Пейзаж похож на картину - Глава 10
The next day, it started raining heavily when I got off work. I rushed home in the rain, but my umbrella couldn't keep out the downpour at all. By the time I reached the building entrance, I was soaked to the bone. Lightning flashed, making the corridor flicker with light, so I hurried upstairs. When I got to the third floor, I noticed a long-lost light coming from under the door, shining towards me close to the ground.
"Is someone inside?" I asked myself. Just as I hesitated, I saw a hand squeeze out from the crack in the door and grab my ankle. In the flash of lightning, the hand was stark white, just bone with no flesh. At the same time, a woman's whimper rang out. My hair stood on end with fear, and I rushed upstairs, but the hand held onto my ankle tightly, making it impossible to move. I struck the hand with my umbrella, and with a snap, the hand broke off at the wrist. The elongated arm retracted back into the crack, but the hand remained on my ankle, continuing to move upwards along my leg. I used the tip of the umbrella to pry the upward-moving hand. With my force, fingers fell one by one to the ground, instantly disappearing into the concrete. When I pried off the last finger, the hand had moved to my knee. I gave it a gentle push, and the fingerless hand fell from my knee to the ground.
I arrived at my front door, utterly disoriented. I took out my key from my pocket, but couldn't get it into the lock. Suddenly, the door slowly opened. I was startled and, holding my breath, stepped inside. The house was pitch black. All the windows were open, and wind mixed with rain poured in, causing the curtains to billow and sway like sails. A flash of lightning illuminated the scene, and I saw a figure crouching on the windowsill. A black cloak billowed in the wind, as if about to fly towards me, and red eyes gleamed with a beastly light. I turned to look into the bedroom and saw a woman lying on the bed. She wore a snow-white nightgown, and her long, wavy hair hung down beside the bed. I slowly approached, and the woman on the bed stood up abruptly. The white nightgown reached past her feet, and her hair completely covered her face. Her clothes and arms hung straight down, one arm long and the other short, the longer arm reaching her knees, and she had no hands.
---Bifengke
Reply [71]: Midnight Corridor 2
A flash of lightning illuminated her eyes, revealing two empty sockets. A glimmer of light seemed to flicker deep within them, immediately obscured by her long hair. A voice drifted through the air, "Give me back my hand, give me back my hand!" The voice was ethereal. A dark shadow floated up behind me. I turned to the side, and there stood the man in black on the windowsill, opposite me. His face was deathly pale, blood streaming from his eyes and mouth. Red veins stretched from one corner of his mouth to the other, making his eyes look like eggs removed from a chicken's belly. There was a hole in his neck, about the size of a five-cent coin. Through the hole, I could see white robes fluttering behind him.
He extended his finger, a black finger made entirely of bone, and pointed it toward my eyes. His voice came from the hollow of his throat: "Come—to—die!" I quickly dodged, rushed out of the house, and slammed the door shut behind me.
And so, I didn't go home that night. The next evening, when Xiaorong and I returned home, we found everything as before; the windows were still closed. Before going to bed, I told her what had happened the night before. Xiaorong didn't seem afraid at all. She said, "Ghosts do exist in the world. When a ghost finds a suitable substitute, it will possess that body. You were one of those chosen. If it weren't for your strong destiny, you might have been the substitute last night." I tensed up and hurriedly asked, "What should I do?" Xiaorong said, "Don't be afraid. You're naturally unafraid of ghosts. Let me think of something."
Later, Xiao Rong took off her clothes and snuggled into my arms, whispering in my ear, "Darling, I want to tonight." I said no, I hadn't recovered from what happened last night and had no feelings for her. Xiao Rong chuckled and grabbed my crotch hard, saying, "Coward!" Her laughter sounded very strange.
Three days later, on Sunday, my colleague Xiao Ma told me that his father had passed away and asked me to help carry the body. I agreed. Everyone at work knew I was brave; I had cleaned the faces of many dead people, dressed them, placed them on small trolleys, and personally sent them into the incinerator, watching the raging flames engulf the bodies and the crematorium workers use long hooks to turn the burning corpses. I was used to it, and it became commonplace.
