Xu Dengming shook her head again:
“But writing it this way, while the central theme relates to life, it doesn’t connect with the details. Plus, the article needs to be completed through group collaboration. So the topic should be something we all understand.”
Jin Zhiran: “We’ve only known each other for a day or two. What could we possibly all understand…”
His voice trailed off as he suddenly fell silent, frowning in thought.
Xu Dengming could roughly guess what Jin Zhiran was thinking.
Since they had only known each other for a day or two, the scope of their essay would have to be limited to the time after becoming interns.
Currently, all the interns who had received the assignment prompt were living in this very building.
This building would be the subject of their essay.
Dong Shaodan also caught on.
She tapped the chair with her knuckles, as if emphasizing her point and said:
“So what we’re supposed to write about is our current life?”
They hadn’t deliberately lowered their voices during the discussion, and some nearby interns overheard their ideas.
One intern instinctively chimed in: “Are you saying the ‘details’ in the prompt are actually hidden in this dormitory building?”
His companion gave him a hard slap on the back, jolting him awake.
Her expression turned regretful, clearly realizing she shouldn’t have shared her thoughts with outsiders.
Qin Linge stood up and suggested: “The first floor is too cold. Why don’t we go to my place instead?”
Everyone nodded they all understood.
Sitting down wasn’t the main point; the real purpose was to hold a more private discussion indoors.
Room 301.
Qin Linge was one of the earliest interns to move in, and her living space had the most homely atmosphere.
“No need to change shoes, just sit wherever,” Qin Linge invited her companions in and brewed tea for everyone.
Her tea set wasn’t a matching set-some were ceramic, others glass-but they all shared the same clean and bright appearance.
In the dormitory, all three-person rooms had the same layout, but each room felt entirely different.
If Room 303 resembled an unfamiliar cave, then Room 301 already had the warmth of a “home.”
A soft rug lay beneath the coffee table, and the living room curtains had been replaced with beige ones.
Qin Linge was clearly making a sincere effort to cultivate her living space.
Xu Dengming glanced around but found no items related to attack or defense.
Details could reveal a person’s state of life, Xu Dengming thought.
Unless Qin Linge had a habit of using teacups as hammers or shields, she probably hadn’t encountered any scientifically unexplainable phenomena.
Once everyone had settled in, Fang Jialing was the first to pick up his cup and take a sip.
Like the others, he also felt the earlier intern’s perspective held some merit.
This essay prompt was most likely hidden in the details of this dormitory building.
Fang Jialing set down his cup and began sharing his thoughts: “The dormitory has eight floors. Even though our group has the most people, we still need to consider how to divide the areas for exploration. So, which floor should we start with?”
Dong Shaodan: “The area we need to explore isn’t that extensive. I checked earlier the fifth floor and above are all sealed off.”
Xu Dengming looked slightly surprised.
“When was it sealed off? Yesterday when I arrived, the person in charge said we could freely choose rooms from the third to eighth floors.”
Dong Shaodan thought for a moment, then shook her head.
“Not entirely sure, probably last night.”
Jin Zhiran speculated, “Since no one chose rooms above the fifth floor, the management probably didn’t want to bother maintaining them and just sealed them off.”
Qin Linge added, “That’s not a bad thing. Now, if we really want to explore, we only have three areas to investigate the first, second, and third floors.”
“Among them, the first floor is mostly empty, with many abandoned areas that people rarely visit. The third floor is mainly residential, but the second floor is worth exploring. Besides the dining area, there are plenty of storage rooms nearby.”
Xu Dengming mused, “The second floor…”
Dong Shaodan asked, “Did you think of something?”
Xu Dengming replied, “I actually considered going to the second floor yesterday to see if I could find a decent mop.”
Dong Shaodan: “…”
Qin Linge helpfully shared some practical advice.
“If you’re looking for a mop, there’s one in the storage room next to the dining area.”
Whether for clues or maintaining cleanliness, the second floor, with its unique advantages, naturally became their first choice for exploration.
With extra points awarded for submitting reports within three days, the group decided to set off immediately.
Their initial discussion had already leaked, so it was no surprise that when Xu Dengming and the others arrived, they found they weren’t the only ones with this idea.
Many interns had already arrived ahead of them, rummaging through various storage rooms.
