Shan Yang continued smiling as he stroked his beard. "Before I cultivated a human form, to avoid harassment from various beasts, I loved sleeping in rocky cliffs and caves. Now that I have a human form, I still can't break the old habit. Only in such an environment can I sleep soundly. Thanks to our logistics director Zhang's thoughtfulness, he even created such a difficult spatial barrier for me."
Guiche Jun added, "That's right. Uncle Shan loves cleanliness and has high standards for his living space and food. Director Zhang regularly sows seeds and changes the vegetation.
"Although this grass all looks green and similar, it's actually selected from the best seeds from various places. See that patch with purple and yellow flowers? That's alfalfa.
"The taller ones over there are sheep grass, ryegrass, and giant fungus grass. Farther away, the tall ones are Gaodan grass. We didn't have these foreign grasses before. Director Zhang is really impressive to have obtained them all." His tone was slightly envious.
Huangfu Jun nodded instinctively. Director Zhang was indeed very impressive.
After seeing Shan Yang's dorm, the second one was Ying Wu's on the third floor.
Huangfu Jun thought that after the "goat dorm," she wouldn't be surprised by anything new. Yet she was nearly stunned again.
Ah! So noisy! It hurt her eyes!
Unlike Shan Yang's natural landscape, Ying Wu's room embodied the essence of maximalism—vivid colors, intricate patterns, and numerous elements, all exuding luxury and dazzling brilliance.
The walls were not square like ordinary rooms but curved in an arc. Gleaming brown-gold bamboo strips, inlaid with gold and jade, divided the space horizontally in two rows and vertically in seventy-two, creating many narrow spaces with wide middles.
Each space had a different painting, full of charm, inviting one to stop and gaze.
Here, Chinese-style buildings lined a bustling street with playing children;
there, European Baroque streets with strolling ladies;
here, a lively family feast from ancient and modern times;
there, the boundless tranquility of a forest under the starry sky.
All these scenes, like a dynamic scroll, encompassed past and present, the world over. Delicate ink wash paintings and vibrant oil paintings interwove in different areas, bizarre yet harmonious.
But most astonishing and beautiful were the layers of pale pink sheer curtains hanging crosswise in the room. Each curtain had different embroidery—some with dancing gold threads, some with flowing silver, some with rainbow-colored threads. Some featured elegant paintings of plum, orchid, bamboo, and chrysanthemum; others showed beautiful bird feathers.
A gentle breeze stirred the curtains, making them ripple like water and fall like a waterfall, glittering. Occasionally, a pattern emerged, bringing flowers, birds, insects, and fish to life, adding depth to the space.
Behind the layers of curtains, Huangfu Jun saw the floor and ceiling made of colored glass pieces. Light refracted and projected onto the walls, making the room even more magnificent and dreamlike. Yet she grew puzzled: aside from the curtains, there were no pieces of furniture.
As if reading her confusion, Guiche Jun kindly pointed to a suspended spot and explained, "Xiao Junjun, are you looking for Sister Ying's bed? See that golden rod? That's it.
"Look at the exquisite openwork carving on that rod—it was crafted by the most skilled artisans Director Zhang found, specially made for Sister Ying. Even after decades, it's still like new."
Filled with admiration, Huangfu Jun couldn't help wondering how one could sleep on a slender golden rod.
Wouldn't it be uncomfortable?
Even Little Dragon Girl knew to sleep on a soft rope.
She never expected that the talkative, curly-haired Sister Ying had such a girly side!
Ying Wu, unusually shy, covered her mouth and chuckled softly. "This is nothing. I've even used the craftsmanship of human imperial artisans. But nothing compares to this—Director Zhang, being a monster, is always more impressive than mortals."
This earned another eye roll from Jin Ji. Shan Yang continued stroking his beard and smiling.
The remark reminded Huangfu Jun. Looking further along the rod, she spotted two golden bowls hanging from it—one filled with clear water, the other with tiny grains. So the whole room was actually a giant golden birdcage!
Ying Wu, Ying Wu?
Indeed, true to her name, she was a huge parrot spirit!
Only then did Huangfu Jun understand Shan Yang's earlier words: "Each room has a different monster aura; it's not suitable for outsiders to enter."
