Love in Cthulhu

Chapter 3 Another
The bicycle sped along the empty roadside, passing through high-rise residential buildings and narrow alleys, getting further and further away from the town, the windbreaker fluttering and the tassels on the scarf swaying.

A biting wind blew across the river. This small county town is located on the northern foothills of the Han River. The mighty Han River flows through the town in a reversed S-shape. The core towns are either connected by bridges across the river or cut into pieces by mountains.

Although the funeral home is not far from the town, you still have to ride along the riverside road all the way to the outskirts of town.

The flood control embankment along the river runs alongside the highway, overgrown with waist-high weeds, and you can't see a single person along the way.

People in small towns always go to bed early. After 10 p.m., apart from the night market, you can hardly find any shops still open, let alone in such a deserted place.

In order to get back as soon as possible, Zhou Nan pedaled the pedals very fast. The streetlights cast a dim yellow light, making his shadow very long.

What should we say when we get there?

I can't just blurt out, "I also have a Jianxi in my family." Not everyone in this world is as fearless as him, with gods and demons shunned. Uncle Wang is getting old, and older people in small towns tend to be a bit superstitious. I don't want someone to faint from fright because of a single sentence; that would be a huge sin.

It's best to be cautious about such superstitious matters, especially since nothing is clear yet.

It was more than half an hour later when we arrived at the funeral home. The funeral home in the county town was not large. At night, only the guard booth was lit up. Uncle Wang, wrapped in a military overcoat, paced back and forth under the large electronic screen.

"You've finally arrived!" Uncle Wang's face appeared somewhat pale under the light, his expression heavy as a mountain. "As you said, we didn't call the police. We waited for you to arrive before contacting her family."

"Thank you, Uncle." Zhou Nan took out a pack of cigarettes and handed it to him.

"There's nothing to thank me for. The others who helped me have all gone back home. They don't want any money from you. Everyone needs help sometimes," Uncle Wang waved his hand. "That girl's family isn't around anymore, is they? And she's so young, sigh..."

He didn't know Jian Xi, but he was a simple and warm-hearted person. He was willing to take his dog up the mountain based on just one photo, saying that he knew the way there well and that his dog was smart and could recognize people and find its way.

Upon meeting him, Zhou Nan felt that it seemed like Uncle Wang was the one who had lost a loved one. Perhaps he was heartbroken to see such a young girl die like that.

On the contrary, his mindset remained calm and normal. He had already seen her die once, so even if there were a second one here, he wouldn't feel sad. Besides, he had just been arguing with another living one.

The security guards gave Uncle Wang and Zhou Nan masks and gloves and led them into the morgue. The door slowly opened, and a cold, chilly air rushed out, carrying disinfectant and some indescribable smell.

A white cloth covered the stainless steel gurney, outlining the shape of a human figure. The security guard looked at Zhou Nan questioningly, and after receiving confirmation, slowly lifted the white cloth.

Lying beneath the white sheet is a porcelain-white girl, like a withered flower. She is still beautiful, but she possesses a texture as hard as jade and as aged as a mural. She is still wearing that off-white down jacket, those dark jeans, and even her boots are the same style—high-top, thick, with white frayed tassels. Her long, cascading hair, half-tied up, is disheveled.

Everything was the same, even the quietness that seemed like it was just sleeping. It carried the scent of earth and withered leaves. Because of the rain, it had been soaked in moisture for too long, and the fingers were slightly swollen and white.

Zhou Nan's heart pounded violently, as if an invisible, cold ghostly hand was quietly clenching it.

It really was Jian Xi. This feeling was too subtle. Not long ago, the girl was still lively and playful in front of him, joking with him. Now, she was lying here with a lifeless, dead face. It felt like a bizarre dream. Because it was a dream, there was no need to explain it. Dead is dead.

He slowly walked around the bed that had just been pushed, carefully observing Jian Xi's body, from her hair to her face and clothing, comparing everything with the Jian Xi he had initially memorized from memory.

There was nothing unusual to be found. If Jian Xi were a painting, it would be as if someone had redrawn her one-to-one and then sculpted her into this beautiful little figure, resulting in two of her.

But who can do such a thing? This is beyond the reach of human power.

He couldn't figure out which one was the real Jian Xi: the one in front of him or the one at home.
Driven by a small selfish urge, he naturally hoped that the one at home who had come back to life was the real one, but what if the one in front of him was the real her...

"I found my dog ​​near an abandoned air-raid shelter," Uncle Wang said in a low voice.

