The crocodiles seemed to be moving.
Zong Hang’s temples throbbed with anxiety, his words becoming jumbled: “Y-you need to save her!”
Yi Xiao stood like an ancient tree, completely motionless.
Zong Hang, at his wit’s end, shouted toward Jing Xiu: “Jing Xiu, swim! Swim quickly!”
It was terrible – Jing Xiu’s swimming ability appeared mediocre, and combined with her extreme fright, although she hadn’t sunk, she was merely treading water in place. Mixed with the splashing sounds were her terrified, hysterical sobs.
Zong Hang was so panicked his eardrums felt like they would burst. His eyes darted around frantically, unable to keep up with everything he needed to see: no poles, no ropes, flies buzzing around the pig lung bucket, and two crocodiles had already entered the water…
In this deadly panic, only Yi Xiao remained detached: “Why don’t you go?”
Zong Hang shouted: “I can’t swim!”
“You slept underwater for so many days, how can you still be afraid of water?”
She added indifferently: “If you don’t want to go, that’s fine, but remember, she’s the one who gave me your phone number.”
Zong Hang couldn’t care less about what she was saying: more and more crocodiles were entering the water, and the first two seemed to be getting closer to Jing Xiu. She was swimming with all her might, but couldn’t match the crocodile’s speed. In another moment, she would be fought over and torn apart by the crocodiles…
Yi Xiao clearly couldn’t be counted on. Zong Hang steeled himself, rushed to the edge of the platform, grabbed the pig lung bucket, and hurled it as far as he could to the right.
The bucket full of pig lungs traced an arc through the air, trailing a bloody scent before splashing into the water piece by piece. Zong Hang slapped the empty bucket’s bottom hard: “Over here! Over here!”
He hugged the bucket, backed up a few steps, then charged forward and jumped into the pool from the opposite side. As soon as he hit the water, he held the bucket with his left arm and frantically paddled with his right, his legs kicking wildly like he’d seen on TV, dog-paddling toward Jing Xiu’s position.
Strangely enough, though he could never learn to swim before – always gulping water as soon as he got in, to the point where his instructor joked he must be a reincarnation of Jingwei, who failed to fill the sea in her previous life and changed strategies in this one to try drinking it dry – now suddenly swimming didn’t seem so difficult. Each kick felt like stepping on solid ground, propelling his whole body forward.
It must have been the extreme panic that made him finally get it.
Yi Xiao bent down to pick up the crocodile prod from the ground but didn’t stand up, instead crouching at the edge of the platform, squinting with interest as she watched the situation between people and crocodiles in the pool.
Being animals, they were very sensitive to the smell of blood, and at local farms, they were used to being fed pig lungs – they knew food was coming. Most changed direction, racing eagerly toward where the pig lungs had fallen. One person and a group of crocodiles passed each other going opposite directions with some distance between them, with almost no crocodile willing to waste effort pursuing Zong Hang instead of the pig lungs.
Only the first two that had entered the water, already within arm’s reach of Jing Xiu, didn’t change course – it would have been a waste to give up when so close.
Jing Xiu had no “brightness” in her eyes and couldn’t see clearly, but crocodiles’ eyes glow at night, like two small blue lamps floating on the surface. When she saw several glowing points moving eerily closer, she screamed in terror.
Zong Hang shouted: “Don’t be afraid! Jing Xiu! Hit them! Hit their eyes!”
He was very close now, just a couple more strokes…
Jing Xiu gritted her teeth, knowing the situation was desperate – she had to fight even if it meant losing a hand or flesh: she clenched her right fist, raised it, and was about to strike hard when the two nearest glowing points suddenly disappeared.
Jing Xiu’s mind went blank for a moment before she realized: they had opened their mouths, the crocodiles had opened their mouths!
Meanwhile, the large group of crocodiles had reached the pig’s lungs and instantly fell into a feeding frenzy, lunging out of the water, tearing, shaking, and thrashing. White spray flew in all directions as if the water was boiling, with some droplets spraying high enough to hit Yi Xiao’s face.
Yi Xiao remained crouching without moving, using it as background noise while keeping her eyes fixed on the center of the pool.
She saw the crocodile nearest to Jing Xiu lunge forward, jaws wide open…
In that split second, Zong Hang’s mind exploded. Without thinking, he let out a great roar, raised the iron bucket high, aimed, and slammed it down over the crocodile.
The crocodile was caught completely off guard, trapped perfectly under the bucket. The handle got caught on something, and it couldn’t shake free for a moment. As it twisted and rolled furiously in the water, the water surged and swelled, which helped provide momentum. Zong Hang grabbed Jing Xiu and had just turned around when another crocodile snapped at them from the side.
They couldn’t delay any longer – there wasn’t enough pig lung to go around, and if those beasts worked up an appetite and they hadn’t made it to shore before then…
Zong Hang shuddered, remembering Yi Xiao’s words about how “crocodiles have tremendous biting force but very weak jaw-opening strength,” and steeled himself to take the risk.
