Превратись в лебедя и прилети к тебе

Глава 54

Peach Bell: "I really can't understand why you, who claims to have experienced so many paranormal events, are still afraid of ghosts and spirits. If you're afraid, why do you get involved in these things in the first place?"

Feng Junzi: "I think the reason is simple: people should have a sense of awe for the unknown world in order to find true wisdom and philosophy. They shouldn't be like some so-called elites who think they have the power to speak and arbitrarily distort and design the world. Their so-called reforms and innovations are actually plunder and trampling..."

Before Feng Junzi could finish speaking, Tao Muling interrupted him: "You seem to have gone off-topic. What's going on with the stock market lately? Is it very volatile? Why are you making so many comments?"

Feng Junzi was a little embarrassed: "It was just a spontaneous thought. Are you really going to spend the night here? Let me tell you, it's dangerous, and I don't want to see anything happen to you."

Peach Bell: "You don't need to worry about that. I've done this kind of training many times abroad. There's a professional term for it called 'haunted house experience,' have you heard of it? My mentor often takes students to haunted houses with rumors of being haunted, and has them stay in the house for a mental experience. In a state of self-hypnosis, most people can see the so-called ghosts, but it's just a psychological phenomenon of 'empathy.' I've seen a lot of ghosts, so there won't be any danger. Besides, I'll stay here alone; you'll disturb me if you're here."

Seeing her resolute opinion and confident attitude, Feng Junzi didn't object. He took a jade ring from the ring finger of his right hand, took Tao Muling's hand to look at it, and noticed that her fingers were thinner than his. So he slipped it onto her left thumb, making the ring look like a thumb ring. Tao Muling asked curiously, "What are you doing?"

Feng Junzi: "You must never take this ring off your hand. It will be very useful in case of any unexpected situation."

"The Psychic Chopsticks" Side Story: Soul Separation Part 5, Haunted House Experience

Night had fallen, and the streetlights in the neighborhood had been turned off sometime earlier. Only the pale moonlight enveloped the gray expanse of the ground, casting countless shadows. All was silent, even the shadows were silent, but if you stared at the shadow of a tree or a stone for a long time, you might feel as if they were moving strangely.

Momok Rin sat in the living room, facing the hallway, with the bedroom door closed not far ahead. She hadn't turned on the lights; only moonlight streamed in from the window, casting faint shadows of the furniture that seemed to drift imperceptibly through the air. Anyone interested could try it; almost anyone would have a similar feeling. This feeling might be terrifying, but Momok Rin wasn't afraid. This wasn't her first time undergoing this kind of "haunted house experience."

She sat on the sofa, spending a long time adjusting her breathing and heartbeat, then closed her eyes and entered a self-hypnotic state. She guided herself into a scene that overlapped with the real world in front of her. Soon, an image appeared in her mind—the living room she was in. The images of the living room, hallway, and door gradually became clearer before her. She remained in the hypnotic state for a long time, observing the various changes that might occur in this scene. She imagined seeing all sorts of ghosts, and even prepared herself for all sorts of terrifying sights. But she was disappointed. A long time passed, and nothing happened; to be precise, she didn't see anything unusual in her imagination. She began to adjust her breathing and heartbeat again, emerged from the hypnotic state, and opened her eyes…

Her eyes opened slowly, but suddenly widened. The scene before her was exactly the same as the scene in her subconscious mind; that is, what she saw with her eyes closed and open was no different. But just as she opened her eyes, she saw her…

Who was she? Momoko Rin only saw a face, a deathly pale face, a woman's face peeking out from behind long, dark red hair, but she couldn't make it out clearly. The reason was simple: the face was too close, almost nose to nose. Momoko Rin could only see the other woman's unfathomable pupils.

If it were anyone else, they might have been terrified. But Momok Rin, true to her name, immediately realized she hadn't truly awakened from hypnosis; what she was seeing was merely a psychological projection. Instinctively, she recoiled, carefully observing the woman before her. The woman was wearing a pink suit, an outfit that seemed rather too hot for the summer heat, yet she exuded a chilling aura.

