The two of them then started to eat the roasted turkey fried noodles, which smelled so tempting. Chioujen didn't have the slightest idea what they were talking about. But certain words in their conversation made him interested in hearing them. He wanted to keep eavesdropping on their conversation. After a while, the food he ordered was ready. Chioujen looked at the dish with sparkling eyes. His stomach was screaming, begging Chioujen to immediately put the dish in his stomach. With a steady motion, Chioujen started digging into the food with his chopsticks.
"What about those people? Did they do anything extraordinary?" The man in the brown jacket spoke again.
"Nothing out of the ordinary. They are doing their normal activities. Daily routine." The man in the dark green coat shoved the food into his mouth.
"Didn't you say they had lost their jobs?"
"Yeah, about three months ago, they lost their jobs in a row. I don't know if it was a coincidence, or they were just unlucky. But as I recall, for the last two weeks or so, they went out every day in the morning and came back in the afternoon. Like people who are busy working every day."
"Maybe they've got a job."
"Not yet. They're still unemployed. They're very picky when it comes to working. If they feel they don't really fit the job offered, they won't accept it."
Hearing the series of sentences that the two of them had just said, Chioujen became even more curious. He listened carefully. Because he had to listen to the conversations of the people next to him, this time Chioujen couldn't focus on enjoying the dish he was eating. But he knew his beaushu could understand. In such circumstances, some things were far more important to do.
"Are they really that unique?"
"Everyone has their own uniqueness. I see them as interesting people." The man in the dark green coat sounded so enthusiastic.
"They're all middle-aged, right?"
"You could say that. Although often their way of thinking and speaking is not very similar to the way middle-aged people think and talk. Sometimes their behavior and speech are more like people in their twenties. I don't know why they act like that. Maybe I should research their background as well. What happened to them since decades ago is probably no less interesting topic."
"That would be very difficult."
"Yeah, it's almost impossible to even for me to do. They came from far away from here. I don't think I would have gone there to research their past lives."
"Was there a change in their character?"
"I haven't watched them long. As far as I know, nothing has changed."
"Everything static?"
"I've been watching them for the last six months. Lived around them for the past five months. Before that, of course, I don't know."
"Are they typical people from Yeuandong?"
"Not really. But I don't know what the typical person from Yeuandong is like. But clearly, their nature and habits are very similar to each other. I haven't been able to determine whether the similarities between them are the result of their mutual influence during their stay together or whether they've been similar from the start. It's natural for people who have the same interests to form a club. So it's possible that the eldest among them is deliberately gathering people who look like him to live together."
"The eldest of them, isn't he the one who used to work at the used bookstore?"
"Yeah, that's him. He's the leader of the group. Even though he looks the youngest in appearance, he's the oldest."
<
"I think that person is also somewhat similar to you." The person in the brown jacket said with a serious face. After that, he laughed.
The man in the dark green coat didn't answer. He even ate voraciously. The way he ate reminded Chioujen of his beaushu, Shannchyuan. Upon closer inspection, of course, with stealth, Chioujen realized this person did indeed look a little like Shannchyuan. That person was thinner than Shannchyuan. But as Chioujen recalled, Shannchyuan was also very skinny many years ago. Although the frequency and amount of food that entered Shannchyuan's stomach was very high, his body's fast metabolism made him difficult to gain weight. Shannchyuan didn't gain weight until he was close to forty. When Chioujen last saw him about six months ago, Shannchyuan weighed sixty kilograms. Chioujen still remembered when Shannchyuan was in her twenties. He never weighed over forty-five kilograms. According to Chioujen's estimation, this person in the dark green coat weighed only about fifty-two to fifty-five kilograms.
"After this project is finished, I will move at once," said the man in the dark green coat.
"How much longer will this project you're working on be over?"
"I can't say for sure yet. Maybe between two weeks and a month. But it depends on other things too. Maybe there will be new developments that will require me to stay here longer."
"Oh, I see! Then where do you want to go next? Are you going to tackle the new project right away?"
"Still don't know. But I don't think so. In fact, this project is just about to enter the next stage."
"Then the case of Huangmuh and the others who had disappeared would likely not interest you."
"I still don't know. There's so much I still need to do on this project."
"What stage have you reached?"
"This observation stage is only the initial stage. There are still many stages to go through. Of course, with the help of several assistants and people who are willing to help me."
"In this early stage, is there no one else to help you?"
"Of course there are. But they're not always around. Only at certain times."
"Don't your assistants always report to you? As far as I know, you ordered them to observe also?"
"Yes, in past projects, sometimes they also observe. In this project, they also observe several times. Even though I usually order them to observe from a distance. Don't interact with the object we are observing. I want their report to feel more natural," said the man in the dark green coat.
"Then how did it turn out? In this project, do you feel their reports are more natural?"
"It was the same."
The man in the brown jacket laughed. "Isn't that just how you feel?"
"It's also possible that I've been less sensitive lately, so I can't judge reports well. Even so, their reports are quite detailed. They do add some unnecessary things sometimes."
"I don't understand. Please explain further."
"I have two assistants who have extraordinary powers of imagination. When I read their reports, I feel like reading a novel. They love to embellish what they observe with their imagination. This is, of course, not what I want. Clearly, it is not their job to mix facts with fictitious things. I warned them. But still, such a habit is hard to change. Luckily I've been doing this since time immemorial, so I can predict which part of their report is fact and which part is just fantasy only."