Chapter 040 Three Sentences Fill the World-weary Villain with Hope (V)
The steam-driven iron car clanged across the flat concrete ground. It was not going fast, leaving enough time for people to dodge when passing by. Gray-black columns of smoke rushed into the air, adding a touch of haze to the blue sky.
Ancheng has convenient transportation, with streets and alleys extending in all directions. There is a station every kilometer to guide pedestrians and connect important nodes in the city. It can be called the invisible lifeline of the city.
The metal car No. 221 stopped at Songbai Street near the outskirts of the city. Chen Yunli got off the car holding his resume. A gust of wind made the papers rustle, which harmonized with the pine and cypress trees on both sides of the street, like the sound of rolling waves.
Chen Wenjian climbed from his pocket to his shoulder, holding a small piece of cloth with all four paws together, hooking his tail behind his neck, and sitting upright.
It has the appearance of a cat, but its eyes are as sharp as a wolfhound. It keeps an eye on all directions and is alert to any accidental or non-accidental dangers.
Chen Yunli patted its head and said, "Relax, there is no danger here."
"Hmm." Chen Wenjian flicked his ears, glanced at him out of the corner of his eye, moved his little paws, rubbed his temples, and carefully stuck to them.
Chen Yunli walked into the wide and straight street in front of him. The green on both sides was like a screen. The sound of the wind passing by his ears made the surrounding environment even more quiet and solemn, with an indescribable sense of solemnity.
At the end of the street stands a gray-white tower with a pointed top and a low bottom, shaped like a triangular pillar, as if it were carefully carved from a whole piece of stone.
There are two glass lamps hanging in the bell tower at the top of the tower. It is noon when the sun is at its brightest, but candles have been lit in the lamps. The candlelight flickers and sways in the wind, like two twisting human figures.
Chen Yunli frowned as he looked at the bell tower, then hid the strange expression on his face and calmly stepped onto the stone steps leading to the tower.
The main gate of the tower is tall and majestic, with a plaque hanging on the top, which reads - City Library.
As he walked through the main entrance, the rich aroma of old paper and ink hit him in the face, like waves wrapping around him. The air was so thick that it became solid, and when it poured into his lungs, he actually felt a little suffocated.
The main hall on the first floor is so wide that it is almost boundless. The number of books is like a mountain of books and a sea of ink, neatly stacked. The shocking feeling it gives people is difficult to describe in words.
Chen Yunli, a modern man accustomed to electronic reading, had never witnessed such a grand spectacle before. He stood at the doorway for half a minute, stunned. It was not until he heard the soft sound of books rubbing against each other behind the bookshelf in front of him that he suddenly woke up.
The recruiter asked him to go to the hall for an interview, but the hall was filled with nothing but bookshelves. Could it be that the sound was made by the interviewer?
Thinking of this, Chen Yunli walked towards the bookshelf. As soon as he turned around, he met the person behind him.
The man was tall and slender, with half-long black hair tied on his chest. His scattered hair covered the frame and gold wire of his round-rimmed glasses. His eyes were hidden behind the lenses, cold and silent, like the gray sky and dark sea reflected in the mirror.
He wore a black cape, and underneath it was a minimalist shirt and trousers. Thick-soled boots reached the edge of the cape, and metal chains hung on the sides of his legs, reflecting dim light in an illogical direction as they swayed.
Chen Yunli stared at his face for a moment. A name was already on the tip of his tongue, but he swallowed it back under his gaze.
"Are you today's applicant?" The young man pulled back the hood of his cloak. His face was expressionless, but his tone was friendly. "I'm the librarian here, Ming Shaotu. The interview is over here. Please follow me."
Chen Yunli maintained an expression of shock mixed with some rationality, turned around, followed his pace, and stood in front of the long mahogany table several dozen meters away.
During this process, he also sorted out his mood. When Ming Shaotu turned to him again, he smiled and asked, "What do you need me to do, Mr. Ming?"
