Night had already deepened, yet two rooms in Luo Ren’s residence still had lights on.

One belonged to Uncle Zheng. With the restaurant location selected, there was much to busy himself with—layout planning, construction materials, decoration style—everything needed attention.

He sketched on paper with a pen. The cash register should naturally be placed in the most prominent position, the kitchen should be separated from the main hall, with a passage left for serving dishes. Oh, right, they also needed to reserve space for a bathroom—after all, people have urgent needs, and even if customers didn’t use it, it was necessary for themselves.

The other lit room…

It was next to Luo Ren’s room, the one storing the ominous slips.

Besides the fish tank, the room now had a table, chairs, a single-person sofa for resting, a whiteboard, and a fixed timer-controlled camera—it resembled an office.

Luo Ren pasted Yi Wansan’s drawings on the wall in sequence, stepped back, and frowned as he looked at them.

The clues were still too few, impossible to sort out. It felt like being shrouded in clouds and mist. A voice in his heart said to let it go, but another voice was curious: what would the next few slips reveal, and what kind of pictures would they bring forth?

After looking for a while, he turned to face the opposite wall, where he had already posted a large map of China. Hangu Pass, Xiaoshang River, and Hepu Five Pearl Village were all marked with red-headed pins, each connected to others with white string.

They merely formed a narrow, obtuse triangle.

Behind him came a soft click of a camera taking a photo.

The computer showed an automatic photo transfer notification. Luo Ren went over to sit down and clicked to load and stitch the images.

Every day, at almost the same time, from the same position, with the same lighting effect, taking the same photograph.

Now, there were six photos in total, arranged in a row.

The differences discernible to the human eye were limited, but through digital recording and side-by-side comparison, some subtle changes became clear.

Both the ominous slip and the encircling phoenix were fading in color.

Yi Wansan was right—this matter wasn’t over yet.

Yi Wansan wasn’t asleep either.

He sat on the upper bunk, feeling annoyed but unable to pinpoint why.

Cao Yanhua was counting money on the lower bunk.

“Three hundred, three hundred and twenty, three hundred and forty, three hundred and forty-five…”

Then came the sound of coins.

Yi Wansan grabbed the edge of the upper bunk and leaned down to look at him.

Cao Yanhua didn’t notice at all, smoothing out each bill and arranging the coins by size, all neatly organized.

“Fatty Cao, counting the same few bills over and over—feeling desperate yet?”

Cao Yanhua found this strange: “Why should I feel desperate? I’m very hopeful.”

He counted on his fingers, listing evidence one by one.

—”I work two jobs, one at Ju Xian Lou and one at the bar. In a couple of days, I’ll get paid.”

—”I live and eat at the bar. Zhang Shu doesn’t charge me, saving a lot of expenses.”

—”I’m learning martial arts from my little sister’s master, with a bright future ahead…”

—”Hong Yi sister is helping me sell pearls. Even if I only get one-fifth, it’s still quite a bit of money…”

—”I’ll invest the money in Uncle Zheng’s restaurant, making me a small shareholder!”

He gathered up the money spread before him, muttering: “Why should I be desperate? Each day is better than the last, better than when I was a thief. Back then, money came quickly, but my heart was always anxious, wanting to run whenever I saw police…”

Yi Wansan sighed, lay back on the bed, and pulled up his blanket.

The bunk bed creaked. Cao Yanhua grabbed the railing and stood up, revealing his round head.

“Brother San, I need to say something to you.”

Yi Wansan glanced at him: “Say what?”

Cao Yanhua said, “You, as a person, are just too dramatic. You don’t have the fate for drama, yet you insist on having the disease for it.”

Damn, was the word “dramatic” meant to describe men?

Yi Wansan became angry, grabbed the pillow from under his head, intending to hit Cao Yanhua, but Cao Yanhua was quick, having jumped down long ago.

Luo Ren had gone to bed late the previous night and didn’t rise until late morning. The house was quiet, not a single person around.

After washing up, he found Uncle Zheng’s note in the downstairs living room.

—I’m busy with restaurant matters. Pin Ting is at the bar.

Just as he was reading it, his phone buzzed with a message notification.

He took it out and saw it was from a WeChat group, sent by Mu Dai, specifically to him.

—I have something to attend to, I will be back in two weeks.

Two weeks?

This was truly excessive, Luo Ren thought, gritting his teeth.

Another message came in, asking: “Is that okay?”

Luo Ren replied:

—It’s none of my business, I don’t even know you.

Luo Ren first went to the bar.

The morning bar was relatively quiet. Pin Ting sat by the window with an open book in front of her. Luo Ren watched for a while from outside, at first thinking she was reading, but then realized she wasn’t.

She was turning pages with her nose.

Quite diligently, her delicate nose brushed against the pages. She seemed able to entertain herself this way all morning. Sunlight streamed through the glass, making her hair shine brightly.

Luo Ren pushed open the door and entered.

Cao Yanhua shouted: “Oh my, my Brother Luo is here!”

Luo Ren gave him a look: “What are you yelling about?”

He sat down opposite Pin Ting.

Cao Yanhua came over sympathetically to serve him coffee: “Brother Luo, I saw the message in the group. My condolences.”

That was certainly bringing up the wrong topic.

After serving the coffee, he still didn’t leave.

Luo Ren found it strange: “Anything else?”

Cao Yanhua smiled warmly: “Brother Luo, look at me carefully. Is there anything different about me today?”

Was there?

Cao Yanhua puffed out his chest, pulled in his stomach, tucked in his chin—three rolls of fat on his neck.

Luo Ren couldn’t help but laugh: “Fatty Cao, are you having delusions…”

Before he could finish, someone from behind covered his eyes.

