Dimensional Store: Welcome to the Apocalypse Apartment - Chapter 198

Chapter 198

“This group appeared automatically after we entered the Instance. One of the Rules states: ‘When a Library staff member requests to join the group in any form, please refuse and deny the group’s existence. The Group Owner is responsible for managing the group members and deciding the stay or departure of each member.'”

“Huh?” Xia Wenxin grew nervous, her voice trembling slightly. “Then… wouldn’t this count as us violating the Rules?”

Fang Zhao cast an uncertain glance at Gu Huaiwei. He didn’t know if she was hiding her true identity.

Perhaps she was the Shop Manager of that Oasis Sanatorium and also held a part-time job here at the Library.

Gu Huaiwei said nonchalantly, “Don’t worry. I’m not a Library staff member. In this Instance, I don’t have any official identity.”

“That’s good then.” Having received the answer he wanted, Fang Zhao breathed a small sigh of relief.

“However…” Gu Huaiwei recalled the information Han Zhusheng had given her earlier and quickly added, “Your other companion, Bai Yuzhen, has become the Library Director’s Secretary. She’s the one who counts as Library staff now.”

Fang Zhao sucked in a breath of cold air, his heart leaping into his throat. “You’re right!”

He hadn’t considered that.

He had to fix this immediately.

As the Group Owner, Fang Zhao reacted quickly to Gu Huaiwei’s reminder and kicked Bai Yuzhen out of the chat group.

Inside the Library Director’s Office, Bai Yuzhen was brewing Chinese herbal medicine. When she heard her phone buzz, she pulled it out and saw she had been removed from the group. She let out a long sigh of relief.

At night while she slept, the Library Director would often wheel his chair to her bedside and secretly look through her phone.

This phone couldn’t be silenced.

What she feared most was a new message appearing in the group at night.

Over the past two days, Bai Yuzhen had gone to great lengths to hide her phone. Since she wasn’t the Group Owner, she couldn’t leave the group on her own, and the chat log for that investigation group couldn’t be deleted unless one left the group.

She had been wanting to warn the Class Monitor about this.

However, there were new Rules in the Library Director’s Office; the network here was malfunctioning, meaning she could only receive messages but couldn’t send them.

Now that Fang Zhao had realized the situation, Bai Yuzhen was much safer. She no longer had to worry about the Library Director snooping through her phone and identifying her.

Inside the Ventilation Duct.

Gu Huaiwei looked down at the group and saw there were seven people in total, including herself.

In the group, the profile pictures of Wang Junru and one other person had already turned black and white.

“In the Library Newspaper Reading Area, I only saw four people,” Gu Huaiwei murmured softly. She then looked up and asked them, “You said one teammate died, and Wang Junru breathed his last right in front of me. Excluding the two who are already dead, there’s still one more… Who is that?”

Fang Zhao looked at the extra profile picture in the group, his fingers trembling slightly. “When did this person join the group?”

“There was no such person in the group before ten o’clock this morning.” Xia Wenxin was certain; when she checked her phone this morning, there were only five of them.

Gu Huaiwei clicked on the person’s profile picture. Although it was just a silhouette taken in the Library Bookshelf Area, she still recognized him. This person was Han Zhusheng.

“If the profile picture is of the actual person, then this is the Library Director’s son,” Gu Huaiwei said, remembering that Han Zhusheng had met Fang Zhao and the others.

Fang Zhao kept the Rules firmly in mind, his expression darkening. “The Library Director has no son, and no wife.”

“If you say he doesn’t exist, then he doesn’t. If I have intel, I’ll send it to you via private message. Now that an outsider has joined the group, I won’t be posting in there anymore.”
They were restricted by the Rules, forced to say strange and nonsensical things; Gu Huaiwei saw no point in arguing with them over it.

Soon, Gu Huaiwei received a friend request from Han Zhusheng. She tapped accept and immediately turned off her phone screen.

Han Zhusheng sent a new text: “I’m bringing medicine to my father tonight. Do you want to come with me?”

Gu Huaiwei replied with an “OK” right away.

She climbed down from the Ventilation Duct.

Bai Miemie’s white socks had been snagged, leaving a hole from the climb.

“Sister Gu, when can we go back to the shop?” Bai Miemie didn’t like staying outside for too long. Being away from the Oasis Sanatorium made her feel like she didn’t belong anywhere.

Gu Huaiwei had been out for a while now, yet neither Lin She nor He Xueyi had come looking for her.

Calculating the time, they should have finished exploring most of the town by now.

She just didn’t know if they had brought back any new guests.

Gu Huaiwei comforted her, “Once we find Bai Yuzhen, we can pretty much head back.”

At night, soft moonlight filtered through the Library’s floor-to-ceiling windows like a thin veil of silver gauze.

The bookshelves towered high, casting heavy, distorted shadows. Stacks of unorganized books remained on the tables. A breeze snuck in through a gap in one of the windows, flipping through pages with a rustling sound.

Han Zhusheng spent most of his time organizing these books.

Even though there were barely any guests in the Library, these books would always mysteriously migrate from the shelves to other places.

Gu Huaiwei stood a short distance away from him. “Didn’t you say your father doesn’t see guests easily?”

“Bella complained about you to my father, saying you bullied her. But don’t worry, I’ve already explained things for you.” Han Zhusheng’s pale hand closed a book that had been blown open by the wind. “I told Father that you are a new friend I’ve made. He wants to meet you.”

Gu Huaiwei offered a few polite pleasantries.

Han Zhusheng then picked up the medicine in a thermal container and led Gu Huaiwei toward the Library Director’s Office.

As it turned out, the Library Director’s Office was on the first floor. After navigating several winding corridors, they arrived before a massive wooden door.

Han Zhusheng pushed the door open, and a thick scent of traditional herbal medicine filled the air.

Bai Yuzhen was staring intently at the flame, fully focused on brewing a medicinal decoction.

Her gaze flickered briefly over Han Zhusheng before shifting away, acting as if she hadn’t seen either of them.

Bai Yuzhen used a cattail leaf fan to stoke the fire in the stove, muttering to herself, “The wind is so strong, it blew the door open again.”

Han Zhusheng also acted as if Bai Yuzhen didn’t exist.

He walked into the inner room.

Gu Huaiwei walked over to the nervous Bai Yuzhen, who was hunched over the medicine. She typed a line of text on her phone and secretly showed it to her.

[Wang Junru is dead. Fang Zhao and Xia Wenxin are looking for you.]

Bai Yuzhen glanced at the words on Gu Huaiwei’s phone, then gave her a strange look.

She whispered, “You aren’t with the Anomalies?”

Gu Huaiwei tapped a few more words into her phone.

[I’m here to help you.]

Han Zhusheng had already entered the room inside the Library Director’s Office.

He called out to Gu Huaiwei.

“Coming!” Gu Huaiwei responded immediately.

When Bai Yuzhen heard her respond to Han Zhusheng, she grabbed Gu Huaiwei’s sleeve in terror and whispered a warning: “The Library Director doesn’t have a son! You shouldn’t have answered him-it’ll be the death of you!”