Mu Dai’s mind was spinning with thoughts. How should she behave when meeting Luo Ren? Should she be poised and natural? Offer a gentle smile? Greet him casually like an acquaintance, or would it be better to remain reserved?

None of these options came into play because when Luo Ren parked his car and walked toward her, her eyes suddenly widened.

Why was Luo Ren coming this way after closing the car door? Where was Hong Sha?

Her sense of duty instantly returned—she was a bodyguard, after all.

Mu Dai hurriedly rushed over and started gesturing frantically to Luo Ren. Fortunately, Yi Wansan came along and spoke for her: “She lost her voice from shouting, so she can’t talk right now.”

This reminded Luo Ren of what he had witnessed earlier—this small body truly contained enormous energy, as one person could match the volume of three loudspeakers.

Luckily, he guessed what Mu Dai wanted to ask: “Your friend is fine, but she needs to rest for two days. I thought going back and forth would be bad for her leg, so I arranged for her to stay in the hospital.”

Hospitalized? Although there wasn’t much danger in the hospital, it was her duty to stay with Hong Sha.

Mu Dai forcefully commandeered Yi Wansan’s phone and typed her request for Luo Ren to read.

Luo Ren didn’t understand: “Why do you need to stay with her? The hospital isn’t a comfortable place to sleep. Just come with us for now. There’s a place to stay on the boat, and in a couple of days, we can pick up your friend. It’s all the same.”

This was unavoidable. Most reluctantly, she hesitantly typed four characters.

I am a bodyguard.

Luo Ren asked her: “What kind of bodyguard? The type hired specifically to shout for help?”

Mu Dai was furious: Was her shouting that exaggerated? Why was everyone, directly or indirectly, mocking her for shouting for help? It had been a life-or-death situation, and besides, she couldn’t swim!

She couldn’t be bothered with these people—they had absolutely no conscience!

Her face darkened, and she no longer wanted Luo Ren’s company. She lifted her feet and walked swiftly onto the road, moving quickly, her body language accurately conveying “I’m angry.”

The exit was a low, winding mountain road with almost no traffic. After Mu Dai had walked for a while, Luo Ren followed her in his car, slowly trailing behind her, the car’s headlights reaching far ahead as if illuminating her path.

Mu Dai walked at a steady pace for quite some time, then suddenly stopped and swiftly turned around.

The car stopped quickly, too. She couldn’t see his face behind the windshield because the headlights were too bright, stinging her eyes. Mu Dai squinted and used her hand to shield against the light. From Luo Ren’s position, she was entirely wrapped in light and shadow, each strand of her flying hair distinctly visible, like a beautiful little sprite.

Luo Ren smiled and opened the door on her side from inside the car: “Chief Bodyguard, get in. Do you even know which hospital she’s in?”

Mu Dai got into the car with a hint of small satisfaction.

The journey wasn’t short, and Luo Ren took this opportunity to tell her about the events of the past couple of days: Yi Wansan’s story, the mother who drowned while clutching an urn of ashes, and the old clan chief who perished on a pearl-diving boat loaded with ancestral tablets.

Mu Dai listened in a daze. As she listened, a thread slowly formed in her mind, connecting several incidents.

—Yi Wansan’s father had fallen into the water during a territorial dispute between Five Pearl Village and the neighboring village. Although the old clan chief and his people were contemptible for not saving him, all pearl divers were excellent swimmers. Had he truly drowned, or was there something in the water that had grabbed him, like what happened to Yan Hong Sha, quickly dragging him down?

—Yi Wansan’s mother and the old clan chief had both capsized at sea. According to the description, the location was very similar to where their boat had overturned today. What if it was the same thing causing trouble?

The more she thought about it, the more plausible it seemed. Today, they had escaped danger because only Hong Sha had fallen into the water. She had remained on the boat, desperately pulling, and Luo Ren and his team had arrived in time. But Yi Wansan’s mother and the old clan chief had been in single-person boats. Even though people were watching from the shore, everything happened too suddenly for anyone to rescue them.

Luo Ren had thought of this point as well.

