Chapter 89

“There’s a ghost.”

Instantly, Tan Wenbin felt a chill shoot from his tailbone straight up to the top of his head. He subconsciously stood up from his chair.

Then, without hesitation, he half-turned on the spot and slammed the professional book he was holding face-down onto Lin Shuyou’s face with a *thwack*.

With his vertical pupils open, Lin Shuyou saw the evil spirit.

Tan Wenbin, of course, knew Lin Shuyou’s characteristic: his eyes were like a radar.

But the problem was, *you didn’t even look at what state you’re in now... Even if you can’t see yourself, you should at least look at what kind of person I am, the one tending to you!*

But Lin Shuyou was not conscious. Having received treatment and being on an IV drip, he was now in a special state of coma.

His body began to twitch, seemingly wanting to get up, but his weak, injured body prevented him from rising.

His lips trembled, as if he were talking in his sleep:

“Evil spirit… Evil spirit… Exterminate the evil spirit…”

“Alright, alright, there, there, exterminate, exterminate, exterminate.”

“Evil spirit… Evil spirit… Evil spirit…”

“Quiet down, it’s alright. I’ll handle it. A mere evil spirit is utterly insignificant before me.”

As if comforted, Lin Shuyou quieted down.

More likely, his condition was too poor. His vertical pupils, once opened, quickly unfocused again, and he fell into an even deeper coma.

Tan Wenbin let out a long breath. He was finally quiet. He had been truly afraid that he would make a commotion and attract the evil spirit that should have just passed by.

Binbin remembered what Big Brother Xiaoyuan had taught him: when encountering an evil spirit and feeling oneself not to be its match or capable of handling the situation, the correct approach was… to pretend not to see it.

*Was it those two senior students from earlier?*

*What a pity, to be tainted by something unclean at such a young age.*

Tan Wenbin walked to the ward door. The two senior students had gone west down the corridor, so he unhesitatingly exited and went east.

With an evil spirit appearing in the school infirmary, leaving the comatose Lin Shuyou alone there would be dangerous, but Tan Wenbin had something more important to do:

*Go quickly and get my Big Brother Xiaoyuan.*

Coming down the east stairs, Tan Wenbin quickened his pace, trying to appear as natural as possible, occasionally scratching his head and muttering curses like, “What a hassle!”

He didn’t know if the evil spirit would notice him, but even if unseen by others, he still had to exhibit his “professionalism.”

However, what he feared most came to pass.

As he reached the south exit of the school infirmary, his peripheral vision caught sight of the same pair of senior students; they were also there.

One had come from the east, the other from the west, both having descended the stairs, like two parallel lines converging at the main entrance.

“Ugh, this is so annoying, so much trouble just staying in the infirmary. Don’t expect me to come take care of you again next time.”

Tan Wenbin continued his act.

After exiting the infirmary, he crossed the road to return to school. Just then, several trucks passed by, and he had to wait for a moment.

The pair of senior students didn’t cross the road, but instead turned and walked east.

Without specifically looking, he still caught sight in his periphery: the two senior students, one on each side, were holding the hands of a skipping, four or five-year-old girl in a patient gown.

The little girl giggled and spoke in a childish voice:

“Is there really something fun ahead?” “Are you really taking me to buy toys?” “Sisters, you’re so good to me.”

Tan Wenbin maintained a calm expression, continuing to wait for the trucks to pass so he could cross the road, but his heart began to pound, and a sense of moral culpability emerged.

If the two evil spirits had been leading an elderly man or woman, or any adult, or even just an older child, and he had acted a bit cheeky, made a fuss, or screamed and jumped… Tan Wenbin would have felt no ripple in his heart.

But this victim’s image was chosen too perfectly; it greatly stirred one’s sense of justice and desire to protect.

Moreover, the two senior students led the girl by the hand, stepped off the road, and turned right again. There was a patch of small shrubs there, and beyond that, an artificial river.

*What were they doing?*

Tan Wenbin swallowed, then bit down hard on the tip of his tongue. The pain brought him to his senses.

If it were an ordinary child abduction or common crime, he would have rushed forward without hesitation to act heroically; that was his creed.

But Lin Shuyou had already opened his vertical pupils earlier. When one feels insufficient to handle a situation, one must still make the calmest decision.

*He wasn’t Runsheng; Big Brother Xiaoyuan might not give him a second chance.*

Just then, the trucks passed, and Tan Wenbin stepped across the road, heading straight for the school.

By the river.

The little girl stopped.

The two senior students, each holding one of her hands, also stopped simultaneously.

The cute expression on the little girl’s face vanished, and murky white covered her eyes.

