Don't Board Bus No. 444

People talk about ghosts at midnight, and ghosts talk about people at midnight.

The pronunciation of "four" is similar to "death," so some older generations regard it as an unlucky number and avoid it like a fierce tiger.

And my mother is one such person. Since I was young, none of my belongings could be associated with the number four, not even the bus I took to school.

And today, I'm going to tell you a supernatural story related to the number four.

My name is Guo Heng. I'm a recent graduate who just arrived in Tianhai City. Like most graduates, I've been looking for a job since graduation.

However, the industry related to my major is not doing well this year, so finding a job has been more difficult than in previous years.

To find a job as quickly as possible, I've been all over the various districts of Tianhai City.

Until one evening, after I finished an interview at a company, it was already very late.

I arrived at a bus stop near the company. Under the dim streetlights, I waited alone for the last bus on this route.

Since the company is located in a remote area with little human activity nearby, I was the only one at the bus stop.

Behind the bus stop was a wasteland covered in waist-high wild grass. At night, all sorts of sounds came from the grass.

The unknown is humanity's greatest fear. I looked at the dark wasteland, and I couldn't help but feel a chill run down my spine, constantly praying for the last bus to arrive quickly.

After a long while, I saw a light appear at the intersection in the distance. I knew the last bus had finally arrived.

It's strange, though. My mother strictly forbade me from taking bus routes with the number four since I was little. But the bus tonight was precisely Bus No. 444.

However, as a university graduate with sixteen years of education, I don't believe in superstitions like "four means death." So, I got on the bus without hesitation.

Because it was the last bus, there were only the driver and me on the entire bus.

This was the first time I had a "luxury car" worth millions all to myself. Honestly, it felt pretty good.

At first, I paid attention to the bus route. The surrounding environment was the same as what I had seen when I came in the afternoon.

Feeling relieved, since I hadn't eaten dinner yet and was hungry, people tend to get sleepy. I didn't know when I fell asleep.

All I knew was that when I woke up, my neck felt particularly sore, and I was freezing. The driver must have had the air conditioning on too low.

I looked up, and there was no air vent above me.

Strange, then why was it so cold?

I looked around, and that's when I realized that quite a few people had gotten on the bus at some point.

There was a wet-looking grandfather and grandson, a young couple clinging to each other, and a migrant worker uncle covered in dirt.

There was also a mother with disheveled hair, wearing a red dress, holding a swaddled infant in her arms.

Although there were many people on the bus, it was unusually quiet. All I could hear was the roar of the engine.

I looked out the window. It was a very secluded road, with no other vehicles or pedestrians in sight.

If it weren't for the buildings on both sides of the road, I would have suspected I had boarded a ghost bus, as that's how stories often go.

After a few minutes, the bus stopped at a bus stop. An old man with a face etched with the hardships of life got on, holding a roll of newspapers, and sat next to me.

After the bus started, the old man spread out his newspaper and began reading beside me.

Seeing the old man so engrossed, I felt a bit curious. With technology being so advanced these days, there were still newspapers?

So, I pretended to sit up straight and lean back, looking at the newspaper in the old man's hands.

'Life Evening News'

That was the title of the newspaper. I continued reading and saw events I had never heard of.

'A mischievous child beat up a scrap collector on the street. While trying to escape, both the child and the elderly man fell into the river and drowned. The elderly man's family has sued the child's family.'

'A fire broke out in a rental apartment in Tianhai City, resulting in two deaths. According to investigations, the deceased were a couple who died embracing each other. Their bodies could no longer be separated.'

'During night construction at a site, a migrant worker accidentally fell into a sand pile. He was discovered the next day and confirmed dead.'

'Tianhai City's largest child trafficking case has been cracked, with one child trafficking organization being dismantled. During the operation, Sister Hong (alias) escaped with an infant and was found in a field a day later.

According to the autopsy report, Sister Hong died of snakebite while fleeing. The infant in her arms, when discovered, was already...'

As I read up to this point, the old man sitting next to me seemed to notice I was looking and suddenly looked up at me.

Perhaps it was the backlight, but I felt like the old man's eye sockets were dark and hollow, as if there were no eyes inside.

I was immediately amused by my own thought. If a living person had no eyes, how could he possibly read a newspaper!

I awkwardly scratched my head and turned to look at the driver.

Suddenly, I felt something fall onto my lap. I looked down and saw what looked like a plump, white maggot.

Where did a maggot come from here?

I instinctively looked up. The dim streetlight by the roadside illuminated the old man's face. I could clearly see that his eye sockets were crawling with constantly wriggling maggots.

I froze for a moment but quickly screamed. Trembling all over, I ran to the woman in red, pointed at the old man, and yelled to the passengers that he wasn't human.

The other passengers seemed startled by me, and they all stood up.

At that moment, I smelled a strong, foul odor coming from beside me. It smelled a bit like a dead rat, but not quite.

I turned to look at the woman beside me. She had already lifted her head, her scattered hair now pushed to the sides, revealing her dark purple lips and pale face.

My mind went blank, and I suddenly remembered Sister Hong from the newspaper, who had died from snake venom. Cold sweat immediately trickled down my forehead.

I quietly glanced at the baby in her arms. The infant's face was a bruised purple, and it looked like all life had already left it.

The stench of dead rats around me grew more intense, and the passengers on the bus had surrounded me at some point.

The grandfather and grandson, dripping wet and constantly shedding water, huddled together; the couple, their faces unrecognizable; the migrant workers, sand pouring from their ears and nostrils.

Everyone matched the events in the newspaper. I had really boarded a ghost bus.

The story ended there. Shi Yimin, sitting on a small stool waiting for the barbecue to be served, scrolled down curiously, wanting to see if there was a follow-up.

After skipping an advertisement, he saw the first comment left by the original poster.

'My name is Guo Heng. Surrounded by fierce ghosts, how will I survive? Pay me fifty yuan, and I'll update the follow-up immediately.'

"Damn it, what a rip-off!" Shi Yimin couldn't help but curse.