A Matter of Principle

In the pin-drop silent classroom, a girl blushed, her head bowed, while a boy stood lost in thought.

Of course, there was also a Miss Ghost, invisible to ordinary eyes.

Should anyone have entered the classroom and witnessed the peculiar atmosphere between these two young people, they would undoubtedly have been led to some rather suggestive conclusions.

Li Yu was adrift in a sea of panic and confusion, her gaze flickering upwards several times as if to speak, yet no sound ever escaped her lips.

Fu Ziqing, meanwhile, was savoring and processing the ‘ghost energy’ — as the hooded man from last night had called it — that she had extracted from Li Yu’s mind.

A peculiar sensation washed over her. After absorbing the wisp of ghost energy, she experienced only a fleeting sense of satisfaction before an immediate void settled within her.

It was as if something had taken back the ghost energy she had just absorbed.

Was it that space?

Fu Ziqing mused inwardly.

What was this, exactly? Rent collection? Or perhaps parents confiscating a child’s New Year’s money?

She didn’t feel dissatisfied, however. After all, that space was her sanctuary, capable of shielding her in critical moments. Moreover, if issues arose, couldn’t it always pull her out of danger, just as it had this time?

Thinking along these lines, it was just a bit of ghost energy. They could take it all!

She wouldn’t be at a loss, either way.

Upon realizing that ghost energy might be crucial for restoring that space, Fu Ziqing began to formulate some ideas.

Snapping back to reality, Fu Ziqing noticed Ming Zhong occasionally stealing glances at her.

“What is it? Speak your mind if you have something to say.”

Fu Ziqing spoke abruptly the next time Ming Zhong’s gaze darted her way.

Ming Zhong didn’t seem embarrassed, though he did hesitate for a moment. He leaned slightly closer to Fu Ziqing and whispered,

“Are you sure it’s alright?”

He spoke, his gaze flicking towards Li Yu, who still had her head bowed.

Fu Ziqing immediately understood his implication and replied blandly,

“She already knows a bit anyway. Are we really going to try and hide it from her now?”

Ming Zhong nodded, then inquired,

“What did you eat?”

“I’m not entirely sure, but the hooded man last night called it ‘ghost energy’.”

Fu Ziqing replied.

“Ghost energy, huh… Wait, the hooded man you mentioned?”

Ming Zhong recalled the strange man they had encountered last night, the one who had been carrying Principal Zhang…

“That guy was probably an Anomaly Investigator? We fought last night.”

Fu Ziqing also remembered the events of the previous night. That eerie little book still sent shivers down her spine.

That feeling of powerlessness, helplessness, and utter despair — she had experienced it once twenty years ago, and again just last night.

It was a sensation she never wanted to endure again.

Ming Zhong’s expression shifted to one of sudden realization.

If the hooded man was an Anomaly Investigator, then Principal Zhang, whom he had been carrying, was very likely one too.

What was this? Great recluses living among the common folk?

If that were the case, then perhaps even seemingly ordinary people held another hidden identity.

He had, in fact, considered such possibilities before. If the world was solely populated by ghosts without anyone to restrain them, it would have long ceased to be a place where humans could survive.

Still, he simply hadn’t imagined that Principal Zhang, with his thick eyebrows and large eyes, would be such a person behind the scenes!

Ming Zhong suddenly looked at Fu Ziqing, his face etched in thought.

He remembered that Principal Zhang had been carried, suggesting a rather brutal battle had taken place!

The Anomaly Investigator was injured, yet they had escaped. He had only encountered Miss Ghost after running into them.

Was she pursuing them?

Yet, it didn’t seem so. Though they appeared weary, they also carried a certain composure, not the frantic air of those fleeing for their lives.

Unless they were confident in escaping Miss Ghost’s pursuit, or perhaps they knew she no longer possessed the ability to fight them again.

This meant Miss Ghost was also injured!

At this very moment, however, Fu Ziqing tilted her head slightly, declaring with an air of triumph,

“That guy was pretty weak. I completely thrashed him, but I never kill, so I let them off the hook.”

Gazing at Miss Ghost, who looked so pleased with herself, Ming Zhong’s eyes softened, and he chuckled,

“Impressive.”

“Hmph hmph!”

Fu Ziqing’s huff, however, carried a subtle lack of conviction.

Ming Zhong’s gaze made her uncomfortable, so she turned her head away to look at the young girl who kept her head down, only daring to glance up occasionally.

