The old man looked composed, nothing like someone making things up.
I asked, my eyes wide:
"Four? You mean there were four crashes at the reservoir back then? Who was the fourth driver?"
The old man nodded and was just about to speak.
The little girl beside him tugged at his sleeve and said:
"Grandpa, I'm hungry."
The old man lowered his head and stroked the girl's hair, then said to me:
"I live at the west end of the village. There's a big willow tree planted outside my courtyard gate. Come find me when you're free, and I'll tell you all about it."
I nodded, and the old man took the little girl's hand and headed west.
That brief conversation with him completely overturned everything I'd believed all this time.
From Old Tang to Sixth Uncle, everyone had mentioned three accidents at the reservoir. How had a fourth suddenly turned up with this old man?
Then who was my predecessor, the fourth Route 13 driver?
I returned to the room with those questions. Liu Qingzhu was sleeping soundly, but when I lay down on the kang, I wasn't sleepy at all.
Around four or five, Old Liu finally woke up.
I couldn't wait to ask him:
"Old Liu, do you know about the Route 13 accidents at the reservoir ten years ago?"
Old Liu sat on the edge of the kang and nodded sleepily.
"What's going on? I looked at the driver records from back then. There were clearly only three forms, with no record of a fourth driver."
Old Liu gave a cold laugh and said:
"He definitely exists. He's still alive and well, too. Once we're done here, I'll take you to see him."
"Still alive?"
That really piqued my curiosity.
"Knowing all that won't do you any good right now. Come with me to the cornfield in the west in a bit. Let's deal with the bronze bell first."
Seeing that Old Liu didn't want to reveal any more, I said:
"Old Liu, let's make a deal. I'll go to the cornfield with you and do whatever you say, but once we're done, you still have to answer one question."
Old Liu said nothing. He picked up a flashlight from the cabinet, tucked it away, and said:
"Let's go. To the cornfield west of the village."
Old Liu found a shovel in the courtyard, and the two of us headed west with it.
I limped after Old Liu to the cornfield on the western edge of the village. It was enormous; I couldn't see the far end.
Looking out at the field, I asked Old Liu:
"I've always wondered, why do you make me come along every time you visit Tiger Waist Mountain? I can't help you. I just hold you back."
Still staring at the field before him, Old Liu said unhurriedly:
"It won't work without you. Start digging."
"Digging?"
Old Liu handed me the shovel and said:
"Dig along this furrow. When you reach a big rock, start digging down."
I nearly cried.
"Old Liu, can't you see my leg's broken? It's still wrapped in bandages!"
Old Liu shook his head and said:
"That won't matter. You don't need to dig very deep."
There was nothing I could do. It was just Old Liu and me, and I couldn't make an old man do it.
I took the shovel and began limping along the furrow, digging as I went.
After digging twenty or thirty meters along it, I really did hit a big rock.
Old Liu tapped down at it experimentally with his battered stick, then nodded.
"This is it. Dig down."
I simply plopped onto the ground, rolled up my sleeves and trouser legs, and shifted my broken leg to one side.
Time to dig!
After digging a large round pit over a meter deep, I couldn't dig anymore. Drenched in sweat, I tossed the shovel aside and panted:
"Old Liu, what exactly are you making me dig for? You've got to tell me."
Old Liu ignored me and tapped here and there with his battered stick again.
"There's a thick iron plate underneath. See if you can lift it."
I took the shovel and thrust it down. There really was an iron plate.
I cleared more dirt away around the pit and heaved it up. Beneath the plate was a large, pitch-black opening!
Realization struck me. I stared at Old Liu in disbelief and said:
"Old Liu, don't try to fool me. I've heard what this cave is. There are monsters down there. I'm disabled, and there's no way I'm going in."
Old Liu glanced at me, his voice as cold as ever:
"You don't have to go in. Keep watch at the entrance. I'll go down myself."
I was completely dumbfounded.
"You're going down alone? No way. I know you've got some skills, but we still don't know what's in there!"
"Stop fussing."
With that, Old Liu carefully jumped into the pit, swept his flashlight into the earthen tunnel twice, and stepped inside.
Watching Old Liu enter, I was caught in an awkward dilemma. The opening was so low that you had to duck and bend over to move forward. If we ran into anything inside, we'd be completely done for.
But then I thought, a broken leg didn't stop me from being a man. I couldn't justify standing guard at the entrance while an old man went exploring.
I gritted my teeth, closed my eyes, and simply threw aside my crutches before bending over and following him in.
Strangely, though the earthen tunnel was very low at the entrance, it gradually grew taller as we walked.
Eventually, we could straighten up completely.
