Chapter 3 Chapter One
"Come over here before going home." On this day, I received another unreasonable and unreasonable demon message from Ms. Yingzi, and I went to the old bungalow where she lived after school.
No matter how much you look around, the text message only has these seven characters.
This is already an old problem. Every time I ask: "What's the matter?" As soon as this text message came, I had to get to her quickly.Of course, as long as you have the heart, you can still refuse. You are afraid of retaliation afterwards, so it is safer to be obedient.
Today, I also complained to her as usual: "At least add a reason to the text message!" But she also turned a deaf ear to it, and I didn't find it strange, this is the so-called "stick to being yourself".To be honest, I also gave up struggling and gradually accepted the days of being played by her.
Asahikawa City, where we live, is a medium-sized city in northern Japan. Its population is second only to Sendai. It was a huge military center before the war. Fortunately, there is an eye-catching Asahikawa Zoo here, and the number of tourists is the second largest in Hokkaido; but To put it bluntly, Asahikawa is just a scenic spot passing by. There are many tourists who come to the zoo, but in fact they all live in Sapporo, Otaru, Furano, Biei and other places. It can be seen that Asahikawa itself is a town that lacks charm.
Perhaps because of the surrounding mountains, Asahikawa has no earthquakes. You can see wooden buildings from the reclamation era and thick Biei soft stone buildings everywhere, but it has not developed as lively as Otaru, nor has it been redesigned like Hakodate. As beautiful as it is, there is just a lot of room to stand there, and it will be renovated when it is naturally damaged.
The city is full of outdated, stagnant, and dull atmosphere. Many people are trying to break the status quo and re-examine various tourism resources. The city government has also taken heavy steps to redevelop the town, but unfortunately it still cannot drive away this trend. stuffy air.If I want to describe it, it's like a bull-tempered person named "Asahikawa", who is heavily pressed on this land. Don't forget that Asahikawa people are very xenophobic.
The bungalow where Sakurako Kujo and her mother-in-law lived is one of the best old houses in Asahikawa. It has such a long history that even the mother-in-law said:
"When the weather is cold, the cold wind comes in from all directions. It's really uncomfortable..." Yingzi is what people call the "Miss". She should be twenty-five years old, but she is under thirty. She often wears men's shirts and jeans , not sloppy but not fashionable either, but she is beautiful, with bright eyes, tall and slender, I am obviously taller than her, but her waistline is about the same height as mine, it is amazing.The shoulder-length hair is undyed, black and bright, with a little wave, but she will never get a perm. It may be naturally curly, and it looks bright without special dressing-Ms. Yingzi is such a person.
But her personality is weird.First of all, Ms. Yingzi doesn't like to get close to people; it should be said that basically she doesn't trust people, and she is not interested in communicating with people. She doesn't even have a "mobile phone", a necessary communication tool for modern people.
Her favorite thing is bones, the second is bones, the third, fourth, and fifth are also bones, in short, she is obsessed with bones, and regardless of the type, the bones of any creature make her fascinated and fascinated. .
Ms. Yingzi's uncle holds a knife in the forensic science classroom of the university...no, the coach, and finds various animal corpses from various places from time to time. She uses these corpses to make bone specimens and donates them to suitable organizations, and the rest is her own. Collect or sell online.
This bungalow must have been quite grand when it was built, with a large courtyard around it, but now a large number of large animal corpses have been buried in the soil.Once, I smelled the delicious stew from the kitchen and asked her what good dish she was cooking. She showed me a big pot in the kitchen, and something was cooking in the pot, and she said this: " No, I found a dead civet cat on the side of the road, and I am removing the meat for it." It turned out that the smell of removing the meat was too scary, and the mother-in-law couldn't stand it, so I added some seasonings such as soy sauce to the pot, smelling Get up much better.
I heard that there is a special treatment room for her in the corner of the courtyard, which has a powerful dining gas stove, which can deal with larger or decaying organisms-I think this is beyond the scope of interest.
