"This is the urn of Mr. and Mrs. Carvey,"
In the bright and quiet hall of the funeral home, staff wearing simple and simple clothes brought two connected urns to the small table in front of He Ao.
"According to your previous order, your service fee this time, including body disposal, cremation, and urn, is a total of 4,574 federal coins."
The staff glanced at He Ao's old face and placed the ultra-thin tablet in front of He Ao. "After deducting the 1,000 federal currency prepayment you paid previously, you still need to pay a balance of 3,574 federal currency. Please take a look at the details of the expenses."
He Ao lowered his head and looked at the tablet handed over by the staff.
Various expenses were listed in detail on the tablet, including 500 federal dollars for the couple's urn, 1,800 federal dollars for the cremation of two people, 200 federal dollars for the obituary published in the news media, 550 federal dollars for two sets of shrouds and the transportation of the remains.
In addition, there is also a funeral and burial fee on top of this, which is a total of 1,524 federal coins for two people.
"You know, old man,"
Seeing that He Ao's eyes were focused on the burial costs, the staff explained, "Your son and daughter-in-law... the final burial part is a bit difficult, and the cost is inevitably a bit high. I have tried my best to help with other places." You chose an affordable project, but there is really nothing you can do about this.”
"I know,"
He Ao nodded slightly, "Sorry to trouble you."
It is understandable that the burial costs are high, because the bodies of Sito's son and daughter-in-law were already mouldering when they were sent to the funeral home.
Kawei and his wife were not found at the scene of the car accident. They were found in the corner of an alley in South City by the sweeper responsible for cleaning up the unknown bodies.
Kawei and his wife had been dead for at least two days at that time. There were obvious signs of vehicle impact on their bodies, and their bodies were so bloody that their appearance and shape were almost indistinguishable.
However, before Kawei died, he and his wife spelled out Kawei's social security card number on the ground. The scavenger discovered the social security card number and contacted the police. After that, the police contacted Sito.
South City is the most chaotic area in St. John City. Gangs are everywhere. Bodies may be found at the end of any alley. There is also almost no city surveillance, so in the end the Carveys only roughly determined that it was a car accident. Contacted Sito.
When the police in Nancheng met Sito, they also made it clear to Sito that in Nancheng's situation, it was almost impossible to catch the murderer, so that Sito could express his condolences.
In fact, if it were not for the social security card number written down by Carvey at the end, the Carveys might have been thrown into the scavenger's corpse truck, and then cremated with countless unknown dead, and the ashes would have been taken to the wilderness and buried in a random place. .
Sito will never know the whereabouts of his son until his death.
He Ao returned his gaze to the expense list in front of him.
This funeral home was recommended by the young police officer who contacted Sito at the time.
Nothing special, just cheap.
Usually, without a memorial service, the funeral expenses for a deceased person in St. John's City are about 3,000 to 4,000 federal dollars.
The total cost for the Kawei and his wife was just over 4,000 federal dollars, which also included the cost of burying the couple in Flesh Mold Lake. It was indeed very cheap.
"Is a credit card okay?"
He Ao raised his bracelet and looked at the staff.
"certainly."
The staff immediately took out a cash register, entered the amount, and scanned He Ao's bracelet.
With a soft sound of "di——", the payment was completed and He Ao took back the bracelet.
At this moment, the payment information sent by the credit card company is displayed on the bracelet.
As he gets older, Sito rarely makes large purchases, so his credit card has a lot of vacancies.
In contrast, after his wife's serious illness, his savings have been stretched thin. In fact, his current cash savings total only 10,740 federal dollars.
After deducting the 3,574 federal coins he just paid, his assets are actually only more than 7,000 federal coins left.
"The detailed bill has been sent to your mailbox." After confirming that the payment has been received, the staff took back the cash machine. "Please remember to check it."
Then he withdrew the tablet, clicked it, opened a new interface, and handed it to He Ao, "These are the prices for couples' burial plots in several cemeteries in St. John City. Do you want to see if you need any?"
He Ao lowered his head and looked at the interface displayed on the tablet.
At this moment, most of the entire screen is filled with photos of a cemetery surrounded by a huge jungle, with an advertisement for the cemetery below.
[Purely natural plants, exclusive afternoon sunshine, surrounded by beautiful jungles, semi-open park, beautiful music played regularly every day, allowing your family to sleep in a comfortable environment, special price, only 199,900! ]
There is a bracket at the bottom, and a line of small words in the bracket that is difficult to read (valid for 20 years).
"Ah, sorry, that's not it."
The staff immediately withdrew the tablet and clicked a few more times, "Mr., I just clicked the wrong one."