Old Liu shone his flashlight ahead while I dragged one leg along, following close behind him.
"Old Liu, I'm not trying to scare you, but I heard there aren't just one or two monsters in this Demon Cave. There's a whole nest!"
Old Liu didn't seem particularly frightened by that. He replied in a low voice:
"One nest? That's an understatement."
My heart lurched.
"Old Liu, stop scaring me. I've already come down here to risk my life with you, and I don't even know if we'll get out alive. You've got to tell me what you're looking for!"
"A book."
"A book?"
That casual remark delighted me. Beaming, I said:
"Old Liu, stop. I know what book you're looking for. That old book's in my dorm room. Let's head back."
Old Liu gave a cold laugh and said:
"There are two volumes. Yours is the first. We need to bring back the second."
Old Liu sounded utterly certain. He wasn't surprised to hear that I had the book, as though he already knew everything.
I was just about to ask him when a roar suddenly came from deep within the tunnel.
Then I heard something rapidly approaching from the distance.
In a panic, I slapped Old Liu and shouted:
"Old Liu, the monsters are coming! Run!"
Old Liu stood hunched over, not moving an inch.
Amid my panic, I saw a group of people walking toward us in the flashlight's beam, their bodies rigid.
Most were elderly, though there were also some women and children. Strangely, most wore white hemp clothing.
Old Liu stood still. I wanted to run but couldn't bring myself to, so in the end I simply grabbed the hem of his clothes and squeezed my eyes shut.
The group drew closer and closer. I braced myself to be bitten, but to my surprise, they walked right past us.
I opened my eyes and looked, then was instantly too frightened to speak.
Those weren't ordinary white hemp clothes. They were burial clothes!!!
Was this a group of dead people?!
Once the group of old and young people in burial clothes had passed, I let out a long, heavy breath and stammered:
"Old Liu, I... why do they look like dead people to me?"
Old Liu continued forward with his flashlight.
"Because they are dead people."
Old Liu said it casually, but hearing it made me break into a cold sweat.
We walked another twenty or thirty meters along the earthen tunnel, and somehow the space around us opened up. Old Liu swept his flashlight around ahead.
The sight left me gaping in shock.
A towering temple actually stood before us.
Four vermilion pillars supported the temple. The paint was peeling from its signboard, and its doors stood half open. It was eerie in the extreme.
"Old Liu, how did this temple end up underground?"
Before Old Liu could explain,
a tiger's roar suddenly rang out, and the temple doors opened!
For some reason, an unbearable pain suddenly struck my head. Before I could see what emerged from behind the temple doors, I passed out.
When I woke up, it was already noon the next day.
I opened my eyes to see Little Six talking to Fatty from work with a guileless grin.
Seeing me awake, Little Six clapped his hands and laughed:
"Buddy, you're finally awake!"
My head still hurt terribly. I looked around and saw that I was in the same hospital where I'd had my leg treated.
Fatty sat beside the bed and said with a grin:
"Brother Li, you're really something. You went mountain climbing with a lame leg? Why not fly into the sky while you're at it?"
Puzzled, I asked him:
"What mountain climbing? Where did you bring me back from?"
Little Six said, "Some villagers from Tiger Waist Mountain brought you back. They said you fell while climbing and knocked yourself out."
I tried hard to recall what had happened yesterday, wondering how Old Liu was doing now.
I was just about to ask about Old Liu when I suddenly heard someone shouting and swearing in the corridor outside:
"Which ward is that bastard in? I'm wrecking his other leg today!"
This is bad, I thought when I heard that. That gang must have sent more people to get revenge on me.
I pushed myself up and shouted to Little Six and Fatty:
"Run!"
Little Six knew what had happened. He quickly hoisted me onto his back and bolted out the door.
The gang was charging through the corridor with machetes. They spotted me and came chasing after us, shouting.
As he ran, Fatty asked me:
"Brother Li, how did you get mixed up with a gang?"
I was overwhelmed enough already and couldn't be bothered to explain.
When we reached the ground-floor lobby, Little Six put me down and told Fatty:
"Take him and go. I'll knock all these guys down."
I looked at Little Six and cursed:
"Knock them down? Bullshit! Hurry up and run with us!"
Little Six ignored me, turned around, and shut the ground-floor entrance doors.
Fatty had just hailed a taxi. He dragged me inside and urged the driver to get moving.
I clung to the car door, desperately trying to get out, and shouted:
"Little Six is still in there! We can't leave!"
Fatty grew frantic. His eyes widened as he swore:
"They've got knives! Aren't you scared? Forget that fucking idiot. Let's just go!"
In the end, I broke free of Fatty's grip and dragged my lame leg out of the car, thinking:
He's my brother!!