Chapter 11: Lao Shao's Transaction

  I struggled to open my eyes, only to find myself still lying in the hospital bed, with cold handcuffs on my hands and feet. Old Shao sat beside me, holding a tissue and helping me wipe away the sweat from my forehead.

  "Have you had a nightmare?"

  "How did you end up here?" As soon as he spoke, he realized that he was so weak that even speaking made him pant.

  "Stop talking, he's been taking advantage of you in your dreams. The more you sleep, the weaker you become."

  "Who is he?"

  "The person who used you as a sacrifice. You brought the mail package to the Public Security Bureau, and they are trying to figure out how to get it back."

  "How did you know?"

  "I know a lot of things. I can also tell fortunes, your sister won't come pick you up for a while."

  "Why?"

  Lao Shao suddenly shut his mouth and only helped me wipe the sweat. When he started to help me wipe my hands, I took advantage of the opportunity to grab his wrist, exerting force to lift myself up and look at him: "Tell me!"

  Old Shao let out a sigh, patted my hand and sat down: "Let me tell you a story. You know that my little wife loves collecting stamps. One time, I saw a photo in her album of a person from the Republic of China era standing next to an empty chair, holding a book. According to folk customs, the empty space in the photo is usually reserved for someone who has already passed away. So I asked my little wife what relationship this deceased person had with the person in the photo. My little wife smiled mysteriously and said 'You're wrong, the person in the photo has already passed away, the empty space next to them is because that person is still alive.'"

  "I'm confused, what's the meaning of 'still alive'? From now on, this photo has a history of one or two hundred years. If the person in the photo was already dead when taking the picture, it's nonsense; if we say the person in the photo is dead now, that's redundant. If the person next to them wasn't dead at the time of taking the picture, according to old customs, it's absolutely impossible for the position to be empty. If we say they're still alive now, that's a fairy tale."

  "My wife listened and shook her head, saying things weren't as I thought. What was going on, she couldn't say for sure, but one thing was certain: whoever had this old photo must have been extremely fond of collecting stamps - all kinds of stamps, especially old ones. At first, I thought she was joking, but later I discovered her enthusiasm for stamps was beyond the understanding of a normal person. Whenever she saw an old stamp, she would try every means to buy it; if she couldn't get it, she wouldn't sleep for days and nights, and in the middle of the night, she'd quietly sob by the window, looking very sad. That time at the auction, I didn't want to go, but seeing her so heartbroken for many days, with eyes swollen like peaches, my heart softened and I went. As a result, I ended up like this now. All these years, who knows how she's been living on her own outside?" Old Shao stopped here, hung his head, sighed, and didn't say another word.

  According to his description, the photo seems very similar to the one I saw at the entrance of the villa. However, there is still no mention of a mailbox in this conversation.

  "What secrets does that postal book hold? Why have they come looking for me?"

  Lao Shao lifted his head, looking at me with a pitiful expression. "Child, you are my only hope for getting out of here. I've been in this place for ten years now, and if I continue to stay here, my life will have no meaning whatsoever. As long as you help me get out, I'll tell you the secret. They will definitely come looking for you again, and this secret concerns your and your sister's lives."

  Don't do business with swindlers, this is a phrase that mother often said when she was young, because they will never make a loss in a deal.