There was a reason Jiang Yan had asked Shen Huanhuan to answer that question.
—As the less favored of a pair of twins, she could empathize more deeply; her judgment would more closely align with the intentions of the vengeful spirit.
Jiang Yan had noticed this long ago.
After all, several past missions had involved parents in some way. On those occasions, the shadows of her parents would always appear behind Shen Xiaoxiao, reflecting her longing for their love. But every time Xiaoxiao’s yearning surfaced, it would fade quickly, and in its place, Shen Huanhuan would appear, lurking timidly behind the door, watching in silence.
It had really happened once.
Though the details were unknown, Xiaoxiao’s longing suggested she once monopolized her parents’ affection as a child, while Huanhuan, without resentment, merely looked on, making no attempt to compete—simply gazing at the joyful family of three.
Now, filled with regret and guilt, Xiaoxiao could no longer make amends, for their parents had already passed away.
Having laid out her analysis, Shen Huanhuan concluded, “That’s my assessment.”
As soon as the words left her mouth, Shen Xiaoxiao, beside her, gave a visible shudder. She quickly cast her lashes down, staring fixedly at the floor.
If one looked closely, Xiaoxiao’s already pale face seemed even paler.
But aside from Jiang Yan, no one noticed.
All present began to consider this possibility.
A moment later, Zhang Du scratched his head. “Isn’t that a bit extreme?”
“I mean, thinking that if you can’t have your parents’ love, then neither should anyone else—better both die than let the other live on… That’s a little much, isn’t it?”
Shen Huanhuan explained, “The vengeful spirit’s hatred towards the mother is born of love, triggered by her being deliberately chosen for the executioner’s block. There are only two satisfying solutions left after death: one, have the favored child die; two, have the mother refrain from choosing, saving neither, so that both are abandoned to die together.”
“Of the two, I lean toward the latter.”
“But that’s just my take. Everyone should share their opinions.”
Lan Lin frowned, pondering for a dozen seconds before nodding lightly. “I think, in this setting, extremity is exactly what we should expect. The energy field amplifies the spirit’s every emotion—jealousy and obsession, hate and love alike.”
“I also support feeding both chicks and lambs to the calves at once.”
“In this way, neither side faces jealousy or guilt; the mother never has to endure missing the one who remains. To die via self-destruction may cause the mother boundless regret, but the spirit needs witness none of it, nor ever see it again.”
“All it needs is death, while its mother remains, living on in endless grief.”
Shen Huanhuan answered swiftly, “That way, it kills two birds with one stone.”
“It lets the mother survive—and takes revenge on her at the same time.”
“I believe that’s the kind of cruel choice a spirit who deeply loved its mother yet was never favoured would make, in its most raw, amplified emotions.”
Her reasoning swayed the rest.
Thus, the course of action was set.
Jiang Yan stood.
She was about to find an excuse to head out. “I’ll go with Yu Renwan…”
“I think you’re right, too, sis.”
Shen Xiaoxiao’s voice sounded suddenly from her side.
Jiang Yan’s words faltered. Shen Huanhuan chuckled, glancing at her sister. “That’s a bit late—you’re two minutes behind.”
“Why do you always lag with your responses?” Huanhuan curled her finger, gently knocking Xiaoxiao on the forehead.
The little black cat, perched atop Lan Lin’s head, peered down at them with haughty contempt, then looked away. “Tiresome. Look exactly alike. Boring—no edge, no fun!”
Xiaoxiao instantly bristled, glaring at the kitten. “Try not to show your envy so blatantly!”
Kitten: ?
Shen Xiaoxiao immediately buzzed into one of those monologues she’d picked up somewhere:
“A wretched little cat like you will never know the joy of siblings. It’s tragic, really—how could there be such an unlucky kitty in the world?”
“And you think all those people fawning over your cuteness actually mean it?” She snorted coldly. “It’s just pity! Only I genuinely like you—ouch! If you hiss at me—please, there are way cuter cats out there. Boring, no edge, no fun!”
Everyone: “……….”
Lan Lin pressed down on the hissing little cat. “Bear with it. Bear with it.”
“Once the clues are found, I’ll put you away.”
The kitten, exasperated: “So what are you waiting for?!”
Lan Lin turned to Jiang Yan. “What were you about to say?”
Jiang Yan made something up. “Last mission, Yu Renwan and I got the same reward—it lets us temporarily mask our aura and blend in as animals. So we’re also heading out to look for clues.”
