Astrology Hall with Flesh and Blood

Chapter 36

Yan Qi smiled, unaware of how her senior brother perceived it. Her smile was so alluring that even Yan Wuyue, a woman, was captivated by it.

"Swear you'll only ever love me?"

The senior brother hummed in agreement.

"Don't just mumble and say 'uh-huh'!" Yan Qi suddenly shouted. "Swear it now! Say you love me until you die, and that you'll only ever have me in your heart and eyes! Now!"

The senior brother's body suddenly trembled violently, and in that instant, his blood seemed to freeze into ice. He dared not look at the girl in his arms anymore, but slowly turned his face to Yan Wuyue beside him. The latter noticed that in just a moment, his face had turned ashen, like that of a dead man.

"Um, Yan Wuyue..." he croaked, his voice filled with unspeakable terror, "Can you help me see if she... is she really Zhan Xiaohui?"

“I must be overworked lately, and I keep having hallucinations because of my blurred vision… No wonder the ‘Bai Ling’ in Shanghai was so strange, it turns out it was always Yan Qi…” He called out Yan Wuyue’s name again, pleading with her, “This time, could it be that I’m seeing things again?”

How should she answer? Yan Wuyue looked around at the various faces, feeling lost and adrift like a small boat on a vast ocean, completely disoriented. "What do you think?" Helpless, she could only return the question verbatim.

“Based on my understanding of Xiaohui, she wouldn’t be the type to say something like that, but…” He passionately cupped Yan Qi’s face, his fingertips tracing her hair, cheeks, and lips, “This face, the feel of her skin, and her figure—it’s definitely Xiaohui. Maybe I was just seeing things last time; after all, girls all look pretty much the same when they wear heavy makeup… But this time, even if I were nearsighted, I couldn’t possibly mistake Yan Qi for Xiaohui!”

"What nonsense are you talking about?" Yan Qi scolded playfully, slapping his hand away. "Am I not the one you've always loved? Why do you keep saying 'Yan Qi, Yan Qi'? Are you still having an affair with her? Tell me the truth!"

He was actually jealous of Yan Qi! It seemed he was truly a "Zhan Xiaohui" this time! A heavy weight lifted from his chest, and he quickly apologized with a beaming smile. Yan Qi, however, wouldn't let it go, not only berating him but also taking her anger out on Yan Wuyue. "Are you Yan Qi's friend? Let me tell you, since Xiao Lan and Yan Qi have already severed ties, please don't harass him on Yan Qi's behalf anymore." Her stern demeanor startled Yan Wuyue. *You're Yan Qi, aren't you?* Yan Wuyue almost shouted. Was she really willing to abandon her true identity just to win her senior brother's favor?

In other words, she planned to completely abandon the identity of "Yan Qi" and live under the name of "Zhan Xiaohui"? The senior brother's misunderstanding of "Yan Qi's suicide" was not entirely unreasonable; there was actually such a coincidence.

"Did you understand? Even if Yan Qi commits suicide, it has nothing to do with Xiao Lan. As for you, the embodiment of justice," Yan Qi's icy tone reminded her of the moment she removed the face mask, "If it weren't for your meddling, happiness would have come to Yan Qi's side much sooner."

It couldn't be clearer: Yan Qi was about to disappear, to be replaced by a brand new Zhan Xiaohui. Whether she had planned this all along, or was inspired by her senior brother Yan Qi's "suicide," no one knew. Yan Wuyue only remembered this scene: she gave the astrologer a sinister smile, then parted her lips slightly, signaling to begin.

"Have you made up your mind?" the astrologer asked her. "I'll give you one last chance to back out."

She shook her head. "No need. This will be the happiest and most resolute decision of my life."

“Very good.” Two cold glints shot from the astrologer’s green eyes. “It is my great honor to be able to grant my guest’s wish.”

His large hand, like an eagle's claw, slowly covered her face. Yan Qi's whole body convulsed violently, and she let out a scream. Several wisps of scorching steam rose slowly from beneath the astrologer's white gloves, accompanying Yan Qi's intermittent, incoherent cries and her writhing body—a horrifying and bizarre sight. The senior brother seemed to suddenly snap out of his daze and shouted, "Stop!"

