Flame red

Snake Po is a widowed old man who lives alone.

When the weather is good, she will push the cart to the corner of the street next to the vegetable market to sell fruit, and few people stop to look at her; when winter comes, she will carry a small yellow flag and run to a leeward place to tell fortunes for others. The teeth fooled people into a daze.

She is small in stature, has an easy-going personality, and walks tremblingly. She is an old lady that can be seen everywhere.People who know her say that Yan Hong's temperament and body have followed the snake woman's, after all, it's a relationship of getting along day and night.

The old man never mentioned his past and family, and Yan Hong never asked.Because she kept in mind that her life was picked up by the snake woman, and her life, like a blank sheet of paper, must be dedicated to repaying that trembling old man.

Then, the snake lady said that Mu Yu was her granddaughter.

At that time, Yanhong wondered redundantly in her mind whether the Mu Yu the old man said was the same person as the Mu Yu she thought of at the first time.But the snake woman pointed at the face on TV that was still cold and beautiful when she was being interviewed, blocking back the question she subconsciously wanted to say.

It seems that she underestimated Mu Yu's influence as a big star. She never thought that the speed of attracting fans could make an old man living alone claim to be her granddaughter in just one day.

Yan Hong looked at Snake calmly, and Snake looked at Yan Hong calmly.They remained silent for a few seconds, and soon after, the silence was broken by the Snake Woman's sigh.

"I know you won't believe it," she said.

"...is it strange to believe it?" Yan Hong muttered.

So the snake woman stood up from the sofa and walked into her room.Yan Hong watched the not-so-new door open and close, and then there was a faint yellow light in the crack of the door.

She has never been in or out of that place of less than ten square meters. Even though they have lived together for 16 years, Yan Hong still obediently and docilely keeps a distance from her guardian's privacy.

The snake lady didn't say that she could go back to do her homework or wait for her here.Yan Hong put the schoolbag in her hand by the door, and just stood there listening to the sound of rummaging through boxes in the opposite room.

Others say that she is sensible, knows how to behave and will not be rebellious, but no one knows that Yanhong's sensibleness actually comes from a sense of alienation that can be maintained.Don't act like a baby, don't ask for anything, and do what the snake woman said.

Because her life was picked up by the snake woman, that's all.

The sound of rummaging through boxes and cabinets in the opposite room stopped, and then the snake lady returned to the living room tremblingly, holding a yellowed photo in her hand.He wasn't too surprised to see Yan Hong waiting on the spot, so he just handed this photo to her.

So Yan Hong looked down, the color of the photo was very rough, it was probably taken in the era before digital cameras.And there is no doubt that the above is a teenage girl sitting on the grass facing the camera with a strange expression on her face.

A little familiar, delicate features and cool temperament.It is indeed very similar to Mu Yu.

However, there is not only one person who looks similar in the world, and it is not surprising to meet them. There are a lot of people on the Internet who are keen to find passers-by who are similar to so-and-so, so Yan Hong is not surprised, but just nodded calmly.

"Well, pretty girl," she concluded.

The snake woman ignored her, took the photo back, flipped it to the back, and said to Yanhong, "Give me the phone."

"what?"

Yanhong was not dazzled, so she could naturally see a string of numbers similar to phone numbers on the back of the photo, so she hesitated on the spot, and then remembered that her touch-screen phone was also stuffed into her schoolbag by the snake woman when school started.Although it was an outdated second-hand item, it was not her personal item, so in the end she obediently dug it out of her schoolbag and handed it to the snake woman.

The old man slid his thin fingers on the screen nimbly, then entered the string of numbers, and turned on the hands-free thoughtfully.Yanhong then heard a pleasant but cold mechanical female voice reminding her not to hang up, followed by a very popular square dance melody.

The sense of rhythm is very strong, but it's a pity that the phone was connected before the end of a sentence.

At first, there was a somewhat noisy silence, and then Yanhong heard a voice that was not familiar to her but not unfamiliar either. "...I'm going to be interviewed later. What's wrong?"

When the other party said this, she immediately felt that the noise in the background was indeed like the sound of cameras snapping.

