13 Mink Street

Chapter 2: The Deceased Care Company

"Splash..."

Zhou Xun scooped up a handful of water and splashed it on his face.

After a moment,

he lifted his damp face and faced the mirror.

What appeared in the mirror was the face of a fifteen-year-old.

It had been two weeks, and

Zhou Xun still hadn't gotten used to this brand-new face. Every time he looked in the mirror, he'd pause subconsciously to prepare himself mentally.

He reached out,

pinched his cheeks,

pulled them outward,

and then released them.

Two red marks remained on his face.

If only he could tear this face apart, and everything in front of him, everything around him, everything in the past two weeks, would turn to shards of glass, like waking from a dream. How wonderful it would be.

Of course, Zhou Xun knew that was impossible.

"Pah!"

Zhou Xun slapped himself in the face.

Even though this face looked like a young Leonardo,

Zhou Xun slapped him without mercy, even taking a slight delight in it.

This slap wasn't naively intended to wake him from his dream, but rather to sober himself up and allow him to continue dreaming properly.

Since it's here, let's just make the best of it.

This was the only way Zhou Xun could comfort himself.

"Knock, knock, knock... knock, knock..."

There was a knock on the bathroom door, accompanied by Mina's concerned call:

"Brother Karen, Brother Karen, are you okay?"

Mina was his cousin, the daughter of his uncle Mason.

And Zhou Xun's current body also had a name—Karen.

"I'm fine," Zhou Xun replied.

"Okay." Mina, standing outside, breathed a sigh of relief and asked, "I'll bring breakfast to your room later, brother."

"No, Mina, I'll go downstairs and eat later."

Mina, standing outside, was a little surprised, but quickly said, "Okay, brother."

Zhou Xun continued to stare at himself in the mirror, picking up a cold towel and covering his flushed face.

He was a psychologist with a private clinic in Jinling City and a part-time psychological counselor for the police department.

In a hostage-taking case, he was a negotiator assigned to negotiate with the kidnappers. However, something unexpected happened midway. The kidnappers attempted to push the little girl, a hostage, off the rooftop. He quickly stepped forward and pulled her back, but he himself fell and immediately lost consciousness.

It seemed like he had been having a strange dream for a long time.

When he slowly woke up and opened his eyes, Zhou Xun was shocked to find that he was not lying in the hospital ICU, and the people surrounding his bed were not doctors, but a group of... "foreign friends."

The oldest person was his grandfather, Des Inmerles.

He was his eldest grandson, and when he saw him wake up, his eyes were filled with relief... but also with an inexplicable feeling.

An uncle, Mason, who was over forty, was happy.

Aunt Mary, Mason's wife, smiled at first, then her face darkened. Then, she smiled again.

Another older woman was his aunt Winnie, who wept tears of joy.

There were three other children, his aunt and uncle's children, his cousins: fourteen-year-old Mina and thirteen-year-old Lent. The other was Aunt Winnie's daughter, thirteen-year-old Chris.

And Zhou Xun... no, Karen himself. Both his parents had passed away a few years ago.

This was the situation for the members of this family.

Zhou Xun changed the hot towel and covered his face again. After a long moment, he shook it off.

In the two weeks since waking up, he'd spent most of the time in bed. Partly because he was truly weak, and partly because he needed to digest the memories of this "Karen."

The process of digesting memories was curious; it didn't conflict or confuse his own memories with those of the original owner. To Zhou Xun, the original owner's memories were more like files stored in a bookcase or a computer document.

He was still Zhou Xun, but when needed, he could, with a subtle reflection, like a "search," quickly retrieve the memories belonging to "Karen."

In short,

Since this was the case,

he had to face life bravely.

Zhou Xun had mentally prepared himself, ready to face his second life with a positive attitude.

Opening the bathroom door, he saw the family's black cat, named "Pall," lazily lounging on the windowsill, basking in the sun. Upon seeing Karen, it naturally turned its head toward the window, its demeanor brimming with the arrogance of its owner.

Zhou Xun paused,

took a deep breath,

murmured:

"From today on, I am Karen."

...

Karen walked down the stairs, from his room on the third floor to the second.

The Inmerles family lived at 13 Mingke Street in the west district of Luojia City, a single-family villa with a large garden.

