I actually married a dead person

  "Hurry! Hurry! Send her to the bridal chamber!" Mrs. Liu's hand grasped mine tightly, my eyes staring blankly at the rooster in front of me. Until two tall men in black clothes carried me upstairs and threw me into a room.

  The light in the room was somewhat dim, and when I looked up, what I saw right before my eyes was a large black-and-white photo on a square table. To be precise, it was the kind of photo that would typically be used at a funeral, as there was a circle of black satin fabric around the frame.

  In front of the photo, two red candles were swaying, and there was a lot of food on the table, much more abundant than what is usually used for worship. I leaned in closer to the photo, wanting to get a clearer look at the person in it.

  When I stopped in front of the table, I squinted my eyes to take a closer look at the person in the photo. The handsome facial features had a cold and sharp aura, with a slightly raised corner of his mouth that exuded pride from the bones, and his pale skin made me feel a little envious just by looking at it, not to mention those pink lips that seemed to have been enchanted, making people want to kiss them impulsively.

  I stretched out my hand, but when my fingertips just touched the frame, a sharp pain ran from my fingertips to my heart. I quickly withdrew my hand and stared at the black-and-white photo in horror. But his eyes seemed to have come alive, staring at me, sizing me up, like a gaze that could penetrate through people's eyes, wanting to see through my innermost thoughts!

  Dead man! It was only when I came to my senses that I realized the severity of the problem, the eerie baptism, the paper money scattered on the way to meet the bride, and the rooster that worshiped with me, the portrait in the room! Only then did I understand that I didn't marry a blind man, but a dead man, someone who no longer exists in this world!

  Sitting on the edge of the bed, I burst into tears. What else can I do but cry? I've thought of a million possibilities, but this one never occurred to me. The arranged marriage was already hard to accept, and now I'm actually the wife of a deceased person...

  Until my eyes hurt, I rushed to the table and knocked everything over onto the floor. The sound of shattering porcelain was like the breaking of my heart. I never could have imagined that my own father would be so cruel as to sell me off to a dead man's wife. Now I understand why my uncles were pointing at me and whispering to each other.

  I picked up the chair beside me and slammed it against the door, until it fell to the ground and was deformed. I then cried out: "Let me out! Let me out!" I pulled at the doorknob with all my might, but it didn't budge! Just as I had expected, the door had been locked from the outside.

  "Let me out!" I curled up, leaning against the door, and burst into tears, feeling lost and helpless. My life shouldn't be like this.

  Bang! A dull sound came from the house, I wiped away my tears and looked over to see a small door in the room suddenly open, it was pitch black inside.

  I watched carefully, afraid that something would come out of it. Although I knew clearly that there was no one else in the house, all my hairs stood on end because I always felt like someone was watching me inside the house!

  Yes, that's exactly what I felt. And only now did I notice that the air in the room had somehow dropped to a point where when I breathed out, I could see a faint white mist.

  I cowered, huddling my body together. This shouldn't be happening - it's clearly summer, so how could I possibly see the air I'm exhaling? I let out another gentle breath, and the faint mist that appeared almost made me pass out.

  What's in the house! Could it be...

  I turned my gaze to the table with the portrait, no way! This world has no ghosts! I widened my eyes staring at the man in the portrait, but in my heart I was comforting myself, you're already dead, once dead you don't exist anymore, how could I possibly believe in ghosts or spirits?

  Until the bathroom door slammed shut again, I let out a loud scream, my heart racing like it was on a spring, beating faster and faster. I stared at the bathroom door in disbelief, my eyes wide with fear. Just now, hadn't that door been open?

  "Wind! It must be the wind!" I muttered to myself in a low voice, but my heart clearly knew that even if the door had been blown open by the wind just now, it was impossible for the wind to blow it shut again, because except for the floor-to-ceiling windows on one side of the room, there wasn't a single window that could be opened!

  I nervously scanned the room, it's impossible, my heart kept repeating, this world can't have ghosts! I tried to calm myself down, but ended up burying my head in my knees, tightly hugging my head with my hands.

  It is said that if you don't do anything shameful, you won't be afraid of ghosts knocking on your door at midnight. I have never done anything to harm others, so why should I feel scared? Even if there really are ghosts, what does it have to do with me? Resentment has a target and debts have an owner; if he has any unfinished business, it has nothing to do with someone like me who doesn't even know him!

  "Mom!" I cried out with my head buried, because I was afraid that you would leave after just a few words, and the air around us had become even colder than before.

  My tears are like a burst dam of floodwaters, overflowing once again...