She turned around, looking behind her, but didn’t see the person follow.

Finally, the little girl turned around, and the two senior students turned with her.

A smile appeared on the little girl’s face, and expressions returned to the faces of the two senior students.

The two adults and the child, holding hands again, left the riverbank, walked back to the road, and returned the way they came, entering the infirmary door and going upstairs.

When they reached the ward they had passed earlier, the little girl stopped and remained outside.

The two senior students entered the ward. It was a multi-person ward, with each bed separated only by a curtain. The two senior students, looking normal, checked each bed as if searching for a hospitalized classmate.

They passed Lin Shuyou’s bed.

At this moment, Lin Shuyou’s face was still covered by a thick professional book.

One of the senior students walked forward, reached out, and lifted the book, revealing Lin Shuyou in a deeper state of coma.

At this point, Lin Shuyou couldn’t even open his vertical pupils again; he probably couldn’t be woken up even by slapping him.

The senior student placed the book back on his face, finding nothing amiss.

After inspecting all the beds, both came out again and stood behind the little girl.

The little girl gripped the corridor railing with both hands, looking through the gaps at the school, in the direction Tan Wenbin had left.

In her eyes, a hint of resentful malice, as if she had been deceived, flickered.

Then, she closed her eyes.

*Thump… Thump…*

The two senior students suddenly went limp and collapsed onto the ground.

Nearby doctors and nurses noticed, calling out as they came over to attend to them.

The little girl, meanwhile, quietly walked through the crowd and returned to her small ward at the end of the corridor.

She lay down on the bed.

Beside her, a haggard-looking woman was sleeping, slumped over the bedside.

The little girl reached out and touched the woman’s head.

The woman woke up, saw the little girl’s open eyes, and immediately exclaimed in surprise:

“Jingjing, you’re awake? That’s wonderful! You scared your aunt half to death!”

“Auntie, Jingjing wants to go home.”

“Alright, Auntie will take you home.”

After leaving Liu Yumei’s home, Li Zhuiyuan, as usual, first went to the discount store for lunch.

With the gradual return of upper-year students, four work-study students appeared at the store.

This meant that Runsheng and Yinmeng’s workload was lessened, giving them more free time and not constantly tying them to the store.

After finishing his meal and returning to his dorm, Li Zhuiyuan began to write down “Liu’s Qi-Sensing Art” and “Qin’s Dragon-Gazing Method” in messy handwriting.

The original old book from the “book thief” couldn’t be given away; its age was too obvious. He could only re-copy it himself… no, just write it from memory.

After all, he had already read the book, so all its contents must be clearly memorized; otherwise, wouldn’t it have been a waste to read it?

Since Liu Yumei had sped up her progress, he might as well speed things up even more.

Once everything was written, he would hand it over to Liu Yumei and let her translate at her own pace. Otherwise, he’d have to go to the study every morning, cutting into his time with A-Li.

As he was writing, the dorm door was pushed open.

After entering the school gate, Tan Wenbin had been running frantically and was now heavily out of breath:

“Big Brother Xiaoyuan, an evil spirit has appeared in the infirmary.”

Li Zhuiyuan put his brush back on the pen rest. He didn’t hastily stand up and rush to the infirmary, but quietly waited for Tan Wenbin to catch his breath and finish explaining the situation in detail.

Since Tan Wenbin had run back, Binbin was safe. As for other situations in the infirmary, the young man wasn’t very concerned.

After Tan Wenbin finished recounting the events, he looked at Xiaoyuan, silent.

Li Zhuiyuan nodded and said, “Let’s go take a look then.”

On the way, he called Runsheng and Yinmeng, and the four formed a team, arriving together at the infirmary.

First, they went to Lin Shuyou’s ward. Li Zhuiyuan lifted the book from his face, checked him, and after confirming he was only unconscious with no other issues, he placed the book back, while telling Tan Wenbin:

“Later, get some tape and tape his eyelids shut.”

Immediately after, Li Zhuiyuan walked out of the ward, leading everyone to check the other rooms.

They didn’t find the little girl Tan Wenbin had mentioned, but they did find the two senior students.

Li Zhuiyuan remembered these two senior students. Yesterday, when he passed the sports field, they were sitting on the slope drawing. One of them had even invited him to be their model, but he had refused.

Recalling their conversation from that time, one should be named Xu Bailu and the other Wu Xue.

Both of them looked listless, lying on reclining chairs hooked up to IV drips of glucose. They were still somewhat disoriented, and the doctor said they had low blood sugar due to malnutrition.

