Seven Star 219L chest freezer.
Energy efficiency level 2.
There is 120 hours power outage protection.
Deep freeze temperature -18.
The price through online retail channels is 2,200 yuan.
There is such a freezer in the house that Gu Hezhi shares.
When he first moved here, he also thought that this freezer was very troublesome. After all, it was already a partitioned room, and the extra room took up a lot of space in the living room, leaving very little public area for tenants.
Squeezing in such a large refrigerator would make the already limited space even more crowded.
Despite the tenants' complaints, the landlord remained stubborn and refused to remove the item. It was said that the freezer was an old appliance left by the landlord's mother. It still worked perfectly after all these years. The landlord's family no longer needed such an outdated item, and since it couldn't fetch a good price as a used item, they couldn't bear to throw it away, so it was eventually forced into the rental property.
A few days before the Chinese New Year, Gu Hezhi stood in front of the freezer and called the landlord, asking to borrow the landlord's refrigerator to store some things.
Hearing his request, the middle-aged woman on the other end of the phone hesitated visibly.
Gu Hezhi's grip on his phone tightened, his eyes lowered, his voice calm. He told the landlord that his mother had just sent him a lot of New Year's goods from her hometown, all handmade, and that they would spoil if they weren't refrigerated.
He vaguely remembered that Dong Ruiming had mentioned to him before that the woman who rented the house to them also had a daughter who was working outside.
I do have a cunning side in some aspects...
As he spoke, Gu Hezhi seemed to hear a voice in his heart sneering at him.
As expected, after hearing what Gu Hezhi said, the woman who was still hesitating immediately agreed to the young tenant's request.
"Then you can use it, but you have to take good care of it. If it breaks, you'll have to pay me."
The landlord was chattering on and on on the other end of the phone, but Gu Hezhi could no longer concentrate and listen carefully.
When he hung up the phone, Gu Hezhi realized that cold sweat had seeped out of his forehead. It was clearly winter, but his back was already covered with sweat.
Did I reveal anything when I was talking to the landlady? My tone of voice should have sounded normal, right?
Gu Hezhi thought aimlessly, and after perfunctorily answering the landlord, he hung up the phone.
In the suddenly quiet house, the refrigerator right in front of his toes made a low buzzing sound.
Gu Hezhi placed his hand on the white door of the freezer. He looked down at the freezer for a while with an expressionless face, his eyes a little dazed.
In fact, there is no need to call the landlord. It is completely unnecessary.
Gu Hezhi said to himself again in his heart.
When the police later talk to the woman about this, will she remember the conversation? She'll probably say her voice sounded strange today, and that borrowing the freezer from the landlord for no apparent reason was too unusual.
A feeling of regret began to churn slightly in my chest.
Gu Hezhi's body swayed, he shook his head suddenly, forcing himself to calm down.
In fact, it would make no difference even if the landlord disagreed, because he had already used the freezer a long time ago.
After all, it is an old appliance, and the noise is a bit loud when plugged in, but the cooling effect is indeed very good.
Gu Hezhi took a deep breath, put his hands on the refrigerator door and gently opened it. Black plastic bags were stacked in the freezer.
Although the plastic bag was tied tightly, there was still a little black and red blood at the bottom of the freezer. Gu Hezhi stared at the blood for a while, not sure whether he should use a shovel to scrape it off.
But after trying it once or twice, Gu Hezhi completely gave up the idea.
The bloodstains had frozen hard.
Fortunately, there were a lot of plastic bags, each of which was bulging. Gu Hezhi just adjusted the position and the bloodstains on the bottom were quickly covered up.
After doing all this, he lowered his eyes and stared at the plastic bags covered with white frost. After a long silence, the young man standing in front of the freezer took a deep breath, then raised his hand tremblingly and pressed the plastic bag.
The contents inside had frozen slightly hard.
"call..."
The next second, the young man let out a quick gasp.
As if he had been burned, he stepped back violently and slammed the freezer door.
Then he staggered back into the room and slammed the door.