Their qinggong must be excellent—they approached without him noticing. Luo Ren’s body suddenly tensed, his left elbow bent, about to strike backward forcefully, when a thought flashed through his mind, instantly dissipating all his force.

His lips slowly curved upward.

Mu Dai said, “Guess who I am?”

Luo Ren didn’t speak. The sunlight was pleasant, warming his body.

After a moment, he reached up, took her hands down, and said: “Miss, we’re not that familiar. Please show some respect.”

Mu Dai burst into laughter.

From the bar counter came Yan Hongsha’s voice: “Can I come out now? Can I?”

Then Yi Wansan’s impatient voice: “Get out, get out. It’s so crowded here, can’t get anything done.”

It seemed they had all returned early, conspiring to play a trick on him.

Luo Ren ignored Mu Dai and first addressed Yan Hongsha, who was bending down to squeeze through the bar counter door: “How did you come with Mu Dai?”

“Investment! Aren’t we opening a restaurant?” She held a bag of chips, crunching loudly. “Grandfather told me to pay attention, saying once we commit, we have to be serious, not just play around. I heard from Fatty Cao that the location has already been chosen?”

Luo Ren nodded: “Not far from here.”

Suddenly remembering something, he asked Yi Wansan: “You’ve been here for a while, do you know a shop called ‘Lian Yan’?”

Yi Wansan said, “Sure, the owner is beautiful, but never gives people the time of day.”

Mu Dai said, “Exactly! Every time I go, she ignores me.”

Luo Ren looked at her: “She ignores you, yet you still go?”

Mu Dai said, “Of course, I’ll go. She divides customers into different classes, and someone like me doesn’t catch her eye. She irritates me, so I go to irritate her, looking at this and that each time, but never buying anything.”

Luo Ren was both amused and exasperated—were all girls’ thoughts this peculiar?

Yi Wansan asked Luo Ren: “How about you? Was she polite to you?”

I suppose so, Luo Ren wasn’t sure how to answer.

Cao Yanhua gasped: “What eagle eyes! She could tell my Brother Luo is a big spender. My little sister’s master and Brother San have already been eliminated. Sister Hongsha, why don’t we go take a look too?”

He was eager to see how the shopkeeper who didn’t give people the time of day would categorize him and Yan Hongsha.

Yan Hongsha said, “Let’s go!”

The two of them headed out—they had nothing better to do.

The bar suddenly became quiet. Mu Dai hugged Luo Ren’s arm and asked: “Are you alright?”

Luo Ren unceremoniously removed her hand: “Space, give me some space.”

Mu Dai couldn’t stop laughing. She lowered her head and hugged his waist, burying her face against his chest, nudging him repeatedly. At first, Luo Ren tried to pretend to be stern and push her away, but eventually, he couldn’t bear to. After a while, he put his arms around her and said softly: “Pin Ting is watching.”

In reality, Pin Ting paid no attention to any of this, engrossed in turning pages with her nose, the tip of which was nearly black from rubbing.

Mu Dai finally sat up and told him about her visit to the Yan family.

How bold Yan Hongsha was, truly keeping Yan Jiuxiao’s death a secret; how the old man Yan was satisfied with her bodyguard work, depositing twenty thousand yuan into her account without missing a penny, and even asking if she wanted to go treasure hunting together…

Luo Ren’s heart skipped a beat: “Treasure hunting?”

Mu Dai hadn’t planned to mention this so soon, but she had accidentally let it slip. She hesitated for a moment: “I mentioned it to you before—Hongsha’s family has been treasure hunters for generations.”

Luo Ren said, “I know that, but what does ‘going treasure hunting together’ mean?”

In treasure hunting, those present shared in the findings. The more people involved, the less each person got, so the number of participants was strictly controlled. Families like the Yan clan that operated as a unit would be even less likely to bring in outsiders. If Yan Jiuxiao hadn’t “lost contact,” Old Man Yan probably wouldn’t have considered Mu Dai.

According to Old Man Yan, this treasure hunt was very promising.

The treasure well was discovered by Old Man Yan years ago when he was working with others. Because the treasure energy was abundant, he had the private thought to remember the geographical location without telling anyone. Moreover, in the treasure hunting business, the final venture was extremely important. Finishing unsuccessfully was considered unlucky, so treasure hunters generally reserved one treasure well, saving it for a perfect final venture.

Luo Ren asked her: “Where is this place?”

“He only said it was in Yunnan. The specific location can’t be revealed—it’s a rule among treasure hunters.”

If the specific location couldn’t be revealed, did that mean he couldn’t go along?

Luo Ren smiled slightly: “You’ve already decided?”

His smile made Mu Dai uncertain. After thinking for a moment, she said very seriously: “I think I can decide what I want to do myself, but I will listen to your opinion—if it’s reasonable, I’ll listen.”

The conversation seemed to have turned serious; even Pin Ting sensed it. Her nose was still pressed against the book, but her eyes darted back and forth between the two of them.

It was a good thing that Mu Dai could form her own opinions.

Luo Ren thought for a moment: “I’m not against you doing your own thing, but I have one requirement—I need to know where you’re going and where you are.”

“I can trust Hongsha, but I don’t trust Old Man Yan, nor do I trust the place you’re going. If something happens and I don’t know immediately, or I can’t come rescue you—that’s terrifying.”

Mu Dai lowered her eyes and remained silent, seeming to consider his words.

“I know Old Man Yan doesn’t want to reveal the exact location, probably fearing others might covet his treasure. You can tell him I don’t care about his stones.”

Finally, he pinched Mu Dai’s chin: “If you’re asking for my opinion, given the current situation, I’m against it. However, the decision is yours. Even if I oppose it, you can still go.”