Then he handed the tablet back again, "These cemeteries are relatively good. Although the plants are artificial landscapes, the overall scenery is very good. I am also familiar with the cemetery management company. They are all relatively reliable. These cemeteries Compared to their price, it’s very affordable, and they also come with imitation stone tombstones.”
He glanced at He Ao, and then at Jia Qian, who was sitting next to He Ao, "Actually, the requirements for a cemetery don't need to be too high. Children will also need to spend money to go to school in the future. You are older, so save some money for emergencies. You can also feel confident.”
He paused, "Anyway, this cemetery is valid for twenty years, and we will have to buy it again after twenty years. If our children become famous in the future, we can also move to a good cemetery for our parents."
He Ao lowered his head and glanced at the cemeteries displayed on the tablet. This time, the price of these cemeteries became about 5,000 federal coins.
Sito had also looked at some couples' cemeteries online before. The general price was around 10,000, and the scenery didn't look as good as the ones on this tablet.
He Ao raised his head and glanced at the urn on the table, "I haven't decided what cemetery to buy yet. I'll contact you in two days, okay?"
"certainly,"
The staff took back the tablet and said, "You have my contact information. If you need to, please contact me at any time. I will try my best to keep these cemeteries for you."
Then he glanced at the urn on the table and said, "Wait a moment, I will find you a suitcase to put it in."
Then he stood up hastily and left his seat.
He Ao moved his eyes to the side.
From the beginning, Jia Qian has not spoken, but stared at the urn in a daze.
At this time, the girl seemed to realize that she was being watched. She turned her head and gently grabbed He Ao's finger, "Grandpa."
He Ao slowly grabbed his granddaughter's little hand.
While the two were talking, the staff member had already walked over with a black suitcase. He said to He Ao, "This is a gift."
Then he opened the suitcase in his hand, revealing the hollow sea surface dug out inside, put the two urns in, closed the lid, and handed it to He Ao, "This will make it easier for you to carry."
"Thanks."
He Ao stood up, reached out and took the suitcase, then picked up the crutch that was leaning on the table and hung it on the suitcase.
"You're welcome," the staff member smiled, "If you need anything, please feel free to contact me."
Then he took He Ao all the way to the door until he watched He Ao staggering and holding his granddaughter and disappearing into the crowd.
Finally, he sighed softly, shook his head, and walked back to the funeral parlor.
······
On the way to the bus stop, Jia Qian kept looking at the suitcase in He Ao's hand.
This suitcase is not completely black, it is dotted with patterns that look like stars.
"grandfather,"
The girl raised her head and looked at the rows of tall buildings above her head. The high sky seemed like dough squeezed by the buildings, leaving only a long thin line. "Are there really many stars in the sky?"
"Well," He Ao looked up at the sky and the gray light under his feet, then nodded, "There are a lot."
There are no stars visible in St. Jon.
As one of the largest grain-producing cities in the Federation, sunshine is one of the most scarce resources here.
Every factory strives to build its buildings as high as possible and use the latest light-concentrating technology to obtain more light resources.
These towering steel jungles, just like real jungles, strive to grow taller in order to win the blessings of the sun.
At night, these factories will use artificial light sources to promote the growth of plants, so that the entire city is filled with light, mixed with colorful neon lights, covering up the night and the stars.
"Grandpa, where can we see the stars?"
Jia Qian raised her head curiously until her little head was almost parallel to the ground, trying to find some traces of stars in the sky between the narrow buildings.
"In the wilderness, or somewhere without so many tall buildings and lights."
He Ao reached out and rubbed his granddaughter's head.
"oh."
Jia Qian nodded in understanding.
She lowered her head and glanced around, finally stopping at a small cart stall not far in front of them.
It was an ice cream stall.
"Want to eat?"
He Ao lowered his head and looked at his granddaughter.
Jia Qian glanced at Grandpa, hesitated, and then shook her head.
He Ao smiled and walked to the stall with his granddaughter, "How many ice cream cones are there?"
"One 1.5 federal coin, two 2.5 federal coins."
The stall owner glanced at He Ao and said quickly.
Just as He Ao was about to ask for one, he felt Jia Qian scratch his palm with two fingers.
So he changed his words and said, "Two."
"Okay, what flavor do you want?"
The boss quickly pulled out two cones, "There are vanilla, strawberry, original flavor, and mango."
"Uncle, I want one vanilla and one strawberry, thank you."
Jia Qian, who is not as tall as the stall, raised her hands so that her little hands could reach over the table of the stall and be seen by the boss.
"good."
The boss glanced at Jia Qian and smiled.
He placed the cone wrapper in his hand under the ice cream machine, carefully pressed the button, and let the slightly spotted ice cream flow out from the outlet.
