Chapter 67: The Archives (Story + Comic)...

In the comic, Yu Junxun stood not far away, having finished flipping through the files of an unknown person, and watched Lin Cai wince in pain as she clutched her forehead where she had been hit.

Yu Junxun: "This pen is a magical artifact. Because the workload of searching is huge, if you search for the wrong name and can't find it, it will knock on your phone."

“That’s a bit much,” Lin Cai said. “I just wanted to look at my file and I missed writing “Cai” in my name, and this is how it treats me.”

[Isn't Lin Cai checking Yan Lan's file?]

[What are you thinking up there? This is Lin Cai. Of course she's going to keep the fact that Yan Lan is an unregistered resident of the other world a secret from her.]

As expected of you, Lin Cai.

The little figure behind Lin Cai, however, was quite different from Lin Cai's cheerful demeanor; it had a very serious, pensive expression, with bubbles floating above it.

As expected, there was no file on Lanlan.

'Lanlan must have ended up in the underworld as an unregistered resident after Grandma Shan passed away.'

Why did Lanlan's mother only take Yanju away and not Lanlan?

'This is Lanlan. What's wrong with Lanlan?'

The bubbles were densely packed, and in the next scene, Lin Cai, the little figure, seemed about to cry.

The next shot then inserts a flashback scene.

Small town, two-story Western-style building, courtyard.

The town seemed shrouded in an ever-present mist.

The younger version of Yanlan, with her hair in two buns, whom we drew earlier, is perched on a branch of a big tree in the yard, carefully prying open the window latch from the outside.

"Lin Cai, Lin Cai," Yan Lan whispered to the window.

In the room, the younger version of Lin Cai was sitting at her desk, next to a tall bookshelf filled with thick textbooks. Lin Cai was writing in a large notebook on the bookshelf.

Hearing the shout, Lin Cai turned around and was startled to see Yan Lan leaning out of the window. She quickly ran to the window and exclaimed, "Lan Lan, come in quickly! It's too high, it's dangerous!"

Yanlan, perched on the tree, gave Lin Cai a big smile. "It's alright, Lin Cai. I've come to rescue you! Let's go out and play."

Lin Cai hesitated for a moment: "If I don't finish the workbook, Dad will be very disappointed and scold me."

Yanlan pouted: "Bring it out and I'll help you write it. When Uncle comes to check tonight, you'll be able to hand it in."

In her memory, the scene and Lin Cai were all gray and gloomy, only Yan Lan, who reached out to Lin Cai in the room, was bright and cheerful.

[Oh my god, I feel like Lin Cai and Yan Lan had a really good relationship when they were young, like childhood friends!]

[Yanlan was so cute when she was little, like a little sun. It's hard to believe she's turned into this unpredictable person she is now. I feel like my wife has suffered a lot.]

【Wait, wait, wait, what is this??? Does this mean my wife has been abandoned by her mother???】

[Lin Cai's jumbled thoughts are so overwhelming, let me sort them out. Yan Lan's grandmother passed away, and her mother only took Director Yan with her?? Why??]

As the recollection ended, Lin Cai, with a calm expression, prepared to leave the archives with Yu Junxun, while the little figure behind her slumped on her head.

Just as Yu Junxun reached the door and couldn't step out, he seemed to remember that he was still holding a file in his hand. Lin Cai stopped behind him.

Lin Cai: "What's wrong?"

Yu Junxun's expression was extremely cold as he turned his back to Lin Cai, but his tone was ordinary: "It's nothing. I just suddenly remembered that I needed to put the files I was looking at back. I almost forgot."

He turned and started to go back to the table.

Lin Cai stood by the door waiting for him. As she passed Yu Junxun, she inadvertently glanced at the file Yu Junxun was holding.

The file folder wasn't tied securely, and a few pages were sticking out. The file belonged to a woman with black hair and black eyes, and only the upper half of her face was visible.

Lin Cai's gaze froze.

The storyboard followed Lin Cai's gaze to the few pages revealed in the file folder.

The woman's ID photo revealed in the file bears a striking resemblance to Yan Lan, especially her eyes, which are almost identical.

Linxi Bridge.

This person's eyes look just like Yanlan's and Director Yan's.

[Indeed, the old thief has a real knack for drawing people; each one has a completely different feel to them. So, is this Director Yan's relative?]

[Hilarious! Is "The Curse of the Laws" some kind of match-3 puzzle game? First, there's Yanju, then there's the Linxi Bridge from before!]

Did Yu Junxun think Director Yan looked familiar and come to the archives specifically to check files? And then casually brought Lin Cai along?

