Free Web NovelChapter 753: Chapter 571: Double Row, Fushou Manor_2
Carrying his backpack, Yang Xiao headed straight for the Director’s office. The door was slightly ajar, and upon entering, he found Director Nalan inside, along with Ms. Wen.
Director Nalan furrowed his brow intently, standing by the telephone, while Ms. Wen was immersed in organizing a pile of file folders, some of which were sealed with papers labeled "Top Secret."
Upon seeing Yang Xiao arrive, the Director’s tightly furrowed brow gradually relaxed, and upon recognizing the visitor, Ms. Wen’s stern face also softened. Before Yang Xiao even spoke, Ms. Wen perceptively stood up, smiling as she walked out, "You two talk, I’ll go check on Beibei and the others."
When the office door closed behind her, Yang Xiao stated his purpose. "Director, if you don’t mind, I’d like to stay by your side during this period."
"That’s not appropriate—I cannot involve you," Nalan Shuo immediately declined.
"What are you saying? If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have the chance to be here speaking to you, Director. You are my benefactor." Pausing, Yang Xiao smiled and said, "This isn’t flattery—it’s the truth. I regard you as a family elder."
After a long silence, Nalan Shuo slowly spoke, "Little Yang, how confident are you?"
"Less than 50 percent; the incident with Yu Shu was just a coincidence," Yang Xiao admitted honestly, as the matter was a matter of life and death.
Nalan Shuo shook his head. "I’m not asking about that; I mean, if it doesn’t succeed, how confident are you that you can get out unscathed?"
Hearing this, Yang Xiao revealed a reassuring smile. "Don’t worry, Director. With my intelligence and cunning, if I detect any problems, I’ll immediately terminate the mission."
Looking at Yang Xiao, a flicker of complexity crossed Nalan Shuo’s eyes, but after a moment, he accepted the situation, opened a drawer, and slowly slid an envelope that had been prepared earlier across the table to Yang Xiao. "Little Yang, keep this envelope safe. If... if something happens to me, open it after you return."
What Nalan Shuo didn’t expect was that as soon as Yang Xiao picked up the envelope, he tore it open. Inside was a letter of recommendation, heavily praising Yang Xiao for his performance since joining the work and offering a high appraisal. In the latter half of the letter, Nalan Shuo recommended Yang Xiao for a position at the Provincial Office, suggesting that once he gathered enough experience, he could return to Rongcheng to take over his role.
"Little Yang, I treat you like a brother, this might be the most I can do for you..."
In the next second, Nalan Shuo’s expression froze; Yang Xiao folded the letter and tore it up, then casually threw it into the trash can. Approaching Nalan Shuo shockingly, he patted his arm confidently. "Director, let’s not speak of ill omens. Regardless of my success, you will come back safely."
"Zhi Jie has already gone; all of us need to stay strong." Pausing, Yang Xiao suddenly brought up something Nalan Shuo had mentioned not too long ago.
Nalan Shuo’s eyes regained their sparkle. "Yes, you’re right; we all need to stay strong."
After they agreed that Yang Xiao would move in and live with Nalan Shuo starting tomorrow, and during this period, Nalan Shuo would also contact all available forces to help search for clues about Fushou Manor.
After Yang Xiao left, Ms. Wen returned, carrying a stack of files. At that moment, Nalan Shuo was sitting on the couch, chain-smoking.
"How did it go?" Ms. Wen asked with a smile after setting down the files. "Captain Yang is a grateful man; your efforts in nurturing him haven’t been wasted."
Nalan Shuo extinguished his cigarette, leaned back on the couch, he didn’t even look at her as he slowly closed his eyes. "I feel guilty for morally binding him."
"You’re overthinking it—if you had trouble and didn’t tell him, he wouldn’t be able to live with himself once he found out," Ms. Wen sat down across from Nalan Shuo and suddenly sighed. "Didn’t you understand from what happened with Zhi Jie last time?"
"That’s true, but I..."
Just as Nalan Shuo began to speak, Ms. Wen interjected, "Director, he actually resembles you quite a bit, much like you when you were young, it’s just that..."
