It was practically impossible trudging along the narrow mountain pa.s.s due to the heavy snow.
Lin Qiushi was worried that Ruan Baijie"s body couldn"t endure the harsh weather, so he protected her the entire trip. Nearby, Xiao Ke indifferently remarked that their relationship was very good.
"She"s a girl." Lin Qiushi replied. "It"s only natural that you have to be a bit more considerate towards women, you have to treasure them a bit more."
Snuggled delicately against Lin Qiushi"s back, Ruan Baijie stared at Xiao Ke with a lovely and pitiful expression.
Xiao Ke"s face was stoic, and she coldly averted her eyes. It seemed as though Xiao Ke only held feelings of animosity and dissatisfaction towards Ruan Baijie.
At long last, the time to cut the trees down arrived, and everyone hopped into action at once. This time, they chose two trees that weren"t as thick or bulky. They planned to chop down the trees in one go, so they could be finished with the task by today. Although the weather was freezing, Lin Qiushi"s body temperature gradually increased; he felt somewhat hot after hacking at the tree for a while. Lin Qiushi reached out to unb.u.t.ton his coat, and he paused to rest for a while.
Ruan Baijie leaned against the tree beside him and gazed thoughtfully at Lin Qiushi.
Lin Qiushi shot her a glance. "What are you looking at?"
Ruan Baijie: "That a.s.s is quite perky and plump, ah…"
Lin Qiushi nearly dropped the axe in his hands. He swiveled his head around and stared incredulously at Ruan Baijie. "What did you just say?"
Ruan Baijie: "I didn"t say anything. You must"ve heard wrong."
Lin Qiushi"s eyes were filled with skepticism.
Ruan Baijie: "How about you repeat what I just said right now?"
Lin Qiushi: "…" This girl has already figured out he was too embarra.s.sed, hasn"t she?
The two chatted as they cut the trees. Every once in a while, he and the other men would switch so that one could take a break while the other continued on with the task. They finally chopped down two trees before darkness completely enveloped the skies above.
They weren"t as stressed now that the trees had been cut down; however, the burden of transporting the logs still haunted everyone"s hearts.
The two teammates who were crushed to death by the log yesterday had already been buried under thick layers of snow. Even if they couldn"t see a shadow of their corpses, their tragic appearances were still vivid in their minds.
"Don"t carry the logs." Xiong Qi instructed. "Tie the rope around them and drag them away."
"Who"s going to drag them?" Zhang Zishuang asked.
Xiong Qi responded, "The men will be divided into two groups. Everyone will drag them together."
This method was truly as fair as it could get. Everyone would be doing the same thing; therefore, if another person died, it was purely because he was ill-fated. No one else would be to blame.
Lin Qiushi didn"t utter a sound. He simply stretched out his arm and took the rope from Xiong Qi"s hand. Without speaking to his other teammates, he promptly began to drag that c.u.mbersome log away. Lugging the heavy wood down this narrow mountain path was far more difficult than lifting it. But, in any case, it was safe; an unfortunate accident like before was unlikely to occur again.
Having learned from their previous mistakes, everyone was extremely cautious on their way back. It was only until they left the mountain and reached the carpenter"s house did they relax their vigilance and breathe a sigh of relief.
"Elder." Xiong Qi politely called out. "We"ve come to deliver the logs."
The wooden door gradually creaked open before stopping abruptly. A second later, a wrinkled, old face emerged from between the cracks. Then, the carpenter slowly pushed the door wide open and motioned for them to bring the wood inside.
"Elder." Xiong Qi extended his hand and wiped the white flurries from his face. "We"ve delivered the wood, and we will soon set off to the temple to pray. What do we need to bring?"
The old man took a long, interminable drag on the tobacco pipe in his hand and puffed out, sending out a cloud of dense, white smoke into the air. He ambiguously declared, "Just take yourselves along, go with people."
Xiong Qi furrowed his brows after he heard what was said.
"You must go at night." The old man informed. "Once dusk falls, enter the temple one by one. Once you finish worshipping, you can come back out."
There was a subtle change in Ruan Baijie"s expression upon hearing his requirements. Lin Qiushi a.s.sumed she would interject and say something, but, in the end, she didn"t say a word; she merely chuckled softly, and a slight smile played around her lips.
"Do we have to go in one by one?" Xing Qi seemed to think this request was rather strange. "Can"t we go in together?"
"Go in together?" The old man sneered nastily. "You can try."
"Thank you very much." Xiong Qi no longer continued asking questions. He turned around and shouted for everyone to leave the carpenter"s house.
Lin Qiushi had always felt that this man was rather peculiar. He wondered, "The villagers wouldn"t deceive us, would they?"
"There are some who would." Xiong Qi confirmed. "However, vital characters generally do not lie. If the hint they give us about the key is misleading or completely off, then we"d have absolutely nothing to work with."
