Chapter 2: The Sinister Child
Can a coffin board become spirited and seek revenge? And why does it claim to be the grandson of this weird old lady, and why lock itself up in such a cruel way? The series of eerie phenomena appearing before his eyes, coupled with the strong unease surging in his heart, caused Hu Ma’s newly recovered consciousness to be strongly impacted once again.
Fear, confusion, and bewilderment overwhelmed him, making him dizzy once again, as if stars were bursting before his eyes. But this time, he endured and did not faint, trying hard to keep his eyes open and look at the old lady.
And the old lady standing by the door was always staring at Hu Ma with a gloomy gaze, her dirty, messy hair hanging down, her eyeballs seemingly immobile.
She saw that Hu Ma was swaying but ultimately did not fall unconscious, her gaze somewhat complex. After a while, she slowly lowered her eyelids, and said indifferently, “You woke up earlier than I expected, and you’re more spirited too. It seems like you’re getting better.”
“…”
“Is she finally willing to talk this time?” Hu Ma propped himself up, realizing the difference from before. He had shouted at this old lady countless times, sometimes fainting, sometimes waking up in pain. Whenever she approached, he wanted to struggle, to resist, but the old lady always observed coldly, unaffected, even making him doubt at times if she could speak.
Hu Ma immediately stared at her, and trembled, “What…what exactly is happening to me?” “Why are you locking me up?”
“…”
“You’re sick.” The weird old lady slowly walked in, sat down on a small stool, and said softly, “I’m treating you.”
“Treatment?” Hu Ma’s voice almost broke, “Does treatment require this?” “You’ve threaded my arm bones onto a hook hanging from the ceiling, chanting and burning talismans, pouring hot oil over me, and torturing me by flaying and carving, yet you say it’s treatment? This is clearly torture! Or rather, are you performing some kind of sinister act on me?”
The old lady seemed to guess his thoughts and said gravely, “Your illness is very severe.”
“?” “No matter how severe, you don’t hang people up for treatment, right?” Hu Ma felt his thoughts in turmoil, bursting out, “Stop fooling around with ghosts and spirits, you…you just let me down…”
“…” The old lady listened to his shouting and screaming, but just solemnly put down the bundle she brought back with her. It seemed as if they were back to the old state where she would ignore whatever Hu Ma said.
But the girl with two little goat horn braids suddenly crisply said, “Brother Hu Ma doesn’t remember grandma.” “The Meng family sent a ghost to kill Brother Hu Ma, but grandma’s skills are great, and she called Brother Hu Ma’s soul back.”
“But Brother Hu Ma always wanted to run, so grandma anchored Brother Hu Ma’s soul to his body.”
“Every day grandma chants soul-stabilizing spells for Brother Hu Ma, feeds him soup medicine, even gave him Lord Tai Sui’s flesh to eat; now, Brother Hu Ma finally doesn’t run around anymore, but Brother Hu Ma doesn’t recognize grandma anymore, nor does he recognize Little Red Thorn.”
“…”
As she spoke, her tone became noticeably dispirited, her little mouth pouting.
However, what she said confused Hu Ma. What is all this about? His mind involuntarily recalled the chanting sounds that had been buzzing around him during this period, the strange talisman water, potions he drank, the distorted visions, and the torturous ordeal, thus generating indescribable fear towards this nightmarish predicament.
“He has just had his soul anchored, it’s normal not to remember.” In the narrative of the little girl, the old lady with a gloomy face slowly began unpacking things from the bundle.
Inside were some incense candles, paper money, and a chunk of meat wrapped in red paper soaked in grease.
“It will get better,” she finally said, her voice slow. “The last seed of Hu family won’t be done in by the Meng family like this…”
“…” As things have progressed to this point, Hu Ma was utterly flustered. Recalling those moments when she looked at him like looking at an enemy with that grim gaze, he was almost driven to shout, but then caught himself in time.
He hesitantly looked up at the old lady, trying, “Then…if I’m better now, can you…” “…let me down?”
“…” Everything else seemed secondary, as long as they intended to stick to their story, then getting them to help him unhook was the priority.
