After ending the call with Yuan Kejie, Lu Chu received a call from Song Gui.
Lu Chu answered, “Hello?”
“Hey, it’s me, Song Gui,” Song Gui said succinctly on the other end. “I just checked with Qian Zhen. He hasn’t experienced anything similar.”
Lu Chu pondered, “He hasn’t?”
Song Gui confirmed, “Yeah, he said everything is normal. What about Yuan Kejie and the others? According to this pattern, they shouldn’t have experienced anything like this either, right?”
“Indeed, they haven’t,” Lu Chu replied. “I wonder if this could be a side effect of coming out of ‘the Bureau.'”
Song Gui was puzzled, “A side effect?”
“I’ve been thinking that as someone from within the Bureau, without an identity in this world, does it mean that in some ways, I still belong to that world?” Lu Chu explained. “Therefore, I might have the perspective that only people in the Bureau can have, like seeing non-scientific phenomena.”
Song Gui thought for a moment and nodded, “That’s possible. Qi Xiuming was almost completely erased from existence, so strictly speaking, he can also be considered as someone from ‘that world,’ hence he can see similar supernatural phenomena, though perhaps not as clearly as you.”
“Yes, that’s my understanding,” Lu Chu said, glancing at the clock on the wall. “If it’s just seeing supernatural things and nothing serious happens, it doesn’t really matter. There are quite a few people in the world with some clairvoyant abilities. I can just ignore it.”
“There shouldn’t be any major issues,” Song Gui said. “If things get serious, I can introduce you to a few masters.”
“Masters?”
“Yeah, masters in the supernatural field. You know, the more powerful and influential people are, the more they believe in these things. I have some friends who know a few masters. Although I’m not sure of their skills, they should be somewhat helpful.”
Lu Chu thought for a moment and said, “No need for now. I don’t think it’s a big deal.”
“Indeed,” Song Gui said lightly, “Honestly, even if something does come up, I doubt those masters would be of much use. Among the few of us, who hasn’t experienced more and knows more than ordinary people in the real world?”
Lu Chu laughed, “True. Let’s leave it at that for now.”
“Alright, if anything comes up, let us know.”
“Sure.”
After hanging up with Song Gui, 7 finished his work and returned home.
When they had just settled in the real world, although 7 had lost his original company and all his connections, he still had his various bank cards and remembered the passwords. All the funds were still his. Based on his understanding of his former partners and business rivals, 7 used this money to open a medicinal food restaurant, but he had no intention of managing it personally.
As for Lu Chu, he planned to open a pet store and had already chosen a location.
Radish was somewhat peculiar, different from an ordinary dog. Lu couldn’t feel any vitality from it, yet he didn’t sense any death aura either.
Perhaps Radish’s existence was solely linked to him. When he disappears, Radish would also vanish. Lu Chu’s desire to open a pet store was also related to Radish.
He and 7 had managed to live and settle in the real world, having a peaceful future without the thought of doing big things, just wanting to spend the rest of their lives quietly and plainly together. As for wealth and possessions, enough was sufficient. So, he decided to open a pet store, and 7 decided to open a medicinal food restaurant, nothing more.
Their earlier years, or rather their time traversing within the “rules,” were unpredictable and life-threatening. Now finally separated from that world, they just wanted to be well together.
Seeing Lu Chu hang up the phone, 7 asked with concern, “Finished talking?”
“Yeah, finished. Besides us, no one else is troubled by this. It seems to be an individual phenomenon.”
7 took off his coat, hugged Lu Chu lightly, and rubbed his cheek against Lu Chu’s, saying, “No matter what happens, I’ll always be by your side.”
Lu Chu smiled and hugged him back.
Being together was enough.
———
Ever since Lu Chu asked Song Gui, Yuan Kejie, and the others about the “side effect,” things had been relatively peaceful, though occasionally shadows flitted past his eyes, not affecting his daily life.
The medicinal food restaurant and pet store were gradually getting established.
During this time, Qian Zhen opened a martial arts school in his hometown. Yuan Kejie and Luo Qi heard about it and eagerly expressed that they could go there as martial arts instructors, provided they were well-fed and paid well.
Yuan Kejie and Luo Qi were naturally good at fighting.
