Chapter 68

Regarding Wu Yang’s intense reaction, Liu Jiang remained unfazed. He still held paper and pen, his tone formal. “Student Wu Yang, please cooperate with our Confidentiality Bureau’s work.”

Wu Yang drew in a sharp breath of cold air. “Does prying into someone’s sexual orientation help with your work too?”

Liu Jiang smiled faintly. “Details decide success or failure.”

Who said sexual orientation wasn’t important?

There were glaring examples in the Confidentiality Bureau. Every time they sent someone to communicate with that writer weird, if they sent a handsome guy, they always managed to get more information.

Liu Jiang didn’t elaborate to Wu Yang, but seeing the man’s serious expression, Wu Yang scratched his head in mild irritation before continuing to answer earnestly. “I don’t know about that either. Lao Yao doesn’t date anyone.”

Before Liu Jiang could ask the next question, Wu Yang turned the tables. “Captain Liu, you said earlier that when you checked the files, you found a record of someone who looked a lot like Lao Yao. So what happened to him? He’s still alive and well, right?”

Wu Yang was the type with a hot-blooded sense of justice, always pitying the poor and weak.

As a result, on his very first day of university, he met his dorm’s youngest, Su Ximu, who arrived with just a small suitcase.

Once everyone got acquainted, Wu Yang learned a bit more and realized the kid seemed to have no family left. Aside from student loans, he had to squeeze in part-time jobs every month just to make ends meet.

How could Wu Yang stand by and watch? His paternal affection for this Lao Yao immediately overflowed uncontrollably.

Now that someone had mysteriously vanished from the dorm for over a month, Wu Yang worried the most out of everyone—even more than their counselor.

Seeing the buzz-cut burly man across from him unwilling to answer directly, Wu Yang thrust his neck forward and pointed at his lips. “Captain Liu, look at these lips of mine! Two huge cold sores!”

It was easy to imagine how stressed out he had been lately.

Unfortunately, Wu Yang’s display didn’t move the man in front of him.

With the questions mostly wrapped up, Liu Jiang sighed and stood. “Regulations are regulations. I can’t tell you anything outside of them. When the day comes that regulations allow it, you won’t need me to explain—you’ll understand.”

Wu Yang: ?

What was with all the talking in circles!

Liu Jiang packed up his paper and pen, then continued in a low voice. “Over these years, I’ve seen plenty of family members even more emotional than you. Sigh…”

With that, he stopped talking to Wu Yang, gestured for him to leave on his own, and exited the interrogation room.

Wu Yang shouted after him. “Captain Liu! Captain Liu! Explain it clearly! Why the sigh?”

Damn!

After leaving the interrogation room, Liu Jiang went straight to the Bureau Chief’s Office and knocked before entering.

Bureau Chief Zhao Yanhan had just hung up a call and gestured for Liu Jiang to sit.

After Liu Jiang sat, he slid his notebook over and concisely explained his findings from the day.

Zhao Yanhan nodded after listening, showing no great surprise.

Like Liu Jiang, he suspected the weird in the archives had simply taken a liking to that Su student’s face by chance and used it.

Such things were rare in dungeons but not unheard of before.

“Mm, good work, Old Liu. Out of caution, we shouldn’t overlook any possibilities if there’s a way to investigate.” After saying this, Zhao Yanhan added, “Rao Fei hasn’t come back from the dungeon yet. Once he does, have him find time to confirm with that Student Wu Yang.”

Rao Fei’s dungeon this time was with Bureau Chief Lin. Wang Xingxing and two experts from the Central Bureau were also along.

Pretty much every member of the C City Secrecy Bureau paid some attention to this dungeon.

Hearing Bureau Chief Zhao mention the dungeon, Liu Jiang couldn’t help but ask, “Any recent news from Rao Fei? How’s their progress?”

At this, Zhao Yanhan’s expression grew a bit more serious.

“The 【Weird 101】 dungeon’s progress was about to end, and Lin Lan’s situation wasn’t optimistic.”

The moment he heard “not optimistic,” Liu Jiang frowned as well.

A small sneeze didn’t distract Su Ximu for long.

After personally witnessing Third Brother injure his own arm, Su Ximu felt that Third Brother had probably picked up a bad habit like self-harm over these years.

Even though Third Brother insisted it didn’t hurt after entering the room and the wound healed in the blink of an eye, Su Ximu still didn’t quite buy it.

How could it not hurt?

Weirds felt pain too.

Otherwise, why had so many neighbors screamed so loudly in Big Brother’s study that day?

Su Ximu even tried to discuss and analyze this self-harm issue with Big Brother and Second Brother in detail.

He figured it had a lot to do with Third Brother turning into a weird at such a young age. It probably fell under adolescent psychology.

But while he thought about it, Su Ximu hadn’t found a real chance to discuss it properly with Big Brother and Second Brother in this short time.

At that moment, the three weirds sat together in the living room.

The Su Family living room was huge, and so was the sofa.

But they all sat a bit closer together without prior agreement.

After the initial emotional ups and downs, Su Ximu turned left to see Big Brother and Third Brother, then right to see Second Brother sitting right next to him.

Second Brother was peeling a mandarin orange. Third Brother’s mouth opened and closed, as if he had something to say. Big Brother hadn’t worn glasses since waking or handled files like before.

Since Grandma passed away, Su Ximu rarely felt this kind of warm, stable coziness anymore.

