What It's Like Being a Vampire

Chapter 598: Chapter 598: The Door to the New World (Part 3)

The downstairs doctor neighbor checked Mr. Tang’s condition and was somewhat puzzled. According to his current physical condition, there should be no problems, but based on their previous description, it seemed quite serious.

So, on her suggestion, when the ambulance arrived, Tang Baona, Mother Tang, and Mr. Tang went to the hospital for more examinations.

After preliminary examinations at the hospital, Mr. Tang was okay, but to be safe, he stayed at the hospital and would undergo a comprehensive examination the next day. After all, the previous situation was quite frightening, and they needed to figure out what had caused it before they could be at ease.

At Mr. Tang’s request, Mother Tang and Tang Baona didn’t inform Tang Baoting and Gao Yao. They planned to tell them when they went for the examination the next day. After all, Mr. Tang felt fine right now, and thought he was in excellent shape. If not for the insistence of Mother Tang and Tang Baona, and the neighbor doctor suggesting he get checked, he didn’t want to come to the hospital at all.

Mr. Tang, sitting on the hospital bed, drinking water and chatting with Mother Tang and Tang Baona, still felt a bit scared thinking back to the situation earlier: “Honestly, at that moment, I really thought I might be a goner. It just hit me, it felt like I had stopped breathing and my heart had stopped beating….”

Mother Tang couldn’t help but slap her husband’s thigh through the blanket: “Stop talking nonsense!”

Mr. Tang said: “Ah, well now that I’m okay, if speaking of death actually causes it, then, in the future, I will give speeches about immortality and longevity, and thereby become immortal, right? Ha ha, relax, it’s okay, we’re just chatting. When I was half-dead earlier, I felt like I was in another world, seeing some weird stuff….”

Mother Tang and Tang Baona both got a bit nervous.

“Old Tang, what did you see?”

“Dad, what kind of world did you see?”

“Mr. Tang recalled: “It was blurry and dark. The lights were dim, and there was a door far away. There were lots of weird people… no, not people…”

“Not people?” Mother Tang asked nervously.

“Yes, not people, more like cats and rabbits and other strange things I couldn’t make out clearly because the light was too dim. Anyway, I felt drawn towards that door, struggling to get there, then suddenly the door disappeared, light spilled in, and I woke up and saw Nana,” said Mr. Tang, “I don’t know what they were, but I didn’t feel scared, it just seems eerie and strange thinking about it.”

“Cats, rabbits?” Mother Tang was puzzled. She was tense, expecting to hear descriptions of hellish scenes, horse-faced demons, and the like, but cats and rabbits?

Mr. Tang laughed: “Maybe what I saw then was the wheel of reincarnation, and the cats and rabbits next to it were all set to be reborn. Maybe… in my next life, I’ll be reincarnated as a cat? Ah, I must be an orange tabby, napping all day.”

Mother Tang had to laugh: “All you can think about is eating and sleeping all day!”

“By then, I’ll still come to find you. If you see a pitiful orange cat asking you for food, remember to adopt it!”

“If you’re reincarnated as a cat, I’ll be a cat too!”

“No, if we’re both stray cats then what? It would be hard! You have to be a person, rich and beautiful, so you have money to buy cat food, tin cans to take care of me!”n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

“Why should I have to earn money to buy cat food? Can’t I be the cat and you can support me?”

“You’re more ambitious.”

“Can we pick another animal? One that’s cute but also good at mooching?”

“A pig?”

“They get butchered!”

“How about an otter then? Otters seem quite cute…”

So, Mr. Tang and Mother Tang took out their phones starting to search for pictures of otters and other cute animals, and seriously discussed which animal would be the best to reincarnate into if they couldn’t be human in their next life.

After being fed a face full of dog food, Tang Baona smiled bitterly and left the ward to get some fresh air in the corridor.

Her dad was still the same old dad, always able to make serious, oppressive, or weird things funny and relaxed.

Thinking about it, she seemed rather like Yang Lao San, why were the people around her all like this? Isn’t it said that birds of a feather flock together? Could it be… that she was also like this and just hadn’t realized it?

Her phone suddenly vibrated – after completing the hospital admission procedures, she had quietly put her phone on silent – picked it up and saw, speaking of the devil and there he is, it was a video call request from Yang Lao San.