He slipped his body to the side of the crocodile’s mouth, wrapped his right arm around to clamp its jaws shut like a barrel hoop, raised his left fist, and started hammering wildly at its eyes and nostrils while urging Jing Xiu: “Quick, quick, go…”
The crocodile thrashed in pain, its claws raking across his ribs. Zong Hang’s body contracted in pain as he felt the area become hot and stinging. Knowing he was bleeding and worried the scent would attract more crocodiles, he quickly withdrew his hands and continued dog-paddling, pursuing Jing Xiu with all his might.
Behind them, one crocodile was thrashing in rage under the bucket while the other, its vulnerable spots struck, was going berserk. They unexpectedly collided and, for whatever reason, seemed to view each other as mortal enemies, instantly becoming entangled in combat.
Zong Hang was extremely tense, his mind filled with nothing but the urgent word “hurry.” After a few strokes he caught up with Jing Xiu, and finding her too slow, pulled and dragged her along. They finally reached the steps at the edge of the concrete platform, his entire body trembling as he desperately pushed her up: “Quick, quick…”
Jing Xiu was already half-paralyzed with fear, and after all that exertion her limbs had no strength. Her pace was far from satisfying him, but Zong Hang, though desperate with anxiety, could do nothing about it. Suddenly he heard water splashing and looked back – every hair on his body stood on end.
Perhaps the pig’s lungs were gone, or perhaps his injury made the smell of human blood more enticing – the small group of crocodiles that had been drawn away by the pig’s lungs was now approaching menacingly. Among the dark mass, countless pairs of eyes glowed, and the lead crocodile suddenly leaped up from the water…
Zong Hang had thought that being over a meter above the water’s surface would provide some security, but seeing the crocodile’s trajectory, he realized it could easily jump two or three meters, bite him, and drag him back down.
At that moment, Yi Xiao suddenly leaned down from above, grabbed Jing Xiu’s arm, and lifted her into the air.
With the path finally clear, Zong Hang climbed up at the fastest speed of his life, almost springing upward. In his panic, one foot slipped and seemed to step on a crocodile’s upturned snout.
That step made his mind explode – using both hands and feet like an escaping centipede, he quickly flipped onto the platform surface, forgot to stop, and rolled down the steps.
With that final tumble landing on his back, Zong Hang lay motionless, breathing heavily, feeling for the first time how dear the earth was.
When he died, he wanted to be buried in the ground – if not sharing the same fur in life, at least sharing the same grave in death.
After a long while, there was finally movement above – Yi Xiao came down with a flashlight, the beam swaying left and right before shining directly on his face.
The light was too harsh. Zong Hang wanted to block it with his hand, but his arm was too weak to lift, so he had to let his vision gradually turn white and hazy.
Yi Xiao’s voice floated down through this whiteness.
“Such good luck – these crocodiles were all too small.”
On the way back, Jing Xiu cleaned his wounds with iodine and did simple bandaging to stop the bleeding. The crocodile’s claws were indeed sharp, but fortunately, the wounds weren’t deep – none had reached the bone.
Zong Hang thought that with injuries like these, he should at least go to the hospital for a tetanus shot. But back at the hotel, Yi Xiao simply instructed Jing Xiu to draw water, telling Zong Hang to spend the night in it.
Jing Xiu remained silent, her scattered hair still dripping wet, not even changing her clothes as she accompanied Zong Hang to the bathroom to help him draw the water and support him into it.
Blood seeped through the bandages, tinting the tub water a light red. The cold water seeped into his torn flesh, making Zong Hang’s scalp go numb with pain.
Jing Xiu crouched by the bathtub, watching the water ripple. Then, like a leaf in the autumn wind, she suddenly started trembling uncontrollably.
Her mind had been numb the whole way, and only now did the terror finally catch up with her.
There was quite a bit of spitfire in her nature, and she had an impulse to rush up to Yi Xiao, throw that persimmon-colored gold at her, and shout: “I’m fucking done with this!”
To earn more money, she was willing to endure hardship, but she had never agreed to risk her life!
But this impulse always fell just short of breaking through: she had been thoroughly frightened by Yi Xiao’s kick.
This woman had always seemed reasonable, readily paying good money to hire her to take care of Zong Hang, to the point where Jing Xiu had almost forgotten that she had a fierce face.
Zong Hang was also quite uncomfortable. After a moment of silence, he said: “Jing Xiu, don’t worry. I’ll talk to her. I can move and walk now and can do things by myself. I don’t need care anymore. I’ll ask her to let you go.”
Jing Xiu sniffled: “It’s impossible, Zong Hang. Think about what kind of person she is… it’s impossible.”
She paused, then laughed self-mockingly: “It’s my fault too. I thought things would be too easy. Two hundred thousand US dollars – did I think I could get that just by being a caregiver, without breaking a sweat?”