Lan Lin was surprised. “There are items like that?”
Jiang Yan nodded.
She quickly assigned duties. “When we arrived, you saw the place: besides the cattle, chicken, and sheep barns, there’s only one crumbling five-story building. It must handle teaching, offices, and accommodations. Teacher Wang’s office is almost certainly inside.”
“After we get in, I’ll help you find Teacher Wang’s office. As for getting the teachers’ rules—” She looked at Yu Renwan, “You and the cat work together. The cat distracts Teacher Wang, and you search for rules and clues.”
“Any problems?”
Yu Renwan hadn’t used her curse yet today—she’d put it on Teacher Wang, and then, thanks to her own physique, search for clues at will. With both, it’d be hard to keep the teachers’ rules hidden.
She quickly shook her head. “No problem. Jiang Jiang, aren’t you searching for the rules too?”
Jiang Yan replied, “I trust your ability, so I’m going to check out the teaching area.”
“Once you’ve found the rules, leave quickly. We’ll meet back at the shed.”
Hearing this, Yu Renwan’s ears flushed red.
“Jiang Jiang trusts me…”
She glanced at Jiang Yan, then raised her hand to pledge, “I… I won’t let you down!”
“If I get caught, I’ll dig all their eyeballs out! Even if I’m tortured, I’ll never give away Jiang Jiang!”
Jiang Yan: “…That’s enough enthusiasm.”
Yu Renwan’s eyes were resolute. “I mean it.”
Jiang Yan: “Good. Keep it up.”
As Yu Renwan looked like she might start a whole vow, Jiang Yan quickly pushed open the door, pressing her finger to her lips, signaling for silence.
Yu Renwan said nothing more. She scooped up the kitten, crouched low, and trailed after Jiang Yan out the door.
[Yu Renwan is visibly livelier these days QAQ]
[And so deep in character.]
[She’s also become a die-hard Yan-jie fan.]
[And Xiao Wa doesn’t go on missions anymore.]
[Xiao Wa: No need to force a mention.]
Because they’d entered the energy field at eight last night and spent over three hours adrift before reaching Wuhai Secondary School, they never saw the place in sunlight.
With darkness gone, everything here looked like an abandoned factory from decades past.
Weeds nearly reached their knees, the signboard lay broken in seven or eight pieces. Jiang Yan briefly reassembled it, making out the characters for “Taoyuan Village.”
Yu Renwan whispered, “Jiang Jiang, have you heard the ghost story about the Peach Blossom Spring?”
Jiang Yan: “What ghost story?”
Yu Renwan: “People in Peach Blossom Spring said their ancestors hid there to escape war and haven’t left for centuries, but their hairstyles and clothes are the same as outsiders, which makes no sense. Meaning they were long dead, clothes are from sacrifices burned for them by descendants, and peachwood, being warding, means the villagers are a bunch of ghosts suppressed by peachwood.”
She mused, “I wonder if Taoyuan Village has anything to do with the Peach Blossom Spring. Probably not though…”
Jiang Yan: “Maybe it does.”
“The world outside can’t find them; those inside can’t leave.”
Yu Renwan looked at Jiang Yan, who smiled. “Let’s not dwell on that. There’s the building ahead—don’t make a sound.”
A few minutes later, the two and the cat reached the main building of Wuhai Secondary School.
A notice was posted on the door.
“Main Building Living Rules — Wuhai Secondary School”
Any who pass through the gates of Wuhai are considered faculty or student. All teachers here have graduated from elite schools, possess outstanding ability, and hold noble ideals. We spare no effort to correct students’ character, raise their quality, and train the perfect offerings for Sir Cow Immortal. While in the main building, every student should:
1. Obey the teachers; only obedient students are good children. Always respect teachers; do not defy any command.
2. The school is our home; we all love it. No destruction of public property.
3. Some students keep personal belongings in the building; do not steal.
4. Do not use private equipment in the hallways.
5. The first three floors are classrooms; the fourth and fifth are offices. Teachers’ office hours are 8:00–11:00 a.m. If seeking help from staff, do not come during lunch break.
6. Quiet voices, gentle hands; keep noise down in hallways.
7. Keep things clean and neat; enter with a healthy, positive attitude.
There weren’t many stipulations—reading it all took less than a minute.
There wasn’t much to pay special attention to in these “Living Rules.” Jiang Yan suspected there would be specific rules for each class, and that these were only to ensure the most basic safety.
