The Hu Family was located in Pine-Listening Garden.
Backed by a lush pine forest, its buildings made extensive use of raw timber and bluestone. There were viewing platforms and a Rain-Listening Corridor.
When the wind swept through, the pines roared like distant waves.
That was how Pine-Listening Garden got its name.
The car drove into the Hu Family's private parking space on level B2 of Pine-Listening Garden.
The underground garage connected directly to each household's private elevator. They swiped their cards and stepped inside, and the elevator rose silently.
A few seconds later, the doors opened onto a bright, clean, and orderly main hall.
"Miss, you're home."
A figure in a dark butler's uniform was already waiting outside the hall to greet them.
She was a middle-aged woman with deep-set eyes, a high nose, and slightly curled blond hair.
Her green eyes peered out from behind delicate, silver-rimmed glasses, and she wore a professional, gentle smile.
Hu Zhao casually handed her coat to a nearby servant, then introduced her to Hu Long. "Wendys, the new butler."
Wendys turned to Hu Long and folded her hands naturally in front of her before giving a slight bow. Her poise was impeccable.
"Second Young Master, it's a pleasure to meet you. Please let me know if there's anything you need."
Hu Long merely nodded and replied with a single word:
"Okay."
"I'm a little tired. I need to rest for a while."
"Sure, go get some rest. When dinner's ready, I'll have someone call you. Mom and Dad might be back later."
Hu Zhao replied.
She turned and headed straight for her room, planning to take a shower first.
"Second Young Master, please follow me."
Wendys bowed slightly and led Hu Long out of the main hall.
The courtyard was vast, complete with rockeries, flowing water, pavilions, and terraces.
A few red-tailed koi swished their tails in the water.
They passed through a walkway lit by soft light and climbed the stairs, which were covered in a dark carpet. At last, they stopped in front of a door on the east side of the second floor.
"Your bath has been drawn."
Wendys bowed slightly.
"Sorry for the trouble."
Hu Long thanked her and pushed the door open.
However, as he brushed past her,
Hu Long swayed, as if he were about to lose his balance.
At once, a hand steadied him. It was Wendys, standing beside him.
"Careful, Second Young Master."
Wendys smiled.
"Thank you!"
Hu Long nodded.
Then the door gently closed behind him.
Wendys didn't linger in front of the closed door. She turned and left.
Inside the room,
Hu Long stood still.
Lines of text appeared before his eyes.
[Target: Wendys] [Skill 1: Butler Knowledge (Expert)] [Size: 4m (Status: Available for download)] (Description: Includes wine appreciation and serving, care of fine clothing, various etiquette and service skills, and more.) [Skill 2: Unarmed Combat (Master)] [Size: 6m (Status: Unavailable for download)] (Description: Effectively turns one's fists, feet, elbows, knees, head, and even torso into means of attack and defense. Includes striking techniques such as straight punches, hooks, crosses, kicks, knee strikes, and elbow strikes.) [Skill 3: Pistol Shooting (Expert)] [Size: 4m (Status: Available for download)] (Description: Covers how to hold, aim, and fire common pistols, along with rapid reloading. Can reliably hit the vital areas of stationary targets within 15 meters and has a basic ability to lead moving targets. Includes rapid single shots, malfunction clearing, and basic maintenance.)
She actually has three skills. Looks like she's no ordinary person! My original body's parents must have arranged this on purpose.
Hu Long's eyes flickered with surprise.
After experimenting over the past few days,
he'd come to understand how difficult it was to train a skill to the Master level.
It might take an ordinary person more than a decade, or even several decades, to reach that level.
Clearly, Wendys was far more than an ordinary butler.
But when he considered the family he'd been born into, it made sense. For a billionaire, having a butler with some combat skills was perfectly normal.
The room was clean and orderly, and the bed was neatly made.
One wall was almost entirely covered by a huge anime poster.
On the opposite side stood a bookshelf built into the wall, lined with books arranged in neat rows.
Everything was almost exactly as he remembered it.
Hu Long glanced around, then headed straight into the bathroom.
The white porcelain bathtub was about three-quarters full. Heat drifted off the water in a gentle mist, and its temperature was just right.
A small table beside the tub held a plate of washed grapes and sliced orange wedges.
A fresh set of clothes had also been folded nearby.
He didn't waste time. He took off his clothes and lowered himself into the water, resting his head against the rim.
The warm water enveloped every inch of his skin. The tension that had built up over the past few days slowly eased in its comforting warmth.
Hu Long closed his eyes and let out a slow breath.
He'd been able to wash up during his time at the psychiatric hospital, but he'd never had a chance to relax like this.
Just lying back and soaking in the tub.
A wave of drowsiness suddenly washed over him.
Then he felt a faint chill.
The sensation was terribly out of place in the bath.
Hu Long opened his eyes at once.
The next second,
he looked toward the shoulder where he'd felt the chill.
A clump of black hair was sprawled across it.
It couldn't be his. Although he'd spent three years at Morning Light Psychiatric Hospital,
the facilities there were comprehensive, and the patients' hair was regularly cut as much as possible.
His hair couldn't possibly be this long.
Besides, the strands seemed to be coming from the water.
The thoughts flashed through his mind.
A chill ran down his spine.
Without time to think, Hu Long tried to stand up and get out of the tub.
But he was too slow.
The lock of hair hanging in the water suddenly seemed to come alive. It surged upward, wrapped tightly around him, and yanked him violently beneath the water.
The bathtub seemed to transform into a deep pool.
Hu Long felt himself sinking lower and lower, as if he were falling into an endless abyss.
The next instant!
A gigantic woman's face emerged slowly from the depths. It was deathly pale and bloated.
It was as big as a house.
She opened her mouth. Inside was a darkness as black as ink, like a bottomless cave.
A terrifying suction force seized Hu Long and dragged him straight toward it. No matter how desperately he struggled, he couldn't break free.
Splash!
Water sloshed.
Hu Long suddenly opened his eyes and jolted upright in the bathtub.
The bright lights and warm bathroom were just as before.
There wasn't a single strand of black hair on him.
The bathtub was unchanged, as if everything that had happened had been nothing but an illusion.
But Hu Long's expression darkened.
Thanks to his original body's memories, he understood that this meant the ghostly thing was tightening its grip on him.
The unrelenting hallucinations were wearing him down.
That was why his original body's mental state had inevitably deteriorated.
But the problem was—
His original self hadn't started having hallucinations until a year after that ghostly thing appeared.
Now they'd started so much earlier.
That meant the situation was far worse than he'd imagined.
He no longer felt like taking a bath.
He stood up,
dried himself off, and changed into fresh clothes.
Then he went back into the room, glanced around, and walked over to sit by the window.