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Song Bunan stood in the elevator, holding a bag of takeout, feeling puzzled about why he had to pick it up at home. His back was itching from a healing wound, making it hard for him to stand straight as he twisted and turned. Even though he was the one feeling unwell, he felt like his brother was taking advantage of him. Frustrated, he noticed that the elevator seemed to stop at every floor today, yet no one ever got on when the doors opened.
Living on the Fifteenth Floor, it took him twice as long to reach the Tenth Floor. He reluctantly placed the bag on the ground, intending to scratch his itchy back. Just then, an elderly lady entered the elevator, leaning on a cane. She stared at the button panel for a while before pressing the button for the Seventeenth Floor.
Standing almost side by side with her, Song Bunan felt tense in the dim light of the elevator, which had been broken for some time. A stray glance caught the old lady's fierce expression; her silver hair was braided and pinned up with what appeared to be a silver clamp. Curious about it, he discreetly looked at the clamp and noticed it had beautiful, intricate patterns.
The elevator continued its slow journey, stopping at each floor while the old lady stood quietly waiting to reach her destination. Song Bunan lifted both bags of food and kept sneaking glances at the clamp. When the doors opened again and she slowly walked out, he finally got a good look at the clamp just as he realized he had arrived at the Seventeenth Floor.
As the doors began to close, he heard an oddly melodic tune coming from above. The music sent shivers down his spine, prompting him to quickly press the button for his floor and shake his head to forget about it.
Lost in thoughts of the old lady's hairpin, Song Bunan opened his front door only to bump into Xin Yi. With his balance thrown off by carrying things, he was steadied by Xin Yi's gentle grip on his shoulder. "Have you been waiting long?" The items in his hands were taken away effortlessly, and Song Bunan suddenly found Xin Yi's voice particularly pleasant.
He shook his head. "No, the elevator stopped at every floor today and took forever. Xin Yi Brother, are you hungry? Let's eat."
The dining table was already set with bowls and chopsticks. As Song Bunan excitedly opened the bags, a large hand suddenly covered his forehead. The warmth radiating from Xin Yi's palm made him feel as if all his pores were opening up. "The fever has gone down; are you still feeling unwell?"
In Song Bunan's ears, Xin Yi's deep and rich voice was something he rarely heard in real life. It reminded him of powerful characters from animated shows whose voices always reassured young protagonists. At that moment, Xin Yi gave him that same sense of comfort; Song Bunan felt his ears heat up as he vigorously shook his head in response: "Bunan is fine."
He really liked this big brother figure; although he didn't talk much and had an air of aloofness about him, his pleasant voice conveyed maturity and stability. Plus, he was incredibly attractive. Song Bunan always held a fondness for good-looking people; despite being teased about it many times, he felt there was nothing wrong with that perspective. After indulging his eyes for a moment longer, he happily continued unpacking the food containers.
"Bunan," Song Buxian said as he emerged from the bathroom. He noticed his younger brother looking at Xin Yi with an expression he'd never seen before—one so tender it seemed to drip with warmth. The question he'd intended to ask morphed into another: "Have you gotten yourself a girlfriend?"
Both men reacted to this question; one reaction was precisely what Song Buxian hoped for. Holding onto a box of food, Song Bunan shook his head innocently: "Nope." Meanwhile, Xin Yi paused briefly before regaining his composure and calmly looking at Bunan.
Understanding what was going through someone’s mind at that moment, Song Buxian elongated his tone playfully: "Xin Yi said he's looking for an assistant; would you be interested in trying out an internship?"
"But I don't study anything related to that field; wouldn't I just be a burden? Besides, aren't you two working together?" Song Bunan felt completely unprepared for this job offer just ten days after graduating; all of his previous internships had been through friends who helped him coast through.
Fortunately, Xin Yi answered: "I have a secretary handling professional matters; an assistant just needs to do some minor tasks. There will be training provided, so you don't need to worry about your major."
"As for me," Song Buxian chimed in: "I'm much busier than him, so don’t worry about me checking up on you every day."
"Have you two already arranged everything?" After receiving confirmation, Song Bunan pouted slightly: "Then why ask me…?" He watched as Xin Yi opened the last takeout box and handed him a pair of chopsticks: "Because if you don't want to do it, I won't force you."
"That's not it! As long as you're okay with it, I'm fine." Song Bunan wasn't fond of hiding things when it came to serious matters; although slightly displeased with how his brother handled things, he agreed since work was important enough that family input mattered.
During dinner, they chatted happily as Xin Yi explained what tasks would be involved in the job while they discussed their start date together. Eventually, it was time to say goodbye; Xin Yi helped clear away dishes and took out the trash while Song Bunan insisted on accompanying him out.
Standing in the elevator again, Song Bunan heard that strange music once more and tilted his ear to listen closely but noticed that as they descended, the sound faded away slowly. "Xin Yi Brother, did you hear that music?" Once outside in the cold breeze that rushed down his collar made him shiver slightly.
Xin Yi opened the building door first and nodded: "Yes, it's probably funeral music being played because someone passed away in our building. It's chilly outside; don’t linger too long—call me if you need anything."
Back inside the elevator, Song Bunan chuckled like a fool as he added Xin Yi on WeChat and became so happy that he forgot to press any buttons for their floor. The elevator moving upward didn’t seem off until it stopped again on the Seventeenth Floor where that same old lady stood waiting by the door—this time holding not only her cane but also a medium-sized black plastic bag. The music was clearer now from outside along with an acrid scent of burning paper.
Thinking back to what Xin Yi had just said about Funeral Music, he couldn't help but lean out to see what was happening outside. Just as one foot was about to leave the elevator, it was suddenly tapped by an old lady's cane. It didn't hurt, but it startled him. Rubbing his leg, he looked at the old lady with a puzzled expression and suddenly noticed in the elevator's mirror that there was an old man in a Zhongshan suit standing outside the door.
However, when he turned to look, all he saw was darkness; nothing was there. Surprised, the elevator doors began to close, and the old lady, who merely glared at him without speaking, pressed the button for the fifteenth floor and then the ground floor. Confused about what had just happened, Song Bunan felt it best not to ask further questions and straightened up to wait for the elevator to reach his floor.
After stepping out, he wanted to thank the old lady but turned around only to find that the old man was still standing inside the elevator next to her, staring at him with a rather unsettling smile. The old lady seemed oblivious to everything, coldly switching her cane to the other hand.
The night before, after being chased by ghosts, Song Bunan stood in the hallway for a long time. After thinking it over, he sent a WeChat message to Xiao Mei: "Xiao Mei, I think I saw a ghost."
Meanwhile, Xiao Mei had just settled down in her large house after tidying up and was chatting with Zhang Long beside her, complaining about how foolish people had been during their adventures in Dragon Garden over the past two years. As both of them began to feel sleepy and were ready to drift off, Xiao Mei's phone suddenly dinged beside her. The message left her momentarily stunned as she stared at the screen without reacting. It wasn't until Zhang Long, half-awake, leaned over and asked who it was that she abruptly sat up and started changing her clothes.
According to Song Bunan himself, he had never seen any ghosts or monsters in real life before going to Dragon Garden; he had only encountered them in dreams. He wasn't one to lie easily and promised he would tell her if anything like that ever happened again. Now that he claimed to have seen a ghost, it might very well be that this ability had been activated.
Zhang Long yawned and sat up as well, asking what was so urgent. Xiao Mei smiled and replied, "Do you remember that person I mentioned earlier?"
The now more alert Zhang Long took a sip of water and asked, "The one from Dragon Garden who came alive? What's wrong with him?"
"He said he saw a ghost."
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