My Beloved Ghost

Chapter 3

“Cang Qiong, watch out for the ball!”

“Pat—!” It was too late! The basketball had already hit his face. His glasses were knocked off by the ball as it dropped on the ground, and stepped on by a teammate. 

“Are you okay? I’m sorry, I should have been more careful when I passed the ball.”

“How are you? Do you need to see the doctor?”

Everyone ran over with their concerns. If Cang Qiong had an accident, they would definitely be hated by the girls.

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“It’s okay, it’s just…the lens was broken…”

“I’ll buy you a new pair!”

“No, no. You don’t need to. I will buy a pair by myself. I am going home. You guys have fun.”

The following parts of the text will be scrambled to prevent theft from aggregators and unauthorized epub making. Please support our translators by reading on secondlifetranslations (dot) com. If you are currently on the site and and you are seeing this, please clear your cache.

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“Tlzzs, R oydv y ryka sq dsd-ralpnakrvksd zldplp.” Uydt Cksdt bydele shla bkp casjld tzypplp.

“Lsd-ralpnakrvksd zldplp? Xj, rzlypl oykv y xkdwvl.” Mbl nzlaj vwadle vs qkde vbl zldplp obld vblu pvyavle vs dyt, “Gzyp, dsoyeyup uswdt rlsrzl zkjl vs olya dsd-ralpnakrvksd tzypplp vs zssj nssz…”

‘Ebs zkjlp vs olya tzypplp?!’ Uydt Cksdt vssj swv bkp nlzz rbsdl yde ekyzle bsxl.

“Tlu, Pye. Eblal’p tseqyvbla?” Uydt Cksdt blyae bkp qyvbla’p hsknl.

“Tl kp sd y vakr. Ebyv’p vbl xyvvla?”

“Gb? Ebld eke bl zlyhl? Ebu eked’v bl vlzz xl?”

“Tl zlqv ulpvlaeyu. Gp wpwyz, bl fwpv zlqv okvbswv dsvkqukdt wp qkapv. Rp vblal yduvbkdt oasdt?”

“No, nothing… When will he come back?”

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“I don’t know. When he comes back, I will tell him to call you.”

“Ok then, bye…” His godfather disappeared just when he needed him. 

While walking on the road, Cang Qiong looked at the shadows to identify whether the people on the road were real humans or ghosts. Fortunately, it was daytime and he barely saw any ghosts.

He saw his balcony, and Kong Ru was standing on it, looking at him. He didn’t dare gaze at Kong Ru in the face, just watched him from the corner of his eye.

As he got close, Kong Ru turned around and walked into the room. Cang Qiong knew that he was about to open the door. Every day, Kong Ru would always wait for him to come back.

Holding the key in his hand, Cang Qiong hesitated to put it into the keyhole… Even if he didn’t move, the door would be opened by Kong Ru. They were destined to see each other today.

Cang Qiong inserted the key into the keyhole before he had turned it to open the door. Holding his breath, he slowly shifted his gaze from his key to the face before him…

“Qiong Qiong, you’re back!”

Cang Qiong has been called by that nickname since two weeks ago. In fact, Kong Ru already knew his name because every book that he owned had his name ‘Cang Qiong’ on it.

Two weeks ago, he forgot his homework on the table. When he went downstairs, he heard Kong Ru calling his name from the balcony… After that, Cang Qiong allowed him to call him ‘Qiong Qiong’. Up till now, Kong Ru would call him by this nickname unbridledly.

He also started to call Kong Ru ‘Kong Kong’ two weeks ago. He couldn’t tell whether he only wanted it to be fair or for some other reason. He always felt that the pet names that they called each other were so intimate as if they were lovers calling each other with endearment.

“I’m back…” Cang Qiong deliberately shifted his gaze in order not to focus on Kong Ru’s lovely face. He had to admit that Kong Ru was the only human he had ever seen whose beauty could be comparable to his godfather’s—Wrong! Kong Ru was not a human.

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“What’s wrong with your face?” Kong Ru, the attentive ghost, noticed that Cang Qiong’s face was slightly scratched.

‘Maybe the scratches were caused by the basketball?’ “Uh, I was hit by a basketball while playing with my teammates today.” Cang Qiong kept turning around. He persistently dodged Kong Ru by washing his face, cleaning the desk, and organizing his schoolbag. However, every time he turned around, Kong Ru would move directly in front of him and worriedly look at him.

‘Please, don’t look at me like that!’ Cang Qiong inwardly shouted, but Kong Ru couldn’t hear him. Kong Ru even stretched out his slender fingers and gently caressed the wound.

“Do not touch me!”

