That night, I stayed alone in the guesthouse. Watching the female officer close the door behind her and leave, I felt a bit disappointed. Although I hadn't really expected anything to happen between us, that was impractical. People aren't clay to be modeled at will, and she wouldn't have been so casual.
But to be able to have a passionate affair with a beautiful woman in uniform, I wouldn't have minded at all. Any man wouldn’t have minded. The female officer found a decent guesthouse to stay in, and even a room with its own private bath was considered extravagant in a small town like this. After I took a shower, I lay on the bed with a spring mattress and turned on the air conditioner. I was envious of the good life city people had, and slept extra soundly.
The next morning, I was still in a deep sleep when the door was kicked open. I opened my eyes and saw the female police officer, in her uniform, standing at the end of my bed. I was still in my big boxers, and I was startled. I quickly grabbed the blanket to cover the important parts, and said, "Isn't it common courtesy to knock before entering a room?"
"With your skinny body, who'd want to look at it?" the female police officer looked at me disdainfully. I was flustered, and after putting on my clothes, the female police officer wasn't bad to me. She took me out for breakfast and then opened the car door, saying, "Get in."
"I can go back by myself. When you get there, I'd have to come back with you. Isn't that a bother?" I said.
"Help me find a house in your village. I want to stay," the female police officer said.
"What?!" I was astonished. What was this? A high-ranking official's daughter was bored enough to come to a small mountain village to stay?
"I went back to the station after returning last night, I heard from Wang Jiuyue that your village has been haunted, and it's not the first time. You've been to university, have you never thought that it's all a bit strange? Why these freaky things always seem to happen to you?" the female police officer said.
"Who's Wang Jiuyue?" I asked.
"He's my fat colleague, born in September, so his name is Wang Jiuyue," the female police officer said.
“You mean to say all of this is artificial? Miss, you don't need to meddle in this. I used to believe in this at the beginning, after all, I am also a member of the Young Pioneers of the Chinese people. But the subsequent events forced me to believe otherwise," I said.
"Get in the car," she didn't respond to my words directly. Once I got in, she drove off directly to Linjiazhuang.
When we arrived at the village entrance, I saw a familiar figure crouching by the willow tree at the entrance. It was Lin Xiaoyao. Why was she squatted at the entrance so early in the morning?
"Are you sweet on her? You seem quite fond of her!" the policewoman said, smiling sarcastically.
I initially had a good impression of this policewoman, she seemed cute and innocent but strong. People like her were usually very resilient. However, when she said that, it hurt a little. In my subconscious, I couldn't allow anyone to talk about Lin Xiaoyao.
I glared at her, opened the car door, and said, "Say one more word about her, and I'll slap you so hard, you can try and see if I'm serious!"
"Hey! Can't even take a joke?" After I got out of the car, she got so mad that she hit the steering wheel again.
I ignored her and walked over to Lin Xiaoyao. When she saw me approaching, and then saw the police car behind me, her eyes immediately turned red. On a normal day, she would have rushed towards me and called me "Brother Xiao Fan" and embraced me, but now, she looked despairing and turned to walk away.
"Xiao Yao!" I called out, feeling a pang of discomfort. It was clear to me at that moment that this woman held a deep place in my heart, almost like a seed that was silently taking root without my knowledge.
She shook me off and ran away.
Women are really terrifying when they get jealous. Even my grandma could've beat my grandpa to death with a shoe. Aren't you scared? Watching her walk away, I slowly stopped in my tracks. She was clearly excited now. Seems like she was waiting for me to return at the village entrance early in the morning, perhaps even the whole night.
And today's morning was spent in catching an adulterer in a car. This situation is truly an utter mess.
I stopped in my tracks. I had just scolded the policewoman, so I felt apprehensive about getting back into the car. I walked ahead, and she followed me slowly in the car. When we arrived in the village, the looks the aunties and uncles gave me transformed completely. They all raised their thumbs and said, "Xiao Fan, you're really something!"
