Chapter 43: Cousin
For some reason, Li Mu could faintly feel a bit of hostility from Zhang Hui.
Zhang Hui was his cousin, about two years older than him. Two years ago, he joined the army for mandatory service and had just left the military this September.
Back in elementary school, Li Mu would sometimes visit his grandpa’s house and used to get along well with Zhang Hui. But as they both grew up and got busier, he started seeing his cousin less and less.
That’s why Li Mu didn’t really understand why Zhang Hui seemed to have some dislike toward him now.
Could he be a ghost?
On the bus ride home, Li Mu leaned his shoulder against the window, quietly watching the scenery outside with a cold expression.
He wasn’t too bothered by Zhang Hui’s attitude. After all, the guy was just staying for a few days while looking for a job. They wouldn’t even see each other much during the day.
He could tell that Zhang Hui kept glancing at him from time to time, but Li Mu was already used to those kinds of looks.
Whether it was from Yu Fan, Ren Tianyou, or his classmates in the dorm, everyone would sneak looks at him lately because he was starting to look more and more feminine.
After nearly half an hour of stop-and-go, the bus finally stopped in front of a residential area on the edge of town.
Most houses in the town center were old, and most of the newer apartment buildings in recent years were built in the suburbs.
“Follow me.”
After getting off the bus, Li Mu glanced back at Zhang Hui.
“Okay.” Zhang Hui looked around curiously.
This cousin didn’t seem as lazy or useless as Grandpa had said. He didn’t smell like smoke or alcohol, and his eyes looked bright, not empty like Ren Tianyou’s. In fact, he looked full of energy, and everything he did was fast and strong.
Probably because he had just gotten out of the army.
Carrying only a small suitcase, Zhang Hui easily kept up with Li Mu’s pace and followed him home.
“There are two bedrooms left.”
Li Mu glanced at the two empty rooms. “Pick one, and clean it up yourself.”
The apartment had three bedrooms and two living rooms. Li Mu already took one of the bedrooms, while the remaining two rooms were somewhat cluttered. One was used as a storage room, covered in dust, and the other led to the balcony.
“I can just sleep in the living room.”
The living room?
Since he didn’t want to clean anyway, Li Mu went to his room and brought out a blanket.
Even though it was already October, in the south, people still wore shorts and T-shirts, so a blanket at night was good enough.
Li Mu didn’t talk much, even around people he knew. In front of Zhang Hui, he was even colder, completely expressionless.
He took a small mirror from the table and went into his bedroom, locking the door without saying anything more to his cousin.
“Xiao Jing.”
“I’m here!”
Sitting curled up in his chair in front of the computer, Li Mu placed the mirror on the desk and asked a question he had asked before. “What is your unfinished wish?”
“I forgot!” Xiao Jing answered the same way she did a few days ago.
But after dealing with Chen Yi, Li Mu had learned more about ghosts. He looked calmly at the ghost in the mirror and shook his head.
“That’s not true. If you really forgot your wish, you would’ve disappeared already.”
“……”
To put it simply, ghosts exist because of a strong desire or regret. Every ghost has one or more of these unfinished wishes.
“I’ll help you finish it, and then you’ll be free,” Li Mu said sincerely. “But before that, you need to help me lure out the chopping-body ghost.”
“I’m scared it’ll eat me…”
Being eaten and having a wish fulfilled both cause a ghost to disappear, but being eaten means a painful death, while fulfilling a wish is peaceful, like being released or guided to the afterlife.
It’s said that all ghosts suffer mentally because of their regrets. Even the kindest person in life will slowly lose their mind after death and eventually turn into an evil ghost. Those who don’t turn into evil ghosts usually fade away while still weak.
But Xiao Jing didn’t seem to fit this rule. Otherwise, Chen Yi wouldn’t have been so surprised when he met her.
“He won’t lose. Uncle Chen Yi is really strong. Look, he even has a gun.”
“And that guy Yu Fan, he once fought off three people by himself when helping someone.”
“I…”
Li Mu was confidently trying to convince the ghost, but suddenly got stuck.
He used to be able to fight a little, since he often worked part-time jobs. His body wasn’t as strong as Chen Yi or Yu Fan’s, but it was still better than most regular students.
But now…
He looked at his thin, soft arm and started doubting if he could even climb over the school wall like he used to.
Xiao Jing seemed a bit tempted. “But… what if you’re lying to me?”
“I’ll get everything ready first. At night, you can help us with the plan, and the next day, I’ll help you finish your wish.”
Li Mu usually didn’t talk much, but to stop his body from becoming more and more like a girl’s, he had to force himself to do something he wasn’t good at.
So where was Yu Fan? He said he had something to do this afternoon, and now he was just gone.
“Then… can I tell you?”
“Go ahead.”
“I… I want my mom…”
A question mark popped up in Li Mu’s head.
Xiao Jing lowered her head, her cheeks a little red, and her eyes already filled with tears. She looked just like a little kitten abandoned by its owner.
Seeing “himself” look so pitiful, even though it felt awkward, Li Mu had to hold back his feelings.
“I want to find my mom… She said she was just going away for a little while and would come back to find me,” Xiao Jing said, choking up. Her soft, childlike voice made people feel extra sorry for her. “Dad too… They’re both liars…”
“Didn’t you say you couldn’t remember anything from before you died?” Li Mu frowned.
“I remembered it after I died. They put me in the mirror and said they’d come back soon… but I waited for so long.”
Then Xiao Jing mumbled, “Is this wish too much for you? I have other ones too! Like… I want to join a singing contest!”
Ghosts often have more than one regret, and many of them lie a lot. That’s why Chen Yi usually prefers to destroy them instead of helping them fulfill their wishes. Plus, most vengeful ghosts are so blinded by their emotions that they can’t even talk properly.
This ghost’s wish didn’t sound that believable either. It felt like she was just making things up.
But for some reason, Li Mu suddenly felt something strange… like something was off, but familiar.
It felt like he had found a clue, but before he could think more, Zhang Hui interrupted him.
“Cousin! Cousin!”
His thoughts were broken, and a bit of frustration showed on his face. But when he stood up and opened the door, his face returned to calm. “What is it?”
Outside, Zhang Hui looked terrified. His pupils were wide, staring at Li Mu.
Was it… a ghost?
Li Mu instantly felt goosebumps.
“Cock… cockroach!” Zhang Hui said, trembling and pointing toward the living room. “There’s so many…”
He looked like he was about to cry.
The tension disappeared in an instant. Li Mu looked at the terrified Zhang Hui and didn’t know what to say.
Wasn’t this guy a muscular, buzz-cut army man who just left the military? And he’s scared of cockroaches? Is he even a man? Just hit them with a slipper!
Li Mu picked up a can of bug spray and handed it to Zhang Hui. But Zhang Hui still shook his head.
“They can fly! They’re bigger than my thumb! Flying all over the place! There’s like a dozen of them!”
Li Mu took a step back, looked down, and without any emotion, called Ren Tianyou.
“Brother Tianyou, there are cockroaches in my house…”
“Huh?”
“Cockroaches!”
“Xiao Mu, you’re almost eighteen. How are you still scared of cockroaches? I’ll come help you after I finish this order.”
“……”
After hanging up, Li Mu looked up and calmly said to Zhang Hui.
“Come inside and hide first.”