Смертельно опасные электронные письма

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The Ghost Lips's Unforgettable Kiss

Chapter One: Hotel No. 1644, Afang

I've never liked noisy scenes, especially social gatherings and boring banquets, which I often avoid at all costs. My excuse is always the same: I'm a coward, it gets too late, and I'm afraid to go home. But that's not really what I feel. I'm not afraid of walking in the dark, nor am I afraid of thieves. I'm just afraid of my own eyes in the dark, especially after the bright lights and revelry of a grand feast. Suddenly entering a dark place, my eyes always start imagining things. Fear is a psychological affliction, and my fear of the dark isn't a product of believing in ghosts or spirits. I don't believe in ghosts. What I fear is a kind of empty emptiness and an omnipresent etherealness. My imagination is incredibly vivid; I might see a tree branch as a sinister silhouette, and I often stare blankly at a corner of a wall. My inquisitive eyes never believe a corner is empty; I have to walk over and confirm it before I believe it. On a dark road, I have to examine every deep, dark corner before daring to move forward.

I can't remember when I started to doubt my own vision, but I remember it was when I was nineteen, after I experienced something strange, and everything changed.

I vaguely remember it was a Friday before the Mid-Autumn Festival when my cousin, Pang Zhen, called me and asked me to go and meet her "future brother-in-law." Although he was her boss, this meeting was different from usual; it was a date that resembled a lover's (or perhaps a semi-illicit affair). She invited me, her younger brother, to come along. I didn't understand the mystery behind it. Perhaps it was because my witty conversation and fashionable attire naturally enhanced my sister's "beauty." If I could assess the situation and say a few trendy and popular things to liven up the atmosphere, that should be the reason for my mysterious invitation.

Sister Zhen's lover is a sullen manager, and a married man at that, though separated from the vice president's wife. This can be inferred from Sister Zhen's secret crush; she hadn't previously shown any pride in this mysterious prince. Sister Zhen said his quiet nature worried her, and she hoped I could influence him, but on one condition: I had to leave first.

Sister Zhen was waiting for me at a luxury restaurant on Chongqing Road. The autumn evening air suddenly turned chilly. I was fumbling with the messages Sister Zhen had left for me on my phone as I hurried along, completely unaware that it had started to drizzle shortly after I left work. Outside the Huangcheng Afang Hotel, cars were parked everywhere. Through the floor-to-ceiling window near the northwest corner, I saw my stylish and beautiful cousin. She was wearing a red dress and had long, misty hair. I tilted my head and stared at her for a long time, a wave of bittersweet feeling welling up inside me. Sister Zhen was the most beautiful person I knew. How wonderful it would be if she weren't my cousin! Tonight, the beauty of that red dress might belong to me. I'm not a scoundrel, but the feeling of watching someone else enjoy a beautiful meal with a beautiful woman was truly unpleasant. Thinking about how many pretty girls surrounded me while I was all alone, my gaze lingered on Sister Zhen with a lecherous look for the first time.

My cousin's gaze wandered out the window. When she saw me come in, she happily pursed her pretty red lips. Only then did I notice that she was waiting alone. Her lover, the manager, hadn't come. Was his wife preventing him from leaving? I wondered to myself, trying to understand my cousin's thoughts and the reasons for her anxiety.

"He hasn't arrived yet?"

"It should be exactly eight o'clock, we made an appointment!"

"This guy must be really nervous. Sister Zhen is so beautiful, maybe he'll remember halfway there that he should buy a bouquet of roses!"

"That's good..."

Ah Zhen's naive look made me anxious. Maybe all girls these days are like this, their eyes fixed on those who have achieved success, chasing after a sense of accomplishment, leaving so many handsome guys to suffer in the scorching heat of poverty… Like me, achieving nothing, I'll just have to remain a bachelor!

Lost in thought, I watched as she seemed utterly bored, yet her sharp, beautiful eyes were constantly fixed on the pedestrians under the neon lights outside the window, perhaps hoping for a car, or perhaps a nice car. I was certain that Ah Zhen's choices were always tasteful.

It was almost nine o'clock, and I was starving. The person who was supposed to pay the bill hadn't arrived yet, and there were still only a few small dishes in front of me. I eagerly awaited the arrival of the "supreme gentleman" so I could fill my stomach, and so I looked out the window with a melancholy gaze.

At 9:15, the car had driven halfway. After more than an hour of waiting, Ah Zhen seemed tireless. She just stared blankly out the window, sometimes our eyes meeting only through the shimmering glass. In her left hand was a small mirror, which she would occasionally pick up to check her appearance, then gracefully apply her evening makeup. But her beautiful, unfocused eyes looked somewhat pale, even a little forlorn. Suddenly, my gaze fell on the mirror in her hand, and there was an earthy yellow painting reflected in it…! My heart skipped a beat. I looked around, but I didn't see that antique painting in the hotel decor. So why did I see it in the mirror…? Also… why were her fingers so red? Was it lipstick? Surely she wouldn't be so extravagant as to put lipstick on her fingers… What was that?