After taking a walk around the village, I finally understood why Lin Xiaoyao was jealous. Now, I had become a legend in Linjiazhuang. The villagers who were present yesterday were gossiping about how there was a beautiful policewoman among the police. The two of us were practically love at first sight. That girl was also wealthy. She took Lin Xiaofan to the city last night and didn't return all night. The rumors were rampant. Some even said that I went to meet her parents right away. Looks like I had a bright future ahead of me according to the grapevine. Lin Xiaoyao collapsed after hearing this news. Even I couldn't help but feel bemused. Why were these things happening? I wanted to tell these aunties, "Can't you find something better to do?"
Today, this girl followed me back to the village, who knows how she might twist the story again. If this continues, I would become their model for education, saying, "Study hard, get into university, and become like your brother Xiao Fan!"
Thinking about this, I wanted to hide in a hole. I didn't want that policewoman following me. It made me feel like a freeloader. As I reached home and hadn't even entered the house, I saw Bai Zhenzhu with red eyes. Now, seeing Bai Zhenzhu hurt even more. When I saw her cry, my whole body hurt. I immediately said, "Sister-in-law, didn't Er Dang recover completely last night?"
"Xiao Fan, go and see him. I'll go find that fat man Mr. Liu. He's still sleeping and won't wake up. Er Dang woke up early this morning, but he's not alright now!," Bai Zhenzhu said, tears welling up again.
"Don't cry yet. Tell me what happened," I asked.
"After waking up, he started eating non-stop. You know, Er Dang used to be as thin as a monkey, couldn't eat much, and ate at most one steamed bun at a time. But this morning, after waking up, he ate eight pairs of steamed buns in one meal and still said he wasn't full. This..." Bai Zhenzhu scratched her head as she spoke.
"Is it because he was in a coma for too long, so he's extremely hungry?" I also scratched my head. The steamed buns in the countryside were home-cooked, solid and substantial, how could one eat eight in one meal? So, after saying this, I also felt incredulous. I said, "Let's go, I'll go see Er Dang."
When I turned my head, I saw Lin Xiaoyao walking into the house. Seeing the policewoman standing beside me, she immediately turned and left. I turned to Wu Miao Ke, who was sitting inside the house, "Auntie, Xiao Yao might have misunderstood something. You go and talk to her, I'll go see Er Dang first."
After I brought the policewoman inside, she seemed unhappy. When I talked to her, she had a sad expression and said, "You caused the trouble, you solve it yourself."
After saying that, she turned and went into the room. I forgot, I was also confused about my relationship with this woman.
After we left the yard, I didn't pay any attention to the policewoman. She came up to me and said, "That woman just now, is she the mother of the girl at the village entrance? Your mother-in-law? But why does she seem so jealous?"
Her words startled me, and I wished I could have covered her mouth. I said, "Shut up, no one treats you as a mute!" But inside, I was shaken. Damn, a woman's intuition is truly scary.
"Hey, are you still angry? Can you forgive me?" she said.
I was only mad at her for a moment, and I now understood that this was just her habit of being frank. But I still didn't want to talk to her, who knew what she might say next. When we arrived at Lin Er Dang's house, before we entered, we heard Lin Er Dang's voice saying, "Mom! I'm hungry! Why aren't you letting me eat?"
"Child, you rest for a while, it's been a whole day since you've eaten," Lin Er Dang's mother said.
I went inside and saw Lin Er Dang's mother hiding bread behind her back, while Lin Er Dang was trying to grab it.
Seeing me come in, Lin Er Dang complained, "Xiao Fan, you've come! Look, I'm starving to death. My mom won't let me eat anything. Is she even my real mom?"
Ignoring him, I asked Lin Er Dang's mother, "Ma'am, how much has Er Dang eaten today?"
"She wanted to make chicken soup to nourish him, but he finished eating not only the chicken but also the soup. He ate nearly twenty large steamed buns. Do you think he just came back to life to eat himself to death? Why is my life so hard?" she said.