77: Chapter 77: Family Portrait 77: Chapter 77: Family Portrait Although it was already past 10 p.m., many people still hadn’t gone to bed, and plenty of houses were lit with lights that added a touch of warmth and peace to the area.
However, Zhang Xiaoman was quite troubled at the moment, simply because the alleys here lacked lighting, and it was too dark, making it very inconvenient for him to walk.
Fortunately, Lin Sisi’s house wasn’t far from Sixth Master’s House, so he could find his way there by memory, which ensured he wouldn’t get lost.
After running for about 5 minutes in the dimly lit alley, Zhang Xiaoman finally found that somewhat familiar door.
The benefits of regular exercise were evident; if it had been in the past, he would definitely be gasping for breath by now, but currently, he was just slightly out of breath.
Looking at the small house behind the door, there wasn’t a single light on.
Zhang Xiaoman confirmed he was at the right place before reaching out to knock on the door.
“Thump, thump, thump.”
The sound of the wooden door being struck was somewhat piercing in the quiet alley, but Zhang Xiaoman couldn’t care less about disturbing the peace at that point.
After waiting a bit and seeing no one coming to open the door, he knocked again with more power.
Just when Zhang Xiaoman wondered if he had the wrong place, a somewhat timid voice suddenly came from inside, followed by footsteps.
The speaker was Lin Sisi, and from her voice, it was obvious that she was slowly walking towards him.
“Don’t be afraid, it’s me,” Zhang Xiaoman offered comfortingly.
With a noise, the wooden door was opened from the inside.
Zhang Xiaoman saw only darkness within, but through the light at the door, he could faintly make out the girl’s delicate face.
Don’t you use lights at home?” he asked instinctively, but he immediately realized his blunder after the words left his mouth and cursed himself silently for asking such an odd question.
Lin Sisi, however, laughed softly after a slight pause and said, “There’s no need to turn on the lights; I can’t see anyway, so it’s all the same to me.”
Zhang Xiaoman gave an embarrassed smile and then followed her into the small courtyard.
The girl went into the inner room and turned on the light, instantly brightening the house.
Zhang Xiaoman could now clearly see his surroundings, which were different from what he had imagined.
The reason was that the place was simply too tidy.
At a glance, there were hardly any clutter, just common everyday items.
And their placement seemed quite orderly, not at all like the disorganized environment he had pictured for a blind person’s residence.
Lin Sisi, as if understanding his thoughts, said somewhat embarrassedly:
“I don’t have much to do usually, and since I can’t see, I often clean up the house.
Everything has to be placed in a fixed position, or else I won’t be able to find them…”
Seeing her , Zhang Xiaoman felt a surge of sympathy, and couldn’t help saying:
“Your home is very clean and organized, by comparison, I feel more like I’m the blind one.”
At that, Lin Sisi chuckled and said, “You sure have a unique way of comforting people…”
Zhang Xiaoman knew his skill level in interacting with girls was zero, so he quickly changed the subject:
“By the way, you said before that you felt something was watching you, where exactly did you feel that?”
Lin Sisi frowned in thought, then said, “It seems I can feel it in the living room too, but mainly in my bedroom…”
Zhang Xiaoman looked around, and the lights were off in several nearby rooms, which were all pitch-dark inside, uncertain of their appearance.
After speaking, Lin Sisi felt for the direction with her hands and then led Zhang Xiaoman toward a room further inside.
Upon turning on the light, everything around them suddenly became clearly visible.
The first thing Zhang Xiaoman did when he saw the scene was to inhale sharply, and then he exclaimed in surprise,
Lin Sisi nodded a little embarrassedly and said,
“I used to study fine arts, and these paintings are all my own work…
but since I went blind, I haven’t touched a brush again…
I can barely remember what these paintings look like anymore…”
She sounded somewhat discouraged as she spoke.
“These paintings are very beautiful, they look just like real, very lovely!”
Seeing her , Zhang Xiaoman also offered a word of comfort.
Lin Sisi nodded happily, and then continued on the topic from before,
“I only started feeling this way today, it was all normal before…
But now, standing here with you, it seems I can’t feel that gaze anymore.”
Hearing her say this, Zhang Xiaoman glanced around at the portraits, and the possibility came to his mind, a classic trope in many horror films.
“Could it be that the so-called eeriness is hidden within these portraits!?”
Thinking this, he immediately scanned carefully with his perception, but he did not detect any traces of energy fluctuations.
“No, that’s not right, these are all landscape paintings…”
Zhang Xiaoman looked around once more, then his gaze settled on the largest painting of them all.
“Did you paint this one too?”
Zhang Xiaoman pointed at the painting near the bed and asked, and then felt he had made a foolish mistake, quickly adding,
“I mean the one hanging above your bed, the one with three people in it…”
Upon hearing this, Lin Sisi thought for a moment and said, “Yes, that’s the last painting I did, it’s my mom, dad, and me…”
Zhang Xiaoman narrowed his eyes and slowly walked towards the bed, his muscles tensing up.
This painting was the only portrait in the room.
Perhaps sensing the change in the atmosphere, Lin Sisi opened her eyes wide and puzzledly “looked” in the direction of Zhang Xiaoman, asking softly,
“Is there something wrong with the painting?”
As Zhang Xiaoman walked, he replied, “I’m not quite sure yet, I’m just going to take a look, don’t worry.”
As he spoke, he had already reached the painting and began to study the figures in it carefully.
The background of the painting was a riverside, where a family of three was sitting around a tablecloth, as if picnicking in the countryside.
Lin Sisi’s painting was rather lifelike, with the three people looking towards the camera, their smiles vivid and lifelike.
Zhang Xiaoman always felt there was something strange about the painting.
After examining it carefully for a moment, his expression suddenly changed and he quickly asked Lin Sisi who was behind him,
“When you painted this, which direction were the people in it facing?”