Normal or Not?

After Tang Wulin left, Yun Jingheng sat on the windowsill for a while longer.

He finished the remaining half of the baked bun, folded the parchment paper into a Xiao Fang and threw it into the trash can, then picked up the cold drink cup and slowly twirled it in his hand.

A thin layer of water droplets condensed on the cup wall, and Sisi to the touch with my fingertips.

Xu Lizhi's communicator is broken—there is indeed a crack on the screen, extending from the upper left corner to the lower right corner.

Tang Wulin mentioned this detail, and he remembered it.

The communicator broke down at the perfect time and in the perfect way: it was dropped, the screen shattered completely, and it wouldn't turn on.

This is the most compelling reason that leaves no room for further questioning, because the hardware damage is an objective fact, and no one can verify its authenticity.

The timing of "just repaired" is even more coincidental, as it occurred precisely after Tang Wulin began frequently looking for people.

The next afternoon, Xie Xie brought a message when he came to freeload some cold drinks.

He said he ran into Xu Lizhi in the cafeteria today. Xu Lizhi came over to talk to him and asked if he was busy with training lately. He also gave him a bag of newly developed energy biscuits, saying that they had a new formula that could speed up physical recovery after training.

Xie Xie was quite happy to receive the cookies, after all, Xu Lizhi's cooking skills were well-known in the Inner Court, and the supplies he made were much better than the standard meals in the canteen.

Yun Jingheng asked him if the cookies were still there.

Xie Xie said he had it, but he hadn't been able to bear eating it yet, so he took it out of his Storage Soul Tool to show him.

Yun Jingheng took it and examined it closely. It was a very ordinary bag of butter biscuits, with a faint sweet aroma, which was indeed Xu Lizhi's consistent style.

He handed the biscuit back to Xie Xie, saying, "Eat it, it's alright."

Xie Xie happily unpacked the package, took a bite, and mumbled that Xu Lizhi was a really nice guy, and that he should ask him for a few more packs sometime.

Yun Jingheng didn't reply, but quietly put away the remaining half-pack of biscuits after Xie Xie left.

He planned to send the cookies to the college's testing lab for a component analysis sometime, not because he suspected there was anything wrong with the cookies, but because he felt there was something wrong with Xu Lizhi as a person.

A person who had been out of contact just a few days ago suddenly started appearing frequently in the cafeteria and giving things to acquaintances, as if deliberately trying to make their presence known.

A person who is trying to get noticed is usually not doing so because they want to be seen, but because they are afraid of being noticed.

Another day passed, and the results of the second round of Ye Xinglan's Inner Court skip-grade assessment were released.

She passed with a perfect record and officially obtained her qualification as a student of the Inner Court.

That evening, Xie Xie and Xu Xiaoyan organized a simple celebration banquet for her in the small canteen of the Work-Study Student Dormitory. The dishes were brought by Xie Xie from the canteen, and the wine was fruit wine that Yun Jingheng had secretly taken from Yun Ming. It was not very strong, just enough to make you slightly tipsy.

Yuanen Yehui, unusually, did not argue with Xie Xie. Instead, he sat quietly in the corner and put the largest piece of his braised pork into Ye Xinglan's bowl.

Tang Wulin was the last to arrive. Before coming, he took a detour to the cafeteria, chatted with the cafeteria lady for a few minutes, and asked Xu Lizhi if he had come to help out at the cafeteria today.

As a food-type Soul Master, Xu Lizhi often helps improve the dishes in the cafeteria, and all the cafeteria ladies know him.

But today the cafeteria lady said he hadn't been here for several days. Last week he promised to help them improve the way they stew braised pork, but then he disappeared.

Tang Wulin secretly told Yun Jingheng this information after the celebration banquet.

After listening, Yun Jingheng remained silent for a few seconds, then told Tang Wulin everything, including Xie Xie the cookies a couple of days ago, Lan Muzi's tasting report, and the fact that he couldn't find any record of it on the leave application form.