Tao Muling had never encountered such a situation before. Although she wasn't too flustered, she didn't know how to handle it and could only choose to stare at the woman in front of her. The woman didn't speak, didn't move, and couldn't even be felt breathing; she simply stared coldly at Tao Muling, who also quietly looked back. The moonlight seemed to brighten, and Tao Muling could see more clearly. The woman was about twenty-five or twenty-six years old, with delicate features, one could even say quite beautiful, but her complexion was pale and haggard, giving her an eerie air.

In the dark room, Momoko Rin sat on the sofa, silently staring at a woman who had suddenly appeared before her. After what seemed like an eternity, the woman appeared to lose patience. Her lips didn't move, but Momoko Rin heard a suppressed sigh, like the sound of wind rustling through the treetops. Just as Momoko Rin was about to do something, the scene before her suddenly changed—

The woman's features began to contort in agony, and dark red liquid suddenly flowed from one eye, turning it into a hideous black hole. Tao Muling tried to remain calm, quietly observing everything. Suddenly, a series of strange cracking sounds emanated from the woman's joints, and blood flowed from her facial features.

To be honest, Momoko Rin was deeply shaken at that moment, but outwardly she remained calm and unresponsive—a result of her long-term mental training. The woman's body seemed to undergo some painful transformation, twisting and turning in the air before suddenly disappearing. Momoko Rin then let out a soft sigh, feeling a chilly discomfort; she was drenched in cold sweat. She tried moving her shoulders and found that her body and consciousness were completely conscious and under control, not in any hypnotic or suggestive state. So what exactly had she seen? She was puzzled.

After much deliberation, Momoko Rin's curiosity overcame her unease, and she decided to try again. This time, she found it difficult to control her breathing and heartbeat, and struggled to enter a hypnotic state. So, she opted for a shallower suggestion—imagery. She closed her eyes and began to mentally visualize scenes from her own reality. She "saw" the living room and hallway again, and just as the mental images appeared, she suddenly felt a force pushing against her body.

She opened her eyes and looked around. This time, unlike last time, there was nothing beside her. But when she closed her eyes again, the feeling returned; she felt a pair of hands pushing her body. She focused her mind and "saw" a small, human-shaped shadow standing on the sofa, and it was this shadow that was pushing her. The figure gradually became clearer, seemingly the shape of a doll—a small body, a large head, and a face without features, only one enormous eye.

Momoko Rin felt a little scared. Although she had seen all sorts of strange things in her previous haunted house experiences, she had never experienced anything like this, with a tangible, physical sensation. Just as the feeling of fear began to rise in her heart, she felt as if the doll's hands had become penetrating, piercing through her body, and the entire doll seemed to be trying to crawl into her body. She also heard a voice in her ear: "Let me in, let me in."

The fear seemed to strike suddenly, and Momok Rin could no longer sit still. Instinctively, she stood up and reached out to push the doll away. The doll, which seemed impervious to air, was naturally impervious to Momok Rin's touch. However, when the jade ring on her wrist touched the doll's body, it seemed to let out a cry of surprise and vanished instantly. Momok Rin fully snapped out of her daze, and in that instant, she heard a noise coming from the bedroom.

Tao Muling almost jumped up, reaching for the light switch. The switch seemed malfunctioning; no matter how many times she pressed it, the light wouldn't turn on. The noises in the bedroom grew louder, as if something was trapped and struggling to escape. Amidst the panic, Tao Muling retained a sliver of clarity, remembering the ring on her thumb. She used that thumb, with the ring on it, to press the light switch again.

With a "snap," the light came on, the bright white light a little blinding, and the strange noise suddenly disappeared. Tao Muling calmed down slightly. She turned on almost all the lights in the house; the light gave her a sense of security. Finally, she went into the bedroom. The bedroom light was now on as well. The room was simply furnished, with only an empty bed and a closed wardrobe. The noise seemed to have come from inside that wardrobe.

Perhaps emboldened by the light, Tao Muling took a few deep breaths and reached out to open the wardrobe door. A human-shaped doll, seemingly misplaced, suddenly fell out. Tao Muling gasped, taking a large step back, almost collapsing onto the bed. This doll was the same one she had seen earlier; now it was just a fluffy rag doll, lying there quietly, its large eyes seemingly staring coldly at Tao Muling, creating an indescribably eerie atmosphere. Tao Muling felt as if the air around her had frozen. Just then, she suddenly heard the door open.

