554 A Familiar Head
Fu Sheng was the central character of the memory world. When Han Fei heard Fu Sheng missed school, he was immediately nervous. Han Fei rushed to the school without hesitation. Inside the car, Han Fei called his local neighborhood security, asking to see the tape of Fu Sheng that morning. The guards were very helpful. They soon sent Han Fei the footage when they heard a child might be missing. “After your son left the neighborhood, he took Bus 24.”
“Bus 24 heads to his school, s,o it looks like Fu Sheng was really going to school. In that case, why did the school say he hadn’t been there?” Han Fei hung up and tried to think from Fu Sheng’s perspective. ‘Fu Sheng often went to help shield the sapling from the rain. The new headmaster knew the old headmaster was buried under the sapling so that he would feel threatened by Fu Sheng. The headmaster was probably behind Fu Sheng’s bullying problem at school. No wonder other than Liu Lina, all the other staff didn’t like Fu Sheng. This was the headmaster’s doing!’
Han Fei knew Fu Sheng suffered a lot at school. He was bullied, beaten up, and humiliated. The new headmaster suspended Fu Sheng for a simple reason. Fu Sheng had the eyes to see the truth.
‘Fu Sheng was only willing to leave home after the new headmaster was captured. The child is very clever. He merely doesn’t like to share his problems.’ Han Fei had a very good impression of Fu Sheng. Even though Fu Sheng didn’t like to talk to humans, he was loved by all the ghosts. As the new manager of Happiness Neighbourhood, Han Fei believed only people with kindness could gain a ghost’s trust.
‘Fu Sheng put on his school uniform, and his school bag didn’t seem to contain anything unusual. Where could he have gone other than the school?’ Han Fei had done a lot to help Fu Sheng return to school. ‘Could he have run into an accident?’
Han Fei had the driver stop beside a bus stop. Han Fei got down to study the route for Bus 24. “Sir, can you just drive along the route of Bus 24?” Whenever Han Fei passed a large junction, he would get down to ask the nearby convenience store to let him see their surveillance footage.
His professionalism and presence made him feel like a detective with at least three years of experience.
Han Fei followed Fu Sheng’s trail all the way to the school. Han Fei finally found something when he was two stops away from the school. “Could you please pause the video?” Han Fei, in the suit, told the worker at the bookstore. The young man was completely impressed by Han Fei. Even though Han Fei never said he was with the police, everything he said and did suggested he was with law enforcement.
Han Fei’s eyes zoomed in like a hawk as he followed one of the students on the screen. “Fu Sheng got down at this stop!” Fu Sheng, in the video, appeared to be attracted by something. Han Fei looked closer, and he realized Fu Sheng was holding an invisible person’s hand.
“S-Sir, do you need anything else?” The worker was very nervous. He met something like this for the first time in his life.
“Has there been a death around here?” Han Fei turned to the worker. The latter quickly shook his head.
‘No? Then, whose hand is Fu Sheng holding?’ Han Fei studied the chairs of the bus and realized the person was probably a child. ‘Fu Sheng got off the bus with an invisible child.’
“Should I get the manager? He has lived here for decades. He’s a local too.” The worker felt immense pressure standing beside Han Fei,he tried to escape. Soon, a middle-aged man walked over. He studied Han Fei and came to the same conclusion as his employee—Han Fei was a plainclothes.
“My family lives on this street. I haven’t heard anything bad happen here before.” The manager frowned.
“Perhaps there has been an accident here? The victim is about wee high. They should be a child who took the bus often.” Han Fei gestured.
The manager hadn’t heard such a strange description before. He thought for a while. “About a decade ago, a fire burned down a small restaurant nearby. The young couple who ran the place died in the fire, but before they perished, they knocked open the door and shoved their child out. However, their child died on the way to the hospital. I’ve lived here about 30 years and that is the only thing I can think of.”
“His parents died in the fire so the boy probably came back to reunite with his parents.” Han Fei mumbled to himself. The manager didn’t dare to say anything. Han Fei checked the route for Bus 24. The bus did pass by the hospital.
“The boy has been trying to go home but he can’t find his way. So Fu Sheng is there to help him?” Han Fei turned to the manager. “Where is the restaurant? Can you show me?”
“It was built at the innermost part of the street. It’s now a small hostel. The accommodation fee is meager due to its location and history, so it serves mostly the poor who came to the city looking for work.” The manager led Han Fei to the alley behind the bookstore. The deeper they went, the eerier it felt. The sun was setting. The sky darkened. Han Fei felt the street was twisting. The city was so different at night.
The noise of the city faded away, and it became abnormally quiet. Han Fei’s eyes moved away from the manager to study his surroundings.
Ever since they entered the alley, Han Fei had a bad premonition. He felt uncomfortable. Han Fei sent a message to his wife and picked up his pace. He followed the manager deep into the alley. Before them was a four-story building. From the outside, it looked spotless. There was no trace of a fire.
