and hurriedly withdrew his hand: "What exactly happened?"

“Upstairs,” Lin Hong cried, pointing to the ceiling, “Sister Fu said someone broke into the house, so she went up to the third floor. It’s been almost two hours, and she still hasn’t come down, and we haven’t heard a sound.”

Upon hearing this, He Ming's expression changed drastically, and he immediately ordered, "Go upstairs and stay with my mother. I'll go up and check on things." Qin Fangcheng, however, said nothing more and rushed up the stairs ahead of He Ming.

The two of them climbed to the third floor quickly, one after the other.

Like most buildings, this beautiful three-story detached house is located on the riverbank. The floor area of the top floor is significantly smaller than that of the bottom floor. There are only four rooms facing the sun on the third floor, which are arranged in a row along a corridor.

The four rooms are located on the east and west sides, with two rooms on each side. The two rooms on the west side are used as storage rooms because they are relatively damp and filled with odds and ends. Although the doors are never locked, no one has ever gone in. The two rooms on the east side are bedrooms, fully furnished with carpets, beds, and furniture. Except for the occasional visit of He Zhenggang's relatives from the countryside, these two rooms are usually empty.

After rushing forward, Qin Fangcheng looked left and right, unsure which direction to go, so he stopped and waited for He Ming. He rushed ahead for two reasons: first, he didn't want He Ming to see anything amiss between him and Lin Hong; second, he was worried about Fu Xiuying. Although he disliked this woman more than anyone else, if something happened to her, wouldn't all five children fall on his shoulders?

He Ming didn't think too much about it. He was a man who had seen a lot in life, and he still trusted his wife at least a little. Of course, he had already noticed that Qin Fangcheng and Lin Hong still had feelings for each other, but he knew that Lin Hong wasn't the kind of woman who acted rashly. It was precisely this that had won Lin Hong's affection and trust. He followed Qin Fangcheng upstairs, and the first thing he did was to turn on the switch installed in the stairwell. Instantly, the third floor was brightly lit.

Then He Ming strolled towards the two bedrooms on the east side, with Qin Fangcheng close behind him. The two men pushed open a door, and immediately a pungent smell of dust rushed out. The room was quiet and empty. The next room was the same.

Then they went to the west storage room, pushed open the door, and were met with old books, newspapers, and cardboard boxes covered in a thick layer of dust. They still couldn't find anyone. After checking all four rooms, the two men looked at each other in bewilderment. Lin Hong asked, "Did Fu Xiuying come up to the third floor? Why can't we find her?"

They were still a little worried, afraid that their previous check might have been too careless and that they might have missed something. So they checked again, in the wardrobe, under the pile of clutter, in every corner of the room, behind the curtains, but they still couldn't find Fu Xiuying. Moreover, judging from the situation on the third floor, it was clear that no one had been there for a long time.

They went downstairs and saw Lin Hong waiting there, her face pale: "How...how is she?"

"Honghong, did you see her go upstairs with your own eyes?" He Ming asked.

Lin Hong nodded, then quickly shook her head: "She beckoned me to go up and catch the person, but I was too scared and hid in the room. I haven't heard any noise since then."

"I didn't hear any fighting or screams either?" Qin Fangcheng asked, puzzled.

Lin Hong shook her head: "I didn't hear any sound, it was always quiet. Later I got more and more scared, so I called Sister Fu's name, but I didn't get a response. That's when I panicked and called you two."

He Ming pondered for a moment: "Old Qin, I think we should search the whole building again."

Qin Fangcheng nodded: "That's what I meant too."

The two of them started by searching the second floor. Everything in He's mother and He Jing's room was as before. Strangely, despite such a big incident and such a commotion, the two of them were sleeping soundly, snoring loudly enough to be heard clearly even when the door was closed and they were standing in the hallway.