The cold feeling arises from the bottom of my heart. I didn't directly pursue him, which is due to my internal alertness.
As expected, Kasuga Yone was indeed in the room. That person knocking on the door must have ill intentions. What is he trying to do by leading me outside?
We just arrived in Jianghuang City, and we've already been targeted by someone?
The key point is, since I arrived from the high-speed railway station to here, I have not gone out of the door at all.
Kasuga Yone also noticed something was off, and she became slightly more alert. Her gaze shifted towards the direction we were looking at, which was where my friend Lao Gong was standing.
Then I turned my head back and met Kasuga Yone's gaze.
She looked much clearer now, just not well-rested, with bloodshot eyes.
"I heard someone knocking on the door. The silhouette matches yours, and they're waving from a distance." I truthfully recounted the earlier incident.
Kasuga Yone's expression changed slightly.
Lao Gong's eyes darted around frantically, and he muttered to himself in a low voice, "In the dead of night, someone knocking on my door, definitely not for anything good. This forest is thick; I should sacrifice myself for the master and go along."
I and Kasuga Yone ignored Lao Gong.
"It's unlikely that we're being targeted... but something definitely feels off. Let's move to a different place to stay," Kasuga Yone spoke first.
"Let's leave first. For now, none of us will say where we're staying. We'll show up once we hear any news."
"As for your friend Liang Yu..." I hadn't finished speaking when Kasuga Yone let out a breath, cutting me off. "Once we're settled, I'll call her and let her know."
"Okay." I nodded in agreement.
In reality, this approach of mine and Kasuga Yone's to her friend might not be enough in terms of trust on a friendship level.
But since the situation has already occurred, we can only try to avoid new dangers as much as possible.
If Kasuga Yone doesn't bring it up, I will.
Lao Gong doesn't seem to care much about Liang Yu, which is unusual. Caution is still necessary, lest it sink like a ship in a stormy sea.
Kasuga Yone spread the bamboo rats, ensuring no one noticed or followed us, not going through the main gate but climbing over the wall to exit Liang Yu's home.
We went to a slightly farther street to hail a taxi, which took some time. We arrived in the center of Jianghuang City and found a hotel to stay at.
After daybreak, Kasuga Yone found a short-term rented courtyard nearby.
With only the two of us living there, my heart felt more at ease.
Regarding Liang Yu's side, Kasuga Yone had already called to inform her.
She told me that Liang Yu didn't mind and felt bad for us, not knowing who had been watching us. She said her home was no longer safe and that our movements had been exposed.
I hadn't thought that much about it. With things as they are now, we can only take it one step at a time.
If this new temporary courtyard isn't safe, we might not be able to stay in Jianghuang City for long.
During the day, there were no special events, and I was just reading books in the courtyard. Kasuga Yone was doing bamboo weaving by my side as usual.
Before I knew it, a whole day had passed, and by the time it was dark, Kasuga Yone hadn't received any calls.
Lao Gong poked his head out, spinning around on the night pot, humming a tune.
After dinner, when we were about to return to our rooms and rest, Kasuga Yone's phone rang. She picked it up after listening for a few seconds and her eyes lit up instantly.
After hanging up the phone, Kasuga Yone told me that she might have found some information about the peeled objects. However, she needs to go first and confirm it. If everything is okay, she will come back and discuss with me what to do next.
My heart felt slightly chilled. Did they find out so quickly? For a moment, I found it hard to believe.
Kasuga Yone hurriedly left the place of residence.
It took half an hour for my mood to calm down.
I couldn't sleep all night, waiting for Kasuga Yone's message.
It was already midnight, but Kasuga Yone still hadn't contacted me.
The brief excitement and joy were like a pot of cold water dousing my enthusiasm.
However, I have a relatively good attitude. If something as significant as dismembering bodies is easily found out, the people from Qin Yang would certainly not think my parents are just ordinary people who dig graves and exhume bodies.
I don't know when Kasuga Yone will be back, so I'm going to head back to my room and rest.
Just then, my phone suddenly received a message from Kasuga Yone.
There was an address at the top, along with a brief sentence.
"Those who know about the matter are here, come quickly."
The moment my heart had just settled down, it began to race again due to this message.
I left the courtyard, hailed a taxi, and headed to the location indicated in the message.
The taxi driver started chatting with me, but I wasn't interested in joining the conversation.
About half an hour later, the taxi stopped by a park.
This was an old park, with several old and run-down apartment buildings nearby.
After getting out of the taxi, I followed the building numbers to the location Kasuga Yone had given me. When I reached the third building in that row of apartment buildings, I took out my phone and called Kasuga Yone.
The phone rang and then hung up without anyone answering.
I immediately tried to call again, but no one picked up the phone...
What's keeping Kasuga Yone?
Just as my doubts began to rise, a voice came from above me.
"Over here!"
I looked up and saw that it was none other than Kasuga Yone poking her head out.
She waved at me from within the protective netting.
I let out a slight sigh of relief and followed the stairs inside.
The unpleasant musty smell was mingled with a bit of sour garbage odor.
The old walls were covered with patches of white plaster that had peeled off in half, and were covered with all kinds of small advertisements, making the place dirty and chaotic.
I walked to the fourth floor, which was the level where Kasuga Yone waved at me.
The door was slightly ajar, left open for me.
My heart rate accelerated a few beats. I pushed the door open and stepped inside.
Lao Gong's head suddenly popped out of the night pot, looking around suspiciously with a furrowed brow, sniffing his nose.
The room was dimly lit. In these days, most of the city uses energy-saving lamps, but this old house still has tungsten filament bulbs.
In the orange light, two people were sitting on the sofa facing away from me. One was Kasuga Yone, and the other had a hunched back.
A quick glance gave one the feeling of an eerie chill.
Could it be that this person knows about the dismembered bodies?
I took a step forward, approaching the sofa.
Lao Gong suddenly shouted, "Stop!"
His voice was slightly sharp.
I stopped in my tracks, feeling a moment of confusion on my face.
Lao Gong sniffed vigorously and suddenly exclaimed, "Back! Back! Back!"
His tone was unusually alert.
I furrowed my brows in confusion. What on earth is Lao Gong doing?
But in just a moment, I realized something was amiss.
Kasuga Yone... did not turn around.
Even though Lao Gong seemed suspicious, she didn't turn her head.
"This smell... it's funky!"
"This smell... it's like that of a dirty woman, not a little missy!" Lao Gong made a face as ugly as can be.
My pupils constricted sharply.
The dirty woman Lao Gong was referring to.
Liang Yu?
How could this be...
My thoughts hadn't settled when the two people on the sofa turned their heads slowly.
At a quick glance, who else could it be but Kasuga Yone?
But the person next to her was different... its eyeballs were bizarrely huge and vivid, with fine white fur covering its face, and a short and low nose.
This resembled an old woman with hideous looks.
But upon closer inspection, it wasn't. Its neck was covered in fine hair, and its ears were sharp, with hair at the tips.
This thing doesn't even look like a person...
At the same time, Kasuga Yone's figure became blurry, and I could smell a strong and unpleasant smell, like urine and putrid stench.
Under the dim yellow light, that couldn't be Kasuga Yone...
Her head was round, and her eyes were oddly large. Her face and head were covered in white fur, and the hair on her ears was a bit yellow, allowing the light to see through and make the veins visible.
Ridges of goosebumps popped up all over my body. A sense of stiffness and numbness surged through my body... as if I couldn't move an inch...
