The sweetest in the entertainment industry

Chapter 463 Caught Up

The fast food restaurant is located at the entrance on the ground floor of the mall, with a small square planted with several tallow trees right outside the door.

As the two parked their car and walked over, Gu Lanxi whispered to Lu Nanting that the seeds of this tree could be used to make candles.

After leaving the fast food restaurant, the two sat under a tallow tree and each ate a chicken wing.

Lu Nanting took out his phone and searched for videos on making candles from tallow tree seeds. Gu Lanxi then skillfully took out her phone and bought two movie tickets.

After finishing their meal, Gu Lanxi opened her bag, took out some wet wipes, and the two of them wiped their hands and then each other's mouths before putting on masks and applying hand cream.

Seeing that it was almost time, the two walked hand in hand through the night passage and entered the movie theater.

The last showing at the cinema started at 10:50. When the two of them went through the ticket gate and found the screening room, the opening credits had already started playing.

The movie is called "24 Anonymous Letters," and it's a domestic suspense thriller.

Because of its niche subject matter, relatively unknown director, newcomers, and weak marketing, the film's screening rate has been consistently low. After seventeen days of release, its box office has barely reached eight million. The reason there are still midnight screenings available is mostly because the film is of decent quality and has gained some positive word-of-mouth within a small circle.

Gu Lanxi already quite liked this type of film, and since a passerby had casually recommended it, she naturally decided to check it out if time allowed.

The movie begins with a girl named Xiaoyi who, after failing to find a job, returns to her hometown with her suitcase to adjust her mood.

In the vast forest, a winding dirt road stretched forward. A girl with a distressed expression sat in the back of a tractor, swaying and staggering as it moved forward.

As we got closer to home, fields of crops and vegetable gardens began to appear on both sides of the dirt road.

Someone working in the field heard the tractor, stood up, squinted slightly, and looked at the girl on the tractor under the bright sunlight.

He vaguely felt she looked familiar, but couldn't quite place her. In the end, he just watched her quietly disappear at the end of the dirt road.

Fresh air, brilliant sunshine, and a clear blue sky—everything was unbelievably beautiful.

When they reached the intersection closest to their home, the tractor stopped, and Xiaoyi got off and gave the driver two yuan.

Then, carrying his suitcase, he embarked on an even smaller path.

The screen begins to shake, and the background sound is a girl's increasingly heavy breathing. When the sound becomes like a broken bellows, a rather old log cabin appears in the viewer's field of vision.

Then came a montage.

Xiao Yi quickly cleaned the house, and finally, exhausted, lay down on the kang (a heated brick bed). The screen went black, and she closed her eyes and fell asleep.

Then, when I opened my eyes, in the dim morning light, there was a thick layer of dust on the kang table that I had just wiped clean the night before, and there was also an envelope with the word "One" written on it.

Xiao Yi sat up, opened the window, and saw that the sky was gray-blue, as if it was about to rain. She turned around, got off the kang (a heated brick bed), opened the shoe cabinet, and found a pair of yellow rubber shoes to put on.

Gu Lanxi has a good memory; she remembers every single frame clearly.

The shoes inside were different the first time I opened it and the second time I opened it.

He racked his brains quickly, trying to figure out what was going on.

It's strange, why didn't she open that letter and read it?

Xiao Yi carried a basket on her back, held a sickle, looked up at the sky, put on a straw hat, went to the vegetable garden, and then returned home in the rain.

When they met a neighbor from the same village on the way, Xiao Yi greeted her with a smile. That innocent look in her eyes, which seemed familiar yet impossible to pinpoint, reappeared.

Under the eaves, the hoe was covered in damp mud.

Wisps of smoke rose from the wooden chimney.

Next to the shoe cabinet, there was a pair of wet shoes. Xiao Yi quickly wiped the shoes clean and hung them on the nails by the door.

The log cabin has two rooms, with curtains hanging on the sides of the doors. Although there are signs of life everywhere in the house, apart from Xiaoyi, there is not a single person to be seen.

Gu Lanxi frowned in thought, wondering what exactly was going on.

Could it be that my family members are dead, or are they ghosts?
An inexplicable sense of tension gradually built up as the story slowly progressed. Gu Lanxi didn't even realize that she had already intertwined her fingers with Lu Nanting's, but she didn't bother to turn her head to look at his expression or whisper to him about the plot.

The attendance was low; the small hall, which could accommodate about a hundred people, only had about ten people sitting there.

But everyone was intently watching the screen.

The monologue lasted for about ten minutes, the dust on the kang table grew thicker and thicker, and several unread letters accumulated.

Just as the audience's doubts and fears reached their limit and they were about to lose patience, Xiao Yi opened the shoe cabinet door again.

Then, they took out a pair of children's plastic sandals.

Strangely, she was completely unaware and stretched her feet out, determined to get into those shoes.

A painful wail rang out, and then the screen went black.

