Chapter Eight: The Inescapable Red Handkerchief

Le Dong’s breath hitched.

He knew those shoes all too well—ink-black with slightly upturned toes. They were the exact same pair that had "migrated" from the feet of the male corpse, Hu Dawei, onto Cai Kun’s feet back at the villa that day.

"Old Cai..." Le Dong’s voice trembled. "Look at that..."

Cai Kun followed his gaze, his face turning deathly pale. His heavy frame swayed, and he nearly knocked into the police officer standing nearby.

"What’s wrong?" the officer asked, keenly sensing something amiss.

"No... nothing." Cai Kun wiped the sweat from his forehead. "It’s just... seeing the house turned upside down like this, it’s a bit..."

The officer looked at him suspiciously and continued, "Confirm for me: did you lose any valuables?"

As Cai Kun stammered through an inventory of his belongings, Le Dong slowly edged toward the bedroom.

"The deceased fell from this window," the officer’s voice suddenly rang out behind Le Dong, making him nearly jump out of his skin. "It’s very strange, though. He pried the door open to get in, yet chose to leave through the window. The coroner estimates the time of death was between three and four in the morning."

Le Dong nodded stiffly, unable to tear his eyes away from the shoes.

It struck him with sudden force: three to four in the morning was exactly when his wife’s behavior had been at its most erratic.

Noticing Le Dong staring at the leather shoes, the officer glanced over as well. "Hmm? They look just like the ones the deceased was wearing." The officer muttered to himself and pulled out his phone to snap a picture.

By the time the officer finished writing in his notebook, Cai Kun had finished his half-hearted inspection of the property.

"Alright, I’ve got enough for now. But Mr. Cai, please don't leave the city in the near future; we may need to find you for further questioning. Also..." The officer toyed with his pen cap before adding, "We’ve already contacted the family of the deceased. They might be a bit emotional, so it’s probably best if you crash with your friend here for a while."

After sending the bewildered officer off, Cai Kun collapsed onto the sofa, his shirt soaked with sweat against his back.

"Dongzi... those shoes..." Only seconds after sitting down, he hurried back up and leaned against the bedroom doorframe, his voice shaking violently. "I just heard the officer say that the thief who fell to his death was wearing the same kind of shoes. Dongzi, do you think those shoes are the reason the thief died?"

"Whatever the case, we need to find somewhere to dump them right now!"

Le Dong replied immediately. Cai Kun’s flabby frame shuddered, but he didn't hesitate. He grabbed a plastic bag, shoved the shoes inside, and dragged Le Dong toward the door.

In the pitch-black hallway, Le Dong’s heart was in his throat. Perhaps because the police had just left, there were no ghost-like hands this time.

The elevator descended safely. Cai Kun rushed to the farthest trash can and threw the shoes inside with force.

"Huff... huff..."

Due to the intense exertion, Cai Kun gasped for air. "Dongzi, my apartment has a dead body in it now; it’s a bona fide haunted house. I really can’t stay there. Can I... for these next few days..."

He squeezed his empty pockets and sighed. "I’m at my wit's end. I meant to use the money I earned last time to pay off my gambling debts, but the interest on what I owe Boss Xie keeps compounding. I thought I’d win a big hand..."

Le Dong glanced at him as Cai Kun’s voice trailed off.

Expecting a gambler to have money is harder than achieving immortality. He wanted to refuse; he hadn’t even managed to deal with the red handkerchief from last night, and he didn't want to get involved with these shoes too. But facing a fellow countryman suffering the same plight, Le Dong nodded helplessly.

"Dongzi! I knew you were a loyal friend! Haha!"

Cai Kun was clearly excited, grabbing Le Dong’s hand with a wide grin.

*Buzz, buzz, buzz...*

The vibration in his pocket made Le Dong pull his hand away from Cai Kun’s greasy grip. Seeing it was his wife calling, his heart skipped a beat, and he answered urgently.

"Hello! You bastard! I gave my daughter to you, and this is how you treat her!"

"Look at what you’ve been feeding her! You’re not even human..."