Based on his past life's understanding, Mingke Street, while not in the heart of Luojia City, was firmly within the Second Ring Road.

Imagine owning a single-family villa in a second-tier city in the future...

In his past life, Karen could only dream of a townhouse, never even a duplex.

This was something he was grateful for now. After all, traveling through time... the family he traveled to would be better off, and he would be much more comfortable.

If he had traveled through time as a little match boy...

Oh, my God, that would be truly miserable.

The kitchen and dining room of the Immerles family were on the second floor, while the first floor was the work area.

Yes, this was a "company," or rather a "family workshop." This villa served as both a living quarters and a means of production.

The family was in the funeral business, with the sign proclaiming "Immorles Bereaved Care Company."

Grandpa was the boss, holding the final say in both family life and the running of the "company." He also moonlighted as the priest at the small church at the end of Mink Street.

Uncle Mason used to work at the stock exchange, and Aunt Mary was initially a somewhat well-known makeup artist, specializing in celebrity makeup and even appearing in minor cameos in a few short films.

They should have lived a modest middle-class life, having long since moved out.

But Uncle Mason's investments failed, and they lost not only their savings but also their property and, it seems, debt. In the end, Uncle Mason had no choice but to return home with his wife and two children to fulfill his filial duty to his father.

Grandpa didn't say anything about it.

However,

He quickly found a reason to fire the original driver and undertaker.

In Grandpa's words: The Immelese family doesn't keep idlers.

Uncle Mason is now in charge of driving—well, driving the family hearse—while his assistants, Paul and Ron, are responsible for picking up and dropping off "VIPs."

Aunt Mary continues to handle her professional duties.

She still does makeup,

and no longer has to worry about being picked on by bad-tempered celebrities or receiving complaints.

Their children, Mina and Lent, are in middle school.

Aunt Winnie used to be an accountant at a small garment factory. After divorcing her husband due to a disagreement, she returned home with her daughter, Chris.

Thankfully, the Immelese family's house is large. Even though the basement is occupied by "VIPs" and the first floor is a "mourning room," the rooms on the second and third floors are more than enough for so many people in the family.

Karen and her cousin Lent originally shared a room, but since Karen fell ill, Lent has been sleeping with Grandpa on the third floor. There's also a room on the third floor that serves as Grandpa's office.

The second floor also has three rooms: one for my uncle and aunt, one for Aunt Winnie, and one for my two cousins.

The atmosphere at home is actually quite good. Grandpa's authority is so strong that no one dares to cause any conflict under his watch.

When they reached the second-floor dining table, Mina was helping her mother set the table.

Aunt Mary saw Karen coming down and

with a deliberately sarcastic expression, said:

"Our young master can finally come downstairs for breakfast by himself, without your loyal maid bringing it up?"

Aunt Mary was just like that. She had a sharp tongue and loved to mock people.

At home, apart from Grandpa, she dared not offend anyone else: her husband, her children, her sister-in-law, and even Karen.

Karen smiled warmly and

said sincerely:

"Thank you, Auntie, for your care these days. I've recovered so quickly."

In Karen's memory, although this aunt had a sharp tongue, she always treated him like her own children, a kindhearted person with a soft heart.

"Uh..."

Unexpectedly, her normally taciturn and withdrawn nephew could manage such eloquent and polite remarks. Aunt Mary was at a loss for words. She could only curl her lips and say, "Let's eat."

"Okay."

Karen sat down at the table.

Breakfast consisted of a sandwich, a fried egg, milk, and some small sausages.

He took a bite of the sandwich,

chewing slowly.

Although he had only been here for two weeks,

Karen was already missing his duck blood vermicelli soup with three spoonfuls of chili.

Just then,

A car horn honked outside.

"Your father's home."

Aunt Mary washed her hands at the sink, then untied her apron.

"You guys keep eating. I'll go see if your father has any 'surprises' for me."

Other husbands might bring their wives a little surprise, like a ring or a designer bag, or a bouquet of flowers.

Uncle Mason, however, brought his wife a "body."

For Aunt Mary, a body from a normal death was already a "surprise." She hated those who died of unnatural causes; they were much more troublesome to deal with.

Karen put down his fork. Subconsciously, he felt that he was an adult, and when something happened at home, he naturally couldn't sit at the table with the children and continue eating. So he followed Aunt Mary downstairs.

