The man said, “There are four of us in total. The three of us brothers are taking our paralyzed sister home. My sister is seriously ill and can’t move on her own. The rule for airplanes is that anyone who can’t walk by themselves and doesn’t have a doctor accompanying them is absolutely not allowed to board. Our hometown is by the Yellow River, very poor, no trains, and my sister can’t handle the ordeal, so we can only take a car. We plan to set off early tomorrow, around four or five in the morning. You don’t need to bring any money; tomorrow we’ll give you 1,000 yuan up front for tolls, gas, and other miscellaneous expenses on the road. Here’s my ID card, take a look and compare it. If you’re willing to go, just keep a copy for your family’s peace of mind. If not, we’ll look for another car.”

Two-faced carefully examined the ID card. It didn’t look fake, and the gray-haired man’s thorough explanation dispelled all his doubts. Two-faced said, “Alright, it’s settled then!”

They agreed on a time and place and went their separate ways. Two-faced hurried back to the mall entrance where he usually waited for work, found some familiar buddies, and told them about it to see what they thought. A few taxi drivers, upon hearing it, were first envious, then suspicious, saying, “Er Bie was such a strong guy—how did he get killed? San Pao was a laid-off martial arts coach from a sports school—how did his arm get chopped off? Have you forgotten? Cheap jobs are traps. Don’t let them trick you out and strangle you with a noose!”

An experienced old driver chimed in, “People die for money, birds die for food. If you want to go, no one will stop you. Tomorrow, take a good look at that sister of his—see if she’s really sick and how serious it is. A thousand kilometers isn’t a short trip. Just make sure she doesn’t die in your car.”

That made sense, and Two-faced took it to heart.

The next morning, a little after 4 a.m., it was still dark, and the cold wind was howling fiercely in the darkness, blowing trash and debris all over the street. Two-faced drove to the agreed residential area and saw from afar the gray-haired man with two brothers, one tall and one short, carrying luggage and pushing a wheelchair, waiting there.

In the wheelchair sat a woman, wearing a red hat and a bright red scarf, with only a pair of glasses visible on her face.

Two-faced parked the car, got out, exchanged a few words, and wanted to help carry the woman. The old driver’s words had kept him up half the night, so he was determined to use the chance of getting in the car to take a good look. The woman sat motionless in the wheelchair, her hat and scarf covering almost her entire face, so Two-faced couldn’t see her age or appearance. Muttering, “Let me give you a hand,” he stepped forward to help.

The gray-haired man didn’t stop him. As soon as Two-faced put his hand on the woman’s arm, she said, “Let my brothers carry me. If you pull too hard, it hurts.”

The short one smiled at Two-faced and said, “We brothers will carry her. Could you help put the wheelchair in the trunk?”

Two-faced was momentarily stunned. The gray-haired man explained, “‘Carry’ is our Shanxi dialect—it means to lift.”

Two-faced had been worrying all night, afraid the patient wouldn’t make it and would die in his car. But since the woman spoke with a strong, steady voice, not at all like someone on the verge of death, he was reassured. The two men from Shanxi each supported one side of the woman, holding her shoulders, and with some effort, lifted her into the car. Two-faced opened the trunk, folded up the wheelchair, and put it inside.

After closing the trunk, the three men from Shanxi settled their sister in the middle of the back seat, with one sitting on each side, and the gray-haired man took the front passenger seat.

As soon as Two-faced got in the car, he smelled the cold aroma of braised beef. He guessed the Shanxi folks had brought their own food for the road in case they got hungry. Two-faced sniffed and could tell from the smell that it was the real deal—one jin of beef shank yielding four liang, the kind made by a true craftsman, not the cheap stuff from the supermarket that tastes like sausage.

The gray-haired man took out 1,000 yuan and handed it to Two-faced, saying, “This is what we agreed on yesterday, for gas and expenses on the road. Please take it.” Two-faced said a polite word and pocketed the money.

It was still before 5 a.m., the road was pitch black and quiet, with hardly any cars. Two-faced took the highway card and got on the expressway. The Corolla taxi sped along at over 100 kilometers per hour, heading straight for Shijiazhuang.

By 8 a.m., the car had passed Shijiazhuang and entered Shanxi province. This section of the highway was carved through the mountains, and endless mountain ranges began to appear on both sides. Two-faced hadn’t traveled far before and was visiting the Taihang Mountains for the first time. He couldn’t handle the fluctuating speed, and his ears started acting up—blocked and ringing. The gray-haired man saw him constantly digging at his ears with his finger and suggested he try swallowing. Two-faced tried it, and it worked.

The gray-haired man enthusiastically explained the scenery along the way to Two-faced. When they passed the Dazhai area, he pointed to the left side of the road and told Two-faced, “If you go that way, you’ll reach Dazhai Village, which the whole country used to learn from. The village chief, Chen Yonggui, even became vice premier. Chairman Mao said: ‘Learn from Daqing in industry, learn from Dazhai in agriculture!’”

Two-faced was very excited, feeling that he was making money and broadening his horizons—truly a worthwhile trip. As he drove, he admired the Shanxi cave dwellings on both sides of the road and didn’t pay much more attention to the three people in the back seat, just kept praising the beautiful Shanxi scenery.

The gray-haired man laughed and said, “Wude li!”

Two-faced didn’t understand, so the short one explained, “It means what you guys call ‘of course!’”

Chapter 2: Night of Terror (2)