Indeed, under his anxious gaze, the old lady’s expression seemed more somber as she slowly shook her head: “Though you’re better, it’d be better to keep you fixed for a few more days…”
“…” Just as Hu Ma was feeling downcast, she suddenly, as if making a decision, gave Hu Ma a glance. That glance was so sharp that Hu Ma had to look away.
He could feel her scrutinizing gaze, perhaps she noticed the blood seeping from his shoulders when he had tried to escape the hooks.
Then, to his surprise, her tone softened, “But it’s indeed uncomfortable hanging, if you want to be unhooked, then so be it.”
“…” Hu Ma was momentarily surprised, “Then…” “I’ll do it!” just as he wondered how it would be done, he suddenly heard the excitement in the young girl’s voice on the floor.
She was very short, not even a meter tall, with skinny arms and legs, but her movements were surprisingly agile. With a bounce, she jumped onto Hu Ma’s back. Her feet in embroidered shoes pressed against Hu Ma’s shoulders, and her tender hands grabbed the iron hooks, her body tensing as she exerted force.
“Puh…” A sharp pain came, and before Hu Ma could react, one of the hooks had been pulled out. She quickly moved aside, rolled over Hu Ma’s back, and did the same with the other hook.
Blood poured from both shoulders immediately, and Hu Ma felt a sudden relief in his body. However, the intense pain that followed made his head spin, and he uncontrollably fell to the ground. But then, he heard a giggling sound, and a confusing flash of red passed his eyes. Where the searing pain was, a cold numbness followed, startling him into alertness.
Opening his eyes, he saw the little girl in red licking his wounds with her tongue. Her slender tongue passed over the wounds, and the gushing blood immediately stopped flowing, and the intense pain also substantially subsided. “What is this little girl…?” Hu Ma realized there was a problem, but amidst the chaos, he didn’t ponder further, as the little girl rolled his body to lick the wounds on his back. Despite his frail body weighing over a hundred pounds, she effortlessly flipped him over with her slender arms.
The swift change threw Hu Ma’s thoughts into disarray, leaving him gasping for air. Throughout this process, the old lady just sat on the stool, slowly sipping cold tea and seemingly lost in thought, her gaze slightly withdrawn.
The room was quiet except for Hu Ma’s heavy breathing, robust and powerful. She seemed to feel a sense of relief, standing up after a long while, saying to the little girl, “Little Red Thorn, take care of your brother. I need to check on the Cui family’s grave.”
“The Cui family’s ancestor had a questionable death. I had that elm wood board watch over him for twenty years, but I reckon the recent thunderstorms and rain might have washed away the grave, causing the coffin board to come back seeking debts from me, and the corpse of Cui’s ancestor probably won’t stay put either…”
“…” She reached the door but then turned around as if remembering something, advising Hu Ma, “You’ve just recovered, your body is still weak, easy prey for evil spirits; don’t wander around.
“Wait for grandma to return, and I’ll heal you…”
“…” “Don’t run?” Hu Ma heard her instructions in a daze, thinking to himself: “Not running would make me a fool!”
Even with his eyes closed, he could almost see the sharp, cold gaze of the old lady. The torment and agony of the past few days, the clear episodes of waking up in excruciating pain as if being fried in oil or flayed, felt like undergoing the torture of the eighteen layers of hell every day!
He still remembered the sinister look the old lady gave him when he was in a daze, the strange meat forcefully fed to him that caused his head to throb in pain, and a sensation as if some monster was growing inside his body.
Having reached his limit, he couldn’t be sure what terrifying things would happen if this continued.
Sacrifice? Soul transferring? Raising a ghost? What did she mean by “healing” him exactly? Numerous questions bombarded his mind, but Hu Ma knew this was his only chance. If he were hung up again, everything would be over.
His panicked mind forced him to clench his teeth, silently gathering the last bit of strength in his body, struggling to stay alert.
Guessing that the old lady had gone far, Hu Ma suddenly opened his eyes. The first thing he saw was the little girl in red, squatting not far away, looking right at him.
Their gazes met, a silent standoff. No words were exchanged. Hu Ma’s heart sank slightly, forcing himself not to rush out of the house immediately. Although the old lady was gone, she had left this little monster to watch him. To truly escape, he’d need to deal with this little monster first.
(End of Chapter)