“Never mind, we’ll take it one step at a time. Looking on the bright side, at least she bent down to pull me up at the last moment.”
Speaking of this, she looked up at Zong Hang, her eyes suddenly reddening: “I haven’t thanked you yet. I thought I was going to die back there. I never expected you’d jump in to save me.”
Zong Hang smiled sheepishly: “It wasn’t… don’t think I was too selfless. I was scared too, but then I suddenly thought…”
He lowered his voice: “She went to such great lengths and spent so much money to hire you to take care of me – two hundred thousand US dollars! Could it just be to fatten me up as crocodile food? I bet she definitely wouldn’t watch me die… Clever of me, right?”
Jing Xiu wanted to laugh, but tears came first.
Zong Hang didn’t know what to say again. After a while, he comforted her: “It’s okay. I’ll be more careful in the future. I won’t let her… bully you like that again. We’re friends, we’re on the same side. If anything happens, I’ll help you. I keep my word.”
He raised his dripping-wet fist toward her.
Jing Xiu understood. Wiping her eyes, she also raised her fist and bumped it against his.
Some promises need a bit of ceremony when spoken – as if doing this made them weighty and substantial, no longer floating away like feathers.
Zong Hang said: “We need to be smarter from now on, be more wary of her. If anything seems wrong, we’ll let each other know… Hey, Jing Xiu, do you think I was impressive today?”
His previous words had been serious, showing maturity beyond his years, but this last question suddenly revealed his youth – despite suffering so much, his expression showed traces of childish pride.
Jing Xiu burst out laughing. She jerked her head toward the door: “Aren’t you angry at how she acted? And does your wound hurt?”
He was angry, and it did hurt, but he had something else on his mind.
That bucket of pig lungs must have been quite heavy – on the way to the crocodile pool, it had taken both that man and the driver to carry it, but when he picked it up and threw it, it hadn’t felt particularly difficult.
Also, he couldn’t swim, but after entering the water, he managed to lift the iron bucket, restrain a crocodile beat it, and drag Jing Xiu to safety. These things would have been tiring enough on land, let alone in water – how had he done it?
More importantly…
“Did you see how I subdued it?”
It was a crocodile, after all.
Jing Xiu said: “It was pitch dark, and I was nearly scared to death, only thinking about escaping. We were just lucky to have that bucket of pig lungs, otherwise we’d be sleeping in crocodile stomachs tonight… I couldn’t pay attention to anything else.”
She hadn’t seen it. Zong Hang felt a bit disappointed.
He had rarely been so cool.
Perhaps because he was too tired, Zong Hang slept very deeply, and should have been able to sleep until dawn—
In the middle of the night, he suddenly heard the gurgling sound of draining water.
When he startled awake, he realized it wasn’t a dream – the bathtub plug had been pulled out, and the water was swirling down the drain. Zong Hang climbed up, dripping wet, and saw a chair had been placed beside the bathtub.
Yi Xiao sat in the chair, like a cold, hard piece of old wood, even smelling like wood – the kind rotting in mud.
Her eyelids were lowered as she looked at a white paper she was slowly rolling in her hands. Her gaze was distant and scattered. On the closed toilet lid beside her were a pen and a cardboard calendar.
The date “7.17” was marked prominently on the calendar, just as Jing Xiu had said.
Yi Xiao asked: “Do you know about the Three Surnames of Water Ghosts?”
Zong Hang shook his head.
“Then what do you think it is? It’s okay, tell me what you think. I’m quite curious how outsiders view it.”
Zong Hang hesitated, thinking his understanding should be roughly correct: “In ghost stories, those people who drowned… became ghosts, water ghosts.”
“Three incense sticks… when the living offer incense to the dead, don’t they offer three sticks? So the dead must respond three times…”
Yi Xiao looked up at him, her expression a bit strange.
Zong Hang felt uneasy but had to finish: “Three letters, expressing their… reluctance… to leave the mortal world…”
Yi Xiao couldn’t help but laugh loudly.
Her laugh sounded a bit like crying, both hands covering her face, her thin shoulders shaking up and down, the paper in her hand getting crumpled.
After a while, she finally caught her breath and said: “Idiot.”
After saying this, she took the calendar board, spread the white paper on it to smooth it out, and began drawing lines with the pen.
The first line was shaped like the character “几”. Anyone who has studied elementary school geography should recognize this outline.
The Yellow River.
Yi Xiao wrote the character “丁” at the end of the Yellow River.
The second line started meandering and winding, but halfway through, Zong Hang recognized the “W” shape.
The Yangtze River.
At its end, she wrote the character “姜”.
The third line wound its way down, and Zong Hang couldn’t recognize it: his geography was mediocre, he only knew there were many great rivers in southwestern China – the Nu River, Jinsha River, Lancang River…
This one seemed too long, couldn’t fit within national borders, as if it extended abroad.
He suddenly realized.
The Lancang-Mekong River?
At the river’s end, she had written the character “易” – her surname Yi.