And all they"d be capable of doing would be awaiting their deaths, it seemed.
Lin Qiushi hummed.
After they delivered the logs to the carpenter, they went back to their residence. They then started up a fire and began to discuss the following plans as they warmed themselves up.
Halfway through the conversation, Ruan Baijie abruptly announced that she wished to go to the toilet. However, she never returned for a long time.
Lin Qiushi waited for a while, but he was getting rather worried about her. Immediately after, he stood up and ran in the direction she headed, only to find no one in the lavatory. After circling the entire house, he finally caught sight of Ruan Baijie sitting by herself next to the mouth of the well.
She seemed to have been sitting on the edge of the well for a while now. There was a layer of pure white snow covering the top of her head. Lin Qiushi tentatively called out her name, but Ruan Baijie didn"t seem to have heard him. She never even turned her head back.
"Ruan Baijie?" Lin Qiushi strode towards her. "What are you doing here? It"s freezing outside."
"Don"t move." Ruan Baijie"s suddenly spoke.
Lin Qiushi halted mid-step.
Ruan Baijie frostily stressed, "Don"t get close to me." Her voice was exceptionally cold, as if her usual gentleness had completely vanished. "Stay far away from me."
Lin Qiushi hesitantly questioned, "What"s wrong?" Due to his keen senses, he was well aware that the sudden change in Ruan Baijie"s att.i.tude was directly related to that well beside her.
Ruan Baijie simply shook her head and didn"t reply.
Lin Qiushi boldly took two steps towards Ruan Baijie. At a closer distance, he was now able to see the mouth of the well clearly. But the situation didn"t look too good. Gooseb.u.mps immediately appeared all over Lin Qiushi"s body at the sight. The inside of the mouth of the well was layered with something black. At first, Lin Qiushi thought it was nothing but water, but no sooner, he discovered those things were languidly squirming around. At that very moment, he was so certain of it, he knew he couldn"t have mistaken it—the inside of the well was filled with black hair.
Ruan Baijie"s feet seemed to have gotten entangled in these strands of hair. She couldn"t move a single muscle.
"Don"t come any nearer, Lin Qiushi." Ruan Baijie ordered. "You will be pulled down together with me."
"It doesn"t matter." Lin Qiushi voice was extremely soft; he was afraid that if he were any louder, he would disturb that black hair. "It doesn"t matter. Don"t be afraid. I will definitely save you."
Ruan Baijie finally turned her head around to stare straight at Lin Qiushi. Her eyes weren"t as tender or soft as before. As of this moment, those eyes of hers turned into the depths of the abyss, a bottomless lake that was so deep, so profound. She uttered, "Why."
Lin Qiushi told her, "Wait for me for a bit. Just hold on." He remembered something and promptly darted towards the house.
Sitting in the living room, Xiong Qi spotted Lin Qiushi urgently running about. Quite puzzled, he wondered what was going on, but Lin Qiushi simply ignored him and made a beeline for the kitchen.
When he arrived at the kitchen, he picked up some firewood, quickly s.n.a.t.c.hed the flint to light a fire, and whirled on his heels to rush back outside.
It was but a few minutes, but those few minutes seemed centuries long. Lin Qiushi"s hands trembled endlessly as he constantly ignited the wood to create a flame. He was afraid, so afraid that he would return to the edge of the well, only to find it completely empty.
Fortunately, when he came back with the blazing wood in hand, Ruan Baijie was still sitting there.
"I"m back." Lin Qiushi panted unevenly. "In a moment, I"ll come over to you and throw the fire into the well. Grab my hand…do not let go."
Ruan Baijie: "Are you not afraid?"
Lin Qiushi stared at her blankly. "Afraid of what?"
Ruan Baijie: "Of course, what other than death? Are you not afraid of dying?"
Lin Qiushi grinned. "Who isn"t afraid of dying? But there is always something more dreadful, more fearsome and unbearable, than death itself." Although he had always harbored some doubts and apprehension when it came to this world, he could still sense that Ruan Baijie had saved him countless times. In fact, without Ruan Baijie, he might"ve been one of those mutilated corpses on the first night.
"Okay, I"m coming over now." Lin Qiushi was scared of delaying any longer. Ruan Baijie was physically weak, and she didn"t have the strength to endure. He carefully moved forward step by step, gradually tiptoeing towards Ruan Baijie.
When he was close enough, he immediately grabbed Ruan Baijie"s hand, then flung that torch in his hand on the writhing hair.
"Ahhh——!" The broken, mournful shrieks of a woman sounded from inside the well. The hair was lit on fire, and it violently wriggled about. Amidst the flurry, Lin Qiushi unexpectedly spotted a deathly pale face in that well. Although it was merely a split-second, Lin Qiushi still recognized that visage; it was the same face he had seen in the house once before, the face of the ghost who had disguised herself with Ruan Baijie"s voice on that first night.