Now that Ning Bufan has shown up, it would be unreasonable for Ming Shaotu not to come.
It's just that the system is wronged. There is currently no precedent for activating old data. It hasn't been long since I said it, and my face is swollen.
"Sit down first." Ming Shaotu nodded his chin towards the chair in front of him and sat down as well. He took out a black-and-gold test paper from the drawer and placed a pen next to Chen Yunli. "Take a look at this paper and decide whether to answer it after you've read it."
Answer the questions before the interview, it's very real.
Chen Yunli pushed away the pen and read the test questions carefully.
Random Interview Questions from City Library
There are twelve questions in total, ten text questions and two picture questions, all of which test common sense, such as which is the shortest route from the city center to the City Library, which bus is the fastest, etc.
It was not difficult for Chen Yunli to answer these questions because of the systematic memory instilled in him. However, the more he answered, the more confused he became - was it really reasonable that the interview questions at the General Library were of this difficulty?
While he was answering the questions, Ming Shaotu was observing him the whole time, from the way he held the pen to the expression on his face. As he observed, he tapped the table with his fingers. Although no sound was made, the frequency was getting faster and faster, and he could vaguely see his mood changes.
Chen Yunli finished answering all the questions in five minutes. I glanced at him and saw that his fingers were leaving afterimages, and I was stunned again.
"Uh...Mr. Ming, this is..."
Ming Shaotu paused, lowered his head, and tugged at his sleeves. "Nothing, just flexing my fingers. Um... have you finished answering the questions? How do you feel?"
"Feeling?" Chen Yunli was confused. "I don't have any special feelings... Does it count as being very simple?"
"Simple?"
Ming Shaotu pursed his lips, pulled out the test paper from his palm and unfolded it. He glanced at the first question, and the three eyes at the end of the question blinked at him.
He pinched the side of his index finger with his thumb, opened his mouth, and read out a piece of obscure and difficult text.
"Where did you see the job posting?"
Chen Yunli scratched his head. Isn't this the content of the first question? Why is there a review after answering it?
He said honestly, "It's on the bulletin board on the first floor of the job market."
Ming Shaotu's eyes narrowed slightly, and he calmly jumped to the third question: "&=#*+&﹉/..."
The edge of the test paper turned into sharp serrations, squirming and scratching towards his palm. He withdrew his hand to avoid it and continued reading the questions.
“Where is the only large fruit wholesale market in the city?”
"Zhi'an Shopping Mall."
“…”
Ming Shaotu frowned and was about to speak again when he saw the strange image on the test paper gradually fade away. The complex and dizzying text-like patterns slowly changed into normal fonts, and finally solidified into...
The look in Chen Yunli's eyes.
His hand suddenly trembled and the test paper fell on the table. He glanced back and forth several times, but no matter how he looked at it, it was just an ordinary, even too simple interview question. There were no eyes, no jagged edges, and no strange and complicated patterns.
Ming Shaotu was silent for a long time, so long that Chen Yunli thought there was something wrong with his answer to one of the questions. He asked anxiously, "Mr. Ming, did I get any questions wrong?"
"...No." Ming Shaotu turned the paper towards him, "Please check again to see if there are any typos, grammatical errors, and..."
His eyes fixed on the fight between stick figures in the title frame of the picture, he paused and said, "And whether these two paintings should be slightly modified."
"Oh, no need to change it. My hand-drawing skills are only so good. There's no need to waste time." Chen Yunli smiled bitterly. "You've also seen the test questions. Will the interview results be announced now, or should I go back and wait?"
Ming Shaotu smiled slightly, rolled the paper into a tube and put it into the secret pocket of his cloak.
"No need to wait, congratulations, you passed the interview and will officially start your job tomorrow."
Chen Yunli widened his eyes: "Really?"
