42 Taboo 3 || Dormitory

They took a small path around the teaching building and found that the dormitory was built at the back of the school.

The styles of the dormitories and teaching buildings were vastly different. Their leader, Director Wu Huimin, explained, "The teaching building in front was just renovated. Originally, the school was planning to demolish the dormitories and rebuild, but considering…" she paused, then added, "Let's make do with it for now. Good grades are the most important thing here."

The dormitory was an old-fashioned building, its exterior bleached gray by the weather and sun, resembling an unfinished building from the last century. The paint looked ready to peel off, and there were mold and stains everywhere. Trash and debris were haphazardly piled in the hallways, giving it a very awful feel.

They stood downstairs for a while, and then the bell for the end of get out of class rang from the teaching building. Students began to walk to the cafeteria one after another. They didn't show any surprise when they saw them, but seemed to be used to it.

Wu Huimin gave them the key and told them that the dormitory was on the fourth floor and asked them to go up by themselves.

"Shall we live separately?" Xu Yaoyu asked, holding the yellowish-brown metal key.

Wu Huimin's expression changed slightly. "Men's and women's dormitories are supposed to be separate. What school isn't like that? I'm stressing this again. Dating is not allowed in school. You should focus on your grades. If I catch any of you, you'll be in big trouble. Don't blame me for not warning you then."

Xu Yaoyu shut up immediately.

"You won't take us with you?" Jing Ning asked, "We're not familiar with this place."

Wu Huimin hurriedly said, "I still have to go to class, so I'll stay in whichever bed is empty." Then she left in a hurry.

"She looks so weird, as if she's afraid of going up to the dormitory building." Xu Yaoyu said, looking at her back.

Lin Haichen said, "It seems that we are now transfer students. We will take the exam tomorrow. As for how long we will stay here, we are still unsure. We know too little information right now. Something must have happened in the dormitory building. You all should pay attention."

"Brother Yuxuan, I'm so scared." Newcomer Lin Yue pulled Zheng Yuxuan's sleeve and cried with tears in her eyes.

Zheng Yuxuan put his hands on the shoulders of the two school girls and hugged them tightly.

Zhang Fan folded his arms across his chest, chewing gum, rolled his eyes, and asked the elderly people, "What should we do now?"

Jing Ning said indifferently: "Let's go into the room and take a look first."

Yan Shuang used the key to open the rusty iron door of the boys' dormitory, and a damp smell hit her face.

"Hey, it smells so bad, and there's a musty smell." Zheng Yuxuan started complaining as soon as he entered the corridor, covering his nose with his hands.

"Let's go upstairs first." Lin Haichen said.

The doors of every dormitory floor were locked, with only the yellowed bathroom door at the end of the corridor half-open, letting in a dim light. The concrete staircase was pitted and polished to a shine, and the mottled rust on the iron railings, like dried blood, stood precariously on the edge.

The seven of them arrived at the fourth floor, their footsteps echoing in the empty corridor. There were two rooms on this floor with their doors open, and there was no light inside, only darkness.

Yan Shuang casually walked into one room, and was greeted by a whiff of dust. Four iron beds were neatly arranged in the small space, the upper bunk slightly warped. Another room had a similar layout.

"How to divide it?" said Liu Hui, who was a man of few words, "I think there should be at least one veteran player in the room." His implication was obvious: it was too dangerous for newcomers to live together, so those who had played the game before should be separated.

Yan Shuang raised her eyebrows and caught a glimpse of a few newcomers exchanging uneasily glances.

"Let's draw lots." Lin Haichen sighed and took out the note he had prepared long ago from his clothes.

A familiar feeling washed over Yan Shuang. She immediately recalled the first time she entered the game. It was also when Lin Haichen prepared to draw lots that she and the boss were drawn to share a room.

This time was the same. Yan Shuang unfolded the note in her hand, on which was written '403' in pencil - the same room as Jing Ning, Ye Jing'an and the red-haired guy.

The sound of a bed frame shaking came from the next room. Jing Ning walked into the room and climbed onto the bed above Yan Shuang, his face full of disgust. "The conditions are worrying. The bed is as thin as paper."

"I want to switch with you?" Yan Shuang said. The main reason was that the small bed was really unsuitable for his height, and his two long legs were curled up in grievance.

"It's okay, just make do for a few days." Jing Ning waved his hand, and the bed frame shook again with his movement.

Yan Shuang stood up and pushed open the dusty window. A musty smell mixed with damp air rushed in. "I don't know how long it's been since anyone lived in this dormitory." He coughed twice. "The window frame is almost rotten."

Ye Jingan picked up the quilt on the bed and sniffed it hard. "Huh, thankfully there's no sweat smell. It's brand new."

The red-haired man looked at them with disdain, but because he couldn't win, he didn't say anything.

Yan Shuang found a broom and cleaned up the dust in the dormitory. As she adjusted the quilt, she said, "When are we going to go somewhere else?"

"In the afternoon," Jing Ning said, "Let's go have a meal first and see if there are any clues in the teaching building."

"Okay." Yan Shuang nodded and wiped the sweat from her forehead. The dormitory was hot and stuffy, and the old-fashioned ceiling fan above her head made a creaking sound, but it didn't do much.

He instinctively walked around the dormitory. The rectangular room was simple, almost shabby, with the window and door facing each other. On either side of the window stood two small metal wardrobes, one of whose doors was warped and wouldn't close properly. Two mirrors affixed to the doors reflected Yan Shuang's slightly flushed cheeks. Moss spread across the lower corners, where rain had seeped in.

Looking out the window, there is a wasteland, and behind it is the school wall.

Yan Shuang looked around the rest of the room and thought she had found nothing, but she pulled out a note from the crack in the bed. The note had turned yellow, was rolled up into a long thin piece, and was stuck in the crack in the wood.

Yan Shuang quickly opened it and saw the note with twisted red pen writing: There is a ghost!

Jing Ning came over and said "tsk", disapprovingly, "No ghost can we come in."

Yan Shuang thought about it and felt that it made sense.

After checking the entire room, several people came out of the house, and coincidentally, the five people from the girls' dormitory also came downstairs.

Zhang Fan sneered at Lin Yue and Wu Siyao, and walked forward on his own.

"What's wrong?" Yan Shuang asked.

Tian Yiyi said, "With one more person in the room, Zhang Fan will have to live next door alone."

As soon as Lin Yue and Wu Siyao saw Zheng Yuxuan, they stuck to him again, calling him "Brother Yuxuan" left and "Brother Zheng" right, which made their scalps tingle.

Yan Shuang's attention wasn't on these things. Her mind was preoccupied with the note. Was the ghost in the school or in the dormitory? Who left this note? Did the students here know there was a ghost in the school?