Bai Li Qing sat at her desk, her gaze distant—though it seed her mind was even further away. After a while, she murmured, “How does he always manage to do sothing so completely unexpected?”
Song Cheng, seated across from her, pretended not to hear and focused on imaginary paperwork.
But two seconds later, Bai Li Qing repeated herself. “How does he always manage to do sothing so completely unexpected?”
“Well… he’s that sort of unpredictable person,” Song Cheng finally said, forcing a small smile. “At least we now know what caused the strange temporal misalignnt. Our tech departnt can update their recorded paraters, so… that’s good, right?”
“Yes, it’s good,” Bai Li Qing agreed, though she shook her head as if to clear lingering doubts. “And we’ve learned sothing else: he can open portals even in unusual realms.” She sighed and waved the matter aside. “Let’s get back to our earlier conversation. How did the sample analysis go from last ti?”
At those words, Song Cheng straightened and passed a file across the desk. “Here’s the report on the ‘fox hairs.’ We sent them to three different labs and shared the data with major groups, including the academy. The results… well, you’ll see.”
Bai Li Qing flipped through the file, her expression growing more somber with each page. “So, there’s no known species in the universe that matches these hairs?” she asked, looking up.
“It’s not just that there’s no match,” Song Cheng explained, pointing to a highlighted section. “They couldn’t even find a microscopic structure that’s even close. If we didn’t know these hairs ca from a living, thinking person, the researchers would have assud this was so elaborate prank.”
He continued, “The main part of the hairs is organic, but there’s also a weird mix of inorganic materials we can’t explain. These impurities don’t show any obvious biological purpose, and…” Song Cheng made a face. “We still can’t identify the elents that make them up.”
Bai Li Qing pressed two fingers to her temple and whispered, “He always manages to do sothing completely unexpected…”
Song Cheng wiped so sweat from his brow. “Um… technically, this wasn’t his doing.”
“He’s the one who brought that person into our world,” Bai Li Qing said, sounding weary. “What about Thousand Peaks Spiritual Mountain? Have they reported anything?”
Song Cheng nodded. “Yes. They tead up with top sects to do a massive investigation, checking every fox-like race with any spiritual power. Considering the chance this fox might have traveled through ti, they cast a very wide net. They even looked back thousands of years—or forward, in case we’re dealing with different tilines. So far, no one matches.”
He pushed another docunt across to her. “This lists all the fox demons, fox-type subhumans, and even people with minor fox traits—fox ears, tails, or fur. The envoy said they were so thorough that if soone slled vaguely fox-like, they had to fill out a form. Still, no match.”
Bai Li Qing froze mid-page. “Why such a big show of effort? They’ve never been this eager to help before.”
“Well,” Song Cheng said with a shrug, “there’s a rumor: a whole clan of foxes managed to ascend to a higher realm, which is sothing that’s normally unheard of. People are desperate to figure out how they pulled it off without sharing any secrets. You know how these sects can be, always competing to see who’s more advanced. Even now, in our interstellar age, the idea of an entire fox clan mastering ascension is a huge deal.”
“It’s a big deal to us too,” Bai Li Qing said with a sigh, putting the files aside. “We’ll mark this as a long-term inquiry. If that fox really ca from ‘outside’…” She paused and gave Song Cheng a aningful look. “You understand.”
“I do,” he said quietly.
…
On the walk from the orphanage’s west building to the east, Yu Sheng told Little Red Riding Hood about his search of the dark little house. He recounted the carvings beneath the bed, as well as his strange encounter with the hunter.
Little Red Riding Hood listened, eyes widening. “All these years in the Black Forest, and I’ve never experienced anything like that. Usually, so much stays hidden. Every Little Red Riding Hood before … they were swallowed by the story without ever uncovering any of these details.”
“Maybe so of them discovered sothing,” Irene piped up from her perch on Yu Sheng’s shoulder. “But they couldn’t take that knowledge out of the forest. Like those words under the bed—you said they looked like a ssage from another Little Red Riding Hood, right?”
“It bugs ,” Yu Sheng admitted. “I bet there are other clues, other carvings out there—maybe even beyond the Black Forest.”
“You an…” Little Red Riding Hood began.
“Other subsets,” Yu Sheng said, stopping in his tracks. “Cinderella’s ball, Rapunzel’s tower… all those places might have their own hidden records. Just like that cabin of red cloaks. The ones who figured things out never had the chance to share them.”
Little Red Riding Hood fell silent, mulling over his words. Yu Sheng sighed. “When you think about it, it’s kind of like childhood.”
“How so?” she asked, confused.
“You write secrets in a diary as a kid,” Yu Sheng explained. “Then you lose the key or forget the password when you grow up. All those childhood mories get stuck in ti, never reaching the adult you beco. It’s not too unusual.”
Little Red Riding Hood looked startled. “Is… that really how it works?”
“Pretty much,” Yu Sheng said lightly. “That’s why soone else—maybe an annoying grown-up—sotis has to break the lock and read what’s inside. Or you end up doing it yourself. But since it sounds like most of you can’t grow up, I’ll play that ddling adult role for now.”
She smiled faintly. “You sound like a villain.”
“To these fairy tales, I am,” Yu Sheng agreed. “They don’t like .”
At that mont, loud voices echoed from a hallway nearby, followed by a group of kids running past. A few older children were among them, looking worried.
Little Red Riding Hood reached out and stopped one of them, her tone urgent. “What’s happening?”
The girl’s eyes were wide. “Teacher Su fainted! They took her to the infirmary!”
Yu Sheng blinked. “Teacher Su fainted? Why?”
“I’m not sure,” the girl said quickly. “It happened in the activity room. Xiao Xiao went in to say hi, and Teacher Su just collapsed.”
Yu Sheng and Little Red Riding Hood exchanged uneasy glances, while Irene muttered, “Well, that’s unfortunate—”
“I guess I should have warned her first,” Little Red Riding Hood said, looking grim. “I got so excited I forgot that Teacher Su didn’t know.”
“No point blaming yourself now,” Yu Sheng said, spreading his hands. “Let’s see how she’s doing.”
…
They arrived at the infirmary to find the Long-Haired Princess ushering out a group of curious kids. Inside, Teacher Su lay on a bed, pale but conscious.
Nearby, Xiao Xiao sat on a chair, head low. She looked miserable, and tear streaks marked her cheeks, hinting she’d cried when Teacher Su fainted.
“It’s alright,” the Long-Haired Princess told them. “The doctor says it’s just shock and overstimulation. She’ll be fine after a bit of rest. I should’ve been more careful about letting Xiao Xiao see her.”
“I’m fine!” Teacher Su insisted, waving from the bed. She still looked shaky but managed a smile. “I was just so surprised at first, but now I’m really happy…”
She glanced at Yu Sheng with bright, eager eyes. “You’re Yu Sheng, right? Could we talk for a mont?”
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