Das Grab von Qin Shi Huang

Kapitel 17

If he plays F2, the burden on his shoulders will be too heavy...

A faint sadness crept across her brow. She habitually opened her wallet; inside was a photo of a handsome young man smiling at her. It was her boyfriend, or rather, her fiancé. They met and fell in love during their undergraduate years. Later, he went to study in the United States, leaving her with countless longings and yearnings. To be able to go abroad and reunite with him, she gave up a guaranteed spot in a combined master's and doctoral program, choosing instead to take the postgraduate entrance exam, hoping that one day she wouldn't have to break her promise and could leave with an easier life. Just when it seemed the hardships of their long-distance relationship were about to end, and he promised to return immediately to get their marriage certificate, he suddenly disappeared!

There was no response to either phone calls or MSN, and she had also lost contact with his parents. Could something have happened to them? Yin Lianzhen wished she could fly to America immediately. However, she knew nothing about America at the moment, and could only wait silently at K University.

She sighed and lowered her head to continue working on her problems. The pale fluorescent light above her flickered strangely; it had been working perfectly just a moment ago. Was the voltage unstable? Yin Lian stood up. In the large lecture hall, about a dozen fluorescent lights, from front to back, were all flickering in unison, as if an invisible hand was controlling the switches. The bright white light sometimes illuminated her face in perfect detail, and sometimes swallowed her into darkness. Yin Lian hesitated whether to check the circuit breaker when, in a flash of light, a boy was clearly visible standing outside the window! The boy's upper body was positioned by the window, and in that brief moment of brightness, it was clear he was wearing an ordinary sports jacket, of medium build, and apart from one thing, he was no different from any other boy.

The only difference is that he has no face!

Where his face should have been, his hands were instead holding a large 16K book, completely covering his head and neck. Beneath the book were a pair of pale hands, standing motionless. Yin Lian could hardly believe her eyes. She rubbed her eyes, but just then, the fluorescent lights all went out again. When the lights came back on, the faceless boy was gone.

The fluorescent lights returned to normal, their soft glow ceasing its flickering and calmly illuminating every corner of the classroom.

Yin Lian had no time to care about any of that. She strained her ears, as if trying to hear the voices of anyone else in the first classroom. But there was nothing there! As mentioned before, the first classroom was usually empty. So she quickly packed her bag, hurriedly stuffing her books inside, and then ran. Rows upon rows of pale fluorescent lights stretched down the corridor, seemingly endless; her footsteps grew increasingly erratic, echoing haphazardly in the empty corridor. She ran past countless dark stairwells, not daring to look directly in, as if some monster would leap out if she did. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted the boy holding a large book that obscured his face, standing there waiting for her beside the escalator at the stairwell entrance.

Then, from behind the book, a low call rang out: "Little Lian~"

"Whoa!" Yin Lian's heart nearly jumped out of her chest in fright. She ran frantically towards the gate. That hateful Building One! At this moment, she utterly loathed the architect of Building One. Why was the corridor designed to be so long and narrow?! Why was there only one exit?! She finally saw a glimmer of hope—the gate was just ahead! She ran towards it with her last bit of strength, but unexpectedly, she bumped right into someone!

Volume Two: The Faceless Man Among the Red Spider Lilies (Part Two)

"Ah!!!" Upon hearing Yin Lian's scream, the person immediately covered their ears, their movements so practiced and skillful it was astonishing. Only after Yin Lian finished screaming did she realize that what she had bumped into was warm and elastic—99% likely a person.

Sure enough, it was a young girl with delicate features, short, neat hair, and no makeup. She wore a vest and sweatpants, a backpack slung over her shoulder, and a water bottle full of water in her hand—a typical K University girl. Her bright black eyes were curiously observing Yin Lian.

"You're so perverted!" Yin Lian grabbed the girl's wrist and stammered, "Inside, inside!"

The girl raised her head and looked down into the dark corridor. "Where? What kind of pervert? A toilet voyeur? Or an exhibitionist?" Her eyes suddenly flashed with a lively and curious look. "Could it be that a new breed of pervert has appeared? I want to see."

"No!" Yin Lian grabbed her tightly. "Don't go! Even though she's just holding a book and covering her face, who knows what might be behind it! What if it's a ghost or something..."

