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墨書 Inktalez
At six thirty on Friday afternoon, Song Bunan stood at the entrance of the office building, waiting for Xiao Mei to pick him up, feeling a bit dazed. With his laptop bag slung over his shoulder, he had just said goodbye to a colleague who was leaving early and was now watching the increasingly long line of cars on the street, suddenly realizing that he had worked a full week.
Xin Yi, who had been on a business trip since Tuesday, had handed over all responsibilities to Cheng Meixian. Meanwhile, Song Buxian, who was forced to stay out longer due to work commitments, called to say he would be home for the weekend. Having enjoyed a few carefree days at home, Song Bunan excitedly messaged Xiao Mei two hours before the end of the workday on Friday, asking if they were going to the old house that night.
He remembered that today was Xiao Mei's birthday. While they were having dinner at Jiang Family Courtyard, Uncle Meng had clearly mentioned today's date. At that time, Uncle Meng was wearing an apron and spoke in a very gentle voice: "Our Xiao Mei is turning eighteen! When you come back this weekend, Uncle Meng will make you a cake, okay?"
Checking his phone messages, he saw that Xiao Mei had replied they were stuck in traffic and would probably arrive in half an hour. Fortunately, the office building was surrounded by a commercial area with plenty of shops to browse.
Eager to find a gift for Xiao Mei, Song Bunan clutched his bag and wandered from store to store that might sell gifts. However, many were jewelry shops, and he wasn't very knowledgeable about those items. After much deliberation, he still couldn't find anything suitable.
Finally, sitting at a bubble tea shop feeling defeated, he opened his contacts page on his phone and wondered who could help him with this dilemma. He eventually decided to call Ming Hua without worrying about whether she was busy or not.
Ming Hua answered with a yawn, sounding less than pleased but still offered him advice. She mentioned that there was a shop selling souvenirs not far from where he was located.
The shop wasn't marked on the map and had a small narrow wooden door. If it weren't for Ming Hua's tip, he would have thought it was just part of the wall decoration. Behind the door was a long narrow corridor. After walking through it, he found two display cabinets in the center with glass covers over some jewelry items; wooden shelves on either side held various badges.
Inside the shop was spacious. He noticed what seemed to be a back door leading into a residential area. The shopkeeper was a young girl wearing headphones who swayed to the music playing while dusting with a feather duster.
Not finding anything to knock on, Song Bunan quietly said hello in an attempt to get her attention. The girl removed one earphone but didn’t turn around as she said curtly, "Pick whatever you want. When you're done, scan the code to pay." With that, she put her earphone back in and turned away to continue dusting further inside.
Feeling intimidated by her demeanor, Song Bunan shrank back slightly and carefully approached the display cabinet to choose a gift. The small items on display were mostly handmade; even among similar types there were no duplicates—unique yet aesthetically pleasing. Lacking an eye for aesthetics himself, he thought everything looked nice until he spotted something shiny deep inside one of the cabinets.
It was a brooch set with a moonstone on a silver crescent base, delicately wrapped with silver threads that held the stone in place at its hook. The common design became unique due to intricate carvings on the crescent moon that drew his gaze.
Carefully opening the glass door, Song Bunan took down the brooch along with its box but couldn’t find any price tag or payment code after searching for a while. He reluctantly carried the box towards where he had seen the girl earlier.
The back area was even larger and filled with various peculiar items displayed without glass covers. What caught Song Bunan's eye was a map framed under glass; its texture and brushwork resembled one hanging on the door of Dragon Garden's study.
He gently placed the box on a nearby shelf and moved closer to examine the map more closely. The more he approached it, the clearer it became and it struck him as eerily familiar. There were parts that corresponded with his memory of Dragon Garden’s map but also some differences. Yet in almost the same spot on this map was marked “zero,” which corresponded exactly with where Dragon Garden’s study would be located.
Just as he wanted to take a closer look, someone suddenly tugged at his bag from behind him. Startled, he turned around to see the girl glaring coldly at him. In the dim light, her eyes appeared very light-colored and sparkled ominously.
“Sorry,” he instinctively apologized as he stepped back in panic, creating distance between them. Faced with her increasingly stern gaze, he pointed at the box he had placed on the shelf and said he wanted to buy it.
She shot him another glare before opening the box to inspect its contents; after confirming what it was, she returned it to its place and stated an amount in an emotionless tone while indicating that payment could only be made in cash.