The first floor was spacious. In the southeast corner was a small platform with three steps. It was the "morgue" used to hold the coffin.

Just then,

Paul and Ron, the family's two servants, arrived, pushing a stretcher covered with a white sheet. Uncle Mason didn't come down. He was a bit self-righteous. Although he had to work under his father's authority, he only drove and rarely touched the bodies.

In Karen's impression, although Uncle Mason was unreliable in investment and a spendthrift, he was a very humorous man in life and kind to his family.

Aunt Mary stepped forward, lifted the white cloth, took a look, and then breathed a sigh of relief.

The body was that of a young man. His death was not scary. Although he lay flat, his face was tilted 90 degrees to the right.

"Frozen to death?" Aunt Mary pressed. "Welfare bill?"

Although it was just the beginning of winter and the cold wasn't yet here, drunks or homeless people froze to death on the roadside.

As for the welfare bill... it was a special fund established by the city government, churches, charities, and other organizations to provide a decent burial for those without relatives or friends...in other words, those who had no one to pay for the funeral.

Welfare bills require the active efforts of multiple funeral homes. They're essentially divided up by district, and after layers of exploitation, the profit that actually reaches the funeral homes is almost negligible. However, they do keep the funeral homes afloat. After all, even if they're not operating, they still have to pay their employees, right?

Conversely, welfare bills are easier to handle, as there's less scrutiny and criticism from family and friends.

The body is simply prepared and placed in the coffin. Grandpa, dressed in his priest's robes, stands beside it. Someone sent by the relevant government department takes a few photos for record-keeping, and then they can wait for the month-end funding.

"Yes, ma'am, I know him. His name is Jeff. He's an unlucky guy who always loses at cards. Alas, I'm even more unlucky. I'm always away when he goes to the pub to play cards," Ron said.

"Ma'am, there's another bill. We need to go to Huashuiwan Sanatorium," Paul said.

Aunt Mary immediately shouted, "Have the nursing home attendant give him a bath first, or else don't bring him back. The last time we brought him back, the old man had feces crusted all over his body."

"Yes, I understand," Paul assured immediately.

With that, he and Ron exchanged for an empty cart and returned to the hearse.

"Beep, beep..."

Uncle Mason, sitting in the cart, still holding a cigarette, honked the horn twice more.

He first called out to Karen:

"My dear Karen, you seem to be recovering well."

"Yes, Uncle," Karen replied.

"Haha, that's wonderful." Then he looked back at his wife and shouted, "Honey, I'll be back for lunch and want your mincemeat pie. It's one of the only two things I love most!"

"I'll eat it in the bathroom. I don't have time!"

Uncle Mason shrugged.

He continued his cheeky grin.

"Oh, that's my other favorite!"

Aunt Mary's expression tightened. She turned away, her lips quivering.

"Let's go, honey!"

Mason started the car and drove away.

Aunt Mary took two deep breaths and reached out to push the stretcher.

Karen naturally came over to help.

Aunt Mary glanced at Karen but didn't move.

Karen looked at her with some confusion.

"Karen, you seem a little different than before."

"Maybe."

Karen didn't bother trying to hide the fact that he'd "traveled." In fact, as a time traveler, this was the least of their worries: who around them would think their soul had been replaced?

You're crazy!

"Let's go to the basement."

"Okay, Auntie."

The aunt and nephew pushed the stretcher with the body on it around the corner of the first-floor lobby and down.

The path to the basement was a slope with a flat transition in the middle.

As they pushed, they had to control their speed to prevent the body from sliding off.

"It would be great if there was an elevator," Karen said as they reached the basement, his grip on the stretcher slightly strained.

"The kind you see in department stores?" Aunt Mary scoffed. "You're crazy! How expensive would that be!"

The basement consisted of only one floor, divided into three rooms, or rather, functional areas.

A utility room... well, it couldn't really be called a utility room. It contained many items needed by the funeral home, neatly stacked.

One was the morgue, which was completely empty. Karen didn't see a freezer either.

Karen didn't ask why they didn't buy a freezer, believing Aunt Mary would respond, "You're crazy! That would be so expensive!"

This also shows that the Immeles family's business isn't actually that big, so they don't need to overstock.