Kong Ru’s little hand suddenly shrank back. A hint of apology appeared on his worried face.

Cang Qiong couldn’t hold it any longer, “What do you want for dinner?”, finding an excuse to go out.

“Whatever! As long as it’s edible!” As soon as he heard the word food, Kong Ru became excited and started laughing like a three-year-old child. His sweet smile was also too much for Cang Qiong, so he immediately rushed out of the apartment.

He ran out of the building, but turned back and knocked on the door… “Kong Kong, I forgot my wallet.”

The most suitable foods for Kong Kong were something cheap and in large quantities, such as meat buns.

Cang Qiong bought two bento boxes and five meat buns. It was the first time he bought a bundle of these. The auntie who sold the steamed buns saw this handsome boy so she gave him two more siu mai.

While Cang Qiong was walking back, Kong Kong was waiting on the balcony again…

This time, before he could knock on the door, the door was already opened.

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“Ah! Food! Steamed buns! It would be great if these were the BBQ pork buns from XingHuaLou!” Kong Kong was so happy!

“You like XingHuaLou’s BBQ pork buns?”

 “Yes!”

For some inexplicable reason, seeing Kong Kong smile, also made Cang Qiong smile…

Kong Kong was beautiful and undeniably cute, except when he ate his food.

Cang Qiong couldn’t say ‘Kong Kong, can you watch your manners while eating?’  Instead, he said: “Kong Kong, can you keep quiet when you’re eating?”

  “Ok!”

He ate quietly, but his table manners turned for the worse. However, seeing the ghost having a good appetite, Cang Qiong felt that his appetite had also increased. The little ghost ate five steamed buns, two siu mai, and a bento box; Cang Qiong felt a sense of satisfaction from his heart.

Taking a bath after a full meal was the most comfortable thing in the world. Cang Qiong lowered the water temperature a bit because he felt a little hot today. Kong Kong walked in as usual.

“Qiong Qiong, I’m here to help you wash your back.” What Kong Kong admired the most about Cang Qiong was that he never took off his glasses, even when he took a bath.

  “I don’t need……”

“Why?” The request of having his back washed was put forward by Cang Qiong. He had to overcome a lot of psychological obstacles to reach the current state of “turning a blind eye” on Cang Qiong’s naked back. ‘Why didn’t he want it anymore?’

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“Alright, if you say so.” Cang Qiong acted like an unreasonable child in Kong Kong’s eyes.

Kong Kong walked away, feeling dejected.

In the next several hours, Cang Qiong watched Kong Kong wash a large basin of clothes, cleaned up his desk, and jumped up and down to expel the mosquitos. Finally, he watched Kong Kong curl up on the sofa and fell into dreamland. Cang Qiong knew for a long time that once he saw him, he wouldn’t treat him as a ghost anymore. Cang Qiong took out a thick quilt used for winter and gently put it on Kong Kong’s body.

“I don’t know if you would feel cold or not. However, watching you lying like this, I won’t be able to sleep. It was summer when you died, right?” Cang Qiong touched Kong Kong’s face but felt no temperature.

‘… Poor child, I think you are very optimistic and persistent. You’ve worked as my little maid just for food. You must have suffered from some serious harm so you chose to end your life. If you had known that after you had died that you would have to linger here forever, would you still do it?’

Another month had passed.

Kong Kong was still walking around Cang Qiong, with his two tender bare legs, every day. Nevertheless, Cang Qiong still pretended that he couldn’t see him. Such a good actor!

Finally, his godfather came back. Cang Qiong could now put on those ghost-proof glasses.

However, after not having seen Kong Kong for a day, he changed back to his non-prescription glasses and only wore the ghost-proof glasses outside. As soon as he came home, he couldn’t wait to put on the non-prescription glasses and change his “empty” look to a smile, “Kong Kong, I’m back!”

Kong Kong was right in front of him, but he had to pretend to stare at the curtain…

A few days ago, when Cang Qiong told his godfather that his glasses were broken, the first sentence his godfather asked was “How is the ghost? Kong Ru is terribly ugly, right?” 

If his godfather knew that he had been wearing non-prescription glasses in front of Kong Kong, he would definitely make fun of him for the entire three days and three nights!

The reason Cang Qiong gave himself was: It would be such a waste if there was a beautiful thing in front of you but you wouldn’t look at it. He was a mortal, and a mortal would like to appreciate beautiful things. Also, with a ghost at home, it was always good to be able to see him. What if you run over him, right?’ ——But Kong Kong has always been careful and would never run over you!

He already threw the idea that ​​”humans and ghosts should stay within different boundaries” into the garbage bin…

On December 24, 2001.