"What are you doing?" He rushed over and grabbed the astrologer's hand. "What are you doing to her... Yan Qi?!"

The illusion dissipated, and Yan Qi was still Yan Qi. "Senior Brother!" Hearing his voice, she finally couldn't hold back any longer and cried out, "So you still care about me after all!"

She opened her arms, wanting to throw herself into her senior brother's embrace, but he gently pushed her away.

"Didn't we agree that even if we break up, we'll still be good friends? From a friend's perspective, I advise you not to do anything foolish."

"Friends?" Yan Qi's eyes, which had just brightened, immediately dimmed again.

"Don't give up on your life easily, whether for someone like me or for the boyfriend you meet in the future. Promise me you won't give up on yourself, okay?" he told her gently.

Two clear tears streamed down her face, her cheeks shimmering with an unusual, crystalline luster after being washed by the tears.

"Without you... do you think I can survive alone?"

"You have to get used to being alone..." the senior brother sighed deeply, "There's no other choice."

"Don't you love me anymore?" Yan Qi gripped his arm tightly, as if grasping at the last straw. "Then why are you so concerned about whether I live or die?"

Volume 3 Hell Records: My Eyes Are Only On You (Chapter 21) - End

"I like you, but it's no longer love." The senior gently brushed her hand away, though the slight resistance from her woman's hand saddened him. "From now on, I'll treat you like my own sister, okay?"

Yan Qi stared at him with an almost dazed look:

Even if I were the only woman left in the world...?

"It remains the same: family, friendship, and all emotions except romantic love."

In an instant, Yan Qi burst into loud laughter, the "Hahaha" laughter almost shattering the roof of the astrology hall. "Did you hear that, Mr. Astrologer?" she laughed, tears streaming down her face. "This man is really something! Looks like I have no choice but to change my wish!"

"As you wish, sir." The astrologer bowed respectfully to her. "Consider it a gift for the generous reward you have given me."

Yan Wuyue didn't remember much after that. She seemed to see the astrologer glare at her senior brother with his icy green eyes, then her senior brother looked around frantically, suddenly let out a bloodcurdling scream, and scrambled out of the astrology hall. What about Yan Qi? Yan Wuyue was only worried about her, but before she could do anything, she fainted.

When she woke up, she was lying on her dormitory bed, surrounded by the anxious faces of Lin Na, Lu Bing, and Xiao Yu. The instant she opened her eyes, a bizarre thought suddenly occurred to her: were those faces really their own? Could they all be Yan Qi, the same body as Yan Qi, just with three different faces...?

She was almost scared out of her wits. Fortunately, she calmed down and asked Yan Qi about her senior brother.

The three of them fell silent in unison. "Yan Qi has disappeared," Lu Bing said reluctantly. "The school has already reported it to the police. Later, they discovered that around the same time, Senior Sister Zhan Xiaohui also..."

Yan Wuyue nodded silently. It seemed Yan Qi had already offered herself as a sacrifice. However, she wondered if the astrologer had fulfilled her wish.

"As for your senior brother," Linna chimed in, "you should see for yourself."

He's gone mad.

Seeing every face, he could only clutch his head and scream, "Yan Qi! Yan Qi!" Others assumed he was suffering from a severe mental breakdown due to his lover's disappearance, even though Yan Qi was just a former girlfriend… No one knew that in his own perception, everyone he saw, regardless of age, gender, height, or weight, bore Yan Qi's face; family, friends, superiors, subordinates, even street vendors and homeless beggars—all shared the same face. He had nowhere to hide, nowhere to escape; wherever he was, Yan Qi was watching over him—wherever he went, only Yan Qi was with him, from birth to death.

"There are only two kinds of people in the world, totaling 6.477 billion; one is you, and the other is 6.476999999 people other than you. All of these people are me."

The contract has been fulfilled; Yan Qi, numbering 6,476,999,999, has imprisoned him within his sight, and he will be unable to find release until his death.

When Yan Wuyue arrived at the astrology shop, the astrologer was unusually drinking bubble tea—or rather, yogurt with tapioca pearls added. Seeing Yan Wuyue enter, he silently gestured to a glass of milk beside him, seemingly having prepared for her visit long ago.

There was a long silence.