But Li Zhuiyuan looked at their complexions and clearly saw “external evil entanglement,” which could mean poor health leading to successive illnesses, or being infected by something unclean. Since both had fainted simultaneously, it had to be the latter.

“Big Brother Binbin, it’s a good thing you didn’t impulsively try to save that child. Perhaps that child is the true evil spirit.”

“Damn it, that’s truly despicable! I went through such a mental struggle back then, and my tongue still hurts now!”

Tan Wenbin glanced at Runsheng as he spoke, but Runsheng ignored him.

When everyone walked out of the infirmary, Tan Wenbin deliberately lagged behind, nudged Runsheng with his arm, pressed his tongue against the roof of his mouth, and made a knowing click.

“See how clever I am?”

Runsheng finally acknowledged him, glancing at Binbin and calmly asking in return:

“No confidence to make a mistake?”

Tan Wenbin: “…”

Having gained nothing, the four returned to campus.

“Big Brother Binbin, go investigate the information on those two girls. Generally, when something unclean possesses someone, it tends to stick to them, knowing the way.”

Just like Little Oriole did to him back then.

“Alright.” Tan Wenbin nodded. “I’ll go to the store to get tape first, then return to the infirmary. After those two senior students regain consciousness, I’ll go gather information from them.”

“Big Brother Runsheng, you accompany Big Brother Binbin later. The little girl is gone, which means Big Brother Binbin’s actions stirred up a commotion, disturbing her, and she might still come back.”

“Mhm.”

Li Zhuiyuan added:

“When Lin Shuyou regains his ability to take care of himself, just leave him be. Let him go; if he dies, he dies.”

The four returned to the store. Tan Wenbin grabbed the tape and went to the infirmary with Runsheng.

Li Zhuiyuan, meanwhile, went to the basement to feed Little Black.

When Little Black saw Li Zhuiyuan, it came out of its cage, rubbed its head against the young man’s pant leg, and then, as if completing a task, walked back into its cage.

This dog had always been very healthy, and truly, it had no interest in the outside world whatsoever.

Yinmeng brought a freshly brewed tonic. Li Zhuiyuan poured it into Little Black’s bowl, and Little Black began to drink.

After drinking, Little Black lay on its side in the cage, extending one of its paws through a gap in the bars, in a posture that seemed to say, “Take what you need.”

After Li Zhuiyuan drew black dog blood with a syringe, he patted Little Black’s head.

Little Black retracted its paw, sprawled out, and continued sleeping, wagging its tail as if saying goodbye.

Though it was just a dog, it gave off an aura of seeing through the mundane and being detached from the world.

Li Zhuiyuan couldn’t help but wonder if, once the term was up and he set it free, no matter how far away he released it, it would run back on its own and voluntarily climb back into its cage.

It truly enjoyed this lazy life of drinking tonics and being well-fed, and the price it paid was merely a small, insignificant amount of dog blood drawn every so often.

Indeed, pet dogs had to fawn, guard dogs had to work, and stray dogs had to fight. Their lives were not only worse than its, but they also exerted far more effort.

As Li Zhuiyuan returned to the store and was about to leave for his dorm, a car conveniently pulled up.

The car window rolled down, and Xue Liangliang poked his head out, waving, “Xiaoyuan, get in.”

Li Zhuiyuan opened the door and got into the front passenger seat.

In the back sat Professor Luo, who was looking down at documents. When Li Zhuiyuan got in, he looked up and smiled, “Xiaoyuan, how have you been lately?”

“I’m very well, Professor.”

“Mhm, something happened at school recently. I’ve already made arrangements for you again; from now on, if you have any issues, just go directly to the department head.”

“Thank you, Professor.”

“How is that student doing lately?”

“Student Tan Wenbin is diligently reviewing professional knowledge.”

“Mhm.”

Professor Luo continued looking at his documents.

Xue Liangliang said while driving, “The Professor and I just returned from Xuzhou, and we have to go to Huangshan tonight for a meeting tomorrow. We specifically carved out time today to visit the Professor’s home for dinner before we leave.”

“That’s really tough.”

Li Zhuiyuan buckled his seatbelt, not mentioning picking up Tan Wenbin again, as Professor Luo had just alluded to it.

“Originally, the Professor’s home was on campus, but recently it was rearranged, and the school assigned him a new apartment.

I heard someone from another school liked the environment of our professors’ building and wanted to move in, so they donated a large sum for equipment to the school lab.

Heh heh, these days, there are all sorts of people.

It’s a pity, although the Professor’s small courtyard wasn’t big, it was very well-designed, and the renovation was personally overseen by the Professor back then. You didn’t get to see it.”