‘There are no cameras in the alley, so I can’t tell if Fu Sheng has been here or not.’ Han Fei stopped before the white hostel. He looked up, and then his pupils narrowed.
One of the windows on the fourth floor was open. A young girl had half her body out the window as she reached for the abandoned air-conditioner outside the wall. The girl’s movement was not agile. She appeared to suffer from some kind of leg impediment. She nudged her body with difficulty. Han Fei looked for a long time before noticing an injured stray cat curled on top of the broken air-conditioner.
The girl wanted to fetch the cat into the room. The girl gripped the window with one hand, and her other hand reached for the cat. As she was about to get it, the cat probably thought the girl wanted to harm it and reacted by scratching at the girl’s hand. The girl was startled. Her body lost balance, and she fell out the window.
“Not good!” Han Fei screamed and rushed forward. The girl had muscular atrophy. She couldn’t keep her balance. At the last moment, her arms grabbed the air-conditioner. Cast under the streetlight, the girl was like a flittering flag in the wind.
“Hang in there!” Han Fei didn’t hesitate and rushed into the hostel.
“Are you planning to stay or… Hey! What are you doing?” The receptionist tried to stop Han Fei, but Han Fei was too fast. Han Fei had no idea how long the girl could hold on, so he had to be fast!
Bang! He kicked down the wooden door on the fourth floor and jumped over the blankets. He rushed to the window. “Don’t let go!” Hearing Han Fei’s voice, the girl slowly raised her head. Han Fei finally saw the girl’s face. Han Fei’s heart skipped a beat. Indescribable fear consumed Han Fei. A scary memory surfaced in his mind! He had seen this girl before!
When Han Fei attempted the Happiness Neighbourhood’s Manager Mission, a girl’s head would fall from the door whenever he opened it. That girl looked exactly like the girl before him!
That Manager Mission was the first time Han Fei entered Fu Sheng’s memory. Fu Yi was dead in that memory, and endless ghosts took over Fu Sheng’s house. One of the ghosts was this girl before him. Her head was placed about the door. Every time Fu Sheng wanted to leave or enter the house, he would face her. Han Fei died more than forty times in that mission, and the girl was responsible for quite a number of them.
Han Fei’s movements slowed. At the time, the Manager Mission was the hardest mission he had ever attempted since he started the game. His memory was lost with each death. The pain was something forever carved in his heart.
‘To save or not to save?’ In the Manager Mission, the girl was dismembered, and her head was hidden above the door. The girl’s mother was dismembered too. Based on Han Fei’s prediction, Fu Yi most likely did all that.
In real life, Fu Yi probably had killed the pair of mother and daughter. It was this action that pushed Fu Yi’s family into the abyss. ‘If I save her, would that absolve Fu Yi’s sin? Would that change fate?’ Han Fei had no idea what the relationship between the girl and Fu Yi was. Everything was turning better, and the girl was suddenly placed in his path. This was a choice that could change everything. The girl was losing strength. Her pale fingers slowly weakened. She looked so helpless. The girl slid down. As her last finger lost its grip, another arm reached out from inside the window to grab her wrist. The girl looked up at Han Fei and uttered, “Father…”
Han Fei yanked the girl back from outside the window. He carried the frightened girl and placed her on the ground. Then, he moved to help the injured cat. The cat became more obedient after it saw Han Fei. Its body stopped shaking. Han Fei picked up the cat by the back of its neck and then closed the window.
“Don’t do something so dangerous in the future.” Han Fei stared at the girl. He noticed a problem. The girl had a congenital disease. Her legs were atrophied. She couldn’t even move on her own.
“Okay.” The girl kept her head lowered. Her voice was as soft as a mosquito.
“I’ll bring this cat to the vet. You should stay at home.” The hostel room was small. There was only one living room and one bathroom. The bed was placed in the corner of the living room. A bamboo mattress was spread out on the floor. Han Fei placed the girl on the bed and helped her with the blanket. “Where are your parents?”
“I live with my mother. She went out to look for work this afternoon.” The girl didn’t mention her father. She was timid. She never once lifted her head.
“You and your mother stay here all alone?” Han Fei looked at the bowls that sat on the table. There was a bank card and an envelope wrapped in a high school brochure on the same table. Han Fei frowned because the envelope was bulging with cash. The family was poor, so where did they get the money?
“Did someone come to find you today?” Han Fei knelt beside the girl’s bed and asked patiently.
“Yes, a big brother in school uniform came. He is a very kind person. He wants to help me with my illness, but mother said we can’t take his money.” The girl’s age was between Fu Sheng and Fu Tian. She should be in primary school, but she couldn’t due to physical problems.
“A big brother in school uniform?” Han Fei had the girl describe him further, and Han Fei confirmed the person was Fu Sheng! ‘Fu Sheng found out some things from the boy? So he came here to make up for his father?’ Han Fei connected everything and realized the girl might be another character who could influence the future of this memory world.
“Girl, can you tell uncle your name?” Han Fei softened his voice. “I want to help you too.”
“My name is Fu Yee.” The girl looked up at Han Fei.
