False evidence

Chapter 420 Rekindling the Bond (5)

Not only could I not wake up from the dream, but I was also completely unable to control my actions.

Just as I was terrified, thinking I was about to fall into the demonic path, a person suddenly emerged from the wall in front of me and reached out to grab me.

I felt a sudden emptiness in my arms, and at the same time, a feeling of utter exhaustion instantly washed over my entire body.

I forced myself to look at the person who had come to my rescue, and it turned out to be that weird boy who had once hailed my taxi and called himself Cigarette Butt.

What he pulled from my arms was not a person, nor a paper figure, but a set of red paper women's clothes!
"What are you doing here?" I asked.

The cigarette butt said, "I'm here to show people the way."

"Who are you guiding?" I haven't forgotten that he once said he was now a 'guide'.

"Ji Qiaomei".

"Ji Qiaomei?"

The cigarette butt nodded. "I'm here to tell you that on Ji Qiaomei's 21st birthday, you need to have her relatives burn a set of paper clothes for her. That way, I can bring her back."

"She's really coming back? How will she come back?"

I simply cannot imagine what that would have been like. Ji Qiaomei has been dead for twenty-one years.

“I’m just leading the way, I don’t know exactly what will happen.” Cigarette Butt shook the paper clothes in his hand. “Remember, it has to be burned for her by her relatives. And it has to be burned at the exact time, no more than an hour off, otherwise she won’t be able to come back. Also, after the paper clothes are burned, give the cigarettes I gave you last time to the person who burned them.”

After saying that, he turned around and disappeared into the wall.

"Sanqi, wake up!"

A familiar voice came, and I suddenly woke up.

"Had a nightmare?" Pidan pulled a few tissues from the bedside table. "Wipe your face first."

I raised my hand to wipe my face and realized that it was covered in cold sweat.

"What did you dream about?" Pidan asked as he wiped my face.

"It's nothing," I forced a smile.

I didn't plan to tell her about Luo Yinsheng, and I told Erpang not to say anything more about it in front of her.

Because Luo Yinsheng and Ji Qiaomei are very similar to my current situation with Pidan.

It was already bright outside when my phone vibrated; it was Tong Xiangnan calling.

"Hey, Sanqi, how's Gu Haitao doing now?"

I said, "He only arrived here yesterday and his stomach started hurting, so I had to let him stay at Brother Monkey's clinic overnight."

"Yes, I realized that later too. Gu Haitao's body probably wouldn't easily accept Luo Yinsheng's eating habits." Tong Xiangnan paused, then asked, "Are you alright?"

What could I possibly have?

"Silly boy, I know you very well now. You keep everything to yourself. Just by listening to your voice, I can tell you didn't sleep well last night."

Tong Xiangnan sighed, "You drank yesterday, and I didn't say much. I'm calling you now to remind you that although Luo Yinsheng and Ji Qiaomei's experiences are somewhat similar to yours and Pidan's, people's personalities and circumstances are different, so the results won't be the same. Don't overthink it, or you'll easily get stuck in a rut."

"Thank you, Uncle." I have completely admired this psychologist uncle.

After chatting for a few more minutes, I hung up the phone, got dressed, and went downstairs.

I asked Erpang, and he said that the master really hadn't come back all night.

When we arrived at the clinic with Erpang, we could see Monkey squatting at the entrance smoking from afar.

"You're a doctor, smoking in the street so early in the morning, it's not a good look, is it?"

The monkey pointed inwards through the door with its hand.

I peeked through the glass door and saw Jian Xiaohuan and Gu Haitao chatting and laughing inside. They were clearly having a great time and didn't notice anyone coming in.

The monkey said, "This kid really has a talent for picking up girls. Xiao Huan has been here for so many days, and I haven't seen her smile at anyone."

I asked, "What did Gu Haitao say to her?"

"Tch, it's all just idle talk, but Xiao Huan just buys into it."

Gu Haitao finally saw me, came out, and said while stretching his arms, "So you live nearby. This house... hehe."

“You’re a rich man, used to living in villas. But you look down on our shabby house.” I still couldn’t stand Gu Haitao’s appearance.

Gu Haitao gave a bitter laugh: "Qiaomei and I used to live in this kind of old house. Later, it was demolished. The compensation was very little, and it was all used to treat her illness. So we could only rent a place with Jiabao."

Hearing him say that, I suddenly remembered my dream from last night, and asked, almost as if possessed:
"Was your dining table a folding round table in your home before?"

Gu Haitao was stunned: "How did you know?"

"Is the desktop a bit tilted?"

"That table can't be fixed..."

Gu Haitao muttered something, then suddenly grabbed my arm, "You've been to my house? Otherwise, how would you know all this?"

"Let go." I really dislike physical contact with people I don't know well.

Seeing him awkwardly withdraw his hand, I said, "Let's go get breakfast together."

"Oh, I've already eaten. Xiao Huan made millet porridge."

Seeing the monkey roll its eyes at me, I could only say, "Come if you want, don't come if you don't."

Gu Haitao eventually followed them to the restaurant at the street corner.

Yesterday, Erpang ate southern-style noodles for the first time and got a little addicted. He ordered a bowl of pork chop noodles and said while pouring chili sauce into it:

"You know what, although this noodle dish isn't like the stir-fried noodles from my hometown, it has a really unique flavor. It's just that after eating a lot, the aftertaste isn't quite there yet."

"The noodles are secondary; you're really craving meat!" I laughed, exposing his lie.

Gu Haitao wiped his mouth hard, swallowed hard, and said, "Actually, after drinking a lot of wine, a bowl of thin noodles is the most pleasant thing. I like braised pork topping and freshly cooked eel noodles."

"Then let's eat," I added. "At worst, we can continue the IV drip."

Gu Haitao shook his head. "Tell me, how did you know my table was slanted?"

"You speak, I'm listening." After saying that, I slurped a mouthful of tofu pudding from the rim of the bowl.

Gu Haitao lit a cigarette and took a deep drag:
"The table you mentioned should still be in my room if Jiabao and his wife didn't throw it away."

"Still there?" I was genuinely surprised.

Although last night's dream was chaotic, if it was related to the divination, it must have been something from twenty-one years ago, when Ji Qiaomei was still alive.

“When our old house was being demolished, we originally planned to move all the furniture with us, but Qiaomei had already been diagnosed with an illness. The rented apartment couldn’t fit all that old furniture… That folding table was something we bought when we moved.”

As Gu Haitao smoked, he said, "Qiaomei never got to live in a house of her own before she passed away. I really couldn't bear to part with that table, or with all the memories we shared. So, even after we moved several times, I still used those old pieces of furniture."

He stubbed out his half-smoked cigarette and said sadly, "Saying you should forget the past is just a lie in the movies. How can you forget a married couple? I still have a habit of coming home no matter how late I'm out socializing. I go back to my room and cook some of the dishes that Qiaomei often makes."

Every time I drink, and when I'm drunk, I feel like Qiaomei has never left. She's always there beside me, telling me to drink less. Actually, it's not just Qiaomei; sometimes my father-in-law and mother-in-law also "come back." Heh, actually, when I drink too much, I feel awful the next day..."

A thought suddenly struck me: "Does your mother-in-law have a red birthmark between her eyebrows?"

Gu Haitao fixed his gaze on me and slowly said, "That's not a birthmark. She often has headaches. Those are marks she made by pinching them with her fingernails using a folk remedy."

"How do you know all this?" Gu Haitao's eyes gradually hardened. "You couldn't have met my mother-in-law, you shouldn't know this. But you know, you're not an ordinary person, right?"

(End of this chapter)