"...Is this the ending Yan Qi wanted?" Yan Wuyue twisted her hands anxiously. "Bai Ling, Zhan Xiaohui, and in the end, it was herself. My senior brother went mad too. Nobody benefited from it at all...! Why was she so foolish!..."

"A woman's heart is like a needle at the bottom of the sea." The astrologer shrugged helplessly. "Moreover, humans are inherently unpredictable creatures."

"I once heard a saying that I always scoffed at, thinking it was incredibly vulgar..." Yan Wuyue stammered, her fingertips trembling, yet her voice was firm and clear, "Every girl was once a tearless angel, but when she meets the boy she loves, she sheds tears—and thus becomes mortal. So boys must never let girls down, because girls have given up all of heaven for you... Every boy was once a demon from hell, but when he meets the girl he loves, he falls in love—and thus becomes mortal. So girls must never let boys down, otherwise boys will have to return to that terrible hell..."

Her head hung low, as if she didn't want anyone to see her expression.

"To be honest, I've never felt that this passage was so apt before..."

The astrologer glanced at her silently, then suddenly raised the yogurt in his hand, as if toasting something in the air, and muttered to himself unintentionally:

"Even if you give up heaven, it doesn't mean you have to fall into hell, right?"

"Fine, I won't be too harsh on you since you gave me the Hell Records." The man muttered to himself, about to tilt his head back, when he noticed the angry flames in the girl's eyes beside him.

"Sometimes I really doubt if you're even human!" Yan Wuyue cried out in a trembling voice, "In the end, it was you who ate those three people and drove our senior brother insane! How dare you say such a thing!"

"I am a heartless ghoul, and human moral standards have no effect on me," the astrologer replied calmly. "In essence, I am merely a tool driven by the desires of my clients. Whether I play the role of an executioner or Santa Claus is entirely up to the client and has nothing to do with my own will."

He stood up gracefully and walked towards the corner of the room. Only then did Yan Wuyue notice that an old-fashioned record player had been added to the room, with an exaggeratedly large trumpet flower on it. The astrologer picked out a record, "Would you like to listen?"

"Hell Records?" she asked.

"What an exquisitely beautiful piece of music!" The astrologer squinted his eyes in rapture. "Although it's just one song, it's enough to stir up desires deep within one's heart. Would you like to hear it?" he repeated.

Yan Wuyue stared at the record in his hand with a look of fear and disgust, that alluring, blood-red record… “No!” she screamed, covering her ears and frantically pulling out the astrology booth. Lonely Cow! Only that name occupied her mind; she didn't want to hurt him, didn't want to love him like Yan Qi had, only to harm him in the process!

A knowing smile played on the astrologer's lips. "If one day you wish to have any of your desires fulfilled, I would be more than happy to accept your body."

Just like Yan Qi.

He held up the yogurt in his hand, carefully examining the "pearls" inside. Xiao Lan, lost in his delusional fantasies, couldn't bear the confinement of "Six Hundred and Four Billion Seventy-Six Million, Nine Hundred and Ninety-Nine Thousand, Nine Hundred and Ninety-Nine Yan Qi," and the only solution he could think of…

It's in the astrologer's cup.

"You are the only one in my eyes." Now that Xiao Lan's eyes have been gouged out, he can only see Yan Qi in his dreams, right?

The astrologer opened his mouth wide, and two round, bloody "pearls" rolled whole into his mouth, spinning around.

That would be the most exquisite offering to Yan Qi, who perished in his womb.

Volume 3: Hell Records, Streetcar Named Desire (Part 1)

The bright yellow streetlights came on, sweeping across the road shrouded in the deep darkness, outlining a small, solitary figure. Seeing the "13" bus sign flashing in the shadows, the girl breathed a sigh of relief. Thank goodness, she was glad she'd caught the last bus. Although she usually got home late, due to unforeseen circumstances, today she had undoubtedly set a record—10:00 PM sharp, that's the number on her wristwatch. However, even if she got home at midnight, her parents probably wouldn't blame her—as parents, they understood her stubborn personality better than anyone else, and knew better than anyone else that no one could interfere with her decisions. She had fought countless days and nights for her dream to come true—she patted her heavy backpack, her eyes calm.