His father-in-law’s rage exploded through the speaker, accompanied by the sound of his wife retching and the chaotic din of a hospital.

Ignoring the verbal abuse, Le Dong gripped the phone tightly, his lips trembling as he shouted, "How is Lijuan? Which hospital are you at?"

Amidst the confusion on the other end, his father’s anxious voice drifted through: "The People’s Hospital."

"Cai Kun! Drive!"

With that shout, Cai Kun, who had already heard the situation, took a deep breath and ran toward the van as fast as Le Dong.

At one o’clock in the afternoon, Le Dong burst into the hospital room in a panic. The moment the door opened, all eyes in the room turned toward him.

"You black-hearted wretch! If anything happens to my daughter... I won't let you off!"

"My poor daughter! I never should have let her marry you, an outsider!"

Le Dong ignored the relentless tirade from his parents-in-law, his eyes scanning past his own parents, who looked on with shame and heartache, and finally settling on his wife’s pale, weak face.

"Dad, Mom, stop yelling at Le Dong!"

A weak voice came from the bed. His wife pushed her father away and said, "How could Le Dong force me to eat cloth strips? Stop making things worse! He’s already exhausted enough!"

"If he didn't force you, are you saying you ate them yourself?"

Her father’s retort left her speechless. Unable to come up with a valid excuse, she frowned and said, "It wasn't him anyway. Besides, there are many reasons for this. Maybe I have pica, or I ate them while sleepwalking."

"..."

Watching his wife make excuses for him, Le Dong felt an immense sense of guilt. But as she spoke, she reached under her pillow and pulled out an object, causing Le Dong’s heart to turn to ice.

On the hospital bed, his wife was holding the very same red handkerchief he had thrown into the trash, using it to wipe the remaining medicine from the corner of her mouth. As it swayed with her movements, it seemed to mock his incompetence.

The red handkerchief... it was back!

In an instant, Le Dong was filled with both anger and fear. If it weren't for this red handkerchief, his wife wouldn't be suffering like this! If this kept up, there was no telling what might happen next!

*You won't stay gone, will you? Fine! I’ll burn you to ashes!*

Le Dong’s eyes turned bloodshot. Like an enraged bull, he rushed to his wife and snatched the bright red handkerchief from her hand.

"You...?"

"Look, look! I knew he must be beating my daughter on the daily!"

"Dongdong, what’s wrong with you..."

His violent outburst shocked his parents-in-law, his own parents, and everyone else in the room.

"Wife, focus on getting better. Once you're well, I’ll buy you a new one!"

Ignoring the questions hurled at him, Le Dong turned and ran out of the hospital. He didn't stop until he reached a park, where he had to strike his lighter three times before the handkerchief finally caught fire.

"Dongzi..."

Cai Kun, who had followed him, stared at the charred remains on the ground, his expression unreadable.

"Old Cai... what do we do if it comes back?"

Under the scorching sun, Le Dong felt no warmth. He shivered and lit a cigarette.

"I read a joke online that said to throw it into the temple donation box..."

Cai Kun didn't know if he was trying to lighten the mood or being serious; he ended the sentence with a self-deprecating laugh.

The two men stood in silence for a long time. Just as Le Dong stubbed out his second cigarette, Cai Kun suddenly slapped his forehead and shouted, "We can find a master to fix this!"

"Ha, you mean that 'Master Zhao'?"

"Forget him, that guy’s useless. Let’s try someone else. A gambling buddy of mine knows an old master in the west side of the city. I heard he has some real skills!"

"A gambling buddy?" Le Dong asked, skeptical.

"Forget what kind of friend he is! These days, nine out of ten masters are frauds anyway. Rather than getting scammed one by one on our own, why not just go to him? Maybe, just maybe, he actually has the power to stop this?"

Le Dong pondered Cai Kun’s explanation and agreed. However, when Cai Kun contacted his friend, he learned that the old master only received visitors on Saturdays and Sundays.

Fortunately, today was Friday...

Tomorrow would be just perfect.