Feeling somewhat wronged as he hurriedly paid and exited the shop clutching the box tightly in his hands on the street outside, Song Bunan couldn’t help but think how unfair it felt—he was paying as a customer after all; why did she have to be so harsh?
Fortunately, this feeling didn’t linger long as it was interrupted by honking from nearby cars. Looking up, he saw Xiao Mei staring at him from inside their vehicle with a puzzled expression. Rushing over without mentioning that he had bought her a gift yet planned to surprise her later that evening felt like an exciting secret.
“Standing there like an idiot by the roadside—what are you doing?” Xiao Mei’s sharp tongue greeted him as she rolled her eyes when he got into the car. He didn’t have any retort ready and could only express his dissatisfaction with an unimpressive “hmph.”
Xiao Mei closed his eyes for some rest without acknowledging him further; however, Song Bunan noticed those dark circles under his eyes and decided not to push any further. The driver in front smiled warmly and said: “Hello there, Bunan! We’ve met several times but haven’t properly introduced ourselves yet. I’m Zhang Long.”
Indeed, they had crossed paths many times before; every time Zhang Long appeared it was alongside Xiao Mei. Thankfully having learned his name from Xiao Mei beforehand allowed Song Bunan to greet him confidently this time around.
They spoke softly, trying to leave enough space for the person who should be asleep. When someone talked on the road, the journey didn’t feel so long, and once Zhang Long got out of the traffic jam, the speed began to soar. Even through the glass, they could hear the sound of wind rushing past outside.
Song Bunan hugged his bag tightly and cautiously asked Zhang Long if the three of them would be acting together tonight. The driver glanced at Xiao Mei and shook his head, replying, “I have something to do tonight and can’t join you. It will just be you and Xiao Mei going to Dragon Garden. But by the way, do you know what you’re going there for?”
With a voice lacking confidence, Song Bunan indicated that he should have some idea about it, which earned him a look from Zhang Long that was both helpless and sympathetic.
“However, Xiao Mei has already given you that notebook, so I believe you have some understanding of what we’re doing. I don’t know much about this matter, but I can give you a basic idea. Dragon Garden is built on Gathering Yin Land, and tonight marks the day when the formation set years ago to prevent bad things from happening will fail. For reasons I’m not aware of, you can reveal the wonders of Dragon Garden, and Xiao Mei needs your ability to find a way to separate Dragon Garden from Gathering Yin Land. While it’s not as severe as ‘failure means death,’ it still concerns many people’s futures.”
“Did I make it too heavy?” Just as they arrived at the low woods outside Dragon Garden, Zhang Long’s abrupt conclusion left Song Bunan stunned in the back seat, and after a moment of hesitation, he shook his head.
“No, not at all. Everything you said has been mentioned by Xiao Mei, and there are explanations in the notebook. I just didn’t expect that such a magical yet difficult task would require Xiao Mei to do it and that someone like me, who knows nothing, would need to help.”
At some point, Xiao Mei, who had been leaning back in her seat asleep, woke up and chimed in, “It’s precisely because Lisen knows nothing that he can help me.”
Suddenly labeled as a “very important character,” Song Bunan awkwardly laughed and followed Xiao Mei out of the car. Sitting inside but leaning out to talk to them was Zhang Long, whose face was filled with worry. He told Xiao Mei that he would come back here to pick them up as soon as he finished his business and urged her not to be brave if any problems arose—she should find an opportunity to leave directly.
Silent and unresponsive, Xiao Mei ignored Zhang Long, shouldering her oddly shaped bag and walking straight into the Narrow Path, quickly disappearing from their sight. Song Bunan was held back by Zhang Long, whose voice now sounded pleading:
“Please stick close to him tonight no matter what happens; don’t let him stay alone in this house.”
The seriousness of the situation was magnified at that moment. A sudden panic gripped Song Bunan, making his heart race wildly while his back muscles tightened. His sixth sense awakened an unprecedented fear of this place; looking back at the dark depths of the Narrow Path, devoid of light, felt like staring into a black hole—once you entered, there would be no coming back.
But Xiao Mei had already gone in, and he had promised to help her. Leaving his bag in Zhang Long’s car, he took hold of the flashlight and firmly grasped Zhang Long’s hand in response:
“I will definitely come out with him!”
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