First Day at Work

Yang Jian handed over the security work of Ping An Community to Zhang Han, while he returned to his post as the person in charge.

He drove to work right on time at eight o'clock in the morning.

"Yang Jian, you've gone the wrong way. This isn't the road to the company," Jiang Yan said, glancing out the window from the passenger seat.

"Going to the company isn't urgent. I'll take a walk around the area first and see what's going on in Dachang City. After all, I don't know what Dachang City is like now that the last incident is over and I've returned from my business trip. So it's better to find out about the local situation first."

Yang Jian drove while glancing left and right.

He was surveying the city for its unusual activity.

This is also one of the person in charge's jobs; he usually drives around the city looking for possible paranormal events.

Yang Jian also needs to go through the process of investigation and verification again.

He had planned his route in advance, while secretly observing the nearby buildings with his Ghost Eye.

As long as the Ghost Eye isn't stacked to a dangerous level, Yang Jian doesn't need to worry about the risk of the vengeful ghost reviving when using it normally. He's just usually cautious and unwilling to expend too much energy.

"Isn't that boring?" Jiang Yan propped her head up, looking a little listless.

"Boss Yang's work is still very important, so it's best if we don't disturb him."

In the back seat, Zhang Liqin smiled slightly. Her face was rosy, and she leaned lazily against the car door, looking mature and charming. Her eyes were fixed on Yang Jian, and it was unclear what she was thinking.

"I was just venting, Yang Jian, you won't blame me, right? After all, I'm so cute." Jiang Yan chuckled, her tone slightly coquettish.

Yang Jian ignored the two people; his attention was focused on the buildings near the road.

The Ghost Eye can see unusual places, and if a paranormal event occurs, it will most likely be detected.

Of course, he could also use the Ghost Domain to cover the entire city.

However, Yang Jian thought this was a very extravagant approach. How could one use the Ghost Domain every time they patrolled? After all, supernatural events don't happen often; they just pop up occasionally.

"Aside from the city being a bit quieter than before, everything else is fine."

Yang Jian quickly drove around to check the situation, then drove back to the Shangtong Building in the city center.

"Let's go to work."

After getting out of the car, Jiang Yan stretched and raised her hand excitedly, as if she were surveying her territory.

Yang Jian didn't say anything, but strode into the company.

Maybe starting today, he'll need to get used to this normal life of going to work and coming home.

The Shangtong Building has 45 floors, which is much shorter than the Ping An Building that was previously posted on social media. After all, there are differences between cities. Yang Jian's private office is on the top floor, which is the 45th floor.

Yang Jian took the elevator to his office.

Although the office was empty and there was no one there, it was very clean.

"I didn't pay much attention when I came here a few days ago, but now I realize that this office seems to have been renovated," Yang Jian said after glancing around.

Jiang Yan said, "I didn't like the previous style, so I changed it. Do you like it? If not, we can redecorate."

"No need, this is fine."

Yang Jian stood in front of the transparent floor-to-ceiling window, gazing into the distance as if overlooking the entire city.

Zhang Liqin walked over and said, "Boss Yang, you probably haven't had breakfast yet, have you? The company cafeteria's breakfast is quite good. Would you like something to eat?"

She quickly got into work mode; since she was in the position of secretary, she believed that she should do her job well.

"Just grab some, and send one over to Jiang Yan too," Yang Jian said without turning his head.

"Okay." Zhang Liqin nodded and then left.

However, just as she stepped out, she saw a familiar middle-aged man hurrying towards the office.

Zhang Hua?

Zhang Liqin simply nodded slightly in greeting and didn't ask any further questions.

Zhang Hua has a special identity; he is not a company employee. He is in charge of special cases, and all his operations are confidential. You cannot ask about anything related to him.

Clearly, he knew Yang Jian had come to the company and had something to report.

"Captain Yang, how was your first day at work? Zhang Han can finally rest now; he usually complains a lot." Zhang Hua walked in, saw Jiang Yan playing on her phone on the sofa, and said with a smile.

"Zhang Hua?"

Yang Jian turned around and looked at him; "What, is there something going on in Dachang City?"

Zhang Hua glanced at Jiang Yan, as if it wasn't appropriate to speak in front of outsiders.

"It's alright, tell me," Yang Jian said casually.

"So far, only captains and above know about this. I only received the notification in the early hours of the morning," Zhang Hua said in a low voice.

"Please have a seat," Yang Jian gestured, then sat down in his office chair. "Jiang Yan, go and close the office door."

"No problem." Jiang Yan immediately ran over and closed the door.

Yang Jian laughed and said, "Since only captains would know, I don't think there's any need to inform me."

"Captain Yang 're joking. You're a captain, how could we not inform you of something so important?" Zhang Hua said.

Yang Jian's eyes flickered slightly.

Judging from Zhang Hua's words, it seems that he is unaware of his relationship with Headquarters. Currently, he is on indefinite leave, and the captain is just a figurehead with frozen authority. In reality, he only has the authority of a Dachang City Manager.

"Tell me, what important news is it?" Yang Jian said, knowing that this was Headquarters trying to curry favor.

Zhang Hua pondered for a moment and said, "Last night's operation against the ghost painting has officially failed."

"As expected," Yang Jian nodded.

Zhang Hua felt a chill run down his spine, not expecting that Yang Jian had actually foreseen this event.

"How many people died?" Yang Jian asked again.

"It has been confirmed that Chen Yi, one of the leaders, is dead; Captain Liu San is suspected to be dead; Xiong Wenwen has been locked inside a photograph; the operation leader, Li Jun, is missing; and the only survivor is a newcomer named Li Yang." Zhang Hua recalled the contents and reported truthfully.