The snake lady hurried forward and said, "I watched your new drama recently, and I feel better and better."

"...make do with it."

"Did you go home?"

"The schedule is too full, and I can't find time."

"He's a big star after all."

There were a few indifferent laughter from over there.Yan Hong turned her head to look at the look on Snake Woman's face, that kind of cautious and gentle made her feel familiar inexplicably.

"..."

"..."

After a few words back and forth, there was an awkward silence.He heard someone calling Mu Yu's name one after another, probably preparing for an interview.But the phone didn't hang up, and the man waited patiently, even though the snake woman here was also silent.

Yan Hong blinked her eyes, she can't let her interrupt the topic right?Politeness is one thing, besides, the embarrassment between the snake woman and the person on the other end of the phone is not cold without warmth, and even Yan Hong doesn't know whether this warm silence should be called "love". Awkward.

"Mu Yu." Then the snake lady called out a name in a low voice.

"En." There was a natural response from the other side, and then hesitated for a few seconds. "So, are my parents okay with you?"

Following Mu Yu's words, she turned her head again, and for a moment, Yan Hong saw something shiny and shattered in the snake woman's eyes.But she still smiled and replied, "Very good, I go out for a walk with me every day."

Yanhong didn't know the reason why the snake woman lied, and said that this cheap and narrow two-bedroom apartment was as splendid and gorgeous as a golden villa. The ivory white couch, the radiant jade sculptures, and the delicacies of mountains and seas seemed to have once been real. Most people have lived in such a place.

But she didn't say anything until the end.Until the snake woman hung up the phone, Yan Hong just lamented in her head that the empty-nest old man who has been crowded with her in this two-bedroom house is not empty at all, and should even live on the sycamore tree where the phoenix lives of.

But—and why?

Why did he end up crowded in such a place alone, lying to Mu Yu that he lived in a villa with many servants?

There must be some ulterior secret.And Snake Lady didn't seem to intend to say anything, so Yan Hong naturally wouldn't bother.

That night, the snake lady took her hand, and layers of calluses slipped over her fingertips in the rough palm, like a piece of dead wood soaked in water.

Her life was picked up by the snake woman.Therefore, when the snake mother asked her to protect Mu Yu, Yan Hong really tried to seriously consider all kinds of possibilities.

However, no matter how you look at it, it feels a bit far-fetched.

"Looking at the bodyguards on the eighth and inner floors beside her, you know that standing in the middle is also a burden." Yan Hong replied with a smile.He didn't refuse or agree, he just expressed his thoughts.

The snake lady shook her head. "Do you believe that there are things in this world that must be done by someone?"

"No, I don't believe it."

"Then why did you let that thing retreat today?"

Yan Hong was taken aback, and wanted to refute something, but found herself speechless.

According to the book, the snake woman should want Yan Hong to "exorcise" Mu Yu.This is not something that can be mastered by reading two books and reading a few words, and can travel the world alone. Even Yanhong, who is like a white paper, can just see those things. In her memory, at least herself is not equipped with any knowledge about this.

Maybe such a passionate approach would end up in the end.

However, for Yanhong, her life was picked up by the snake woman, so she should use it for that person.She knew that the snake woman might not have regarded herself as a family member for so many years, so she swallowed her words many times.

The snake woman said that if you don't agree, then I will go on a hunger strike. Anyway, it's the same if you live a few days younger or live a few more days.

As soon as she said these words, Yan Hong felt a chill run down her spine straight to the bottom of her heart.

"Wait a minute! At least tell me what those things are first?" The snake lady's face was too determined, which made her nervous, so she asked hastily.

But unexpectedly, the old man shook his head at this question. "I have no idea."

"......Eh?"

"It is precisely because I don't know that I am asking you."

"..."

Intuition tells Yanhong that anything similar to the black mist in the toilet is very dangerous, and it is definitely not a kind person who will make Mu Yu dizzy and pale.Maybe even if she could see a little bit of that thing, approaching recklessly without preparation would not have any good results.

It's not that Yan Hong has a cold personality, it's just that she thinks more about how to save her own life before thinking about helping others.