"Just a masked man holding a book?" The girl's face immediately showed great disappointment. "No fun! I thought there was a ghost! I really wanted to play with a ghost."

"You...aren't you afraid of ghosts?" Yin Lian's eyes widened.

The girl smiled confidently. "I'm not bragging, but I've seen plenty of strange things in the world. But I've never seen a ghost that's intent on harming people and slaughtering the innocent. Let's go." She pulled Yin Lian along forcefully, and the latter, overwhelmed by her overly confident tone, followed her without thinking. Although she wasn't as afraid as when she was alone, Yin Lian's heart still pounded when she saw the girl casually pick up a broom from the roadside.

Yin Lian led her to the classroom and explained everything to her. The girl carefully examined the classroom through the windows, and her expression suddenly turned serious.

"How is it?" Yin Lian panicked as well.

“Hmm…” The girl rested her chin on her hand with an air of seriousness, looking every bit the detective, just short of puffing on a pipe like Sherlock Holmes. “It’s this window, right? There are definitely signs of the grass outside being trampled, and the running footprints are very clear. This proves at least two things, one,” she counted on her fingers, “that you’re not lying.”

"Of course I didn't!" Yin Lian shouted angrily, "I'm not crazy! Don't scare yourself!"

"I know, I know, hehe, senior, don't be angry," the girl said shyly, clasping her hands in a fist. "It's just that I got carried away with my detective instincts and couldn't control myself. You know, great detectives first suspect the person who reports the crime... cough, I digress. Well, secondly, ghosts don't have weight."

"So...?" Yin Lian waited confidently for her to continue.

“So,” the girl’s expression turned extremely serious, “it really was done by a pervert!”

There was a five-second pause.

"Of course he's a pervert!" Yin Lian was furious. "Otherwise, he wouldn't have been hiding in the corner like a madman, constantly calling my name, 'Xiao Lian~' 'Xiao Lian~'..."

"Xiao Lian~ Xiao Lian~" This time she really called out.

"Over there!" Without waiting for Yin Lian's consent, the girl grabbed her and ran towards the direction of the voice. The girl was incredibly strong, Yin Lian thought; her own weight of 98 pounds had been effortlessly lifted by the girl. They flew across the small staircase next to the classroom building, the voice so deep it seemed to come from underground. The girl ignored it, simply following behind the sound. After descending countless floors, the sound suddenly stopped. Yin Lian looked down the girl's shoulder and saw a boy sitting at the end of the staircase; his back looked so familiar.

“Liang Haicheng…?” she asked instinctively.

The boy's body trembled violently. He stood up without a word, slowly disappearing into the darkness. "Liang Haicheng!!!" Yin Lian cried out in desperation, "It's you, isn't it?"

"You heartless bastard! Why didn't you tell me you were coming back? Do you know how worried I was? Do you know how long I waited for you?" Tears of joy welled up in her eyes. "But, no matter what, it's good that you're back..."

Liang Haicheng, her fiancé, stopped. No matter how excited or agitated she was, he always silently turned his back to her. This made Yin Lian feel extremely uneasy.

"Why won't you look at me?" she asked, trembling, as if afraid of shattering this beautiful dream. "Why won't you even look at me?"

Liang Haicheng slowly turned around. He had no face; he covered it with a large 16K book. Upon seeing this, Yin Lian gasped in surprise.

"I only came here to say goodbye... I was on my way to the airport to return home when the car accident happened..."

Yin Lian almost fainted; luckily, the girl caught her.

"You're dead? You're a ghost?" She covered her mouth in disbelief.

“No… perhaps, sort of.” Liang Haicheng let out a low, bitter laugh from behind the book, a voice as terrifying as if it came from hell. “I’ve lost my face, I’m now as disgusting as a devil… Please consider me dead. From tonight onwards, I will no longer appear before you. To be able to see you one last time,” he took a deep breath, a relieved laugh escaping from his shattered chest, “is truly wonderful.”

"No, wait!" Seeing him about to disappear from sight, Yin Lian rushed forward and hugged his chest. "How could you be so heartless? Every day and every night, I waited here, just to be reunited with you one day, but you abandoned me without looking back! I lost everything for you! And you abandoned me again! How could you! How could you!" She cried.

The book Liang Haicheng had used to cover his shattered face fell to the ground with a thud. He reached out to grasp Yin Lian's hands, but strangely, his chest was empty. He turned around in astonishment and saw Yin Lian gradually thinning out like air, slowly passing through his body and falling.

