I'm Actually Panicking Because My Heart Doesn't Beat (GL) - Chapter 80

The black trench coat was the standard uniform for the Paranormal Bureau. At first, Guan Xiaoxuan wondered who this person was since she had never seen her before. But when the woman introduced herself, Guan Xiaoxuan realized she was someone from headquarters.

Suddenly, Guan Xiaoxuan remembered that this morning, Xing Tianqing said the headquarters would send someone to investigate the Song Yi case. So, this must be why they came to see her.

“It’s me,” Guan Xiaoxuan said, looking at the tall man in front of her. “May I ask what this is about?”

The man spoke calmly: “Don’t be nervous. We’re here to investigate the female paranormal entity at the bus stop. We need your cooperation.”

With that, he slightly turned his body and said, “Please come with me.”

After he said this, he didn’t wait around. Guan Xiaoxuan thought nothing dangerous would happen inside the Paranormal Bureau, so she followed him out of the Points Redemption Center.

They walked along the road in front of the center. Guan Xiaoxuan followed the man to the office area and entered a meeting room under the watchful eyes of several people.

Although Guan Xiaoxuan was part of the Paranormal Bureau, she mostly stayed either at the office or at school. She usually came to the Points Redemption Center only to study or redeem items, rarely visiting the office area.

When she stepped into the small meeting room, she saw someone already sitting inside.

The man led her in, then turned and left. Now, the small room held only Guan Xiaoxuan and the woman sitting in front of her.

The woman looked to be in her forties. Her face seemed familiar to Guan Xiaoxuan. She was slim, dressed in a black trench coat, and was writing something at the table. When she heard the door open, she looked up and made eye contact with Guan Xiaoxuan.

Being looked at like that made Guan Xiaoxuan feel a sudden chill all over, as if she were being stared down by a fierce beast. Her scalp tingled.

What was going on?

The feeling only lasted a moment but made her palms sweaty.

The woman’s features were ordinary. Her hair was tied back in a low ponytail. Her style of dress looked a bit old-fashioned, like from the last century.

She was fairly pretty but clearly older — wrinkles around her eyes and smile lines were obvious, showing signs of weariness. Still, when she smiled, her eyes were clear and even gentle.

“You must be Guan Xiaoxuan,” the woman said.

She put down her pen and looked at Guan Xiaoxuan. “Such a young kid — only 19 and still in college, right?”

Guan Xiaoxuan nodded at the door and asked, “Did you want to see me?”

“Yes.” The woman pointed to the chair opposite her. “Don’t stand by the door. Sit down.”

Without hesitation, Guan Xiaoxuan walked over and sat down, facing the woman.

The meeting table wasn’t big, only enough to seat about ten people. Now, the two of them sat across from each other, exchanging glances.

“Let me introduce myself,” the woman said, capping her pen. “My name is Xing Wenjun, and I’m the director of the Paranormal Bureau. You can call me Director Xing.”

“Director Xing?” Guan Xiaoxuan blinked in surprise.

“That’s right. Your team leader, Xing Tianqing, is my daughter,” Xing Wenjun smiled at Guan Xiaoxuan. “But now, my role is director of the bureau. I’m here to ask you some questions, and I hope you’ll answer honestly.”

The director of the Paranormal Bureau was Xing Tianqing’s mother?

And Xing Tianqing took her mother’s surname?

What about her father?

Guan Xiaoxuan looked at Xing Wenjun without speaking. Suddenly, she felt the woman in front of her was not quite what she had imagined.

The mother and daughter didn’t look alike at all…

Xing Wenjun calmly looked at Guan Xiaoxuan and said, “Can you explain again how you came into contact with the female paranormal entity at the bus stop, and how you dealt with her?”

Guan Xiaoxuan looked at Xing Wenjun, gathered her thoughts, and began to describe the attack she faced during the mission. She explained how she had to cooperate with the female paranormal on the bus to survive, and she detailed how the entity had approached her and how she solved the problem.

Jin Cheng had told her not to hide anything. Although Guan Xiaoxuan didn’t fully understand what that meant at the time, she hadn’t planned to keep secrets.

She knew if it weren’t for Jin Cheng’s help, she wouldn’t have escaped Song Yi’s pursuit, much less kept Song Yi trapped in the shadow to use as her own weapon.

There was no point in telling an obvious lie. Guan Xiaoxuan kept secret only the part about turning Song Yi into a shadow, but she told Xing Wenjun everything else truthfully, just like she had told Xing Tianqing before.

Xing Wenjun studied the information carefully and thought deeply after hearing Guan Xiaoxuan’s account.

“We’ve already sent people to contact Jin Cheng,” Xing Wenjun said. “Next, I need to ask you a few questions. I hope you won’t lie.”

