Inside the silent Tianhai Hotel, it was already late at night.
Tong Guan and Chang Nian had long since gone to sleep fully clothed, shaking off the exhaustion of the lengthy mission.
Fang Shenyan lay flat on his bed as well, but his eyes were wide open. From time to time, he furtively glanced toward the door, as if wary of—or irritated by—something.
The ghost on the second floor was exceptionally quiet. Since the new residents had moved in, there had been no unusual developments for the time being.
Only beside the round-cornered desk on the first floor sat two figures facing each other in silence, engaged in a subtle negotiation.
Ji Li watched Yu Guo for a long while. Seeing that he still had not spoken, he picked up the Cigarette Case from the table again, casually drew out two cigarettes, and handed one over.
Yu Guo's complexion was somewhat dark, and most of his body was hidden in shadow. Yet part of him remained exposed, seemingly reflecting his current embarrassment and urgency.
Seeing Ji Li's gesture, he let out a long sigh, cast aside all his burdens, stepped out of the darkness, and accepted the cigarette.
Ji Li returned to his seat. He was not particularly tired; the earlier events had merely left his thoughts somewhat disordered. After sitting quietly for an entire afternoon, he had recovered to his peak condition.
As he smoked, he studied the hesitant Yu Guo and concluded that he had come to ask for help.
Suddenly, Ji Li wanted to laugh. He had never seen Yu Guo hesitate over anything like this before.
Yu Guo held considerable weight in Ji Li's mind.
He was even-tempered, friendly, and unconstrained by etiquette. He was bold beyond ordinary men, yet meticulous as well.
Everyone in this