“We need to connect these events. If the power of the Phoenix Luan Buckle guided us to Five Pearl Village, then this must be related to the Death Bamboo Slips. The first Death Bamboo Slip is inside Pin Ting’s body, and I suspect the second one is in the old oyster’s womb.”

Mu Dai nodded.

This would explain many things. The first Death Bamboo Slip, attached to a person, drew out the evil in human hearts. The second Death Bamboo Slip, hidden in the oyster embryo, used the power of the old oyster to cause a series of human tragedies.

Shen Gun had said the Death Bamboo Slips were alive. At the time, she had only partially understood, but now she was beginning to comprehend. In general thinking, the five elements of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth controlled the Death Bamboo Slips. The slips should fear water, but hidden in the oyster embryo, they could instead utilize the old oyster’s power to move freely in water.

“I’ve thought carefully about the incidents that might be related to the second Death Bamboo Slip, and I think they also fit with what Shen Gun said about them rarely acting in public.”

It seemed incredible at first, but upon further thought, it made sense.

These few cases in Five Pearl Village, though occurring “in public,” had their peculiarities.

In the first case, everyone was fighting on boats on the sea, but the oyster was hidden underwater. Separated by the water’s surface, they were in two different worlds. It took advantage of Yi Wansan’s father falling into the water to drag him down at just the right moment, which was why people on the shore saw Yi Wansan’s father “thrashing in the water.”

In the second and third cases, when Yi Wansan’s mother and the old clan chief fell into the water, people on shore saw it happen, but they only saw the “boats overturn.” They couldn’t see the oyster beneath the boats—it was as if invisible.

But Mu Dai’s experience was different. After Hong Sha fell into the water, she held on tightly. Then came the sound of a motor—Luo Ren and his team arrived, and then Luo Ren went into the water. With more people in the water, the old oyster perhaps sensed the risk of exposure and quickly released Yan Hong Sha and sank to the bottom.

So when Luo Ren went into the water, he only rescued them but didn’t see the old oyster—he had deduced its existence from the wounds on Yan Hong Sha’s leg and possibly from her description after she woke up.

Suddenly, Mu Dai thought of something, and her heart skipped a beat.

She had forgotten someone—Yan Jiuxiao!

If the oyster Yan Jiuxiao had seen that night was the same one that had attacked them today, and in the video he had said he wanted to “get closer to take a look,” could something have happened when he got close?

The more she thought about it, the more possible it seemed, especially since Yan Jiuxiao had been alone that night.

She quickly gestured for Luo Ren’s phone and typed out a long passage about the Yan family and Yan Jiuxiao. She was anxious and frequently made typing errors, forcing her to delete and rewrite several times. Just as she was about to finish, the car suddenly stopped.

Looking out the window, she saw a homestyle restaurant.

Luo Ren said, “We’ll reach the hospital soon. Let’s get out and eat something first.”

Only then did Mu Dai realize how hungry she was. All day long, walking on land and soaking in water, she had completely forgotten about eating.

After sitting down in the restaurant, Mu Dai continued to write her message diligently. Luo Ren ordered the food. When she finished writing and looked up, Luo Ren wasn’t across from her but was at the kitchen entrance, saying something to the restaurant owner’s wife.

When he finished and came back, Mu Dai quickly handed him the phone.

Luo Ren read it word by word, his expression somewhat grave. After a while, he put down the phone and lightly tapped his fingers on the corner of the table.

The food arrived, and Luo Ren said, “Let’s eat first.”

Talking about it might affect their appetite; better to wait until after she has eaten.

The dishes were all light, but Mu Dai’s throat made swallowing difficult. She ate in small bites, frequently drinking water or soup to help—just how badly had she shouted? At the time, she had been extremely nervous. Now thinking back, she had no impression at all. Why hadn’t Luo Ren and the others taken a video to show her? It would have been quite a memorable keepsake.

As they were finishing their meal, Luo Ren spoke again.

“The bodies of Yi Wansan’s father, mother, and the old clan chief were all recovered later. This means that if it were that oyster causing trouble, it harms people but doesn’t… eat them. To find out if something happened to Yan Jiuxiao, we’d need to search the sea floor.”

