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墨書 Inktalez
On the second day of the holiday, Lin Xinhui and Chen Hanlin began their search for clues. First, they returned to the apartment, trying to find any possible leads.
Chen Hanlin took a deep breath and placed his hand on Lin Xinhui's, trying to ease their tension. "We should look for possible hiding places and clues first. This apartment might have hidden spaces or mechanisms."
Lin Xinhui nodded and took out a few possible locations that were listed during the previous conversation with the reporter Mr. Zhang.
Among them were a residence on the fifth floor, a secluded corner in the basement, an old security room, and some rarely used storage rooms in the apartment.
Two people walked into the living room. Chen Hanlin looked around seriously, then said to Lin Xinhui, "We should inspect every place, starting from Xiao Mei's room."
Lin Xinhui nodded, and the two of them quietly walked to Xiao Mei's room.
As soon as they entered, Lin Xinhui immediately noticed that the photo frame on the bedside table was slightly askew. She went over to straighten it and suddenly discovered a small note tucked behind the photo.
Chen Hanlin At the same time, he noticed a small hole in the corner of the wall, as if it had been marked by something sharp, and he felt a tightness in his chest.
Lin Xinhui She carefully examined the small piece of paper, on which was written a string of numbers and an unknown symbol. "What could this mean?" she muttered.
Chen Hanlin glanced at the note and his expression became more serious. "Perhaps this is related to Xiao Mei's disappearance and reappearance. We should look for where else this sequence of numbers might appear."
The two then went to the living room, followed by the kitchen and bathroom, checking each one. In the kitchen, Chen Hanlin found a rusty key in a drawer, also engraved with the same symbol.
"It seems that all of this is not a coincidence," Lin Xinhui said, obviously worried about something.
After searching the house thoroughly, nothing suspicious was found.
"I think we should go to the basement and take a look. The recent newspaper was also found there," suggested Chen Hanlin.
"There's also the old security room and some rarely used storage rooms," Lin Xinhui added.
Lin Xinhui nodded, her doubts and worries only strengthening her determination to uncover the truth. After packing their small bags, the two of them set foot on the stairs leading to the top floor.
Along the way, they didn't speak, their hearts were tense, and they walked with full concentration. Finally, they arrived at the basement.
"I think we should split up, it will be more efficient that way. I'll go to the basement, and you can look for the security room and storage room," said Chen Hanlin.
Lin Xinhui hesitated for a moment, but ultimately agreed. "Okay, but we must stay in contact at all times and report immediately if anything happens."
Chen Hanlin took out his phone, opened an instant messaging app, and confirmed that both he and Lin Xinhui had joined the same group.
Chen Hanlin headed towards the security room, while Lin Xinhui went deeper into the basement. As she descended the stairs, a suffocating sense of oppression permeated the air, reminding her of the description in the old newspaper and the unidentified third voice on the old cassette tape.
The basement was not quite as she had imagined. It was a spacious area filled with various old furniture and newspapers. However, something in a corner caught her attention. There was a small wooden door that looked quite old. Lin Xinhui walked over and pushed open the door with force.
The sight behind the door sent a shiver down her spine. It was a small room with a worn-out table and a chair. On the table, there was a thick diary and a tin box.
At that moment, her phone vibrated. It was a message from Chen Hanlin: "Have you found anything? I have no clues here at all."
Lin Xinhui quickly replied, her brow furrowed: "I found a possible location, there's a diary and a small box here." She gripped her phone tightly, looking anxious.
Chen Hanlin raised an eyebrow, looking puzzled, while tapping his fingers on the table. "It seems to be children's utensils and tables and chairs. There are words like 'Xihui Orphanage' on the diary." He looked at Lin Xinhui with a pensive expression.
Lin Xinhui suddenly leaned closer to the table, carefully flipping through the old little diary. Her eyes became focused as she kept turning the pages.
Lin Xinhui stopped and turned to Chen Hanlin: "Maybe we should investigate what happened at the orphanage sixty years ago. What really happened back then?" There was a hint of determination on her face.
Chen Hanlin furrowed his brow, tapping his fingers on the table at an accelerated pace: "But it's been so long, can we still find relevant information?" His concern was evident.
Lin Xinhui's eyes shimmered with a determined light, she shook her head, her expression resolute: "Why not try to find out?" Her fingers tapped lightly on the table, as if emphasizing her determination.
Later, they went to the former orphanage in an attempt to find more information about the fire that occurred years ago.
They interviewed the former staff of the orphanage, but most of them had already left the city and were unable to provide further assistance. Lin Xinhui's expression was slightly disappointed, as she hoped to find more clues.
Later, they found out that the former orphanage director had gone to another place to continue running an orphanage. They decided to contact the current orphanage director and went to the retired old director's residence together.
The two of them walked into this ancient and majestic building, their eyes full of curiosity.
An elderly woman, her eyes filled with sadness, sat in a wheelchair being pushed by a maid who opened the door to welcome them. Lin Xinhui and Chen Hanlin both expressed their thanks and sat down with a smile.
After the two sat down, they spoke, "Old Dean, we came here to find you because the apartment we currently live in used to be the site of the orphanage. We mainly want to know what really happened at that orphanage back then," Lin Xinhui's voice was full of questions as she looked at the old dean.
The retired old dean's deep gaze seemed to be recalling everything from back then. She told them, "The orphanage had a big fire back then, almost burning the whole orphanage down. My legs were injured at that time too." Her voice was full of memories.
"The orphanage adopted over a hundred orphans back then," the old director continued, "and over twenty children were unable to escape in time and perished in the fire because they lived in the rooms on the second floor of the basement." Her voice became low and heavy, as if deeply moved by that memory.
Lin Xinhui and Chen Hanlin were deeply shaken by this revelation, exchanging an incredulous glance with each other.
"Do you know why that piece of land was later sold to the developer?" Lin Xinhui asked, eager to learn more.
The old dean sighed deeply. "Actually, I was the landowner who sold it to the developer. The orphanage was rebuilt, but the shadow of that big fire still haunts many people. In the middle of the night, you can often hear the laughter of many children in the corridors, but whenever the caretakers go to check, there's no one there. Then, inexplicably, several children went missing, and the children at the orphanage became very afraid," her voice filled with regret.
"In order to let the children grow up in peace, I sold that piece of land and moved here to continue running the orphanage," the old director's eyes had a complex look, seemingly feeling fortunate about the decision made back then.
"It's strange, ever since we moved away from there, everything has been normal," the old director said, her voice carrying a sense of mystery.
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