A long time ago, when Cai Meiwen was still in junior high school, her family had a puppy. She didn't want to raise it, but one day when she came home from school, she saw a puppy in the house. Her parents explained that it was her aunt's dog. Because they had moved to the sixth floor, it was too tiring to climb the stairs and walk the dog every day, so they didn't want to raise it anymore. They came to ask if they wanted to raise it, and if they didn't, they would send it to the countryside.
Her parents saw that the puppy was strange and clever, and they didn't want to waste a free deal, so they kept it. Anyway, her aunt said that dogs were easy to raise, and they could feed it with leftovers. It could also help to look after the house.
At that time, the pet industry in China did not exist in the real sense. Everyone raised pets blindly, lacking the relevant knowledge and channels to understand the relevant knowledge. It was not like now, where one could find out everything just by searching on the Internet … Moreover, most people were not well-off at that time. Even cats were fed with leftovers, let alone dogs.
At that time, Cai Meiwen … was probably in the rebellious stage of puberty. She had a strong sense of rebellion, and she didn't like her parents and teachers. She hung out with her best friends all day, dyeing her hair, smoking, wearing lipstick, piercing her ears, skipping classes, swearing … She was a very problematic girl.
Whether it was Little Celery or Zhang Zian, or anyone who knew Cai Meiwen now, it was absolutely impossible for them to imagine what she looked like at that time. Even she sometimes dreamed of herself at that time, and when she woke up, she would also wonder who the strange girl was. Was she possessed by a fox spirit or Huang Daxian?
In fact, this was also very normal. People's personalities would change, or it could be said that people originally had a variety of personalities, it was just that they focused on one of them at different times. Weren't many people's personalities different in reality and on the Internet?
In short, at that time, even Cai Meiwen's parents didn't like her, and of course, she didn't like the uninvited dog. As for the reason … Did a rebellious teenager need a reason?
If she had to find a reason, it might be that her living space had been invaded. After all, her house was not big. It had two bedrooms and one living room, which was very common at that time. The layout was so bad that it made people wonder if the designer's head had been clamped by a dog's leg. The walls and doors were as thin as paper. At night, there were often sounds that should not be heard. Of course, it was the sound of her parents sighing for a problematic girl like her.
Cai Meiwen entered the door and saw the puppy. She was furious and immediately flew into a rage. "Why didn't you discuss with me about getting a dog?" Am I not a member of this family? I don't agree to keep a dog. Send it back to where it came from!
Her parents were in a difficult position. Her aunt had already left for a long time, and they had already promised her. How could they go back on their word? So they didn't agree. Instead, they told her how cute this puppy was and that she should keep it to relieve her boredom.
She didn't want to keep a pet at all, and she didn't like this dog. Although she didn't know the breed of dogs at that time, she could tell that it was a mixed breed and didn't look expensive at all. That was true. With her aunt's poverty, how could they raise an expensive dog? How could they give it away for free?
The dog was also frightened by her thunderous voice. It shrank under the coffee table and didn't dare to come out. This made her even more disdainful … Of course, if the dog wasn't afraid of her voice and bravely barked at her a few times, she would have even more reason to send it away. Anyway, as long as she didn't like it, there would always be a reason.
She angrily returned to her bedroom, slammed the door, and fiercely picked up her schoolbag and threw it on her bed to vent her dissatisfaction.
Her parents were used to her like this. They kept sighing outside. When she was a child, she was such a cute and well-behaved girl. How did she grow up to be like this? Where did she learn this from? What should she do in the future?
Cai Meiwen pressed a pillow against her head. She didn't want those cliché nonsense to flow into her ears. She didn't even hear them calling her to eat.
What should she do in the future? Of course, in the future, she would live a happy life. She didn't want to live like them for the rest of their lives!
She was deeply influenced by the newspaper stands selling pirated books from Hong Kong and Taiwan at the entrance of the school. Immersed in unrealistic fantasies about the future, she slowly fell asleep with an illusory image of herself getting whatever she wanted in her mind.
She didn't know how long it had been before she woke up hungry.
She got up from the bed. It was dark outside, and the room was dark.