The bus was unusually crowded. Based on Fu Qinghua's experience, even during daytime rush hour, the No. 13 bus, with its remote route and distance from major commercial areas, was rarely full, let alone at night when pedestrians were scarce. But now, reflected in the pale headlights, were rows of figures with different expressions and appearances, completely occupying every seat from front to back. Fu Qinghua squinted her eyes, which ached from overuse, and saw what appeared to be a dark shadow at the back of the bus. She took a step forward amidst the jolting, finally seeing that the very end of the last row of seats was indeed lower, creating a stark contrast with the neat row of heads next to it. She hurried towards her destination; after a long day, she deserved to sit down and rest—just then, the man next to her stood up and, with a gentlemanly air, invited her in.

She plopped down on him, oblivious to the fact that the man was wearing a thick black trench coat on this sweltering summer night, and completely oblivious to the fact that his hands were tightly covered by white gloves, not allowing any skin to be exposed to anyone. His entire body seemed to melt into that black shell, leaving no gap for anyone to peek in, except for his pale face. No, Fu Qinghua wasn't paying any attention to an ordinary man; her mind was entirely focused on the mock exam in three days and the college entrance exam that would soon be crucial to her life—a college entrance exam ten thousand times more important than anyone else or anything else—success or failure hinged on this! A burning passion ignited in her heart.

The headlights switched off as the bus started moving, and silence and darkness descended upon and dominated the bus. A faint, alluring fragrance irritated her nasal mucosa, and she suddenly felt a wave of weakness in her stomach. The man was holding a bulging paper bag, and the fragrance was emanating from the loosely sealed opening. With the help of the fleeting streetlights outside the window, she finally managed to painstakingly spell out the five large characters on the paper bag.

Big Boss Chestnut.

Saliva involuntarily welled up in her mouth. It was her favorite roasted chestnuts since childhood, and from the top-tier chestnut brand in H City, boasting a "family secret recipe and a century-old establishment!" While she didn't know if roasted chestnuts had actually existed for over a hundred years, the title of the number one chestnut brand wasn't just empty boasting. Since middle school, she had longed to eat them someday, but due to unavoidable circumstances, she had only secretly resolved that only when her dream came true could she indulge in a grand feast, eating as much as she wanted, even until she was stuffed… But now, she could only sit on a nighttime bus, swallowing hard at the aroma of chestnuts wafting from her seatmate, her stomach rumbling loudly… She blushed involuntarily, desperately trying to distract herself. Then she noticed something.

The portable TV hanging at the front of the carriage started flashing, and the name of the TV manufacturer and the words "Open Warehouse" appeared on the blue LCD screen. This was the first time Fu Qinghua had encountered something like this; in her experience, buses always played programs from portable TV channels, and only long-distance buses where the TV signal did not reach would play ready-made DVDs—this No. 13 bus was really unusual.

A clear, languid, and almost ethereal female voice suddenly overflowed from the speakers, rising like wisps of smoke around the passengers. The clear, melodious voice, yet tinged with a world-weary melancholy, instantly captivated everyone on the bus. Hidden behind the player, the singer seduced the listeners like a siren, penetrating layer by layer from the eardrums, ear bones, and hair cells to the auditory center of the brain. The moment her voice reached their inner ears through the vibrations of the air, they were utterly captivated, utterly defeated.

"Along the way, some people sit on the subway glancing at the advertisements passing by, some are afraid of missing any unavoidable news reports; along the way, some grow old together, some lose their youth, some smile in their memories, and some worry about tomorrow..." Fu Qinghua remembered that song, Faye Wong's "One-Way Street," which had been released six years ago, in her memory. At that time, she was still in high school, in the same period of idol worship as other girls her age. Back then, Faye Wong was like the sun shining on the Chinese music scene, awe-inspiring and uniquely radiant... A bitter smile involuntarily appeared on her lips. Time has passed, and even replaying old songs from back then cannot bring back the time that has quietly slipped through her fingers. As she was reflecting on this, a calm voice rang out from beside her:

"It's a perfect night for reminiscing, don't you think?"

She was startled. As she was enveloped by Faye Wong's clear, melodious voice, lost in her own little world of reminiscence, the man next to her, carrying a large bag of roasted chestnuts, inconsiderately interrupted her in an obviously clumsy way. However, his deep, warm voice, with a languid, magnetic quality, unexpectedly added a touch of elegance to the background music. Putting aside his odd image of wearing a trench coat while carrying roasted chestnuts, his voice was so beautiful… it gave her goosebumps.