As soon as any animal came into her hands, it would be stripped naked, leaving only the bones; she would carefully collect all the bones, assemble them with resin or superglue, and store them neatly in glass boxes.She doesn't love living animals, but loves these silent bones stored in glass boxes from the bottom of her heart.
I met this weirdo through something, but that's another story.In short, since I met her, I have been ordered around by her.
"So, what are you doing today?"
The wrinkled mother-in-law was nicknamed (feared?) "Grandma Sasha" by the neighbors. She came to the gate and took me into the living room. I saw the weird-shaped easy chair designed by Asahikawa furniture designer (Asahikawa is a famous furniture city) , Ms. Sakurako, who was sitting leisurely with her legs crossed, I asked her this question.That chair is full of modernity, and it looks a bit abrupt in this traditional bungalow, but I can understand why Ms. Yingzi likes this chair, because its streamlined design is clean and neat, It's like a sofa that has been stripped to the bone, so I always secretly call it the skeleton chair.
"Little brother, I have a gift for you, isn't it great?" Miss Yingzi said with a smile, rocking on the skeleton chair.
"Anyway, it's another inexplicable bone..."
"Don't say that, you can sell it online for money." Ms. Yingzi pouted displeasedly.As for how hard the process of removing the meat is, I have heard it and don't want to hear it again.
"So what's the bone?"
"Flounder."
"Flounder?"
I straightened my face, with an ominous premonition in my heart.A few weeks ago, I went fishing with my grandfather, and the harvest was better than expected. I was excited, so I gave her a few.
"Could it be that I caught it last month?"
"Haha, I eat both fish meat and roe, they are really delicious, so I thank you for your kindness."
Ms. Yingzi showed a happy smile, and handed me a snow-white bone specimen mounted in a wooden frame. The plump black plaice with eggs has been transformed.
I like to eat fish, and I often eat fish, but seeing such exquisite fish bones, I always feel that it is completely different from the fish I usually eat, but to put it bluntly, it is still bones.The wooden frame is beautifully crafted, and a sticker with the scientific name Pleuronectes obscurus is carefully pasted on the bottom. Even I know that "this thing" can sell for a good price.
"Then... I will accept this great gift..."
Maybe a few people will be happy to receive the bone specimen, but for those who are not interested in me, they don’t know how to deal with it. Even if it was originally a food fish, it has become this kind of virtue now, and it always feels messy. Lost will be punished, and I am sorry for the hard work of Miss Yingzi; the problem is that it is strange to decorate the skeleton specimens in the room, and it feels disrespectful to dead creatures and uncomfortable.
"But...will it scare people to hang this in the room? Is it really okay to give it to me?"
"It's so beautiful, how can it scare people? Besides, fish bones don't matter what is suitable or not, do you know? The process of taking the fish bones alone is very hard!"
Ms. Yingzi didn't realize that I was just prevaricating, and wanted to decline the gift, so she began to explain how hard it is to make fish bone specimens: other animals only need to be buried in the soil, or put in a pot and boiled together with toothpaste Just boil it, fish is different.
"You have to pour hot water first, and slowly pick out the meat with a toothpick." Miss Yingzi said with a straight face.
It is conceivable that such a tedious work must cause sore shoulders and necks, but I have never asked you to do this kind of thing... I really want to say, Ms. Sakurako, don't be busy, just eat fish normally ?
"How? It's beautiful, isn't it? From its flat and funny appearance in life, it's hard to imagine that it's so slender inside, right?"
"Hmm..." When Ms. Yingzi spoke, her eyes lit up excitedly, as if she was saying, "Be happy." There is no big problem with her personality, but for me, an ordinary high school student, her Communication skills are really not good, or in other words, I don't care much about other people's ideas.
"If you say it's pretty...it's pretty pretty."
All in all, pouring cold water on her now will only make it more troublesome. Regardless of whether this specimen is beautiful or not, she worked hard to make such a thing for me. This kind of heart really makes me happy.And she said that plaice is flat and funny in appearance, and I don't completely understand it.
