The sound of rain couldn’t be heard anymore.
Luo Qiu walked a round in the office, going to the cabinet in the meeting room. He suddenly stretched out to touch the place where the ball was put before.
Pressing the hand on the wooden part.i.tion, Luo Qiu closed his eyes.
Zhang Qingrui had asked if he heard or saw anything--- Considering that her memory of the matter happened in the underground palace had been erased, Luo Qiu was definitely not willing to express anything.
Instead of saying that Ms. Zhang saw her, it might be better to say she was attracted to Ms. Zhang.
Luo Qiu withdrew his palm and walked out from the dean’s office, coming to sit on the bench in the aisle.
He closed eyes again. Yet, this time he just kept them close for a mere breath. When he opened his eyes once again, there was a little girl standing in front of him.
She was clean, a hint of unease showed on her pink cheeks. The girl was wringing her dress while lowering her head.
"Well." Luo Qiu blinked his eyes, patting the seat next to him. "Take a seat here."
The little girl looked at Luo Qiu with fear, without daring to reply. She took a step back, shaking her head.
While Luo Qiu had a patient character, patting the seat again, saying gently, "Take a seat."
The little girl hesitated for a second, then moved with little steps. After sizing this big brother up and down anxiously, she sat down, but still lowered her head.
"Well." Luo Qiu lowered his head and look at her with soft words, "Were you playing a joke on us?"
The little girl shook her head and still did not say anything.
Luo Qiu thought for a moment, "Then who it is?"
She raised her head slowly and said suddenly, "Big bro, can you save my elder sister?"
Luo Qiu fell silent, then gently stroked her head, "Aren’t you worried that you’ll vanish then?"
She raised her head, with a firm look. "No, I won’t."
"Give me your hand." Luo Qiu stretched out his hand on his thigh, opening the palm towards her. "Let me see how I can save your sister."
The little hands reached for his palms gradually. Then the little girl and Luo Qiu closed their eyes at the same time.
…
…
Dismayed cries and grieved screams.
Every stab from the sharp steel needle with fish wire pierced through her lips, pierced through her lips.
In front, the look from a crazy man who lost his marbles… there was only the steel needle and fish wire. A crazy man’s face emerged from the darkness slowly.
Then the man’s palm that was catching the needle turned clear gradually.
The needle was pierced through her lips little by little.
After stabbing, the fish wire was pulled crazily!
The fish wire went through her upper lip and under lip crazily. The continuous pain was several times fiercer than that of the being pierced by needles.
The pain had been spread all over her body… yet the needle was p.r.i.c.ked again.
‘You disobedient brat who knows only how to cry! Have you cried enough?’
‘Stop crying! Stop crying! Shut up! Shut up! Shut up! Bottle it!! B*tch! Close your mouth!
"Ah---!"
Waking up abruptly, Zhang Qingrui was in cold sweat. The pain that her lips were stabbed by needles seemed like to be imprinted in her brain.
"Are you OK? Hey, hey?"
Zhang Qingrui recollected herself, found that she was not alone here. The one being with her in the stairway… was Teacher w.a.n.g from the dean’s office.
She couldn’t describe what she had witnessed. The only thing she could recall, was the moment when she slumped down--- the scene in which the lips-seamed girl stretched out her hand towards her.
Lips.
Zhang Qingrui touched her own lips unwittingly, but didn’t feel any of those horrible fish wire, so she let out a sigh of relief.
"Hey? How are you?"
Teacher w.a.n.g was standing here, asking about Zhang Qingrui’s situation with concern when seeing she was in a bad condition.
Zhang Qingrui shook her head hard, dissipating those grisly scenes from her mind. As a female teacher, Teacher w.a.n.g made her feel a slight sense of security more or less, "Teacher, why are you here?"
Luo Qiu had vanished. The first one she saw after waking up was Teacher w.a.n.g. All these confused Zhang Qingrui.
She surely met a ghost… but due to the unawareness of the current situation, she had to make clear of it first.
"This is what I want to ask you." Teacher w.a.n.g helped Zhang Qingrui up, "I just met your cla.s.smate, but he disappeared after a blink of an eye. But you… you fell down here when I saw you. What’s wrong with the two of you?"
If she could explain it, she might not be so annoyed like now.
"Teacher… did you go downstairs?" Zhang Qingrui asked suddenly.
While Teacher w.a.n.g was stunned, "I was only taking care of you and did not go down. Are you sure you’re OK? Did you faint or slip and fell down? Did you get hurt?"
It was weird that she didn’t feel uncomfortable after rolling down from the stairs and waking up. The only pain was from the horrible scene in the nightmare, leaving her a p.r.i.c.king pain like it was a true feeling.
Zhang Qingrui glimpsed at the stairs below… the end could be seen now.
It was no longer a helix-like endless stairway!
Zhang Qingrui breathed deeply, "Teacher… I feel sort of dizzy, can you help me to go down?"
Teacher w.a.n.g nodded to agree with this simple request and helped Zhang Qingrui to step forward, "Be careful."
Zhang Qingrui nodded as well, but suddenly, Teacher w.a.n.g turned… into the appearance of whose mouth had been sewn!
She was terrified!
Out of instinct, Zhang Qingrui pushed her away at full tilt!
She used all of her strength! Teacher w.a.n.g lost her center of gravity with a dumbfounded expression!
Zhang Qingrui came to her sense at this split second… that she pushed her over!
There was no time to be afraid or frightened, she just stretched out her hand, trying to catch Teacher w.a.n.g!
However, she could only catch her clothes. The downward pull of gravity could not be reversed.
One more time, Zhang Qingrui rolled down from the stairs… but this time, another person had the same fate with her.
She felt a real pain this time! Feeling that all her bones were about to break, Zhang Qingrui dropped down with Teacher w.a.n.g lying by her side.
Teacher w.a.n.g propped up her body, shaking her head hard to sober her brain.
"What are you doing?!"
Zhang Qingrui sensed the anger in her interrogation. She was also bearing the painful feeling and when she was about to explain something, her face changed because of…
Pa, pa, pa, pa…
That familiar sound of a ball bouncing downstairs came once more! A dark red ball was seen bouncing down slowly.
One step after another.
She looked up to the stairs.
Again!
She saw that seamed-mouth little girl again, who was standing at the top end… lowering her head with a drenched body.
Ah---!
The Teacher w.a.n.g who was lying aside let out a scream in horror, scratching and scrambling to get up. Hurrying was the best way. She took a fl.u.s.tered escape, stumbling to run along the aisle.
That sewn-mouth girl took one and one step after another to get down. Zhang Qingrui’s consciousness turned vague. In that instant, her vision became dark, and nothing could be seen.
…
…
The needle stabbed through, time and time again.
The fish wire had been pulled, time and time again. It seemed to cut apart her lips…
The swearing voice of a man…
Zhang Qingrui woke up with a start. The stifled feeling urged her to breathe in the fresh air greedily.
"Student, what’s wrong? Student, are you OK?"
In front of her, came the caring voice of her teacher from the dean’s office … Ms. Zhang opened her eyes widely, an ice cold feeling extended over her whole body as if a large amount of cold air entered her body, which made her scalp tingled.
She… was still at the mezzanine between the 4th and 5th floor.