Once inside the dorm, everyone would revert to their original forms—a room full of birds and beasts, making movement very inconvenient.
But this also sparked a strange anticipation in her: what would her own dorm be like?
What was her half-demon original form?
This thought, however, confused her. She was a half-demon, but her grandmother was human, right?
A half-demon should inherit the bloodline, shouldn't it? Yet she had lived with her grandmother for so many years and knew her well—her grandmother was one hundred percent human.
So did her half-demon blood come from her mother?
Thinking of her mother, Huangfu Jun's heart tightened.
Her memories of her mother were vague, so vague that she didn't even have a rough outline. She had asked her grandmother what her mother was like, but her grandmother only said she was a very, very good person.
When she grew older, she realized her grandmother had never met her mother either and hadn't even known her name until later. Naturally, she couldn't know what her mother was like, so she could only use the word 'good' to answer her childhood questions.
In the past, Huangfu Jun had tried many ways to find out about her parents.
But with too little information, she gradually let it go. She only knew her father was named Huangfu Changchu, who was frail from childhood but extremely intelligent and handsome. After graduating from university, he went to teach in the northwest, planning to bring his mother there once he was settled. But an accident happened. Along with the bad news came Huangfu Jun, a baby in swaddling clothes.
No one knew what Huangfu Jun's mother looked like or what she did. They only knew her name was Yinou, and with Huangfu Changchu's death, she left behind the infant daughter and vanished completely.
Unlike children who once had mothers and were abandoned, Huangfu Jun had no trace of a mother from her earliest memories, as if being raised by her grandmother was simply natural.
So after losing curiosity about who her mother was, Huangfu Jun returned to normal life.
But now, the mysterious identity of her mother took on a completely different, earth-shattering explanation.
Her mother, Yinou, was a monster!
Huangfu Jun's heart clenched instantly.
Perhaps joining the Monster Bureau was the only way to discover her mother's identity.
While she was lost in thought, Ying Wu grabbed her hand and said excitedly and warmly, "Jin Ji's dorm is also on the second floor, just ahead. Come on! After seeing Jin Ji's, we'll see Guiche Jun's."
Guiche Jun snapped his fingers. "The director's and Deputy Director Ha's dorms are on the third floor. The meal card shows Xiao Junjun's dorm is on the fourth floor, same as Captain Bai's. After seeing Sister Jin's, Xiao Junjun, do you want to check out Deputy Director Ha's and Captain Bai's dorms too?"
At the mention of Captain Bai's dorm, everyone's eyes lit up.
Before Huangfu Jun, Captain Bai was the only mystery in the Seventh Bureau. They knew nothing about him. Tonight, using the excuse of visiting Huangfu Jun's dorm to also check out Captain Bai's would be an unexpected delight.
But amid the excitement, Shan Yang thought of another serious issue. He stroked his beard and frowned. "But you all know Captain Bai's temper. If he finds out we've seen his dorm, the consequences might be..."
Jin Ji, arms crossed, shrugged indifferently. "Old Shan, what are you afraid of? The dorm barrier only opens when a newcomer arrives. Xiao Huangfu is a newbie. It's such a rare opportunity, and Captain Bai's dorm is right next to Xiao Huangfu's. It's just a matter of convenience."
Ying Wu immediately understood Jin Ji's intention.
She silently cursed Jin Ji for being cunning—putting all the blame on Huangfu Jun was truly a masterstroke.
But she didn't show it on her face. Smiling with narrowed eyes, she echoed, "That's right, that's right. Since we're passing Captain Bai's dorm, it wouldn't make sense not to introduce it to A Jun. Besides, A Jun is clearly Captain Bai's person; if we don't give her a thorough introduction, Captain Bai might blame us."
Shan Yang naturally knew Jin Ji and Ying Wu's motives, but he always went along with the crowd. Since everyone wanted to do it and there was a scapegoat, missing out on this excitement would be a loss.
Guiche Jun was even more impatient, pushing Huangfu Jun and Ying Wu forward. "Time's limited. Let's go see Jin Ji's dorm quickly, then head straight to the fourth floor."