Chapter 39: Wedding, Telling Stories

Perhaps childhood days pass too quickly.

Louis spent another month in the routine of raising dogs, practicing concealment, and attending school; during this time, Emma also played her part well, restoring her image as an exemplary student.

As for Yulencar, as the newest member of the family, with her mother soon to marry David, she now had a home and no longer caused trouble.

Yet at school, she still instinctively built networks, becoming the core of a small group through intimidation, intellect, and candy—seemingly enjoying it greatly.

The other two in the household, Jenny and David, were busy with wedding preparations; although Western weddings were not as elaborate as traditional Chinese ones, there was still much to arrange, fortunately aided by Angela, David’s younger sister.

Only the day before the wedding did David finally finish everything.

On this day, the wedding was held.

Guests, white wedding gowns, black tuxedos.

David took Jenny’s hand and walked slowly into the chapel, ascending the platform under countless gazes.

The priest asked solemn questions, and the two solemnly swore their vows.

Below the stage, Louis, Emma, and Yulencar clapped their hands.

Thus, the family welcomed its new mistress.

…

After the wedding, under David’s deliberate introduction, Louis met several of his friends’ children.

Yes, all were children of small factory owners or farmers—wealthy, but not truly rich—perfectly matching his social tier; they were all older than Louis, yet his maturity completely bridged the age gap, and even through his eloquence, he became the hub of the group.

Yet among these children, one girl stood out as out of place—she dressed plainly and modestly, tightly wrapped herself up, answered questions with only a single word, showed no enthusiasm, yet her gaze constantly lingered on them, faintly tinged with envy.

“Hello?”

“Mm.”

“I’m Louis. You might be nervous, but everyone here is nice—I’m sure no one would bully a shy girl, right, friends?”

The few children he’d just met all smiled.

Even those indifferent to the girl would smile now, under Louis’s words.

“So, could you tell us your name?”

Facing Louis’s smile, the girl looked up. “My name is… Jiali. My mother is a nun… we just moved here. The priest sent me over.”

Louis’s eyes flickered with understanding.

A nun—now that made sense. Since she came with her mother and the priest, she wasn’t connected to David’s circle; as for Jenny’s friends, oddly enough, Jenny had almost none.

“A nun? Do you eat desserts? I heard you have many rules?”

Jiali swallowed.

Before she could speak, Louis had already slipped a small cake into her hand, then began chatting with the older children, occasionally passing out more food, and casually speaking to Jiali, ensuring she wasn’t left on the margins.

Jiali nibbled the cake slowly, savoring the creamy texture and sweet flavor, her eyes closing happily.

The cake was soon gone, yet she dared not take another—fearful, she only stared longingly at Louis.

???

Louis was curious about her family—seemed strictly controlled—but he had no intention of digging deeper.

On this peculiar land, it was better not to be too curious—he didn’t want to encounter demons someday; that would be terrible.

So he casually handed her another cake, asking nothing about her circumstances.

Jiali took it and continued nibbling slowly, happy as a hamster; halfway through, she reluctantly tucked the remaining half back into the box, clearly planning to take it home for later.

Meanwhile, Louis was listening intently to the boy before him.

“My family just took over a farm with an abandoned graveyard. There’s a scary story about it: the former farmer, missing his wife so much, stitched a scarecrow from straw, bones, and cloth, living with it daily to ease his grief—until one day, the scarecrow came alive!”

“It had branches that grew freely, a body impervious to blades, and a shape vaguely human!”

“Many were terrified and refused to go near his farm.”

“And then?”

“Then the farmer vanished. The graveyard was abandoned, and only now has my father taken over the farm—but the graveyard still feels eerie, and Dad never lets me go near it. I think the story’s true.”

“Pfft, that story’s not scary at all. Seriously, haha.”

“Then tell us one!”

“Fine, I will.”

“It’s about a cursed golden arm—a story told by a Black worker. Supposedly, in Michigan, there was a family… the woman adored beauty, loved gold jewelry…”

The boy described vividly: the man with the golden arm would be hunted by a female ghost, cruel and brutal, often hacking victims apart with an axe, her appearance grotesque—half-decayed flesh, oozing sores, revolting to behold.

Everyone’s eyelids twitched; they were thoroughly spooked.

But Louis found it dull—this kind of visual horror lacked flavor; if such a thing suddenly appeared now, maybe it’d deliver a shock.

Bored, Louis yawned, picked up a Häagen-Dazs, and ate it. When the boy finished, he felt inspired and told them a story—the tale of the Monkey’s Paw.

“Everyone in this world has desires. Have you ever imagined something that could grant wishes?”

“….”

Louis began his dramatic, chilling tale for the children.

At that moment, a young woman in black stepped from backstage, glanced at Jiali, then at Louis and the boys beside her—her gaze sharpened with caution, her voice cold: “Let’s go.”

Jiali looked longingly at Louis and the cake in his hand, but followed obediently.

When Louis turned back, Jiali had already left with her mother.

Night fell.

Louis, Emma, and Yulencar stayed home, with Angela cooking.

Compared to David’s lavish meals, Angela’s were simple.

Angela rolled her eyes. “Don’t look at me—I can only make this. Wait a bit—if they’re not going on a honeymoon, David’ll be back in a couple days to cook for you.”

Where was David tonight?

Hmm. A love hotel.

It would be a wonderful night.

(End of Chapter)