"Did you slip and fall there?" Zhou Nan asked softly.

The back mountain isn't some deep forest; strictly speaking, it's just a hill about 300 meters above sea level.

Locals say this area is a land of nine mountains, half water, and half farmland. The city's jurisdiction covers more than 20,000 square kilometers, all of which are part of the Qinling-Daba Mountains. Every few steps you take, you'll find a new mountain. Only Wudang Mountain is relatively famous, probably thanks to the popularity of martial arts novels in the last century.

So, very few people go missing in places like the back mountain. The vegetation isn't particularly tall; it's mostly oak, deciduous birch, and the like.

It's hard to imagine that Jian Xi would go there alone and tragically die there. What was she planning to do there?
"I'm afraid not," the security guard shook his head.

"How to say?"

"After staying here for a while, I've gotten a general idea of ​​how people die. This girl died very quietly. Doesn't it look like she was just asleep? This means she didn't suffer any pain before she died. If someone dies from hypothermia, they usually curl up and hug themselves. If they fall and get injured, you won't see any external injuries on her body."

"So, does that mean her death wasn't accidental?"

"That's hard to say. Maybe he hit his head and had intracranial hemorrhage? You can't tell from the outside. I'm just speaking from experience. The specific cause of death needs to be determined by a forensic doctor. If you can't tell from the outside, you'll have to do an autopsy, which will take some time and requires the family's consent. Which of you is a family member?" the security guard asked.

“That’s me,” Zhou Nan said, pointing to himself.

"Older brother or younger brother? Don't you have any adults in your family?"

“We are not family. Her parents are doing business far away and are taken care of by my family. We live together.”

"Since this doesn't count as family, you can't sign anything. Without a guarantee, no one can easily damage the body. You can't even touch it now; we have to wait for the exact cause of death to be determined." The security guard waved his hand. "You should contact the family first."

"it is good."

Although he verbally agreed, Zhou Nan didn't rush to reach for his phone, even though he did have Jian Xi's parents' phone number.

This is somewhat immoral. When Jianxi was a child, his parents were always very good to him. Later, they quit their jobs to go into business, and Jianxi's elderly relatives lived with him.

But with the old man's passing, Jian Xi only had Zhou Nan to rely on in the area. Given how serious the situation was, he should have notified her parents when she first went missing. At that time, he held onto a sliver of hope, thinking that perhaps things hadn't gotten to the worst.

Jian Xi has indeed been found, but now that we've found both her body and her lively, healthy self, how can we notify her family? Tell them, "Your daughter has split into two?"

After making that kind of phone call, he would probably be sent to a mental hospital. If they came back and saw their living daughter and their dead daughter at the same time, could that beautiful lady, who was not very brave to begin with, still handle it?
Whether the final result is bad news or good news, we must find out the truth before telling them. This is being responsible to them and to Jianxi.

"Oh, by the way, these are her belongings. Keep them safe and give them to her family." The security guard handed over a transparent file bag.

Zhou Nan was stunned after just one glance. Inside was Jian Xi's silver phone. The wave of smartphones had just begun to sweep through this small county town, and Jian Xi, who was never short of money, immediately switched to a new one. Even the phone Zhou Nan was using was a gift from her.

Besides these, there's Jianxi's keychain, heart-shaped bracelet, and the hair clip she used to hold her bangs in place.

"Oh no, I don't know where my phone and keys are. Now I can't even get home." I could almost hear her voice in my ear, a little complaining, mixed with her usual spoiled attitude.

For a moment, he really wished he hadn't seen those things, so he could tell himself that Jian Xi was actually safe and sound, and that the one at home who was lively and energetic was the real her.

But now these are right in front of us, irrefutable evidence.

Could it be that she could imitate Jian Xi's appearance, speak in the same tone as Jian Xi, and say those nonsensical witty remarks, but that unknown thing could not forge the same item?

For no apparent reason, Zhou Nan recalled the story of Painted Skin. A hideous demon could disguise itself as a beautiful woman by wearing a human skin painted with colored pens. It would act coquettishly and charmingly, making the scholars around it run wild. When the night was quiet, it would cut open the scholar's chest, eat his flesh and drink his blood.

I used to read Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio as a side dish, but I never thought that one day I would be hit in the knee by the same thing.

Jian Xi in the old house... is she a ghost?
He felt a chill emanating from the back of his neck. Although it was already cold enough here, this chill didn't come from the environment, but from the depths of his heart.

