Chapter 3: The Upright Goat
Chapter 3: The Upright Goat
Hu Ma had a clear plan in mind, but he needed to think carefully about how to execute it.
The little girl in the red dress before him looked to be only five or six years old, perhaps even younger. Her hair was tied in two small braids, and her arms and legs were as slender as reeds, as delicate as a porcelain doll. One punch, and she would surely cry for a long time...
But Hu Ma was certain that if he tried to punch her, he might be the one crying. Her bizarre speed and astonishing strength, not to mention her ability to lick her wounds and stop bleeding, made it clear she was no ordinary child.
Come on, who would expect a normal child to be with such a sinister old woman?
So, how to deal with her was the key.
The room was deathly silent. Hu Ma barely dared to breathe, and he didn’t even hear her breathing.
With his mind racing, he tentatively asked, "What's your name? What's your relationship with the old woman?"
"..."
"My name is Xiaohongtang. The old woman picked me up outside."
The little girl was squatting on the ground, her small stature making her look a bit like a grasshopper. Her voice was childlike and innocent, yet there was a clarity that no five or six-year-old could achieve.
Hu Ma continued, "How old are you?"
"..."
This question seemed to stump Xiaohongtang. She counted on her fingers, "I've been with the old woman for seven or eight years..."
"But I don't know how old I am."
"..."
"Seven or eight years?"
Hu Ma immediately realized that this was no ordinary little girl. She hadn’t grown beyond the size of a seven or eight-year-old, and the old woman had found her seven or eight years ago. Who knew how long before that? Perhaps she, like the coffin board earlier, was one of the old woman's "evil spirits"?
The old woman had assigned her to take care of him, which might as well mean to spy on him.
As he watched her squatting there, staring at him, Hu Ma's mind began to race. He noticed that she kept glancing at something on the table.
Following her gaze, he saw the meat the old woman had brought back, wrapped in red paper and placed on the table.
For the past seven days, she had been feeding him these strange pieces of meat. Hu Ma still remembered the greasy, nauseating taste.
The little girl seemed to be very hungry for it.
"Do you really want to eat it?"
He carefully asked, trying to gauge her reaction.
"No..."
Xiaohongtang shook her head, but her mouth started to water.
"It's really delicious."
Hu Ma was sure that while she wasn’t a normal child, she wasn’t particularly clever either. He decided to try to tempt her.
"You can try it, it's really fragrant."
"..."
Xiaohongtang's heart was clearly swayed, but she shook her head vigorously, "No, I can't."
"The meat was specially cut from Lord Taishui for Brother Hu Ma to eat."
"..."
"Who the heck is Lord Taishui?"
Hu Ma tried to coax her, "It's okay..."
"If it's given to me, it's mine. Now, I'll give it to you to eat. The old woman won’t know."
"..."
Xiaohongtang's little neck was visibly swallowing saliva, and she hesitated, "You won't tell the old woman?"
"..."
Hu Ma promised, "If she asks, I'll say I ate it all."
"Swallow..."
Xiaohongtang's gulp was loud enough for Hu Ma to hear clearly.
She hesitated, looking at Hu Ma's sincere expression and then at the meat on the table. Suddenly, as if she had made up her mind, she darted up.
Her small body easily jumped onto the table, and with her two small, white hands, she picked up the meat.
"Ah—"
She opened her mouth wide, her lips stretching to her ears. Her normally neat and fine teeth had turned into sharp, pointed fangs, which she sank into the meat with a fierce bite.
"What the hell is that?"
Hu Ma was startled by her appearance, nearly losing his nerve.
But the meat’s allure was even stronger than he imagined. Once she jumped on the table, she devoured it like a starved ghost, completely oblivious to anything else. Hu Ma took the opportunity to slowly inch towards the door.
When he reached the door, he cautiously looked back. She was still eating, her back to him, her little bottom sticking out like a hungry animal.
Forget escaping, even if the sky fell, nothing could be more fragrant than that meat...
Hu Ma took a deep breath, quietly opened the slightly ajar door, and with all his might, dashed out.
...
"Swish!"
