It was such an ordinary story, and yet, why did this seemingly ordinary story remain so vivid in his mind after reading it? Even after closing the book, the scene from 'Strange Tales' where the ghost pressed the protagonist down in bed, and the final moment when he suddenly sat up and bit the ghost to death, played out in Xie Yanping's mind like a movie.
Strange, why did he feel this way?
Naturally, Xie Yanping had no answer. He was just a middle school student without much literary sensitivity. All he knew was whether a story was interesting or not, whether he enjoyed reading it. As for the deeper elements within a novel, or whether it had any literary value, he had no idea how to explain any of that.
Yet, after reading this story from 'Strange Tales', he felt it resembled the mythological tales he'd heard as a child. Those old myths weren't all that original either. But 'Strange Tales', like those tales passed down through generations, pierced straight into the heart.
Even if Xie Yanping wanted to forget it, he couldn't.
Looks like I'll have to subscribe to the next issue of 'Midnight Talk', even if it's just for this one 'Strange Tales' story.
But I wonder, will the next issue have another story like this?
That evening, Xie Yanping returned to the dorm with his classmates.
He was a boarding student, just like most of his peers.
After night study ended, the school had already turned off the lights for bed. But young people were full of energy, and even with the lights off, the dorm remained filled with chatter.
Some were talking about funny things in class.
Some were talking about how pretty certain girls were.
Others were sharing jokes.
At that moment, Zhou Wen, who had recommended 'Reader's Digest' to Xie Yanping at lunch, cleared his throat and said,
"Alright, everyone, quiet down, quiet down! It's time for our nightly session of life philosophy."
Zhou Wen was a hardcore fan of 'Reader's Digest'. He didn't just read it himself; he kept recommending it to others. And nearly every night, he'd tell the dorm a little philosophical story from it.
"People suffer because they desire too much. If we learn to be content with what we have, then we won't feel pain..."
Life philosophy always came off as grand and profound. Zhou Wen delivered it with deep emotion and passion. But maybe it was because the dormmates had heard too much of it. In the past, they'd let him talk and just treated it like a story. Few would interrupt. But now, they realized this stuff was unbearable in large doses. The teachers have already lectured about it enough during class. And now, right before bed?
It was just cruel.
"Stop, stop, no more today. We're about to fall asleep."
"Yeah, Zhou Wen, take a break tonight. You can tell us another one some other time. We get the gist of it."
He had just started when classmates began interrupting.
"Come on, guys. This is meaningful stuff. If you don't want to hear this, what do you want instead?"
Zhou Wen was a bit annoyed but gave up when he saw everyone was against it.
"Let's hear a ghost story. It's late at night, perfect timing for one."
One of the students suggested.
"I second that. Nothing beats a scary story at this hour."
"Me too! Doesn't Zhu Songbin always subscribe to 'Suspense World'? I bet he's got tons of ghost stories. Hey, hey, hey, Zhu Songbin, quit pretending to sleep. Give us a story, will you?"
"Not asleep. What kind of ghost story do you want?"
Seeing everyone calling his name, Zhu Songbin responded immediately.
"What kind? A ghost story is a ghost story."
"Not quite. There are detective horror stories, suspense horror stories, supernatural adventure horror stories... lots of types."
Zhu Songbin was a serious reader of horror stories. He could talk about them endlessly.
"Forget the categories. Just give us a good one. The scarier, the better."
"Yeah, the scariest one you've got. We want something that really scares the crap out of us."
"Alright then, I'll tell you one that takes place at a school."
Seeing everyone so interested, Zhu Songbin got excited.
Before, he and Xie Yanping were the only ones in class who read horror stories. The rest weren't interested, which was disappointing. Since they were interested tonight, he was going to scare them good. If he could pull that off, maybe they'd start reading 'Suspense World' too.
Believing good things should be shared with good friends, he began.
"There was a high school in the southwest..."
Zhu Songbin began telling one of the scarier stories he remembered recently.
But only halfway through, the dormmates were already getting annoyed.
