Chapter 2: The Mysterious Package

  After receiving the envelope and ticket, I glanced at Panzi. At this time, Panzi's face was very bad, almost as pale as a dead person. I knew that if he continued like this, he might faint, and I didn't want to bother carrying him out, so I urged him to hurry up and leave.

  Li Feng didn't intend to keep us there either, he picked up the white sheet on the ground and wanted to use this opportunity to cover the three female corpses again. But just as we were about to leave, he suddenly spoke up, as if he had something to say, I thought he had forgotten something, so I quickly turned my head to look at him.

  At this time, Officer Li's expression was very tangled, his eyebrows were furrowed together, and he remained silent for a while before speaking, "Be careful on the way!"

  I can tell this isn't what he most wants to say to us, just don't know why he didn't speak his mind.

  Like us line workers, don't be too curious, or else the more you know, the faster you'll die. I'm not interested in asking anything either, so I just forced a smile and responded with a "yes".

  I and Pan Zi went back, all the way without saying a word, after returning home also each returned to their own room. Actually, it won't be long before dawn breaks, I really want to sleep, but no matter how hard I try, I just can't fall asleep, as if someone is standing next to me, every time I'm about to fall asleep, he deliberately makes trouble and wakes me up.

  This is not to say that I encountered a ghost, but rather that I was under too much pressure.

  The next day, after getting up, I didn't rush out. Instead, I wandered around my room and packed my luggage. This time, I went to a remote mountainous area. In my impression, despite the many years of reform and opening-up, remote mountainous areas are still very poor, with harsh conditions, and even without access to water and electricity is quite normal.

  I've been used to living in the city for a long time, and suddenly going to the mountains will definitely be uncomfortable. I think it's best to bring as many convenient daily necessities as possible, which can also make life easier in different ways.

  During this time, I also took out the envelope and ticket to take a look. The envelope contained 5,000 yuan, which was the so-called expenses for this task. To be honest, this money is not a lot, it's tight when using it, but there's no way, the organization has always been stingy with informants.

  Apart from the money, there was also a letter of introduction inside. I opened it and read it through. It said that two comrades were being introduced to go to a remote mountain school as intern teachers to teach physical education classes to children.

  I know this is Li Feng's way of giving us a new identity, making it easier for us to dig up clues.

  Not long after I finished packing up my own stuff, I went to Panzi's room to take a look. His room had been bustling with activity before, and I guessed he was also packing up.

  I guessed it was correct, but I didn't expect him to have so many good things. When I opened the door and saw more than three suitcases on the floor, I was almost stunned on the spot.

  Panzi knew what I was thinking and smiled awkwardly, saying that if this mission goes wrong it'll be hard to come back alive, so letting him enjoy himself before he dies is also good.

  What Panzi said is absolutely not an exaggeration, and it deeply hurts my heart. Nowadays, some people take living as a kind of depression, but for us two, living is really a luxury!

  I understand him, just starting from reality, we can't bring so many "burdens", I'm not polite either, walk over and open the travel bag, take out those things that I think are useless.

  Just as the two of us were busy, the door was knocked. Generally, when someone's door is knocked, it must be a friend who has come, and they are not so sensitive, but when I heard this knock, my heart skipped a beat.

  We don't have many friends, and after completing each task, we always move to a new place, fearing that enemies will come knocking on our door. This sudden knock at the door makes me think of danger immediately.

  Panzi and I both became especially sensitive, quietly slipping out of the bedroom. On the opposite side of the door was a small cabinet with tools like screwdrivers and pliers inside.

  I casually picked up a screwdriver, and Pan Zi picked up a hammer. Don't underestimate the screwdriver, if it's really stabbed into the belly, it can definitely stab out a hole.

  Pan Ziti held a hammer and leaned against the wall beside the door, making gestures to me. I carefully stood in front of the door and looked out through the peephole.

  The man outside was very close to the cat's eye, I couldn't see what he looked like, but saw that he wore a hat with the words "Zhongtong" written on it.

  I thought to myself, could it be that this is a delivery guy? But we haven't bought anything online recently, so where did this delivery come from?

  I found that this courier also had some "skills". He actually sensed that there was someone inside the door, and he knocked heavily on the door again, shouting loudly that there was a package.

  I took a look at Panzi, and he nodded and gripped the hammer tightly, moving closer to the door. To be honest, we still can't confirm whether this delivery guy is genuine or not. I'm really afraid that as soon as I open the door, he'll pull out a gun or a sharp dagger from the package.

  I hesitated for a moment and adopted a compromise approach, opening the door a crack and using my foot to hold it in place while I looked out through the gap.

  The courier was quite old, probably over 50 years old. He didn't care how wide the door was open, as soon as he saw someone, he handed over the package and urged me to sign for it.

  I looked at the package, on which nothing was written except the recipient's address. Panzi coughed and shook his head beside me.

  I understand what Panzi means, he's afraid that there might be a bomb in the package. But I think differently, we're not some big shots, if someone really wants to harm us, it wouldn't be worth using a bomb at such great cost.

  I finally signed, sent away the courier, and brought in the package to weigh it. I found that this package was very light, really didn't know what was inside, I had a doubt, could it be that this package was just an accident, someone filled out the address incorrectly?

  It's said that prying into others' things is immoral, but at this time, I didn't care about that. Happening to have a screwdriver in my hand, I used it to make a slit and opened it.

  Inside are two small black gift boxes that look like ring boxes at first glance, and there is also a DVD disc.

  Panzi took a look and wasn't a bomb, so he felt relieved. He couldn't help but laugh and said to me, "Whose wedding ring and ceremony DVD is this?"

  I didn't rush to answer him and casually picked up a gift box and opened it.

  What was inside wasn't a ring, but a pair of strange bells. The bells were about the size of a thumb and were hollow with some strange patterns carved on the outside.

  I wasn't scared off by the strange shape of this thing, but just looking at its color and texture made me marvel. Its white lacquer color, as well as its material that seemed like jade but not quite, and the wave after wave of fishy smell emanating from it, made me think that this must be made from an animal's bones, only I couldn't tell what kind of animal.

  During this time, Pan Zi opened another gift box, which was also a pair of earrings. Pan Zi took out the earrings and played with them for a while, and came to a conclusion, "This thing should be hung on the ears, you see, there are ear needles here."

  I'm getting more and more confused in my heart, but I didn't delve deeper into it, and instead put my energy back on the DVD disc.

  There was an old DVD player in the living room, left by the landlord, which came in handy now. I called out to Panzi to squat beside the TV with me and I inserted the disc.

  Actually, I had already prepared myself in my heart, thinking that since the bell was so strange, the content of this disc might not be simple either.

  The disc had been playing for about half a minute, but the TV screen still didn't react. I waited patiently for a while longer, and just when I was about to lose my patience, a piercing screeching sound suddenly came from the TV, like someone sawing an iron plate with a hacksaw.

  I and Panzi both frowned, Panzi even more painfully covered his ears, and cursed in his mouth. Before he finished cursing, a person suddenly appeared on TV again.

  This person was standing in a place with very dim light, and his face couldn't be seen at all. He was also wearing a very loose-fitting garment, making it impossible to discern any physical characteristics.

  "He deliberately lowered his voice and said a sentence, 'Two of you! Remember to bring the bell, be careful on the way!'"

  If I had previously thought that the package was sent to the wrong person, now this guess has been completely denied. The person on TV is clearly talking to me and Panzi, telling us something.

  Connected to the gruesome female corpse seen at dawn, and that strange bell, I suddenly got a headache, and even felt a kind of fear, wondering what this task was all about? What secrets were hidden?