C2 (2/2)

The current Second Uncle was no longer recognizable. The hair that he had combed till it was glossy was now in a mess. There was only one word to describe the disarray on his face.

He was wearing a pyjamas and had been cut in several places. It was obvious that he had torn them apart.

I was surprised when I asked my aunt, what had happened to him, how did he become like this?

She cried for a long time before she stopped, and told me in her broken Chinese that this disease of your Second Uncle's can't be cured by the hospital.

I told her, Don't worry, take your time.

She hesitated for a moment, then suddenly took off her robe.

I was about to stop her. Aunt, don't be reckless, I...

But before I could react, she revealed her own shoulders. There was a deep scar on them, making them look very frightening.

After showing me the wound, she put on her clothes again and lightly said that the Second Uncle had used a kitchen knife to cut this wound.

Looking at this, the astonishment in my heart could not be expressed in words. I asked her, ”Did you guys have an awkward time?” How much hatred could he use a kitchen knife to hack at you?

Their relationship is very good, it's your Second Uncle that's been possessed.

I was even more surprised, and asked her, Why do you say that?

She said that a month ago, Second Uncle was already abnormal. At night, she would turn into a completely different person, and sometimes, when she was sleeping soundly, she would suddenly let out a ”wail” and then sit up, touching her stomach, telling him that she was about to give birth.

Then, the Second Uncle's voice became more and more shrill, as if he was pinching his throat, causing goosebumps to form on his skin. After that, he started using the kitchen knife. If it wasn't for his wife blocking him, he would have long killed himself. It was precisely because of her blocking him that he suffered this wound on his shoulder.

The most frightening thing was that one night he hung himself up by a rope tied to the door frame, and when he came to his senses he could not remember what had happened, but when his aunt told him what had happened, he was so frightened that he insisted on locking himself in his cage.

But even in the cage he was dishonest, most often said, ”I'm going to have a baby,” ”Give my child back.”

He remembered that an old lady in our village would make a ruckus every day at two in the morning. After making a ruckus for nearly a month, people suspected that she was possessed, and only found out later that she was preoccupied because her next-door wife was looking for her to borrow some money, but she kept dragging it on and refused to return it. She was too embarrassed to ask for it directly, so she pretended to make a ruckus every night.

Thinking about this, I asked my aunt if Second Uncle had some sort of knot in her heart, but she didn't say it out loud.

Her aunt shook her head like a rattle. She said that Second Uncle was a straightforward person and never spoke timidly. He would never do such a thing.

I asked her. Was it getting worse?

She said yes, so she had no choice but to listen to him and be temporarily locked in a cage or else both of them would be in danger.

After I finished speaking, my aunt was already in tears. I hurriedly comforted her to not lose heart, I believed that Second Uncle would be fine, I will take care of him together with you.

My aunt nodded, as if my reassurance would make her feel better.

After a while, when she had calmed down, I asked her if there was anyone in the house before he had an abnormality. Or had he seen anyone? Think about it.

My aunt lowered her head and thought for a moment. Then, as if she remembered something, she looked up and told me that something had really happened …