Chapter Fifty-One: Their Secret II (3)

  Liu's mother seemed to have not noticed the change in my attitude, and continued talking about those past events: "I took down Xiaohua from the ceiling, my little Xiaohua, she can't see me anymore. I took down the curtains, these were her favorite curtains. I put her on the curtains, holding her tightly, my little Xiaohua, I won't be able to see her grow up and get married."

  Liu's mother said while stroking the curtain on the table, I couldn't help but mock: "If you had that bit of courage at the time, Xiaohui wouldn't have died, and you wouldn't have ended up like this."

  Liu's mother paused for a moment without responding to me and continued telling her own story.

  Two people died at home, this kind of thing can't be hidden, let alone there's still blood on the ground. I also saw the final result from a newspaper clipping from my dad's friend, two people reported the case saying it was a homicide at home, but the murderer was never found afterwards. What I couldn't understand is why Mrs. Liu would go so far to cover up for Old Chu even after things had gotten to this point. Mrs. Liu looked up at me with an innocent face and said: "I've already lost my daughter, I can't lose him too."

  I could hardly refrain from bursting into a loud curse, this woman's infatuation with Old Chu had reached an abnormal level, it was completely impossible to view it with the eyes of a normal person. I wanted to stand up and storm out several times, but thinking that there were still many unresolved mysteries, I endured and sat back down to continue listening to her.

  The family lost two children, and suddenly there was much less anger at home. Old Chu became disheartened and his temper grew more violent by the day. He would often beat and kick Liu's mother, and sometimes he would sit silently, not saying a word. Liu's mother worried that if he continued like this, he would become mentally ill, but she didn't know how to comfort him. Every time she tried to speak, she would be met with his fists and feet, so she could only quietly hide in the corner, looking at her daughter's photo and crying.

  But one day, Liu's mother found that Lao Chu had changed. Although he was still a bit nervous, he started running around outside all day and night, returning home very late. Every time he came back, he would take out some papers from unknown places and look at them repeatedly, then carefully paste them together with glue. He did all this with extreme caution, as if it were something extremely important. At regular intervals, Liu's mother saw Lao Chu put these papers in a large leather envelope and take them out, returning empty-handed, but she didn't know who he was taking them to.

  That day, Mrs. Liu returned home from buying vegetables and saw Old Chu lying on the bed groaning. She took a closer look and was shocked to see his pale face and high fever. Mrs. Liu was frightened and wanted to take him to see a doctor immediately, but Old Chu refused her kindness. He pointed to a cowhide envelope on the table with his hand and said, "Send this out."

  Liu's mother wanted to persuade him some more, but Lao Chu's face turned stern and she immediately softened. Lao Chu was still worried and repeatedly warned: "Be sure to remember to send it out, be sure not to go to this address to find someone, otherwise Xiao Wei will never come home."

  Xiao Wei is the name of Lao Chu's son. Liu Mama was startled by Lao Chu's words, thinking he had gone crazy again and wanted to persuade him to go to the hospital. But this time, Lao Chu surprisingly didn't scold her, only saying: "Xiao Rui didn't deceive me, she really saw that woman."

  Mrs. Liu was really frightened this time, but she didn't dare say anything else, and just remembered Old Chu's instructions to hurry to the post office to mail out the large envelope, but all the way, she kept thinking about Old Chu's words, and her curiosity finally prompted her to memorize the address and recipient on the envelope, which was in this city, and the recipient's name was also very ordinary, but shared the same surname as Old Chu, named Chu Jiangshan.

  After finishing everything, she took Lao Chu to the hospital. Lao Chu repeatedly asked if the letter had been sent out. Liu Mama hid only one thing - that she had memorized the address - and told Lao Chu everything else truthfully. Seeing that nothing unexpected had happened, Lao Chu didn't say anything, but repeatedly warned her not to go to that place to find anyone. This made Liu Mama's curiosity even stronger, and she took the opportunity to ask Lao Chu: "You said Xiaorui didn't cheat you, what does that mean?"

  Perhaps Old Chu felt a bit guilty, so he rarely didn't scold Liu's mother loudly, and after being stunned for a while, said: "I saw that woman.

  Liu Mama wanted to ask Old Chu something again, but no matter what she did, he refused to open his mouth. Helpless, Liu Mama decided to secretly go find the address on the letter behind Old Chu's back, because she suddenly thought: if Old Chu could see Little Wei, then she could also see Little Rui and bring her home. No matter how many doubts she had in her heart, no matter whether she believed it or not, she had to try.

  Mrs. Liu made an excuse to sneak out, found the place according to her impression, and climbed up to the 5th floor. All the way, she was thinking about how to start a conversation, but after knocking on the door for half a day, no one came to open it, maybe there was no one at home. Mrs. Liu waited with anticipation at the stairwell entrance until the sky gradually darkened and still didn't see anyone coming back, so she had to leave first and go home.

