Last Bus of Route 13

Upon hearing this dreadful news, Xiao Liu and I were dumbfounded. I couldn’t help but ask again, “Really? Captain Wang is dead?”

Old Li replied helplessly, “Dead? The bus went into the reservoir, how could he survive?”

I was shocked beyond belief. Just the day before yesterday, Captain Wang was chatting with me, sharing his life story, telling me about his undercover identity. How could he suddenly be gone forever?

They say those who drown are often skilled swimmers. He hated ghosts all his life, worked as a Yin-Yang master for ten years, yet in the end, he still died at the hands of a ghost.

I couldn’t help but sigh. On the 15th day of the lunar month, I had no issues, yet elsewhere, a bus full of fellow villagers perished. Fate plays tricks, destiny is cruel!

After Old Li finished speaking, he sighed and took a basin to the washroom.

We changed clothes in the dormitory, had a quick meal, and then took a taxi with some colleagues to Tangwazi Reservoir.

A large crowd of Tangwazi Village villagers surrounded the reservoir, wailing and crying at the water’s edge. So many families were shattered, truly tragic!

Ten years apart! Another accident!

Several small boats on the reservoir were busy dragging nets, retrieving the bodies of the deceased.

After a few hours, more than twenty bodies were pulled ashore, but Captain Wang was nowhere to be found!

According to the salvage team, the driver’s body was still in the driver’s cabin, gripping the steering wheel too tightly to be pulled out. They had to lift the bus onto the shore first.

Once the passengers’ bodies were retrieved, the crane began its final task, slowly hoisting our Route 13 bus out of the water.

It was tragic, truly tragic!

The bus was covered in mud from the reservoir bottom, and the compartment was filled with shoulder poles and vegetable baskets from the fellow villagers. Captain Wang’s body in the driver’s cabin was deformed from the water, yet he maintained an upright posture, hands tightly gripping the steering wheel!

Several people tried to pull him out, but his hands wouldn’t budge. Looking at the open window beside the driver’s cabin, I sighed deeply.

Captain Wang might not have been a powerful Yin-Yang master, but he was certainly a good person, a good driver. I had faced similar danger before. When the bus lost control and headed for the reservoir, he could have jumped out the window to save himself, but he didn’t. He chose to be responsible for the passengers, never giving up even in his final moments!

Xiao Liu couldn’t bear the scene, standing there silently with tears in her eyes.

…

The news of the accident wasn’t covered up by the higher-ups this time, and it spread like wildfire across the city.

Various rumors about the accident circulated online, but soon the official statement came out, claiming the bus’s brake system failure caused the accident. I looked at the official version and chuckled.

The 15th day of the lunar month had passed, and Old Liu finally returned. He came to the company to find me at noon. Upon seeing him, I started complaining, blaming him for leaving me and forgetting about my blood disaster on the 15th day of the lunar month!

Old Liu sneered, “I went to settle accounts with the friend who gave me the fake map of Changbai Mountain.”

Right, if Old Liu hadn’t mentioned it, I would have forgotten. A while back, we almost died in the mountains because of a fake map Old Liu had.

“Did you find that person? Why did he deceive you?”

Old Liu leaned on his broken stick, walked a few steps, and replied, “I found him. That old rascal wouldn’t admit it and even set a trap for me, almost costing me my life.”

Old Liu was quite capable, and his circle of friends included some Yin-Yang experts. The person who set him up was not to be underestimated.

After saying this, Old Liu pondered for a moment and then asked, “I heard Wang Dexi died last night?”

I sighed.

“Yes, he’s dead, just like the three previous drivers ten years ago, drowned in the reservoir with over twenty people.”

Upon hearing this, Old Liu frowned and said coldly, “Your opponent is not simple. Wang Dexi was quite a notorious figure in the circle, yet he couldn’t handle it…”

“Yes, not simple. It’s not just that the ghost is not simple. Old Liu, do you remember Meng E said this accident involved a big figure? According to Wang Dexi, this person is the city’s Director of the Traffic Bureau. He sent Wang Dexi to our company, ostensibly as a captain, secretly to catch ghosts.”

