Chapter 7 Chapter 6 Night Fire

After coming out of the sacrificial hall, the sky was getting dark, and the sea breeze was howling, bringing a bit of chill.At this time, it was obviously inconvenient to go further into the depths of the mountain. The two followed the advice of Monk Deping and turned back to their residence.Although Meng Shaohui has found some answers, the burden in his heart still remains: Why does no one on the island know his father?He had seen his mother in a dream, but why was that scene so terrible?Who can explain these things? Luo Fei was even more perplexed. The descriptions of ghosts on the slope—the shipwreck—the sacrificial hall, the people on the island became more and more strange, but everyone agreed on the same thing, not as if they were lying. It was really hard to find. where end to end.

There was no stopover on the return journey, and it was much faster than when we went.About half an hour later, the mountain depression where the accommodation is located has appeared in front of the two of them.From a distance, I saw a figure wandering back and forth at the entrance. Seeing them coming back, that person rushed up to greet them immediately, and said in a hoarse voice: "You are finally back, I have been waiting for you for a long time!" Luo Fei and Meng Shaohui immediately recognized this person as Xue Xiaohua who was begging for a drink on the ferry.While talking, he leaned close to Meng Shaohui, smiled maliciously, but didn't even look at Luo Fei, as if he didn't exist.

Meng Shaohui frowned: "What are you waiting for me?" "I'll give you something." Xue Xiaohua stretched out his right hand treacherously, holding the letter that Meng Shaohui lost. Meng Shaohui took the letter and looked at the other party suspiciously: "Why is this letter with you?" "Hey, I found it in the cabin." Xue Xiaohua replied nonchalantly. "I picked it up." Luo Fei suddenly interjected coldly, "I'm afraid it wasn't in the cabin, but from someone else's pocket!" Xue Xiaohua glanced at Luo Fei, and was immediately pierced by the other's sharp gaze, unable to lift his head.At this time, Meng Shaohui also remembered that Xue Xiaohua had intentionally passed him close to him in the cabin, so he "hummed" very bluntly, obviously agreeing with Luo Fei's judgment.

"What does it matter where you picked it up?" Xue Xiaohua laughed, then suddenly lowered his voice and said, "The key is that I know the answers you are looking for!" "Thank you." Meng Shaohui was bored with Xue Xiaohua from the very beginning, and replied angrily, "But I just came back from Monk Deping's sacrificial hall, and I am not interested in what you said." "Monk Deping?" Xue Xiaohua was stunned for a moment, then sneered, "Hey, it's too late for him to hide from you, how could he still tell you the truth! I know you won't believe me if you look through the cracks of the door. I also brought If you find something, you can take a look."

As Xue Xiaohua said, he took out another piece of paper from his pocket and handed it over.Seeing that the cuffs of his clothes were greasy and shiny, Meng Shaohui suppressed his nausea and took the paper. This is a piece of ordinary white manuscript paper, folded squarely into the size of a pocket, it looks quite old.Meng Shaohui opened the paper, glanced at it, and immediately became pale, short of breath, and even his hands began to tremble slightly. Luo Fei hurried over, but saw that the white paper turned out to be a picture drawn by crayons, the specific content was not clear yet, Meng Shaohui had already folded the paper again, and looked at Xue Xiaohua in surprise.

Xue Xiaohua squinted his eyes and looked proud: "How about it, do you trust me now? Or trust that smelly monk?" Meng Shaohui was obviously a little lost, and asked weakly: "I believe you... so what?" Xue Xiaohua laughed twice: "Just trust me, I can tell you the truth. However, there are conditions." "What conditions, tell me." "You have to pay me." Xue Xiaohua tilted his head and pondered for a while, then quoted the price, "Two thousand yuan, how about it?" Luo Fei at the side quietly tugged on Meng Shaohui's skirt, Meng Shaohui turned his head and saw the bright and calm eyes of the other party, he seemed to have caught a life-saving straw in a panic, and an inexplicable sense of steadfastness surged in his heart Feeling, after pondering for a moment, he replied: "This, you have to let me think about it."

"Then you should think about it. I'll be waiting for you at ten o'clock tonight. If you think about it, come to me." After Xue Xiaohua finished speaking, he walked away without saying hello, walking more than ten meters away. , Turned around and said, "By the way, you can keep that painting first, anyway, I still have more interesting things!" Soon, Xue Xiaohua had disappeared into the winding mountain road, and Meng Shaohui stood where he was. This sudden change caused his thoughts to be confused.Luo Fei saw that there was something strange about it, but it was someone else's private matter, so he could only tentatively ask, "What's wrong? Is there anything I can do for you?"

"No, no need. Thank you." Meng Shaohui changed the subject after a few polite words, "Let's go back quickly, the landlord should have prepared dinner and is waiting for us." Luo Fei nodded, and the two walked towards the rented place one after the other. During dinner, Meng Shaohui remained silent, appearing preoccupied.Luo Fei knew that he must be thinking about a date with Xue Xiaohua at night, but the other party didn't want to mention it, and Luo Fei couldn't ask anything. Since the island is far away from the mainland, all kinds of fiber optic cables cannot be connected, so telephone and TV are naturally out of the question.Fortunately, a small power station was built on the island a few years ago, so the lights are still usable.Because of the lack of entertainment, the islanders have already developed the habit of going to bed early and getting up early.Soon after dinner, the lights of every house were turned off one after another, and Mingze Island was plunged into darkness.