Upon seeing Xu Dengming’s group, they initially showed a hint of wariness, but quickly masked it-some even nodded politely.
Though there was some competition among the interns now, in the near future, they might all be working together in the Bureau.
There was no need to sour relationships prematurely.
Qin Linge suggested, “How about we split up?”
As the most senior in the group, Qin Linge had a gentle personality and preferred discussing tasks rather than giving orders.
Xu Dengming agreed.
“Sounds good.”
No one objected, and soon they dispersed to search areas of interest.
This building wasn’t originally designed as a dormitory, and the storage rooms had once served different purposes.
Xu Dengming noticed that the doors on the second floor still bore old, tarnished plaques, their text so faded it required careful scrutiny to decipher.
The storage room opposite the prep kitchen had been cleared out, furnished simply with a bed-likely for Yu Wu’s use along with spare chef uniforms.
The door wasn’t fully closed, but none of the interns seemed inclined to investigate further.
Even if they didn’t know Yu Wu was the one who had assigned their tasks today, the dormitory’s chef was still a Bureau employee.
No one wanted to leave a bad impression before officially joining.
Jin Zhiran stood before a room marked with a metal plaque reading “Long-tailed Pheasant.”
He had chosen this room for a reason while it was slightly farther from the dining area, the door wasn’t locked, as if waiting to be explored.
By the light filtering through the corridor, Jin Zhiran could clearly see the interior structure of the Long-tailed Pheasant Room: the square- shaped storage space was filled with cleaning supplies, occupying about fifteen square meters.
To the left near the entrance stood a small partitioned area.
Jin Zhiran tried opening the door to the small room and discovered it was actually a very old bathroom.
The bathroom was filled with a damp, musty smell.
When Jin Zhiran turned the faucet, a thin stream of water trickled out-the plumbing was still functional.
Something about this room made Jin Zhiran deeply uneasy.
The corridor lighting had never been particularly bright, but here it felt even dimmer.
He turned his head and noticed a light switch on the wall.
Xu Dengming walked leisurely down the hallway with her hands in her pockets.
She had already checked two storage rooms but found nothing of interest.
She considered using [Precognition] to save time, but when she activated the skill, all she saw was an expanse of white mist.
Her gaze swept across the corridor until a door plate with the silhouette of a black bird caught her attention.
Faded characters on the plate read “Drooping-eared Crow.”
Most rooms near the dining area were named after birds.
For some reason, Xu Dengming felt a flicker of curiosity.
She pushed open the door to the Drooping-eared Crow Room, where heavy curtains blocked all outside light, plunging the space into near-suffocating darkness.
Click.
She pressed the light switch several times, but the faulty wiring refused to respond, complicating her exploration.
Pursing her lips, Xu Dengming pulled out her phone while stepping cautiously forward.
Clang.
Her foot struck something metallic-objects that had been neatly stacked now scattered across the floor in chaotic disarray.
As her eyes adjusted, she recognized the scattered items: cans of cleaning supplies, previously arranged in a pyramid formation now toppled by her misstep.
The room was filled with an excessive number of such cleaning products, making her wonder if someone had gone overboard during a bulk sale.
Activating her phone’s flashlight, Xu Dengming scanned her surroundings.
A thick layer of dust covered the floor, bearing a single set of fresh footprints leading deeper inside.
Her mind raced only entry prints, no exit.
Whoever entered before her was still here.
Yet she heard nothing.
If someone remained, why this unnatural silence?
The weak flashlight illuminated only her immediate vicinity as she advanced with caution.
The cramped space simplified her search, though peeling wallpaper and water-damaged walls told of long neglect.
Xu Dengming quickly estimated that the indoor area couldn’t be more than twenty square meters, with a simple layout.
A single glance was enough to confirm there wasn’t a second person hiding inside.
So where had the previous explorers gone?
The dormitory rooms had windows, but they were all fitted with security bars spaced too closely together.
Any human explorer before Xu Dengming with normal adult proportions would have found it impossible to squeeze through the gaps.
Xu Dengming lowered her gaze and activated [Observer’s Eye].
Determined not to repeat yesterday’s mistake where she’d lost a significant amount of sanity from glimpsing too many threads of fate at once she started by focusing only on her shoes.
After a moment, she slowly shifted her gaze, carefully examining the entire space.
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