The door was narrow. Lao Fu shifted his position, finally finding a spot where he could clearly see inside.

  A slender sewing needle slid gracefully out from the sleeve, piercing firmly into the wrist. A red silk thread was perfectly embedded in it. His movements were skillful and precise, his craftsmanship unmatched in the world. His sewing technique was one of a kind. Lao Fu, with his jade-like hands as delicate as a woman's, was deftly sewing new clothes for the woman in front of him. A silver pair of rge scissors y quietly beside her, while the needles and threads in the leather pouch were neatly arranged in their proper pces.

  Lao Fu had completely lost his mind. With a loud scream, he threw himself desperately toward the shop's door, paying no attention to whether it was locked or to the imposing seal affixed to it. All he wanted now was to escape—at any cost, to flee for his life.

  The candle was extinguished. Before Xu Mama and Mo Bai could even understand what was happening, it was already out. A gust of cold wind blew through, and both Xu Mama and Mo Bai rushed outside. No matter what Lao Fu had seen, they both knew it must have been something terrifying. They had known Lao Fu for many years, but it was the first time they had seen him in such a frenzied state.

  Lao Fu saw himself.

  He saw himself making clothes.

  He saw his leather pouch, his needles, and his silver scissors.

  He saw his craftsmanship.

  He saw himself…

  Lao Fu frantically rubbed his eyes, convinced that he must be mistaken. How could he see himself? How could a living person see another living person who looks exactly like him? How could there possibly be two people who look identical, possess the same skills, and work in the same shop, making clothes? But he had seen it with his own eyes.

  Mo Bai poured a cup of tea for Lao Fu with his rge hands, hoping that Lao Fu could calm down.

  "Is it true?" Xu Mama still couldn't believe what Lao Fu was saying.

  Lao Fu's lips twisted into a bitter smile, his voice heavy with sorrow as he said, "It's here; it's really here. I think... we can't escape anymore."

  "What are you talking about!" Xu Mama suddenly stood up, causing the table to shake slightly under the force of his massive body.

  "We... we will all die... just like Xue Qiūxiū..." Lao Fu's voice trembled as he tried to express the overwhelming sense of colpse he was feeling.

  Xu Mama colpsed weakly into the creaky bamboo chair, his mouth half-open, but he couldn't say a single word.

  "Who was that woman?" Mo Bai remembered Lao Fu mentioning that he saw himself making clothes for a woman.

  Lao Fu's nerves tensed up again, as if he suddenly thought of something. He widened his eyes and looked at Mo Bai but couldn't bring himself to speak.

  Mo Bai had a sense of foreboding in his heart. He swallowed, his voice trembling as he asked, "Who is it?"

  "Xiao Xiang," Lao Fu finally said. Mo Bai's body swayed, almost falling backward, but Xu Mama caught him just in time.

  Xiao Xiang was dead, and Mo Bai actually cried. A grown man crying for a wife who had only been married for a few days. Lao Fu didn't even consider crying when Fu Zhuo died, but now seeing Mo Bai cry, he couldn't help but shed a tear. Lao Fu wasn't crying for his son, but for himself—someone who knew they would die but had no idea when or how it would happen. What kind of feeling is that? Perhaps only Lao Fu himself truly understood.

  Xiao Xiang held Er Duo's hand and walked into Mo Bai's teahouse with a smile. They each held a bundle of rice husks, waving them up and down. Their intimate behavior made them seem like siblings. The first thing Er Duo did upon entering the teahouse was grab the tea Lao Fu hadn't drunk and down it in one go. Xiao Xiang then sat beside Mo Bai, gently saying, "Where did you both go so te at night? When I woke up, you were both gone. Fortunately, Er Duo came; otherwise, I would have been really scared alone here."

  Lao Fu, Xu Mama, and Mo Bai had no reaction at all. Their feet no longer obeyed them; even if they wanted to run, they couldn't.

  "What's wrong with you guys?" Xiao Xiang genuinely didn′t understand why the three of them had such strange expressions, and their faces were so pale.

  Er Duo looked at their expressions and said, "Have you all become mute?"

  Lao Fu, Xu Mama, and Mo Bai continued to stare at them, wide-eyed. Er Duo couldn’t help but ugh out loud. A bck object fell from Er Duo's chest, nding perfectly on the table in front of Lao Fu, Xu Mama, and Mo Bai.

  It was a bck account book.