"Zhu Songbin, this is your scary story? Come on, it's not scary at all."
"Yeah, seriously, what kind of horror stories are you reading? We didn't even flinch."
They were clearly disappointed and spoke up.
"Alright, fine, I'll change it. How about one about a supernatural incident at a hospital?"
But again, halfway through, they cut him off.
"Zhu Songbin, just stop. We get the idea. Your stories are always in hospitals, or schools, or the middle of the night. It's all been done to death in movies. No atmosphere at all."
"Damn, you guys are impossible. First, you beg me to tell a story, now you're complaining. I'm done."
Zhu Songbin was annoyed and swore at them.
"Hehe, Zhu Songbin, we're just messing with you. Don't take it personally. But honestly, those stories weren't very good."
They were all classmates and used to joking around. No one took it seriously.
At that moment, Xie Yanping, who had been silent the whole time, finally spoke.
"Actually, I read a pretty good ghost story today. Want to hear it?"
"Forget it. Zhu Songbin already told two duds. Yours is probably just as bad."
"Well, we're not asleep yet. Might as well listen."
"That's true. Alright then, Xie Yanping, let's hear it. Try to scare us so bad we can't sleep."
"Okay, listen up."
Xie Yanping sat up. He was going to tell the ghost story he had read that afternoon, 'Strange Tales'.
He decided to sit up while telling it because he felt that if he lay down, he might actually get scared by the story.
"Shen Linsheng said his friend, a man named Weng, was napping one summer afternoon. Half-asleep, he saw a woman lift the curtain and walk in…"
The dormmates listened quietly, not interrupting him.
At first, they didn't think much of the story.
But although it wasn't exactly terrifying, it was decent, at least it didn't annoy them. More importantly, they found it extremely vivid. Xie Yanping had barely begun, and the story was already playing out in their minds like a movie.
"Before long, the woman climbed onto the bed, fully clothed, and pressed down on the old man's belly. He felt like he was being crushed by hundreds of pounds. Though he was fully conscious, when he tried to move his hands, it was as if they were tied. He tried to lift his feet, but he had no strength. He wanted to shout for help, but no sound came out. Then the woman began sniffing his face, cheeks, nose, brows, and forehead, every part. Her breath was like ice, sending a chill through his bones. In desperation, he had an idea. He would wait until she reached his cheek again, then bite her as hard as he could. Sure enough, when she sniffed near his cheek again, he lunged and bit down on her cheekbone with all his might. His teeth sank deep into her flesh. The woman screamed, struggling to break free, but the more she resisted, the harder he bit. He felt warm blood run down his face, soaking the pillow..."
By the time Xie Yanping reached this part, everyone was already hooked.
Though they still didn't think the story was all that scary, it felt far better than the earlier ones. Especially now, the imagery became crystal clear. They could see it in their minds: an old man being pinned to the bed by a ghost, arms and legs bound, unable to speak.
And just thinking about that made their scalps tingle.
Some even broke out in goosebumps.
Still, they were all boys. Brave enough. And with so many people in one dorm, what was there to be afraid of?
Once they thought that, the fear faded.
A few minutes later, the thousand-plus-word ghost story came to an end.
"Eh, nothing special. Pretty average."
The dormmates gave their verdict.
"Yeah, not that scary. But I have to say, it's really easy to remember."
"I agree, the story sticks in your head. Still not scary, though."
"Alright, alright, enough stories. Let's sleep."
It was getting late, so they chatted a bit more and prepared to sleep.
"Yeah, time to sleep."
Everyone lay down and closed their eyes.
But the moment they did, something happened.
Almost every student in the dorm, just as they closed their eyes, saw a shadow form in their mind.
The shadow blew cold air against their lips and opened its mouth as if about to bite them.
In an instant, their backs turned cold, and their hair stood on end.
A few students rolled over and jumped out of bed, their voices trembling with fear.
"There's a ghost."
"There's a ghost."
"A ghost, I swear."
"A female ghost."
"A female ghost is trying to eat me."
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