Chapter 45: Going to School

Yesterday, when the police dropped me off at the hotel, they also conveniently brought some clothes from Xia Yubing’s house, including her school uniform.
I changed into Xia Yubing’s school uniform and walked towards Jianlong Middle School.
Upon arriving at school, I instinctively started to head towards Class C, but after seeing Xiao Qing waving from the other side, I walked towards Class A.

Seeing me at school, the Class A homeroom teacher looked very surprised and asked, “Xia Yubing, are you able to attend class today?”
This homeroom teacher, surnamed Yang, was a math teacher and also taught Class C.
I had known her before; she was a very gentle and kind teacher.
It was clear that the large-scale police investigation last night had informed Teacher Yang of some things.
She must have been briefed by the police, so she was very surprised that I still came to school.

“Yes, I didn’t know what else to do, so I came to school.” I said.
In reality, I dared not stay in the hotel alone, fearing ghosts.
Being in a crowded place like school actually made me feel safer.

“Alright, I heard that Xia Yubing suffered amnesia due to some changes.
You might need to re-familiarize yourself with the class and classmates.
Also, please be careful and stay safe recently,” Teacher Yang said.

“Thank you, Teacher Yang.” I nodded in agreement and entered the classroom with Xiao Qing.
Then I told Xiao Qing about the ghost pressing on my bed last night, and also about the two ghosts, a man and a woman, I saw in the mirror.

Xiao Qing pondered for a while before saying, “I’m not sure either.
Let’s ask Senior Sister Mo together in a bit.
And she also has something she wants to tell you.”

“Alright,” I could only agree.
Seeing that class was about to start, Xiao Qing sat back in her seat.
Before class, the homeroom teacher informed the students that I had lost my memory due to accidental trauma and asked everyone to take care of me and not ask too many questions.
However, after class, I was still surrounded by classmates, all asking me all sorts of questions, mostly about past events.
I knew none of them and could only apologize to each one.

Most people, I didn’t even know their names.
Seeing their enthusiastic concern, I could only apologetically ask them their names.
Seeing my clueless demeanor, they finally believed that I truly had amnesia.
“No wonder, I thought Yubing was acting strange these past few days.” “Yeah, I greeted her the day before yesterday, and she ignored me.” “Me too, when I asked her a question two days ago, she also gave an irrelevant answer.” “If it’s a memory problem, then it makes sense.”

The classmates whispered among themselves, unaware that I heard all their conversations.
They seemed to interpret the abnormal behavior of the Painted Skin Ghost impersonating Xia Yubing as a symptom of amnesia, which saved me from having to explain anything.
During the morning assembly, the principal, unusually, went on stage to speak.
And it wasn’t the usual meaningless platitudes, but a very serious warning to students: recently, there have been human traffickers around the school, possibly involved in organ trafficking, urging students not to follow strangers and to go straight home after school.

I knew the principal had also received some information from the police.
Indeed, with several students suddenly missing from a school, even the principal had to take it seriously.
After the morning assembly, I heard some rumors begin to circulate among students, such as how those delinquent students who usually ran rampant in school, bullying classmates in groups, had suddenly disappeared today.
Some students said they were expelled, some said they were arrested by the police for extortion, even confidently claiming they saw police investigating at the school this morning, and other students said they were kidnapped by the human traffickers the principal mentioned, and had their kidneys removed.

However, when their disappearance was mentioned, most students adopted a spectators’ attitude.
These people were originally bad school bullies, usually oppressing those below them and fawning over those above.
Now that they were missing, it was a great thing.
What did they have to worry about?
I also saw Cao Bao.
He looked worried, wondering why his gang of younger brothers had suddenly disappeared, and even he himself was living in constant fear.
He didn’t see me.

During the subsequent classes, to be honest, I basically didn’t understand anything.
My academic performance was already mediocre, and the pace of the accelerated class was far beyond my original learning pace, leaving me just staring blankly at the textbooks and the teacher’s lectures.
Fortunately, the teacher also knew I had amnesia and had experienced trauma, so she didn’t make things too difficult for me.
Listening to classes that felt like years, I finally endured until dismissal.

Xiao Qing and I went to the Supernatural Events Department, and I once again took out the funeral couplet.
But I noticed that the bloodstains scattered when the Painted Skin Ghost was repelled yesterday were gone, and the wall it had broken through had also returned to its original state.
During class break, I also went to the rooftop to look.
The bloodstains left by the Painted Skin Ghost when it was repelled by the jade pendant, and the bloody handprints on the rooftop door, were all gone.
Everything felt like a dream.

I asked Xiao Qing about this, and she told me: “The supernatural and real worlds are actually not on the same dimension, but form an inner world that corresponds to the real world, commonly known as a ghost realm.
Traces left in a ghost realm will disappear in reality; ordinary people can’t see them.
‘Inner world’ is a term invented by occultists in modern times.”

It was then I understood.
No wonder I had never seen traces left by ghosts or monsters since childhood.
People around me were half-believing, half-doubting such things.
They observed certain customs and taboos with an attitude of “better safe than sorry,” but weren’t sure if ghosts truly existed.
Based on my three encounters with the Painted Skin Ghost, each time it left behind a significant amount of traces.
If other demons and ghosts also left so many traces after attacking, others should have long since been convinced of the existence of ghosts.
Why would they still be half-believing, half-doubting?

“Is the actual Supernatural Events Department also an inner world?” I asked.
Needing to post such an inauspicious funeral couplet to enter, being able to summon various spirits by playing Bixian inside, and the wall damaged by the Painted Skin Ghost instantly restoring itself—all these signs made me suspect that the Supernatural Events Department was also a ghost realm.

“Your guess is correct.
This place is indeed a ghost realm.” This time, we didn’t push open the door.
Just after pasting the funeral couplet, the door on the seemingly empty wall opened, and Mo Qingyan’s voice came from inside.

“Senior Sister Mo!” I walked in, eagerly telling Mo Qingyan about what happened last night, hoping she could give me an answer.
After listening to my narration, Mo Qingyan thought for a while before saying, “I originally thought you’d be fine after the police dealt with the Painted Skin Ghost, but I didn’t expect you to still be haunted by ghosts.
However, it’s not a big problem.”

“Haunted by ghosts is not a big problem?
I was pressed down by them yesterday, unable to move.
If it weren’t for the jade pendant, I would have died,” I said anxiously.

“Don’t worry, a ghost pressing on your bed isn’t fatal.
Usually, it’s just a ghost causing mischief to tell someone something.
Even without the jade pendant, you’d be able to get up in a few minutes,” Mo Qingyan said.