“Qiong Qiong, happy birthday!”

   “Thanks!”

“The cake you bought is so big!”

“It doesn’t matter. No matter how big the cake is, you can eat it all, right?!”

Christmas Eve was also Cang Qiong’s birthday. In the old apartment, one human and one ghost were happily eating the cake.

While in a faraway seaside villa…

“Damn Qiong Qiong! You have already forgotten your godfather now that you have a lover!” The beautiful godfather sat on his bed and watched from his bronze, antique mirror his godson happily celebrating his birthday with the little ghost. Cang Qiong didn’t even ask his godfather to come! “Today is Christmas Eve! No one is accompanying me for Christmas, woo… I’m so pitiful.”

He picked up a black velvet cloth to cover the bronze mirror and lie down on his bed. While closing his eyes, he remembered one Christmas Eve from eighteen years ago…

It was an icy drizzling night. He was walking alone on a dark street. The road was paved with bluestone bricks. After many years of tempering, the pavements looked shiny on a rainy night… The black tiles on the sides of the street were under the dripping water. Every drop of water from a rainy day caused the pavements to scar.

“My dear, hold on, hold on a little longer. We will arrive at the hospital soon!”

“Hurry up… hurry up… I am in pain…”

It was nighttime, an ordinary, middle-aged man stepped on a tricycle vigorously, while a woman in a red raincoat kept moaning inside it.

The tricycle kept having troubles along the way. With a ‘click’ sound, the tricycle stopped, and the man stepped on the pedals harder and harder a few times, but the tricycle didn’t move at all. He immediately got off of the vehicle and checked the wheels. They were stuck in a crack in the street pavement. After pushing hard a few times, the tricycle still didn’t move.

“Hey! Mister! Can you help me push it?”

“Did you just call me?” At that time, the future godfather spoke in a lifeless voice, as he had just climbed out of the underworld.

“There’s no one else on this street except for you! Please, do me a favor!”

“It’s useless… What she’s carrying is a stillborn baby. Even if you arrive at the hospital, it’s useless… People have to die when their time arrives. Any effort will be in vain.”

“I know… I know that my child can’t be saved, but at least there is still a glimmer of hope that I can save my wife!”

  “You already know?!”

“Stop talking nonsense! Hurry up, and help me push it!”

The future godfather was deeply moved by the man’s desire to save his wife and child; he gently lifted the tricycle, and the wheels were pulled out of the crack.

The godfather then ran beside the tricycle and helped stabilize it, to prevent it from shaking so badly.

“My husband came from a Taoist family which specializes in surrounding demons. Their…their ancestors had already known that this generation wouldn’t have any offspring; so, even if I am pregnant, I would still end up having a miscarriage. But I…I don’t want to give up… Even if there is only a little possibility, I will try! I want to have a child…” The woman cried out in pain and also because she couldn’t grasp the small life in her belly…

After hearing this, the godfather was silent for a moment. He then stretched out his palm to gently cover the woman’s bulged belly… ‘Although I’m not 100% sure, it’s worth a try!’

Outside of the operation room, two wet men sat side by side. One was Cang Qiong’s father, and the other was Cang Qiong’s godfather.

“Why do you still try when you know it’s impossible? Doing so may cost you your wife’s life.”

“Even God couldn’t accurately predict everything, right?”

Two hours later.

“Wawww!” A baby’s cry broke the still night.

“It’s a boy! And he weighs eight pounds!” The nurse came out with a red baby boy in her arms, “Who is the child’s father?”

“Me! Me!” The man rushed up, carefully hugged this hard-won child, and shed tears of exhilaration. A silver light could be faintly seen around this baby; it was invisible to ordinary people. He knew the baby wasn’t just his and his wife’s child…

“Do you want to hold him?” the father asked.

“Okay.” The godfather was also a little excited; he could feel the excitement of being a father for the first time. As soon as he took the baby, the little guy stopped crying and stared at him with his black eyes. The curious nurses gathered around to look at the baby, who opened his eyes just after his birth.

The door of the operation room was opened. The resilient mother, who was lying on the operating table, smiled proudly at her husband.

“Please give the baby a name!” said the child’s father. 

  “Is it okay?”

“Of course, because I know that this is not only our child but also your child.”

“What’s your surname?”

“My surname is Cang. Cang means the sky.”

‘So, they are the descendants of Celestial Master Cang…’ The godfather thought for a while, then smiled faintly. “‘The lonely shadow stands by himself. Only he and the shadow hang with each other’… The baby will be called Cang Qiong…”

“Great! Moreover, I hope you can stay with us and no longer be a pilgrim…”

“Okay… With little Cang Qiong, I don’t think I’ll be alone anymore, right? Thank you…”

“It’s us who should thank you…”

From that day on, Cang Qiong’s godfather had officially become a part of their family and began to live an ordinary life. No one knew where he came from, and he never said anything about his past, as if he was alone from the very beginning.