She glanced at the snake woman, and the old man's usually unfocused, somewhat cloudy eyes were staring at her brightly, like a calm bay reflecting the moon.

——If the number is small like today, maybe they can handle it... right?

She comforted herself with this mentality, but what Yan Hong was most afraid of was that the snake woman would really go on a hunger strike, after all, the feelings she showed when she lied to Mu Yu were not simple.

"I'll figure out a way." Yan Hong nodded, hesitating to ask more questions, but the snake lady was relieved, and tremblingly walked back into the room.No words of thanks or advice.

Yan Hong sat on the sofa for a long time, thinking about whether to go to an Internet cafe outside to check the Internet, when she turned her head, she was met with a face that was unlovable, her blue-gray skin was as rough as cracks on the bark , a pair of black eyeballs did not reflect anything.She remembered that it was said in the book that the eyes of the dead would eventually turn muddy like muddy water washed out by a torrential rain.

"..."

"..."

It took a long time to not let the scream break through his clenched teeth.Yan Hong was about to pretend that nothing happened and walk away.

——Go to the government.

That's what the ghost that lingered in the living room told her.

This is the first time that Yanhong heard those things who would be in a daze in this room every day talking, the voice was hoarse like rusty gears washed by sand, it didn't come from the ears, but directly sounded in the mind.

——Go to Guofu, find the exorcist of Jian's family behind the Bauhinia Tree Hotel.

From this time on, Yanhong realized that there is such a concept as an exorcist in the world.

Regardless of why the ghost wanted to tell him this, after the other party finished speaking, he wandered to the corner and became dazed, no matter how much Yan Hong yelled, he didn't say another word.But she knew about the Bauhinia Tree Hotel in Guofu. It was a very famous five-star hotel nearby. A single carp in it could sell for eight Grandpa Mao's sky-high prices.

It's just that the range of the "back" is really slightly larger.

Later, she searched the Internet for terms about exorcists, but she could only find some entries of online novels and movie comics.

However, the Jian surname is not a very common surname. If you go to the government to ask, you may be able to know something.

But unfortunately, Yanhong's daily life has been wandering in the narrow street between the cheap rented house and the school. The farthest place she went was the small town next door to which she went on an autumn tour in elementary school. She couldn't remember the name at once.

There is still some distance between Guofu and Wuzhi. Generally, you will choose to take the high-speed rail from here, and you will enter the city by subway after you arrive.

For the impression of the subway, Yanhong still stays in the text and pictures of textbooks and books.If no one took her there, she might have to call the police halfway.

After thinking about it, Yanhong finally found Yu Le.

Hearing that she was going to the government, the young lady who was reading the latest music magazine opened her mouth and was stunned for a long time.In her impression, Yanhong should still be that ordinary girl who wanders around the vegetable market and school every day, not interested in video stores and would not enter the cake shop, but is very willing to give advice when helping to pick fruits.She looked bored and out of place in a big city like Guofu, but now Yanhong suddenly mentioned that she planned to go out for a trip.

Must have heard wrong.

Yu Le muttered to himself like this at the time.Yan Hong next to her rolled her eyes.

"You heard me right, I'm just going to visit the government." She said with certainty.

"...Is something wrong?"

"What's the matter with this serious and worried expression?" But it's not wrong to say that something happened, although it's not a trouble that Yan Hong likes to take care of.She sighed and looked at Yu Le seriously. "Anyway, I'm going to the government to find someone. Are you free on Saturday?"

"Huh? Ask me to go with you?"

Obviously, Yan Hong's invitation surprised Yu Le even more than going to the government.After all, in her impression, the other party has always been in a passive state, and has never tried to invite him actively.

Of course, things like going to the office to hand in homework together don't count.

"Can't you?" Yan Hong tilted her head innocently.

Yu Le looked at her, smiled inexplicably, and then thought about it carefully. "I just want to buy some records, so let's go together."

Later, when I went home, I told the snake woman that I was going to the government this Saturday.The old man who was washing Chinese cabbage in the kitchen nodded and didn't ask Yanhong what he was going to do when he went to the government.

To be honest, she felt a little bit disappointed, but Yanhong played with her sleeves and finally went back to her room alone to do her homework.