The hospital morgue was on the ground floor of the inpatient building, so quiet it was suffocating. The sound of our six footsteps was like a deafening cacophony of horses. A cold, bluish-purple light emanated from the ceiling, casting a pale, ashen glow on our faces—a grayish-blue hue. It was said that such lights could kill germs, but their visual effect was chilling. Xiao Ma began processing the paperwork, and I started looking around—the facilities were modern, the space vast, unlike the typical bungalows I was used to; it reminded me of a parking lot. To the left was an open area enclosed by a railing. Opposite and to my right was the refrigerated room, with twenty-four mortuary spaces, all drawers made of stainless steel, similar to the freezers we often saw in large hotel kitchens. I imagined that these drawers must hold the cold remains of the deceased, their desires and dreams frozen in this narrow, cold space.
Suddenly, I heard a spraying sound to my left, a rapid and forceful clashing of water, splashing everywhere. Following the sound, I found a caretaker spraying water on a fleshy mass on the ground in a fenced-off area. The mass was about the size of a large, inflated balloon, and it was clearly flesh. I asked the caretaker what he was doing. He turned around, pulled his mask down slightly, and said, "Thawing." I asked again, "What is that?" He calmly replied, "It's a person. He was run over by a car a few days ago, in the middle of the night. When we found him, he had been lying in the middle of the road for over five hours, run over by countless cars. So, when he was brought here, he was in a plastic bag, all flesh, and we just froze him. It's been over a month. The deceased's family is coming to see him tomorrow, and we're responsible for assembling him. Ugh, what a hassle!"
I felt nauseous and quickly left. By then, Xiao Ma had already completed the formalities. As we carried the body upstairs, we overheard the building manager's conversation behind us.
"Has it melted?"
"That's about enough. Take the head and one arm over now."
"Was his eye open or closed?"
"Open your eyes wide, damn it, your eyeballs look like eggs inside a chicken's belly."
"Alas, I died with my eyes wide open in disbelief."
After the funeral, it was already dinnertime, and Xiao Ma invited us to eat. But I felt very uneasy, not because the mass of flesh was so horrifying, but because of the caretaker's words—"The eyeballs are like eggs inside a chicken's belly." Those words kept churning in my mind, refusing to leave, reminding me of that rainy night, that bloodshot face, and those egg-like eyes. I felt somewhat dazed. People asked if I'd lost my soul, and I said, "I'm strong-willed, I won't." To bolster my courage, I drank quite a bit of alcohol.
My experiences over the past few days have given me reason to believe that ghosts exist in this world, and that they can haunt you. I believe I'm on the verge of it, especially with my eyes. Could that man in black be connected to the frozen mass of flesh? So, on my way home, I burned my coat and the gloves I used to carry the corpse together. Along the way, I noticed many people staring at me, which reminded me that walking under a streetlamp in briefs and a tank top at any time is shocking. Of course, not sexy.
Since that rainy night, those two ghosts hadn't bothered me, and life went on peacefully. One night, Xiao Rong and I were lying in bed talking about it. Xiao Rong chuckled and said, "Don't worry, they'll never come looking for you again." I asked why. Xiao Rong said, "I told them not to come. They were a couple; the man was run over by a car, and the woman lived downstairs from you." I asked her what happened. Xiao Rong said, "We used to be friends, but they were too stupid; they searched for so long and still couldn't find a scapegoat." I shuddered and sat up abruptly, tentatively asking, "They must be very envious of you, right?" Xiao Rong chuckled, and that chuckle made me realize what had happened.
Seemingly true but actually false
---Bifengke
Reply [72]: Best wishes to Bifengke, may you have great fortune, abundant wealth, and may righteousness drive away all evil. I am but a humble servant, so I release a balloon to express my good wishes!
The balloon won't go up, and there's nothing I can do about it.
---lie
Reply [73]: Yunnan Ghost Stories
Yunnan, the ancient land of Dian, was a remote and inaccessible region, with high mountains and dense forests, hence its reputation for supernatural phenomena. Here is a true story that happened in Yunnan.
