Today’s tracking had already gone overtime.

Going home at this hour was about the same as after evening self-study.

Lin Shilan put the newly bought book back in her backpack, preparing to go home.

She had just stepped out of the bookstore and opened her umbrella when Su Ge also walked out behind her.

Lin Shilan, who had originally planned to go home, felt a little unwilling to give up. On one hand, she wrestled internally with “should I keep following?”; on the other hand, her feet had already honestly moved in the direction Su Ge was going.

—She wanted to know sooner what kind of person Su Ge was.

—Because she was a junior Alliance ally, so she wanted to do a little more.

Su Ge’s home was quite far from school.

Gradually deviating from the area Lin Shilan was most familiar with. Only when a subtle discomfort surged through her body did she alertly look up… Nearby, there were special large tanks and tall chimneys.

Without realizing it, she had already walked near the petrochemical plant.

Before, when she and Tan Jin saw Su Ge throwing away the dog, it was right here by the roadside trash can.

Following this road to the intersection, Su Ge turned. Lin Shilan thought to herself: The brake sound they heard back then came from here.

When they had chased to this point, they had disagreed. She said left, Tan Jin said right.

He had been correct—Su Ge was going right.

After walking a bit further, she turned into a small path.

Small alleys were the hardest to follow. Lin Shilan had never been inside there and didn’t know how deep it was. It was already late, the path was only wide enough for two people, and the entire narrow road had no lights.

She kept a distance from Su Ge, and after hesitating at the alley entrance for a while, at this moment, let alone her silhouette—even her footsteps could no longer be heard at all.

—Use her phone as a flashlight?

This idea was immediately rejected by Lin Shilan. If Su Ge turned around and saw the light here, she would definitely be exposed.

Go on, there’s nothing to be afraid of. Maybe after walking a bit, there would be light. She comforted herself.

Saying she wasn’t afraid would be a lie. It was so dark here, and this was the petrochemical plant she dreaded most. Lin Shilan thought of even more frightening things to give herself courage, like her mother’s angry face when scolding her… Instantly, she felt that facing the darkness before her wasn’t such a difficult thing.

Closing her umbrella, gripping the umbrella handle with both hands like holding a stick, Lin Shilan took a deep breath and stepped into the small path.

Cramped, dark—a deep alley that even moonlight wouldn’t visit.

All around her was only the sound of her own difficult swallowing. Walking further in, even the light from where she came from could no longer be seen. It was like walking through it blindfolded.

She felt bumps and holes beneath her feet—the path here might not have been paved at all. Dripping sounds came from somewhere ahead, with a foul smell, like something was leaking water. Lin Shilan stumbled and barely managed to support herself against the wall.

The sensation in her palm made her uncomfortable. The cement wall had something stuck to it, wet and sticky. She couldn’t worry about that now. She wanted to walk faster, to leave here as soon as possible, so with umbrella in one hand and the other hand feeling along the wall, she strode forward.

“Plop.”

A drop of water fell on her forehead, coolness seeping down from her crown.

Lin Shilan’s breathing became rapid. The back of her hand bumped into something uneven. Instinctively, she raised her umbrella and attacked in that direction.

Under the impact of umbrella and hard object, a dull clanging sound.

She calmed down slightly and touched that spot again with her hand.

Probably a section of exposed, rusted water pipe.

Her back, where it contacted her backpack, was sweating frantically.

So hot—she really wanted to give up. Lin Shilan stopped, hesitating whether to walk back.

But at this very moment, lights came on in a residence at the end of the alley.

—That must be Su Ge’s home, right?

She had a vague premonition.

Mustering up her energy, Lin Shilan walked toward the lit household.

It was a dilapidated two-story cement house. It and the surrounding houses were all self-built by residents, rustic and rough in style. The house’s exterior walls had probably once been painted white, but now the wall surface was peeling, exposing the cement underneath. Due to having too much and being too heavy, the entire house seemed to be dragged downward.

Getting closer, she saw the house’s door. On the dark green door hung an inverted “fortune” character. Very old—the character was so blurred only its shape remained, and the red paper had faded to a strange flesh color.

If the house’s light hadn’t turned on, Lin Shilan wouldn’t have believed anyone lived inside.

—Why does it smell so bad?

Now that she was close to the house, the faint sour smell from the alley earlier became distinct. The air was filled with a damp, rancid odor, as if food had rotted.

Lin Shilan pinched her nose and went around to the side of the house.