Suddenly, I heard a "squeak" on the door next door, as if someone had come out.Luo Fei's heart skipped a beat, he raised his wrist to look at his watch, it was indeed almost ten o'clock.He began to want to go out and ask a few questions, but felt that it was inappropriate for him to care too much about other people's private affairs.Fortunately, Meng Shaohui is a young guy, and the agreed place is not far from the village, so it is estimated that nothing will happen.After searching for a while, I decided to forget it. He could hear Meng Shaohui tiptoing out of the courtyard gate, with the soft sound of calling the cat.He seemed to have a very deep affection for the black cat, and he couldn't leave it anywhere.

After being interrupted from thinking, I couldn't read the book any more, and at the same time, I was tired.Luo Fei simply turned off the light, and fell on the pillow. Maybe he was tired from walking the mountain road in the afternoon, and he fell asleep after a while. After being in a daze for an unknown amount of time, Luo Fei was suddenly awakened by a loud noise.He opened his eyes, and it was dark all around, but there was "clang, clang, clang" in his ears, and the sound of gongs was loud.Moreover, the sound of the gong could be heard from far or near, not just from one place.He quickly turned on the light, ready to get out of bed and get dressed to see what happened.

At this moment, the sound of a gong sounded in the courtyard where he lived.Luo Fei pushed open the window, and saw Sun Fachao standing in the yard with a gong in his hands, beating anxiously. His coat was draped in a mess, and he didn't even have time to button it. "What's the matter?" Luo Fei asked loudly through the window. "There's a fire!" Sun Fachao raised his voice loudly, "Everyone, hurry up and put out the fire!" Hearing what he said, Luo Fei immediately understood.The island has inconvenient communications and no professional fire department, so once someone's house is on fire, they immediately ring the gong to call the police.Those who hear the alarm should not only go to the rescue immediately, but also follow the gong, so that the fire can be brought under control in the shortest time with the greatest power in the shortest time. As a policeman, of course he couldn't sit idly by when this happened. Luo Fei finished dressing up and rushed to the yard: "Quick, let's go too." Sun Fachao heard the sound of the gong spreading around, nodded, and was about to go out of the courtyard when he suddenly asked, "Where's the young man who came with you?" Luo Fei was taken aback, looked at his watch, it was almost twelve o'clock in the middle of the night, why Meng Shaohui hadn't come back yet?But now he doesn't care about this, he waved his hand: "Leave him alone, it's important to put out the fire!" The two picked up the washbasin and bucket, and went out of the courtyard gate, only to see the red sky facing the east of the island, obviously, that was where the accident happened.The two speeded up their pace and rushed over. Along the way, the gong sounded closely, and people continued to join in. After about twenty minutes, they reached the col where the accident occurred.There are seven or eight households here, all of which are not too far apart. The one on fire is located in the middle. If the fire cannot be controlled, it is likely to affect the surrounding households.At this time, more than a hundred people came from all over the island one after another, and they gathered around the limited number of well holes, making a mess. "Don't mess! Don't mess! Be quiet first!" A loud voice suddenly sounded in the crowd. The voice was quite appealing, and the originally chaotic scene immediately quieted down. The speaker was a middle-aged man in his forties, with a broad forehead and black face, and a mature and steady look. Seeing everyone gathered around him, he said loudly: "Everyone listen to my division of labor! Fifteen to twenty-five Men aged 25 to 35 are responsible for fetching water from the well, men aged 25 to 35 are responsible for transporting water sources, men aged 35 to 45 are responsible for putting out fires on the spot, and the rest help surrounding residents move their belongings out of the danger zone. At the same time, take care of the elderly, children, women and children." This arrangement sounds a bit random at first glance, but it is actually very particular.Teenagers are strong, so fetching water is the most suitable; young and middle-aged people have good stamina, and are responsible for transporting water sources; on-site fire fighting is a dangerous job, which requires relatively high courage and experience, so it is assigned to middle-aged people in their forties.What is commendable is that in such an urgent situation, this black-faced man still made such thoughtful and reasonable arrangements, and his thoughtfulness was so thoughtful that even Luo Fei could not help admiring him. He couldn't help but turned his head and asked Sun Fachao beside him: "Who is this?" ?” "Jin Zhenyu, the current village chief." Luo Fei nodded, at this time, Jin Zhenyu had already taken the lead and put himself on the front line of the fire.Luo Fei stopped talking and followed. After this deployment, everyone present is like a whole machine, cooperating with each other and running well.While busy fighting the fire, Luo Fei greeted loudly: "The house is almost burned, everyone, don't pour too much water, focus on the areas outside where the fire just started to prevent the fire from spreading!" With the reasonable