Chapter 4: Lawless Youth

The lingering sound of the school bell echoed in the air.

Within the flowerbed, the magnolia trees were blooming just right, their delicate fragrance refreshing to the soul. Lin Xingjie slowed her pace, merging with the noisy and bustling crowd heading home.

In front of the school gate, a row of private cars lined up in the small square. Beyond the railings, one could see the quiet flow of the emerald-green river, and along the way the dense shade of the trees involuntarily relaxed the mood of those passing by.

Just then, an enthusiastic greeting came from behind.

"Yo, you're here."

Lin Xingjie furrowed her brows. She turned her head and saw a tall boy standing under a large tree not far from her. Due to his physique, he looked more like a young adult who had entered society early rather than a high school student.

"Shi Hui?"

"That's me. What, just a few days without seeing each other, and you've forgotten your friend?"

Shi Hui had his school uniform draped over his shoulders and waved her over.

...Sure enough, I can't escape.

Lin Xingjie hesitated for a moment, then walked over.

Under the tree stood two other people, a boy and a girl, both with lazy expressions on their faces.

Lin Xingjie felt as though she had eyes on her back, sensing the stares of students and parents walking out of the school gate behind her. A burning sensation crept up her spine.

There were looks of curiosity and longing, fear, disgust, and some even deliberately took a long detour to avoid them. Judging by their appearance, attire, and demeanor, anyone could tell these were a few young people who had willingly fallen into delinquency.

Such "bad students" were common, nothing unusual. Especially in this era, when they were also seen as symbols of rebellion and were worshipped by a crowd of peers, causing headaches for schools and parents.

The three of them, however, didn't care in the least. Being measured with such a different gaze only made them feel unique and even more pleased with themselves.

Lin Xingjie, on the other hand, found it instinctively unbearable. Her pride was always higher than that of the average person, and her temperament more sensitive. It's just that...

In the eyes of others, I'm no different from this group anyway. She thought to herself sarcastically, trying hard to push aside the discomfort and stepping forward.

"These two are my good friends. Let me introduce you. Yan Mingjun, Wang Nana."

"Hi, nice to meet you."

The girl, with her hair dyed dark yellow, wearing ripped jeans, and heavy makeup on her face, was chewing gum and blew a bubble at her.

Upon seeing Lin Xingjie, the other girl's face showed surprise, followed by instinctive jealousy. Although it was fleeting, the girl was familiar with such gazes and didn't think she was mistaken.

...Boring, she thought, hardly bothering to speak and just nodded as a response.

"Nice to meet you."

"Wow, you're really quite pretty. Shi Hui is really lucky to have made friends with you. Haha, wanna get to know each other?"

The slim boy, with his hands in his pockets, tossed his hair as if he was suave, and his fiery gaze impolitely sized up the dark-haired girl's figure from head to toe.

"Shi Hui, what are you guys..."

Lin Xingjie glared coldly at the long-haired boy, inconspicuously gripping the straps of her backpack tighter, trying to make the rise and fall of her chest, constrained by her uniform, less evident.

"We're thinking of finding a place to have fun. Since we're all friends, naturally we should find ways to deepen our bonds, right? Want to come with us?"

The crewcut boy stood behind her, speaking in a commanding tone from above.

A sudden burst of heat shot up her arm, sending chills down Lin Xingjie's spine, and she instinctively dodged.

It might have been an accidental brush from the boy's hand, or perhaps he was attempting some sudden attack, planning to grab her hand, Lin Xingjie thought. Unsure if Shi Hui had noticed or simply didn't care, he walked past her, then turned his head to say.

"What do you say, are you going or not?"

"..."

Shi Hui's tone was fairly gentle, but the eyes looking over were quite imposing, not seeming to ask but rather to demand.

Lin Xingjie met his gaze calmly, without speaking.

"Come on, come see something cool with us."

"Xing Jie, no need to hang out with those two stinky guys, we, two sisters, can also go play elsewhere."

Shi Hui's companions chuckled and said.

"Stop it, you two."

Shi Hui said with a laugh, waving his hand, but his gaze still lingered on Lin Xingjie.

"Don't worry, we won't force you. If you want to come, then come; if you feel uncomfortable on the way, you can leave right away. I won't let anyone stop you... What do you say, are you willing? Give me an answer."

"There are others?"

"No, don't worry! Just us this time..." Shi Hui pointed to himself and Lin Xingjie, then to two others, "and them."

"Where to?"

"Disco, pool hall, underground mall—where do you want to go?"

Lin Xingjie opened her mouth as if to say something but was suddenly reminded of the incident that morning, the argument with her mother, and the matter concerning that person which she needed to find a way to solve—a task she couldn't do alone.

She had sought help from adults before, but—

She cast her eyes down, unconsciously stroking her cheek with her palm. The place covered by the band-aid throbbed with a dull pain, as if a saw was repeatedly grinding at her heart, wounding her in a way that would never heal.

Even if she tried to go back early like a normal student, what was the point? That place no longer felt like her home. Every time she went back, she lurked in her room like a thief or simply spent the entire night on the rooftop.

"Let's stay away from the chaotic disco—it's too noisy and rowdy. Let's just walk around here."

Lin Xingjie raised her head, trying her best to show a relaxed expression.

...

"Is this the place?"

Half an hour later, the two men and two women arrived at a rarely frequented street.

Lin Xingjie stood outside the fence of a building, tilting her head up to look at the windows on the second and third floors—all pitch black with no signs of life.

Wildgrass sprawled unrestrained beneath her feet, engulfing the garden at the door, with some of the grass reaching above shin height.

"Yeah. We were planning to go to karaoke, but you didn't want to, right?"

Wang Nana patted her shoulder, saying cheerfully.

Lin Xingjie, not quite accustomed to her enthusiasm, replied with a hoarse voice.

"Yes, that's right... my throat feels a bit uncomfortable today."

She didn't want to go to the disco or pool hall because she found such places too chaotic, but on second thought, a closed booth seemed even more dangerous—if something really happened, there would be no escaping, so of course, she had to refuse.

"So we came for a haunted house exploration, huh? To be honest, I've had my eye on this place for a while and always wanted to come check it out!"

"A haunted house, really? That's so boring."

Yan Mingjun mocked. He seemed quite unhappy about not going to those more exciting places.

"What's so fun about a place like this?"

"Didn't you hear what Xing Jie said? Do you think those noisy places are fun?"

Wang Nana glared fiercely at her boyfriend.

"But I remember you used to enjoy those places quite a bit."

Yan Mingjun brushed it off, smiling as he drew closer.

"That was then... hey hey hey, what are you doing? That's so annoying..."

The two of them were all over each other, almost putting on a French kiss performance right in front of Lin Xingjie, making her frown.

Wang Nana held back Yan Mingjun's puckered lips with one hand, her voice suddenly dropping low, her face taking on an air of mystery.

"I didn't pick this place randomly. Do you guys know that this building is actually quite famous around here?"

"Famous?"

"Yeah, because several people have died here."

The girl spat her chewed gum into the underbrush.

"It's said that anyone who has entered this building... all died."

"That's not surprising." Shi Hui shook his head, "Every haunted house has such stories."

"It's different, this place is even more sinister than the regular haunted spots! Not only did all the families who moved in meet with misfortunes, but even the real estate agents didn't escape unscathed."

Wang Nana wagged her finger at them.

"You get it? It's not just a simple case of the inhabitants being haunted by spirits; anyone who has stepped into this house ends up dying an unnatural death. You've never seen a place as malevolent as this before, have you?"