She read it through again, murmuring, “No big problems.”
“Rule three is about not stealing students’ things. We’re going after the teachers’ stuff. If there’s a rules sign at the office door, we’ll just have to see. Even if teachers’ things aren’t to be taken, that only applies inside the main building. The kitten can lure Teacher Wang outside, and we take the rules then.”
The kitten bristled furiously. “Watch your language! ‘Lure’?!”
Jiang Yan ignored its complaint, continuing, “We should pay close attention all the way in and not miss any information.”
“But rule four…”
—Do not use private equipment in the hallways.
Jiang Yan pointed to that one. “There might be privately-owned devices disguised as public ones. Once inside, don’t touch a thing.”
Yu Renwan: “Got it!”
The black cat snorted, “You two are so slow, I’m dying to get back and argue with that manipulative girl—”
“Creak—”
Jiang Yan slowly pushed open the main doors.
The black cat fell dead silent.
Quiet voices in the hallway—no shouting here.
Jiang Yan rummaged through her backpack and produced a makeup mirror.
She’d found it in the crossbody of the girl who’d died earlier. Jiang Yan gripped the iron loop on the back of the mirror and slipped it just inside the door, angling it back and forth until satisfied nothing showed in the reflection, then she stepped in first.
“Stick close.”
Yu Renwan clutched Jiang Yan’s backpack, carefully tiptoeing after her.
Jiang Yan, purposeful as ever, made straight for the fourth floor. When they reached the stairway at the second floor, she suddenly halted; Yu Renwan, not stopping in time, bumped her nose neatly into Jiang Yan’s back.
“Don’t touch the next step; climb over it,” Jiang Yan said.
Yu Renwan quickly examined the step, looking it over several times before finally spotting a line of small text by the wall:
“Donated by Outstanding Graduate Wu Mei, Wuhai Secondary School.”
Yu Renwan was confused. “If it’s donated, isn’t it public property, not private? We can touch it, right?”
Jiang Yan didn’t turn back. “Look again.”
Yu Renwan checked again. Below the line, in even smaller print:
“Donated June 11, 2023.”
Jiang Yan said, “Today is June 10. The eleventh is tomorrow.”
“So right now the step is still private property.”
Yu Renwan: “………”
Black cat: “….…..”
The black cat: “You humans really are twisted.”
[Agreed…]
[I’m amazed. It even sets a trap in the date—a difference of just one day…]
Jiang Yan ignored it, quickly stepping over every stair to the third floor.
At the turn halfway up to the third floor, as before, she took out her mirror, checked the angle, and scoped out what lay beyond.
But this time, her brow furrowed.
Yu Renwan tensed, whispering, “What is it—did you see a teacher? Did we bump into a teacher?”
She considered. “No worries. If I don’t suppress my constitution, I should be able to deal with them.”
Jiang Yan said, “No.”
“It’s just that the fourth-floor hallway seems much longer than the ones below.”
The black cat flicked its tail with condescension. “How dense—you think the teachers’ hallway wouldn’t be wider?”
Jiang Yan said bluntly, “Keep quiet.”
“The size of the building is fixed—how could the fourth floor’s corridor be twice as long as the others?”
The black cat: “……..”
Jiang Yan angled the mirror again. The image in the reflection yielded her answer. “There’s a large mirror at the end of the fourth-floor hallway—so it’s just an optical illusion.”
The black cat opened its mouth to chime in.
Jiang Yan: “There’s no need for you to comment.”
The black cat, snubbed, gave a heavy ‘hmph,’ flicking its tail against Jiang Yan’s clothes. “I’m shedding. Serves you right.”
Jiang Yan brushed her clothes off indifferently.
Yu Renwan clutched the little cat tighter. “Jiang Jiang, does it matter if there’s a mirror on the fourth floor?”
She recalled that snake that had come out of a mirror on a previous mission, and peered curiously at Jiang Yan’s hand mirror. “Is there a ghost that’ll come at us from inside?”
Jiang Yan said, “No—it just means that using these stairs, we’re bound to be caught in the reflection between the third and fourth floors.”
Yu Renwan was about to ask what would happen if that occurred, but suddenly seemed to realize, and looked up sharply.
Jiang Yan nodded. “That mirror is probably someone’s personal property.”
“If our reflection is caught in it, it counts as using private equipment.”
The black cat: “……….”
“You humans really are twisted.”