As the new day began, Xiao Yi sat up again from the kang (a heated brick bed), as if she remembered nothing.

This time, instead of going out to do farm work, she opened the cupboard, took out a package of pastries wrapped in kraft paper, and walked a long way to meet someone.

The plot has found a breakthrough, like a dammed lake finally releasing its waters, and the tense and impatient emotions have also relaxed.

It was early summer, and wildflowers bloomed all along the way.

Xiao Yi walked along with a heavy heart. A squirrel peeked out from under the tree trunk, then jumped away without noticing for a moment.

A hare appeared, its ears twitching, but it only glanced at the hare before lowering its head again to continue grazing.

Gu Lanxi stared behind her but didn't see a shadow.

The case is solved: Xiao Yi is a ghost. "She's already dead."

Lu Nanting's eyes were fixed on the screen, his hand constantly touching his wife's fingers. When she suddenly leaned over and said those words, he couldn't help but shudder.

Seeing his strong reaction, Gu Lanxi's lips curled up slightly. Then she saw Xiao Yi come to the front of a brick house and call out to her uncle through the gate.

The thatch in the yard was growing extremely lushly, taller than the yard wall. The house looked like it hadn't been lived in for a long time, but as she called out, the wooden door creaked open.

An elderly man with white hair, leaning on a cane, slowly walked out.

The old man stood at the gate of the courtyard, looked around, and went back into the house with a puzzled expression.

Xiao Yi burst into tears without realizing it. The pastries in her hands slipped from her grasp and fell to the ground. As she reached out to pick them up, the string holding the pastries together suddenly snapped, and the pastries inside turned into a handful of black ash.

She stood at the door until evening, when the door opened again, and the old man, cursing, used his cane to push aside the thatch and walked up to her once more.

This time, he finally saw the girl standing at the door.

The forest is especially beautiful at night.

The sky is filled with countless stars, inexplicably gentle, twinkling.

"You child, it seems you haven't forgotten the way home."

Xiao Yi's tears rolled down her cheeks again, and she reached out to grab the old man's arm: "Uncle, how did you get so old? Your hair is all white."

The old man took a step back: "Let's talk this out, don't get physical!"

Low humming sounds gradually rose in the theater.

Xiao Yi awkwardly withdrew her hand and asked him sheepishly, "Uncle, where's my mom?"

The old man sighed softly, "You're too late. Your mother has been gone for over twenty years."

Xiao Yi's pupils dilated instantly!

The old man had always been a humorous person, and even now, he didn't forget to joke:

"Wait for me to get ready, then we'll go find her together. Maybe she hasn't been reincarnated yet."

As soon as he finished speaking, the figure faded away.

It turned out that it was already dawn.

Xiao Yi stood in the sunlight, staring at her uncle's house, and didn't leave.

My cousin's image of slinging his backpack over his shoulder, shaking his hips, and whistling at girls feels like it happened just yesterday.

But he is already a composed middle-aged man.

His wife wasn't as beautiful as he had imagined in his youth, but she had strong arms, a kind face, and was very capable.

While asking relatives and friends to help cut the weeds in the yard, he also carried his frightened granddaughter on his back.

The white banners were quickly hung up, and the mourning hall was set up.

It's another montage, meticulously depicting every detail of this family bidding farewell to their elder.

My uncle, surrounded by his children and grandchildren, passed away with a smile on his face.

That night, as the moonlight shone down, he reappeared, carrying a bundle reeking of incense and candles. He chuckled, threw away his cane, and jumped over the waist-high courtyard wall.

"Hey, my legs are finally nimble again, niece, let's go!"

Xiao Yi turned around and asked, "Uncle, won't you miss me?"

He has several grandchildren, and Xiaoyi has met them; they are all good children.

"Oh dear, you've made my head spin from crying. Everyone has their day, so why are you crying? Let's go! I'm going to find my grandpa. He's been taking care of me since I was little, and we're very close!"

At that moment, the old man looked just like a poet.

"Death is just going from a world where I'm a grandfather to a world where I'm a grandson. At my age, I'll still have people to pamper me. How wonderful!"

As they walked, the old man squatted down and cried.

Once I stood up, I started walking back.

"I'll take one last look."

Lu Nanting suddenly realized that the back of his hand was wet.

Forget about watching the movie, I picked her up and put her on my lap.

When people watch movies, they rarely look to the back. Gu Lanxi was used to buying tickets for the last row and going in after the lights were turned off.

There was no one behind them, so they weren't worried about blocking anyone's view.

Gu Lanxi cried harder and harder, and after a long while, she asked him in a low voice, "Tell me, did my mother come back to see me that night?"

Lu Nanting couldn't give an answer, so he could only hold her and pat her gently.

I made up this movie, and I plan to turn it into a short film script when the kids start school, to practice my scriptwriting skills, and then I'll complete the script.

I need to write this down in my notes, so I don't forget about it.