It wasn't fear. Given his personality, even if there really was a female ghost with a painted skin, and her fierce claws were already in front of him, he would still open his eyes wide to see what she really looked like.

He was just a little sad, his heart felt heavy. Whenever he felt a glimmer of hope, reality would throw him back with cold despair. Just when he was finally ready to accept reality and not feel so bad, another girl appeared out of nowhere, wearing his skin.

What is this?

"Please put her in the freezer for now. Her family won't be back for a while, but I'll take care of contacting them. Thank you so much for your help these past few days, Uncle. I want to... be alone for a while."

Zhou Nan remained calm as he carefully collected Jian Xi's belongings and placed them in the pocket of his clothes.

Uncle Wang said nothing, but gently patted his back. He wanted to comfort the young boy, but little did he know that his heart was already completely unmoved.

The bicycle disappeared into the cold night once more, its wheels making a more rapid sound as they rolled over the road. The wind blowing from the river was stronger, and Zhou Nan's hair was disheveled in the wind. He silently wrapped his scarf tighter and turned up his collar to keep warm.

Speaking of which, this scarf was knitted for him by Jian Xi. It was a gift for a boy, but it was made with colorful yarn, like a vibrant ribbon.

Zhou Nan once complained that it was too effeminate. He never wore a scarf or a hat and relied solely on his youthful vigor to survive the cold winter months. He thought he could go anywhere in the world as long as he put on a cotton-padded coat. He considered himself a heroic knight-errant. So he decisively complained and refused, but what he got in return was a chop to the neck from Jian Xi.

She snapped at him, "Your shoes are black, your clothes are black, and your pants are black too! What kind of nocturnal creature are you? Were you reincarnated as an owl in your past life?" Without another word, she put the black pants on him.

When she tied the scarf, her fingers were slender and soft, her hair smelled wonderful, and her long eyelashes looked like the wings of a bird taking flight. That was when she was most like a girl. At other times, she was like a lively and happy little madwoman.

She took his hand and went to school. The scarf did attract a lot of meaningful glances. But after learning that it was a gift from Jian Xi, the boy's eyes turned into envy, jealousy and hatred, while the girl's eyes were filled with questions like, "Aren't you two really going to consider being together?"

Back then, she was surrounded by girls, making faces at him with such smugness that she was clearly telling him to hurry up and thank Lady Jian for her great kindness. This even sparked a handicraft craze among the girls in the class.

Now that she's gone, he realizes that it wasn't a gift at all; it was her delicate thoughts, carefully strung together stitch by stitch.

This scarf is the magic headband she gave him. From now on, it will be around his neck hundreds of times. Its gentle touch is full of affection. No matter how far he goes, as long as he is still wearing her scarf, he will feel as if she is by his side and never leaves him.

The scarf was warm, and seemed to still carry her scent. He gently stroked the scarf as if he were holding her hand, his thoughts drifting.

How should we deal with that thing in the old house?

Her identity and purpose are unknown, yet she appears in Jian Xi's guise. Judging from her words and actions, the claim of amnesia is likely a lie. She not only has Jian Xi's past memories but also her personality and demeanor are exactly the same.

In the worst-case scenario, if that thing kills Jian Xi and then tries to use Jian Xi's identity to infiltrate human society, and is a fake monster who can change its appearance, then she would have to maintain the appearance that Jian Xi should have, so as not to arouse suspicion from people as close as him.

In that case, Zhou Nan would definitely avenge Jian Xi, and it would be useless for her to beg even if she looked like Jian Xi.

It's possible that the thing was just lying dormant, and its real target was him. There was no one else in the old house, and the location was a bit out of the way, so there was enough time for her to take advantage of him completely.

But she didn't make a move. Does this mean that her attack power is no different from that of an ordinary girl, that she feels she can't beat him because he has a background in Sanda (Chinese kickboxing), and that she is waiting for a suitable opportunity?

He definitely had to go back to the old house; the word "escape" didn't exist in his dictionary. To do so would be unfair to himself, and even more so to the deceased Jian Xi.

But he didn't want to act rashly without a clear plan. Since that thing hadn't shown any hostility yet, perhaps he could observe it for a while longer, probe it, and find more crucial evidence? If it was truly an evil spirit, he'd kill it; if it was a good person…

So what if he's a good person?

He suddenly froze, because he couldn't think of an answer.

Even if she is exactly like Jian Xi in every way, speaks in her tone, is just as mischievous, and remembers the things they went through together.

Can she still be considered Jian Xi?

(End of this chapter)