K - El siguiente eres tú

Capítulo 11

"Let's rekindle our past love, let's rekindle our past love..." Wang Hongbing gently opened his mouth and made a weak sound.

"Wang Hongbing, Wang Hongbing!" Chen Jie's eyes widened, a joyful smile spreading across her face. He's awake! He's awake!!! He's not the second Zeng Hai! He's awake!!!

Wang Hongbing slowly opened his eyes. Before him stood Chen Jie's face, filled with surprise and delight.

"Wang Hongbing, you're awake!"

"Where am I?" Wang Hongbing looked around. Everything was white. Where was Liu'er? He felt something smooth in his hand.

Chen Jie's heart was instantly filled with joy and happiness! "You're in the hospital! You were unconscious for two days and two nights! Two days and two nights, everyone was so worried, even your counselor came. Zhang Li and the others will be here soon." She blinked and smiled, trying to hold back the tears welling up in her eyes!

Wang Hongbing closed his eyes. Counselor? Zhang Li? He hadn't quite shaken off E'er's world yet.

Seeing that Wang Hongbing had closed his eyes, Chen Jie gently said, "You should rest for a while. I'll go buy you something to eat." She wiped her eyes and quietly left. After closing the ward door, Chen Jie ran quickly to the doctor's office, excitedly calling out, "Doctor, he's awake! He's awake..."

After hearing Chen Jie close the door, Wang Hongbing opened his eyes again and raised his hand, indeed holding the jade stone. Everything in his memory was so clear! It was called "Guanyin's Tear," and it came in a pair. The other one was with E'er! It was the one he had given to E'er in his past life. E'er? E'er! Where was E'er? He had an incredibly strong thought: he wanted to see E'er!

The ward door opened silently. "Wang Hongbing, you're awake?" Chunlai called out loudly.

Wang Hongbing lowered his hand and held the jade tightly to his chest.

"Keep your voice down! Don't disturb him!" Zhang Li stopped Yu Chunlai, but a smile spread across his face.

Chunlai scratched his head sheepishly: "Hongbing, you scared us to death! That incompetent doctor couldn't figure out what was wrong with you! He even said you might..."

"It's good that you're awake! Don't talk about that anymore." Zhang Li put down the fruit and tonics he was holding. "Where's Chen Jie? She's been suffering these past two days, taking care of you the whole time!"

"By the way, Hongbing, you're quite the ladies' man! Our department's most beautiful girl has really taken good care of you! She's been watching over you for two days and two nights! I'm so jealous!" Chunlai said in a low voice.

Wang Hongbing listened calmly, without any reaction. He stared blankly at Zhang Li and Chunlai in front of him. He suddenly realized that these two familiar faces, which he used to see every day, were unusually unfamiliar. The faces of Liu'er and E'er began to overlap in front of him. In his daze, it seemed as if E'er had come to his side. "E'er, E'er, is that you?" he called out.

Suddenly, Chunlai fell silent. "E'er?" He looked at Zhang Li, who was staring at Wang Hongbing in surprise.

“What are you talking about, Hongbing? E’er? He’s Chunlai!” Zhang Li’s hand suddenly stopped in mid-air.

Spring is coming? Tension? The faces before me are becoming clearer.

"E'er, who is E'er?" Chunlai stared at him with surprised eyes.

Wang Hongbing seemed to have just woken up: "No, nothing? There's nothing there!" He looked at the things on the table and then said, "Thank you for coming to see me!"

Chunlai breathed a sigh of relief: "Oh my god, that scared me to death! I thought you had woken up, but had amnesia or gone mad!"

"Am I sick? Am I in the hospital?" Wang Hongbing asked.

“Yes! We found you lying unconscious in your bed on Sunday morning, so we brought you to the hospital! It's Tuesday now. You've been unconscious for two days and two nights!” Zhang Li replied.

Wang Hongbing was getting a little anxious: "Then, then..."

How much will it cost?

Chunlai smiled and said, "Don't worry, we all have medical insurance. You only need to pay 20%, which is very little, and Chen Jie has already paid for it for you! You don't need to pay anything!"

"Li Chunlai! What are you saying!" Chen Jie appeared at the door with the doctor, carrying a bottle of hot water and a bag of food. "Don't talk nonsense."

After performing numerous physical examinations on Wang Hongbing, the doctor found everything to be normal and recommended that he be discharged from the hospital.

eleven

The first thing Wang Hongbing did when he got back to the dormitory was to climb into his bed. The bed was very tidy, probably because Chunlai and the others had helped him tidy it up. The purse that the old lady had given him was still lying near his pillow. He stuffed the purse and the "Guanyin Tear" into the pillow, and then touched the pillow. The more than four thousand yuan in the pillow was still there, and he breathed a sigh of relief.