There was a cross-paned glass window, positioned right at a height where she could see inside by standing on tiptoe. When she was about to stand under the glass, she discovered she had nowhere to put her feet…

The window faced a gray wall. The gap between the house and wall was about half a meter.

In just that half meter gap, it was crammed full of red and white garbage bags, food packaging, cans, and cloth strips. Many things seemed to have rotted—completely unrecognizable as to what they originally were.

The phone in her pocket vibrated. Lin Shilan pulled it out.

It was a text message from Tan Jin.

[Why aren’t you home yet? I’m waiting for you at the complex entrance. Bought McDonald’s. If you don’t come, I’m going to start eating.]

She pressed the phone against her chest, trying to suppress the panic in her heart.

—Fine, consider it for the McDonald’s.

—Go take one look, just one look!

Right foot stepping on a garbage bag, Lin Shilan steeled herself and used the umbrella to support her body, head leaning forward to peek.

Through that dim yellow glass, she glimpsed the unbearable sight inside the house.

The windowsill was covered with a thick layer of black-yellow aged grime, and all the walls in the room were moldy.

The floor was littered with tissues, clothes, boxes—miscellaneous items scattered everywhere.

The room’s large wardrobe stood open, inside piled colorfully with bottles and jars, lamps, newspapers, bedsheets…

Next to the wardrobe, on a brown large bed, lay an emaciated elderly person.

Su Ge in her school uniform was holding high the handle of a plastic water kettle, pouring water into her mouth.

The old person was very thin. The skin on her body was like a thin layer of paper wrapping the bones. Her entire face was like a spider’s web, wrinkled into deep, deep gullies.

Lin Shilan watched too intently.

Perhaps she had disturbed the person inside. That old person slightly turned her head.

She spat fiercely in the direction of the window where Lin Shilan was.

Her grip loosened—she didn’t hold the umbrella steady.

Lin Shilan was so frightened by the old person’s action that she lost her balance, sitting down hard on the ground.

A “squeak” sound, as if she had pressed on something.

A can? A rat?

Pulled back to reason by that sound, she didn’t dare think carefully. She sprang up from the ground.

—Run!

She rushed into that dark alley from before, running like a headless fly, urgently seeking an exit to escape.

The rough cement walls crashed into her. Unable to distinguish where was the path and where was the wall, she just kept running. When she hit something, she made no sound, didn’t dare stop, and kept running toward wherever she could run.

At some indistinguishable moment, she saw light.

Finally, she had made it out, back to the main road with streetlights.

Fine rain struck her face. Coming back to her senses, Lin Shilan discovered she didn’t have her umbrella.

But there was absolutely no way she would go back to get it.

Her throat burned dry. Half her body felt cold, half felt hot. Raising her hand, she wiped the sweat from her forehead, still shaken.

Lin Shilan walked all the way home in the rain.

After sending his text, Tan Jin waited for her at the complex entrance for twenty minutes.

He stood under the warm orange streetlight.

She saw him from afar and waved.

He ran over with an umbrella to find her.

Tan Jin had showered—his body had a fresh soap fragrance. The McDonald’s kraft paper bag was crumpled in his grip. As soon as he saw her, he knew something must have happened to her.

“Lin Shilan! Where’s your umbrella?”

“What’s that black streak on your face…”

She extended her hand—indeed, it was very dirty.

Looking left and right, Tan Jin couldn’t find anything to clean with. Shilan seemed dazed. He spoke to her but she didn’t answer, motionless, staring at her own hands.

Both hands were grabbed by him.

He seized the fabric of his white T-shirt and used it as a cleaning cloth for her.

When Lin Shilan realized what was happening,

Tan Jin’s clothes had touched her hands and gotten dirty.

“Don’t—I can just wash my hands when I get back.” She said this too late.

Tan Jin lowered his head, helping her wipe her dirty hands.

She tried to pull away. He refused, his large hand circling her wrist.

He wiped a few more times.

Lin Shilan suddenly cried out in pain.

Tan Jin frowned and rolled up her sleeve, discovering her arm was bruised.

“Who did this?” His expression turned frighteningly dark, rage blazing in his eyes.

“No one. I fell by myself…”

Recalling what had just happened—actually it was nothing much at all, yet she had been so useless, scared into this pathetic state. Lin Shilan swallowed and looked away, saying softly: “I feel like I’m so useless.”

“Nonsense!”

Her words provoked a huge reaction from him.

Tan Jin cupped her face with both hands, looked into her eyes, and said to her loudly:

“Whatever you just encountered, listen well.”

“Lin Shilan, you’re the most useful person there is!”