"I'm at my stop, I'll head off first. Let's keep in touch, here's my number."
As Wu Liang was still wondering about the deep-seated grudge between these two, Jiang Min stood up with a smile and handed back the letter of introduction.
There was now a string of phone numbers added to it.
"Sister Jiang... you just wrote it on the letter like that, does this thing still have any use?" Wu Liang couldn't help but twitch his mouth as he looked at the already frayed letter, now further embellished with a phone number.
The letter of introduction now looked more like a piece of scrap paper.
Already standing up and walking out, Jiang Min turned back with a smile, enunciating each word before the subway doors closed: "Tomorrow at nine, remember to come to the TV station for work."
Thud—
The subway doors closed, and it slowly continued forward, leaving a bewildered Wu Liang sitting in his seat, staring at the string of phone numbers in his hand.
"So... have I gotten a job then?"
Honestly, Wu Liang felt that with his professional skills, interviewing shouldn't have been a problem at all.
But he truly hadn't expected Jiang Min to be able to just directly let him start working the next day.
What position does she hold at the TV station?
And throughout, he couldn't detect anything about her that resembled an Awakened, and being able to sense the presence of Fierce Ghosts earlier seemed like mere coincidence.
"Oh well, since she can count as my boss now, it doesn't seem very polite to pry into the private life of a superior."
As the subway slightly swayed forward, Wu Liang pulled out his phone to start looking at the rental prices around the TV station.
Now that the job is pretty much secure.
He should hurry and move out of his aunt's house, he's really had enough of that dreadful place!
Although he's long stopped caring about how others criticize and insult him, having people buzzing like flies in his ears day in and day out for the past years still gets annoying.
A new life is about to begin!
.......
While Wu Liang was getting ready to start his post-university-graduation life, He Zhan was feeling overwhelmed with both headache and anxiety.
After investigating all the suspicious places in the building, they finally confirmed that the fifth-floor bathroom was where the Teapot Ghost had been banished, but they couldn't find any traces other than those left by the Fierce Ghost.
It was as if the unknown Awakened had effortlessly banished it, leaving no signs of a struggle whatsoever.
"Boss, you're scaring us, how is that even possible!"
Today, all the Official Awakened present expressed that this was too exaggerated.
"Maybe the person's Awakened Ability, like yours, targets the Fierce Ghost itself without affecting the surrounding environment, which would explain why there are no traces left," Liuyun reasoned after careful consideration.
But He Zhan didn't respond directly to this question, he just stared quietly at his right hand.
Liuyun might be right, but it still leaves them clueless on how to find the hidden civilian Awakened.
It seems they should start focusing on that boy named Wu Liang.
Thinking of this, He Zhan unconsciously touched his pocket, inside was a discarded piece of paper he picked up from the bathroom corner, which coincidentally mentioned Chengyang University.
Chengyang University... TV Station... Wu Liang.
He Zhan had a premonition that even if Wu Liang wasn't the mysterious Awakened, he was somehow connected.
"Alright then, take the teapot fragments back, and have the Priest write a report for the archives about today's mission."
Saying this, he turned and started heading downstairs.
After all, some finishing tasks left in the building no longer required the Awakened's presence; the police could handle it.
Just a few steps down, He Zhan suddenly remembered something.
He smacked his forehead with self-deprecation: "Today's been such a hectic day, I forgot what I initially set out to do."
Then he took out his phone and dialed a number.
"Hello, is this Principal Xu? Sorry, I had an emergency task come up and didn't get a chance to inform you before leaving, what's the name of the Awakened kid at the school? Could you provide me with his contact and home address?"
Upon receiving He Zhan's call, Principal Xu became a bit excited, thinking that the official people had forgotten about this matter.
After all, initially inviting He Zhan to Chengyang University for the graduation ceremony was to see if the Awakened student qualified to join the Paranormal Handling Department.
Principal Xu quickly responded: "The kid's name is Chen Wang, he lives at 26, Pumin District, East Pavilion Street, his phone number is 186xxxxxxxx."
Armed with the information, He Zhan was about to end the call.
When suddenly, Principal Xu seemed to remember something and added: "Oh, Captain He, that Chen Wang kid lives with Wu Liang, who you were inquiring about this morning, you might even run into him when you visit."
"Hmm... alright, I got it."
This information caught He Zhan by surprise, not expecting everything encountered today to be interconnected through this Wu Liang guy.
Isn't this a bit too coincidental?
Why is he involved in everything!
After hanging up the call, he hailed a taxi by the roadside to head to Chen Wang's house.
On the way, He Zhan sent a message to a team member in charge of intelligence collection, asking to send over the recorded information about the Awakened near East Pavilion Street.
"Sure enough, that thug surnamed Lei is still collecting protection fees on East Pavilion Street."
Looking at the list, He Zhan recalled events from two years ago—
The Awakened named Lei Zhangming was first a thug, and after his awakening two years ago, he wanted to join the Official Paranormal Handling Department.
Unfortunately, after investigation, they found that this guy was not only hot-tempered but also disobedient.
So the official did not approve his application.
They simply recorded his Awakening Ability and intensity and left him alone.
As for his protection fee collections for the gang.
Though it's quite a dire issue, in this era of supernatural resurgence, if an Awakened doesn't cause any major catastrophes, they tend not to intervene.
Besides, the number of civilian Awakened is actually not small, if the government intervened in everything they did, it might trigger some rebellion.
Then, the government would be dealing with social supernatural events while also worrying about civilian Awakened's anti-government activities, which would surely be a losing situation.
Beep Beep Beep—
He Zhan rummaged through his phone book for a while and dialed a number slowly.
Thinking about when he was responsible for recording Lei Zhangming's Awakening information back then, he wasn't even a Squad Captain yet, and he himself went to investigate him.
He Zhan couldn't help but shake his head, sighing at how fast time flies.
It turns out he has been an Awakened himself for four years now.
"Who's this! How the hell did you get this number? Speak clearly, or I'll find you!" Upon connection, a coarse voice from the other end started grumbling loudly.
"This is He Zhan, do you still remember me?" He Zhan calmly stated.
The voice on the other side went silent for a moment.
Then quickly shifted to a more friendly tone and replied: "Of course I remember, Brother He, why suddenly reaching out? I don't recall doing anything to alarm the officials."
He Zhan didn't beat around the bush and directly stated his purpose—
"Just wanted to ask you about someone, lives at 26, Pumin District, East Pavilion Street, let me know if there's anything unusual about them."
"Their name is—Wu Liang."