Ying.
The smoke child lingered near the doorway, hovering as if tethered between presence and memory.
Not fully visible.Not entirely gone.
Shi Mu stayed still, letting the incense burn, letting the name fill the air.
"Ying," she said again."Do you remember where you came from?"
The smoke trembled.
Then moved—
not forward, but upward, drifting toward the ceiling beam like it was pointing.
Shi Mu looked.
There, above the cupboard—tucked beneath the frame—was a small box.
She hadn't noticed it before.
She stood, climbed the chair, and gently brought it down.
It was wrapped in old newspaper.Dated almost ten years back.
Inside:A child's drawing.
Crayons.Stick figures.A sun with too many rays.
And the name written in messy handwriting across the top:
"Ying's House"
Shi Mu's throat tightened.
She set the drawing down and bowed her head toward the smoke.
"You lived here."
The smoke curled tighter.
Then, slowly, formed the faintest outline of a face.
Small.Round.Innocent.
Not angry.
Just… forgotten.
[System Notification]
Memory Thread Activated – Spirit Ying Identified
Connection to Property: Confirmed
Status: Left Behind During Family Relocation / Unregistered Death
Emotional Signature: Isolation, Hope, Attachment
Brotherhood Value +310 (Hidden Spirit Found + Forgotten Memory Reclaimed)
Current Total: 13,820 / 1,000,000
Shi Mu sat down again.
"I'm sorry it took so long," she whispered.
The spirit didn't speak.
But the smoke moved gently around her like a hug from someone who never got to say goodbye.
Some ghosts don't need justice.They just need someone to remember they lived.