Such confidential matters are not communicated in documents; they are only conveyed orally.

Yang Jian's gaze darkened.

Jiang Yan, who was sitting on the sofa, also put down her phone. Her eyes widened, and she felt somewhat uneasy.

Because she heard a familiar name: Li Jun.

She met that person after the last Starvation Ghost Incident. He was a very resolute and righteous person. She never expected that he would mysteriously disappear just a few months later. And the probability of such a disappearance is very high.

"What a heavy loss. Out of five people in the team, four were killed, and only one newcomer survived. I think if it weren't for the need to leave one person behind to relay intelligence, Li Yang would probably be dead too." Yang Jian sighed softly, his gaze calm.

He knew all those people and had dealt with them before.

Hearing their deaths with my own ears now inevitably evokes some emotions.

"However, Liu San is quite special. Who knows if the one who died inside was just a paper doll? Nobody has ever seen the real him, so the probability of him still being alive is very high." Yang Jian then analyzed carefully. "Xiong Wenwen has precognitive abilities. He knows everything that will happen within the next ten minutes, and as his recovery intensifies, the time he can predict will also increase."

"So I highly doubt whether Xiong Wenwen truly lost control and was trapped inside the photo when she used the Ghost Portrait, or whether she intentionally trapped herself inside the photo."

"After all, he could probably foresee whether the Ghost Portrait would go out of control or not."

Zhang Hua asked with some surprise, "Is that even possible?"

"You underestimate that brat. After all, he can even foresee the actions of ghosts. In other words, if Xiong Wenwen willingly locked herself in the photo, then it proves that the situation must have been extremely dangerous. No matter how much she foresaw it, she wouldn't have been able to find a way out. For Xiong Wenwen, the last way to survive might have been to be locked in the photo."

Yang Jian's eyes flickered slightly. "So, there's still a possibility that Xiong Wenwen can be rescued."

"I'll report this immediately." Zhang Hua quickly picked up a pen and wrote down what Yang Jian had just said.

"The possibility is good, but we need to know the method. Have there been any cases of people who were successfully released from being locked in photos before?" Yang Jian shook his head slightly.

Zhang Hua said, "In any case, this is a very important attempt."

Indeed.

If the people in the photos could be freed, the risks of using the Ghost Portrait would be greatly reduced.

"After the first operation failed, when will Headquarters launch the next operation? The intelligence should be almost gathered by now. After all, they fought against the ghost head-on and must have obtained some useful information. The selection of this team's personnel clearly doesn't seem to be aimed at capturing the ghost painting in one go, but rather at gathering intelligence," Yang Jian said.

"I'm sorry, I haven't received any news on that yet," Zhang Hua said.

Yang Jian said, "Keep it a secret? It doesn't matter. I'm not interested in this matter. I hope they can successfully handle the Ghost Painting Incident."

It seems Headquarters doesn't intend to reveal their second operation, and Zhang Hua probably doesn't know either.

"There are some things I shouldn't ask, but I can't help but ask. Since Captain Yang had already predicted that this operation would fail, why didn't Headquarters listen to Captain Yang advice?" Zhang Hua asked curiously.

If Yang Jian had been in charge, the losses wouldn't have been so severe.

Yang Jian smiled and said, "Can I make decisions about Headquarters? Besides, it's not like Headquarters will give up just because I think the operation will fail. Cao Yanhua has to resolve the Ghost Painting Incident within three days. Under these circumstances, it's inevitable to take certain risks, so casualties are unavoidable in the first operation."

He still hoped that Li Jun and his team would succeed, after all, he had arranged for Li Yang to go to Headquarters before he left.

This means he also sent over some information about the ghost painting.

Unfortunately, the ghost drawing still couldn't be fixed.

Was the true horror of the ghost painting unleashed only at the very last moment?

Yang Jian could only guess that, just like the Starvation Ghost Incident, he only found out at the last moment that the starving ghost could be restarted.

The same ghost painting must also have unknown terrifying aspects, but these terrifying aspects will not be revealed unless you actually come into contact with it or confront it.

This is why many Ghost Tamer are reluctant to deal with paranormal events.

There are too many uncertainties.

A paranormal event may seem easy to deal with on the surface, but in reality, it's an unsolvable problem where whoever goes there dies.

"Boss Yang, it's time for breakfast."

At that moment, the door opened, and Zhang Liqin pushed in a food cart. The small cart was filled with a variety of exquisite foods, including not only local home-style breakfasts but also delicacies from other places, which was enough to show that the company's management was quite good.

"Zhang Hua, let's eat together."

Yang Jian said, "Let's put work aside for now; life has to go on."

"Then I won't stand on ceremony," Zhang Hua said with a smile.

Zhang Liqin then added, "By the way, Boss Yang, I received a call from the front desk earlier. Someone downstairs wants to deliver a gift to Boss Yang, and they say it should be received by Boss Yang personally, and that Boss Yang will definitely satisfy you."

Yang Jian frowned.

He'd only just arrived in Dachang City, and people were already giving him gifts?

Is someone trying to please me?

This isn't narcissism; it's just that Yang Jian now has the qualities to be flattered, after all, he's considered a prominent figure in the supernatural community.

"Captain Yang, let me have a colleague check the situation first," Zhang Hua said immediately.

Yang Jian nodded in agreement with his approach, after all, it was for safety reasons. Who knew if they were really there to deliver a gift or to cause trouble?

Zhang Hua immediately picked up the walkie-talkie and notified his colleagues downstairs.

I'm really sorry, I've been experiencing writer's block lately. Because I didn't write the previous part of the story well, the following parts don't connect well and feel a bit disjointed.

I'll add a little more today. I'll write 10,000 words by midnight, and I won't go to sleep until I finish.