Free Web NovelThe power of the masses is great. With the help of the passengers, Lu Yibei quickly explained the whole story to that passing Miss.
Under the scorching sun.
Standing at the bus stop, watching the bus drive away with rising heat, she sighed with a complicated feeling.
People who are good-looking, even if they are criminals, have a chance to re-employ after getting out of prison. Even if they kill someone, some people will only focus on her beauty... What's more, Lu Yibei didn't do anything in the first place.
I have to say, in this world where a large portion of people's views follow their looks, being good-looking is really useful.
But, aren't they afraid that I'm really a pervert?
The Doctor said I was a potentially twisted serial killer. Lu Yibei thought.
She imagined for a moment that there was a girl who looked about fourteen or fifteen years old, with an exceptionally outstanding appearance, but was actually a seasoned perverted serial killer. After killing someone, she walked in the sunlight, and passers-by unconsciously gave her kind smiles.
No one would associate her with a criminal, and no one knew that she was carrying a blood-stained cleaver in her backpack.
While thinking, Lu Yibei turned sideways and glanced at her reflection in the glass display window by the road, nodding thoughtfully.
Hmm, that's right!
"But what does that have to do with me? What I have in my backpack is a proper toilet plunger."
Probably...
----
A moment later, Hua City Library.
This library is located in a quiet corner of Hua City's center, surrounded by a cluster of ginkgo trees. It is autumn, and golden withered leaves are falling. Through the gaps between the branches, one can see the old building, covered in ivy, with dark gray walls etched with the passage of time.
Lu Yibei walked through a small alley, came to the long steps in front of the main entrance of Hua City Library, looked up, and memories surged.
She, Nanling Yaohua, and Su Mi often came here when they were in primary school. Of course, they came here not for studying.
At that time, the electronic reading room of Hua City Library was the only place where primary school students from surrounding primary schools could access the internet for free.
Although there were no games on the computers in the electronic reading room, the happiness of primary school students was often simple. As long as they could watch two episodes of cartoons and play some web mini-games, they would be satisfied.
Lu Yibei still remembers that during that time, whenever school was over, her classmates in school would rush towards the library like wild dogs out of a cage, just to grab a spot in the electronic reading room early, so they could slack off for an hour or two on their way home.
At that time, she ran very fast, but she always slowed down so she could be with Nanling Yaohua, just so she could see her silly smile at a glance when she looked back.
However, whether they could wait for Su Mi depended entirely on fate.
That child wasn't very smart since he was little. Even a simple word like "okay," if he copied it ten times in a row, he could copy it as "damn it." For slightly more complex vocabulary, he could directly write it as "Sanskrit" secret texts.
Sometimes, the Teacher couldn't figure out if he was insulting the Teacher's intelligence or if he really had a problem with his brain, so she could only often keep him after school for tea and a chat...
Later, who knows which unfortunate child's parent reported the library, and the electronic reading room was closed for several years. When it reopened, the children had grown up, the internet was more widespread, and no one went there anymore.
Everything was frozen in that year.
Even this library that had stood in a corner of the city for decades was about to be demolished with the completion of the new library. I heard they were moving early next year...
----
While recalling happy childhood memories, she walked into the library. Lu Yibei stood in front of the door, looked around, and muttered softly, "I haven't been here for so long, how did this place become so creepy?"
Old buildings, when planned, always have some shortcomings.
Like Hua City Library, except for a few reading rooms with good lighting, other areas such as staff offices, corridors, and restrooms are very dark.
Coupled with the old trees surrounding the library, the interior of the library is distinctly divided into light and dark areas.
In the bright areas, the sun is shining brightly, and the ginkgo tree branches and leaves outside the window are golden.
The dark areas are dim and shadowy, always making people feel that something is hidden in the unseen corners, or that the portraits of various celebrities in the corridor are secretly moving their eyes.
The main reason why the library seems eerie is that it is too deserted and lacks any human presence.
Before, when Lu Yibei and a swarm of primary school students rushed in here, she never felt it was eerie.
And now, in this era where channels for obtaining information are increasingly numerous, few people are willing to walk into a library and spend several hours flipping through paper books.
Nowadays, everyone has a mobile phone, and every day they use a hundred and eight different postures to bewitch people's will. The library's business is very difficult to do.
Even if someone occasionally wants to read a book or look up information, they will go to the libraries of a few universities or large bookstores in University City, rather than choose this place that is about to die.
After entering the library, Lu Yibei walked directly towards the inquiry desk.
Hua City Library is too old, and its modern equipment is not complete. There are only two electronic borrowing systems like those in university or big city libraries, and they are often in a state of disrepair. To find where a book is located, it is faster to ask the administrator directly.
