"Has your husband been acting strangely or differently lately?" Senior executive Lan asked.
Li Qingyuan's wife glanced at Lan Gaofeng and realized from his fluent Mandarin that he was not from Luoyang.
Li Qingyuan's wife thought for a while, then shook her head and said, "Nothing is particularly different. It's similar to before. When there's work to do, he goes out in the early morning and comes back around four or five o'clock. I remember that night, he went out an hour or two earlier than usual. It seemed like he took his tool bag and a bundle of rope after ten o'clock. He didn't come back until after five o'clock in the morning, almost dawn. However, he didn't bring anything back, but he seemed quite excited. After he came back and went to sleep, I took the children to school and then went to my sister's house. I didn't come back until three or four o'clock in the afternoon. My husband is a night owl. He sleeps during the day and doesn't get up to eat until the afternoon. When he's not working at night, he doesn't sleep either. He either plays cards and gambles with acquaintances or watches videos at home."
The Blue executive asked a few more questions, but didn't get any leads. He also felt that Li Qingyuan's wife's words were fairly credible, and there was no reason for her to lie. Her house had been ransacked, and if things went well, she might be left the property out of consideration for her being a widow and orphan, instead of having it confiscated. Otherwise, she wouldn't even have a place to live.
It seemed there wouldn't be any valuable clues. The senior executive gave Ling Hui a wink, and Ling Hui stood up and said, "Alright, that's enough for today. Let's go back to the station. If anything comes up or you remember anything, please call this number."
Ling Hui then gave her a business card with only her phone number on it.
Back at the Los Angeles Grand Hotel, everyone gathered in Lan Gaofeng's room. Li Jinlong, Li Feihu, Li Quan, and Wang Degui squeezed onto the sofa by the coffee table. Li Yong and Fang Jianjun sat opposite them, while Lan Gaofeng sat on the only single sofa.
Zhou Xuan and Ling Hui sat down on the edge of the bed.
This is probably the first time we've held a relatively formal meeting.
Lan Gaozhang said to Li Jinlong, "Li Jinlong, your Li family has been searching for the location of the treasure in the ancient city of Yanshi for generations. I think it would be better if you shared your thoughts."
Li Jinlong was a burly man with a dark complexion, perhaps from too much tomb raiding and digging underground. But given his long-term nocturnal lifestyle and lack of sunlight, his skin should have been fair. However, Zhou Xuan couldn't figure it out; it was just a guess, and there was no need to understand it.
Li Jinlong stroked his chin, pondered for a moment, and then said, "My ancestors were searching for this treasure. Actually, it wasn't just our Li family searching; many others were also interested in this ancient treasure, including some with exceptional skills and craftsmanship. But for 3,600 years, through dozens of dynasties, countless skilled craftsmen have practically turned the entire land of Yanshi upside down, yet they still haven't found the treasure. To be honest, I even doubt the treasure's authenticity. And what our Li family passed down from our ancestors was merely a diagram of a mechanism, not a treasure map!" To find out what happens next, please log in… Jin Xinxin, more chapters, support the author, support genuine reading.
Volume 1, Chapter 94: Finding a Clue
Erjinlong is the most outstanding among the many heroes in the weeping journey. His lifelong yearning is for the hidden treasures hidden deep within his heart.
"Currently, there's a rumor that Li Xinyuan has found a great treasure. The person who revealed this information said they weren't entirely sure, but Li Xinyuan sold several ancient artifacts from the Shang and Zhou dynasties in the early hours of last Friday, which was the day before yesterday. That's why this speculation has spread, and now Luoyang and Yanshi are in an uproar, with experts from all over gathering. Although things seem the same on the surface, there are many more dealers dealing in cultural relics than before."
Lan Gaofeng naturally had little interest in antique dealers and tomb raiders; what he cared about was the location of the treasure, namely the ancient city ruins of Shixianggou in Yanshi. That was the key.
Li Jinlong pondered for a moment and then said, "To be honest, I have some doubts and some beliefs about Li Xinyuan and his group finding the treasure's location. My doubts stem from the fact that, as you all know, something that hasn't been found for thousands of years isn't so easily discovered. Of course, I do believe in two things: firstly, Li Xinyuan sold several antiques from the Shang and Zhou dynasties; secondly, his sudden death. In this world, it's common for people to die for wealth, and birds to die for food. Even an innocent man can be guilty of possessing a treasure; great wealth naturally comes with great risk."
To be honest, although Li Jinlong was very skeptical about whether Li Xinyuan had actually found the treasure, the fact that all seven members of their gang were dead, including the Zhongran man who had attacked them, aroused his great curiosity. It was indeed like finding a treasure that had brought him trouble.
The treasure was indeed a deadly weapon, both alluring and incredibly dangerous. But just as he was feeling excited about it, he never expected to be caught up in a massacre by the police.
Those in their line of work are essentially walking a tightrope; they could be caught any day now. If they capsize, given the shady dealings they engage in, getting back out will be incredibly difficult. So when Li Quan went back and told Li Jinlong about the conditions offered by the Blue High-ups, he immediately made a decision. However, he also resented Li Quan for being spineless and spilling the beans. Although the police might already have a grasp of these matters, hearing it from one of their own made him feel indignant. If Li Quan weren't his own nephew, he would have loved to gouge out his eyes.
The cooperation with the Lan high-ranking officials made Li Jinlong both happy and uneasy. Dealing with the government was one of the things they disliked the most. Firstly, there was no guarantee of anything, and secondly, he had no other choice but to bite the bullet and continue. He hoped that the Lan high-ranking officials were trustworthy and that they would be able to find the treasure and obtain a portion of it so that he could be cut off from his previous life.