I usually don’t think about anything when I eat plaice, but when I look closely, I find that it really looks like a leaf, with thin bones like vertical and horizontal veins.I looked at the fish bone and thought about what it looked like, and found that although the countless pointed bones had no patterns, they were very similar to the feathers of peacocks.I can't resonate with adjectives like slender and beautiful, but even I, who is not interested in bones, occasionally feel that it is indeed a kind of beauty, so I should give her a "mature response" right away.
"Ah, um, I'm very happy. Thank you, then I'll put it on the table." I changed my previous attitude, greeted the trophy I caught again, and put it in my schoolbag respectfully .
"Speaking of fish bones, I like lionfish. Its bones are really cute, but unfortunately I haven't assembled them yet." Ms. Yingzi moved on the chair with a satisfied expression on her face.
"Lionfish... there shouldn't be any in Hokkaido, right?"
"Is that right?"
"I remember that kind of fish inhabiting warmer places." At least I haven't seen lionfish on the dinner table.Ms. Yingzi lowered her head in disappointment, I thought about it, and asked in a different way: "Then...how about an octopus?"
"Octopus?"
"The taste is not bad, but there are too many bones, and the appearance is a bit strange? It seems to have grown wings. I think you will find it very interesting..."
Ms. Sakurako looked puzzled, so I searched for pictures on my smartphone and showed her what an octopus looks like.At first she glanced at my phone in surprise, her eyes lit up immediately.
"This fish looks really weird!"
She enlarged the pointed end of the octopus, looked at it non-stop, and then smiled. I finally breathed a sigh of relief, and reached out to pick up the black tea that I didn't know when to prepare.
The children nearby always regard my mother-in-law as a monster, because she walks around silently, and I even doubt whether she is a human or a monster.However, the black tea made by this monster mother-in-law is always so delicious. I don’t usually drink black tea, and I don’t know anything about the types of tea, but at least the black tea made by my mother has never been so delicious. Since I met Miss Yingzi, I just realized that black tea can be so mellow.
"If I catch it, I'll give it to you." The delicious black tea and Ms. Sakurako's innocent smile put me in a good mood, and I couldn't help blurting out.
"Thanks, it's a good thing you like fishing."
Seeing Ms. Sakurako with a smile on her face, I also became happy—but I suddenly realized that I had found unnecessary errands for myself.I'm so stupid, I know I'm asking for trouble, but I still take the initiative to approach Miss Yingzi.
"To be precise, fishing is not my hobby, but my grandfather's."
It's hard to chase after a word, I swallowed the sigh that came to my throat, and forced a smile.I don't know how to catch octopus, but I should have an answer if I ask my grandpa. I think he would be happy to go fishing with me.Grandpa likes me the most when he asks him for help. Being able to please Miss Yingzi and be filial to Grandpa is killing two birds with one stone.
Ms. Sakurako was innocently playing with her smartphone like a child with a new toy. I looked at her and drank the black tea in one gulp.There are only the silent monster mother-in-law and Miss Sakurako living together, and the atmosphere is solemn and solemn, but I am still obsessed with this house. Although I was creepy at the beginning by the bones surrounding the house, I feel it has a different flavor now. Ms. Zi has been brainwashed.
In the comfortable silence, Ms. Sakurako sighed happily one after another. At this moment, the melody of the new song of the popular girl idol group suddenly sounded on the smartphone in her hand.
"Sorry, I have a call." Miss Yingzi raised her face in displeasure. I immediately felt that the song I liked had become a harsh noise, as if I had committed some heinous crime. I quickly took the phone from her to see who it was The phone call turned out to be from my mother.Why did you pick this time to call?I thought angrily.
"Hello?" I answered the phone in a bad tone, and my mother also replied in a bad tone: "What's the matter?"
"No, why are you looking for me? Did you forget to buy something for dinner?"
