Chapter 29 Cannibalism (1/2)

Chapter 29 Cannibalism

This ring, I knew it... This was Niu Xiao’er's ring. On that day, before he went to the gambling boat, he showed me the ring.

Now, the hand with Niu Xiao’er's ring appeared in the show window of his room. I thought Niu Xiao’er's story wasn’t as simple as Zhang said.

But I dared not say anything, because when I saw this hand, I knew Zhang was not to be trifled with.

So, I went out of the hotel in silence so as not to arouse suspicion from brother Zhang.

I felt that Zhang lied to me, so I found other people to ask about Niu Xiao’er.

The most powerful person I knew, except Zhang, was Liu the Sixth.

So, I took a few cigarettes and a red envelope of three thousand Yuan, and asked him to help me inquire about Niu Xiao’er.

He refused my cigarettes and red envelopes on the spot, and told me with righteousness, ”Niu Xiao’er was a gambler. In order to gamble, he even sacrificed his fingers. For such people, death is a mercy, so why bother asking about him? It’s a waste of time and effort.”

Liu the Sixth was not willing to help me. I could only put the red envelope back in my pocket and leave his home.

After I went back to the tattoo room, he phoned me and warned me about two things.

First, not to worry about Niu Xiao’er. Such a person would end up dead anyway, sooner or later.

Second, to stay away from brother Zhang. No matter why Niu Xiao’er's hand appeared in the display window of his house, he was not kind, and dealing with such a person, I might one day end the same way as Niu Xiao’er's hand.

I sighed, also did not intend to continue to ask about Niu Xiao’er. After all, I was benevolent to him, I did my best, but couldn’t find anything. I couldn't do anything. After all, I was just a small tattoo artist, just like a worm walking in the city. At any time I could be crushed to death by those kinds of people.

I decided not to know why Niu Xiao’er had died. However, a watched flower never blooms, but an untended willow grows.

About six months after this thing happened, a guest came to my shop for a tattoo. When he saw the design of the ”ghost hand catching the money” tattoo hanging in the tattoo shop, his face changed. Pointing at the ”ghost hand catching the money” design, he said, ”This tattoo, I have seen a person with this tattoo. He died very miserably.”

I knew immediately that the guest had seen Niu Xiao’er.

I invited him to drink. At the table, I asked clearly about Niu Xiao’er's death.

It turned out that most of Zhang's story was true. At the time, Niu Xiao’er was actually framed by the boat people and was locked in a cage.

He said to all the people on the boat, including the guests, that he had the ”ghost hand catching the money” tattoo, so he couldn’t possibly cheat.

After that, he touched several gambling cards, and each gambling card had the largest number of points on the spot inside.

He shocked a lot of people.

But it was useless. A man took an axe to cut off his hand.

A vicious gambling boat boss wanted to kill Niu Xiao’er. He told the others, “Eat the meat of Niu Xiao’er, gamble later. His luck is absolutely good, and his hand is the symbol of luck.”

The guest who had been drinking with me said, ”We gambling people are superstitious; we can't lend someone a light while playing a card. We did not know what to think, and really started to eat that person's flesh.”

Then he added, “Not only to eat the meat, but also to bid for it.”

The boss on the boat auctioned Niu Xiao’er's meat. A finger-weight of meat went for a price of more than four thousand Yuan.

The gamblers were unwilling again.

As a result, the boss began to incite them and said, ”This guy won by luck. Can you see that person's winning vibe was so good that he could win tens of millions of Yuan and never lose? Can’t you? This guy has absolutely amazing luck.”

The people on board, had lost their minds for the money, and they listened to these inflammatory words. One by one they all bought Niu Xiao’er's meat to eat, and his ”ghost hand” was bought by a rich man, and after several circulations came into Zhang's hands. Zhang had the hand preserved and put it in his hotel as a luck charm.

Niu Xiao’er was buried in the belly of the gamblers that night.

Finally, he was eaten into an empty skeleton and thrown into the sea.

All the things that really happened, I couldn't believe it was true. I felt this plot only appeared in horror films. I never thought someone would eat human meat. My best friend from my student days was indeed eaten alive by others.

As I talked with the guest, he picked up a piece of raw beef and put it directly into his mouth. After chewing for a while he spit it out. With a mouth full of blood he said to me, ”Beef is really unpalatable. That night, I also ate a piece of meat of that brother, and it tasted more delicious than pig, cattle or sheep.”

My skin was crawling with goose bumps.

......

This was the story of Niu Xiao’er. From then on, I almost never gave anyone Yin tattoos.

Time to go back to Niu Xiao’er that afternoon on the boat.

He went out of my tattoo room, but I had more business with a Yin and Yang Tattoo.