Seeing that there wasn't much progress, the senior executives at Lan frowned and said, "It's late, everyone should rest first. We'll make plans again tomorrow. Li Yong, get them four more rooms."
Ling Hui followed Li Jinlong and the others out of Lan Gaofeng's room. She was also very curious as to why Lan Gaofeng and his group were always dealing with tomb raiders and antique dealers.
Lan Gaozhang sat on the sofa, listening to a recording of his conversation with Li Xinyuan's wife, which he had made at Li Xinyuan's home. Zhou Xuan smiled and said, "Lan Gaozhang, could I listen to this recording tonight? I have nothing to do anyway, so I'll see if I can glean anything useful from it."
The senior executive nodded and handed him the recorder, saying, "Here, take this and get some rest!"
Zhou Xuan returned to his room and lay on the bed, listening carefully several times, but still had no clue. He simply started practicing his breathing and internal energy, circulating the icy energy within his body. The icy energy recovered to about 50-60% of its original level. He couldn't help but feel a little shocked. The deathly aura in that miniature coffin was truly formidable. In the past, after he depleted his icy energy, he would fully recover the next day after practicing the breathing and internal energy techniques for one night. This time, however, two days had passed, and the icy energy had only recovered to about 60%. One could imagine how powerful that thing was. No wonder he felt extremely uncomfortable whenever he smelled that aura.
The next morning, just after seven o'clock, Zhou Xuan was thinking of calling Brother Hong to ask when he would arrive, but Wei Haihong had already arrived!
He was picked up by the brothers Wang Qiang and Wang Sheng. Zhou Xuan had called him yesterday, and he had contacted the two brothers. With Wei Haihong vouching for him, the Wang brothers naturally trusted him.
In Lan Gao's room, Wei Haihong met with him. Lan Gao smiled and hugged him, saying, "Third brother, thank you for your help."
“We’re all family, why bother with all that?” Wei Haihong said with a smile. “Besides, the main reason I came is because of Xiaoqing, the old man is worried about her.”
Then Wei Haihong introduced him to the brothers Wang Qiang and Wang Sheng.
The senior executive shook hands with the two brothers. From the information he had gathered, he also knew that the Wang brothers' reputation was not solely due to Wei Laosan's influence, and he treated them with considerable courtesy.
Wei Haihong left the Wang brothers behind to talk with the higher-ups at Lan. He then went to Wei Xiaoqing's room with Zhou Xuan.
Zhou Xuan gently knocked on their room door, and Fu Ying opened it.
With a dark expression, Min Ye spoke sharply. Wei Xiaoqi was lying on the bed, her face grim. She said, "Uncle, don't try to persuade me. No matter what, I have to find out the reason for this!"
Wei Xiaoqing's stubbornness left Wei Haihong at a loss. He knew he couldn't force this niece; what happened over a year ago was a lesson in self-defense!
After glaring for a while, Wei Haihong sighed and then softened, saying, "Xiaoqing, you're all grown up now. You're not the little girl who used to follow your uncle around all day acting spoiled. Your uncle isn't here to force you, but Grandpa is worried about you and wants your uncle to come and keep an eye on you. You can investigate, but you can't interfere with other people's business. I'm also familiar with the Lan executives. How about this?"
Wei Haihong thought for a moment and then said, "I'll talk to the higher-ups at Blue. I'll take you with me. We'll follow them as they do things, but we can't interfere. You can only watch. Is that okay?"
Wei Xiaoqing sat up abruptly in bed, smiling broadly, and said, "My uncle is still the best to me!"
Wei Haihong scoffed, "Don't try that on me!"
Zhou Xuan pulled Fu Ying into his room, sat on the bed, and, looking at Fu Ying's shy face, couldn't help but kiss her on the cheek.
Fu Ying was even more shy, but she did not refuse.
Seeing that her face was really red, Zhou Xuan stopped bothering her, got up, took a can of drink, opened it, poured half of it into a glass, and then handed it to Fu Ying.
Fu Ying took a small sip, and the icy drink did reduce the blush on her face somewhat.
After a while, she asked softly, "Zhou Xuan, has there been any progress in your matter?"
Zhou Xuan shook his head and sighed, "Any progress? No progress at all. This is nothing like the last time I went with you to the sinkhole and the Yin River. Your grandfather had been there before and knew the address. We just had to bring everything and go directly there. This time, there's not even a trace of it. Who knows where the treasure city is?"
Zhou Xuan was somewhat troubled, unsure how long he would have to wait, but he couldn't stop. Fu Ying also sighed and said softly, "Don't worry, there's always a way out. No matter how great the danger, what's meant to come will come, and what's meant to go will go. Throughout history, haven't there been countless dangerous events? And yet, the world is still perfectly fine!"
Fu Ying knew how to comfort people. Zhou Xuan smiled and said, "That's true. What's the use of thinking about what we can't get through? Everyone says 2012 is the end of the world. Hehe, could it be because of this?"
Fu Ying smiled and shook her head. "You're too imaginative. There aren't that many surprises in the world. The only surprise I had was what happened in the sinkhole last time. Actually, when we were hanging on the ropes going down into the sinkhole from that cliff, I was thinking, 'Will this be the end of the world?' But look, we're still perfectly fine, aren't we?"
Zhou Xuan paused, somewhat moved by Fu Ying's words. A thought seemed to be lingering in his mind, like a loose thread that he couldn't quite grasp. It felt strongly connected to the treasure, but he couldn't quite place it!