"Run for it!!" The moment Ruan Baijie broke free from the hair, Lin Qiushi took ahold of her hand and hauled her to her feet. While dragging her behind, he started running away from the well.
Ruan Baijie didn"t resist. With Lin Qiushi taking the lead and acting fast, the two individuals charged into the house, then frantically huffed for air.
"What"s the matter?" The people in the house were beyond startled.
"There"s something inside the well…" Lin Qiushi wheezed out between his rugged gasps for breath. "Everyone, stay far away from that well. Baijie was nearly dragged down just now." After he finished advising them, he turned to look at Baijie and asked her whether she was harmed.
"There"s nothing." Ruan Baijie replied. "I"m alright."
Lin Qiushi cast a glance at her feet, and he actually saw a ring of crimson blood winding around Ruan Baijie"s ankles; the blood slowly trickled down to the floors. He countered, "You call this nothing? Hurry up and sit down. I"ll bandage it for you."
Ruan Baijie seemed to have just realized she was injured. She c.o.c.ked her head to one side, then finally complied with Lin Qiushi"s orders. She obediently sat down on a chair.
Lin Qiushi found some medicine and gauze in the room. Half-kneeling before Ruan Baijie, he lightly set her foot on his knee, then gingerly began treating her wound. His movements were so attentive and gentle, he seemed quite worried about accidentally hurting Ruan Baijie.
"Are you always this careful and gentle with girls?" Ruan Baijie suddenly asked.
"As if this has anything to do with girls." Lin Qiushi casually replied without hesitation. "Even if you are a man, would that give me any reason to be rough with you?"
Ruan Baijie: "I see…"
Lin Qiushi continued blabbering on without consideration. "Are you truly not male? You"re so tall, and your chest is so flat." However, Ruan Baijie was undoubtedly too beautiful. Needless to say, Lin Qiushi didn"t believe such a stunning man could exist in the world.
"Yeah." Ruan Baijie lamented. "My chest still isn"t as big as yours, apparently."
Lin Qiushi: "…"
Ruan Baijie: "And my a.s.s also isn"t as plump and fine as yours."
Lin Qiushi: "…Just why are you like this, your words are too much."
Ruan Baijie giggled mischievously.
Lin Qiushi helped Ruan Baijie treat her wound, and then explained to Xiong Qi and the others about the ordeal they went through. The others" reactions were fairly mild, but Xiong Qi"s and Xiao Ke"s faces were very ugly. They"d obviously recalled the old man"s words regarding the final step to creating the coffin—to fill the well.
What exactly did a coffin have to do with a well? Was this perhaps a custom unique to this village or was it a trap that the carpenter had laid out for them?
Ruan Baijie seemed to know what Xiong Qi was brooding over, and she smiled. "You don"t have to think so much about it. What you should do, how you should go about doing it, why you should do it, such things in life have already been determined."
Xiong Qi exhaled slightly. "We plan to visit the temple tonight to pay our respects. Would you like to join us?"
"Me?" Ruan Baijie paused. "My foot"s injured, and I can"t walk on the road. Qiushi, carry me on your back."
Lin Qiushi nodded his head.
Beside him, Xiao Ke opened her mouth. "How could an injury like that affect your ability to walk by yourself on the road?"
Ruan Baijie wasn"t the least bit angered by her words. She merely directed a sweet smile in her direction and purred, "Dear sister, you must bear with my excessiveness. I was quite pampered and spoiled at home since childhood. Naturally, I came to be a bit more delicate than most."
Xiao Ke hissed, "You"re testing Lin Qiushi"s temper, continuing to take advantage of his good will. Not a single person in this world within this gate knows who you are, so for what reason should they indulge you?"
"Oh, and here I suspected that you and Xiong Qi knew each other." As if she couldn"t care any less for the business of others, Ruan Baijie nonchalantly revealed such a sentence.
But who would"ve imagined that Xiao Ke and Xiong Qi"s expressions would change so fast at this one sentence. Their eyes immediately held more vigilance.
Lin Qiushi instantly detected a change in the atmosphere.
"What are you suggesting by saying this?" Xiao Ke demanded.
"I"m not suggesting anything." Ruan Baijie coolly answered. "I simply think you two have such a great relationship, nothing more… it couldn"t be that you two truly know each other, right?"
"How could that possibly be?" Xiao Ke looked terribly uncomfortable.
Ruan Baijie sn.i.g.g.e.red. But, contrary to expectations, she didn"t continue with this topic.
Of course, Xiao Ke also didn"t continue to hound Ruan Baijie. She no longer tried to stop Ruan Baijie from making Lin Qiushi carry her on his back to the temple. With a pallid complexion, she turned on her heels and stomped away.