It was just past afternoon. In summer, the days are long, and there were at least five or six hours before the sun set.
I was finally persuaded by Du Peilin!
However, what really tempted me was the large half - box of various talismans in the photo on his phone.
I had never seen so many talismans!! Even if I had been drawing them since childhood, I couldn't have drawn that many!
I finally understood why this guy was so greedy for money! If these talismans were all bought from Master Lu... they would probably be worth a fortune!
Du Peilin said that he could paste talismans on each floor of the inpatient department tonight, which would definitely ensure the safety of the patients and medical staff in the building.
Since he had shown me his treasure trove, I naturally had to help him.
When I returned to the rented store again, I always had a sense of deja vu.
As the iron gate banged, the neighbors in the compound saw me enter the yard and immediately surrounded me with smiles to greet me.
"Xiao He, why haven't you been back these days?"
"How's it going taking care of the old man?"
"You've really suffered, kid. You've lost weight..."
It turned out that everyone thought I had been in the hospital taking care of Du Wenzhong, which was why I hadn't come back.
Landlady Xu heard the commotion outside and poked her head out of her small grocery store. Seeing me standing in the yard, she quickly waved and said, "Xiao He! Just in time! There was a same - city express delivery for you at noon. I was just going to call you later. Fortunately, you're back."
"Thank you, Aunt Xu."
This express delivery was from Zhao Zifeng, and it contained the bottle that sealed the little ghost.
I followed Aunt Xu into the grocery store to get the express delivery. Sure enough, there was only a dusty little bottle in the box, plugged with a yellow talisman.
"Aunt Xu, is Wu Mingyu at home?"
After putting away the bottle, I inquired about Wu Mingyu. I hadn't seen her since I fled from the yard last time.
"She should be."
Aunt Xu glanced at Wu Mingyu's rented room and shook her head. "This girl has been acting a bit strange lately. She sleeps all day long and hardly eats. She's as thin as a ghost... Xiao He, why don't you go and take a look at her? Now that Xiao Wu is all alone, it's really pitiful."
I had come to find Wu Mingyu anyway, so I naturally nodded in agreement with Aunt Xu's words.
Judging from Aunt Xu's words, it seemed that she was also haunted by a ghost?!
Aunt Xu was very kind - hearted. She led me to the door of Wu Mingyu's rented room and knocked loudly on the door. "Xiao Wu, are you at home? Xiao He is looking for you."
The loud knocking on the door was almost deafening. After a long time, the sound of slippers shuffling on the floor came from inside the room.
The door creaked open a crack, and a pale face appeared in the dim light.
"Who's looking for me?"
Wu Mingyu seemed to have not seen the sun for a long time. The afternoon sunlight made her squint her eyes into slits. As soon as she caught sight of me behind Aunt Xu, she immediately shrank back her head and was about to close the door.
"I'm looking for you. I have something to ask."
Of course, I couldn't let her slip back into the room again. I stepped forward and blocked the door crack with my foot. "Do you know Zhou Wei?"
"Huh?"
A strange look flashed across Wu Mingyu's face, and her expression became more animated. "Why do you ask?"
Aunt Xu simply pushed the door open. A strong, sour and putrid smell rushed out of the room.
"I said, Xiao Wu, what's going on with you?!"
Aunt Xu entered the room and glanced around. Immediately covering her nose, she angrily scolded, "I felt sorry for you when your grandma died and let you hold the funeral in my house. What are you up to now? Are you trying to bring bad luck to my house?"
At this time, I also saw the whole picture of Wu Mingyu's room. In the small room, the coffee table and the floor were all piled up with various take - out containers. The sour and smelly smell was emitted by the juice of the leftover food. Although the light was dim, I could still see many dark - brown crawling insects being startled by us and scurrying around to find hiding places.
However, this was not the scariest scene.
In this single - room apartment, the bed was placed in the corner between two walls.
Needless to say, the bed was dirty and messy. There was a small computer desk beside the head of the bed, on which there was a black - and - white photo of Grandma Wu. Under the illumination of two bright red electronic candles, her two eyes looked like black holes, staring at us eerily!
Wu Mingyu seemed not to hear Aunt Xu's words. She just hung her head blankly and stared at the ground. Just then, a cockroach scurried straight towards her feet in a panic. She expressionlessly lifted her foot and stepped on it until it was crushed.
"If you don't clean this up right away, get out of here!!"
Aunt Xu was so disgusted that she almost vomited. Covering her nose, she backed out of the room. "Wu Mingyu, when your grandma was alive, it was never this dirty!!"
"Aunt Xu, she might be sick."
I was right beside Aunt Xu. Looking at Wu Mingyu's expression, I whispered to Aunt Xu, "Give me some time. I should be able to cure her..."
"Huh?!"
Aunt Xu was stunned for a moment. Then she looked at the creepy photo on the computer desk and suddenly understood what I meant. "Xiao He, is she possessed? Is it Grandma Wu?"
She reached out and grabbed my arm. I could feel Aunt Xu's fingers trembling.
"No."
I shook my head, pointed outside the room, and said to her, "Don't worry about it. I will definitely handle this well and ensure that your house is as lucky and prosperous as before!"
Aunt Xu really couldn't stay in this gloomy and disgusting place any longer. She covered her mouth and nose with one hand and patted my shoulder with the other. "Xiao He, I'm counting on you. From now on, I'll waive your rent!"
"Okay, thank you, Aunt Xu."
Of course, I wouldn't tell her that I already had other places to live. As the saying goes, "A cunning rabbit has three burrows." This place was one, Wang Yingxiu's house was another, and... Si Jiangchen's small courtyard was also one. Now in Beijing, I would never be chased by the Du family and have nowhere to hide like before!!
After Aunt Xu left, I closed the door, shutting out the strong afternoon sunlight.
"Tell me, why have you made yourself look like this?"
Originally, Wu Mingyu was quite pretty. Otherwise, she wouldn't have worked as a "princess" in the high - class banquet. But now, she looked like a walking corpse.
Wu Mingyu reacted a bit slowly. After a long while, she suddenly raised her head, grabbed my hand tightly, and stared at me with her eyes almost popping out of their sockets. "You... you just said you knew Zhou Wei?"
"Yes. You should know very well what good things you two have done..."
My hand was being squeezed so tightly that it hurt.
"I know! Did that bastard Zhou Wei send you to harm me?!"
Wu Mingyu went crazy. With her hair in disarray, she reached out to grab my neck. "His wife has been haunting me for many days!! You... it must be you who made her haunt me, right?!"