Chapter 59 Part 2
Then a figure emerged from the water, its dark hair plastered to its head.
Su Chenyu’s face, red from exertion, was covered in water as he gasped, “I’m dying! Help! Pull me up!”
Even a man-made fish-man wasn’t a real fish.
Several strong men, prepared for this, immediately pulled him out.
As he emerged, what he held in his hands became visible.
Wei Tianming sat up straight, his gaze fixed on the screen.
Had he found his wife?
The next moment, a fishing net full of seafood was hauled onto the deck.
Various fish, lobsters, oysters, crabs, even a sea turtle, all thrashing around in the net.
Wei Tianming: “…”
[Holy crap, so much seafood from one dive! I’m drooling!]
[If I could move freely underwater, I would rule the ocean!]
[Forget the concert, let’s have a seafood feast!]
[Fishermen are crying, what an amazing skill.]
Su Chenyu, dripping wet, looking at the struggling seafood, then taking out a rusty old pen from his pocket, “I only saw this pen gleaming in the water, seems to be from a shipwreck victim. This seafood is a gift for Doctor Wu.”
Wu Heng’s eyes lit up. A gift for him?
Seafood was a rare and expensive treat in his remote village.
He had last enjoyed it with Shi Xuan in Beijing.
Only Wei Tianming noticed the rusty pen, he didn’t remember his wife owning one.
Then the elderly man in the wheelchair burst into tears. He had given this pen to his childhood friend as a farewell gift.
His friend and his family had moved overseas, and they hadn’t seen each other since, the only letter he received was about his friend wanting to return home.
Fifty years ago, standing on the shore, he had only heard the news of the shipwreck.
He had waited, but his friend never returned.
The elderly man, looking at the faint light on the pen, saw a spirit emerge.
Despite the years, he recognized him instantly.
‘I thought if I ever returned, you would be the first to greet me,’ the young man said, looking at him gently, ‘I was right again.’
The old man extended his trembling hands, “Fallen leaves return to their roots. I’ll take you home.”
Lai Jun, understanding now, the overseas Yin messengers must have tried to escort him before, but he refused to leave.
Across the vast ocean, the yearning for home was eternal.
Wu Heng said gently, “Welcome home, old man.”
Lai Jun, seeing this, could only sigh, ‘Fine, I’ll allow you to set foot on land, then you come with me.’
The merit was already his, a slight delay wouldn’t matter.
The young man said gratefully, ‘Thank you, Master.’
Wei Tianming, staring at the live stream in disbelief, the talisman allowing him to see spirits, the figure emerging from the water, wasn’t his wife! It was a man.
Where was his wife then?
Wu Heng had said she wasn’t here. Was it true?
If she wasn’t trapped, why hadn’t she appeared in his dreams all these years? The only time was to angrily demand a divorce.
Was she still angry at him for taking the lifeboat first?
If he went down there and apologized, would she forgive him? She probably would, she was his wife, after all.
Lost in his thoughts, Wei Tianming watched the live stream. Su Chenyu was sorting the seafood, keeping the valuable ones, giving the rest to the passengers, and they were grilling them on the deck, still singing.
The old man in the wheelchair was talking to the young spirit, describing the changes in their hometown over the years, showing him photos of his adopted grandson.
Yuan Song was guarding Heavenly Master Liu and those infected passengers, and Lai Jun was happily counting his merits.
The eerie atmosphere on the ship was replaced by an unexpected warmth, all thanks to that online shaman doctor.
Only he, Wei Tianming, hadn’t found his wife. She really wasn’t there.
Wu Heng, seeing them grilling seafood, seemingly knowing what he was thinking, said, his voice slightly sharp, “You’re divorced. Why are you still meddling in your ex-wife’s affairs?”
Wei Tianming’s eyes widened, “?”
Divorced?! Nonsense!
His wife died at sea. When did they get divorced? Did he even agree?!
His blood boiled, rushing to his head.
As his consciousness faded, he saw a black-robed Yin messenger, the number 014 on his lantern.
After Professor Zhao’s miraculous recovery, it was rumored online that the deceased would be escorted by Yin messengers and accompanied by their families. His family would come for him too, right?
Wei Tianming asked instinctively, ‘Where’s my wife?’
Yin Messenger 014 looked at him, puzzled. ‘You’re single, what wife?’
Wei Tianming, forgetting his manners as a newly deceased ghost, said urgently, ‘My first wife, the one who died in the shipwreck fifty years ago.’
Although he remarried and had a child, they divorced, so his only wife was his deceased one.
Yin Messenger 014 checked his tablet, ‘Oh, your ex-wife? Perhaps you’re not familiar with the rules yet. The underworld, keeping up with the times, also introduced a “cooling-off period” for divorces. A trial “review period” has also been implemented in the North Beijing district.’
