Monster, Join Unit Nine

I knew that, in Xie Yi's eyes at that moment, I was a monster.

Sometimes, I thought I was a monster too. I had no idea why I was like this.

"Jiang Xiaobai, you've certainly made me see you in a new light. But now I'm even more curious about what exactly is going on between you and Xu Qiuyan. Can the two of you really communicate in dreams?" Xie Yi asked.

I shook my head. I didn't know either. Maybe I would have answers after seeing Xu Qiuyan.

Just as I had experienced before, the entire thirteenth floor of Second Provincial Hospital had been taken over by Xie Yi and his people. I could accurately point out Uncle Long's hospital room, but this time, I didn't go in. Instead, I walked straight to the room at the end of the corridor and stopped outside its door.

This was Xu Qiuyan's room.

Xie Yi stood beside me, watching me. Earlier, I had told him that when I saw Xu Qiuyan, she had been singing and dancing in her room, singing the childhood nursery rhyme she had loved most: "Little Bug Flies."

Wasn't her singing coming from inside the room right now?

"The dark, dark sky hangs low, bright, bright stars follow close. Little bugs fly, little bugs fly, who are you missing..."

I took a deep breath. I was reliving it all again. Only before, perhaps it had been in a dream, while now, it was reality.

No, I could no longer be sure whether I was in reality or not. I had confused myself as well.

But whether it was reality or a dream, I had to face it.

People often had no choice. They could only be pushed forward by their own fate.

What I despised most were those people who had achieved nothing themselves, yet spent all day pumping others full of empty encouragement, saying they had to change their fate with their own two hands. Whenever I heard that, I scoffed. A person's fate had long since been decided; it wasn't something that could be changed just because you wanted it to be.

Look at all the people under heaven. Who wasn't busy? Who wasn't struggling to live? But hard work did not necessarily bring rewards. Some people were born with golden keys in their mouths. Even if they accomplished nothing, they would never have to worry about making a living. They could even pass judgment on others and play the role of successful people. To me, those who lived off their parents' protection were no different from parasites—just prettier parasites.

I gently pushed open the door, humming along with her tune.

My eyes felt damp. Though this should have been only our second meeting since we grew up, I still couldn't stop myself from wanting to cry. I felt no differently from the last time I had seen her.

She was exactly as she had been in my dream, without the slightest difference. Her dancing was light, and her voice was beautiful. I savored the joy she brought me. I didn't want to disturb her, so I stood quietly in the doorway, unable to tear my eyes away from her.

Xie Yi was behind me. He didn't make a sound either. Perhaps he had been captivated by her singing and dancing as well.

"Xiaobai!" Xu Qiuyan finally stopped, her eyes fixed directly on me.

I smiled and stepped forward. According to the script from before, she should have thrown herself into my arms and held me tightly.

Sure enough, she rushed over and hugged me tight, but her line had changed. "I thought you weren't coming back!"

I gently patted her back. "How could I not? I said I'd come back, so I would."

Without waiting for her to beg me to take her away, I turned to Xie Yi. "I'm taking her with me."

There wasn't much surprise on Xie Yi's face, because I had already told him about this scene. Now, it was merely repeating itself.

Xie Yi nodded. "No problem. You can take her away whenever you want. But Jiang Xiaobai, have you considered how you're going to arrange things for her?"

He asked the same question as before, and it still stumped me. Apparently, I still hadn't thought it through properly. Right, I was still a college student living in the dorms. There was no way I could bring a girl back with me.

Should I send her back to Qiao City to stay with Grandpa? That didn't seem appropriate either.

More importantly, Grandpa had always paid for my tuition and living expenses. Although I had never truly faced or acknowledged that reality before, I was awake now. Without Grandpa, there would be no me today.

I fell silent, but when I saw the pleading look in Xu Qiuyan's eyes, my heart softened at once. "Let's leave here first. We'll find a way."

Xie Yi nodded and came over to pat my shoulder. "Can we talk first?"

I looked at Xu Qiuyan, who frowned slightly. "Talk again?"

Xie Yi casually said, "What do you mean, again?" But he quickly recalled what I had told him about meeting Xu Qiuyan before. Hadn't we left Xu Qiuyan's room to talk alone, only to return to the past afterward?

So Xie Yi looked at me as though he felt guilty. I said, "All right. Talking would be good too."

I said to Xu Qiuyan, "Wait for me. I won't make you wait long this time."

Xu Qiuyan nodded, and a smile appeared on her face again. "I believe you. Go on."

Xie Yi took me back to that office. I said "back" because that was where we had talked before.

"Jiang Xiaobai, I have a suggestion. I don't know whether you can accept it, but it will only benefit you and Xu Qiuyan, never harm you."

I smiled. This differed somewhat from the original script. Before, I had taken the initiative to ask to join Unit Nine. This time, he was the one bringing it up first. Though he hadn't stated his suggestion, I was certain he intended to invite Xu Qiuyan and me to join the Ninth Bureau Special Section.

Seeing me smile, he asked in confusion, "What are you smiling about?"

I said, "Because I've already guessed what your suggestion is."

When I had told him about seeing Xu Qiuyan at Second Provincial Hospital, I hadn't mentioned asking to join Unit Nine. That was why he found it strange. "Oh? You know? Let's hear it." From the look on his face, he didn't quite believe I could guess what he was thinking.

I said slowly, "You want us to join your Ninth Bureau Special Section, Xu Qiuyan and me. Right?"

Xie Yi narrowed his eyes, as if trying to see through my thoughts. Perhaps he found it too unbelievable.

After several seconds, he finally sighed. "How did you guess? Don't tell me you can read minds."

I shrugged. "Because that was what we were going to talk about before. I mean, in that dream I just had. As for mind-reading, I can't do that, but Eccentric Song can. He was an outstanding psychology student. You can ask Professor Wang about that."

Xie Yi rolled his eyes at me. "Give me a break. Professor Wang was the one who told me that Eccentric Song's personality exists within you. Still, he gave you a very high evaluation. He said you had learned more than just philosophy, and that among all his students, you were outstanding in psychology as well. He also said there were two other personalities in you that he had never truly encountered. So tell me, who are the other two?"

I refuted him. "They aren't personalities I created. They're my friends. Actually, you've met one of them."

Xie Yi froze, but he immediately reacted. "You mean that in your previous dream, he met the dream version of me here too?"

"That's right. He was the one who told me Uncle Long and Aunt Qin had lost their souls. He was also the one who told me about the Soul Guiding Incantation. His name is Duan Hongbin. He never went to college, but he's very knowledgeable about the I Ching and things like that. Oh, he once studied under a Taoist priest and knows a great deal about mystical arts such as feng shui and yin-yang." I told Xie Yi.

"Hmm, anyone who knows about the Soul Guiding Incantation must have some real skill." Xie Yi nodded, then asked, "What about the other one?"

"The other is called Chu Ge. He's highly skilled in medicine, and he can fight very well too. But he's very aloof and doesn't like getting involved in other people's affairs. Both he and Duan Hongbin are lazy, and they rarely take part in our business."

"Interesting. All right, since you've already guessed my suggestion, what do you think? Are you willing to join us?"

I asked in return, "Do you think we meet your requirements?"

Xie Yi smiled. "Barely."

"Fine, I agree. But you just said joining you would bring us nothing but benefits and no drawbacks. What exactly are those benefits?" I asked. To me, that was very important.