“You’re not a ghost, but I am.” Tears glistened at the corners of Yin Lian’s eyes, sparkling like jewels. “Ever since I lost track of you a year ago, I’ve been searching for you like a madman. Later, as a last resort, I made a contract with an astrologer.”

"He devoured my body, and in exchange, he extracted my soul, keeping it at a brightness visible to ordinary people. He preserved my appearance at twenty-two, and all other actions and behaviors were no different from ordinary people. This was all to wait for you, so that when we meet again one day, you will still recognize me at a glance..."

Yin Lian's soul was almost transparent. Liang Haicheng tried to hug her in vain, but he was only stirring up clumps of air.

"Once I see you and touch your body, the contract will be completed automatically, and my mission will end..."

"You're so silly!" Large tears welled up in Liang Haicheng's eyes. "Then why did you hug me just now! Never hug me again, at least we could stay together and look at each other for the rest of our lives!"

"Fool!" Yin Lian smiled softly. "Separated by a mere stream, unable to speak, I would never want such a life." Her body dissipated like smoke, as light as a night breeze. A drop of water landed on Liang Haicheng's head, as gentle as Yin Lian's whisper:

"I love you... so please live on for my sake too..."

"This is the female ghost from the First Cult that I saw with my own eyes," Yan Wuyue questioned the astrologer with an imposing air. "What she was talking about—'contract,' 'astrologer,' 'eaten up'—was it you? Speak!"

The astrologer was holding a bottle of yogurt, laboriously scooping up the residue at the bottom with a small spoon. When Yan Wuyue asked him a question, he simply replied nonchalantly:

"Maybe. It happened many years ago, I don't remember much. How is that female guest?"

"What's so good about it! They've all ascended to heaven!" She glared at him, then suddenly snatched the bottle from his hand. "Stop eating! You only eat people anyway! Answer my question first!"

The astrologer shrugged helplessly. "Once the contract is fulfilled, her soul will be released. As long as she still longs for this world, she can deliberately not fulfill the conditions of the contract. That way, she can stay young forever and live like an ordinary person. In fact, some people do take advantage of this loophole..." At this point, the astrologer suddenly stopped talking.

I see.

"Then tell me, when that female customer's wish was fulfilled, was she happy?"

“Bliss…so wonderful.” Yan Wuyue recalled Yin Lian’s tearful smile, a face gentle and devoted, as ethereal and beautiful as the morning mist.

"My highest principle is the happiness of my customers." The astrologer then took out a box of yogurt drink, forcefully inserted the straw, and drank it with satisfaction.

January 17

Birthday flower: Anemone (Garden Star Anemone)

Flower language: Expectation

The Greek word for anemone means "wind." Anemones grow to about 10 to 20 centimeters tall and are annual herbaceous plants. When they bloom, their lovely flowers sway in the wind, as if eagerly anticipating something, hence their flower language is – anticipation.

Volume Two: The Other Shore Flower in the Rainy Night, You, Me, and Him

You arrived, waving goodbye, your body damp with moisture. The rain, the endless autumn rain, pattered down, casting a black beaded curtain between heaven and earth. You came through this curtain of rain, without an umbrella or a hat, your hair and body heavy with moisture.

You walked this way, not because I waved, but because the roaring fire from the grill beside me illuminated the cold, lonely night. Lamb skewers were repeatedly seared over the fire, their cruel aroma wafting everywhere, specifically tempting lone passersby like you. So you sat down and ordered ten yuan worth of skewers and two bottles of beer. My grill stall doesn't have a canopy to shelter you from the wind and rain, but you said you didn't care. You needed to calm your mind in the bitter wind and rain.

It's an old, tired love story... You start to talk with a bitter smile. The female protagonist is two-timing, and the two male protagonists are kept in the dark. In the end, she chooses him over you and leaves resolutely. It's such a cliché plot... As you get to this point, you can't hide the bitterness and choking in your voice. However, as soon as you spot a figure in the rain, you immediately tense up and keep glancing in that direction.