So, Yan Jiuxiao’s body might be at the bottom of the sea?

Mu Dai couldn’t help but shudder.

The restaurant owner’s wife came over with a plastic takeout container. Mu Dai thought it was for Yan Hong Sha, but the owner’s wife looked at her and smiled: “They say there’s a girl who shouted herself hoarse—that would be you, right?”

Great, even the restaurant owner’s wife knew about it. Mu Dai glared at Luo Ren: Aren’t you rich? Why not put an ad on Central TV saying I’m afraid of death and shout for help until I lose my voice? Thanks for making me famous.

The owner’s wife handed her the container: “This is our local remedy—vinegar-dressed white fungus. Eat some every day, and your voice will be back in two days. In the past, people who shouted at sea and damaged their voices would eat this as a meal.”

Oh, really? Mu Dai felt somewhat embarrassed but quickly accepted it.

It was already very late when they arrived at the hospital. Yan Hong Sha wasn’t asleep yet. She was lying in bed, flipping through a small magazine left by a previous patient. When she suddenly saw Mu Dai enter, she was overjoyed and sat up in one swift movement, not at all like a “patient” who needed rest.

She expressed her gratitude to Mu Dai: “Although I was nearly drowned, I remember that you held onto me and wouldn’t let go. I was so moved. At that moment, I thought that if I died, I would visit my grandfather in his dreams and tell him to give you a raise.”

Having survived the ordeal, Yan Hong Sha chattered away, truly a little chatterbox. After thanking Mu Dai, she thanked Luo Ren, with the central message being: repayment! More money!

Mu Dai secretly felt that being unable to speak wasn’t so bad. This way, she didn’t have to politely decline with “No need, no need,” but could just smile, as if encouraging Yan Hong Sha to give her more money.

Luo Ren came over to ask Yan Hong Sha’s opinion. The hospital environment was ordinary, and the smell was strong. When Yan Hong Sha heard they could leave, she approved with both hands. If her leg hadn’t been hurting so much, she might have raised her legs in approval, too.

Luo Ren went to make preparations and instructed Mu Dai not to wander off. While he was giving instructions, Yan Hong Sha was watching from the side. As soon as Luo Ren left, she grabbed Mu Dai and asked: “Who is he? Do you know him? When you said you’d call someone for help, was it him?”

Mu Dai nodded.

“What’s your relationship with him? Are you boyfriend and girlfriend?”

Not yet, probably. After all, she hadn’t agreed that time, and then…

Then, after their conversation that night, followed by the incident of Pin Ting being possessed again, she and Luo Ren seemed to have regressed rather than progressed in their relationship.

But surely Luo Ren treated her differently from others?

Mu Dai lowered her eyelashes, neither nodding nor shaking her head.

Yan Hong Sha guessed: “Mutual attraction? Vague feelings? One-sided love? Developing?”

That was pretty close. She exclaimed: “What a close call!”

Close call for what? Mu Dai wondered.

“I almost had feelings for him, you know?” she explained. “Think about it—he’s handsome, he saved me, all my luggage fell into the water, I had no money for the hospital, he paid without hesitation, and also, when he was bleeding me…”

When he was bleeding her, she had been in great pain and had looked at the three-edged needle in Luo Ren’s hand with tears in her eyes. Luo Ren had told her, “Turn your head to the side. Don’t look.”

His voice was deep and steady, with little inflection, yet very calming. Her heart had suddenly stirred, and she had obediently turned her head to the side.

Fortunately, she hadn’t taken another step down the wrong path, but feeling heartbroken before even falling in love was still inevitably sad. Yan Hong Sha covered her heart: “I need to lie down. My heart hurts. I’ll need five minutes to recover.”

She was talking to herself, and Mu Dai was both amused and exasperated. Yan Hong Sha lay down for over a minute, then turned her head to look at Mu Dai resentfully: “It’s no use, Mu Dai, you need to make me feel better. Can I cancel the raise?”

Mu Dai’s eyes widened. She reached out, pressed Yan Hong Sha’s head, and turned her face toward the wall.

Yan Hong Sha strained her neck, feeling dejected: Truly a loss of both money and love.