As Cang Qiong grew up little by little, the neighbors were surprised to notice that the child looked more and more like his so-called “godfather”, but his look also resembled his father. He basically inherited the muscular part from his biological father and the feminine beauty from his godfather. As he turned into an adolescent, the more handsome he became. Unfortunately, he had to wear glasses from a young age.

In a blink, eighteen years had passed.

‘The child has grown into an adult and has fallen in love. He no longer needs his godfather anymore!’ ——Opening his eyes, his godfather looked at the ceiling and smiled stupidly…

.

“Qiong Qiong, make a wish!” Kong Kong lit the eighteen candles impatiently.

Cang Qiong closed his eyes and made a wish in silence. He took such a long time, deliberately making Kong Kong wait.

“Have you finished yet? Don’t be greedy. You can only make one wish!”

“Okay!” Cang Qiong opened his eyes and blew all the candles at once.

“Yeah!” Kong Kong clapped his hands happily – it was time to eat the cake. He couldn’t wait to pull out the candles.

  “Wait a moment!”

   “What?”

   “Where is my birthday present?”

   ‘What? He wants a birthday present? What can I give him? Catch a mosquito for him?’ Kong Kong thought. “I’m not a human… I don’t have a present for you…” He spoke quite smoothly.

“Then you can’t eat the cake without a present!”

“I’m eating your food, using your things, and living with you. I don’t have a present for you!” Kong Kong looked at the huge cake and became anxious.

“Well—you can kiss me then! I will treat it as a birthday kiss from a beautiful girl!”

“But I’m a boy!”

“It doesn’t matter! I can’t see you anyway, so I’ll just imagine it.”

“Okay, okay.” A kiss for a cake? It was worth it!

Cang Qiong saw Kong Kong’s mouth slowly come closer. He pretended that he couldn’t see anything!

With a single “pitch” sound, he got his kiss!

“Yeah, we can cut the cake!” Cang Qiong smiled with satisfaction and cut a large piece of cake for Kong Kong, who had paid him just now. Kong Kong smiled from the depth of his heart when he saw the cake and immediately forgot what happened just seconds ago.

The two happily ate the cake.

“Kong Kong, when did you die?”

“Why do you ask?

“Next time, I’ll buy you a death day cake!”

“Why a death day cake?”

“Ghosts usually celebrate their death days!”

“Really?! Is that true?”

“Of course, what kind of cake do you want?”

“What kind of cake…” Kong Kong stopped eating and thought about it. “I want a pretty strawberry cake… with the words ‘For Dear Kong Kong’ on it…”

“Hey, hey, who is your ‘dear’?”

“Ah? I’m sorry…please forget what I said.”

Hearing Kong Kong’s repeated apologies, Cang Qiong smiled mischievously… “You haven’t told me what day is your death day.”

“It seems on… April 23rd… But–But I don’t like that day. Can I still celebrate my birthday?”

“Yes. It doesn’t matter. What day is your birthday?”

“You should’ve asked for that earlier! I thought I had to celebrate my death day… My birthday is July 30!” After speaking, he took a big mouthful of food.

90% of this 12-inch cake was eaten by Kong Kong. The cream was all over his face. He stuck out his tongue to lick the cream near his mouth. ‘So cute!’ Cang Qiong thought and subconsciously pulled out a tissue to wipe it off from Kong Kong’s face. Suddenly, he found Kong Kong staring blankly at him…

“What’s wrong?” Cang Qiong asked gently.

“You– Can you see me?”

‘Damn…’ Cang Qiong sat still and didn’t know how to respond.

“Didn’t you say you couldn’t see me?” Kong Kong asked again.

“I…my glasses were broken…”

“When did it happen?”

“The last time I played basketball…”

Kong Kong didn’t ask when was that last time, but he became angry: “Then why did you ask me to kiss you just now?!… You can clearly see me, so why did you imagine me as a beautiful girl?”

“I was just kidding! Ha, ha, ha. I tricked you! You aren’t mad, are you?” Cang Qiong made an extremely unnatural smile. ‘Wouldn’t it be better if I told him in the first place?!’

Unexpectedly, Kong Kong laughed, “That’s all right! Hehe…I got it wrong…I thought… Anyway, I’m so stupid!”

