Carrying her father's ashes out of the funeral home, Lin Fan felt dazed, almost unable to believe it. Did she just see a ghost? Lin Fan could actually see ghosts!
On the last bus back to the city, Lin Fan's phone rang. Answering it, a man's voice came through, "Are you Miss Lin?"
"Who is this?"
"I saw your rental inquiry. I just sent you a text. Do you have time to come and see the house?"
When did Lin Fan send a rental inquiry?
"Ah? Where is the house?"
"On Zhongming Road."
After hanging up, Lin Fan leaned against the window as the lights receded. The sky darkened, and dusk fell.
Lin Fan closed her eyes.
She woke up when the driver called out. Lin Fan, still groggy, saw darkness all around, with cold wind mixed with chill. Her lower body felt like it was immersed in ice.
"We've reached the final stop."
"Where is this?"
"Zhongming Road, the terminus."
Lin Fan got off the bus, feeling cold, and wrapped her coat tighter. The night had completely fallen, and she held her father's ashes. Sparse lights flickered – was this Zhongming Road?
It looked desolate. Lin Fan took out her phone to make a call. She had thought she would need to take a taxi to find Zhongming Road, but unexpectedly, the bus had brought her here, saving her some trouble.
The call connected quickly. Lin Fan said, "Hello, I'm here to see the house."
"Zhongming Road, number ninety-nine. Come over."
"Okay."
The street was deserted, with few people and sparse streetlights.
It took Lin Fan half an hour to find number ninety-nine. It was a very old residential area. Lin Fan went in and found Building Six. Just as she was about to make a call, a figure emerged from the darkness in the corridor.
"Are you here to see the house?"
Lin Fan was startled, quickly stepping back and clutching the ashes tightly.
"Miss Lin?" A middle-aged woman emerged from the darkness, wearing a white down jacket.
Lin Fan breathed a sigh of relief, stepping forward and nodding. "Hello, I'm Lin Fan."
"Here to see the house?" Her features were obscured in the darkness, barely visible.
Lin Fan nodded. "Yes, where's the person who called me?"
"He had something to do and left. He asked me to come and give you the keys."
Lin Fan looked at the person in front of her, hesitating for a moment before saying, "Thank you."
"Fifth floor. Come up and have a look. The light on the first floor is broken."
Lin Fan looked around the residential area, only seeing one dim light.
She pursed her lips, took out her phone for illumination, and followed the woman upstairs.
There was already light on the second floor. The woman took out the keys and opened the door, and a musty smell filled the corridor.
"No one lives in this neighborhood?"
"There are people."
Lin Fan hadn't seen any shadows, "Click," the door opened. The woman pushed open the door to the room.
It seemed like no one had lived here for a long time, and a pungent smell hit her face.
"The rent is a thousand a month, utilities not included."
"Can it be rented short-term?"
"How short?"
Lin Fan thought for a moment, "About a week or so."
"That's something you'll need to discuss with the landlord," the woman replied.
Exiting the bedroom to talk to the woman, Lin Fan looked up and saw no one at the door. A sudden rush of fear gripped her as her scalp tingled.
The wooden door swayed with a bunch of keys hanging on it, swinging in the wind.
Rubbing her face vigorously, Lin Fan confirmed that there was indeed no one at the door. Tentatively, she called out, "Auntie?"
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No response.
Just then, her phone rang, startling Lin Fan nearly out of her skin. She quickly answered.
"Are you still interested in the house?" a man's voice asked.
"The lady who showed me the house is gone," Lin Fan said, her heart pounding in her chest, feeling scared.
"Don't worry about her. If you're satisfied with the house, come tomorrow to sign the contract."
"Are there no other residents in this neighborhood?"
"It's mostly elderly people here; they sleep early."
The motion-sensor light went out, leaving the corridor pitch black.
Stepping out of the building, Lin Fan realized she had nowhere to seek shelter from the wind and rain. She couldn't afford to spend more money; she needed to save up for tuition fees.
"Can I stay here tonight?" she asked.
"You can. The key is on the door."
Had city dwellers become so trusting? Without even meeting her or collecting rent, deposit, or identification, they allowed her to stay? Lin Fan took the key off the door, closed it, and put down the ashes. The apartment was spacious, with a one-bedroom layout. It seemed like the previous tenant was a neat person; everything was arranged very neatly.
Taking off her damp coat, Lin Fan lifted the cover on the sofa. The red sofa added a lively touch to the room. Lin Fan sat down and rubbed her temples. Originally intending to rest for a while, she closed her eyes and fell asleep.
"Sister, help me!" Suddenly, a girl with blood streaming from her seven orifices rushed towards her, startling Lin Fan awake.
The room was still lit, but there was a knock on the door.
Outside, dawn was breaking. Lin Fan shivered from the cold, hastily hugging herself, as the knocking continued. She sneezed and stood up, putting on her coat and taking out a knife from her bag, tucking it into her pocket, before opening the door.
A very young man stood at the door, wearing wire-framed glasses and having fair skin.
"I'm Ouyang Yu, the landlord," he said.
He wore a perfectly tailored all-black suit, exuding an air of elegance.
"Hello, I'm Lin Fan."