"Sister Zhen, what happened to your hand?"

"It's nothing..."

She smiled mysteriously, and I didn't even notice. As she spoke, she picked up the small mirror again. Just as I was staring intently at the hole in the mirror, that long ancient painting reappeared in the mirror. It was a very familiar painting.

"He's here!"

Where is it?

I was startled. When there were very few pedestrians outside, Ah Zhen suddenly screamed softly. Her voice was very high-pitched, but her eyes were wide open, which frightened me.

"He's here, in a car!"

"A car? I didn't see it!"

My scalp tingled with dread. My dear sister, could it be lovesickness, seeing a shadow from your dreams? Although there were cars coming and going on Chongqing Road, none of them stopped. Where was the car she was talking about?

"Didn't you see the license plate? It's number 1644."

“1644…” I looked around, but there was no sign of any cars coming from the opposite direction or in front of the window.

"Sis, what's wrong with you today?"

I looked at Sister Zhen with concern. I had heard that if someone saw something that others couldn't see, they were about to face a great disaster, so I tried to find out the truth about this mystery.

She gave me a charming smile and then went out to greet me. When I noticed her feet, my fear intensified. I'll never forget it: she was wearing red shoes embroidered with chrysanthemums, with thick white soles—how bizarre! Those were definitely not shoes people would see in modern times! Sister Zhen's movements were faster than I expected; I didn't even notice when she left the table. I hurriedly put down my half-empty glass of orange juice and followed her out. Just as I left my seat, the lobby manager rushed over and asked...

"Sir, is your food ready yet...?"

"Oh, please wait a moment, the person who pays will be here soon. As for the food... has anyone ordered?" I suddenly realized the problem with the food and asked in surprise.

"Yes, the hotel's ordering system is completely computer-controlled, and guests can order remotely. Here is the order form for your table number 17, which we just received."

I took the menu and glanced at it. Goodness, it turns out that Ah Zhen's lover is quite the gourmet. All four dishes were ones I had never tried before: clear broth Dongpo pork, braised mandarin fish, premium chrysanthemum hot pot, and Heyuan rice wine drunken shrimp.

Delicious! I love it. The fear I felt while sitting quietly with Ah Zhen just now vanished instantly. I followed my cousin's red dress and chased after her. I had to give my cousin face and act like a gentleman. It would be best if I could make her realize that I was just a cool and handsome little brother pretending to be cool.

However, an ominous premonition came at that moment. When I arrived at the hotel door, I was suddenly stunned. Sister Zhen was gone!

"sister!"

I couldn't help but call out, but no one answered. The streets were deserted; the ancient city was sparsely populated in the rainy night. Except for the flashing yellow traffic lights in the distance, everything seemed as if nothing had happened. But where was Sister Zhen? ...

I ran back and forth frantically. Had the mysterious manager just picked her up? But I'd only spoken to the hotel manager for a minute; could his car have gone that fast…? Suddenly, my foot slipped, and a small, round mirror appeared before my eyes. I almost stepped on it and broke it—it was Ah Zhen's little mirror! I picked it up cautiously, recalling the strange ancient painting I'd seen earlier. I involuntarily turned to the side, my eyes darting to the mirror's surface in the darkness illuminated by the hotel's wall lamps… blank, then the ancient painting! I was stunned and quickly threw it to the ground. But turning back, my gaze met the advertising sign above the hotel entrance; the background of the text was the Qingming Scroll! It was the painting in the mirror…

I was filled with dread. In my hand was the menu handed to me by the hotel manager: clear broth Dongpo pork, braised mandarin fish, premium chrysanthemum hot pot, and Heyuan rice wine-drunken shrimp... The first four characters of the four dishes were "Qingming Shanghe"! Coincidence or a prank? I ran into the hotel. Maybe it was a joke played on me by Sister Zhen and her future brother-in-law. But when I stood at the table where I had just been sitting, I felt dizzy.

Chapter Two: The Face Outside the Car Window

My cup and Sister Zhen's cup were still the same. On the purplish-red chair, a pair of embroidered shoes were neatly arranged. They were the same pair that my cousin had worn. Everything was just as it had been. My hair was about to stand on end, and fear made me incoherent.

"Manager, what...what is this? Tell me!"

My hand felt sticky, and when I finally mustered the courage to raise it and look at it under the light, I saw blood gushing out from the broken little mirror.