"Excuse me, do you have the hua city urban and rural construction local chronicle here? I'm looking for the 95 to 15 edition."
Behind the counter at the inquiry desk, two elderly administrators were bathed in the afternoon sun streaming through the window, feeling sleepy.
Hearing Lu Yibei's voice, one of the administrators frowned, a trace of impatience flashed across his face, and he opened his mouth, about to complain.
But when he opened his eyes and saw the girl behind the counter, who was as beautiful as a goddess emerging from water, standing on tiptoe, leaning on the high old counter, her large watery eyes sparkling with the pure light of a newborn cub, his heart instantly melted, and a warm smile immediately appeared on his face.
Good-looking girls always make people extraordinarily patient.
"Please wait a moment, I'll look for it."
He turned around, turned on the computer screen behind him, entered the book title into the library management system, checked it carefully according to the alphabetical order of the pinyin initials, and looked at Lu Yibei.
"Miss, you're really lucky." The administrator smiled. "This book was borrowed a long time ago, and the borrower couldn't be contacted. We all thought it was lost, but unexpectedly, that person returned it this morning."
"Now that book is in the area where history books are stored on the third floor. Would you like me to take you there to get it?"
This differential treatment is too obvious... Lu Yibei muttered inwardly.
Facing the exceptionally enthusiastic administrator, she felt somewhat shy and uncomfortable, and quickly waved her hand.
"No, no need. Just tell me where it is, and I'll go get it myself."
"No problem! If you can't find it, you can come back and ask me." The administrator nodded.
While speaking, he glanced at the computer again and then pointed out the book shelf where the hua city urban and rural construction local chronicle 【95-15 edition】 was located to Lu Yibei in detail.
Third floor, history books area, the upper left position of the third book shelf...
Lu Yibei repeated the location guided by the administrator in her mind, turned around, and was about to walk upstairs.
Just then, a violent coughing sound suddenly rang out behind her.
"Cough cough cough--!"
Along with the sound of coughing, a slurred, eerie voice suddenly burst into her ears.
"Uh... everything you see is an illusion... don't believe it..."
The voice was very small and faint, «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» like a whisper coming through several walls. At first hearing, it made people wonder if they were hallucinating.
Who is speaking?
Catching the faint voice, Lu Yibei froze for a moment, then turned around sharply, looking in the direction the sound came from. Her gaze fell on the administrator, and her body trembled slightly. frёewebnoѵel.ƈo๓
The sunlight outside the window filtered through the ginkgo tree branches, casting dappled shadows on the administrator's face. He was staring straight at her, his eyes empty and soulless, like a statue.
A cool breeze blew, and the ginkgo trees outside the window rustled, their shadows swaying.
In the silent library hall, their eyes met, and a chill quietly crept up Lu Yibei's spine.
"Gulp--!"
She swallowed, quietly took out the toilet plunger from her backpack and held it in her hand, and asked hesitantly, "Excuse me, what, what did you just say?"
As her voice fell, the administrator gasped greedily for air, as if rescued from drowning. As air filled his lungs, his complexion gradually returned to normal, his rolled-up eyes became clear again, and his pupils were filled with bewilderment.
"I, I didn't say anything!" The administrator said blankly, as if what had just happened hadn't happened at all.
"Oh, right. Miss, didn't you find that book? How about I go help you find it?"
"No, no need!" Lu Yibei shook her head like a rattle-drum. "I'll just look for it myself!"
I know you understand great righteousness and are benevolent towards corpses, but...
You looked like a ghost just now, who would dare let you come with me!
If it weren't for my urgent desire to look up the content in that local chronicle, I would have run away already, okay?
Thinking this, she trotted all the way upstairs.
Watching Lu Yibei's retreating back, the administrator's gaze deepened, and then he took out his mobile phone and quickly sent a message to someone.
----
Arriving at the second-floor platform, Lu Yibei stopped. After confirming that the administrator downstairs had not followed and could not see her figure, she leaned against the sunny spot by the window. Her mood at this moment was like a complicated ball of thread, countless thoughts intertwined, various ideas and thoughts emerging one after another.
...
The strange behavior of the girl on the bus could still be explained as a prank or a coincidence, but if I didn't hear wrong, the librarian just now also said something similar?
If they weren't in cahoots beforehand, this would be a bit too outrageous, as if something were controlling them in the dark.
But what does it mean to say that sentence to me in such a ghostly manner? Is it guidance, or some kind of threat?
Damn it, things are starting to get weird! Lu Yibei thought.