One of my college classmates is from Qujing, Yunnan. His father is a leader in the Qujing garrison. It's said that Qujing has no railway (or its railway system is underdeveloped), and people mainly rely on long-distance buses for travel and freight. Here's what happened: A driver for a long-distance transport company in Qujing violated traffic regulations while driving, resulting in an accident that killed a young girl. The girl was a mountain dweller; her father had died early, and she lived with her elderly mother in the village, relying on each other for survival. That day, the girl had gone out to buy things, but tragically, she was killed. The driver fled the scene. The elderly mother was devastated and went to Qujing to sue the driver. However, the driver had connections, and the victim was just a helpless mountain villager. So, the driver used his connections, and the final result was that the driver had to pay the elderly mother 2000 yuan to settle the matter. Seeing no way to get justice, the elderly mother had no choice but to return home in anguish. A few days later, the elderly mother died mysteriously at home.
Everyone involved thought the matter was over, but then something terrifying began to happen. The transportation company where the driver worked was the largest in Qujing, with a large compound. Like other companies, there was a gatehouse at the entrance, where an old man was on duty. One night, the old man was watching TV in the gatehouse as usual when he suddenly noticed something white falling out of the window. Upon closer inspection, he saw a woman in white with a blood-covered face and long hair, hanging upside down from the roof, staring intently at him through the window… The old man was nearly scared to death, screamed, and rushed out… The next day, the old man told his colleagues about it, but no one believed him. Everyone thought he had gone mad. The old man, however, refused to work anymore, quit his job, and went home.
Two days later, everyone forgot about the incident. One evening, several people on duty were playing cards in the building in the compound. Suddenly, the person facing the window froze, staring intently at the window, his lips trembling. The other three followed his gaze and looked out the window, only to find the long-haired woman in white lying face down on the windowsill, watching them... The group immediately panicked and ran away as if their lives depended on it.
The next day, everyone in the company knew about it. Recalling what the old man in the gatehouse had said a few days earlier, everyone felt a sense of dread. Panic gripped the company; no one dared to drive, and the transportation company was forced to shut down.
A few days later, the incident had become the talk of the town, severely impacting long-distance transportation in Qujing. To quell public panic, the Qujing municipal government decided to issue a denial. On a fine day, the city's top party, government, and military leaders, along with numerous entourages and media representatives, went to the girl's burial site to exhume her body and conduct an autopsy to set the record straight.
The coffin was unearthed, and everyone's hearts leaped into their throats. The coffin lid was pried open, revealing a horrifying scene: the girl, dead for over a month, had not decomposed despite the lack of any embalming measures; she looked as if she were still alive. Moreover, people discovered a blade of grass dangling from her mouth. According to local tradition, only those who died unjustly do this, and carrying such grass will turn them into vengeful ghosts. Even more terrifying, everyone present saw that two fangs had sprouted from the girl's mouth!
Everyone panicked. What was supposed to be a clarification had turned into this unexpected turn of events. The leaders present discussed the situation briefly and immediately decided to burn the body. Soon, a fire was lit, the coffin was firmly nailed in place, and thrown into the flames. To everyone's surprise, the coffin moved in the fire, as if something was struggling violently, and a chilling sound like a mouse squeaking emanated from it.
Fortunately, despite the struggles and screams, the coffin was eventually burned, and the vengeful girl never appeared again. The world seemed to be at peace, but something seemed to still linger in everyone's hearts...
---Bifengke
Reply [74]: The chicken stew with mushrooms is burnt! I'm so miserable!
I'm going to eat something now, I'll be back in a bit!
---Bifengke
Reply [75]: Good, I support you.
---ezhong5771
Reply [76]: Your storytelling skills aren't very good.
---Zakarum
Reply [77]: 1111111111111
---cnw22
Reply [78]: Everyone has already read the classic ghost stories, so I've found some less common ones. I hope you'll forgive me! Hehe!
---Bifengke
Reply [79]: Make a note
---baofeng
Reply [80]: Reply [74]: The chicken stew with mushrooms is burnt! I'm so miserable!
I'm going to eat something now, I'll be back in a bit!
---Bifengke
I still don't have any food to eat!
OP, post it quickly! (8 bites)
---lc7888
Reply [81]: Okay, for the sake of the development of the paranormal cause, I have decided to endure my hunger and continue to serve everyone!
Don't worry about me, everyone. I'm righteous and can travel between the realms of the living and the dead. It's alright, really alright. Hehe!
(I always feel like there are eyes watching me from behind...)
---Bifengke