"Sir, what's wrong?"

I looked up abruptly, and the familiar lobby manager walked over with a smile on his face. But he practically floated over, making no sound as he walked. I subconsciously noticed his feet; he was also wearing those embroidered shoes with thick white soles that were almost blinding!

"No, it's nothing!"

I was terrified and nervously turned to leave, but he quickly handed me a bill.

"Sir, please pay your bill."

"I...I haven't eaten yet!"

"You've already eaten. Look at the dishes on the table."

As he spoke, his face began to turn pale, and his gloomy expression made me afraid to look directly at him. I could only steal a glance at the table. There were no four famous dishes; instead, I saw four chubby, white babies, lying neatly on a plate as if fast asleep! Beneath them was a bubbling, boiling hot pot! Several sets of knives, forks, and chopsticks were laid out beside them. Each baby had a square stamp imprinted on its navel, and blood dripped from the outline of that stamp…

I can't remember how I paid the bill, how I managed to suppress my nausea and run out of the lobby. I threw all my money at him, then rushed out of the Afang Hotel in a state of utter despair. When I finally stepped onto the street with pedestrians and looked back at the hotel's sign, I was shocked to realize that the glaring "Along the River During the Qingming Festival" on the billboard was not there. The magnificent city walls, the bustling marketplace, and the Bianhe Bridge in the picture had all vanished without a trace. The background of the hotel's large golden lettering was actually a half-naked woman lying in a pile of chili peppers.

My cousin disappeared, leaving behind only that cracked mirror. I mustered my courage and didn't throw it away in my panic. Subconsciously, I thought maybe one day I'd see her in the mirror, instead of that terrifying ancient painting. At midnight, I called the police and stammered out my bizarre story. The police were curious, but no one believed the fabricated tale of a beautiful woman's disappearance. The mirror naturally became evidence, but the strange bloodstains and the lack of corroborating evidence (the Afang Hotel was still the same, and there was no lobby manager as I'd mentioned, not even the so-called computer menu) made me the prime suspect. Fortunately, the police showed leniency and didn't immediately detain me. The next day, they examined the fingerprints that might have been left on the mirror. The results were unexpected: neither my nor Pang Zhen's fingerprints were there. Instead, there was only half a finger's fingerprint, meaning we hadn't taken it at all. The person who took the mirror would have half a finger. The police searched through fingerprint files nationwide but couldn't find anyone who matched.

I became a self-deceiving liar. As for Sister Pang Zhen's disappearance, the police didn't believe my lies at all. The story of sitting at the A Fang Hotel, waiting for her boss and lover, and the messages on her phone were all proven to be fictitious after investigation. The telecommunications bureau had no record of the text messages, and no one at the hotel had seen Sister Pang Zhen. As for Sister Pang Zhen's lover, that ghost manager was completely fictitious. Her only two bosses were not men, but two beautiful older women.

Everything seemed as if it had never happened, except for one thing: her mysterious disappearance. I was nineteen years old that year, and I graduated from police academy the following year. In that year, I overcame my fear of the dark, trained hard, and became an outstanding graduate, about to be sent to the most secure security department in Beijing for an internship.

During that time, I often took out Sister Zhen's mysterious mirror, looking at it in the sunlight, holding it in the moonlight, putting it in my sweat-stained pocket, and even putting it into the Gubei River on Qixi Festival. I tried everything that people said had a spirit, hoping to see everything I saw that night again and find the mystery of Sister Zhen's disappearance. But my fantasies were in vain; the broken mirror never produced another miracle.

Gradually, I forgot about that terrifying ancient painting. A feeling I had never experienced before washed over me. It was an emotion I couldn't even express. I fell in love with the memories that occasionally flashed in the mirror: her beautiful figure, her crimson dress, her flowing hair, and her sorrowful smile. It was an inescapable unrequited love. At twenty, I silently fell in love with my cousin, who was as beautiful as a flower in my memory.

I often confided in "her," even though I knew she might be dead, killed by some unknown force. I refused to believe that the beautiful azalea had withered in the devilish game of longing for a man. I grieved for losing a sister who loved me dearly. Deeper feelings often haunted my dreams—a kind of erotic fantasy. In one dream, I was embracing her in a bridal sedan chair, both of us breathless with exhaustion. Though her sorrowful smile was so forced, my stubbornness and the excitement of a mature young man were so intense! In my diary, I vividly described falling in love with my kinsman, Ah Zhen, and being in love with a deceased beauty, unrestrained by marriage. This distorted love gradually spiraled out of control. Hidden in my desk drawer were almost entirely photos of Sister Zhen from the ten years before her disappearance.