Li Zhuiyuan didn’t feel it was a pity; there was a high probability he’d be going there every morning from now on.

The new home was in an old residential complex in a bustling area. After entering the complex, everyone got out of the car. Professor Luo instructed Xue Liangliang on the apartment number and went up first, while Xue Liangliang took Li Zhuiyuan to a restaurant outside the complex to pack up food.

“Something happened at the Professor’s home, so his wife probably won’t be in the mood to make us dinner.”

“What happened?”

“The Professor’s wife’s sister and brother-in-law passed away in a car accident recently, leaving behind a four or five-year-old daughter. His wife brought the child to live with them, and the Professor agreed.

The Professor’s own daughter is attending university in Shenzhen, and the Professor himself is busy with work now. Having a child around also brings some comfort to his wife.

However, the child has been ill recently, with sudden fainting spells. When the Professor heard the news, he specifically made time to come home and visit.

Xiaoyuan, you need to be mentally prepared. In elementary school, when I read the text about Yu the Great passing his home three times without entering while taming the floods, I didn’t understand it. Now I do.”

“It certainly isn’t easy.”

“We can only hope that infrastructure improves in the future, with more airports and more diverse flights. That way, it’ll be much more convenient for you to visit your hometown in Nantong, with even a one-day holiday being enough for a round trip.”

“Big Brother Liangliang, by then, you’ll be old too.”

“What drink do you want? No alcohol.”

“Soy milk.”

Xue Liangliang and Li Zhuiyuan carried the food upstairs. A gentle middle-aged woman opened the door, her face visibly exhausted.

“Liangliang, you’re here! Heh heh, this must be Xiaoyuan, our top scholar from the province.”

As she spoke, the woman took out a red envelope and handed it to Li Zhuiyuan.

“Thank you, Professor’s wife.”

Li Zhuiyuan accepted it. It was his first visit, and given their teacher-student relationship, it was appropriate to accept.

“This child, he’s so handsome. Our Old Luo really found a treasure.” Then, the Professor’s wife looked at the dishes they were carrying and said, “Oh dear, I’ve already cooked! Why did you buy food outside? Nothing compares to home-cooked meals.”

Xue Liangliang: “Weren’t we afraid you’d be tired, Professor’s wife?”

“So many dishes, we can’t possibly finish them all.”

“It’s fine. We’ll pack up the leftovers, and the Professor and I can eat them on the road tonight. We guarantee no waste.”

Inside, Li Zhuiyuan saw Professor Luo sitting on the living room sofa, holding a little girl in his arms.

Professor Luo: “Come, Jingjing, say hello to your big brothers. This is Big Brother Liangliang, and this is Big Brother Xiaoyuan.”

“Big Brother Liangliang, Big Brother Xiaoyuan.”

Jingjing’s voice was clear and melodious, and she looked very cute.

But as soon as her voice emerged, Li Zhuiyuan’s gaze towards her took on a special significance.

Because in this world, probably no one was more professional at “playing a child” than he was.

“Oh, where did this little beauty come from, hahaha!”

Xue Liangliang opened his arms, bent down, and hugged the little girl.

The little girl chuckled as she hugged him, but her nose wrinkled slightly.

A polite smile also appeared on Li Zhuiyuan’s face, and he thought: *Heh, did she smell the aura of the disliked ‘Lady Bai’s family?’*

After the hug, Xue Liangliang stepped aside.

The little girl continued happily approaching to hug Li Zhuiyuan. From a child’s perspective, she would certainly feel more affectionate towards someone closer in age.

Li Zhuiyuan stood still and asked:

“Who exactly are you?”

The same question Xue Liangliang had asked earlier, but with a different tone.

Especially the young man’s smile, which gradually turned into an amused expression, as if watching a performance.

A hint of confusion flickered in the little girl’s eyes, but thinking that she was at home with so many people around, her doubts vanished, and the smile on her face grew even wider.

However, as the little girl ran up to him, Li Zhuiyuan lifted his foot and directly kicked her.

*Thud!*

The little girl was kicked to the ground, her face full of astonishment: *How dare he?*

Li Zhuiyuan pulled a small, blood-red bag from his pocket. Inside was freshly drawn black dog blood, still warm.

*Splat!*

Li Zhuiyuan directly threw the bag of black dog blood onto the little girl. The bag burst, and the black dog blood splattered all over her.

“Aargh!!!”

The little girl immediately let out a scream.

Li Zhuiyuan spoke frankly and directly to Xue Liangliang and Professor Luo:

“She’s been possessed by something unclean!”