Wei Tianming was confused. ‘？？’
He understood the cooling-off period.
Thirty days, if one party didn’t apply for the divorce certificate, the application was withdrawn. But a review period?
The Yin messenger explained, ‘If one spouse provides evidence of the other’s crimes affecting their merits, they can be granted a divorce unilaterally, to avoid hindering their reincarnation.’
Wei Tianming was stunned. What?! He longed for his wife, risked everything to bring her back, and now, he found out he was divorced?
Wei Tianming felt a surge of anger. ‘She died so long ago, what evidence could she possibly have of my crimes?’
The Yin messenger looked at him appraisingly. ‘She was pregnant, and you took the lifeboat and left her. Isn’t that evidence enough? But don’t worry, your ex-wife recently remarried and reincarnated with her new family.’
Wei Tianming: ‘…’
All for nothing.
He tried so hard, and even after death, he was still a divorced, single man!
As the Yin messenger dragged him away, Wei Tianming continued protesting, ‘With this policy, the underworld’s marriage and birth rates will plummet!’
The underworld always copied the human world, even creating their own internet, but this? What a ridiculous policy.
The Yin messenger scoffed. ‘You’re illiterate.’
‘There are too few births in the human world now, reincarnation slots are limited, we have to reduce ghost marriages in the underworld, otherwise they’ll be waiting for centuries!’
School was over. Students were packing their bags, some watching live streams. Shi Xuan was checking the stock market on his phone, a small window in the corner displaying Chengde Medical Clinic’s live stream.
He Yunxiao, Li Hao, and the others sat around him, their backpacks on.
Shi Xuan, his fingers flying across the screen, glanced at them. “Something you need?”
He Yunxiao pointed out the window. “It’s foggy, can’t even see the road clearly.”
Perhaps it was because Beijing was getting colder, but a thick fog had descended, enveloping the high school building.
Li Hao and Wang Dong, seeing the fog, felt uneasy.
“Comrade Li, doesn’t this fog look just like that night we went to the well behind the school to fetch medicine for that ghost girl?”
Li Hao cursed, “Bullshit! Doesn’t all fog look the same? Are you still scared of that Tang Xueshan?”
Shi Xuan, glancing at them, asked simply, “So?”
Li Hao, after scolding his friends for being scaredy-cats, hearing Shi Xuan’s question, said eagerly, “Classmate Shi, can you walk with us? I mean… it’s not good for you to walk alone, so… let’s leave together?”
Shi Xuan, occasionally glancing at his phone, saw Wu Heng staring at the grilled food they were eating in his live stream, his Adam’s apple bobbing unconsciously.
His friend was hungry.
Shi Xuan smiled, remembering the street food stalls outside their school that catered to the high school seniors attending evening classes.
He looked at them, probably still spooked by the ghost in their apartment.
Shi Xuan closed his stock app, the larger screen now displaying Wu Heng sipping water, slung his backpack over one shoulder, and stood. “Sure, let’s go.”
“Aaaa—Wait for us!” Li Hao and his friends scrambled to gather their things and chase after Shi Xuan.
He Yunxiao also followed. On the first floor, the fog was thick, the streetlights barely visible.
Shi Xuan was a day student, his family’s car was parked outside, and Li Hao and his friends, who lived in the same area, had to leave through the school gate too.
Only He Yunxiao lived on campus.
Shi Xuan turned to He Yunxiao, “Should I give you a ride?”
He Yunxiao, seeing Li Hao and his friends’ smug grins, said quickly, “No need, I’ll walk back with my roommates.”
Then he touched the ginger in his pocket for reassurance.
Shi Xuan, not one for small talk, didn’t insist and led Li Hao and his friends into the fog, their visibility limited.
He Yunxiao and his roommates walked towards their dorm in the dark.
He Yunxiao, feeling uneasy, called Xi Xi.
She had a pink smartwatch, a gift from her father.
Since she learned to speak, she used it more frequently.
A sweet, slightly hesitant, voice came from the other end. “Dad? Are you… done with school?”
He Yunxiao nodded. “Yes, how are you doing, Xi Xi?”
“Attending Teacher Yang’s online class…”
He Yunxiao, feeling his face flush slightly, asked, “Do you need Dad to pick you up from school, Xi Xi?”
Xi Xi tilted her head, confused.
She had seen videos of kindergarten children being picked up by their parents, but she and Big Brother Da Bai were attending online classes!
Xi Xi said obediently, “No, Dad, I don’t need to be picked up.”
He Yunxiao, looking at the thick fog, said, his voice filled with mock pain, “My baby doesn’t need me, but Daddy does!”