*
After the Lunar New Year, but before the seventh day of the Lunar New Year, the other people in our shared apartment had already begun returning from their respective hometowns to their urban pigeonholes. After the baptism of Spring Festival, everyone looked significantly plumper than before. The rosy faces of the roommates made Gu Hecheng, the only one in the rental apartment who hadn't gone home for the New Year, look even more pitiful.
"It's not just about you being okay. How come you've lost so much weight after the New Year?"
After Dong Ruiming came back, he was shocked when he saw Gu Hezhi's face. It is no exaggeration to say that he was really shocked.
Back in college, Gu Hezhi relied on her face to occupy the position of K University's campus belle for four years. Later, when she entered the society, everyone else was exploited by the capitalists and became neither human nor ghost, but Gu Hezhi was still the same as she was in college. Her face could fool many people. Even when she went out to eat, Gu Hezhi would often be mistaken for a little star by passers-by.
But even such a person, Gu Chizhi, had lost a lot of weight during the Chinese New Year. The dark circles under his eyes made Dong Ruiming feel scared.
He and Gu Hedu were college classmates. Before the Chinese New Year, someone in the house suddenly moved out, leaving a vacant room. Dong Ruiming asked for a room in his circle of friends. He didn't expect to find a tenant before the Spring Festival, but unexpectedly, the "campus belle" who he always thought was a loner found him directly and rented the house in a hurry.
"Have you been to the hospital for a check-up?"
Dong Ruiming asked, with a subtle hint of caution in his tone.
He had always felt that it was somewhat incongruous for Gu Hezhi to come and share the apartment. After all, in his impression, Gu Hezhi really didn't deserve to share the apartment with a group of people like them...
The only advantage of this house in the old town is that it is close to the city and the rent is cheap.
A small apartment with three bedrooms and a living room was divided into four rooms, which is the legendary partition room.
If you are unlucky, people living in partitioned rooms may accidentally encounter the management authorities coming to dismantle the partitions, leaving them homeless with their luggage.
Gu Hezhi, however, seemed completely unconcerned that day. The thin young man showed up here with only a backpack. He didn't even have any luggage when he moved in... It was like he was hiding from his creditors.
Is there really something wrong?
Dong Ruiming stared at the pale, dazed young man and thought to himself.
Gu Hezhi stood in the living room, his eyes looking a little empty at this moment. He was stunned for a moment before coming back to his senses: "...Well, it's okay. I've been a little tired recently."
"Ah, I see. Why are you so tired? Haha."
Dong Ruiming responded and looked at Gu Hedu suspiciously twice more - these days, if you see someone suddenly lose weight, if it's a relative, you'll worry that he or she has a serious illness, but if it's a roommate, you'll be afraid that someone is not in a clear mind and has started taking drugs.
"Ah, why don't you go to the hospital——"
Dong Ruiming subconsciously wanted to say a few more words, but someone suddenly pulled his sleeve.
He turned around and saw his roommate Qiao Liang, who had arrived home yesterday. He smiled awkwardly at Dong Ruiming.
"Boss, um... I brought some fried taro shreds from my hometown, how about you try some..."
Qiao Liang pulled a red plastic bag of fried taro shreds from his tattered suitcase. The taro had been finely chopped and fried until gray, then sizzled in the bag. Dong Ruiming took one look and felt unappetized.
"No, haha, I've been lifting weights lately and I don't dare to eat these."
Qiao Liang, he and Gu Hezhi were all college classmates.
He is a nice person, but he is poor. He was so poor that he relied on scholarships to survive in college. Even after entering society as a worker, he still looks timid.
Dong Ruiming made an excuse to get by. Being interrupted by Qiao Liang, he also missed the opportunity to continue questioning Gu Hezhi.
At this time, the door lock made a slight sound and someone else arrived.
The tall and strong man dragged his luggage into the living room. After opening the door, he didn't bother to greet the people crowded in the living room. Instead, he stared at the freezer that was buzzing in the corner.
