Lin Fan had speculated several times about what the mysterious Special Affairs Office looked like, but he had never imagined it to be so open and aboveboard.
You say it's hidden, right? It seems anyone can come in. She just noticed that there's no guard at the courtyard, and the old building's glass door can be easily opened. Even the front desk knows the identity of John Woo's special assistant.
You say it is not covered up, but the glittering company sign clearly tells visitors that this is a trading company.
I don’t know who came up with the name, Ririhong. If the Special Affairs Office really had something to do with Ririhong, it would not be peaceful.
Wu Yusen got the visitor card and walked inside with Lin Fan.
If you don't have preconceived notions, this looks like a very ordinary company.
At each desk, employees were bustling with activity, with no signs of anything unusual. Some were answering phones, some were typing, some were scrambling to find documents... Lin Fan couldn't see anything different.
Reception room, tea room, conference room, finance office, manager's office... each office shows that this is a normal trading company.
John Woo took Lin Fan to the stairs and went up to the second floor.
The second floor seems to be a data room. Through the transparent glass, you can see that the shelves inside are full of documents.
Next door was a computer room filled with computers, with people sitting in front of them, typing away at their keyboards. Rows of nameless electronic devices, flashing green lights, worked furiously.
There are some rooms further inside, and I don’t know what they are used for.
Wu Yusen led Lin Fan through two offices and to the elevator behind the computer room. The panel inside displayed only three numeric keys: the door open/close button and the call button. Wu Yusen closed the door and swiped his ID card. With a beep, the control panel slowly opened, revealing the electronic keypad.
Wu Yusen pressed 3, closed the panel, and the elevator began to descend. Lin Fan knew that this was the real special case.
As soon as I stepped out of the elevator, I smelled a delicious aroma. It turned out that this floor was the cafeteria.
The bright yellow light filled the entire space. One wall was occupied by a window for serving food, the other wall was lined with a dazzling array of snacks, and in the middle were countless fruit and tea stalls. Dozens of tables and chairs were scattered around, making it look like a food court.
Looking around, there are countless delicious foods, and just smelling the aroma makes people salivate.
Of course, this does not include Lin Fan.
Wu Yusen led Lin Fan forward. "It's already past five o'clock, time for dinner. I know you're not hungry, so eat a little. The food in our cafeteria is really good, you should try it."
Wu Yusen took her for a walk. Lin Fan didn't want to eat anything, saying she was very tired. Wu Yusen could only take the initiative to help her with a few dishes that he thought tasted good.
Lin Fan looked at the dishes in the rice bowl: braised prawns, braised pork with preserved plums, fried greens, braised tofu, pork rib soup, and a fruit salad. It looked quite good, but unfortunately she couldn't taste it.
After the two of them had dinner, John Woo took Lin Fan down to the 6th floor.
As soon as he exited the elevator, Lin Fan thought he was back on earth. The permeable brick pavement beneath his feet rustled the trees on either side as the breeze rustled. In the distance, traffic crisscrossed, and tall buildings rose in the distance. The sun was setting in the west, about to set. The clouds...the clouds seemed painted on.
Wu Yusen had already boarded a nearby tram and called Lin Fan to get on board: "You are too tired today. I will take you to rest first and then do the test tomorrow morning."
Lin Fan took a few steps and stepped onto the tram. He asked, "Are the clouds in the sky fake?"
"Haha, you found it?" John Woo laughed. "It's fake. The sun is fake, and the wind is artificial. This floor is the artificial living area. It's actually underground. You can't tell, right?"
I really can't tell.
Perhaps because the top was dug relatively high, there was no sense of oppression at all. If it weren't for Lin Fan's sharp eyes, he wouldn't have been able to spot the flaw in the clouds.
The trees, parks, houses, shops and even bus stops along the road are exactly the same as in real life. How much did it cost to create something like this?
"This is our staff living area. The dormitories for the Special Affairs Bureau staff are right here. There's a park, a man-made lake, and places for living and shopping. It's basically the same as up there. Isn't the environment nice?" Wu Yusen introduced. "If you want to live in the dorms later, you can also stay here."
