Trafford's Trading Club

617: Chapter 30: True Form 617: Chapter 30: True Form Tick-tock.

This crisp sound suddenly echoed from the room, like something dropping onto the cement floor.

It’s the sound of glass beads… the sound of them rolling.

A tiny glass bead at this moment slowly rolled out from the dark room through the gap of the opened door, inch by inch.

Tick-tock — this time several of these sounds echoed within the room, followed by bead after bead of green, blue, or multicolored ones that looked like eyeballs, starting to slip out from the door gap.

Some even bounced, rolling and sliding… right under Luo Qiu’s feet.

Luo Qiu glanced at this scene, bent down, and picked up one of the glass beads into his hand, then looked at the gap of the door.

A face was staring at Luo Qiu.

Just a very tiny face, with sparse messy hair intertwined, resembling the dark green seaweed growing by the seaside.

The eyes were extremely large but asymmetrical, with the left eyeball even peeled off, just hanging on the face, neither completely hanging nor fall.

The nose of this face was nowhere to be found, and the cheek was even torn open as if scratched by something, an uneven wound squeezing out stuff colored in gray, soft.

Luo Qiu blinked, reached out and directly grabbed that petite face.

His hand was large enough to grip the entire head showing the face.

The black room door and the gap didn’t prevent Luo Qiu from his next action after capturing this head.

Luo Qiu simply yanked it out and examined it under the flickering light. “So this thing is still here.”

What Boss Luo held was merely a dilapidated… rag doll, almost worthy of being thrown as trash.

Looking at the stillness in the room, Luo Qiu casually remarked, “There was once I came back here as a child, and this little guy was missing somewhere.

That time Grandpa and Grandma were still around, maybe they found it after I left.”

Inside the door still lay silence, and Boss Luo squatted down, picking up one by one the scattered glass beads into his hand, suddenly saying, “Aren’t you coming out?”

A dark yet sharp voice suddenly echoed, “Aren’t you scared?”

Luo Qiu calmly replied, “This is also my home, why should I be scared… or perhaps, what is it that you fear?

Trying to frighten people isn’t good.”

The room stayed silent for a moment before the voice spoke again, “I…

I didn’t know someone returned.

I’m just staying for a bit.

Rest assured, I haven’t touched anything inside this house.

I…

I’ll leave right now, but please don’t call the police!

Please trust me!” “Don’t you want to eat?” Luo Qiu suddenly asked. “What?” “Well, actually cooking isn’t possible now.

If you’re fine with it, let’s eat downstairs,” Luo Qiu said with a smile, “The smell has come out… your instant noodles are probably sticking together.”

The room door swung open, lights flickered on, and finally, the person hiding revealed themselves naturally before Luo Qiu.

Thirty-five or six years old, about the same build as Luo Qiu—the man was Wei Dazhe. … “You… you really won’t call the police?”

Wei Dazhe didn’t actually go downstairs.

He was sitting in the cluttered room on a small plastic stool, holding a bowl of instant noodles by Kang Shi-fu, the fork swirling the noodles but not eating, looking at Luo Qiu with bewilderment.

Luo Qiu looked around the room.

On the floor was a rectangular piece of cardboard with some clothes placed beside it, nearby a small bag containing some rubbish.

There was also a small kettle across from him, with something resembling a car battery connected to it, and some bottles of mineral water placed beside it.

On the floor was an empty Eight Treasures porridge can used for cigarette butts, while the room’s only window had its curtain slightly opened, revealing the newly built row of houses across the village road.

Luo Qiu shook his head, “There’s really no need for it.”

Wei Dazhe was stunned and said incredulously, “But I didn’t ask for your family’s permission and…”

Luo Qiu quietly said, “After all, a house is meant for people to live in; aside from that, I can’t think of any other purpose for it.

Moreover, didn’t you say you hadn’t touched anything here?

Before I got back you hadn’t touched… so after I return, you shouldn’t touch it either, right?”

Wei Dazhe raised his head, surprised, “You… you really believe me?”

Luo Qiu placidly said, “Otherwise, you wouldn’t be staying in this cluttered room.”

Wei Dazhe didn’t reply, just lowered his head and hungrily ate the instant noodles, slurping, even finishing the soup before wiping his mouth, “I heard that only a child was left in this house, living in a big city, not coming back for a long time.