The sound of the door opening made Tao Muling's heart pound, but a voice suddenly calmed her down. She heard Feng Junzi's voice coming from the doorway: "Don't be afraid, it's me."

Tao Muling practically rushed out the door and threw herself into Feng Junzi's arms. She felt like crying, and only then did she realize how safe and warm Feng Junzi's shoulder felt. Feng Junzi hugged her and gently patted her back, saying, "It's alright, don't be afraid anymore, everything's fine now. Luckily, I was downstairs watching over you and saw you inexplicably turn on all the lights, so I quickly came up to check on you."

Tao Muling had completely calmed down now, and the two of them sat down on the sofa in the living room. Feng Junzi listened quietly as Tao Muling recounted what had just happened. After listening to what had happened, Feng Junzi asked curiously, "Where is that doll? Let's go take a look."

Feng Junzi put his arm around Tao Muling's shoulder and they went back to the bedroom. The doll was still lying on the floor. Feng Junzi picked it up and chuckled, "I recognize this thing. It seems to be a prize from an online forum essay contest called Little Wanderer. I often visit that website and have seen pictures of this doll before."

"The Psychic Chopsticks" Side Story: Soul Separation VI, Ronin Doll

"Little Ronin?" Momoko Rin was still in shock and doubt. "Then why did I have such a terrifying experience just now? Is there something strange about this doll?"

Feng Junzi replied thoughtfully, "It seems there's something strange about it. If I had to give an explanation you can accept, it would be that you seem to have been hypnotized by this doll. But since you're wearing the ring I gave you, there shouldn't be any problems."

Peach Bell: "That can't be right. How could I be hypnotized by a human doll? But this ring of yours is really amazing. Can you give it to me?"

Feng Junzi smiled: "I would definitely give you anything else, but not this ring, because it is a ring, and giving a ring as a gift has a very special meaning. Give it back to me."

Tao Muling, of course, knew what Feng Junzi meant by his special words. She was a little unhappy. When a woman gets angry, she doesn't care about anything else. She immediately took off the ring and handed it to Feng Junzi, saying, "Take it, who cares?" At that moment, things suddenly changed.

Just as Tao Muling handed the ring to Feng Junzi, the door slammed shut with a loud bang, as if slammed shut by a gust of wind. Then, all the lights in the room went out in an instant. Tao Muling gasped and reached out to grab Feng Junzi's arm, but grasped only air; Feng Junzi had vanished. The scene returned to normal: Tao Muling stood alone in front of the open wardrobe, a human-shaped doll lying on the floor before her. The only difference was that the lights were now off, and only the cold moonlight streamed in through the window.

Tao Muling felt dizzy, her legs went weak and she almost couldn't stand up. The doll in front of her seemed to start twisting strangely. Just then, there was another knock on the door and Feng Junzi's anxious shouts: "Tao Muling, open the door quickly, what's wrong with you?"

Tao Muling had gone from being tense to numb, completely disoriented. As if sleepwalking, she ran to the door and opened it. Feng Junzi rushed in, grabbed her, and asked, "Muling, what's wrong with you?"

Momoko Rin answered groggily, "Why did you run outside again, leaving me alone with that little ronin?"

Without a word, Feng Junzi slapped her hard across the face. Tao Muling seemed to be suddenly jolted awake by the slap and burst into tears. Feng Junzi didn't say anything, closed the door, turned on the light, and carried Tao Muling to the sofa. Tao Muling just sobbed, so Feng Junzi could only hold her in his arms and let her cry it out first.

Tao Muling finally finished crying. Just as Feng Junzi was about to speak, Tao Muling suddenly seemed to realize something. She jumped up, stood far away, raised a cup in her hand, and shouted at Feng Junzi, "Who exactly are you?"

Feng Junzi was taken aback by this sudden turn of events: "Are you crazy? I am Feng Junzi, don't you recognize me?"