Having said that, Wu Yusen did not take Lin Fan to a crowded area. Instead, he stopped at a small coastal hut.
"You'll stay here tonight." John Woo opened the door with his visitor card. "You can see the sea view from here. It's also artificial, of course. I think you'll like it."
Lin Fan walked in. This was a typical holiday cottage. The most striking feature was a large, comfortable bed. The floor-to-ceiling windows offered a panoramic view of the sea, and a gentle breeze blew in, creating a very comfortable atmosphere. Near the entrance was a semi-partitioned bathroom with a shower and bath. Lin Fan had never been to the beach, but the view was indeed refreshing.
"Thank you." Lin Fan thanked him sincerely.
It was after Wu Yusen heard what Lin Fan said on the road that he deliberately arranged such a place for her to live. She was originally staying in an ordinary hotel room.
Hearing her thank you, he didn't hesitate and warned her: "I'll call you at 6 o'clock tomorrow morning. Feel free to use the things in the room, but there's one thing: after I leave, you can't leave this room. After all, you haven't officially become a special agent yet, so you can't move around as you please."
"I understand." Lin Fan agreed. She was exhausted after such a long car ride today. She could fall asleep as soon as she lay down and wouldn't run around.
John Woo inserted the visitor card at the door, turned on the power, locked the door and left.
Lin Fan locked the door, quickly washed up, fell onto the big bed, and fell asleep to the sound of the waves.
John Woo rushed to the 5th floor and knocked on the door of the director's office.
"Come in." When John Woo arrived at the front desk, the director got the news. Knowing that he would be called in for a report, he simply didn't leave.
"Director, Lin Fan has been brought back," Wu Yusen reported. "She has been arranged to rest. The examination will begin tomorrow morning."
"After you had contact with her, do you still feel it was her?" asked the director.
"Yes, I still stick to my original idea. And based on Lin Fan's description, it is very likely that there is another being in her body."
"Hmm?" The director raised his eyes.
"It's just my guess at the moment. I'll report back to you tomorrow after the inspection."
"Got it. Anything else?"
"Also, Lin Fan said she doesn't remember fainting that day and often suffers from amnesia. Given her special situation and serious mental illness, I'd like Jin Sichen to help her with psychological counseling. Is that okay with you?"
"I understand. I will notify him to be on standby tomorrow." The director nodded.
"It should be tomorrow afternoon. We'll do some routine projects in the morning, as well as a test of our abilities."
"Okay, I'll let him know. Is there anything else? If not, go out."
Even after being kicked out by the director, Wu Yusen couldn't leave work yet. He had to coordinate the details of tomorrow's inspection and notify the relevant departments and personnel. By the time everything was coordinated, it was already late at night. He quickly rested in an empty house near Lin Fan's residence. A few moments later, the alarm clock rang.
At 6 o'clock sharp, Wu Yusen knocked on Lin Fan's door, and Lin Fan was already waiting for him. Because he had to draw blood, he couldn't eat. Wu Yusen first took Lin Fan to the fourth floor.
The office area on the 4th floor is very large, much larger than the office area of Ririhong Trading Company, and you can't see the end of it at a glance.
John Woo took Lin Fan to Medical Team 3, drew 8 tubes of blood from him, and almost made Lin Fan pass out.
Seeing Lin Fan's pale face, Wu Yusen quickly took her upstairs to eat. He ordered several breakfast dishes for her that were supposed to replenish blood and qi. After eating, although her face still looked a little pale, she finally walked with less wobbles.
Then I went back to the 4th floor and did a series of examinations, which were similar to the physical examination in the hospital, except that there were more examination items and they were more detailed.
Lin Fan didn't understand the details, so she just cooperated. She'd been secretly observing the situation, but she didn't see any chance to die. She couldn't possibly try to simulate the switch, could she? That would be too deliberate. She had no choice but to give up and wait for another opportunity.
After completing the medical examinations, around 9 a.m., Wu Yusen, knowing Lin Fan would be tired, let her rest in his office for an hour. He woke her up at 10:30 a.m. to continue the examinations.