The six of them had gone through different experiences compared to ordinary people. Even Yuan Kejie, who was considered the weakest among them, was still someone who had emerged from the storm of blades and swords. Her “weakness” was only relative to the others like 7. In the real world, she could easily take down several people. In her own words, she was a heroine and a leader among people, more than qualified to be an instructor at the martial arts school.
Qian Zhen knew they were formidable.
But he also knew that Yuan Kejie and Luo Qi, being a woman and a child—hiring a female instructor was fine, but hiring child labor was out of the question. It was illegal and impractical, so he could only consider hiring Yuan Kejie.
Luo Qi’s mother had passed away in “the Bureau,” and in the real world, she was also known as someone who had grown up without a mother. During this period, she had been sticking with Yuan Kejie. Their relationship was already good, and now they were like sworn sisters. Hearing that Luo Qi couldn’t be hired, Yuan Kejie gave up the idea of applying to be an instructor at Qian Zhen’s martial arts school.
As the saying goes, good brothers share fortunes and difficulties. If they can’t have fun together, what’s the point?
Lu Chu, upon hearing this, only advised Luo Qi to study hard and improve every day.
Song Gui, upon hearing this, unabashedly expressed his ridicule and then sent a batch of reference materials and test papers to Luo Qi, along with CET-4 and CET-6 study materials to Yuan Kejie, agreeing with Lu Chu’s advice.
Luo Qi, enraged, pulled Yuan Kejie along to leave home and wander the world.
Hearing that they had left and didn’t know where they had gone, even changing their contact numbers, the others weren’t too worried. After all, the two of them together were more likely to avoid bullying others than be bullied.
———
A few days later, Lu Chu’s sensitivity to supernatural phenomena grew sharper.
The neighborhood where he and 7 lived was built two years ago and was relatively new. In the building next to theirs, whenever Lu Chu passed by, he would hear what seemed like a baby’s crying. Sometimes the crying was so loud it was piercing, but passersby didn’t react at all, as if they couldn’t hear it. The sound became clearer day by day, making Lu Chu inexplicably concerned, as if the crying was meant for him to hear.
With this in mind, one evening after finishing their work at the pet store and medicinal food restaurant, Lu Chu and 7, along with Radish, decided to investigate the source of the sound instead of going home.
They would be living here permanently, and they feared that ignoring this might lead to bigger issues. It was best to understand the cause of the crying.
They followed others into the building. Lu Chu heard the baby’s crying again and was about to follow the sound when Song Gui sent a message.
——Quick, check the news! I sent you something!
Although puzzled, Lu Chu opened the communication app and saw that Song Gui had sent him a video along with several news screenshots.
7 noticed Lu Chu pause and gently squeezed his hand to see what was happening. Lu Chu smiled and said, “I don’t know what’s up with Song Gui, suddenly sending these things…”
As he spoke, the video began to play. The angle was from a surveillance camera, somewhat blurry, showing a busy intersection with people and cars moving hurriedly.
Why would Song Gui send this… Could it be a supernatural event?
7 and Lu Chu had the same thought. Then they saw a man wielding a knife, snatching a woman’s bag and running. People on the street stopped in their tracks. At this moment, a young woman and a short girl rushed over. The girl, moving quickly, kicked the thief down. The young woman seized the bag and pinned the thief down, choking him, while the girl disarmed him.
Onlookers began to take out their phones to film, and someone called the police.
The whole incident took less than a minute but was very thrilling, like a scene from a movie. The young woman and the short girl moved swiftly and skillfully, clearly well-trained.
Lu Chu: …
Lu Chu opened the other screenshots sent by Song Gui, showing both print and online news covering the event—
“Heroic Sisters Capture Thief at Intersection!”
“College Girl and Junior High Girl Show Bravery, Fight Thief and Recover Stolen Money!”
“Shocking! A Thief with a Knife Defeated by Two Girls…”
“…”
Song Gui, enjoying the excitement, lamented about how impressive today’s college and junior high girls were, and sent all the news to Lu Chu.
Lu Chu looked at the information in silence, pointed to the people in the video and photos, and asked 7, “Yuan Kejie?”
7: “Yes.”
Lu Chu: “Luo Qi?”
7: “Yes.”
Lu Chu put down the messages, sighed, and just hoped they would keep a low profile, feeling a bit sympathetic for anyone who might encounter them.