Although the words of the girl on the bus and the librarian coincided with the matter she was investigating and her guesses, it was as if they were secretly helping her.
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But the existence of the girl secretly controlling the bus and the librarian was like monitoring her every move through some means. Even if it really wanted to help her, she was unwilling to have too much interaction with it.
There is no such thing as a free lunch in this world; no one will offer you help for no reason.
Free things are often the most expensive. Who knows if that "thing" has some ulterior motive?
Compared to this strange method.
The method where a fair-skinned, beautiful Older sister wearing revealing clothes suddenly pops out in front of you, pulls out a QR code from her cleavage, and gently says, "Go ahead and top up! Top up 648, and there's a 5% chance to help you solve a mystery. Top up ten times, and you're guaranteed to solve a mystery!"
Lu Yibei would feel more at ease and trustworthy.
After a moment of thought, she frowned, looked up at the floor above, and her eyes deepened.
The light on the old staircase was a bit dim, the walls had a slight yellowish tint similar to old photos, and the portraits of famous people on both sides of the corridor wore strange smiles.
"Although something feels off, I still have to go upstairs, right?" Lu Yibei murmured to herself.
Finding the location of the abandoned factory from the dream through the hua city urban and rural construction local chronicle was the only way she could think of to find the Xunzhen Mutual Aid Society, and it was right in front of her.
Should I go up and take a look first? If something is wrong, I'll leave immediately!
If I really encounter any danger, don't I still have that... water heater explosion technique to defend myself?
Thinking this, Lu Yibei steadied herself and stepped onto the stairs.
————
Hua City Library has a total of five floors. Excluding the first floor, which houses miscellaneous things like the information desk, staff offices, and newspaper reading rooms, each of the other floors stores different types of books.
Each floor of the library is very spacious. About one-third of the area facing the sun and near the windows is filled with old tables and chairs, while the remaining space is occupied by book shelfs that are slightly taller than a person, much taller than the current Lu Yibei.
These book shelfs, showing signs of age with their paint peeling in places, are stacked one on top of another like gravestones, blocking the light and forming secluded narrow aisles.
In a place like this, if a pair of eyes were hiding behind a book shelf, secretly peeking, it would be hard to notice, right? Lu Yibei thought.
The moment this thought flashed through her mind, she suddenly stopped, and a heavy stone pressed down on her heart.
Without any warning, that hidden gaze appeared again!
Her intuition told her that a pair of eyes was watching her from the shadows, silently, with deep eyes, an ominous gaze.
It was more unsettling than the gaze of a Teacher who might appear at the back door or outside the window of the classroom at any unknown time.
But...
Where exactly was the guy secretly peeking hiding? Lu Yibei thought, poking her head into the third-floor stacks.
It was afternoon, and there was almost no one in the stacks. It was empty, and a special scent, a mixture of old book paper and wood, wafted through the air.
Two or three faint footsteps came from somewhere out of sight, as if someone was walking slowly, with a hint of furtiveness.
The old wooden windows and doors swayed gently in the breeze, making a "creaking" sound.
Like an illusion, a murmur of inaudible whispering came, and the wind blew it away into the air.
There were definitely people in the library, but she couldn't see them in any corner, nor could Lu Yibei find the source of that gaze.
Those eyes seemed not to exist in the real world, but to be floating in mid-air not far from her. ƒreewebɳovel.com
That feeling was like being watched by a life form from another dimension.
I wonder, when we look at two-dimensional paper characters with a perverted gaze, calling them husband or wife, do they feel this way too?
This thought inexplicably flashed through Lu Yibei's mind.
————
Lu Yibei bravely walked into the third-floor stacks. The expected strange situation did not occur. Following the guidance given by the librarian, she quickly found the hua city urban and rural construction local chronicle 【95-15 edition】.
Holding the book, she chose a seat by the window and sat down. Under the bright afternoon sun, in the quiet library, she began to flip through the material.
In fact, if she could, she would have liked to borrow the book directly, find a relatively safe place, such as squatting in front of a police station, and then slowly examine it.
However, her current appearance did not match her previous library card, so she couldn't borrow the book. To examine it, she had to stay here.
The eyes secretly watching were still there, but they were just watching quietly, without making any strange movements, which made Lu Yibei feel much more at ease.
If it's just watching...
As long as it's not during private moments like showering, you can watch whenever you like! Lu Yibei thought, steadying herself, and opened the thick book on the table.
"...1995, relocation, Hua City Paper Mill 【Pic】【Pic】... The architectural style seems a bit different..."
"...1997, closed, Hua City Sugar Factory 【Pic】【Pic】... There are no chimneys here..."
