CH 81

The keywords that were coded were obviously patents for the small group, just like you need to show your membership card when walking into a high-end club; the threshold itself represented a status.

When most people see a tall wall, they immediately fantasize about the world behind it, not to mention the laborious access controls required to open it. The more mysterious things were, the more they would stimulate interest in the discussion.

Therefore, an hour and twenty minutes after the photos were posted, the number of replies grew wildly again.

At first, everyone was just discussing the connection between the “signature” and the “three graves” to the buried corpses found on the Yongchuan University campus. The person who proposed this idea was sprayed* badly at first. After all, it was nighttime, and no one wanted to associate bedtime gossip with death.

*Slang referring being scolded/cursed at (usually online).

But perhaps the more bizarre the idea, the more intriguing it was.

Soon, someone posted another photo, as if to prove that the signatures of the three semicircles had indeed existed.

It was a document from many years ago. Because the person who posted deliberately cut off the large picture, people couldn’t see the full text. They could only see the date, which was July 17, 2003, and in the signature line, there wasn’t a name, but only three semicircles connected before and after, arranged from small to large.

[What’s going on? Did someone use this signature more than ten years ago?]

[How scary. What exactly is that document?]

[Ahhhhhh, I want to know so badly!]

[I enlarged the picture and took a look. This seems to be a three-party written contract. One party seemed to be victims of medical fraud. This was signed in 2003, so it reminds me of a group of elderly people who collectively sued a pharmaceutical company for defrauding them out of a lot of money, but that company refused to admit it. For some reason, that case didn’t seem to constitute a fraud case…]

[Is 1378L a teacher? Do you remember everything in 2003?]

[Hello teacher. Teacher almost hit the jackpot*!]

*Referring to Fast 8 (快八), which is a welfare lottery in China (note that the term welfare here means that the government raises funds for social welfare through lottery revenue). This comment is saying that this poster (assuming 1378 is the person behind all this) almost hit the jackpot because he was part of this big fraud case (if he had won the lawsuit and got a big payout (jackpot)). 

[I seem to have found the news. It seems to show teacher 1378L, but there’s no follow-up. What’s going on?]

[In the end, it seems the two sides reconciled, but I don’t know how that happened.]

[Oh, oh, oh. I searched according to teacher’s clues. The last news was about the Anhua Pharmaceutical fraud case was on July 15, 2003. There seems to be now news after that, I guess the three-party contract on July 17th resolved the matter?]

The story fell here, but there was another clue.

It seems that in 2003, an unknown person, together with the elderly, signed an agreement with the pharmaceutical company to resolve the medical fraud case.

[Everyone, it seems there’s something weird about this story. For some reason, there’s a mysterious group in your University City. This gang has been lurking for more than ten years. Whenever there’s a major incident in your city, these people will come out and help the weak?]

[1501L, can you stop spouting such bullshit because of the recent Batman release? We’re not living in the DC universe!]

[According to 1501L, this group of people is going to come out now?]

[Could it be the suicide case was a murder and there’s a serial killer in University City?]

[What the hell are you talking about upstairs? I won’t be able to sleep at night…]

[Shit, three people jumped at our school today. All of them committed suicide, so how can there be a serial killer?]

[I don’t know? Maybe they were forced?]

[I also saw the police at night. In short, there are police everywhere in our school now. The more I talk about it the scarier it becomes. When will this case be solved? I dare not go out tomorrow!]

[I feel sorry for the students of Yongchuan University.]

Just when the chat content gradually turned to waxing and pity, someone finally couldn’t help but jump out to reply.

[Uh, actually, I once received an invitation to join a club with that signature painted on it, but I didn’t get accepted in the end. I’ll stop here. It’s up to you if you believe it or not.]

The reply wasn’t long and was hidden among the various conspiracy theories that were swiping the screen.

But soon, someone extracted this reply.

[They really exist?]

[Damn, I really don’t know what to think.]

[Think about what? There’s some kind of gang in University City? How did you receive the application for membership? This isn’t well edited at all, hahaha.]

[I’m 1501. I’m just guessing!]

[The original commenter said believe it or not. How come people can’t KY*? Anyway, it’s good to live in your little naïve world.]

*Comes from the Japanese term [Kuuki Yomenai] (空気を読む) meaning “read the air/room” as in understanding other people’s emotions and thoughts in the room (or in this case this chat thread).

[Does anyone feel the creeps like me? How deep is the water in this matter?]

[Please add me.]

[Add me too.]