"Of course. But being a librarian is a tedious job, and a bit dangerous. You have a one-month probation period. During this period, if you can't hold on, you can resign at any time, and we will pay you a full-time employee's monthly salary."
Ming Shaotu spoke slowly, walked around the long table and went behind the bookshelf next to it. After a moment, he came out with a wooden box and handed it to Chen Yunli.
"Here are your employee uniforms, work badges, and employee handbooks. You must wear your uniform and work badges during working hours. Remember and strictly adhere to the regulations in the handbook. If you have any work-related questions, please contact me and do not handle them on your own. Our work hours, locations, and content are arranged and communicated by a dedicated person every morning and are consistent. If you encounter any discrepancies, please contact me immediately for verification."
Chen Yunli nodded, but was secretly shocked.
He didn't say much, but it had a flavor of strange talk about rules, and his reaction to the paper just now was also very intriguing, as if what they saw was actually completely different content.
Sure enough, in the world of the Roll King, every job that no one wants must have its own weird and terrible aspects.
Chen Yunli sighed inwardly, but responded calmly to all the requests.
He left with the box, his steps slow and steady, but his eyes slipped back imperceptibly.
Ming Shaotu stood beside the bookshelf and watched his figure disappear at the door.
…
Standing on the platform waiting for the train, Chen Yunli suddenly realized that Chen Wenjian on his shoulder had been motionless since entering the library.
He turned his head in surprise, only to see that Chen Wenjian was unconscious, his four claws clinging tightly to his clothes to prevent him from falling to the ground.
"What’s wrong with you?"
Chen Yunli quickly held it in the palm of his hand, first checked its breath and heartbeat, and felt relieved when he confirmed that it was still alive. He stroked its fur with his palm and whispered in its ear.
After a long while, Chen Wenjian's whole body twitched violently. He opened his eyes, with a hint of fear still in his eyes.
It hugged Chen Yunli's wrist, looked up at him panickedly, and almost spoke in human language to tell him what it had just seen in the library.
What does it see?
I saw that the gray-white tower was actually a giant snake with a curled body. Its huge body was tightening and loosening every moment, and its scales were wriggling and rubbing against each other, making a metallic crisscrossing sound that was really annoying.
I saw that the walls inside the tower were expanding and shrinking flesh, the bookshelves were jagged bones, and densely packed eyeballs were embedded in the eerie skeletons. They blinked and turned rapidly, sometimes with bloodshot eyes, sometimes with lazy squinting. Only in very rare gaps would they transform into the appearance of books, which was a terrifying sight.
What else did it see?
I saw...
Chen Wenjian suddenly had a splitting headache, and distorted scenes that looked like overlapping mirrors flashed before his eyes.
It saw Chen Yunli pick up the twisting snake's tail, crush it with a little force from his knuckles, pull out the bones underneath, stain it with scarlet flesh and blood, and carve obscure patterns on the snake's skin.
Then the giant snake wailed, its sound like huge waves.
It was stunned.
"Meow, meow..."
Chen Wenjian's words were stuck in his throat, his mouth filled with the sweet and fishy taste of rust. He barked hoarsely twice, then collapsed listlessly onto Chen Yunli's shoulder.
"Hey, what's wrong with you? Are you injured? Are you feeling unwell?" Chen Yunli held it worriedly, "I'll take you to the hospital for a checkup!"
Chen Wenjian shook his head, swallowed the blood in his mouth, secretly licked the blood stuck on his teeth, and then tilted his head to rub his hand.
The warm touch of the human palm melted into the skin and seeped into the blood, as if it was being covered by sunlight, and the warm heat gradually soothed its pain.
It wasn't an illusion. When it was with Chen Yunli, its injuries seemed to be recovering faster and faster.
Does this have something to do with the power that he cannot see and can even distort the essence of things inside the library?
Chen Wenjian raised his head and looked into Chen Yunli's gentle yet worried eyes.
It leaned over and rubbed its nose against his: "Meow."
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