His movements were very skillful and he quickly made two ice creams.
He Ao raised his bracelet to pay.
"Here, little sister, your ice cream."
The boss handed two ice creams to Jia Qian.
"Thank you uncle,"
Jia Qian took the ice cream excitedly and said, "Goodbye, uncle."
Normally, in the ice cream cones pressed by machines in fast food restaurants, the ice cream is only rolled into two and a half circles, and half of the space inside the cone skin is hollow.
The boss rolled them three times, and the inside of the cone skin was compacted.
"goodbye."
The shop owner said goodbye to Jia Qian with a smile.
Holding two ice creams in her hands, Jia Qian's steps became lighter.
This time she walked in front of He Ao and handed the vanilla ice cream to He Ao, "Grandpa, eat it."
He Ao paused as he looked at Jia Qian who was holding the ice cream over her head and handing it over.
Sito likes to eat vanilla-flavored ice cream. When he first took care of his granddaughter, he usually bought her granddaughter vanilla-flavored ice cream whenever she wanted ice cream without specifying it.
Because he thinks this is delicious.
"Grandpa eat."
Seeing that He Ao didn't respond, Jia Qian put the ice cream in front of He Ao again.
"Okay, grandpa, eat."
He Ao took the ice cream and looked at the expectant little face under the ice cream. He took a bite of the ice cream and smiled, "It's delicious."
"hey-hey."
Jia Xi lowered her head and began to eat her ice cream.
The two ate ice cream and got on the bus.
"Grandpa, where are we going next?"
Sitting in the back row, Jia Qian took a sip of ice cream and asked softly with pink and white spots on her lips.
"Go back to your parents' house first," He Ao glanced out the window and said slowly, "see if there is anything left."
Vaguely, in a dark alley outside the bus, he saw a flowing shadow.
From a certain point on, this shadow has been around the corner, chasing the bus he's on.
The bus soon arrived at the stop near Xito's son's house. He Ao took his granddaughter off the bus. While getting off the bus, he vaguely saw the shadow again in the corner of a certain lane.
He Ao didn't say anything, but looked up at the building not far away. The dark room that caught fire last night looked unusually eye-catching in the smooth building.
He raised his feet, holding the suitcase and crutches in one hand, holding his granddaughter in the other, and quickly entered the building.
At this moment, a woman with brown-blond hair below the building caught a glimpse of He Ao's back among the scattered crowd, and then she quickly chased after him without hesitation.
——
Ding--
As the elevator door slowly opened.
The woman took a deep breath.
She is a little nervous now.
This was not her first time on this floor. After confirming that the house that caught fire last night was in this building, she came here to look around and familiarize herself with the environment.
After that, she went downstairs and stayed near the building.
The reason why she was nervous was because she saw someone who looked like the old gentleman last night, but she couldn't confirm it, so she could only follow others like a pervert.
But now, it's time to reveal the mystery.
If she read correctly, the old gentleman should be on this floor now, or even in the burning room.
She took another deep breath, stepped out of the elevator, and quickly walked out of the elevator room.
The burning room was not far from the elevator. It was the room at the far end of the corridor when you exited the elevator room and turned right.
She raised her head, turned right, and looked toward the deepest part of the corridor.
The first thing that caught her eye was an open, somewhat deformed door.
When she came here just now, the door was still closed.
A trace of excitement lingered in her heart. She continued to raise her gaze and saw the back of an old man standing behind the door, leaning on a cane and wearing a crisp suit.
A faint smile appeared on her face, and she stepped forward and walked towards the house.
Just then, she saw a crawling shadow hanging from the burned-out ceiling of the house.
It was a twisted, worm-like monster with countless tiny fleshy legs.
At this moment, the monster was spreading its body and rushing towards the old man's back.
"careful!"
The woman reached for her waist and shouted.
And just as she shouted, the monster had already jumped into the air and was about to wrap around the old man's back.
At this time, her hands had not yet touched the sharp blade at her waist.
It seems everything is too late.
puff--
The sound of sharp objects piercing flesh suddenly came.
The tip of a crutch still stuck with a little bit of soil pierced the body of the worm monster. Then, a hand passed through the hole pierced by the crutch, grabbed the worm monster's body, and exerted force.
Tear--
The monster, which was nearly a person tall, was torn apart like fragile paper and discarded on the ground like garbage.
The woman's expression and movements were frozen on the spot, and the hand reaching for the weapon at her waist also stopped in mid-air.
In her field of vision, in the center of the flesh and ruins, an old man with white hair and a straight body took out a white silk scarf from the inner pocket of his formal suit and slowly wiped his blood-stained palms.
He raised his head and saw the woman standing at the door.
