37: Xia Weiyu's Some Difficulties
The walls, doors, and windows had been overtaken by creepers, blocking out the sunlight and leaving the interior dim.
Furthermore, with the water and electricity completely shut off, they could only rely on flashlights for illumination.
Seeing how dilapidated the exterior was, he had expected the interior to be covered in thick dust, but the result was quite the opposite.
The inside was very clean, without a speck of dust. Upon entering, there was the living room where all the furniture was brand new; the coffee table and other items were as shiny as new, standing in stark contrast to the conditions outside.
The layout was simple, and the decor was minimalist, with no suspicious spots.
If it weren't for the mission, it would be hard for him to associate this place with a horror house.
"Have they been cleaning it all this time?"
Xia Weiyu quickly shook her head. "No, they only cleaned it once after reclaiming the house six months ago. The house was prepared for auction, but something happened within a month.
They were afraid of dying, so they never came back."
Six months?
Even if the air quality here was excellent, it was impossible for no dust to accumulate over six months. Furthermore, there were those six ability squads; they would have surely rummaged through things during their inspections.
Could they have all cleaned up uniformly before leaving?
"When did the last ability squad come?"
"Ten days ago. Every squad claimed there were ghosts here when they left. Most of them suffered some minor external injuries, but there were no deaths or permanent disabilities."
Su Chen nodded and walked toward the living room first.
"Check the first floor first. Don't stray more than five meters away from me."
...He took a turn around the living room, which was about fifty square meters. It was fully furnished and connected to a dining room and kitchen nearby.
The overall layout was quite good, and the decor was cozy. With all kinds of furniture and appliances present, the place was spotless, without a speck of dust.
The only downside was the lack of water and electricity, and the refrigerator was empty.
Otherwise, it would truly just be an ordinary house.
After checking the last bedroom, Su Chen found a black hair at the corner of the bed.
It wasn't human hair; it should be called fur—animal fur.
Had a mutated animal from the mountains taken this place as its den?
"Weiyu."
"Ah!"
Xia Weiyu, who was checking under the bed, heard someone call her name and instinctively swung her flashlight around. Once she calmed down, she realized she had lost her composure a bit.
"Sorry..."
As soon as Wang Xiaoting and the other person left, the sudden decrease in people made her feel tense.
"Su Chen, did you find anything?"
"Do you have information on the previous owner of this house?"
"No, I only know it was a mortgaged house. Later, when they couldn't repay the debt, it was reclaimed by the bank."
Seeing how nervous Xia Weiyu looked, Su Chen felt it was better to chat about something else to help her relax a little.
"There's nothing unusual here. Let's go check the second floor."
"Okay."
Her left forearm was held by Su Chen. For some reason, it gave her a lot of peace of mind, and she wasn't as afraid anymore.
"This second floor is quite nice too. Two bedrooms, a dressing room, a study, and an ensuite bathroom.
When I retire in the future, I want to buy a villa in the mountains too.
What about you, Weiyu? Where do you want to live in the future?"
The sudden question left her a bit dazed, mainly because she had never considered such things.
"I... I haven't thought about it.
I think as long as I'm living with my family, it doesn't matter where it is."
Su Chen murmured to himself, "Family, huh."
"How many are in your family? Do you have siblings?"
"I have a younger brother. He'll be twelve after the New Year. Unlike me, he's very smart and always takes first place in every exam.
He's usually well-behaved and sensible.
He's at an age where he should be a handful, but he saves me a lot of worry and never causes trouble.
He knows more than I do about many things. Sometimes, when there's something I don't understand, I even have to ask him for advice.
In comparison, he's more like an older brother. I feel like I'm a bit incompetent as an older sister..."
Speaking of her family, Xia Weiyu seemed to have opened up, saying so much for the first time.
Su Chen listened silently, somewhat understanding why she had turned dark in his previous life after her brother died.
It was clear that her relationship with her brother was exceptionally good.
Though a large part of the reason was that she couldn't find other playmates since she was young.
With part-time jobs, she had no time to play with friends. She would go home alone after school, and her only confidant was her brother.
With her father's passing the year before last, they lost their main source of income. The debt from a previous business failure made things even harder for them; they couldn't even afford the monthly interest and mortgage payments.
Xia Weiyu had been hit hard by this, but it was her young brother who often comforted her and told her to cheer up... She talked to herself a lot, and it was evident that Xia Weiyu had been under immense pressure since her father's death.
They checked several rooms on the second floor and found nothing unusual. Xia Weiyu finally snapped out of it, realizing she had said so much and thinking Su Chen might be bored.
"Sorry... I've been rambling a bit too much."
"It's fine."
'Ding! Gained Favorability from Xia Weiyu. lottery tickets +100.'
"Let's head to the third floor. It's the last one. I hope we find something."
Su Chen led the way up to the third floor.
There were two bedrooms and an open-air balcony.
"What about you, Weiyu? You've only talked about your brother. What is your dream, or what do you want to do in the future?
For example, marrying a rich, handsome guy or something like that."
"I..." Xia Weiyu shook her head. "I haven't thought about it.
My current goals are just to let my brother go to university and to pay off the family debt. I haven't considered anything else for now."
"Is the family debt large?
If the pressure is too much, you can tell me. I have some spare money on hand. It's no problem to lend it to you; you don't need to be polite with me."
Xia Weiyu shook her head in refusal.
"It's okay. The bank also knows our family can't produce the money,
so I signed a contract with them back then. I'll pay it back once I start earning money after university.
Although the interest is a bit high this way, it allows us to delay for a few more years.
The hole can always be filled. You don't need to worry about me, really!"
As expected, she couldn't be reasoned with. It would be better to ask the bank himself after the mission was over.
However, it was good news in a way; at least he now knew the difficulties Xia Weiyu was facing.
Basically, there were three: the current assessment, the family debt, and supporting her brother's education.
The difficulty wasn't high. Once this mission was done, he would handle things for Xia Weiyu, starting with her family's debt problem.
Otherwise, what kind of person would he be, letting Xia Weiyu worry about this every day? It would be one thing if he had no money, but since he had it and knew about the situation, how could he ignore it?
Would that be worthy of the hundred consecutive draws the Empress gave him every day?
As they talked, they had unknowingly finished checking the bedroom. There was nothing unusual and no strange noises.
"Let's go look outside."
"Mm."
Su Chen paused when he opened the door because he noticed some debris.
It was very little, almost negligible—fragments of dried creeper leaves that had fallen in when the door was opened.
This was the only trash he had found inside the house.
Looking outside through the glass, a thick layer of dead leaves already covered the ground. It was impossible for only this much debris to be brought in from the outside.
It looked like a blind spot missed during cleaning.
The fragments were very small, and with the dim interior, Xia Weiyu didn't see them clearly, but seeing Su Chen crouching at the door, she still asked:
"Is there a problem here?"
"This door should have been opened recently."
"Did someone come in?"
"It might have been a previous team. Let's go check outside."