He wanted to use some of the money to pay back Chen Jie for the hospital expenses.

"Hongbing, why don't you lie down on the lower bunk? It'll be more convenient for you," Liu Li said as he made him some soy milk powder.

Wang Hongbing shook his head vigorously: "No, no, I'd rather stay in my own bed." The lower bunk was where Zeng Hai lived, and he was afraid just thinking about Zeng Hai's name, let alone lying in the bed that Zeng Hai had once slept in.

Lying in bed, he silently calculated his expenses over the past few months: last time he took out 20 yuan for living expenses, and the time Liu Li treated him to dinner, he secretly put another 25 yuan in Liu Li's pocket; a total of 45 yuan had been taken out of the 5,000 yuan. This time, he would take out another 100 yuan to return to Chen Jie, send another 1,000 yuan home, and with tuition of 2,800 yuan, he would have a little over 1,100 yuan left. With a summer job, his living expenses for his junior year shouldn't be a problem. Maybe he could even save a little for his senior year tuition…

"Hongbing, this is great! Your tuition has been waived. You should thank Chen Jie properly; she deserves all the credit!" Zhang Li excitedly rushed into the dormitory, shouting happily.

Zeng Hai's words seemed to echo in his ears again, "You lied to the whole class just to get a special hardship spot, how could you do something like that!..." Wang Hongbing said coldly, "Oh, but I have the money to pay the tuition! I don't think I need a reduction."

Like a bucket of cold water being poured over him, Zhang Li's excited smile froze on his face: "Oh, is that so! Then, why don't you talk to Chen Jie about it?"

Liu Li handed the prepared soy milk to Wang Hongbing: "Hongbing, are you crazy? Isn't a tuition reduction a huge blessing? You should use all your tuition money for living expenses, so you don't have to eat steamed buns every day! The doctor said you're malnourished!"

Wang Hongbing took the soy milk, said thank you, and didn't say anything more, but he wanted to tell Chen Jie that he didn't want a tuition reduction or any special hardship allowance.

After a moment of silence, he asked, "Boss, do you have a phone card? Can I borrow it?"

Zhang Li pulled out a phone card: "Here, take it. Do you want to call Chen Jie?"

"Yes, I want to talk to her," Wang Hongbing said as he climbed out of bed.

Chen Jie sat quietly in her dormitory. Wen Xin and Li Yan went to the bathroom to wash fruit.

A gentle evening breeze drifted into the dormitory, softly, gently, and tenderly, causing the window curtains to sway. The wind chimes hanging on the window emitted a series of crisp, clear tinkling sounds—so crisp, so clear. Chen Jie was involuntarily startled, looking up. It was the wind chime Wen Xin had bought. She hadn't looked at it closely in a long time. The wind chimes were made of bronze, each a small pavilion, a cluster of tiny lotus flowers, with countless bronze pillars hanging down. At this moment, those pillars were striking each other, producing a series of soft sounds. The sound was so melodious, so beautiful, like poetry, like a song, like the soft, dreamlike whispers of a young girl—it resonated with her own current state of mind.

"Ring ring..." The ringing of the phone pulled Chen Jie back from her racing thoughts.

"Hello. Oh, Wang Hongbing, what's up?" Two red blushes suddenly appeared on Chen Jie's cheeks, spreading from her cheeks to the corners of her eyes and eyebrows: Was she going to treat me to dinner to express her gratitude?

"I... I want to tell you something. I have the money to pay my tuition, but I don't want a reduction or exemption! I also don't want a spot for students from impoverished families!" Wang Hongbing said these words fluently and firmly, his face turning bright red.

Chen Jieyang's inner joy was shattered by Wang Hongbing's concise question: "Then, why?"

"Then why did you give me special hardship allowance? Am I that pitiful?" Wang Hongbing retorted fiercely, but after saying it, he regretted it a little. He heard the silence on Chen Jie's end.

“Qiyang comes from a single-parent family, and his mother has no income. He needs it more than I do!” Wang Hongbing’s tone softened a bit.

Chen Jie was stunned. She wanted to say that Qi Yang's aunt had already sent him his tuition and living expenses, but she didn't. She felt that her enthusiasm had met with an iceberg, and sadness, grievance, and embarrassment welled up in her heart.

"I think that in the future, my consent should be sought first for such matters," Wang Hongbing said.

"I understand, I'm sorry, it was all my fault!" Tears welled up in Chen Jie's eyes as she hung up the phone.

Hearing the dial tone, Wang Hongbing reluctantly put down the phone. He sensed that Chen Jie was angry, but he didn't think he had said anything wrong.