Peach Bell: "Don't come any closer. You say you're Feng Junzi, how can you prove it?"

Feng Junzi: "Do you remember the first time we met? You were asking for directions on the street, and no one could understand what you were saying. It took me a while to figure out that you were going to Longwangtang."

Tao Muling nodded: "Go on."

Feng Junzi was both amused and exasperated: "Do you remember those strange ivory chopsticks you brought back from Japan? Those chopsticks hold a bizarre and convoluted story. I heard gunshots, the sound of waves, and the cries of women and children coming from them… (See Part Four of this book, 'The Spirit-Communicating Chopsticks')"

Before Feng Junzi could finish speaking, Tao Muling threw down the cup and threw herself into his arms, startling Feng Junzi with the sound of the cup shattering on the floor. Before they could even speak, they heard someone shout from downstairs, "Upstairs, what are you doing in the middle of the night!"

...

Tao Muling recounted what had just happened to Feng Junzi in fits and starts. After listening, Feng Junzi frowned and said, "Didn't I tell you never to take off the ring? Why did you still take it off?"

Tao Muling pouted, "You're the one who told me to take it off."

Feng Junzi: "Are you being reasonable? I only came upstairs after I heard you scream. How could you be so confused? The key was with you, how could I have opened the door and come in by myself? You took off your ring without thinking and gave it to some weird thing, and now you're blaming me."

Peach Bell: "Whatever it is, what I saw was your image. Who else is to blame but you?"

There's nothing anyone can do when a woman is unreasonable. Feng Junzi suddenly thought of the doll: "Is that doll still there? I'll go check."

"I'll come too, don't leave me alone in the living room."

...

Feng Junzi picked up the doll, and saw his jade ring lying on the ground beside it. He picked up the ring and slipped it onto Tao Muling's finger. He examined the doll closely, then sighed, "Just as I expected."

Peach Bell: "What do you mean, 'just as you expected'?"

“Look what this is?” Feng Junzi pointed to a small red mark on the doll. “This is human blood. Someone accidentally got it on. These human-shaped things are most likely to be spiritually connected. If they get stained with human blood, something might happen.”

Peach Bell: "I don't understand."

Feng Junzi: "Do you still want to explain all this with your theory?"

Momoko Rin: "I admit I was very scared just now, but now that I think about it calmly, I can still use my knowledge of psychology to explain everything that just happened."

Feng Junzi shook his head and said, "Actually, you're right. You can interpret things in this world however you like, especially things like this."

Peach Bell: "What are you trying to say?"

Feng Junzi: "I don't want to say anything, I just want to ask you a question, which is why most sleepwalkers are able to automatically avoid danger and obstacles, while only a very small number of them have accidents?"

Peach Bell: "Modern medicine doesn't have a good explanation for this. Can you tell me why?"

Feng Junzi: "I can only tell you an old saying. It is said that people have three souls and seven spirits. Whether a person is walking at night or sleepwalking, one soul and one spirit are traveling a certain distance outside the body. If they encounter any danger, they will have a natural sense of it. This is why people have intuition in dangerous situations."

Peach Bell: "This is the first time I've heard of this kind of explanation based on intuition. Do you have a theoretical basis for it?"

Feng Junzi: "No, that's not my theory either; it's just a legend. Do you know why a very small number of people don't have this natural instinct to protect them when they sleepwalk, and thus have accidents?"

Peach Bell: "I don't know."

Feng Junzi: "That's because their souls are incomplete. Actually, these humanoid dolls, because they resemble humans, often become spiritually similar after they become sentient, but they are not human after all, so their souls are also incomplete. I just want to tell you that it is very dangerous to be controlled by a doll."

Upon hearing this, Momoko Rin couldn't help but shudder.

"The Psychic Chopsticks" Side Story: Seven Separated Souls, Ding Xiaoyu

Just as Feng Junzi and Tao Muling were about to leave Huang Dongbo's house, Tao Muling glanced back at the corridor and suddenly noticed that the footprints on the corridor seemed to be arranged in a very regular pattern. She pointed it out to Feng Junzi. Since Huang Dongbo discovered the footprints on the corridor during the day, Feng Junzi and Tao Muling had stepped on many more messy footprints in the corridor, making it difficult to see the original traces. However, Feng Junzi vaguely felt that the arrangement of these footprints was a bit strange.

