A strange person

At seven thirty in the morning, Qin Manjiang woke up right on time.

He drew back the curtains. The weather in Fu City was clear today.

He had struck while the iron was hot last night and posted the rental listing online. He wondered whether anyone would come today.

Aside from the Ghost Story Game on his phone, which could pop up at any moment, he also had a very practical problem weighing on him: making ends meet.

He was out of money.

Besides renting out the empty room, he also planned to find a job.

But before that... he needed to go to school and sort out the paperwork for withdrawing.

There was also something else that had been on his mind.

The player called Green Vine had said that his university teacher looked very much like him. Although Qin Manjiang had no interest in his own origins and absolutely no desire to trace his roots or travel a thousand miles for some dramatic family reunion, he could not deny that someone who resembled him so uncannily held an inherent fascination for him.

Unfortunately, Green Vine was already dead, and he had never mentioned his city or university. Looking into it probably would not be too difficult if Qin Manjiang really wanted to-he believed Zhong Xueran could help-but it was neither necessary nor urgent.

Qin Manjiang cooked a bowl of plain noodles in water. After eating, he cleaned himself up and went out.

Fucheng University was a very good university, with an equally good academic atmosphere throughout the campus.

As he remembered it, he would certainly have been a good student too, if his family had not suffered such a drastic upheaval.

This year, because the start of the semester had been delayed by two months, Fucheng University's vacation had also been pushed back two months, leaving students who should have been on summer break still attending classes.

But that had little to do with Qin Manjiang, since he skipped class.

Under the blazing sunlight, the four gilded characters at the university entrance gleamed. An elderly man in short sleeves, with a towel hanging around his neck, was sweeping the pavement.

Students streamed in and out of the entrance. Qin Manjiang walked in without a change in expression. He had not called to trouble the class representative. For some reason, he felt that he brought bad luck, and anyone who got too close to him could easily become caught up in something awful.

The class representative was a good person, with a long life still ahead of her. There was no need for her-and she should not have had-to become too involved with someone like him, whose life had already veered off its normal course.

But some things, no matter how hard you tried to avoid them, always found a roundabout way to cross your path again.

For instance, at that very moment, the class representative was heading toward the teaching building with books in her arms and a few steamed buns in one hand.

Perhaps it was pure chance. With just a brief upward glance, she spotted Qin Manjiang on the tree-lined path.

He walked beneath the shade with a calm expression. He was clearly no different from the university students around him, yet somehow he seemed entirely out of place.

"Classmate Qin!"

The class representative called out in surprise, then suddenly seemed to remember something.

She hurried over at a jog and said, "I... I took it upon myself to tell the student adviser about your situation. You don't have to withdraw. The adviser said you can take a temporary leave of absence. Please don't do anything rash..."

Qin Manjiang shook his head. He did not know why, but whenever he looked at her, he could never quite keep his gaze distant.

She was a very good person, kind to everyone she knew. Perhaps everyone harbored a longing deep down for someone so purely kind.

"Thank you."

Qin Manjiang looked at her and spoke gently.

Unused to being watched like that, the class representative slowly lowered her head, avoiding his gaze. "Did... did you lose your glasses?"

"Yes."

"Wouldn't that make things really inconvenient? I... could go with you to get a new pair?"

"No need."

Qin Manjiang turned her down.

The class representative tightened her hold on her books, suddenly at a loss for what to say.

"You should get to class," Qin Manjiang said.

"I... okay..." Her grip on her books tightened, then loosened, and her shoulders slumped.

She raised her head and looked earnestly at Qin Manjiang. "Classmate Qin, are you leaving Fu City?"

Qin Manjiang looked at her in surprise. "Not for now. Why?"

A trace of confusion passed through her eyes. "I don't know either. I just feel... like you're about to go somewhere very far away..."

At that, her eyes lit up. "Oh, right! Classmate Qin, there's a package for you at school. It arrived after you moved out of the dorm, and you haven't been back since. Let me take you to get it!"

A package for me?

Qin Manjiang thought about it. Was there anyone else in the world who would send him a package? And a month ago, at that?