—-

It was as if someone was pinching a watch and always putting out the most intriguing news at the most appropriate time. Despite it being nearly 2 a.m., the number of people online had only increased.

A mysterious and unknown campus organization only appeared when the police couldn’t do justice. This kind of speculation made people’s blood boil and pushed this campus organization to a noble and mysterious pedestal.

Various rumors continued pouring in like snowflakes.

Some people broke the news that only true elite students could get an invitation letter from that campus organization. After that, they had to pass a series of tests before they could finally join. This was why most people had never heard of this organization; its mysterious existence was only known to the elite students.

Later, there were replies that gradually confirmed the previous speculation, and some people even gave the criteria for membership in the organization: During the four-year tenure of university study, you must rank first in the first three years of your major, and you would receive an invitation in the fourth year.

This threshold was also one of the reasons why that organization was so little known.

For a while, rumors about the student organization were rampant. Some people even revealed its name. It wasn’t called the “Awesome Club” or the “Elite Club” but “Three Graves”.

The appearance of the three graves that appeared on campus enraged the organization’s leader, so they surfaced.

Of course, all this was pure speculation.

However, since the speculation existed, it both showed that people were constantly going through clues and chasing the truth behind the matter, and usually, people believe more in what they have unearthed with their own hands, whether it was the truth or not.

Therefore, someone began to organize a list of the top-ranking students in all the schools of Yongchuan University City over the years since 2000. Such a feat would be a vast project, but they were in a university where there would be students with skills. Soon, someone wrote a small program to filter the list.

Finally, it was concluded that there have been no more than 150 such gods over the past decade or so.

With the list, naturally, those who were particularly gossipy would start reaching out to those on it. They called these seniors, who had ranked first for three years, in the middle of the night. One worked as a small clerk in a bank after graduation and didn’t seem to have any special development in “saving the world”, but the senior’s words were quite vague, neither proving nor denying the existence of such an organization.

In short, the story became even more mysterious.

Gossip moved people.

There was nothing more powerful than gossip, so the midnight gossip that took place on the forum spread into real life through the connections with real people.

Some dorms even suddenly turned on their lights, while others had notification sounds suddenly ringing in their bedrooms. Other bedrooms had people who hadn’t stopped talking all night. Naturally, there were those who thought this was purely a farce and turned off their computer and went to sleep.

However, none of this prevented people from fantasizing about a hidden elite organization.

The number of replies quickly passed the 2,000 mark, and the public’s opinion seemed to be moving in the established direction, but Xing Conglian felt a bad feeling in his heart.

Because on the list of the 150 people, he saw Lin Chen’s name.

It stood to reason that it would be strange if Lin Chen’s name wasn’t there. After all, Consultant Lin should be a top student, but in fact, the entire list had been adjusted by Wang Chao. Lin Chen’s name could not have appeared on it, but it did, which meant that this arrangement was purposefully done at Lin Chen’s behest.

Xing Conglian looked to his left, full of hesitation.

The incandescent lamp was too bright.

Lin Chen leaned back in the office chair. His hand was carrying a pot of coffee, and his eyes were half-squinted, as if he were asleep. Xing Conglian leaned back in his chair and refreshed the page.

A photo dropped in the latest reply.

Xing Conglian sat upright without feeling too surprised. This was completely Lin Chen’s style of doing things.

The photo showed the crime scene. It was the vast rooftop where Lin Chen looked indifferently at the girl who jumped off it.

About half a day ago, this photo caused an uproar in the Yongchuan University forum. After being forcibly suppressed, it had now appeared again.

After the photo, Lin Chen’s four-year college transcript and ranking were published with four “1” that were extraordinaryly eye-catching.

[Fucking hell. Is that person named Lin Chen really from “Three Graves”? Did “Three Graves” really have a person appear at the scene of the crime?]

[I told you! “Three Graves” must really exist. Please continue peeling* this building.]

*Internet buzzword referring to publishing people’s ugly photos and scandals. || In this case, it’s saying to keep posting more information about “Three Graves” in this comment section.

[Me, me, me. I’m going to start believing in this shit. It can’t be that the person from “Three Graves” discovered the problem of these suicide cases and then…]

[Count me in. It feels like a battle between the Justice League and the Axis of Evil!]

[Ahhhhhhhhh. Although it’s fantasy, I don’t think this matter is simple. I suspect the wall paintings is a declaration of war.]

[What the hell is a declaration of war?]