She turned on the light and sleepily walked out of the bedroom.
"Mom, I'm hungry!"
No one responded.
The living room and the master bedroom were also dark. Only the moonlight shone in from the balcony.
She turned on the living room light and saw a note on the dining table.
Her parents had gone to work the night shift. They left her a message telling her to leave the dinner in the pot and to heat it up before eating. She shouldn't eat cold food because it would spoil her stomach. They also told her to lock the door after she woke up and to go to bed early after dinner. It was all cliché. There was nothing new.
Her father was a factory worker and worked three shifts. Her mother was a nurse in the hospital and often had to work the night shift. It was not unusual for them to go to work on the same day.
At that time, the incandescent lamp consumed a lot of electricity. Coupled with the fact that life was not rich, it was not like now, when there was no one at home, they would turn off the lights when they went out.
She threw the note away and yawned as she walked into the kitchen to prepare for dinner.
The kitchen lights were not turned on, but there was moonlight. After all, it was a home that she was very familiar with. She wouldn't get lost even if she closed her eyes. She could feel where things were in the dark.
She opened the lid of the pressure cooker. There was a steamer inside. One layer was rice, and the other layer was vegetables. But because it had been left for too long, it was already cold.
She was young and in good health, so she ignored her parents' warnings. She thought it was troublesome to heat the food, so she took the food out and planned to eat it cold.
Compared to this, she had been thinking about what to play tonight. Of course, she couldn't do homework. It would be too embarrassing to do homework. How about talking on the phone with her best friend?
At that time, the phone bill was more expensive. Her family only had one landline phone. Because she always talked on the phone, the monthly phone bill was very high. Her parents had warned her that if she talked on the phone again, they would dismantle the phone.
She thought about other things while absent-mindedly taking out the bowls and chopsticks from the cupboard. As soon as she turned around and took a step, her ankle rubbed against something furry.
"Ah ah ah ah ah!"
She screamed and threw the bowls and chopsticks in her hand. They shattered on the ground.
That thing was also shocked and quickly ran out of the kitchen. Only then did she see that it was the puppy. She had forgotten about it after sleeping.
"Stupid dog! Why did you scare me! "she shouted angrily.
The puppy retreated under the coffee table, only showing its head and looking at her in fear.
The bowl was broken on the ground. It was not an empty bowl. It was filled with rice and vegetables. She had planned to watch TV while eating, but now it was all on the floor.
Fortunately, her parents left more food than usual today. There was still food in the pot, so she was not hungry.
"I will deal with you when I am full!" She stared at it fiercely.
She filled another bowl of food, brought it to the living room, turned on the TV, and ate while watching TV. She threw the empty bowl on the table, waiting for her parents to come back from work to clean it up.
As for the broken bowl and the food on the floor, she certainly did not care.
Soon, she was immersed in the world of martial arts and variety shows. She was fascinated. She giggled while watching, or she was smitten with handsome male stars.
At about ten o 'clock in the evening, the TV series and variety shows were over. She was thirsty, so she stood up from the sofa to get a glass of water.
At that time, she suddenly saw that the leftovers on the floor had disappeared. It had almost disappeared completely.
The puppy licked its lips and looked at her with satisfaction.
"Tsk! This dog got lucky! "
She curled her lips. This was good, at least when her parents came home tomorrow, they would complain less.
She went to the kitchen to get a glass of water. It followed her into the kitchen, staring at the glass in her hand, as if it was thirsty.
She gulped down the glass of cold water, ignoring its sad eyes.
Woo ~
At that moment, it whimpered and turned to stare in the direction of the door.
The TV was still on, and the sound was quite loud. Cai Meiwen did not notice anything unusual, so she ignored the dog. After drinking the water, she sat back on the sofa and changed the channel in boredom.
After 10: 30 at night, there were no interesting programs. She changed all the TV stations she could get, and the boring programs made her sleepy.
Forget it, she would call her best friend. It should be okay to call less.
The phone was also in the living room, not far from the TV. She had to turn off the TV or turn down the volume to make a phone call, otherwise she would not be able to hear what was said.
