Lin Yunshen's arrogance greatly shocked he the only human present.
Chen Zehao remarked, "Indeed, it's rare to see..." someone so self-centered.
In the next moment, Lin Yunshen displayed an "as expected" expression, as if he could see right through Chen Zehao.
Chen Zehao truly hated his ability to read people's expressions. He particularly wanted to say something rude to strike back at him, but felt it wasn't worth risking his life over something trivial. After all, he didn't even know what he was, and confronting him head-on would be like throwing eggs at a stone.
Fortunately, Lin Yunshen didn't see to want to say more. He returned to his initial coldness, hands in his pockets, and continued walking downstairs.
Chen Zehao kept followed him.
As soon as they left the building, brilliant sunlight poured in, warming the open space outside the office building and dispelling the eerily spring chill from her body.
The Night Bureau compound didn't have many buildings. The tallest office building was covered in Boston ivy, with a row of unremarkable low-rise buildings beside it. Next to the buildings was a flat piece of land, now covered in lush green grass, with a corner cultivated for growing some Chinese greens and potato seedlings.
After leaving the building, Lin Yunshen lazily sat down on a stone round stool, narrowing his eyes drowsily as he enjoyed the filtered sunlight through the tree shade.
Seeing that he was no longer paying attention to him, Chen Zehao, who had been on edge all the time in the building and truly couldn't understand non-human thinking, tentatively asked, "...May I take my leave then?"
He wondered if these supernatural beings would playfully catch him halfway through his escape. Not that he really wanted to believe what he said was real and he wasn't just jesting.
"You're still here?" Lin Yunshen heard his voice and slowly opened his eyes, looking him up and down as if quite surprised.
Chen Zihao suddenly understood his thought process for a moment - he must be thinking along the lines of his "divine and handsome existence," as if he was deliberately lingering to spend more time with him.
He had to admit, as long as he wasn't deliberately maintaining a stern face, his micro-expressions were extremely easy to read.
Chen Zehao wearily said, "...Goodbye."
"Goodbye."
Chen Zehao headed to the parking lot without looking back. He got into his car and drove away from the Night Bureau like a whirlwind. Although he had initially been frightened by the shadows on the wall, after being interrupted by the narcissistic ghost-man, his mind was now filled with exasperation rather than fear.
The Huaijiang Night Bureau was located in a relatively remote area, quite far from the residential complex where Chen Zehao's parents lived. There was no public transportation between the two locations, and it took thirty minutes by car. While such a commuting distance wouldn't be considered much in a first-tier city, it wasn't very convenient in a small city, and driving to work was clearly an additional expense.
Half an hour later, Chen Zehao had calmed down during the drive. He carefully parked his car in the underground garage and decided to make a phone call before heading home.
Although he was safe now, he had definitely seen the shadow earlier, and the narcissistic ghost-man had admitted he wasn't even human, the new workplace was filled with abnormalities everywhere.
Chen Zehao called Hong Limei, but there was no answer. Looking at the time, he realized it was already past 5:00 PM. This was the personnel department's landline number, and it probably wouldn't be answered after office hours.
Despite being haunted, the new workplace was quite punctual about closing time and not a minute of overtime or perhaps there were just few people there to begin with, mostly strange ghosts instead.
A moment later, Chen Zehao arrived at his doorstep. Before he could even change his shoes after opening the security door, he was greeted by the appetizing aroma of food.
The dining room was lit with warm yellow light, and two dishes and a soup were already set on the table. The steamed pork with rice was still steaming hot, the stir-fried squash tips were vibrant green, and the winter melon bone soup had a clear, appetizing appearance that made one's mouth water.
"Ah, you're back!" Chen Lihua saw her son enter and immediately changed out of her apron to greet Chen Zehao on the door, urging, "Alright, stop lounging around, hurry up and help me cook the last dish!"
"I haven't even sat down for a moment, haven't even warmed the seat yet..." Chen Zehao grumbled quietly while reluctantly heading to the kitchen.
His parents had been waiting for him to eat. Their only son who was coming home late.
After graduation, Chen Zehao been working in Yinhai City, living alone in a rented apartment for a long time, never having the chance to have someone waiting for him to come home for dinner.
Since returning to his hometown, he seemed to have become more emotionally sensitive. Especially after experiencing so many strange things today, seeing such ordinary family moments now inexplicably made his chest tighten and his eyes threaten to water.
He felt that while he could be invincible outside, he would crumble once back in this familiar haven.
"Mom, don't let Dad cook anymore, we already have too much food."
"It's fine, just one more leafy green dish. You need a balanced diet now, or your stomach will act up again!"
Ever since Chen Zehao had fallen seriously ill, Chen Lihua had become somewhat overprotective.
Soon, the family of three was happily dining together, and inevitably the conversation turned to be about his new workplace.
Mr Chen glanced at his son and casually asked, "Did everything go smoothly today?"
Chen Zehao had never been a child who caused his parents to worry, whether in studies or his work, he always had his own ideas, but they would still routinely ask about his day.
"Today..." Chen Zehao hesitated a bit unusually, "was fairly smooth, I suppose."
He couldn't really speak of his experience at the Night Bureau as either smooth or not. Mainly, talking about the wall shadows and other things would make it seem like he had mental issues, and would likely just add to his parents' worries.
"That's good. Don't work too hard now that you're back, don't be as intense as before!" Mrs Chen advised, "You still have to decorate your place, save some energy. Your health is the most important thing."
Chen Zehao replied, "Today was just paperwork, no real work yet. I officially start tomorrow."
"Then get to bed early tonight, rest up well."
After dinner, Chen Zehao chatted with his parents in the living room for a while before returning to his room to ponder the supernatural events he encounteredthat day. Having been away from his hometown for so long, he could only ask childhood friends and classmates about the Night Bureau's conditions and whether there had been any horrifying incidents in the past.
He took out his phone and dialed Zhuang's number, his childhood friend who had never stepped foot out of their little city.
"The salary at that kind of institution is just average, definitely not as much as you earned in Yinhai, but it's considered decent in Huaijiang."
Chen Zehao was silent for a moment, then lowered his voice, "...Have you heard of any strange rumors?"
"What kind of rumors?"
"Like haunting and such?"
"That's impossible. I have a friend of a friend who once got accepted there, and even visited the Huaijiang Night Bureau, but he ended up not choosing it because of the distance, which was purely his personal reason."
This matched what Chen Zehao had found in his own online searches ofcouse the internet held no traces of any haunting at the Huaijiang Night Bureau.
If it weren't for the deep impression left by the narcissistic ghost-man, he would have doubted whether today's events were just his own hallucinations, whether there really was a shadow on the wall, or if anything had actually chased him.
But the narcissistic ghost-man was too outrageous, the way he acted, made him feel like humans couldn't be that thick-skinned.