[Upstairs been reading too much comics, but I’m believing it too? What should I do? I’m so caught up in this that I don’t want to sleep tonight…]

The comment flow became crazy again, but suddenly, everyone who refreshed the page found that the forum had become [This page is not accessible], and the uppercase 504 made everyone’s hearts sink.

Wang Chao rang his finger and tapped the enter button again.

Like a dam opening its gates and allowing the water to cascade down, the number of replies grew exponentially again.

[What happened just now?]

[Too many visitors that the forum couldn’t handle it?]

[Wait, look at the number of floors. This seems wrong.]

[It seems that one floor has been evacuated. It happened during that 504.]

[Wait, let’s look at the number of floors. It seems a bit wrong.]

[It seems that one floor has been taken out. It happened that at the 504 just now, one floor fell.]

[What floor was taken out?]

[Holy shit, my heart’s going to stop. Fortunately, I was fast and took a screenshot, refusing to jump to another area… How lucky…]

[??????]

[Screenshot +1]

[Ahhhh, I didn’t see it. What the hell is it? Can anyone share it? I’ll give you my number xxxx]

[My email is xxxx]

[What exactly was erased? Is there any information about it?]

[Uh, I can’t say it. I’m afraid the technology emperor who’s monitoring this will block the IP. In short, I can only say that everyone’s guess isn’t wrong. I’m so scared to even go pee!]

[Use your cellphone to say it. Our dorm’s IP has been blocked, so I can’t touch it. In short, that picture really can’t be posted…]

[The great God is so cruel!!!]

[Kowtowing to the great God. Praying to the Almighty that they won’t block the IP.]

[Increase the number so it won’t fail!]

[This feels divine. Should I pray too?]

The floor was abruptly removed, data was erased, ID was banned, and IP was blocked…

Couldn’t speak about it, couldn’t speak about it, couldn’t speak about it…

The sudden high-pressure policy made it no longer doubtful whether the so-called “Three Graves” really existed.

The entire story had been compiled to the present, and the replies had stopped speculating and discussing and turned to the development of a personality cult.

The students gradually began to believe there was such an organization that guarded the tranquility of the entire University City. They began to believe that the elite student organization had appeared now precisely because of the successive suicides in University City. After collecting extraordinary evidence, they declared war on the evil forces before the police.

This was probably the effect that Lin Chen wanted; a perfect effect.

Xing Conglian furrowed his brows.

The sound of friction coming from a chair scraping the floor resounded in the silent office.

Xing Conglian looked up, saw Lin Chen stand up, and walked out of the room. Without even making eye contact, Xing Conglian stood up and followed him out.

It was the same corridor with the windows that were still half open.

Lin Chen waited for him, standing next to the pot of broad-leaved plants that were taller than a person. The first thing he said was, “Sorry.”

Xing Conglian couldn’t even get angry.

“So you arranged it and set only yourself as the target?”

“The story can only be made up like this. There’s no better way. When the internet closes tomorrow, I must be present, because…”

“Because?”

“Because my bluffing skills are extraordinary,” Lin Chen said this sincerely. His gaze was clear and sober, without any kind of fanaticism that was common in the eyes of those patients who had thoughts of heroic endeavor. Xing Conglian also believed that he wasn’t sacrificing the ego for the superego. Perhaps things could only go like this, and this was the only way out.

Xing Conglian put his hands in his pockets and felt that he couldn’t continue and wanted to walk away.

Just in the moment he turned around, he suddenly realized that what he cared about wasn’t Lin Chen’s actions or risking his personal safety again, but that Lin Chen didn’t tell him about this in advance.

Thinking of this, he naturally turned back and spoke out his thoughts. “Have you ever thought you could have told me this in advance?”

But before Lin Chen could answer, Xing Conglian waved his hand and said, “Actually, you knew well that if you told me that you’re using yourself as bait again, I would definitely object, right? Then it was more straightforward to let me see the result of your perfect solution than to spend a lot of effort to convince me.” He paused and looked at Lin Chen’s clear eyes and continued solemnly, “You’re too smart and know everyone’s thoughts too well, so it’s easy for you to give up your efforts to change the minds of others. But you know, this isn’t a good thing.”

He saw Lin Chen’s lips tremble slightly, as if he wanted to say something, but he didn’t give Lin Chen a chance.

“I hope that if something similar happens next time, you can try to convince me. Although I’m indeed stubborn, I am also willing to listen—at least willing to listen to what you have to say.”

After Xing Conglian finished speaking, he walked away without looking back.

Kinky Thoughts:

Please, no more passerby comments. I’m dying here.