She turned off the TV, picked up the phone, and was about to dial when she suddenly noticed that the puppy was still staring at the door, occasionally wagging its tail and looking at her, then continuing to stare at the door.
"Is this dog stupid?" She sneered. "You don't want to stay in this house? You want to run back to your original home? Okay, then I'll let you out! "
She slapped her forehead. She was so angry that she was confused. How could she have thought of such a great idea?
She could open the door and let it go. She could tell her parents that it ran away through the crack of the door when she opened the door for school. Wouldn't that be easy to get rid of it?
She immediately walked to the door, intending to open the door and drive it away.
When her parents went to work, they locked the door from the inside. However, the lock at that time was relatively simple, and it was useless in the eyes of people who knew how to pick a lock, unlike now, where there were more than B-grade locks, so they told her to put the bolt in after waking up as double insurance.
Woo woo ~
The puppy seemed a little restless, and kept turning in circles.
Her hand had reached the lock, and she was about to twist it.
Woof!
The puppy, which had not barked since entering the house, suddenly barked at the door.
Outside the door was a corridor, and they lived in the factory's residential area.
The voice-activated light outside the door lit up, and there seemed to be a black shadow in the door mirror. Then a series of footsteps hurriedly walked down the stairs and disappeared.
Cai Meiwen did not put her eyes on the door mirror at that time, so she did not see what the black shadow was. However, her heart instinctively trembled, and cold sweat seeped out of her palms. Her palms unconsciously moved to the bolt, and instead of unlocking it, she gently inserted the bolt.
She was rebellious, but she was not stupid, and she would also be afraid.
Judging from the height of the door mirror and the ground, the black shadow could only be a person.
Who had walked past?
Her house lived on the fourth floor, and there were two more floors above. The people living upstairs and downstairs were all factory workers and their families. Because of the three-shift work system, it was common for people to go out or go home in the middle of the night.
So the black shadow just now was probably just a neighbor who went out for the night shift and happened to pass by her door.
The problem was that when people went up and down the stairs at night, they would usually stomp or cough to wake up the voice-activated light, so that they would not miss the stairs. However, she did not hear the person cough or stomp.
Of course, it was also possible that she did not hear the person stomp because the TV was on, and the person happened to pass by her door when the voice-activated light went off, and the dog's barking woke up the voice-activated light. This seemed to be a reasonable explanation.
But what if it was not?
She suddenly shivered. While she was watching TV and laughing, could it be that the person had been quietly waiting at the door, standing in the dark, listening to the movements in the room?
Excluding the situation of temporary shifts, the schedule of the factory was public, and anyone could see it. The nurse's night shift also had a certain pattern, so someone could actually know when her parents went out, when they came home, and which day they would work at the same time. Even the working hours of the neighbors upstairs and downstairs could be roughly known.
Speaking of that era, people often reminisced about how sweet the fruits were and how simple life was. In fact, that was not the case at all. The security situation back then was much worse than it was now. However, because there was no internet, the information was blocked, and the information was blocked. Even if there was a major murder, not many people knew about it. Everyone thought that they were living in a peaceful world, and they did not know to be vigilant.
Cai Meiwen was the same. Growing up, she had never come into contact with any danger. In her mind, the people in this building were all like flies and dogs that she looked down on. That night, for the first time, she was afraid of the quiet night, afraid of being alone.
She usually wished that her parents could go to work 24 hours, so that they could cook for her. She did not have to stay at home and be an eyesore. But now, she was dying for them to come home.
She stared at the door. The door mirror was dark again, and the voice-activated light was off. The corridor was dark.
If she suddenly coughed and woke up the voice-activated light, would she see … a ferocious face in the door mirror?
She stepped back step by step, afraid to make the slightest sound.
Crunch.
Her slippers stepped on a broken bowl, making a soft sound.
The sound was too soft, and the searchlight was not that sensitive.
Woo ~
Her ankle rubbed against something furry. It was the little dog.
It seemed to relax, licking its lips and staring at her, looking at the kitchen from time to time.
"…"
She tiptoed into the kitchen and filled a saucer with water for him.
It licked the water and wagged its tail.
At least for tonight, she did not plan to let it out.
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