He went to the kitchen, grabbed a handful of red beans, and scattered them little by little on the slipper prints covered by messy footprints. After he finished, he stood up and looked over, only to find that the red beans on the ground had formed a crooked line of characters, the strokes of which were very simple: three characters—Ding Xiaoyu.

"Ding Xiaoyu?" Feng Junzi murmured, then suddenly remembered something: "Lingdang, you said you saw a woman in this room at the beginning. What did this woman look like?"

...

Huang Dongbo didn't go home that night, but instead stayed in room 509 of the Peninsula Hotel. He first met up with a group of friends at a bar for drinks, and didn't return to his room to rest until very late. Perhaps it was the alcohol that emboldened him, perhaps it was the new environment, or perhaps it was because the rooms next door were full of people, but he wasn't too scared anymore.

That night, he seemed to have trouble sleeping; even alcohol had lost its hypnotic effect. Bored, he watched closed-circuit television for a while, and not knowing what time it was, he decided to take a shower and go to bed. Although the exhaust fan was on, the bathroom was still very humid, and a thin layer of condensation covered the mirror. Huang Dongbo took a shower and stood in front of the mirror drying his hair with a towel when he suddenly felt a wave of dizziness. After the dizziness subsided, he stood in front of the mirror and suddenly noticed that someone had written three words with their fingertips on the condensation on the mirror surface—Ding Xiaoyu!

Huang Dongbo took a step back, slipped, and accidentally fell into the bathtub. But he didn't care about the pain in his back; his eyes were fixed on the bathroom mirror. The exhaust fan was still humming. The writing on the mirror quickly disappeared. Although Huang Dongbo stared blankly at the mirror, he didn't notice that the words were actually his own handwriting. At that moment, his mind was racing, trying to recall something that had happened not long ago—

...

Feng Junzi found the name Ding Xiaoyu somewhat familiar because he had vaguely heard a rumor about Jinjiang Securities not long ago. Jinjiang Securities had recently undergone an external audit due to a planned capital injection from its superiors to help the brokerage overcome its current difficulties. This audit uncovered some financial issues that previous internal audits had failed to detect.

Ding Xiaoyu's case appears to be one of these problems. Specifically, five million yuan of government bonds remained unaccounted for in a client's account. Everyone could guess that these funds were channeled into the stock market through repurchase agreements. However, the client denied ever authorizing such a transaction, and company leaders claimed complete ignorance. No written agreements were found during the investigation. The final investigation revealed that Ding Xiaoyu, a female employee who had recently joined Jinjiang Securities, had misappropriated these funds for stock investment, resulting in significant losses that she was unable to cover.

Five million in financial issues might not seem like much to a large brokerage like Jinjiang Securities, but as an independent case, it's a considerable sum, and the responsible parties received severe punishments. Ding Xiaoyu was later arrested and imprisoned. Feng Junzi found this rumor strange. Apparently, Ding Xiaoyu originally worked for another brokerage firm, which was taken over by Jinjiang Securities due to mismanagement. Ding Xiaoyu, as one of the taken-over personnel, also joined Jinjiang Securities. It's truly baffling that she would have the audacity to do such a thing under these circumstances.

Feng Junzi only knew this much about Ding Xiaoyu's situation, but Huang Dongbo knew much more. This government bond repurchase case itself had nothing to do with Huang Dongbo, but it involved a very important leader at Jinjiang Securities. Huang Dongbo, as an internal auditor, participated in the investigation, and it was only after the internal investigation discovered the problems that external audits were brought in. Therefore, from the very beginning of the external investigation, Huang Dongbo and his team were well-prepared. Such matters rarely leave much written evidence; once some key materials were removed, they would likely never be recovered. Only Ding Xiaoyu, the specific person in charge, became the scapegoat.

Huang Dongbo handled this matter "cleanly" and gained the appreciation of a certain leader, which led to his later transfer to the position of general manager of the Binhai branch, thus completing Huang Dongbo's transformation from "washing the concubine's feet to being granted the title of Jinshi" (a high-ranking scholar in the imperial examinations).