Ouyang Yu appeared to be in his early twenties, with delicate features. He didn't step into the room but handed Lin Fan the rental contract. "Sign at the bottom right corner."
"What about the rent? Can I rent short-term?" Lin Fan asked.
"How short?"
Ouyang Yu's gaze was cold, almost piercing. Lin Fan felt uncomfortable for no apparent reason as she rubbed her neck and tentatively asked, "Is a week okay?"
"That's fine."
"How much?"
"You decide."
Was he being too casual? Lin Fan took a deep breath and raised a finger. "What about a hundred?"
"Sure."
Was the land price in Jiangcheng so low that she could live on the main road for a hundred bucks? Lin Fan took the contract, wrote her name on it, and handed it back.
Ouyang Yu reached out his hand.
Lin Fan hesitated for a moment before shaking his hand. She shook it up and down, smiling, "Thank you for renting the house to me."
Ouyang Yu's lips curved up, and his almond-shaped eyes crinkled. "The pen – give it to me."
Lin Fan quickly let go of his hand and returned the pen, her face burning. "Sorry."
Ouyang Yu's hand was very cold, sending a chill down to Lin Fan's bones, making her shiver. To ease the awkwardness, she ran back to her room, took out a hundred bucks from her bag, and gave it to Ouyang Yu. He looked at the pink bill in his hand, his lips curling up.
"Don't want to disturb you further. Goodbye."
"Goodbye," Lin Fan closed the door, vigorously rubbing her hands on her pants, but she still couldn't shake off the chill.
She felt like something was missing, but Lin Fan's limited intelligence couldn't figure out what it was.
After washing her face, she left with her backpack. Passing by the second floor, she saw a girl in a pink down jacket squatting at the door, doing something she couldn't quite make out.
Lin Fan felt a sense of familiarity and took a second glance before continuing downstairs and out the door.
Finding a noodle shop, she glanced at the TV screen while waiting. A missing person announcement was playing.
"Suya, aged ten, went missing from the Taoyuan Road area. Citizens with any information, please call the hotline..."
"Those damn human traffickers. Such a beautiful girl, who knows what's become of her. I heard she's been missing for over half a month, and her family is going crazy looking for her. Miss, your noodles are ready."
"Thank you."
Lin Fan looked away, a strange thought crossing her mind. The girl on the TV seemed familiar.
Taking a detour on her way home, she went to the villa area where her father used to live. The door was tightly shut, so she circled around to the back of the villa and climbed up to the second floor using the air conditioning unit. The window on the second floor wasn't locked, so she climbed in to retrieve her study materials.
The room was in disarray, a mess. Soon, there would be new occupants, turning it into someone else's home. Lin Fan picked up her books, paused by the master bedroom, and pushed open the door.
The room was incredibly messy, cluttered with items strewn everywhere. She sighed and was about to leave when her eyes fell on some scattered papers next to the safe.
She walked over and picked up the papers, her gaze growing increasingly serious.
On the way back home, she stopped by the supermarket to buy some daily necessities. By the time she got home, it was already 6 PM. Carrying bags of groceries, she encountered the girl in the pink down jacket again on the second floor. This time, the girl was standing, facing away from her.
Lin Fan, for some reason, thought of the missing child. She paused, "Little girl?"
The child turned around, and Lin Fan was so scared she nearly tumbled down the stairs, letting out a scream as the lights in the corridor suddenly came on. The light illuminated the girl's face; her hair was long and disheveled, and her eyes were unusually large, taking up a significant portion of her face.
"Sister?" Lin Fan breathed a sigh of relief. She could talk, so she must be alive. "What are you doing here?"
The girl said, "You can see me?"
Lin Fan's scalp tingled. The last person who said that to her was pushed into the crematorium and burned.
Turning around, Lin Fan said, "I can't see you!"
Mind your own business.
In the next moment, the girl teleported in front of her, causing Lin Fan to nearly fall down the stairs in fright.
"What are you?" Lin Fan stammered.
"You can see me," her voice was chilling, matching her pale face. Lin Fan was petrified.
She said, "You can clearly see me, you're pretending to be ignorant."
The light dimmed, and Lin Fan coughed violently. When the light came back on, she wanted to scream, but her mind went blank, saliva sliding down her throat. Trembling, Lin Fan said, "Are you a ghost?"
"Yes, I'm dead." The girl laughed, blood trickling from her mouth. Lin Fan put down the convenience bag and felt for the kitchen knife in her bag. "What do you want?"
She had to suppress her fear with all her might to stay standing.
"I don't want to be trapped in hatred forever, unable to reincarnate. I want to be reincarnated. Can you help me?" The girl clasped her hands together.
Lin Fan tightened her grip on the knife. "How can I help you? No, can I help you? Why can't you reincarnate? No, I mean, why are you looking for me? I'm not a grim reaper."
The light dimmed again, and Lin Fan coughed harshly. When the light came back on, she stomped her foot in terror.
This crappy place, she didn't want to live here anymore.
"Because you can see me, you are the master of this building."
Lin Fan frowned. What kind of nonsense was this?
"Huh?"
"I was murdered, and the killer is still at large. Innocently dead, my spirit cannot rest, unable to enter reincarnation, only drifting in the third dimension, restless. I don't want to continue drifting. Sister, can you help me?"