love on the turquoise land

Chapter 3

September 16, 1992
Wednesday
Clear turning cloudy with heavy rain

It's already half past ten, and Dashan hasn't returned. It's raining heavily outside, and I'm alone at home, feeling a bit scared.

I delivered dumplings to Dashan at noon and encountered something funny: the workers were making a fuss, claiming there's a ghost in the mine.

Where could a ghost come from? I guess it's probably Li Ergou.

Dashan went down alone to "catch the ghost," and I was quite looking forward to it. But then, on second thought, he might not catch anything. If Li Ergou did something wrong, he wouldn't dare to let Dashan find out. He would have hidden as soon as he heard any commotion.

As expected, I guessed it right. Dashan came up empty-handed, saying there was nothing down there.

It's already quarter to eleven.

Things at the mine are really busy. Dashan works so hard. I hope our son is born soon and grows up quickly. That way, Dashan will have an able helper.

I've been thinking about a name for our son recently, always flipping through the dictionary. I like a word: "开拓" (Kaituo), meaning to open up new territories, to expand new paths, to dare to change the world.

"Yan Kai" or "Yan Tuo," both sound good. I really like both; I can't decide.

Well, let Dashan choose.

There's a sound outside; Dashan must be back. I'll stop writing here.

—[Excerpt from Lin Xiruo's Diary]

***

Mid-September, the south of the Yangtze River, the season of flowing fire; the "Qinling-Huaihe" line has gradually entered the cool autumn.

Around 10 in the evening, in the vicinity of Xingbazizi Township, Shihe County, Ankai City, it was almost pitch dark. Only a few lights illuminated the western part—surrounding mountains cast shadows, the wind rustled through the woods, highlighting those flickering lights resembling unstable lanterns.

People in Xingbazizi Township were used to living in the eastern part of the village. The western part was wild, and before the liberation, there was a temple, a sacrificial platform was built, and shamans were invited to ward off disasters and exorcise ghosts. Later, during the movement, it was smashed and burned, abandoned. After some time, a large cornfield grew here, but unfortunately, the variety wasn't good, and the corn could only be used to feed pigs.

In this season, the corn had been mostly harvested, and the field was left with golden-brown, thin-stemmed, densely packed stubbles that rattled eerily when the wind passed by.

***

The dim lights came from the dilapidated temple in the center of the cornfield and the off-road vehicle parked outside.

Sun Zhou, with a cigarette held in his left hand, leaned against the half-open window while talking on the phone with his girlfriend, Qiao Ya. Caught up in the conversation and unable to smoke, he had to let the cigarette burn itself out, knocking off the ash every now and then.

"In this rural area, there's no one around... I'm telling you, I'm really getting the creeps."

He glanced around and suddenly felt unsafe having his left hand exposed outside the car. So, he threw away the cigarette and pulled his hand back in.

Qiao Ya had heard about this place: "Is it in the mountainous area? My grandfather said that it used to be bandit territory before liberation, where many people were killed, and there were even ghost stories."

Sun Zhou's arm broke out in goosebumps, subconsciously looking left and right. On the left, there was a dark stubble field swaying lightly in the wind, emanating a chilling atmosphere. On the right, there was a temple with dim light, resembling a faint will-o'-the-wisp, slowly drifting.

"I have no choice. Miss Nie wants to see clay sculptures; she's an artist."

"It's my fault too. We took the wrong road on the way, and we arrived late. Miss Nie got absorbed in watching, and I felt awkward urging her..."

He was a shuttle driver, and Miss Nie was the employer. Whether to go or not, when to go—these decisions were up to the employer.

Qiao Ya complained, "To see sculptures, why didn't you go to Longmen or Dunhuang? Why run to the countryside..."

Sun Zhou said, "Didn't I tell you she's an artist? Those famous caves—people have seen them all by the time they're in their teens. Now it's trendy to look for these rural, primitive places to trigger artistic inspiration."

Qiao Ya was at a loss for words and asked, "I heard that if she sculpts something, it could sell for tens of thousands?"

Sun Zhou didn't have a specific number, but he pretended to be knowledgeable, "Can art be that cheap? At least tens of thousands."

Qiao Ya sighed and finally said, "Miss Nie is really bold."

"No kidding," Sun Zhou felt deeply, "In this pitch darkness, especially in the Qin-Ba mountainous area, let me tell you, I'm nervous. If a few criminals suddenly show up and kill us..."

Qiao Ya wasn't amused, "I'm not talking about that. I mean, she's a young woman. Daring to go to such a remote place with you—a man—in the middle of the night. Isn't she afraid you might have some other intentions?"

"I'm doing a job for money, with professional ethics. Besides, we've only known each other for a few days, like half acquaintances."

Qiao Ya sneered, "Acquaintances? People say that half of sexual crimes are committed by acquaintances. Women need to be wary of men, regardless of how well they know them. If it were me, I wouldn't dare to go to the countryside in the middle of the night with an unfamiliar male driver. Not even with male colleagues or classmates."

Sun Zhou licked his lips, "What about me? Am I okay?"

Qiao Ya flirted, "You're okay."

Sun Zhou was feeling a little cheeky, about to say something flirtatious when he suddenly saw a dark figure in the rearview mirror on the left side of the car.

He was startled, his phone even fell, "Who's there?"

The response was the rustling sound of the wind through the stubble field.

Sun Zhou opened the car door, looked around, and felt like there was nothing and everything in the cornfield.

Picking up his phone, the call wasn't disconnected yet, and Qiao Ya was getting anxious, "What happened? Who is it?"

Sun Zhou felt a chill down his spine, "I won't say, I'll go... check on Miss Nie."

He hung up the phone, jogging towards the temple. Despite his appearance of being tall and strong, he was more of an illusion. If something really happened, he couldn't handle it.