  Just as she was walking down, she suddenly heard someone behind her calling "Mom", the voice was familiar, it was indeed Xiao Rui's voice. Although Liu Mama suspected that she had misheard, she couldn't help but turn around, and there stood Xiao Rui, still wearing a nightgown, only now it was red instead of black, just like the blood that stained her entire dress that day, just like the woman standing next to her who was also wearing a red dress, and that woman's appearance was astonishingly identical to her own.

  My heart was also tightly grasped by Mrs. Liu's story, and this mysterious woman in a red dress finally appeared. I asked: "What happened next?"

  Liu's mother seemed to recall something sweet, and a rare smile appeared on her face. "Just then," she said, "I heard footsteps behind me. I turned around, and that was when I saw him."

  I've seen photos of Chu Jiangshan, and all I can say is that he's a very ordinary-looking man. When Liu Mama saw him at the time, she didn't have any romantic sparks like those described in novels. At that time, her heart was only with Old Chu, and she had no other thoughts about any other man. The reason she was excited was because someone had finally come, and this person might just be the one she was waiting for.

  Chu Jiangshan saw Liu Mama standing at the stairs and was stunned for a moment before asking: "Who are you looking for?"

  Liu's mother remembered that there were still Xiao Rui and the woman in red behind her, so she quickly turned around again. But now there was no one behind her. Just as she was stunned, Chu Jiangshan asked again: "Who are you looking for?"

  Liu's mother came back to her senses, pointed at the door with her hand and said: "I'm looking for the owner of this place."

  Chu Jiangshan said: "I am he, what can I do for you?"

  Mother Liu was still muttering to herself, repeating the conversation she had when she first met Chu Jiangshan. I couldn't help but ask: "You saw Chu Jiangshan, and then what?"

  Liu's mother detected my impatience and looked at me apologetically, saying: "I told him I was the one who often sent things to him. He furrowed his brow, thought for a moment, but seemed unable to recall who I was. He only asked me why I had come looking for him. After thinking for a moment, I told him everything, including that I had just seen my daughter. I begged him to help me as he had helped Old Chu, hoping to see my daughter grow up."

  At that time, I was too excited and had become somewhat incoherent. I didn't notice his face turning black, seemingly extremely displeased in his heart. When I realized it, he just looked at me and asked if I was willing to pay any price to achieve this dream. I nodded and agreed to everything, no matter how absurd this dream was, I didn't care anymore.

  He saw how determined I was, so he asked me to wait a moment, then went inside and brought out something for me. He said someone would contact me, and told me to leave quickly and never come back. His face showed fear as he spoke, but at the time I had no idea what he was afraid of. Still, I thanked him and agreed, and started walking away. After just a few steps, he called out to me again, asking me to give him an address and phone number.

  "I asked, 'What did he give you?' In my heart, I already had a vague idea what it was. Sure enough, Mrs. Liu replied softly, 'A jade pendant with a carved peony.'"

  Liu's mother took the jade pendant, but no one contacted her. Just as she was getting anxious and wanted to go find Chu Jiangshan again, Chu Jiangshan came to her doorstep himself. And his purpose for coming was even more unexpected by Liu's mother - he had come to express his admiration for her.

  I also felt a bit helpless after hearing it. If the letter about Wang Qiang was true, then Chu Jiangshan's lifestyle can be said to have some problems. Now he even takes the initiative to find Liu Mama, and it's not an exaggeration to describe him as having the audacity to cover up his mistakes with his charm. If Old Chu finds out, I don't know what will happen.

  Mrs. Liu was surprised at the time, but because of Xiaorui's affairs, she couldn't refuse too obviously. Chu Jiangshan was persistent and wouldn't give up on Mrs. Liu. As time passed, Mrs. Liu gradually learned more about him from him, knowing that he was a writer and that many people like Old Chu sent letters to provide various materials for him. That's why he looked stunned when Mrs. Liu said she was the one who wrote to him. However, Chu Jiangshan never told Mrs. Liu why Old Chu could see Xiaowei, or why he said Xiaowei would return home. As for when she could see Xiaorui again, Chu Jiangshan didn't answer her either.

  Just as Mrs. Liu was about to lose hope, she received a letter that assigned her a task, saying that if she completed it, she would be able to see her daughter grow up into an adult. The letter was unsigned, but at the end, there was a drawing of a woman wearing a red dress, just like the one Mrs. Liu had seen that night. The only difference was that the woman in the drawing was smiling faintly, revealing a hint of red teeth.

  I hastily asked, "What task did she assign to you? Was it just to make a few phone calls and say something like 'Welcome to the Dream Club'?" I didn't believe that this mysterious woman would give Liu Mama such a simple task. There must be more to it than what I knew. Indeed, Liu Mama's expression changed, saying, "She wants me to do many, many things, wants me to send letters to many people, and also wants me to fill the well with water."

  "What well?"

  Liu's mother's body began to shake uncontrollably, looking at me and saying: "The ninth well!"