"That man said his family was pressuring him, so he hastily found a woman and was about to get married. My sister didn't say a word, just handed him the bag of braised beef, turned around and went into the side cave, refusing to come out again. The man held the bag, standing in the main cave, muttering: 'This is the last time in my life I'll eat the braised beef you made! I won't have this blessing again!' My sister didn't say anything, but her eyes were red for days, sitting in the cave with our mother, staring blankly, her eyes always looking toward that man's village. But really, facing a loess wall, separated by loess hills, what could she possibly see!"

Two-faced sat motionless, watching the swirling snow outside the windshield.

Gray-haired continued, "As fate would have it, just three days after that man got married, our mother passed away. On the day we sent our mother off, my sister cried so hard she fainted. If only things had happened a little sooner or later, just three days difference—this is fate!"

Two-faced felt a pang in his heart and couldn't help but glance at the woman in the rearview mirror. As before, her two brothers supported her, red hat and red scarf, sitting slumped in the middle of the back seat, not moving at all.

Gray-haired went on, "After we sent our mother off, a few of us discussed finding a husband for my sister, but she was already over 30. Around here, that's really considered too old. We couldn't find anyone suitable in the neighboring villages, and if we found a widower, it would be unfair to my pure sister. Everyone in the village knew how pitiful she was, but she didn't want anyone's pity. She wanted to go to the big city to work, to get far away from this place. No matter how much the family tried to persuade her, she wouldn't listen. And then, she got into a car accident—her head was crushed by a big truck."

Gray-haired kept talking, his voice choked with sobs: "My sister worked herself to the bone for this family, took care of our mother for years, never enjoyed a single day of happiness. And now she's been burned to ashes in a strange land, destined to be a lonely wandering soul for life. We brothers have really let her down! So we decided to bring her back and bury her here. If we get the chance, we'll find a young man who died unmarried, arrange a ghost marriage for my sister, and bury them together—at least that's some comfort!"

Hearing this, Two-faced said nothing, slid the big wrench back into the gap under the driver's seat, started the car, and drove on.

Gray-haired let out a long sigh and wiped the tears from the corner of his eyes. Two-faced thought for a moment and asked, "Wait, after the accident, the body should have been sent to the funeral home under the supervision of the traffic police. The funeral home is connected to the crematorium, with procedures at every step. How did you manage to get her out?"

Gray-haired sighed and said, "Don't mention it. Sometimes things in this world are hard to handle, sometimes they're simple. It's better for everyone if I don't go into details."

Two-faced drove carefully, goose-feather snowflakes falling on the windshield, swept away quickly by the wipers, falling again, wiped away again, over and over...

Two-faced remembered the kowtowing and, still puzzled, asked, "What's the story with your brother kowtowing? What is Qijia Shop?"

Gray-haired's face soured as if soaked in old vinegar, and he muttered, "That man lives in Qijia Shop..."

Two-faced broke out in a cold sweat.

Chapter 5: Night of Terror (5)

A few minutes later, the Corolla left the highway and drove into a pitch-black little village. Following Gray-haired's directions, they stopped in front of a small courtyard at the foot of the mountain. In the yard were three loess cave dwellings dug into the hillside, with wooden doors and windows.

The female corpse was still in a sitting position, red hat and red scarf, like a bride being carried by her brothers out of the car and into the cave. Gray-haired invited Two-faced inside for a meal, tidied up a room for him to spend the night, and suggested he return tomorrow. Two-faced didn't want to go in at first, but couldn't refuse the Shanxi people's hospitality and agreed to have a cup of hot water before leaving.

This was Two-faced's first time entering a cave dwelling. Entering the main cave, he saw a memorial photo and a few simple offerings on the table. The photo showed a rural girl with some good looks, long hair, and small, narrow eyes, smiling gently.

When this photo was taken, she must have still been in the midst of happiness!

Aside from her small eyes, the girl's other features were quite nice. Two-faced thought at the time, if she had been born in a big city, gotten double eyelid surgery and dressed up, she would definitely be a beauty.

Gray-haired took out a wad of cash and said, "Brother, you've seen our family, we're not well-off, and we still have to handle the funeral. I really can't give any more. Here's 3,000, just take it as the rest of the car fare."

The agreed fare was 3,500 yuan. Two-faced had already received 1,000 yuan up front, so he should get another 2,500. He thought for a moment, took the 3,000 yuan, counted out ten 100-yuan bills, and handed them back to the Shanxi man.

Gray-haired was stunned and asked, "Why?"

"Take it, I've already made up my mind," said Two-faced.

Gray-haired refused to take it back no matter what, and after some back and forth, Two-faced finally said, "Fine, let this 1,000 yuan be my incense offering to this sister. Please don't refuse my goodwill."

Only then did Gray-haired accept the 1,000 yuan and said, "There's nothing fancy to eat at home, but try our Shanxi hezi rice!"