A thoughtful person breaks appointments with the academic affairs office, the cafeteria, and a friend, then suddenly reappears in front of an acquaintance with a smile and new recipe cookies, as if trying to make up for something, or as if trying to cover something up.

After listening, Tang Wulin thought for a long time and wondered if Xu Lizhi had been threatened by someone, as he didn't seem like the type to do anything bad on his own initiative.

Yun Jingheng said he was unsure, but people who are threatened usually seek help from friends, while Xu Lizhi not only did not seek help, but deliberately created the illusion that "everything is normal".

The two agreed on a simple division of labor: Tang Wulin would continue to maintain contact with Xu Lizhi as a friend, eating and chatting as usual, without showing any abnormality.

If Xu Lizhi has some hidden difficulties, Tang Wulin's trust might be the only way he might relent.

Yun Jingheng continued his investigation through the Sea God Pavilion's channels, focusing on whether Xu Lizhi had recently left the academy, whether he had been in contact with any suspicious persons, and what the ingredients in that bag of biscuits were.

In the following days, the daily affairs of the Sea God Pavilion proceeded as usual, the plan for the new part of the Sea God Fate was finally finalized, and the lanterns for the tacit understanding test also entered the production stage.

At the same time, Ye Xinglan's training intensity doubled. She told Yun Jingheng that Xu Lizhi would occasionally come to the training ground to bring her supplies, which were all nutritious meals to restore her strength. The food was fine, and her training effect did improve after eating it.

But she added: He always came after she finished training and before the others arrived, as if he was avoiding someone.

She wanted Yun Jingheng to check if Xu Lizhi had encountered any trouble recently, saying that as a friend, she wanted to see if there was anything she could do.

Yun Jingheng was silent for a moment, then met Ye Xinglan's clear eyes and finally nodded.

Ye Xinglan nodded and left. Xie Xie happened to pop out from the other end of the corridor, carrying a pile of lantern materials he had just received. He was asking Yun Jingheng to help him figure out how to assemble them. Xu Xiaoyan followed behind, holding two half-finished lanterns and asking if the pink lantern she had chosen looked good.

Yun Jingheng put down the file folder in his hand, took the lantern, flipped through it, and said that this was not how it was installed. He told them to disassemble the frame and start over.

Watching Xie Xie frantically dismantle the lanterns, he said out of the blue, "If you run into Xu Lizhi recently, don't tell him about me."

Xie Xie looked up at him, his mouth moving as if to ask why, but Xu Xiaoyan poked him in the ribs from behind.

Xu Xiaoyan smiled and held up the pink light fixture in front of him, saying that the color suited him well and he wanted to get one too. Xie Xie's attention was immediately diverted.

Yuanen Yehui stood by the window, looked up from the pile of lantern materials, and met Yun Jingheng's gaze for a moment.

Her gaze was calm; she didn't ask any questions, only nodded slightly.

The day of the Sea God Fate is drawing ever closer, and the lantern frames on Sea God Lake have been erected, with the lake surface dotted with lights when the lanterns are tested at night.

The mystery surrounding Xu Lizhi, like an undercurrent at the bottom of a lake, quietly surged beneath this lively atmosphere.

Yun Jingheng turned to the next page of the rune array drawing, dipped his brush in the ink again, and while drawing, he thought about how Tang Wulin should test Xu Lizhi, but he also couldn't not try.

He put down his pen and glanced at the Star Pavilion outside the window.

It didn't drift over tonight; it probably stopped behind that old maple forest on the other side of the lake.

He looked away, added a very thin silver arc to the drawing, then picked up the empty glass and got up to pour himself a new cold drink.

When Xie Xie next time, I'll have to ask him to bring another bag of those cookies.

He's already made arrangements with the Soul Guidance Analysis Department, and the results should be available tomorrow.

Hopefully, there won't be any problems.