Could it be Li Xijiu?

No... if it were Li Xijiu, he wouldn't have been able to keep it secret this long. He would have told me already.

Who else could it be?

Curious, Qin Manjiang followed the class representative to the entrance of the men's dormitory.

"I... I won't go inside. Your package is in the guardroom. It's been sitting there for a month..."

The class representative explained.

Qin Manjiang nodded and went to the guardroom. Under the elderly guard's deeply reproachful stare, he collected his package.

He held a tightly wrapped object about the size of a rice cooker in his arms.

What was this?

There was no courier company listed, nor any indication of who had sent it. It had simply appeared at his school without explanation.

The class representative seemed curious too, but out of politeness, she did not ask.

She seemed to want to say something more, only to realize with a start that they had run out of things to talk about.

Qin Manjiang nodded his thanks again, then carried the package toward the academic affairs office.

The class representative watched him, her eyes slightly unfocused, but did not follow him again.

Perhaps fate really did play a part in the connections between people. Those destined to meet would reunite even after missing each other, while those without that bond would drift apart even after meeting.

She let out a long breath and slowly walked toward the teaching building with her books in her arms, toward a different life.

After he submitted his withdrawal application to the academic affairs office, it was quickly approved.

After all, it was his own firm demand, and no one could talk him out of it.

In addition, Qin Manjiang would receive a tuition refund, which would ease his immediate financial crisis.

When he returned to his rented place, before he could even take out his keys, he saw someone standing at the door, poised to knock.

He silently sized up the person in front of him.

The man turned around and studied him in silence as well.

Despite the summer heat, the man wore a white turtleneck sweater that covered his chin and part of his mouth.

His hair was not as long as Qin Manjiang's, but it was hardly short for a man either. The bangs hanging over his forehead hid most of his eyes.

"Are you here to rent the room?" Qin Manjiang asked.

"Mm." He gave a one-syllable answer, the sound coming through his nose.

His nose was practically the only thing showing, too.

Qin Manjiang felt as if he were talking to a nose.

The strange man raised his phone and showed it to Qin Manjiang. "This."

Qin Manjiang looked. Yes, that was indeed the rental listing he had posted last night.

"Eight hundred." The stranger clutched his phone tightly and stared unblinkingly at Qin Manjiang, as though afraid he would change his mind and raise the rent.

Only then did Qin Manjiang notice that the man's eyes were different colors, a rare trait, though the contrast was not particularly stark. His left eye was pure black, while his right was a lighter brown. No wonder he covered his eyes with his bangs. At first glance, one of them almost looked fake.

Qin Manjiang looked him over and asked, "Are you eighteen?"

The stranger nodded and finally pulled down his turtleneck, revealing a finely shaped chin and mouth. His skin was exceptionally fair, and his looks and bearing far surpassed even the carefully styled celebrities on television.

Still, that did not prove he was actually an adult.

This man... or boy?

He looked as though he had little experience of the world.

"Come in first."

Qin Manjiang opened the door and carried the package inside.

Suddenly, the image of the phone the man had shown him flashed through Qin Manjiang's mind.

"Wait. Let me see your phone again."

Qin Manjiang stopped him before he could enter.

Without a word, the man lit up his phone again and showed Qin Manjiang the rental page.

Qin Manjiang examined it closely and said, "This isn't the original page. It's a screenshot."

The man nodded and swiped a finger across the screen, returning to a chat window.

Doctor: [Go here.]

Doctor: [Screenshot...]

[Got it.]

As Qin Manjiang looked at the chat history on the man's phone, his heart inexplicably began to beat faster.

"That Doctor sent you a screenshot of my rental listing and told you to come here?" Qin Manjiang asked.

The man nodded, both of his slightly different-colored eyes fixed on Qin Manjiang, without saying a word.

Today's the Qixi Festival. Happy holidays, everyone!

Also, some of you have been guessing who's in my profile picture, so I'll answer everyone today: she's my former high school classmate, my current girlfriend, and my future wife.

Happy holidays. Bye!

(End of chapter)