When Zhu Yilun steeled his heart and asked this question, nothing terrifying happened. Instead, the old woman seemed stirred by some painful memory, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand as tears streamed down her wrinkled face.
This genuine display of emotion was truly moving, and it even caused Zhu Yilun to waver slightly in his judgment of her identity. Could this sorrowful, grieving old woman really be a ghost?
Amid her tears, the two participants finally learned the whole story from her lips.
It turned out that this elderly woman, surnamed Qin, had been widowed early and had lived with her son ever since. Half a year ago, her son married a woman, fulfilling one of Old Mrs. Qin's wishes, and the family was immersed in joy.
But happiness was short-lived. Seven days ago, a traffic accident claimed the life of her only son. Right here, her son was struck and killed by an oncoming bus.
As she spoke, the old woman's cloudy eyes suddenly lifted, scanning the bus Chen Hai was driving. In an instant, her expression shifted dramatically, and her trembling finger pointed shakily at the license plate.
"It's this one... it's this one... it's this one... that killed my son!"
Her entire body began to tremble, her murky eyes blazing with hatred, as if the bus before her wasn't a vehicle but a colossal demon. She waved her fists, as if to charge and fight it.
Startled by her outburst, Chen Hai reacted quickly, rushing forward to grab the shouting Old Mrs. Qin from behind.
After a bout of frantic frenzy, Old Mrs. Qin seemed to exhaust her strength, slumping down and sobbing pitifully. Between her cries, she called out a vague name, likely her son's childhood nickname.
After crying for a while, as if realizing the dead cannot return, she shuffled slowly to the side with unsteady steps. Her right hand released a stack of yellow paper, which fluttered wildly in the night wind, exuding endless desolation.
"Go away... all of you go away... don't let me... see you again..."
Amid her choked sobs, Chen Hai finally breathed a sigh of relief. At least she had cleared the way. He quickly returned to the bus, restarted it, and drove slowly forward.
Turning his head, he saw Old Mrs. Qin, dressed in black clothes and pants, standing by the roadside, staring blankly at him. Suddenly, a strange smile crept across her lips, as if talking to herself or someone else.
"Alright, alright, you said you'd come back, I'll wait for you... wait for you..."
That damned old woman scared the hell out of me. Good thing she didn't get on! As he drove, Chen Hai thought with lingering fear. That Old Mrs. Qin was clearly trouble; if she had insisted on boarding, it would have been hard to handle...
Strangely enough, after this little incident, the next two stops passed without any issues. It wasn't until the following stop that a pair of intimate-looking men and women boarded. The man was short and plain-looking, while the woman had some charm, and they seemed like a married couple.
With this couple on board, the number of passengers in the bus reached ten.
Just as Chen Hai was driving and sizing up which passengers might look like ghosts through the rearview mirror, a sudden argument erupted from the back of the bus. The source was the couple who had just boarded.
Before Chen Hai could react, a sharp slap rang out. The man had struck the woman across the face, cursing, "You slut! I think you're just asking for a beating!"
The sudden commotion drew everyone's attention, and the passengers all showed expressions of surprise.
The man seemed to hit hard; with that single slap, one side of the woman's face swelled up. Zhu Yilun's expression shifted, but he held steady, not immediately stepping in to mediate.
They say couples fight in bed and make up in bed. If it was just a minor spat between husband and wife, it wasn't his place as an outsider to interfere. And if they weren't human... there was even less reason to stir up trouble.
After being slapped, the woman didn't argue, just stood silently. But after a brief quiet, the man seemed to recall something unpleasant, strode over again, and kicked her to the ground. He rained down punches, shouting "slut" and "you're asking for it," while beating her mercilessly.
Strangely, no matter how much the man hit her, the woman didn't fight back or beg for mercy. Though she seemed fragile, she wore a stubborn expression.
Perhaps angered by her unyielding demeanor, the man's blows grew heavier, and his curses more vile. From his insults, Chen Hai and Zhu Yilun pieced together the gist: the man had heard rumors from somewhere, suspecting the woman of infidelity, and was furiously teaching her a lesson.
The man was ordinary-looking, and marrying such a pretty wife might have been the root of his paranoia. They say gossip is fearsome, and here was a living example. Whether or not the woman was truly as flirtatious as the man claimed, this indiscriminate bullying infuriated Zhu Yilun, who almost couldn't resist stepping in.
But oddly, despite the commotion, the other passengers only showed slight surprise, letting the man beat and kick the woman until she screamed in pain, without anyone intervening.
Realizing this, Zhu Yilun's heart tightened, and he pulled back his foot.
At that moment, the man beating his wife grew even more vicious. If earlier he was just kicking wildly, now his fists aimed at vital spots, blood streaming from the woman's head as she lay gasping on the floor.
Watching through the rearview mirror, Chen Hai's expression tensed. Unlike Zhu Yilun, he wasn't moved by pity for the woman being beaten. Instead, he worried that if the man killed her, she might turn into a vengeful ghost on his bus!
If that happened... he'd have to stop that madman, no matter what, and prevent him from killing this woman on his bus!