“Ask her.”

Fu Ziqing instructed.

Ming Zhong observed all of Miss Ghost’s subtle gestures, a gentle smile playing on his lips.

“Li Yu, have you encountered anything strange recently?”

He understood Fu Ziqing’s intention. Since Li Yu had ghost energy in her mind, she must have come into contact with such things.

Li Yu looked up at Ming Zhong, then lowered her head again, murmuring softly,

“I… I don’t know.”

With the college entrance exams drawing nearer, every day felt like a mechanical repetition of similar tasks. For a moment, Li Yu couldn’t recall anything out of the ordinary.

Then, Li Yu looked up at Ming Zhong once more and said,

“If I had to pick one thing… it… it might have been this morning.”

As she spoke, her face grew even redder. She wanted to lower her head again but mustered her courage, forcing herself to look at Ming Zhong as she continued,

“You’ve been so strange today. No, that’s not what I mean. I meant that particular… No! I…”

Alas, she ultimately lowered her head again.

“I’m also very strange. I shouldn’t have those thoughts. I really don’t know, I don’t know…”

Ming Zhong looked puzzled.

“What thoughts?”

“Huh?”

Li Yu’s tone was flustered, her head nearly touching her chest.

“C… can I not say?”

“Alright.”

Seeing Li Yu in such a state, Ming Zhong shifted his inquiry.

“You were… um, like this… what were you doing?”

As Ming Zhong spoke, he mimicked Li Yu’s previous gesture of shielding her chest, but he directed his gaze at Fu Ziqing, speaking in a high-pitched, delicate voice,

“Pervert!~”

“Huh?”

Li Yu glanced up, then instantly buried her head again.

……

She remained silent.

But Fu Ziqing spoke up,

“What do you mean by that!?”

She glared at Ming Zhong.

Ming Zhong, equally perplexed, asked,

“Didn’t you touch her… there?”

Fu Ziqing instantly bristled, exclaiming loudly,

“I just tugged her pigtail!”

This was a matter of principle. She might be a ghost, but she was certainly not a lecherous one!

Besides, in her previous life, she had been married and had children. She had done far more than just ‘touch’ such things. Why would she be interested in a little girl like this?

Still, such details weren’t worth bragging about to a brat like Ming Zhong.

She lifted her head and puffed out her chest, saying disdainfully,

“Furthermore, I have those myself, and they’re bigger than hers! A flat-chested girl, why would I touch her?”

Ming Zhong’s gaze drifted downwards from Fu Ziqing’s face.

The neckline of her pure white nightgown wasn’t particularly high, and the lace trim rested upon a fair, rounded curve…

So white, so soft, I really want to…

Ming Zhong felt a rush of heat surge to his head.

Damn it, what was blinding his eyes? What was confusing his thoughts?

Daring not to look further, his gaze hastily moved upwards, meeting a pair of grayish-white eyes. He quickly averted his head, his face flushing.

“You’re blushing, you’re blushing, oh dear.”

Fu Ziqing’s words drifted into his ear, making his face feel even hotter.

“Pathetic! They’re just two lumps of flesh, that’s all.”

Fu Ziqing’s face moved close to Ming Zhong’s, a look of disdain etched upon it.

Ming Zhong turned his face away again.

“Have you touched them? Have you touched them? You’re not still a virgin, are you?”

Fu Ziqing pressed on with her questions.

“I must save myself for my wife!”

On this particular question, Ming Zhong actually turned his face back, blushing as he gave his answer.

“Oh! How pure!”

Fu Ziqing teased.

“It’s a matter of principle!”

The boy was surprisingly earnest.

Fu Ziqing wanted to tell him: You may have principles, but others might not. While you’re defending your headquarters, the front lines are already engulfed in fierce battle.

However, she merely blinked, then softly said,

“Boy with principles, let me ask you: I’m giving you a chance right now…”

She paused, biting her lip, her gentle voice taking on the quality of a little devil’s,

“Do you want to touch them?”

The boy’s eyes widened.

“Well? This is your only chance, you know?”

The devilish voice continued its seductive whisper.

The boy’s face cycled through shades of red and white.

“You are insulting me!”

He said in a low, firm voice.

Fu Ziqing deliberately showed disappointment, scoffing,

“Heh heh, is that all? You’re just too ineffectual…”

But just as she spoke…

“Touch!”

“Huh?”

Miss Ghost’s eyes widened.