"Bao Mu, let me take you home," said the first person, reaching out to grab one of Jin San's arms.

  "Bao Mu, I know that incident was a huge shock for you, but it's all in the past now. You should try to move on," said the second person, grabbing his other arm.

  "Bao Mu, I'll have my wife send some food to you. You should just go home and rest," said the third person, steadying Jin San's back.

  "Bao Mu, we've been friends for many years. You really should listen to your friends," said the fourth person, stepping in front of Jin San.

  "You all..." Before Jin San could make sense of the situation, the four people simultaneously lifted him off the ground, and the crowd parted to make way.

  "What are you doing? What do you want?" Jin San panicked and struggled, but the four people’s grips were firm, and he couldn't break free.

  "Boss Mo, it seems Bao Mu has lost his mind. Please don't be upset."

  "A madman is a madman. I think we should let Mr. Shen give him a few more injections."

  ………………..

  The voices had already faded, and Jin San found himself back in the room that belonged to Bao Mu.

  "Bao Mu, you should eat something. I can see you're definitely hungry," said the third person, handing him the food his wife had just brought. Without raising his head, Jin San began eating. He was indeed hungry, especially after emptying his stomach, and his gut felt completely hollow.

  "Ah, poor thing, truly poor thing," sighed the second person.

  "Bao Mu, you need to pull yourself together," the fourth person tried to comfort him.

  "Bao Mu, you should..."

  "Wait a minute, can you tell me who you are?" Before the first person could finish speaking, Jin San couldn't help but interrupt.

  This time, all four of them sighed at the same time. They exchanged gnces, then, in unison, turned to Jin San and said, "We are your four best friends."

  "My friends?" Jin San looked at the four people in front of him with suspicion.

  The four of them all showed expressions of disappointment, but it seemed they quickly recovered. The first person stepped forward and said, "My name is Tian Qizi."

  The second person stepped forward and said, "My name is Wang Xianzi."

  The third person stepped forward and said, "I'm Song Zhu."

  The fourth person stepped forward and said, "I'm Bai Donggua."

  Now Jin San finally recognized them. He softly said, "I really am not Bao Mu. I wasn't supposed to be here. But suddenly, a woman appeared, and she gave me a mallet, and then..."

  "Ah, Bao Mu, don't say anymore," Bai Donggua patted Jin San's shoulder. "We just hope that when you wake up tomorrow, you'll be back to normal."

  "But I really am not Bao Mu! I might look a lot like him, but how else would Bao Mu's wife and kids not recognize me? Today, even they mistook me for Bao Mu," Jin San expined, confident that he could clear up the misunderstanding.

  The four of them simultaneously looked at Jin San in surprise.

  "It looks like he's really lost it this time," Wang Xianzi said.

  "Definitely worse than before; it's more serious than any of the times before!" Song Zhu added.

  "What are you all talking about? I'm really not Bao Mu! Today, Bao Mu's wife and kids thought he was dead, but then I'm still alive, so they mistook me for him! And Bao Mu's wife even wrote a divorce letter to me!" Jin San threw down his chopsticks and shouted loudly.

  The four of them stared with wide eyes, even leaving their mouths hanging open.

  "Don't believe me? I'll show you!" Jin San remembered that he had tucked the divorce letter into his chest, so he reached into his clothes. "Huh? Where is it? I clearly remember putting it in here. I even wanted to go expin things to Bao Mu's wife." Jin San kept searching through his clothes.

  The four of them exchanged gnces, then stood up simultaneously.

  Jin San was startled and stammered, "Y-You... What are you going to do?"

  "Bao Mu, wake up! Come on, we′re taking you to see something!" Tian Qizi grabbed Jin San and pulled him up.

  "You... I..." Jin San continued to struggle, but the four of them were stronger than he was, and he was soon dragged into the back hall. Was there a back hall in the room? Jin San hadn't noticed before. He remembered that there had been a coffin in this room, one he had once slept in, but now the coffin was gone. He also remembered the bck box had been pced on the table, but it was gone too. Instead, there was a simple back hall.

  The back hall was sparse, with an ordinary table in the middle. On the table were some foods that looked retively fresh. Two white candles burned with a strange, alluring fme, lighting up three objects pced in the center.

  The tablets of Bao Mu's wife, Bao Meishi.

  The tablets of Bao Mu's son, Bao Tong.

  The tablets of Bao Mu′s daughter, Bao Yu.

  Jin San finally understood. They were all dead!

  Seven... the door...

  Finally, the four old friends left, and Jin San let out a sigh of relief. He didn't like them. He didn′t like how they treated him like a madman, nor did he like their nagging, feminine way of speaking.

  Jin San believed his eyes couldn′t have been mistaken, and he was certain his ears weren′t malfunctioning either. He knew for sure that he had seen Bao Mu's wife and children. But why did Bao Mu's four friends say they were already dead? And why were their tablets pced in the back hall? From the wear and tear on the tablets, it was clear they had been there for a while. It was all so strange, increasingly strange. Jin San rubbed his chin, deep in thought, trying to make sense of it all.

  "You've had your fill, eating and drinking to your heart's content, yet you're hiding here enjoying yourself!" A cold hand tightly pinched Jin San's ear, and with a sharp twist, it yanked him backward.

  "Ah!" The pain made Jin San nearly tear up. He quickly reached out, grabbing the delicate hand with both of his own, pleading, "Take it easy! Take it easy! You'll twist it off!"

  "Your ears should have been twisted off long ago, your heart should have been dug out and fed to the dogs, and your flesh should have been sliced off for the wolves!" Luckily, the hand that had been twisting his ear finally loosened. Jin San immediately began rubbing his nearly injured ear, his gaze turning toward the one who had spoken.

  "Ah!" A cry of pain escaped Jin San as he collided with the table. The tablets and candles crashed to the floor, and after a loud cttering sound, the back hall was plunged into darkness.