"Chen Jie, time for an apple! An apple a day keeps the doctor away!" Wen Xin and Li Yan carried a bowl of apples into the dormitory. Chen Jie was feeling down and didn't respond.

Liyan came over with an apple: "Miss Chen, what are you thinking about? Eat your apple."

"I don't want to eat. My head hurts a little. I want to go to sleep first." Chen Jie forced a smile at Li Yan and Wen Xin. "You guys eat." Then she climbed into bed.

"Is it serious? Should we go to the infirmary?" Wenxin asked anxiously. She was perfectly fine just now.

"No need, I'll be fine after a good night's sleep," Chen Jie shook her head.

When my head hit the pillow, tears fell.

Wang Hongbing slept very restlessly that night, having many strange nightmares; one moment he was trekking along a mountain path with E'er, surrounded by people on horseback. He turned his head and E'er was snatched away by those people. He screamed E'er's name, and those people started beating him, which hurt a lot... He woke up covered in sweat.

He slept again, and a slightly plump, semi-transparent figure was chanting incantations on a large altar, holding a sword in his hand. In front of the altar was a large Bagua (Eight Trigrams) pattern, and he lay in one corner of the pattern, shirtless. At the very center of the pattern was a large, white porcelain jar, carved with strange designs. The naked Zeng Hai, wearing a teardrop-shaped jade pendant, was submerged in the jar filled with clear water. The jade emitted a shimmering light, appearing like a lustrous pearl in the water! As the semi-transparent figure's voice rose and fell rhythmically, his veins pulsated, as if he were about to break free from the confines of his skin! It felt as if countless tiny snakes were frantically swimming within his veins!

The translucent figure rhythmically swung the short sword in his hand... In a short while, he used the sharp sword to cut the artery in his wrist. He struggled, but it was no use! Two streams of blood shot out from his wrist in beautiful arcs and into the porcelain jar. In an instant, the clear water in the jar turned into a dazzling red, and the green jade stone spun rapidly, occasionally bringing out red droplets.

As the blood column weakened, the jade spun faster and faster, its shimmering green light in the water growing stronger and brighter. Finally, it formed a swirling green mass, occupying the center of the entire Bagua diagram, resembling a hazy green droplet! Or perhaps a small green tornado, into which the translucent figure, laughing wildly, floated from the altar into this green tornado…

Zeng Hai stood up from the porcelain jar, holding the short sword that the semi-transparent man had just taken. He then viciously slashed at his own throat...

Wang Hongbing yelled "Ah--" and sat up abruptly in bed!

"Hongbing, you scared me to death! Did you have a nightmare, Wang Hongbing?" Chunlai shouted.

A familiar voice echoed in his ears. Wang Hongbing steadied himself; he recognized Chunlai's voice. Yes, it must have been a nightmare! He tried to open his eyes, but everything was a blur of darkness. He remembered being in his dormitory; he should be able to see the window, where there should be some light. But he looked left and right, and still couldn't see a window! Everything was pitch black!

"What's going on? Am I still in the dorm? Why can't I see the window? Is it really that dark? Chunlai, Chunlai, is that you calling me?" Wang Hongbing's voice was filled with fear. How could the scene in the dream be so real!

"Of course it's me! What's wrong with you?" Chunlai got out of bed and subconsciously looked out the window. It was already slightly light, and through the window, she could see the lights in the school's all-night classrooms. "Can't you see? That can't be, right?"

Zhang Li and the others were also woken up by the noise. He turned on the light and said, "Hongbing, what's wrong? I turned on the light."

"Is the light on? I can only see darkness." Wang Hongbing's voice was trembling with tears. He kept rubbing his eyes, but suddenly he felt a hand grab his wrist and forcefully pull it away! "Who?" He instinctively looked up in the direction the hand had been pulled away. In a bluish glow, a translucent, distorted face appeared, its red tongue sticking out. It was laughing, its small, mouse-like eyes narrowed into slits.

"You, you..." Wang Hongbing shrank back in terror. The semi-transparent person was none other than Boss Yin of Hengsheng Jade Shop! "You, weren't you dead?"

"Haha, die? Because of you, I'm alive! Haha..." Boss Yin laughed loudly, his red nasal cavity visible through his translucent mouth. Disgusting! After laughing, Boss Yin's face immediately contorted into a ferocious expression, but his tone softened: "Come with me, get up, come with me, get up, come with me, get up..."

Wang Hongbing's initially terrified face gradually became blank. He pressed his hand against the bed frame, trying to stand up, but his hand touched something, and a wave of dizziness made him immediately sit back down. When the dizziness subsided, everything seemed to return to normal. Accompanied by a low murmur, "You old hag, you've ruined my things again..." Boss Yin disappeared. Before him were the faces of Liu Li, Chunlai, and Jiang Bing. Wang Hongbing clutched his chest, gasping for breath: "That scared me to death! That scared me to death!!!"