"It’s just what?" Nalan Shuo opened his eyes.
Ms. Wen suddenly laughed, extended her hand, and pretended to tap Nalan Shuo’s face, "It’s just that... you were even more handsome when you were young."
At her words, Nalan Shuo was taken aback for a moment, then burst into laughter. Indeed, during his youth, besides his skills, his face was his selling point.
...
Back in the office and finding it empty, since he had promised Director Nalan, he knew he must be prepared. At that moment, he thought of Yu Shu. As someone who had experienced that incident, Yu Shu’s experience was essential. He promptly sent a message to Yu Shu asking her to visit the office, emphasizing that she should come alone as he had something to discuss.
Before long, he received a reply from Yu Shu, a simple word: "Okay."
Ten minutes later, Yu Shu arrived alone. Yang Xiao cautiously rose and peered down the corridor to ensure no one else was there, and then he closed the office door and led Yu Shu to his private office at the end of the hallway, locking the door behind them.
It wasn’t that he didn’t trust the others in the Provincial Office; rather, the matter was too complicated. Yang Xiao couldn’t explain it himself. Keeping it from everyone else was for their own good, especially since it involved the Director, demanding extra caution.
After they sat down, Yu Shu seemed to know why Yang Xiao had asked her to come. She wrote something in her notebook and then held it up for Yang Xiao to see.
"The Director has already spoken with me, asking me to compile all the memories related to that incident and send them to him."
"Nine-Eyed Duo Luo," Yu Shu added a moment later.
"This time I’m assisting the Director, but there are some details I can’t remember. You were there firsthand during the last mission; our perspectives differ, do you understand?" Yang Xiao said.
Yu Shu nodded—she was a very calm girl with almost no emotional fluctuation.
Gradually, under Yang Xiao’s guidance, Yu Shu recalled little by little her experiences during the mission. During this process, Yang Xiao uncovered a very crucial and terrifying truth, "You... you saw me from the beginning of the mission?!" Yang Xiao was astounded.
Yu Shu nodded gravely and wrote an explanation in her notebook: I saw you sleeping, not far from me, but I couldn’t wake you up.
"But at that time, you had already entered the Nightmare World; how... how could you possibly have seen me?" The more Yang Xiao thought about it, the more frightened he became. This implied that he had interfered with Yu Shu’s Nightmare World right from the start without even his own knowledge.
"Only I could see you, none of the other participants in that mission, my teammates, could see you; I’m not sure why," Yu Shu explained truthfully.
Yang Xiao remembered that during that mission, he and Beibei had accompanied Yu Shu. Yu Shu stayed in one room while he and Beibei took turns keeping watch in the adjacent room. Yet, Yu Shu mentioned seeing only him and not Beibei.
After deep thinking, Yang Xiao reached a shocking conclusion: the moment he wore the Drama Robe, he had interfered with the Nightmare World Yu Shu had entered. If... if he hadn’t fallen asleep, then it was highly probable that he, too, would have entered the Nightmare World along with Yu Shu, maybe even from the very initial phase as one of the characters, fully experiencing the Nightmare World. freēwēbηovel.c૦m
This speculation was terrifying and somewhat incredible; it was as if someone had placed him in a coffin and sent him to an entirely unfamiliar world. Was this one of the capabilities of the Drama Robe female ghost?
The more he thought about it, the more fear he felt, constantly speculating on the identity of the Drama Robe female ghost, who could even invade other ghosts’ Nightmare Worlds.
In any case, the Drama Robe female ghost’s level must be very high; otherwise, it wouldn’t have caught the attention of esteemed individuals such as the former headmaster of Ru Lin Academy. Yang Xiao assessed that it was at least a Netherworld-level Magic Artifact. As for Young Master’s failure to recognize it, it was probably due to his lack of experience and his sister’s crafty tricks.
Shushushu—
Yu Shu was writing quickly. Soon she lifted her notebook, which bore a line of neat handwriting: "The Director is a very formidable person, and so are you, Captain."