"Hey, who is this? Why did they plug in the freezer..."
Gu Hezhi didn't miss the other person's expression which turned a little unpleasant.
Qi Wei is the second landlord of this house and is also Dong Ruiming's cousin. Perhaps because of this relationship, the man usually seems a bit picky in all aspects.
"Oh, yeah, why is this damn freezer plugged in?"
When Qi Wei reminded him, Dong Ruiming opened his eyes wide in surprise.
Gu Hezhi lowered his eyes and replied in a low voice: "It's me, my mother sent me some New Year's gifts..." He repeated the reason he had given to the landlord, and added at the end, "I will pay an extra electricity bill every month from now on."
The moment the words fell, everyone in the living room looked relieved.
"Ah, we're all acquaintances. That's not what I meant. I just asked casually—"
Qi Wei curled his lips and laughed.
But in the end, he didn't reject Gu Hezhi's proposal.
Then everyone smiled and the atmosphere seemed quite harmonious.
After a brief greeting, everyone dispersed and planned to return to their rooms.
Gu Hezhi stood in the living room and watched their actions. He felt a little relieved and was about to go back to his room after everyone had gone back to their rooms when he heard Dong Ruiming mention something as if he had suddenly thought of something.
"Hey, by the way, do you know that guy? He's missing."
Gu Hezhi was stunned for a moment.
"who?"
Dong Ruiming narrowed his eyes and thought for a while.
"That guy... that psychopath who was always clinging to you in college, the one whose family was super rich... what's his name? Oh, right, Que Bai, the son of Fenghe's CEO, you remember him, right? He's missing. I don't know what got him into trouble, but it's said to be a big deal in the industry. His mom has been offering a reward for anyone who finds him."
Gu Hezhi's shoulders trembled slightly.
The air seemed to become very cold all of a sudden, so cold that his teeth just wanted to chatter.
"I have no idea."
Gu Hezhi said very briefly.
"I don't remember him anymore."
…
My heart seemed to be about to stop beating.
While speaking, the hairs on her neck began to stand on end, as if the man's sticky and cold snake-like fingertips were still rubbing there.
Dong Ruiming shrugged, as if he didn't notice that Gu Hezhi's face had turned slightly blue at that moment.
"Wow, is this true? You're really generous. You can even forget that person. If I were you, I'd be traumatized for at least ten years..."
Gu Hezhi didn't say anything.
Dong Ruiming felt a little bored when he saw that Gu Hezhi didn't respond, so he greeted him and closed the door.
Gu Hezhi was left dejected and retreated, sitting on the sofa trembling.
In the cramped and narrow living room, there is a horizontal freezer next to the sofa.
The freezer was working fine and made a humming sound when cooling.
*
Gu Hezhi just felt that he was pitiful at first.
According to rumors, the man had a serious mental illness and should have been in a mental hospital, but his powerful parents forced him into the normal world.
During the club activity, everyone was laughing and joking, except for the place where that person was sitting, which formed a small vacuum area.
The thin boy lowered his head, concentrating on drawing in his notebook with a red pen, and his expression looked almost quiet.
Gu Hezhi sat next to him and took a sneak peek.
The notebook didn't contain the horrific curses and bloody pictures that people had rumored. To Gu Hezhi, it was more like...
"It's a spell."
Que Bai suddenly looked up, stared at Gu Hezhi and whispered.
"I'm teaching myself spells."
The soft tone sounded like he was explaining something.
Gu Hezhi found it a little interesting and subconsciously asked, "Oh, does this spell work?"
The boy named Que Bai was silent for a moment, but his eyes never left Gu Hezhi's face.
Compared to a normal person's eyes, his pupils seem larger, making his eyes appear particularly dark.
His overly focused gaze fell on his skin, almost as if it had substance, causing it to tighten slightly. Gu Hezhi felt a little uncomfortable being stared at by Que Bai, and just as he was about to retreat, he heard the other party's muttering in a hoarse voice.
"it works."