[No, it feels like Lin Cai is more like a smokescreen for Yu Junxun to cover for himself. The intern was just curious, so he brought her along. There's absolutely no problem with that.]

Yan Shi also fixed her gaze on it. If she understood correctly from her grandmother's work notes, Linxiqiao was her biological grandmother.

Why would Yu Junxun make a special trip to the paper archives of the Bureau of Foreign Affairs to look for the Linxi Bridge file?

Yan Shi exited the comic interface and switched to the Bureau of Foreign Affairs system, then entered the household registration file and searched for Linxi Bridge.

As expected, nothing was found.

That's why Yu Junxun went to the archives to look for Linxi Bridge.

But Linxiqiao also held an important position in the Foreign Affairs Bureau, so even if he died, there should be records of it, right?

Yan Shi hesitated for a moment and then typed in "Single Feng Yang".

Still, nothing was gained.

She sat up from the sofa, found Yu Xuewen's spiritual message through the system, and dialed the number directly.

The phone rang a few times, and was answered after a short wait.

"Hello, this is Yu Xuewen, who is this?" A very cold female voice came from the other end of the phone.

Yan Shi: "My surname is Yan, and I was the Director of the Bureau of Foreign Affairs at the time."

“…Director Yan,” Yu Xue paused, considering Director Yan’s series of major actions recently, and cautiously asked, “Is there something you need?”

Yan Shi: "Yu Junxun is a member of your Yu family, isn't he?"

Yu Xue asked, "Yes, this is my second son."

“I would like to ask Patriarch Yu,” Yan Shi said slowly, “Yu Junxun promised me that he would give me a satisfactory answer regarding the General Administration of Household Registration.”

"Several weeks have passed, when will he keep his promise?"

“I will ask him,” Yu Xue replied.

Yan Shi: "Also, since Yu Junxun hasn't finished his work yet, why is he so curious? He took my intern to the Weir Hub to see other things a couple of days ago?"

Yu Xue asked, "Junxun didn't tell me about this. After all, the child is grown up and difficult to manage."

“Then I think Patriarch Yu should have a good talk with him, shouldn’t he?” Yan Shi said calmly.

Yu Xue asked, "I will."

Yan Shi hung up the phone.

After all, it's not convenient for her to fire Yu Junxun right now, and Lin Cai will be going to school soon, leaving the Household Registration Department completely empty.

We'll have to wait until the new recruitment in September.

Hopefully, Yu Junxun's mother can give him a good talking-to.

Yan Shi gave himself a thumbs up for his clever idea.

After the call was disconnected, Yu Xue lowered her eyes and remained silent. She chuckled softly and then dialed the mansion's internal line.

“Yu Qingzhou, call your brother back and have him kneel in the ancestral hall for two days. He can come to me when he has figured things out.”

After all, Director Yan had come directly to her, clearly wanting her to give an answer.

Not long ago, Yu Qingzhou had helped Yu Junxun deal with some troubles caused by the spoiled rich kids who had been laid off from the General Administration of Household Registration. Director Yan couldn't just lay off Yu Junxun right after the matter was almost resolved; that would be like discarding a donkey after it has served its purpose.

So, if they were dissatisfied with some of Yu Junxun's work behaviors, they would naturally go to her, his mother, to give her a talking-to.

She understood what Director Yan meant and would naturally give him a reply.

Author's note: My computer...crashed. Luckily, I didn't lose the manuscript, or I would have really cried.

Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 23:59:35 on July 24, 2024 and 00:23:44 on July 26, 2024!

Thank you to the little angels who threw landmines: heart, I'm really sleepy;

Thank you to the little angels who irrigated the nutrient solution: 0zero0 21 bottles; Wangshuo Zhiyue 19 bottles; Mordred 13 bottles; Baiyi Qingxiang, Yezi, Guqiu, and Xihuan Sishi de Guhun 10 bottles; 47630192 7 bottles; Shanyurou, Fuyin, and Shimolan 5 bottles; Huanyue Limo 3 bottles; Buchisu de Wahezi, Shiciban, Fanzhou Xingchuan, Yuban Mo, Shangan Jinli, Daju Dali, 57665580, Panchuan, Yuxi, Haiyan Heqing, Qingyu Wanliu Xiaosheng Cui, Kun=_=, Shengsi Qikuo, Yuzi Chengshuo, Pluto, Yipinxiang, Lin Shiyan, Nisi Zai Shuili de Yu, and Xiaomuxuan 1 bottle;

Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!