As soon as Anji left the kitchen, her confidence plummeted. It was still chilly in the morning. Thankfully, Aunt Wine had prepared warm congee for breakfast. Anji would have been shivering otherwise. Her uniform was nowhere near thick enough to protect her from the wind. The cloth was thin, likely a hand-down from some other senior, altered by someone to fit her.
Remembering the main street that Pearl showed her in yesterday’s tour of the western district, Anji found the research labs easily. However, she had no idea where to turn in order to find the sixth lane where Researcher Yang’s lab was located. However, she did her best to keep a lookout for any doors with green paint.
Each research compound had its own personality. If Anji had more time, she would leisurely study each lab’s unique designs that reflected its researcher. Some were messy, while others were neat. It was surprising to see researchers with a gardening hobby and others who decided to pile books in their courtyard. Weren’t they afraid of the rain destroying those books?
After roaming in the research district for some time, Anji had to admit she needed help. Part of her regretted not accepting Aunt Wine’s offer to escort her to Researcher Yang’s lab. The sun was already high up in the sky. People were bustling from place to place. Many were carrying heavy objects, and nobody had any time to spare the lost child a glance.
Unsure if she should bother the busy assistants and researchers for directions, Anji stood at the side of the lane and watched as the researcher yelled at his assistants. They did not seem to have the patience or time to help a lost child out. Moving along, Anji looked around and mustered enough courage to approach an assistant moving a heavy shelf of books to the outer courtyard.
"U-um, excuse me! Do you happen to know where Researcher Yang’s lab is?"
Her small voice became lost when someone from inside the lab yelled at the assistant to help with a new shelf. Without even noticing the small child, he left quickly.
Lost and defeated by her first attempt at getting help, Anji awkwardly stood by the entrance for a while. Eventually, she left like a ghost without anyone ever noticing a child in distress. By now, Anji was positive she would never find Researcher Yang’s lab on time. However, she still had to try. Although the researcher let her know he would not be in today because he had a meeting, it was still horrible to be tardy on her first day on the job. Researcher Yang’s assistants must be waiting, so Anji mustered her courage again to approach another person who did not seem angry.
"Excuse me, senior. I’m a little lost. Could you let me know how to get to Researcher Yang’s—!"
Before even Anji could finish her sentence, the busy assistants with books in their arms bumped into her and cussed aloud.
"Dammit! Be careful! We need to return these today. Don’t just stand there!"
Without even hearing what Anji had to say, the busy research assistants picked up the fallen books and rushed away. Not wanting to be the reason why they would be scolded, Anji quickly backed off. However, each time she tried to approach someone else, they were often too busy to notice her or stop to listen to her. Eventually, the disheartened child decided to search for Researcher Yang’s lab by herself.
It took Anji a while to realise there were numbers on every door. The top numbers were sometimes the same and other times different. The bottom number would always follow a pattern, increasing by one from the house from the left as Anji walked down the rows. Eventually, she realised the labs were arranged in a grid order with numbers painted on the door sign as the location indicator. According to this logic, Anji was in the third row, and the eighteenth lab compound was in that row. Researcher Yang’s lab was on the sixth row. She was in the wrong location.
Turning back, Anji traced her steps and eventually found the beginning of the sixth row. However, she had to take a breather. The further away the labs were from the main street, the larger the compounds became. These larger compounds were spaced wider than those nearer to the main street as they were located on the higher slopes of the mountain. The climb became sharply steeper after the fifth row, so Anji took a breather before she continued her climb up a long flight of winding stairs.
From where she sat, Anji counted the number of rows in the district. According to Pearl, there were over three hundred and eighty research faculties in the western district. Most of the research labs were located in the first four rows. There were only three more densely crowded research facilities after the sixth row. Any other research labs were scattered all across the mountain above it. Some had paths leading to them, while others were built in the middle of nature. Anji saw the semblance between the more isolated research laboratories and her shifu’s cottage. She preferred the peaceful atmosphere of the more isolated laboratories. However, Anji had to report to Researcher Yang’s place first.
After a short breather, Anji got back onto her feet and continued her climb. Eventually, she found the green door on the sixth lane. The research lab was rather shabby. Although the door was painted green, the brown wood from beneath the peeling paint was showing. Not to mention, the walls were completely covered in moss. If Anji had not known better, she would have thought this was an abandoned place. Chapters first released on novel⟡fire.net
Panting and sweating from the workout, Anji took a few seconds to readjust her uniform. She was already late and did not want to give the waiting assistants another reason to despise her. The plan to make a first impression was already moot. All Anji could pray for was their kindness. Although looking at the attitudes of other researchers and assistants on her way here, Anji mentally braced herself for abuse.
Knocking on the door, the young girl waited nervously. Were they going to hit her or punish her for showing up late?