Present:
When Dream Yuxuan lost consciousness and everything went dark, the adult version of him woke up twenty years later, drenched in sweat.
He opened his eyes and let the waves of fear that had built up inside him slowly subside before sitting up. Glancing at his mobile phone, which was lying next to him on the small bedside table, he checked the date and time. With a sigh, he rubbed his eyes and rested his head in his hands.
When he kept his eyes closed, he could still see the dark eyes with the purple veil.
After a few minutes, his alarm clock rang, reminding him that today was his first day at work. Reluctantly, he threw back the covers and got up.
The flat he lived in was tiny. His futon bed was on the floor of a gallery and could be reached via a steep, narrow staircase. Below it was a two-seater sofa, a small coffee table, and a television, as well as a tiny kitchenette with a counter where you could sit.
In a separate room, there was a toilet, a shower above it, and a sink next to it. It was just big enough for a lightweight like him to turn around in.
But it was his. After moving out of his uncle's flat, which was really just a cheap second office above his actual company, the Office for Supernatural Phenomena, Nü Yuxuan was grateful for every inch he could call his own.
As the youngest graduate of the Hong Kong Police College, it hadn't been easy to take on various jobs on the side to save up some money. In addition to his uncle's support, he had had the small inheritance from his deceased parents to start his life.
He rinsed his mouth and stared into the small square mirror above the sink. His dark brown hair was longer than it should have been and fell wildly into his face. He had an oval, narrow face that made him look even younger than he already was at twenty-four, and dark eyes that stared back at him.
He closed them for a moment before opening them again. These eyes that saw more than was good for him. His parents had tried to protect him in their own way, telling him that things weren't real and that he should ignore them. Unfortunately, they had failed to protect themselves from these things.
His uncle, on the other hand, had returned from the other side with an open third eye after a youthful indiscretion that had almost ended fatally for him.
Contrary to his brother's request not to interfere in things that could neither be explained nor understood, he had founded the Office for Supernatural Phenomena and had been trying to make the world a little bit safer ever since.
Yuxuan threw on his denim jacket and ran his fingers through his hopelessly wild hair once more. Chang Chenhao was the opposite of his older brother. A fighter and heavyweight, a golden retriever in the body of a pit bull, Aunt Mailin would say now, and Yuxuan laughed briefly.
He drove out evil spirits and demons with his mere presence and reputation, and if that didn't work, he took out his brass knuckles made of consecrated cast iron.
Ghosts hated iron. And talismans and salt and the door gods Men Shen.
Before Yuxuan pushed open the door, his gaze fell on the portraits of the two generals Qin Shubao and Gong Yuchi. His uncle had painted them himself, but he was no artist. When Yuxuan stepped out the door, it was as if a whole new world had opened up to him.
They were everywhere. Sometimes they were just shadows, a reflection in the glass. But sometimes they were grotesque figures, distorted by accidents or other events, something that had caused their souls to sink into such deep resentment that they could not move on.
Ghosts were the most common supernatural phenomena that Yuxuan perceived. If he did not ignore them, they followed him, attached themselves to him, and unleashed their anger and bad karma on him.
His destination, the police headquarters in Wan Chai, was a huge building made of glass and steel. The sky was deceptively blue, with scattered snow-white clouds drifting across it, and even the wind blew as gently as the touch of a loved one.
Yuxuan raised his police ID as he approached the reception desk. An employee in a black pencil skirt suit greeted him warmly.
'Nü Xiangsheng, you are already expected,' she said kindly and showed him the way. She led him through the security system, where he had to scan his ID, showed him the lifts, and finally led him to an office on one of the middle floors. She said goodbye kindly, and Yuxuan knocked.
'Come in!' called a deep voice. Yuxuan opened the door.
A man in his mid-fifties with greying hair, wearing a suit and glasses, looked up from the files piled on his desk. When he saw Yuxuan, a smile spread across his face.
The office was not particularly large and was cluttered. There were a few wilted plants and a calendar that had not been updated. A few old family photos hung on the walls, as well as artistic, abstract creations made with children's crayons.
White smoke wafted through the room, it smelled terribly of cigarettes, and the windows were tightly closed.
The man whose name tag on the desk bore the surname Gong stood up. With one glance, Yuxuan noticed that his shadow was blurred and visible twice. His own, created by the interruption of light, and another that hid within it and acted a tenth of a second later.
Yuxuan's gaze slid upwards, ignoring the black shadow. It consisted of regret and resentment over past opportunities. A huge 'what if', nothing more. It dragged down the person it had possessed, making them more sluggish and prone to self-doubt, but it was not dangerous.
It was about the possessed person's attitude towards life.
Who had to deal with it. Someone who fell into deep depression was more vulnerable than someone who looked ahead with optimism. 'The youngest graduate of the Hong Kong Police College,' Gong Xiangsheng greeted him. 'Forgive my directness, but you could have started anywhere, why did you choose this department in particular?' the man asked curiously.