As soon as the video call connected, Yang Zhen’er from the other side immediately howled and then shouted: “Happy birthday, Nana!”

Yang Lao San squeezed half of Little Fatty Girl’s head below his own and struggled to say: “Pretty sister… Happy!”

Xiao Pingguo and Old Xia behind Yang Zhen’er also followed with “Happy birthday, Sister Nana.”

“Eh, Little Bell you didn’t follow the plan, we agreed you’d say ‘May your happiness be as vast as the East Sea and may you live as long as Zhongnan Mountain’.” Yang Zhen’er chuckled as she tousled Little Bell’s head.

On this end, Tang Baona was startled by their loud voices, and hurriedly turned the volume down on her phone. After looking around and seeing no one, she finally breathed a sigh of relief.

It must have passed midnight, it’s now October 4th, so Yang Lao San and her crew had timed their video call to wish her a happy birthday.

Tang Baona made a shushing gesture, indicating for them to quiet down, and then said: “Thank you, thank you guys, Little Bell, why are you still awake? Yang Lao San, watch out or Sister Lin will beat you up. It’s past 12 o’clock and you haven’t put Little Bell to bed yet!”

“No, Little Bell played so hard with Custard Pie, Jinshanshan, and Xiao Pingguo on the mountain this afternoon that she couldn’t keep her eyes open after dinner and went to sleep. She just woke up because she was hungry.” Yang Zhen’er laughed as she played with Little Bell’s head.

Little Bell sat in Yang Zhen’er’s lap, clutching her hand and stretching her neck to try and get her eyes in the video screen, and said earnestly: “I didn’t wake up because I was hungry! I woke up on purpose to wish pretty sister a happy birthday!”

“Then why are you eating with us?”

“I’m just hungry!”

“No more eating, after you’ve wished your pretty sister a happy birthday, go brush your teeth and go back to bed!”

“No… Uncle Bald said, when we do things, we should finish what we started and not leave them half-done, I haven’t finished eating…”

“You’re getting heavier, look, you’re bending my legs~!”

“No! Not heavy! Not bent!”

Seeing this familiar scene of noisy but joyful bickering, the corners of Tang Baona’s mouth couldn’t help but curl up.

“Huh, Nana, aren’t you at your parents’ house? Why does the background look dark, don’t you have the lights on?” Yang Zhen’er said to Tang Baona in the video.

“I’m not at home, I’m at the hospital. My dad had a bit of a situation earlier, so my mom and I brought him here,” Tang Baona explained. “Right now, I’m in the hospital corridor.”

“What happened?” Yang Zhen Er asked in surprise, “What’s wrong with Uncle Tang?”

“Everything is fine now. We came to the hospital just to be sure and wanted to do some check-ups. The preliminary checks showed nothing wrong, don’t worry,” Tang Baona reassured.

Yang Zhen Er expressed regret, saying, “Ah! If I had known, I would have gone back with you.”

“Hey, hey, don’t act like you’re the one looking after me. I am the elder sister, remember?” Tang Baona could not help but chuckle.

Of course, she knew very clearly that Yang Zhen Er was genuinely concerned about her and her family.

Even though Tang Baona had the volume of her phone turned down low and was speaking quietly, it was nighttime and she didn’t want to disturb anyone else in the hospital or to keep Xiao Lingdang up, so after a brief chat with Yang Lao San, Old Xia, Xiao Lingdang, and Xiao Pingguo, she ended the video call.

Standing in the corridor and looking at the distant buildings and starry sky through the glass window, Tang Baona thought of the little girl in the white dress who had suddenly appeared and disappeared in her living room not long ago.

She called me Sister Nana.

Tang Baona knew that her close friends and family, whom she knew well, would call her Nana. Those who called her Sister Nana were naturally younger than her — of course, Xiao Lingdang was an exception.

However, that little girl in the white dress did not need to be anyone from those friends and family who were younger than her. The girl’s appearance resembled Old Xia’s when she was a child, and Old Xia also called her “Sister Nana”.

Was this little girl, as Yang Lao San suggested, some sort of… “split personality” of Old Xia?

But from the brief conversation just now, the difference between her and Old Xia was stark — they didn’t feel similar at all.