Guan Xiaoxuan didn’t understand why Xing Wenjun kept saying not to lie. Had she already caught her in a lie?

That couldn’t be. Most of what she said was true. She only hid some things about herself, and without mind reading, the other party couldn’t know what she was thinking.

Could it be… that the Points Exchange Center actually has special mind-reading tools, and I’m being closely monitored right now?

Guan Xiaoxuan looked up at Xing Wenjun, but her eyes carefully scanned the surroundings. She didn’t spot any cameras or anything strange.

“You can ask,” Guan Xiaoxuan said slowly. “I’ll answer everything truthfully.”

“Good.” Xing Wenjun folded her hands and rested them on the files, then asked, “Tell me, how did you meet Jin Cheng?”

Guan Xiaoxuan thought for a moment and said, “Actually, I don’t really know Jin Cheng. The first time I heard his name was from a classmate at school. There was a strange incident at my school where over twenty students were trapped, and she was one of them.”

“Her name is Chen Man. To thank me for saving her life, she invited me to join her team to handle weird cases in the city. She contacted me during the bus 444 incident,” Guan Xiaoxuan explained. “At that time, there were rumors at school that she was dating a wealthy businessman who often came to pick her up and even gave her the location for the bus 444.”

Xing Wenjun glanced at the information in front of her. “That matches what we know about Chen Man.”

Guan Xiaoxuan nodded and continued, “After the incident on the bus 444, I was blindly looking for someone who could help me, and Chen Man recommended him.”

“As for what happened next, I think I’ve already told you. I added Jin Cheng as a friend; he came to find me and helped me get rid of that red-clothed ghost. That’s all there is to my relationship with him. Since then, he hasn’t contacted me, and I haven’t contacted him.”

Xing Wenjun nodded, seeming to accept Guan Xiaoxuan’s explanation. Then her dark eyes fixed on her as she asked, “One more question: are you hiding any special items?”

Guan Xiaoxuan’s heart skipped a beat. After a brief panic, she quickly composed herself and pretended to be surprised. “Director Xing, how could I hide any special items belonging to the Paranormal Bureau? Since the first case I handled, it was always you in charge. I can guarantee I have never kept any special items privately.”

“Is that so?” Xing Wenjun’s eyes flickered with a subtle expression as she leaned back in her chair and said, “Don’t play word games with me. You know exactly what I mean.”

Guan Xiaoxuan shook her head. “I’m telling the truth. I really don’t hide any special items.”

That was true. Guan Xiaoxuan never kept anything that originally belonged to the Paranormal Bureau. But she did have some special items—not from the bureau, but gifts from Bai Zhiqi, Haohao, or Jin Cheng. Strictly speaking, they didn’t belong to the bureau, so she honestly answered no.

Xing Wenjun’s expression was calm but held a trace of sympathy when she looked at Guan Xiaoxuan.

“This is your last chance,” Xing Wenjun said. “Think carefully—are you hiding any special tools?”

Guan Xiaoxuan looked at her silently, then said firmly, “No.”

The room fell silent for a moment—so quiet you could hear a pin drop. After a while, Xing Wenjun raised her eyebrow and said, “Very well.”

Guan Xiaoxuan wasn’t sure if this “very well” was praise or a challenge.

Xing Wenjun didn’t press the matter further. Instead, she uncapped her pen and wrote something on the paper in front of her.

“That’s all for today’s questioning,” she said as she stood up, smiling gently at Guan Xiaoxuan. “Thank you for your cooperation and for taking the time.”

Guan Xiaoxuan was a little stunned. She stared at Xing Wenjun and asked, “It’s over already?”

“Of course,” Xing Wenjun laughed. “Did you want me to keep you here for dinner too?”

Guan Xiaoxuan stood up, a bit confused, and said, “I thought the questioning would last longer. It’s only been about half an hour.”

“That’s enough time,” Xing Wenjun said. “We already knew a lot about your situation before coming here. This visit was mainly to meet you. After all, you helped Xinglin City solve a big problem.”

Xing Wenjun continued, “That female ghost at the bus stop troubled us for a long time. Even Tianqing was helpless against her. If it weren’t for you, I don’t think we could have gotten rid of her.”

Guan Xiaoxuan looked at her, surprised and a little disbelief that the investigation was already over.

Xing Wenjun seemed to notice her feelings and looked at her with interest. “Guan Xiaoxuan, you’re the most outstanding person I’ve met in all these years. I’ve seen your records—you did extremely well on the three tests to join the Paranormal Bureau, and you handled the bus 444 incident and the red-clothed ghost case all by yourself.”

“After this report, I believe your contribution points will be very high,” Xing Wenjun smiled at Guan Xiaoxuan. “You performed exceptionally well. If the chance comes, I hope to see the day you become the deputy leader of the investigation team.”