The setting sun slowly cast its light on the ordinary small village.
A black SUV, covered in dust, stopped by the roadside.
The car door opened.
Lu Fei got out of the car, holding a small black dog.
"Finally, we're here."
He looked around, took a deep breath, put down the small black dog, and stretched his somewhat stiff arms.
Since the days are longer now, there is still some time before it gets dark after the sun sets, so there's plenty of time to get to that couple's house.
"Sir, may I ask you, where is Brother Huang Youlai's house?"
After the small black dog had finished its business, Lu Fei walked into the village to inquire.
"Who?"
The old man held a cigarette between his fingers, tilted his ear, and asked in a gruff voice.
"Huang Youlai!" Lu Fei raised his voice.
"Oh, Youlai's house! It's over there, that dilapidated earthen house. His family has been working in the city for so many years, and they haven't even built a new house!"
The old man pointed in a certain direction casually.
"Thanks, sir."
Lu Fei gave the old man a cigarette. He himself didn't smoke, but he would carry a pack when he went out to run errands; it made it easier to talk to people and get things done.
Walking further into the village, he soon saw a dilapidated earthen house.
Most of the houses in the village had been replaced with multi-story buildings, making this one earthen house seem out of place.
The courtyard gate was wide open, and there was a quietness inside, with weeds growing in the corners.
"Is anyone here?"
"Sister Huang, are you at home?"
Lu Fei called out as he walked into the courtyard.
There was no response.
Seeing the door to the house open, he went over to take a look.
"Aunt Huang?"
The room was also empty. Lu Fei searched everywhere, inside and out, but there was no sign of anyone. However, the backpack and other luggage were on the cabinet.
Moreover, Lu Fei did not see the red cloth shoes.
"That's strange! The door is open, but no one is here."
Lu Fei took out his phone and called the other party. The ringtone came from the yard.
"The phone fell on the ground?!"
Lu Fei was taken aback, walked over, and picked up an old, outdated phone from the ground.
The screen displayed his own number.
"Did they leave in a hurry, not even noticing that the phone had fallen? I hope nothing bad has happened," Lu Fei had a bad feeling.
With both the person and the red cloth shoes missing, it was hard not to have unsettling thoughts.
Looking around, he exited the courtyard and found the old man at the village entrance.
"Old man, Huang Youlai and the others aren't at home. Do you know where they went?"
"Them? They left before noon." The old man had a cigarette given by Lu Fei stuck behind his ear, and his breath reeked of strong tobacco.
Lu Fei widened his eyes: "Why didn't you tell me this when I asked you just now?"
"Didn't you ask me where their house was just now?" The old man looked completely serious.
Lu Fei was speechless.
"So where did they go exactly?"
"It looked like they were heading in the direction of the old school. That building has been in ruins for years; I wonder what they're up to." The old man pointed in the direction and extended his hand towards Lu Fei.
"Thanks."
This time, Lu Fei didn't offer a cigarette. He thanked the old man and left.
He walked quickly, worried that the red cloth shoes would cause a fatal accident.
After leaving the village and crossing a small hill, Lu Fei saw two rows of abandoned classrooms huddled under the dense camphor trees by the roadside.
"Aunt Huang, it's Lu Fei, are you here?"
Lu Fei hurried over.
The little black dog always stayed by his feet, never straying in unfamiliar places, leaving its scent along the way as they walked.
Outside the classrooms, the ground was covered with camphor tree fruits, which, when stepped on, would burst like ink, leaving clear marks.
"There are footprints!"
Lu Fei noticed two sets of black footprints on the ground.
The shoe sizes were small, appearing to be from women, and they stretched from outside all the way into the classrooms.
"Aunt Huang?"
Lu Fei followed the footprints and pushed open the door of the classroom.
The classroom was covered in spider webs, and the desks and chairs were long gone.
Because it was empty, Lu Fei immediately saw two people walking along the walls of the classroom, one after the other.
"Big Brother Huang, Big Sister Huang!"
It was indeed the couple, Huang Youlai and his wife.
At that moment, they had a blank expression and stiff movements, showing no response to Lu Fei's calls, as if they only knew how to move forward.
They did not stop for a moment.
This state clearly indicated that they were possessed!
"Red cloth shoes!"
Lu Fei squinted his eyes and saw that each of them was wearing a red cloth shoe on their feet.
Men to the left, women to the right.
The red cloth shoes were a woman's size, but at this moment, they fit perfectly on Huang Youlai, a man, as if he had small feet. The contrast between his broad body and dainty little feet was striking and eerie.
As if Huang Youlai had a pair of small feet, the burly physique and delicate small feet formed a stark contrast, making it especially weird.
"Save them first!"
Lu Fei stepped forward, took out two ghost-repelling talismans, and placed one each on the foreheads of the two people.
"Pardon!"
With his low shout, their bodies stiffened, and the talismans turned to ashes.
"The malevolent qi is strong!" Lu Fei raised an eyebrow slightly.
After a couple of seconds.
The couple opened their eyes one after another, looking confused for a moment before suddenly showing expressions of pain.
"Ouch, my foot hurts..."
The two of them grimaced in pain, staggered a few steps, and then fell to the ground, clutching their feet in the red cloth shoes and yelling out in pain.
"Pain! It really hurts!"
"Don't panic! Hurry up and take off your shoes!"
Lu Fei shouted a reminder, but the two were in so much pain that they couldn't muster the strength.
He quickly put on gloves and went to help them take off their shoes. But the shoes seemed to be glued to their feet; when Lu Fei pulled hard, they screamed in even greater pain.
"This is so fierce?"
Lu Fei frowned and infused his hands with magic power.
This time, the red cloth shoes came off with just a gentle tug.
The couple panted heavily, drenched in cold sweat.
"Manager Lu, you're here...what, what's going on, why are we in the old school..." Hu Xiuying looked around the dilapidated classroom with surprise and fear.
"I was just about to ask you the same thing. Didn't you say the shoes were on your elder brother's feet? Why are you wearing them, Aunt Huang?" Lu Fei carefully examined the pair of red cloth shoes.
The surface of the shoes was a dark red, each embroidered with a mandarin duck on either side.
"I don't know."
Hu Xiuying's face turned as white as a sheet.
"After I called you, I was waiting for you at home, and suddenly, my head started buzzing, and then I knew nothing..."
"Husband, do you know what's going on? Didn't you put the shoes away....."
She gave Huang Youlai a push.
Huang Youlai shook his head blankly, looking completely lost.
"Forget it, it must be these shoes playing tricks. Let's go back first."
As the sky outside the window grew darker, Lu Fei found a plastic bag and put the red cloth shoes in it.
Hu Xiu-ying rubbed her foot, got up first, and then went to help her husband up.
"Ow! No, my foot hurts too much!"
Who knew that as Huang You-lai moved, he clutched his foot in pain and cried out, unable to stand up at all.
"Oh no, why is your foot getting smaller and smaller?" Hu Xiu-ying's face changed immediately when she saw this.
She took off the red cloth shoe.
Huang You-lai's foot did not return to its original size.
One foot was large, and the other was small!