“Your facial expressions were hilarious just now. One minute you looked scared, and the next you looked like you were asleep! And now you’re like this again!” Chunlai said, staring at Wang Hongbing’s face.

"What were you talking about? Who's dead?" Zhang Li asked, looking up.

Wang Hongbing didn't answer. He looked down at the thing he was clutching tightly in his hand—the purse the old lady had given him. At that moment, the purse seemed to be bouncing slightly in Wang Hongbing's hand, and the frequency of its bouncing was constantly increasing or decreasing. Before long, the cool minty scent on the purse became stronger, and its color also became more vibrant...

"Goodness gracious, Hongbing, are you playing a magic trick?" Jiang Bing stared wide-eyed at the "miracle" in Wang Hongbing's hand until the purse returned to normal and lay in Wang Hongbing's hand.

“Hongbing, what did you just say? Who did you say was dead?” Zhang Li asked again.

"I, I, I saw Boss Yin!"

"Boss Yin? Who is Boss Yin?" Liu Li asked.

“Boss Yin of Hengsheng Jade Shop!” Wang Hongbing said, panting, each word distinct.

"Huh?!" the four of them exclaimed in unison!

Zhu Zhi learned about Wang Hongbing's coma from Li Yan. On Wednesday noon, he brought some tonics to the dormitory. Downstairs, he carefully observed the cloud of mist again; it had shrunk considerably, but seemed to have thickened a lot more.

Only Wang Hongbing and Chunlai were in the dormitory. The two were eating instant noodles.

Zhu Zhi knocked on the door, and Chunlai hurriedly welcomed him in: "Savior, savior brother! You've finally come!" Wang Hongbing quickly brought over a stool: "Sit down, please sit down."

Zhu Zhi put down what he was holding and laughed heartily: "What's wrong? Why are you being so polite? A savior? I can't accept that! Where are the others?"

"They went to the cafeteria for lunch after class and haven't come back yet." Wang Hongbing looked at Zhu Zhi carrying so many things and rubbed his hands together, saying, "Why did you bring more things?"

Zhu Zhi sat down on the stool: "Don't be so polite! I heard you were sick, so I came to see you."

“He’s not just sick, I think he’s possessed by a ghost,” Chunlai said mysteriously, holding up the half-eaten instant noodles. “This morning, he couldn’t see anything, he could only see the dead Mr. Yin from Hengsheng Jade Shop!”

Zhu Zhi's eyes widened: "Really?"

Wang Hongbing nodded and recounted everything he had dreamt of the previous night and what he had seen in the early morning to Zhu Zhi, omitting the part about E'er, of course. Jiang Bing, Zhang Li, and Liu Li also returned to their dormitory at this time.

After Wang Hongbing finished speaking, Jiang Bing interjected, "I think his purse is very magical! It must have been the purse that saved him, otherwise he would have been taken away."

“That was a gift from the old lady who sells steamed buns.” Wang Hongbing paused, looking at Liu Li and Jiang Bing. “Do you remember the time we encountered the ghost wall? The old lady seemed to have said, ‘It’s the ghost’s witchcraft! Witchcraft, what a terrible thing!’”

Liu Li seemed to remember something too: "Yes, there's another sentence I remember very clearly. The old woman said, 'If you encounter this kind of thing again, don't panic. Just close your eyes and walk backwards towards where you want to go.' This time, it was the purse she gave you that saved you. It seems that this old woman must be a master! Maybe she knows how to catch ghosts!"

Wang Hongbing shook his head: "I think she must know more! Or rather, she can foresee things, otherwise why would she say 'misdeed'? Why would she tell me to keep my purse on my person?"

Zhu Zhi nodded: "I completely agree with Hongbing's point of view, but the old man must also be a highly skilled person! Last time, under that locust tree, Xiao Chen from the criminal investigation team and I almost got into trouble! It was thanks to the old man, the one you mentioned who sells steamed buns, that we escaped danger because of the Bagua diagram on a piece of clothing he gave us." After saying that, Zhu Zhi patted Wang Hongbing on the shoulder, "You remember that Captain Wang, right? He had Xiao Chen monitor me. But I persuaded Xiao Chen, and I told her everything that happened between us. Plus, after she went through that incident, she believed me."

Upon hearing the key words "locust tree, Bagua diagram," Wang Hongbing suddenly recalled a sentence Liu'er had said: "But that Bagua diagram caused me to lose nearly five hundred years of cultivation..." Could it be that Bagua diagram? Wang Hongbing suddenly felt hatred for Chen Ya.