This simple two-person birthday party ended in an awkward atmosphere. Kong Kong moved onto the sofa and got into the blanket that Cang Qiong had prepared for him. As a ghost, he couldn’t feel the temperature, but he could still feel the warmth from this blanket.

Cang Qiong couldn’t sleep. He silently got out of bed after Kong Kong fell asleep. He admitted that he couldn’t stop caring about Kong Kong now and he wanted to know more about him. He had already made a decision!

“The memory of the room. Please show me the reason for Kong Kong to resort to suicide!”

Cang Qiong chanted the incantation silently, clear and transparent images slowly began to appear in the house.

   “Snapped!”

Cang Qiong became stunned due to the scene in front of him. He took a few steps back, kicked the chair, and knocked over the cup on the table. His whole body slumped weakly near the fallen chair…

Kong Kong was awakened by the noises. He rubbed his eyes and sat up

 on the sofa.

“Qiong…ah-!” Kong Kong screamed, “Don’t! Don’t look at it!”

Cang Qiong was shocked by the images from twelve years ago – Kong Kong was being raped by three men, two of them pressed him down firmly… There was no sound in the images, but he could imagine Kong Kong crying and struggling desperately on the bed twelve years ago… Looking at the torn clothes and falling tears, Cang Qiong felt his heart had instantly frozen and become devastated by this tragic scene…

“Don’t! Stop looking at it!” Kong Kong ran over, knelt in front of Cang Qiong, and shook him vigorously, “Please, please, please stop! Please…”

Kong Kong lowered his head; his shoulders were trembling. Suddenly he stood up and fled into the bathroom.

With a ‘Bang!’, the bathroom door shut. Cang Qiong realized what happened. He slowly closed his eyes and stopped the cruel images. These images were like a sharp blade that kept stabbing Cang Qiong deeply; it also reopened the wounds of Kong Kong…

Cang Qiong walked into the bathroom and saw Kong Kong’s shrunken appearance, crying in a corner. ‘Kong Kong, I’m sorry…’

Cang Qiong wanted to reach out and hug him; but in the end, he just patted Kong Kong’s shoulder lightly. “Kong Kong…”

Kong Kong shook off Cang Qiong’s hand and shouted, “Don’t touch me! Woo…you are so scary…woooo…you’re a monster…”

“Kong Kong… I’m sorry.” Perhaps at the moment, Kong Kong just wanted to be left alone. After all, he was not Kong Kong’s significant someone.

Cang Qiong sat back on the sofa in despair; his hand was supporting his head. It hurts, really hurts. ‘Why would someone be so cruel? Moreover, those three people looked like they were the same age as Kong Kong.’

‘Kong Kong, why aren’t I by your side at that time? I would’ve protected you…

I’m sorry, Kong Kong. Please forgive me……’

.

Cang Qiong woke up the next day and found himself lying on the bed with a quilt on him. He immediately got up and saw Kong Kong doing laundry. As soon as Kong Kong saw him, he smiled back.

“Qiong Qiong, you’re awake? I saw your sweater hasn’t been washed for two weeks, so I am washing it for you. Also, you shouldn’t fall asleep without taking off your clothes in the future! You might catch a cold!” Kong Kong kept nagging with no plans of stopping; what happened last night seemed like it had never happened!

“Kong Kong, I…”

“You don’t have to worry about me. I’m dead anyway, so it doesn’t matter. It’s all my fault. I lost my temper and made you cry…”

“Me? I cried?”

“Yeah, when I came out yesterday, I saw you fast asleep, but your face was wet. You must have been frightened… I felt guilty when I saw you like that… Anyway, as a child, you shouldn’t think too much. I’m just a dead ghost anyway. Hehe…”

“Kong Kong!” Finally, Cang Qiong couldn’t control himself and pulled Kong Kong into his arms. “Kong Kong, I am not a child. I cried because I felt sad for you. I know you must be heartbroken and feeling regretful. You are free to cry to me anytime. I know you must have been suffering in your heart and you have never told anyone about it. Don’t force yourself to smile. It will make me even sadder…”

 “I’m not……”

“Yes, you are!” Cang Qiong held Kong Kong’s face and made him look directly at him. “Tell me, Kong Kong. What can I do to keep you from being sad? Tell me…”

Cang Qiong eventually believed that he did cry last night since tears started pouring out of his eyes, reminding him of that wretched familiar feeling from last night…

Tears burst out, Kong Kong finally replaced that fake smile of his with real tears, crying and saying, “Thank you, Qiong Qiong… If you give me ten meat buns, I won’t be sad anymore…”

“…”

Early in the morning, Cang Qiong’s godfather saw the two of them hugging each other with tears in their eyes. He was perplexed and thought, ‘What happened?’ 


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