"No, I need your help with something small, come back quickly."
"Clam?"
Maybe it's because my mother is so tough that I can get used to the tough Ms. Sakurako.My father died of illness when I was four years old. Since then, my mother has single-handedly brought up my brother and me. She is a strong woman. She uses my father's insurance money to become an apartment renter. Now she owns eight apartments in Asahikawa City.I am very grateful to my mother for allowing me to be born in a single-parent family without worrying about lack. She is really amazing. She even let me go to expensive private schools in high school, and said that I can do whatever I want in college. Long live my mother!
However, she is also very good at calling people, always using the excuse of "don't let people do free work" (she will get pocket money, but not much), and even her son is treated like a servant; since her brother left school last spring After I got home, all the chores my mother threw out fell on me as a matter of course.
"Help? Change the washer on the faucet? Can you wait two more hours?"
I am now a competent holiday decorator.When talking on the phone, there was a strong aroma from the kitchen, with the smell of soy sauce and ginger. There is only half a day of class today, and I haven’t had lunch yet. When my mother-in-law greeted me at the door just now, she asked me very happily: “Master, have you eaten yet?” How about lunch?" I don't think I should worry about running out of food, because my mother-in-law always said that I was too thin, and she was full of thoughts about fattening me up with delicacies from mountains and seas.
Usually, my mother-in-law’s black tea is served with refreshments, and this must be the reason why there are only teacups today, just as she often nagged to Ms. Yingzi: “You can’t eat dessert before meals.”
So just wait a little longer, and I can have my mother-in-law's delicious meal.To be honest, my mother doesn't like cooking very much, and the cooking is not delicious, not to mention that I'm in high school, and I can't even take care of my own lunch, so even if I go home, no one will help me Prepare lunch.It's not that I'm too lazy to cook, it's just that my mother-in-law's big meal is definitely better than instant noodles. I originally planned to stay for a meal later...
"No, you go home right away, someone is coming at half past one."
"One thirty? Is it too late?"
Look at the old big clock, it's twelve fifty-five.
"That's right, there is a tenant's family who can't find anyone no matter how much they call. They hope that I can help open the door. If the same thing happened before, it will be a headache, right? That's why I need you to come with me."
"What are you doing..." I couldn't help making a sound of dissatisfaction.
"Anyway, I don't have time, go home immediately, do you hear me?"
Beep—she hung up the phone as hard as Miss Yingzi.
"Really..." I sighed deeply, and Ms. Sakurako stared at me suspiciously.
"My mother called."
"What's up?"
"Yes, my mother is an apartment renter. A tenant lost contact with his family. The family wanted my mother to open the door."
"Oh."
"My mother opened the door for someone before, but an old grandfather died inside, so she didn't dare to open the door by herself, so I have to go back today."
In fact, I didn't want to go back at all, but I still said this in a dejected manner. Ms. Yingzi patted her thigh:
"Well, let's go."
"what?"
"Didn't it mean that someone might be dead inside? Then why can't I go?"
Seeing her look full of anticipation, I frowned.
"Miss Sakura..."
"Why?" Even I couldn't see her excited behavior.
"You're too immodest."
Ms. Yingzi was splashed with cold water by me, and she pursed her lips to make a fuss. At this time, she was completely like a child. I couldn't help but sigh that my mother-in-law must have worked hard every day.
"Build your happiness on the suffering of others, and be careful of retribution one day."
Someone might die in the rented apartment, and of course I couldn't take Ms. Yingzi with me, I just told her to be good at housekeeping like coaxing a child.
"I'm not happy, it's just that I don't have a chance to see a dead body, I'm just curious."
Miss Yingzi was not reconciled, she shook her head and insisted on following, what is it called happiness?
"No." I refused.
"I won't mess around, I won't bother you."
It must be a lie, others forget it, can Miss Yingzi believe what she said?
"If there is something, I will tell you, please stay at home... Wow!"