But from another perspective, it's clear that regardless of era or cultural context, the corpse trade... is truly profitable.

The last room was Aunt Mary's workshop, where she performed "beautification" on the bodies.

Even the most beautiful people in life become... ordinary after death.

Not to mention that many of those who died were not born naturally, which further increases the workload.

A typical welfare bill only requires attention to the face, and no family member would bother with anything else. However, a larger bill is one where the family is willing to pay for a more elaborate ceremony, requiring a full body cleanup, even nails trimmed. Then, everything from the coffin and clothing to the priest's prayers and even the funeral arrangements can be considered classy.

Karen helped Aunt Mary push the stretcher into the workshop.

Aunt Mary pulled up a chair and sat down, placing an ashtray on the stretcher, almost directly in Jeff's face.

"Pah..."

Aunt Mary lit a cigarette, took a drag, and slowly exhaled.

Apart from her "sharp" flaw, Aunt Mary was indeed quite good-looking. Despite her age, she still possessed a certain charm.

Of course, even the most distinguished woman would find it difficult to maintain her dignity and grace if her uncle tricked her into doing this kind of work.

Karen stared at the cigarette in Aunt Mary's hand.

Aunt Mary noticed,

smiled slightly,

and pushed the box toward Karen.

Karen reached out, took it, pulled out a cigarette, and then picked up her lighter.

She lit it and

took a puff.

"Cough cough... cough cough... ugh..."

A strong feeling of nausea washed over Karen, and he clutched his chest and began coughing violently.

"Hehehe, hahahaha..."

Aunt Mary laughed until tears came out of her eyes.

This scene wasn't Karen's pretense. He had been a heavy smoker in his past life, but this body, untouched by nicotine, was now resisting, both his body and his brain issuing warnings of "rejecting the toxin."

Aunt Mary put out her cigarette.

After checking Jeff's body to ensure there were no other injuries, she tried to straighten his face.

Just a simple application of makeup would be enough. When the guys returned, they'd just put Jeff's clothes on and tuck him in. In this weather, even the embalming process could be sloppy.

"Hmm?"

Aunt Mary loosened her grip and said to Karen:

"Try to pry it open. I can't."

"Oh, okay."

Karen put out her cigarette and reached out, one hand pressing Jeff's neck while the other held the right side of his face.

Push,

Push,

Push...

Jeff's face slowly began to straighten.

But what shocked Karen—to be precise, what Aunt Mary, standing beside her, couldn't see—was that as she exerted her strength to straighten it, she could clearly sense Jeff's body shifting to the right...

It wasn't like you were prying open a dead man's face; it was more like you were wrestling with a living person!

This realization made Karen's heart sink slightly. However, just as he was about to let go, he suddenly felt the force wrestling with him vanish. No... after he let go, Jeff's head...

"Squeak, squeak..."

It straightened up on its own!

Jeff's eyes

fluttered open,

glaring at Karen.

His mouth began to move frantically, making a rustling sound like rats gnawing on a piece of wood.

Karen instinctively took two steps back, leaning his back against the wall.

Then,

"Bang!"

It felt like someone had struck the back of his head with a shovel.

Karen's body curled up,

his vision blurring.

But he was unwilling to lose control of his surroundings in this situation.

He immediately raised his head, suppressing the excruciating pain at the back of his head.

In his field of vision,

a sea of ​​red.

Karen stumbled back.

As he retreated, his vision began to rise further.

He realized that the red he saw was a high-heeled shoe. Above the high-heeled shoe, a very tall, white leg. On the opposite side, there was also a similarly large high-heeled shoe and a leg above it...

He himself,

like a little mouse, was standing at someone's feet.

"Plop..."

Karen lost his balance and fell to the ground.

He didn't know if this was a dream or a hallucination from mental disorder...

Until...

"Plop..."

A pool of thick liquid fell on him, completely soaking his upper body.

Karen slowly raised his head.

He saw it.

Above him,

between those enormous legs,

was a woman's face.

She gazed at him with curiosity and a smile.

And,

drool dripped from her slightly parted lips.

"Hiss...hiss...hiss..."

From nowhere, a sound mingled with the whirring of electricity echoed.

A deep, magnetic, middle-aged male voice echoed:

"Don't be afraid, this beautiful and charming lady...is only after your body."