Old Liu listened intently and nodded.

I continued, “I don’t know what connection the director has with the ghost behind all this. The current situation is that the fierce ghost is forcing me to investigate, while the director threatens me to stop! I’m caught between them, it’s hard to manage!”

Old Liu’s cold face showed no change in expression, still speaking coldly, “Do whatever it takes to stay alive. I didn’t come back empty-handed; after dealing with that traitorous friend, I got some information.”

Curious, I quickly asked, “What information? Is it related to me?”

Old Liu nodded, “Everything recently is related to you. Even the friend who deceived me was instructed by someone. I heard from him that your bus fleet’s former captain was captured in a small village in Xiaoshan, Hangzhou.”

Old Wu was captured?!

The news Old Liu brought was like a bolt from the blue. I managed to survive under the director’s clutches because of the leverage Old Wu had with the file folder. Now that Old Wu was captured, am I not in imminent danger?

Old Liu wasn’t an outsider, so I told him everything about Old Wu in detail. He shared my view: Old Wu must be saved!

In this oppressive atmosphere, Xiao Zou called again.

After assuring her of my safety, Xiao Zou said Old Master Zou wanted me to visit. The Bull’s-eye Person came looking for me last night, but wasn’t dealt with, leaving me uneasy. After agreeing, I chatted with Old Liu for a while. Old Liu seemed uninterested in the wooden figure matter and showed no intention of helping, only telling me to arrange things and then visit him at home.

These days, I’ve been overwhelmed with work. With such a major incident at the company, I’ve considered whether the group might directly abolish our Route 13.

I’m not worried, but Xiao Liu is the most troublesome. He has won numerous awards at the company and loves this job as if it’s his life. If there’s no bus to drive, he might be as heartbroken as losing a lover.

After tidying up, I headed straight to Old Master Zou’s woodcarving shop. Things had escalated to this point partly because of me, and now, facing Old Master Zou’s stern expression, I was at a loss for words.

Old Master Zou brought out the leather knife pouch containing the three carving knives and pulled out the one in the middle. He asked, “Are you sure this is the knife you used to carve eyes on the wooden figure?”

I nodded quickly and replied, “Yes, this is the knife. I wasn’t thinking at the time. I’m so sorry, Master Zou. I didn’t mean to.”

Old Master Zou waved his hand dismissively and said, “What’s the use of apologizing now? That creature has been out for a few days already. We need to deal with it quickly.”

Since everything was already out in the open, I decided to confess about the wooden figure with carved eyes that Bun Hairstyle had discarded.

Xiao Zou, who was listening nearby, flew into a rage, looking as if she was ready to tear me apart.

Old Master Zou, however, remained much calmer. He waved his hand and said, “That’s not a problem. I already caught it last night. Now we just need to deal with this creature.”

Hearing that one had been caught, I finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Then, Old Master Zou handed me the carving knife he was holding and said, “Take this knife. It will come looking for you again. When it does, you must kill it immediately with this knife. Otherwise, you’ll be in great danger. Do you understand?”

Not daring to hesitate, I took the carving knife and nodded repeatedly.

Old Master Zou, who was usually cheerful and smiling, was now speaking to me with a stern face, which made me feel uneasy.

After leaving the woodcarving shop, I quickly called Bun Hairstyle to inform him that the wooden figure he had lost had been found by Old Master Zou.

He let out a loud “Oh!” as if a huge burden had been lifted off his shoulders.

Although the Bull’s-eye Person looked terrifying, it wasn’t a ghost or anything supernatural-it was something tangible and visible.

Still, I was worried I wouldn’t be able to handle it alone, so I told Bun Hairstyle to return to the dormitory early tonight.

As night fell, I grew increasingly anxious. My sixth sense told me that the Bull’s-eye Person would definitely show up tonight.

Bun Hairstyle, to his credit, was loyal and returned to the dormitory early to help protect me. The three of us bought some cooked food, sat around the table pretending to drink and chat, waiting for the Bull’s-eye Person to show up.