command of Luo Fei and the village chief, the villagers put their lives to the test. About an hour later, the last flame was finally extinguished. After a round of cheers, many people collapsed to the ground from exhaustion. Jin Zhenyu had noticed Luo Fei a long time ago, and now he had the time to go up to say hello: "This guy is very strange, he just came to the island, right?" "My name is Luo Fei, and I'm a police officer. But on this island, maybe it's more accurate to count it as a tourist." Luo Fei said, while extending his hand politely. Jin Zhenyu quickly held Luo Fei's hand: "I mean, you are not an ordinary person at first glance." "Stop being polite." Luo Fei was not used to hearing others compliment him, so he quickly changed the subject, "Quickly check if the residents in the house are injured or anything." Strangely, compared to the enthusiasm during the firefighting just now, the people at the scene did not seem to care about the safety of the residents. Some people even smiled "hee hee" and said softly, "It's just peace of mind if it burns to death." Seeing Luo Fei frowned, Jin Zhenyu quickly explained: "There is only one person living in this house, and this person... is a well-known scoundrel on our island. Everyone hates him." "Rogue?" Luo Fei suddenly realized something, "What's his name?" "Xue Xiaohua." Jin Zhenyu's answer verified Luo Fei's guess. No one knows how the fire started.The housewife next door was the first to discover the fire. When she got up at night, she saw the firelight in her window was red, and she quickly woke up the man and sounded the alarm. Although the fire was extinguished, the house was in ruins after all the tossing.Xue Xiaohua's body was not found in the ruins, and he himself did not appear at the scene.Everyone complained and discussed, and gradually dispersed.No one wants to care about Xue Xiaohua's whereabouts. Maybe they have long been numb to this man's absurd behavior? But Luo Fei knew that Xue Xiaohua had a date with Meng Shaohui tonight, and at this time the two disappeared at the same time, which is a bit strange.He told Jin Zhenyu about the situation, and after a brief discussion, the two decided to go to the place where the missing person was dating to check. Walking halfway, I saw someone seemed to be wandering back and forth in the dark.When he got closer, he found that this person was Meng Shaohui. Luo Fei quickly went up to him and asked, "Why are you here? Have you seen Xue Xiaohua?" "No." Meng Shaohui shook his head, looking a little dazed, "I was looking for you, why is there no one in the yard? What happened?" Luo Fei briefly explained the situation of the fire to Meng Shaohui, and Meng Shaohui looked suddenly enlightened, and then talked about his experience after going out: "I sat on the stone at the entrance of the mountain and waited before ten o'clock. After almost an hour, Xue Xiaohua never showed up. When I was about to go back to the house, I realized that Kaka had gone somewhere." "So you went to find Kaka?" Luo Fei guessed, and at the same time explained to Jin Zhenyu, "Kaka is a black cat he raised." "Yes, but I haven't found it after searching for a long time." Speaking of this, Meng Shaohui looked frustrated and worried, "Later I heard the sound of gongs everywhere in the village. I couldn’t get on it anymore, so I hurried back to my residence, but you were not there. I waited for a long time, and when I saw that you didn’t come back, I felt guilty, so I came out to look for you.” "Yeah." Luo Fei nodded.What Meng Shaohui said was reasonable, not like lying.And the black cat, who was always inseparable from him, was indeed gone now. "Oh, as long as you are safe. This Xue Xiaohua is idle all day long, often drunk, and now he has fallen asleep somewhere." Jin Zhenyu said, looking up and down Meng Shaohui, "By the way, why is he Want to meet you?" "Well...he said he has something to show me." Meng Shaohui responded vaguely. "Don't believe what he said. He is probably trying to cheat you out of money. You'd better stay away from him." Jin Zhenyu solemnly advised Meng Shaohui. It seems that in his eyes, the interests of tourists are more worthwhile than Xue Xiaohua's whereabouts. care. Meng Shaohui was noncommittal, a gust of cold wind blew by, he sniffed, as if he had caught a cold.His reaction infected Luo Fei, making the latter shrink his neck involuntarily. The sea breeze blew Meng Shaohui's hair on the temples, and the scar was exposed again, making it look more ferocious in the night.Jin Zhenyu couldn't help avoiding his gaze, and looked up at the sky. "It's still going to cool down." There was some worry in his tone, and then he persuaded Luo Fei and Meng Shaohui: "If you don't have anything special, you'd better leave this island early." "Because sea water freezes?" Luo Fei thought of what Old Hu said. Jin Zhenyu nodded: "That's right. The temperature has dropped considerably in the past two days. It doesn't matter around our island. The main reason is that the port of the county is in the bay, and the water there is still. It will be troublesome if it freezes. Especially in the first few days God, you're going to be stranded on an island." "If there are no accidents, then let's go tomorrow." Luo Fei pondered for a moment, then gave an ambiguous answer.On the one hand, he doesn't want to be trapped on this overseas island, but on the other hand, some unsolved mysteries attract him to stay. Meng Shaohui remained silent.Will anyone know at this time that the accident Luo Fei mentioned is not too far away from this small island?