I thought there was nobody, so just temporarily stayed.

Don’t worry, I’ll leave later.” “It’s okay.” Luo Qiu shook his head and said, “I’m just staying for a few days, then I’ll have to go back.

If you don’t touch anything else here, staying won’t be an issue…

Also, the electricity is on, do you want to take a shower?”

Wei Dazhe looked incredulously at the young guy in his early twenties, completely clueless about what the other person was thinking—how could he be so polite in the face of a stranger who had intruded into his house? “Won’t you feel uncomfortable?” Luo Qiu smiled and said, “After working a whole day, don’t you feel tired?”

Wei Dazhe suddenly stood up, “How do you know I’ve been working all day?” “You’re dirty like this, if you weren’t working, what else could you have been doing?” Luo Qiu shook his head and said, “Don’t worry, they know I’m back now.

Taking a shower with the lights on, making some noise, it’s not odd anymore.” “What kind of person are you?” Wei Dazhe silently looked at the other person.

It had been a very long time since anyone had spoken to him so politely and courteously. “And you?” Luo Qiu counter-questioned, “You’ve heard about my family’s affairs; does that mean you’re a villager here?”

Wei Dazhe glanced at the small gap in the curtain, then breathed a sigh of relief, “I’m called Wei Dazhe…

In the past, I think you should have called me brother-in-law.” “Luo Zheng told me about you.” Luo Qiu nodded, “He mentioned it today when he picked me up.” “So the guest he picked up was you…” Wei Dazhe was taken aback.

He had actually met this young guy before, but just never face to face…

Wei Dazhe moved his lips, finally managing a bitter smile, “So you know me, Luo Zheng surely told you everything about me.” “He mentioned the gist of it.” Luo Qiu said, “However, no matter what, shouldn’t you have no trouble finding a place to stay?

You have a job.”

Wei Dazhe lowered his head, pulled out a crumpled pack of soft-pack cigarettes, and just as he was about to take one out, he looked at Luo Qiu. “No problem.” Luo Qiu directly opened the window.

Wei Dazhe thought for a moment, then stuffed the pack back into his pocket. “I don’t actually come here often.” Wei Dazhe looked at the lights of a row of new houses outside the window, “I just come here to see the child.

My wife… my ex-wife brings the kid back here every weekend to stay for a day or two, and I just come during those days.”

Because of Grandma Xiao Chun’s situation, Luo Qiu’s cousin had taken leave to come back with her child.

As the elderly were reaching their end, the descendants below began to return one after another. “I’ll go see if the appliance for boiling water is still working.” Luo Qiu suddenly smiled and said, “Get ready, since you’re here, you’re a guest, and as the host, I must naturally entertain you.” “You don’t need to…”

But it seemed Wei Dazhe couldn’t stop this young man’s actions, as Luo Qiu left the utility room and went downstairs… or rather, he suddenly just wanted to be treated like this by someone. “A guest is a guest…” Wei Dazhe silently looked out the window.

He suddenly shook his head, muttering to himself, “This guy, braver than I was when I was young…

Why didn’t he get scared?”

Then he again pulled out the cigarette pack, lit one, and then from a pile of clothes, he fished out a cheap telescope that could be bought for around ten bucks, leaning against the window sill, not fully revealing himself, just standing there, dazedly watching the silhouette moving in the house across the way.

After a while, Wei Dazhe’s phone suddenly vibrated, he looked down at the caller ID on his phone… it showed the name “Da Tou.”

Wei Dazhe frowned, then quickly tossed the phone into the pile of clothes.

But he seemed to feel that this wasn’t enough, so he grabbed another handful of clothes and covered the phone fiercely. …

This old house used to use gas cylinders, so the water heater naturally ran on gas.

After all these years, there was naturally no gas left.

But there was still a big stove in the kitchen, and the large iron pot on it could be used for boiling water.

Some of the firewood piled here was still usable, and after Boss Luo lit the fire, he began boiling water.

The crackling sound of the wood burning in the fire…

At this moment, outside the small kitchen window, a shadow quietly floated over.

A pale and stiff face, unmoving, was watching intently.

This village was indeed very peaceful.