And during the video call, Tang Baona had observed Old Xia standing behind Old San but had seen nothing out of the ordinary — of course, it might just be that she hadn’t picked up on anything.

Or perhaps this little girl is the second personality that Old Xia has split off from herself?

Old Xia once told her that she had a certain “inherent defect,” and went to Chongyun Village to set up a research base with Xiang Kun primarily to cure this “inherent defect.” Could this so-called method of cure be the literal manifestation of that second personality?

As for the means of manifestation, it must have a direct relationship with Xiang Kun — just like her newfound ability to translate other people’s emotions and various objects into melodies for understanding and expression, Old Xia might have had the same kind of experience and gained some kind of ability from Xiang Kun.

Wait, was that little girl a real person or an illusion?

The feeling of her little hand pressing against the back of my hand should be real, right?

But how did she save my father? Was it the same as when she controlled the street lights or other people’s phones?

What am I even thinking about, it’s all such a mess.

Tang Baona slapped her forehead, feeling like her own train of thought had completely derailed. She picked up her phone, thinking about directly calling Old Xia to ask. But then she thought that if Old Xia wanted to tell her, she would have said it straightforwardly during their last conversation. This might be a very important secret, and perhaps it had to be revealed for the purpose of saving her father. Would it be too imposing of her to call?

Or should I call and not inquire about the “little elf” but instead talk about my ability to feel melodies? If I first disclose my own secret, then Old Xia, if willing, might volunteer information.

However, when she picked up her phone, she didn’t unlock it or dial, but instead looked left and right before quietly asking: “Little Elf, are you here? Can you hear me?”

After she finished speaking, she laughed at herself a little and shook her head.

Just as she was about to unlock her phone, a familiar voice sounded: “I’m here! Sister Nana!”

Tang Baona was startled, then she noticed the change in light and looked up to see the little girl in a white dress standing on the window sill outside the corridor, smiling at her through the glass.

“Is that you…Little Elf?” Tang Baona instinctively wanted to cry out in alarm and try to find a way to open the window and let her in, but then quickly thought that if she could manage to stand on airplane wings mid-flight during the previous attack, this would be much easier for her.

“Sister Nana, are you looking for me?” the little girl’s mouth moved, but her voice came from the speaker of Tang Baona’s phone in the corridor.

“Just now…thank you,” Tang Baona said softly.

“You’re welcome, Sister Nana! It’s what I should do!” The little girl said, the triumph on her face undeniable.

“You… Why are you standing outside? Isn’t it cold out there?” Tang Baona looked at the girl, not knowing where to start.

“I’m not cold. I feel more impressive when I show up this way!” The little girl said as she spread her arms out wide in the window and her beautiful hair started blowing in the wind.

“Can… Can you come inside?” asked Tang Baona.

Then in the next moment, the little girl from outside the window disappeared. Tang Baona then felt a tug on her sleeve, and when she turned around, the little girl was standing in the corridor with her, looking up at her with shining eyes.

Tang Baona instinctively reached out to gently pinch the little girl’s cheek. Though it wasn’t as round and plump as Little Fatty Girl’s cheek, it definitely felt real!

“Are you Old Xia?” Tang Baona asked instinctively.

“I’m not Old Xia.”

“Then… who are you?”

“My name is Alice! I’m the boss’s assistant! I’m Little Lingdang’s Xiao Luosi! I’m Sister Nana’s Little Elf!” the little girl cheerfully announced.

“The boss’s… assistant?”

A doubtful voice sounded from behind Tang Baona: “Nana, who are you talking to?”

Tang Baona turned around to see her mother, then she hastily turned back, but where the little girl who claimed to be Alice had been standing was now empty.

“Oh, nothing much, I just finished chatting with Zhen’er,” Tang Baona hurriedly made an excuse.

Mother Tang seemed not to suspect anything and walked over to say, “I’ll be here for the night, you should go home and get a good night’s sleep. Come back tomorrow and accompany your dad for his check-ups with your sister and brother-in-law, so I can go home and rest.”

“Mommy, you should go back and sleep. I’ll stay here for the night, us younger folk can stay awake better,” Tang Baona quickly proposed.

“Ah, who spends their birthday in a hospital? Go, go, don’t interrupt my private talk with your father,” Mother Tang scolded, “Make sure to send me a WeChat message before you get in a cab.”