It was past two in the morning.
The young man lay in bed, his eyelids as heavy as lead, yet he simply couldn't fall asleep.
Outside the window, the rain had been falling for hours.
It pattered softly.
It wasn't particularly loud, but a layer of mist had formed on the windowpane, leaving the view outside so hazy that he couldn't make anything out.
"Damn it."
"Why can't I sleep?"
The young man rolled over, muttering under his breath.
But that was how people were.
The harder you tried to sleep, the harder it became. You tossed and turned, unable to get comfortable, until even the bed felt hard beneath you.
"This is so unfair!"
He listened closely and immediately heard Brother Qi snoring in the room next door.
"Ah."
"I'm so jealous."
He rolled over again, pressing his back against the cooling mat, forcing himself to fall asleep.
He kept trying and trying.
It seemed to work a little.
He actually began to drift off.
But just then, a sudden splash came from the street outside, sounding like a foot stamping hard into a puddle.
That single sound.
In the deathly silence, it was jarring enough to wake the young man just as he was about to fall asleep.
"Motherfucker!"
"Who's fucking doing that on purpose?"
He sat up angrily, and the sound immediately became clearer.
Splash!
Splash!
Splash!
Each step landed solidly, as though someone were deliberately stomping through puddles like a maniac. He could even hear the spray hitting the walls.
Fuck you and eighteen generations of your ancestors!
What lunatic wanders around outside instead of sleeping in the middle of the night? Aren't they afraid a ghost will grab them?
The young man cursed furiously to himself.
He wanted to get up and see who was