John Woo took the people to Business Department 4, greeted everyone along the way, and when he arrived at the door of the director's office, he knocked on the door.
"Come in." A shrill voice came from the door.
Wu Yusen pushed open the door and greeted with a smile, "Sister Xu, I have to trouble you again."
"Um."
Wu Yusen turned around and closed the door, and Lin Fan could see the person inside clearly.
She was a woman in her forties. Her hair was a little messy, and she was thin. She yawned, as if she had been playing mahjong all night. She sat behind her desk with a somewhat listless look, one foot propped up on the chair, and looked lazily at Lin Fan.
Lin Fan had no idea what she was looking at, so he could only let her stare. Wu Yusen stood by the door, keeping an eye on Lin Fan's movements.
Sister Xu stared at Lin Fan for a long time before asking, "How do you feel?"
Lin Fan felt it carefully and said, "It seems a little cold."
Sister Xu raised her eyebrows, leaned her elbows on the desk, muttered something, and asked, "What now?"
Lin Fan felt that there didn't seem to be any difference, so he told the truth.
Sister Xu seemed relieved, but also discouraged. She leaned back in her chair, retracted her other foot, moved her mouth a few times, and asked, "What can you see?"
Lin Fan looked at the empty office. There was nothing there except the chair where Sister Xu was sitting and the desk in front of her.
If Lin Fan could see, she would have noticed that besides the three of them, there were many spirits in the office, constantly surrounding her, breathing air and making faces. Some even emitted piercing howls and laughter. Some even suddenly slammed right in front of her, revealing a bloody and gruesome appearance that would have been terrifying to anyone who saw it.
It’s a pity that Lin Fan can’t see anything... Well... it doesn’t seem so regrettable.
Seeing Lin Fan like this, Sister Xu knew what was going on and said impatiently, "Alright, everyone, get out."
The spirits in the room scattered. Wu Yusen smiled and said goodbye to Sister Xu. He didn't care whether Sister Xu responded or not and took Lin Fan out.
Lin Fan felt confused. What kind of test was this?
Even if she didn't expect it, dwelling on it wouldn't do her any good. Lin Fan quickly adjusted her mindset and followed John Woo into Business Department 2.
The decor of Business Department 2 is decidedly more retro, with long tables and high-backed armchairs. The door to the director's office is even designed to resemble a cave.
"Mr. Qian." This time, John Woo didn't knock on the door, but called softly at the door.
With a wave of light, the dark door began to shake and turned into a white light curtain.
Lin Fan had never seen anything like this before, and couldn't help but take a few more glances. Seeing Wu Yusen walk directly into the light curtain and disappear, she hesitated for a moment and then walked in as well.
She didn't feel anything special as she passed through the light curtain, but as she entered, her eyes lit up. The surroundings had turned into cave walls, and even the ground beneath her feet was covered in rock, whereas it had been floor tiles just a moment ago.
After learning that the Special Affairs Institute was a unit that researched supernormal abilities, Lin Fan had a rough idea of what it was like. What she'd seen and heard over the past two days had struck her as unusual, but nothing truly remarkable. But now, the flimsy image in her head was ripped to pieces like paper.
Is this magic? She hesitated whether to go back and take another look, and couldn't help but look back at the light screen.
"Ms. Lin?" John Woo called her from the front.
Lin Fan had no choice but to follow and said to Wu Yusen, "Just call him by his name."
Ms. Lin kept calling each other "Ms. Lin", and her politeness sounded a bit fake.
There were no lights in the cave, but the stone walls shimmered with light, making it feel like walking through an underwater tunnel. Not long into the journey, the view ahead suddenly opened up.
Wu Yusen stepped aside, and Lin Fan saw the person sitting cross-legged in the middle.
The man's hair and eyebrows were both snow-white, and his long hair flowed down his back, along with his wide robe, spread out on the meditation platform. He closed his eyes, silent and motionless, like a beautiful sculpture.
As if sensing someone's gaze, his eyes slowly opened.
At that moment, Lin Fan seemed to see a sky full of stars.