The corners of his bright red mouth curled up to the sides, and Que Bai showed Gu Hezhi a slightly strange smile.
Thinking about it later, the reason why that smile seemed so unnatural was probably because it was purely an imitation.
That was the expression Que Bai barely imitated by observing other people.
*
[Are you really going to throw me away? ]
The man in the darkness smiled at Gu Hezhi.
He has handsome facial features, but when he smiles he looks creepy like a demon.
[Azhi, is there something I did wrong? Tell me, okay? I'll change...]
Blood continued to flow from the man's eyes, mouth and nose.
He stretched out his hand towards Gu Hezhi.
[Don't leave me, Ah Zhi, as long as you don't leave me, I can do anything. ]
Bright red bloodstains also appeared on the pale arms.
Gu Hezhi covered his mouth and forced all the screams back into his throat.
He looked at the man in front of him in despair.
Que Bai, who still looked like a frail teenager when they first met, had grown into a tall man with slender limbs in just a few years.
But at this moment, he knelt on the ground like a stray dog about to be abandoned, and crawled towards Gu Hezhi on all fours.
"Just treat it like a stray dog, okay? You're so kind to the stray cats and dogs on the street... Can you be a little nicer to me too?"
As he climbed, the bloodstains on the ground gathered into deep red rivers.
[Azhi...don't leave me...]
[Azhi...]
"More than that!"
"Hey, Gu Hezhi! Are you okay?!"
The knock on the door accompanied by the man's call made Gu Hezhi suddenly open his eyes.
He sat up in bed, panting heavily.
Perhaps it was because he had hardly slept in the past half month and his body had reached its limit.
Only then did he realize that he had unknowingly returned to his room and fell asleep under the quilt.
And he didn't even have the slightest impression.
"Bang, bang, bang—"
The knocking continued, and Dong Ruiming's voice came from outside the door.
The enthusiastic voice of his college classmates sounded like a hammer hitting his brain, making him feel dizzy.
"...What's up?"
Gu Hezhi staggered to his feet and opened the door with difficulty.
Dong Ruiming was still raising his hand to knock on the door, but he was caught off guard by Gu Hezhi's red eyes and raised his eyebrows in surprise.
"Are you crying?" he asked. Before Gu Hezhi could answer, he continued nonchalantly, "Well, why are you sleeping so soundly? I've been calling you for a long time... Oh, by the way, my girlfriend is coming over today and has cooked a whole house full of delicious dishes, just waiting for you, young master, to come to the table."
Looking over Dong Ruiming's shoulder, Gu Hezhi saw several people in the rental house crowded in the living room.
The coffee table, which was previously covered in dust, was now piled high with dishes.
A girl put the plate in her hand on the table, seemed to notice Gu Hezhi's gaze, and turned to look at him.
When she saw Gu Hezhi, the girl was obviously surprised and her face was instantly filled with smiles.
Gu Hezhi blinked, and only remembered a little late that Dong Ruiming had previously boasted that he had found a new girlfriend.
No wonder Dong Ruiming knocked on the door so vigorously.
I guess he came here just to show off. After all, Dong Ruiming is the one who changes girlfriends the most in the entire rental house.
In fact, Gu Hedu had no appetite at all, but Dong Ruiming still forcibly pulled him out of the room.
"Look at you, don't hide in your room. If you don't eat better, how can you be healthy--"
"Well, yes, God Gu, you should come and eat something."
Qiao Liang, who was sitting beside the coffee table, wanted to say something but stopped for a moment, then greeted Gu Hezhi.
Helplessly, Gu Hezhi could only cheer himself up and sit down at the table.
Dong Ruiming's new girlfriend is Ruan Qi. Aside from her slightly pointed chin and bulging forehead, she's quite pretty. It's clear that Ruan Qi put a lot of effort into cooking for her boyfriend's roommate, filling the small coffee table with a few home-cooked dishes.
And in the center of the coffee table, there was actually a casserole.
In the casserole, there is a soup that has turned into a milky white color.
The soup tastes very fragrant.