To avoid being subjected to this sonic attack again, she nodded silently, indicating that it was time to stop and she disdained to talk to him. However, the man did not let her off easily, and when one trick failed, he came up with a new one.

Volume 3: Hell Records, Streetcar Named Desire (Part 2)

He even held the roasted chestnuts to her nose, as if he wanted her to smell them to her heart's content.

"Boss, would you like some chestnuts? A customer gave them to me before I got on the bus." His voice sounded sweeter than the candy for roasted chestnuts.

Instinctively, she shook her head almost immediately. She had heard far too much about heinous crimes like highway robbery and human trafficking, and had long since built a high wall of defense between herself and any stranger she encountered. Besides, he was a strangely dressed man, and it was late at night. Even if she was starving, even if the chestnuts smelled delicious, there was no reason for her to risk her life for him, was there?

The man sighed with disappointment, "What a pity. I just didn't want such delicious chestnuts to go to waste..."

"Why don't you eat it yourself?" she couldn't help but ask.

A serious look involuntarily appeared in his eyes. "Because we can't," he replied.

His face was so beautiful it took her by surprise. Not just beautiful—beauty is usually reserved for men with delicate, feminine features—but his features were deep and defined, like a marble statue sculpted by the finest artisan, both handsome and masculine. He wasn't just handsome; he was also pale. A bloodless, lifeless pale, like a sculpture of the finest white marble.

In other words, he possesses a cold, lifeless, and unremarkable beauty.

He possessed a captivating, almost demonic allure, both handsome and terrifying, both gentlemanly and exuding a bewitching charm… Fu Qinghua's face flushed slightly, seemingly uneasy sitting next to such a charming man. Having been suffocated by countless books since childhood, her mind solely focused on the college entrance exam, she only now realized that such a captivating man existed in this world. Busy with her studies, she had no romantic experience; a boyfriend was practically a luxury—if only she had worked harder back then, perhaps she would be enjoying the sweetness of love on a university campus like her classmates?

But I will never regret it! — She shouted to herself. She would not slacken her efforts until she achieved her goal, and she would never allow herself to waste even a little bit of her energy on such trivial matters!

She sighed softly, so softly that only the man sitting next to her could barely hear it. The sound contained too much lament for lost youth, which was carried away by the night breeze.

"You..." the man asked casually, "Is something bothering you?"

It was just an ordinary sentence, yet it stirred up a storm of memories within her, the past flashing through her mind like a film reel. "Everyone has troubles, right?" she hesitated for a long time before finally managing to answer. It's just that, for her, the current hardship seemed the most profound.

“Indeed.” The man nodded in agreement. “Not to mention anything else, even the passengers on this bus are worried about all sorts of tomorrows.”

As if to confirm his words, the passenger in the front row suddenly turned around. It was the thin, ordinary face of a middle-aged man, every wrinkle on his forehead bearing the marks of a life's hardships. "Me? I'm a laid-off worker," he muttered to himself as no one spoke to him. "When I was young, I only knew how to contribute to society, working myself to the bone, neglecting my health. And what was the result? Exhausted, sick, old—the factory just wanted me, kicked me out, gave me a one-time compensation of 5,000 yuan, and bought out my 20 years of service." The middle-aged man's lips twitched miserably, letting out a few bitter, dry laughs. "I still have a wife and children to support!"

"Me too, me too!" Another person joined the venting session, this time a young man with a buzz cut, definitely no older than Fu Qinghua. "I was completely devoted to her, never daring to say 'no' a single word. And then, humph, humph," he chuckled self-deprecatingly, "she actually cheated on me by having an affair with someone she met online! Shameless, despicable woman!"

"Me too!" A hand was raised from the front of the carriage, and a clear, childlike voice rang out, "My mom, dad, and teachers all forbid me from playing online games... Pshaw, they don't understand us at all!"

"And..." The carriage was as noisy as boiling water, with one person after another raising their hand and another pouring out their grievances, leaving Fu Qinghua overwhelmed... It turned out that everyone was just like her! Troubled by their own lives. Perhaps, everyone on this No. 13 bus was a kindred spirit!