One day in September, I packed my bags, ready to depart, bid farewell to my friends, and board the train to Beijing. But that same day, I received a fax from the police academy. Principal Xing ordered me to rush to the Palace Museum in Beijing. My classmate, Qi Silong, an outstanding graduate and police officer from the previous year, had mysteriously disappeared while on duty. I was to report within two days to assist the police academy in investigating the truth.

On the train at night, I sat blankly by the window in my hard seat, gazing at the darkness outside. The occasional flickering lights were like lonely fireflies, making my thoughts deep and boundless. I took out the mirror that had been with me for a year, wanting to say goodbye. Perhaps tomorrow I would be throwing myself into the complexities of work. Autumn in Beijing might be beautiful, and I would gradually forget this painful relationship, pouring my heart and love into the struggles of the future.

But the moment I took out the mirror, my hand felt a soft sting. The mirror, which I was so used to touching, felt so soft and yielding. I broke out in a cold sweat. The overhead lights went out at that moment. It was 10 p.m., the time for passengers to rest. My hand froze, and I dared not touch it again. The feeling was just like touching Sister Zhen's breasts in my dream! My eyes sparkled with desire! I glanced timidly and subconsciously out the window…

The terrifying moment came so suddenly. An image appeared in the darkness outside the car window, becoming clearer and clearer. It was an upside-down woman's face. It was almost not a shadow, but a living, breathing human face, its light shifting with the shadows cast by the trees in the darkness.

"It's Ah Zhen! What are you doing hanging upside down on the car roof?"

I screamed inwardly. My legs trembled with fear, and to see her expression clearly, I even turned my face away... She smiled and darted to the window next door. I couldn't abandon her. I jumped off the iron bed and chased after her barefoot. Sure enough, Ah Zhen's face was visible again, this time her hair covered her eyes, only her red lips were showing! I pressed myself against the window, wanting to hug her. I didn't know how she was hanging there; I didn't want her to fall! I had to save her...

I touched the mirror again, hoping it would work like a magic wand to bring her back, but as soon as I reached out, I was bitten hard. The bite jolted me awake and startled Ah Zhen, who was outside the window. A girl's soft voice called out, "Handsome, please don't!"

I was startled, and then I felt a soft, warm current suddenly slide through my fingers. I was grabbing the breast of a female passenger in the lower berth!

She didn't call the police, otherwise I would have been dead that night. Perhaps it was my gentlemanly demeanor and composed manner in the evening that prevented her from screaming in the end.

"I'm sorry, miss, I didn't mean to, I was trying to save someone!"

"Who's going to jump out of the car?"

"She is an older sister who disappeared a long time ago."

"Is she outside the window?"

"Yes, or maybe I was still half asleep and she was hanging over the window!"

"What? A ghost? How scary!"

The girl, without thinking, grabbed my genuinely thuggish arm and pulled me down hard. With a thud, I was completely sprawled on top of her. This time, I was genuinely terrified. To end up on top of a strange girl for no reason—a police officer, wasn't that practically suicide?

Tell me, what did you see?

She asked urgently, her body trembling violently.

"Oh, I didn't see anything. I'm so sorry, I should go back now!"

"I won't let you leave. You need to explain yourself clearly: is she dead, or is she still in the window above me?"

"Maybe not, I..."

"No, then why did you arrest me...?"

Enraged, her next move was to call the police, I'm sure of it. In the darkness, I could almost see the fear in her eyes, but suddenly the train passed through a tunnel, and the crimson railway overhead lights shone directly on her face. Just as I was about to pull away from her breath, a strange feeling reminded me that the girl I was unintentionally holding wasn't a stranger, but Ah Zhen, her beautiful eyes half-covered! ...

Chapter Three: The Coffin Carriage

"Pang Zhen, is that you?"

My fear was mixed with doubt, and I wanted to confirm the illusion that I had been confused.

Are you crazy?!

The girl sat up, facing away from me in the light, so I couldn't see her face clearly. Fortunately, there were no passengers on the opposite bed, so her voice didn't frighten me.

"Who are you looking for? You scared me earlier by saying someone was hanging outside the window, and now you're pretending to be stupid and hugging me. You're crazy!"

I was sweating profusely from her scolding. I lowered my head, and in the darkness, I no longer had the hope that she was Ah Zhen.

"Excuse me, could you please keep your voice down? I'm not a bad person!"

"Okay, handsome, I'll let you off the hook, but you have to agree to one condition."

"I'll agree to any conditions, I just ask for your forgiveness."

"I'm going to sleep. You stay here and keep watch. Don't leave!"

"Okay, go to sleep. Where are you getting off?"

"You don't need to worry about that."

"Oh...then I'll sit across from you."

"No, I'll sit right next to her. I'm scared of that female ghost."