To your great disappointment, it was a tall man dressed in black. The bright light from the bulbs hanging above the barbecue stall illuminated his face, allowing you to see his true appearance. He looked truly strange; his hair, half black and half white, was pulled low under his hat brim. When he opened his eyes, a chilling green glow emanated from them. Yet, his unusually handsome features added an inexplicable, magical charm to him. He looked up at me and gave me a gentle smile.

“I came here following the scent,” he said. “Please let me sit down if you don’t mind.”

The meat skewers were quickly grilled, filling the air with a delicious aroma. He took two large, greedy slurps, looking utterly drooling, so you generously offered him half. But to your surprise, he refused. Not only that, he also generously offered to grill another fifty yuan worth of meat. "It's fate tonight," he said, "please, let's eat as much meat as we like."

“As for me,” he squinted his icy green eyes, “I only need to smell this fragrance.”

Taking a rare break, I didn't stand on ceremony and sat down at the greasy table. The three of us sat around the grill, drinking beer and eating meat—oh, I almost forgot, he was just holding a yogurt, smiling at the two of us.

Speaking of heartbreak, in the midst of our drunken revelry, I chimed in, saying that no one could compare to Lao Yue. Ever since that guy suffered a devastating blow from a woman thirty years ago, he's never recovered.

Thirty years ago, Lao Yue—no, it should be Xiao Yue—was the most handsome and capable young man in the village, and his lover, Xiao Gui, was the most adorable and beautiful girl. Everyone praised them as a perfect match, a match made in heaven. Later, they joined the migrant worker wave and went to the city. Like most migrant workers, they toiled and sweated, dreaming of a small, happy life in the future. But gradually, the heavy shovels roughened Xiao Gui's hands and wore down her fighting spirit. She started following some of her fellow villagers around, secretly doing something. Her makeup became heavier and heavier, and her clothes became more and more revealing. Finally, one day, she packed her bags and ran away, leaving Xiao Yue alone, facing a bare "home," to swallow the cruel bitter pill of life alone.

How cliché! You finally smiled. It's like a migrant worker story written by a third-rate screenwriter, a formula that everyone knows by heart.

Yes, I nod in agreement. People are used to such things; they don't even qualify for a feature in magazines like "Zhiyin." However, only the person involved truly knows the depth of their wounds. No amount of sympathy from outsiders can fill the void in Xiao Yue's heart. In fact, from the day Xiao Gui eloped, Xiao Yue's world completely collapsed. For the remaining thirty years, he became a living corpse, never to recover.

The man in black had been nodding silently, but then suddenly spoke up, "How is he now?"

Thirty years have passed. The once strong and handsome Yue has become overweight, and his once thick black hair is almost completely gone. This is Lao Yue, a middle-aged man who is always smiling. Almost no one recognizes him anymore. How powerfully time erodes a person! I imagine that Xiao Gui, who was as beautiful as a flower thirty years ago, must be a fat old woman now. As I was thinking this, I didn't expect that when I opened the door this morning, there really was a fat and ugly old woman sitting outside. Her chin almost drooped to her chest, and she was calling out to me in a cloyingly sweet voice.

“You just said ‘me’,” you’re quite meticulous, not allowing any ambiguity, how could a man like that be deceived by a woman, “It should be ‘Old Yue’ or ‘Little Yue’, you’re not him.”

Yes, yes, I admit I misspoke. Anyway, thirty years later, Lao Yue met the woman who called herself "Xiao Gui." He invited her into the house and listened to her tearfully recount her tragic experiences over the past thirty years. She had always been blinded by men's sweet words, cheated out of money and her body, and then drifted from one man to another, her beauty fading with age. When her last bit of beauty was drained, no man was willing to accept her anymore. She was truly forced into a corner and had no choice but to travel a long distance to him. Hearing that he had remained single for thirty years, she didn't ask for much, only that he be her companion in her old age. As she spoke, spittle flew from his mouth, revealing yellow teeth, but his eyes, filled with starlight, shone as brightly as ever.

It's strange, I wonder. Who gave her the right to have such wild thoughts, naively believing that I would generously take her in? I went around behind her, and she happily thought I was going to kiss her, eagerly extending her two plump lips, not knowing that she was only greeted by two arms.

The arm of death.

I grabbed her by the neck. Thirty years later, I was still strong and powerful, but even so, fighting against that body full of fat still left me drenched in sweat. She was ugly to begin with, but after she died, a swollen, purplish-black tongue protruded from her mouth, and her dead fish eyes rolled upwards, making her even uglier. I cut off her protruding tongue with one stroke, stuffed the rest back into her mouth, and then considered how to dispose of the body.