Yet at that moment, even though the living room was huge, the lights were cool white, and the house was all black, white, and gray tones, he still felt it was pretty good.

Su Wuzi finished peeling the mandarin and placed it on the coffee table lined with a napkin, then grabbed another one to peel.

Su Xuanxiao did the same.

After the initial waves settled into a calm quiet that wasn’t awkward at all, he spoke first. “Xiao Xi, you couldn’t remember before, so we had no way to ask. Now… can you tell us about your experiences over these years?”

Su Ximu looked up and realized Big Brother’s question was exactly what he wanted to ask too. He also wanted to know what Big Brother, Second Brother, and Third Brother had done and encountered over the years—people or weirds.

“Then Big Brother, how about we exchange? The boy’s voice was clear and pleasant. “I’ll go first, then Big Brother, Second Brother, and Third Brother tell too.”

Su Xuanxiao replied, “Like that? …Sure. But we won’t be sleeping tonight. Xiao Xi, are you sleepy?”

He picked up a peeled mandarin segment and popped it in his mouth. The sour-sweet taste perked Su Ximu right up. He smiled at Second Brother, then answered Big Brother. “Not sleepy!”

He could go too—no sleeping for today.

Given the situation, even if they forced themselves back to their bedrooms, no one would sleep anyway.

In that case, why not…

The Su Family’s 817th family night talk, held again after many years!

That night, Su Ximu tucked himself under a little blanket on the living room sofa and talked a lot with Big Brother, Second Brother, and Third Brother.

He explained that his fever had been so bad it burned out his brain by accident, so some memories were fuzzy. Otherwise, he definitely would have kept looking for the dead people’s world and how living people could go there.

As for other things, there wasn’t much to say.

He’d spent most of his childhood at home. Aside from his cousin, he hadn’t known many kids his age or close.

Speaking of friends, he didn’t forget to mention the dorm mates he met after growing up. He was lucky—they were all good people who treated him well. Among them, he was closest with his dorm mate Wu Yang.

At this point, Su Ximu remembered something else. “Wu Yang and the others must be worried since I disappeared. I wonder if there’s any way to let them know I’m fine.”

Hearing this, Su Jianglou, who had been listening intently, flashed a hint of guilt in his eyes again.

The guilt passed quickly, and he spoke up right away. “I know a weird—she’s pretty familiar with that side. I’ll pass a message to her tomorrow.”

So there really was a channel to contact the Real World.

Su Ximu felt relieved.

He wasn’t the type to want to trouble others, so he’d been worrying about this for a while.

With dorm mates mentioned, Su Ximu’s story wrapped up. He opened his eyes and looked at his brothers around him, the meaning clear: their turn.

Su Xuanxiao, the first brother his little brother looked at, had a rare calm gentleness in his eyes.

His voice was low and magnetic as he recounted his experiences over the years.

Trapped in the Gray Mist, leading his two brothers out, learning the basics of the Weird World, then trying to start a business.

The hardships of entrepreneurship went without saying.

First, working black jobs at the Black Factory, then taking over the Human Skin Factory.

Using the replication ability to price-war the Human Skin Factory in the same area, dumping massive amounts of cheap human skin and grabbing market share.

When the competitors in the area couldn’t keep up and came to attack, they died. So he took over the second factory.

Then the third…

In this way, step by step, he steadily built his own business empire.

Listening to Big Brother’s account, Su Ximu blinked, utterly stunned.

He couldn’t help but raise his hand obediently. “Big Brother, do all the weirds in this world do business like this?”

What about shady tactics like carrying the official seal in your belt or drowning the rival’s money tree?

Big Brother and the others seemed to compete on who could eliminate the competition from the root faster.

Su Xuanxiao nodded steadily. “More or less.”

Seeing this, Su Ximu couldn’t help shifting his gaze to Third Brother, who sat closer to Big Brother.

Su Jianglou said, “Xiao Xi, you know I have over forty tourist villages under me.”

Su Ximu nodded, thinking he got Third Brother’s point. Finally, he looked at Second Brother, who he thought had the best temper.

Su Wuzi smiled without speaking.

Su Ximu nodded, thinking he got it again.

After looking around, he sat up under his blanket and couldn’t help pondering before asking, “In that case, Big Brother, Second Brother, Third Brother—what kind of job do you think would suit me in the future?”

Recalling his childhood when he could even phase through walls, Su Ximu wasn’t sure if he counted as human or weird now.

If he was a weird, how was a weak little one like him—who didn’t even have his own dungeon or rules—supposed to survive starting a business or the job market in this brutal Weird World?

In the future.

Hearing that word, watching the boy seriously pondering right then, Su Jianglou felt his emotions rise and fall all day. His heart was like a boiling spring bubbling nonstop.

Yes, the future.

Starting today, nothing could separate their family again.

The temporary parting was over.

They had many futures ahead.

As he thought this, Su Xuanxiao, Su Wuzi, and Su Jianglou suddenly heard Xiao Xi exclaim again.

Su Ximu had just remembered. “My job!”

If they hadn’t brought up future work, he wouldn’t have recalled—he had a job right now!

But from the program group’s break until now, how many days had passed?!

Three? Ten? A month or a year?

Could he still make it back? Would the associate director have fired him already?

He still had wages to collect!

Eight hundred bucks!

A full eight hundred bucks!