In the middle of talking, I accidentally caught the scarf stuffed in my schoolbag and pulled out the black plaice skeleton specimen, which was about to hit the floor.
I caught it a second before it hit the floor, and carefully checked whether the bones in the frame were damaged. Unexpectedly, Ms. Yingzi put my shoulders on my shoulders from behind and blew into my ears.
"Sakura, Miss Sakurako?!"
"You really don't want to take me there? What if someone really died inside, and it's been dead for several days? It's not summer, and the rate of decay is relatively slow, but as long as people lose their breath, they will rot quickly. You Do you understand?"
Her breath didn't make my heart skip a beat, but the murmuring in a low voice made me shudder.
"For example, someone died of a myocardial infarction in the middle of the bathtub. Even if I don't explain it, you know what a corpse soaked in the water looks like, right?"
Having said that, I remembered that I had seen a tragic corpse by the river with her before—it was so miserable that I couldn't bear to recall it, and it was directly locked in the depths of my memory.
"The bathroom is still very cold in this season. Many people will turn on the hot water to take a bath. In this way, the corpse will be boiled for several days, and the flesh and blood should be separated. That smell..."
"Stop it!" I yelled while covering my ears, and Ms. Yingzi took the bone specimen from my hand.
"I'm just describing the facts that may have happened. If it really happened, I can help you identify the remains."
"..." Ms. Yingzi picked up my schoolbag, took out all the contents, arranged them on the table, put them back one by one neatly, and finally stuffed the skeleton specimens, and then slowly closed the zipper.
"Is it time to go?"
Ms. Sakurako looked proudly at me who was stunned, and wrapped the scarf around my neck.
"Curiosity kills a cat, and if something happens to you, I don't care."
Curiosity killed the cat.—Curiosity killed the cat.
Curiosity killed Sakurako.—Curiosity killed Sakurako.
Even cats with nine lives are killed by curiosity, maybe Sakurako-san will die of curiosity too.I don't hate her, but I also don't like her attitude towards "death", so I can't help biting my lower lip.
"Cats? Cats are beautiful when they are alive, and their skeletons are even more artistic after death. I used to..."
"That's enough! It's my fault!" I slapped the table hard, not scaring Miss Yingzi, but the mother-in-law who didn't know when was standing behind me exclaimed softly.
"Ah, sorry."
"Ouch! The young master is going back so soon!"
"I'm sorry, there's something urgent..."
The mother-in-law is holding a tray in her hand, which contains delicious assorted stewed meat and ginger-fried pork. The aroma makes me hungry, as if I still have to bow my head and apologize to my mother-in-law.If I can eat it, I will eat it!Mother-in-law, I'm sorry!
"I'm going out too."
"Miss wants it too? Then I'll prepare quickly. Going out with this kind of virtue is really against the status of the eldest lady of the Jiutiao family—"
"We must leave immediately! The tenant's family will be here at half past one!" Seeing that my mother-in-law wanted to change Miss Yingzi's clothes, I acted preemptively and asked Miss Yingzi to leave immediately.
"How can this kind of virtue be seen by others!" the mother-in-law yelled, and Miss Yingzi just said: "I can't help it." Then she shrugged, grabbed a coat and followed me.
"Grandma! I'm really sorry!"
"Big... little... sister...!" The mother-in-law cried out at the door, and I kept apologizing in my heart, and took Miss Yingzi out of the bungalow.
"Don't worry, I'll be right back, hahaha." Miss Yingzi laughed three times, she was still so calm, I just felt my heart ache, I was really sorry for my mother-in-law.
"So, where are you going now?" Miss Yingzi opened her arms and smiled as soon as she came to the road.Yes, I still have to lead the way.
That's when I realized that I'd have to be played by her again for the next few hours, and I couldn't help feeling dizzy with depression.She said she would be obedient, but that was impossible.
"Oh, what a pity..." I sighed forcefully.Miss Sakurako strode forward vigorously, and I secretly cursed at her ass.
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