It was probably early afternoon, but the light outside was still blinding when Hu Ma pushed the door open.
Here is the rewritten chapter with non-English characters replaced with their English equivalents or transliterations:
He raised his hand to shield his eyes from the sun and stumbled forward.
His peripheral vision quickly scanned the surroundings, but all he saw were rows of dilapidated wooden huts and thatched cottages. He saw the uneven dirt paths, cattle and sheep penned in wooden fences, stone mills, and wells.
But he couldn't see anything familiar from his memories—no cars, no electric lights, not even a single utility pole.
Vague figures of people occasionally appeared in his line of sight.
These people wore dark, coarse clothing, carried farming tools, and wore straw shoes, exuding a rustic and ancient aura.
"Oh!"
Someone saw Harrison and reacted with even more fear than he did, panicking and fleeing to the side.
Whispers and murmurs reached Harrison's ears: "Isn't that the old lady's grandson?"
"How is he still alive?"
"..."
Panic and unease surged within him.
He was afraid that the strange little girl would chase after him and even more terrified that the sinister old lady would suddenly appear.
Especially when he saw some of the frightened people turning to run as if to alert someone, he could only stumble forward, using every ounce of strength he had.
Unconsciously, he had no idea how far he had run, feeling his heart almost leap out of his chest.
Where was he now?
He looked around at the sparse grass and fields, saw the tall wooden fence ahead, and the deep, dark forest beyond.
Had he reached the edge of the village?
Unbeknownst to him, dusk had fallen, and the sky was gradually darkening. The surroundings were eerily quiet. His body was already weak from the frantic escape, and his head was spinning.
His body felt as if it were filled with lead, and he had a hard time moving.
Just as he was about to stop, bend over, and catch his breath, he heard a faint rustling in his ear.
An indistinct, incomprehensible murmur carried by the wind into his ears.
The murmur was incomprehensible, yet it made Harrison's skin crawl. He turned his head sharply, looking around alertly.
The surroundings were filled with large piles of hay and a few ancient, gnarled trees that were much taller and sturdier than he remembered from his previous life.
Following the direction of the murmur, Harrison's gaze shifted and finally focused.
He saw the source of the sound—a black mountain goat standing next to a pile of hay.
Its yellow-brown eyes stared at him intently.
Harrison stared back, wondering if the creeping sense of unease and the strange murmur were just his imagination.
Suddenly, the black mountain goat slowly rose to its hind legs.
It stood upright like a person, raising its front legs, still staring at Harrison.
Its mouth slowly curled into a sinister smile.
At that moment, Harrison felt his scalp tingle, and he couldn't help but stagger back a few steps.
"Ha ha..."
Before he could understand what was happening, a strange laugh came from nearby.
He turned his head sharply and saw a monkey-like creature perched on a nearby branch.
No, it wasn't a monkey; it was a person.
Naked, with an eerily pale body, it was unnaturally thin, with limbs much longer than a normal person's. It squatted on the tree branch like a monkey, its eyes a disturbing blood red, looking at him and laughing excitedly.
"Big brother..."
Before Harrison could fully grasp the overwhelming fear, a sweet, seductive voice called out from nearby.
Harrison turned his head and saw a beautiful woman calling out to him. Most of her body was hidden in the hay, only her attractive face visible, her red lips slightly parted, calling out to him in a tantalizing whisper.
Her voice seemed to have a magical quality, making him instinctively take a step closer...
But Harrison stopped after just one step.
He saw the beautiful face slowly emerge from the hay.
Behind her head, a dark red, sinuous snake body appeared, its scales rustling against the hay.
"What is this?"
Harrison finally snapped out of his shock, overcome with an inexplicable, creeping terror, as if electrified.
A strange, creeping sensation enveloped his entire body, making it hard to breathe, his vision darkening, and his body on the verge of collapsing.
But at that moment, he suddenly heard a playful voice:
"Big brother Harrison..."
"Don't play around, Mrs. Blackwood is calling you home for dinner!"
"..."
The moment the voice appeared, all the strangeness vanished, and Harrison finally exhaled.
(End of Chapter)
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