At this moment, the twitching frequency of my right eyelid increased. I couldn't help but think that the father of the deceased should quickly gather the ten thousand dollars and hand the girl's body back to my dad. I had no desire to stay on this river; a sense of impending doom loomed over me.
After waiting for about ten minutes, the sky suddenly darkened with thick clouds, followed by flashes of lightning and the rumble of thunder.
My grandfather had advised me on three scenarios where bodies should not be retrieved: never retrieve an upright corpse from the water, avoid going out in a boat to retrieve bodies during a thunderstorm, and if the same corpse is unsuccessfully retrieved three times, it should not be attempted again.
Now, the body we discovered was standing upright in the water, and a thunderstorm had rolled in—violating two of the three don'ts for body retrieval. I considered urging my father to return the body promptly, anticipating that something terrible might happen. However, I refrained from speaking up because I knew my dad wouldn't heed my advice.
A thunderous boom echoed, and a lightning bolt struck a nearby locust tree, splitting it in half.
Witnessing the lightning splitting the tree, the onlookers turned pale, and those who had been disrespectful earlier hastily retreated, closing their mouths. The rain poured down suddenly, and the spectators scattered from the riverside. Cyclists and motorcyclists rushed back home in the rain, while those who came by car sought refuge in their vehicles.
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Our boat had no rain cover, but there were two bamboo hats on board. My dad grabbed one for himself and placed the other on my head. The rain, accompanied by wind, drenched my clothes, leaving me shivering with cold.
Glancing back at the girl's body standing in the water, I noticed a slight rosy tint on her pale face. Her lips curled into a faint smile, and to my shock, her eyes were open. Unlike normal eyes, which were black or white, hers were pitch black.
"Oh, my God!" I exclaimed, startled, and leaped to my dad's side.
"You're always so easily startled, almost gave me a heart attack!" My dad scolded me without much patience.
"Dad, dad, dad, the girl opened her eyes! She opened her eyes!" I pointed at the standing corpse with a trembling hand, displaying a terrified expression as I informed my dad.
Upon hearing my words, my dad first furrowed his brows and then turned his gaze toward the standing girl's body. I dared not look but turned my head towards the shore.
The deceased's mother, overwhelmed by grief, had fainted and been taken away by an ambulance. Only the father of the deceased remained, sitting on the ground, still weeping. Rain soaked his clothes thoroughly. Watching him, I began to ponder. If I were to meet an untimely end, would my dad grieve for me as well?
Lost in my thoughts, my dad suddenly turned his head, extending his right hand to deliver a sharp smack to the back of my head.
"If you dare scare me again, I'll kick you into the river to feed the fish!"
Hearing my dad's threat, I looked again at the girl's body in the water. Her face remained pale, with a downturned mouth, closed eyes, and an expression tinged with sadness and helplessness.
"Could it be that I hallucinated and saw it wrong?" I muttered to myself, then rubbed my eyes with both hands.