As for Ding Xiaoyu, after discovering the trap, she made a decision she would later regret for the rest of her life: she decided to go all the way and, rather than become a scapegoat, actually abscond with the money. During her escape, she did indeed embezzle a sum of money from company clients using her position. This further solidified her guilt. It is said that she resisted arrest, becoming extremely agitated and bordering on hysterical. During the conflict with law enforcement officers, she suffered an eye injury that resulted in blindness. Ding Xiaoyu's impulsive decision cost her the chance to overturn her conviction; she was ultimately sentenced to seven years in prison. By the time she entered prison, she was already on the verge of a mental breakdown, and Huang Dongbo recently heard that she died in prison.

While Huang Dongbo didn't commit the crime himself, it's fair to say he designed the trap. After Ding Xiaoyu's incident, Huang Dongbo comforted himself, saying, "She really did take the company's money and run away; she really did commit a crime, so she deserves it." This thought might have eased his conscience. Thinking this way often, Huang Dongbo gradually felt more at ease. Later, when he was transferred to the position of general manager of the Binhai branch, he didn't believe it was because he protected a certain leader in this matter, but rather because he possessed the talent himself and deserved a promotion long ago.

But the sudden appearance of Ding Xiaoyu's name on the bathroom mirror in this situation shattered Huang Dongbo's carefully constructed mental balance. In that instant, he was overwhelmed by stories of vengeful spirits seeking revenge. At that moment, he felt not just fear, but a profound terror emanating from the depths of his soul. When someone believes they have everything firmly under control, only to discover a mysterious force in the world that neither power nor conspiracy can stop, I think anyone would experience this kind of fear.

...

That day, Huang Dongbo didn't go to work but went directly to Feng Junzi's house early in the morning. Tao Muling was just about to leave, while Feng Junzi was still asleep. Huang Dongbo suddenly arrived looking panicked, and Tao Muling, curious, abandoned her plan to go out, while Feng Junzi reluctantly got dressed to greet his guest.

After settling down in the living room, Huang Dongbo said in a trembling and hoarse voice, "Teacher Feng, Miss Taomu, you two experts must save me. Others may not believe it, but you, young master, will believe it. I am being haunted by a ghost, and she wants to harm me."

Feng Junzi remained silent, while Tao Muling replied, "Mr. Huang, please don't get so agitated. It's normal for people to experience hallucinations, but generally, once the cause of this psychological phenomenon is found, the problem is solved. You weren't very cooperative during your last therapy session, so we can try again today..."

Feng Junzi interrupted her, saying, "I think we don't need to try anymore. I've already guessed the cause of his illness."

Tao Muling and Huang Dongbo both looked up at Feng Junzi with questioning eyes. Feng Junzi glanced sideways at Huang Dongbo and coldly uttered three words: "—Ding—Xiao—Yu—"

Huang Dongbo's body jolted, and he almost fell off the sofa. Feng Junzi had only been testing him out of suspicion, but seeing Huang Dongbo's reaction, he already understood most of the situation. He continued, "Huang Dongbo, you have to tell the truth. What exactly is going on with Ding Xiaoyu? Otherwise, no one can help you."

Huang Dongbo mumbled, "That Ding Xiaoyu embezzled government bond funds. Later, when the matter was discovered, she absconded with the money. I heard she was arrested and sentenced, and not long ago I heard she died in prison. I also participated in the company's internal investigation, but I was just fulfilling my duties. This case really has nothing to do with me."

Feng Junzi knew that Huang Dongbo would never tell the truth, so he didn't press the matter further. He then asked, "When Ding Xiaoyu died, was she blind in one eye?"

Huang Dongbo nodded. At this moment, Tao Muling, who was sitting to the side, suddenly realized something and muttered to herself, "So that's how it is. I finally understand."

Huang Dongbo: "What have you figured out?"

Peachwood Bell: "I've figured out why you encountered these things. I've figured out the relationship between that ronin doll and this woman. It was your unconscious psychological effect that connected them. Did all of this only happen after you received that one-eyed doll?"