At first, I thought we were just pretending to drink, but those two actually got into it for real. Before I knew it, they were challenging each other, downing bowls of Baijiu despite my attempts to stop them.

Sure enough, by around ten o’clock, the two of them were swaying unsteadily, their eyes glazed over as they spoke.

Watching them, my heart sank. If the Bull’s-eye Person showed up now, how could I possibly count on these two? Who was supposed to protect whom?

I sighed helplessly. In the end, they still didn’t believe me when I said I had carved a Bull’s-eye Person with my own hands.

But even by eleven o’clock, nothing unusual had happened. Xiao Liu and Bun Hairstyle were already passed out drunk on their beds, snoring loudly.

Had the Bull’s-eye Person not found me?

That made sense. I had probably overestimated its intelligence. After all, it was just a block of wood. It probably couldn’t find me.

I went to the washroom to fetch some water and saw Old Ding rushing downstairs in a hurry, still dressed. I couldn’t help but ask, “Where are you going so late?”

Old Ding replied impatiently, “Old Li got drunk and started fighting with a dog dealer at the company gate.”

I froze for a moment. What a coincidence!

Then I thought, since Xiao Liu and Bun Hairstyle were out of commission, I might as well take advantage of Old Li and Old Ding’s presence to deal with it directly.

I told Old Ding to wait for me, quickly changed my shoes, grabbed the carving knife Old Master Zou had given me, and followed him downstairs in a hurry.

As soon as we reached the courtyard, we could hear Old Li shouting and cursing at the gate. When we got closer, we saw him grappling with a shadowy figure.

Old Li, drunk as he was, was no match for the other person. He was thrown to the ground and kicked repeatedly. Seeing this, Old Ding and I rushed forward. I aimed a flying kick at the figure’s stomach, sending him tumbling backward with a loud “thud.”

He probably hadn’t expected me to strike so hard. Gritting my teeth, I pulled out the carving knife Old Master Zou had given me and advanced toward him step by step.

When Old Li saw me draw the knife, he sobered up instantly and hurriedly grabbed me, saying, “Brother, it’s just a stolen dog. Don’t make this a big deal.”

Unaware of the situation, Old Li tried to stop me, but my mind was made up. I shook off his arm and charged forward, stabbing the Bull’s-eye Person in the back with the knife.

It was my first time stabbing someone. Seeing the blade go in white and come out red, I was so startled that I immediately let go.

Old Li and Old Ding were even more shocked. They rushed over to help the man up. When he turned around, I felt like I had fallen into an abyss-it wasn’t the Bull’s-eye Person. I had stabbed the wrong person!

Wasn’t he a dog dealer? Why wasn’t he the Bull’s-eye Person?

Seeing blood all over him, I stood there trembling, not knowing what to do.

“Get him to the hospital!” Old Li shouted. Old Ding nodded and quickly turned back to the company courtyard to get a car.

I was still in shock when I suddenly looked up and saw a familiar figure standing not far away. Tall and thin-it was the Bull’s-eye Person!

Just when I thought things couldn’t get worse, the Bull’s-eye Person recognized me and started chasing me.

Cursing loudly, I turned and ran.

The Bull’s-eye Person seemed furious. This time, he was running faster than a motorcycle. To lose him, I darted into a community, weaving through the alleys until I ended up in a dead end.

Despairing, I turned to face the monstrous figure with its giant eyes. He was holding a dead dog in one hand, his mouth dripping with blood as he panted heavily.

I suddenly understood why he had been catching dogs everywhere. He wasn’t a dog dealer-he was catching dogs to drink their blood!

The carving knife from Old Master Zou was still stuck in the man I had stabbed earlier. Now, unarmed, I prepared myself for a final fight.

The Bull’s-eye Person’s bloodshot eyes glared at me as he opened his gaping mouth and advanced.

But to my utter astonishment, just as he was about to reach me, he suddenly dropped to his knees with a loud “thud” and said softly, “Can you do me a favor?”