"..."
Lu Yibei carefully flipped through the hua city urban and rural construction local chronicle 【95-15 edition】 page by page, constantly comparing the textual and pictorial information in the book with the abandoned factory in her dream memory.
Time quietly passed, and after more than an hour.
When she flipped to about three-fifths of the way through the book, she suddenly stopped, slightly startled. There was a gap in the content of the book, and the text was disjointed.
Immediately after, Lu Yibei carefully compared the page numbers of the two adjacent pages, and her eyes trembled slightly.
Page 336... Page 343... Three sheets of paper are missing, a total of six pages of content?
Such officially published books should not have binding errors. Could they have been torn out?
This hua city urban and rural construction local chronicle is very thick, but the paper used for printing is relatively thin, making it difficult to notice that three pages have been torn out from the middle.
Staring at the book in front of her, Lu Yibei frowned. She felt that she had found the abandoned factory from her dream, and the information about that abandoned factory was hidden in the six pages that were torn out.
But who would have torn them out? Could it have been the previous borrower?
Thinking this, Lu Yibei quickly flipped to the first page, pulled out the reading record card inserted behind the book cover, and looked at the last line.
Gu Xinian? This name sounds a bit familiar...
Wait, Gu Xinian, Gu Xiliu... Liunian?
Damn it, could this be Gu Qianqian's sibling?
Just as she was thinking, she suddenly felt the gaze that had been secretly watching her disappear, followed by the sound of footsteps approaching from a distance.
She looked up and saw a strange yet familiar face.
A round face, thick eyebrows, a straight nose, dark chestnut short hair, amber eyes, and tightly pursed lips, looking quite similar to Gu Qianqian.
If Gu Qianqian hadn't also gender-swapped overnight, then this person must be related to her, and most likely the Gu Xinian who borrowed this book earlier... Lu Yibei thought.
"Miss, are you very interested in this book?"
"..." Lu Yibei lowered her head to look at the book in front of her, then narrowed her eyes slightly at the man before her, and nodded, "Yes, what's wrong?"
A smile appeared on the man's face, "Then do you know that what you see..."
Damn it! Again? Lu Yibei heard something was off and interrupted expressionlessly, "I guess your next sentence is going to be that everything I see is an illusion, right?"
"Uh..." Hearing this, the man was clearly startled, and a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes.
"Looks like I guessed correctly!" Lu Yibei pouted and continued, "I guess you also want to say that you want me not to believe it, right?"
"I also know that your name is Gu Xinian, and you are a member of the Xunzhen Mutual Aid Society, right?"
Although Lu Yibei wasn't completely sure, she said it anyway. After saying it, she saw the man's flustered and panicked eyes, and she immediately knew she had guessed correctly.
After confirming the other party's identity, her heart suddenly became clear.
If the gaze secretly watching me belongs to a member of the Xunzhen Mutual Aid Society, and the girl on the bus and the librarian are also members of the Xunzhen Mutual Aid Society, then all the strange things I encountered earlier can be explained. Lu Yibei thought.
The man's eyes widened as he looked at her, his expression as if to say, "I've seen a ghost, how could she know this?"
He tried to read something from the subtle expressions on her face but found nothing.
The girl in front of him had an icy, expressionless face, as if she possessed an invisible aura that isolated all prying and scrutiny from her body...
Damn it, what is this Miss's background? Gu Xinian thought uneasily.
Earlier, after the gathering ended, he had acted according to his second uncle's instructions, subtly leaving some clues about the mutual aid society for the boy named Lu Yibei.
This local chronicle in the library with the torn pages was one of the clues, and that librarian was indeed a member of the Xunzhen Mutual Aid Society.
However, what Gu Xinian didn't expect was that he didn't wait for Lu Yibei, but instead waited for this girl of unknown origin.
He used the connections of the Xunzhen Mutual Aid Society to investigate the girl's background but found nothing, which is why he had the idea of showing himself and meeting her.
But after meeting the girl, he realized that she not only knew his background but was also so calm, which was very unusual.
One must know that the Xunzhen Mutual Aid Society is known as a cult group in the community, with a notorious reputation. It's impossible for ordinary people to remain so calm when they meet a member of the mutual aid society.
Could she... be the Doctor?
As those nightmarish white figures flashed through his mind, Gu Xinian suddenly felt as if he had cast a fishing line and set a net, only to be caught like a fish in return, and he almost wanted to get up and run away.
Just then, Lu Yibei's slightly excited voice drifted into his ears.
"I finally found you guys! Comrade, are you still recruiting?"
Gu Xinian, "???"