Heh, I see you trembling all over, like a leaf shivering in the autumn wind. Stop talking, you're begging me, isn't this Old Yue's story? Why is it about me again? "Could you be Old Yue?"

I waved my hands repeatedly, saying that Lao Yue was Lao Yue and I was me, even though my barbecue stall was called "Yue's Barbecue"... Lao Yue locked himself in for a day and a night and finally came up with a brilliant idea. He happened to run a barbecue stall, and the supply of pork, beef, and lamb every night was quite astonishing. So he removed all the meat from her body, diced it, marinated it with seasonings, skewered it, and took it to the stall to barbecue... As a result, this batch of meat was juicy and delicious, very popular with customers, and the name "Yue's Barbecue" became well-known...

You suddenly stopped chewing, as if you were choking, unsure whether to spit it out or swallow it. The remaining skewers cooled quickly on the plate, and I grabbed one and threw it into my mouth.

But trouble soon followed. After that batch of meat was gone, ordinary pork, beef, and mutton could no longer satisfy the customers' growing demands. They were all regulars, and their palates had become discerning because of that batch of meat; they constantly reminisced about how delicious it used to be.

So you see, even on rainy nights when there are few customers, I still have to set up a stall to do business in order to find the next batch of "supplies," preferably young women. However, if there is a shortage (you know, single women rarely eat barbecue), then young men will do, although compared to the plump and tender meat of women, men's muscles are indeed a bit rough... Do you understand what I mean?

Very well, you're pale and nodding vigorously, which means you understand. Let me tell you another method: the best way to deal with a fickle woman isn't to get rid of the buzzing pests around her, but to possess her, to make her yours forever and completely. Frankly, I still regret not using this method on Xiao Gui back then, instead letting her grow old and decay, returning to my side with her ugly side, shattering the beautiful image I held in my heart.

While she's still young, devour her flesh and blood, making her an eternal part of you, gazing at the same stars and breathing the same air. No matter what you do, she will always be with you, never leaving your side, until you die, and she will turn to ashes along with your body… Now you know what to do, right?

You nodded again, your empty eyes piercing the darkness of the sky like a sleepwalker's gaze. "I will bring her and him to 'Yue Ji' for one last barbecue."

Then, he's mine, and she's yours... I grinned triumphantly, and the man in black stood up.

"Only in the two things that I, along with you two gentlemen, have reached the same conclusion: heartbreak and cannibalism. From then on, I have been trapped in endless pain and sorrow."

"I wish you both good luck!" He pulled his hat brim down hard and disappeared into the vast rain.

January 9th

Birthday flower: Common Laurel

Flower language: Charm

Cherry laurel water can be extracted from laurel leaves; this is a flavoring used in perfumes and pastries. However, this essence is poisonous and can be dangerous if used in large quantities. The laurel flower is a plant that is both alluring and terrifying, hence its flower language is "seduction." Those born under the blessing of this flower possess a bright, unrestrained, and dangerous charm, and may have many love stories throughout their lives.

Volume Two: The Haunted House Incident with Spider Lily and Ivy (Part One)

Located in the heart of K University's bustling campus, squeezed between the throngs of canteens and convenience stores, the Ivy Haunted Dormitory is strangely silent, gloomy, and indifferent—even as the midday sun filters sparsely through the sycamore leaves onto the tree-lined paths, and even as the laughter of students fills the campus. It belongs to one of K University's earliest buildings, not tall, only two stories, yet it possesses a unique, almost historical, awe-inspiring grandeur that commands respect. Dark green ivy climbs the fiery red brick walls, relentlessly embracing the two-story building, blocking out all sunlight. A gust of wind sends the palmate leaves rustling and whistling.

No one dared approach this nearly ruined, haunted building easily, except for the three of them. Driven by their love of astrology, the horoscope forum alone wasn't enough to ignite the enthusiasm of the "astrology enthusiasts," so the moderator, Lonely Ox, and others simply formed an astrology association. The newly established association needed an activity room, but the large activity center for all school clubs was still under construction, and the existing rooms had already been snapped up by established clubs. After three hours of persistent pleading, the head of the club office finally decided to temporarily lend them "Ivy League" room.