Yuxuan returned the polite bow. He had been asked this question many times recently. He had given up trying to fob people off with personal reasons and had come up with a more credible excuse.
'I simply believe that with today's technology, knowledge and experience, we can reopen and solve cold cases. Victims and injustices must not be forgotten,' he explained.
In a way, there was a grain of truth in the statement that he was specifically targeting cold cases involving supernatural creatures, ghosts and demons, but he left that part unsaid.
The police had no idea about such things, and even people like his uncle, who tried to help with various agencies, often had their hands tied. Gong Xiangsheng nodded sympathetically.
'It's certainly about your parents, isn't it?' Yuxuan looked up. That was indeed quite direct.
But he had already prepared himself for that. It had already come out at the academy that his parents had died on the famous Tuen Mun Road and that he, as a four-year-old boy at the time, had said that a ghost woman had caused the accident. It was not surprising that the background of a new employee was carefully checked.
'Gong Xiangsheng, I'm an adult now. I know it was the fog that played tricks on my eyes back then. I'm not here for personal reasons,' Yuxuan assured him.
Over the past few years, he had often travelled along Tuen Mun Road, either alone or accompanied by his uncle and colleagues. Aunt Mailin and Ye Zimo. But no matter how many ghosts they had driven away from there, he had never seen the mysterious priestess from back then again.
Gong Xiangsheng nodded, satisfied with the statement, and came out from behind his desk.
'Then I'll show you your workplace and introduce you to your new colleagues,' he said, leading Yuxuan back out. As soon as they left the office, Yuxuan took a deep breath, almost imperceptibly.
His eyes had already started to water because of the smoke. He cleared his throat as Gong Xiangsheng led him all the way back. He entered the lift and pressed the button for the ground floor.
'The cold cases are kept in special archives below ground. Some of them are so old that they only exist in paper form or even as scrolls. From the ground floor, you have to take the stairs down,' he explained.
'Funding for this department is rare, as the success rate is quite low. That's why, apart from you, there's only Zhang Mingjie, who has been working in the department the longest, and Liu Haoyu,' Gong Xiangsheng continued.
Yuxuan nodded. The fewer employees who questioned him and his methods and quirks, the better. A soft gong sounded and the lift doors slid open. As they both stepped out, they encountered a crowd of people. Gong Xiangsheng immediately stepped aside and bowed.
'Chief of Police!' he greeted the older man formally. Yuxuan bowed as well.
Next to the Chief of Police stood another man. He overshadowed everyone else.
As Yuxuan's gaze slid up his body, a hot and cold shiver ran down his spine.
Black, polished shoes, long legs encased in fine black suit trousers. A narrow waist, a muscular chest hidden under a white shirt and grey waistcoat that defined his hips, and a black tie.
His skin was pale, almost porcelain white, his full lips smiled, and his almond-shaped, dark eyes were framed by modern glasses. He had long, black hair. Strands of jet-black velvet fell around his face, the rest tied into a loose braid at the nape of his neck.
Yuxuan's gaze lingered on the man's eyes. How was it possible for someone to have such dark eyes?
'Mo Yichun, may I introduce our new arrival,' said the police chief proudly, stepping aside so that the two men could see each other clearly. Mo Yichun looked at him. His gaze was warm, like that of an old friend.
'Nü Yuxuan, the youngest graduate of the Hong Kong Police College,' he introduced him.
'I've already heard about you,' said Yichun. Yuxuan froze. The voice was strong, slightly dark. It sounded powerful without raising its pitch.
'Pleased to meet you, Chief Superintendent Mo Xiangsheng,' Yuxuan said politely.
'Don't mention it,' Yichun stepped towards him and placed a hand on Yuxuan's shoulder. Immediately, the feeling inside him intensified. His heart raced and beat so hard it felt like it was about to leap out of his chest.
'We should be grateful that they chose to join the police force, shouldn't we?' he asked the group. Everyone agreed with him. Mo Yichun took out a business card and handed it to Yuxuan.
'If you need anything, don't hesitate to ask me,' he said. Yuxuan nodded. But inside, he was asking himself a thousand questions.
This man didn't know him, so why would he offer him personal support?
The men stepped into the lift and as Yuxuan got up, he took one last look at Yichun, who continued to stare at him openly, his lips twisted into a mischievous smile.
'Ha, you've met quite a few important people at once, haven't you?' asked Gong Xiangsheng. Yuxuan looked at him in confusion.
'Who is this Mo Yichun?' he asked. Gong Xiangsheng led him to a wide marble staircase with metal railings.
'Mo Xiangsheng is a big supporter of headquarters. Every year, he donates huge sums of money to various departments, technology and research,' he explained.
So he buys access to information and influential friends with money, Yuxuan concluded.
'Just go down the stairs, you can't miss it,' Gong Xiangsheng interrupted his thoughts. Yuxuan thanked him.