I asked Chen Kejiao, "Can we go in now?"
Chen Kejiao said incredulously, "How did you open the door? If you used a password, you would have to enter a set of numbers after you got in, otherwise the door to the secret room would close automatically. But now that you've smashed the door, it doesn't matter. However, the police will be here soon."
Yes, this dark room was only for security purposes. Chen Kejiao's father probably never expected that a group of thieves, each capable of lifting a thousand pounds, would break in using the most primitive method.
I told Chen Kejiao, "From now on, we're even." I was already very grateful for her help; you know, if an investigation were to go on, the burglary of such a well-hidden room would definitely implicate her, the former homeowner. However, her willingness to help me might not be without some dark motive. We always want to keep something good; if it becomes someone else's plaything for various reasons, we might even wish it would suddenly become terrible. Like a woman's ex-husband, the moment he receives the divorce certificate, he probably wishes she would immediately start snoring, grow leg hair, and eat garlic with every meal…
Xiang Yu stepped inside and carried out a large vat, which was probably the giant flowerpot Pang Wanchun had mentioned. Inside was a cluster of tiny yellow flowers, no bigger than the palm of a hand. I asked, "Is this the Temptation Grass? Doesn't it need sunlight in here?"
Pang Wanchun stopped the crowd that was crowding forward, and carefully parted the cluster of small yellow flowers one by one, revealing a green leaf hidden among them. The leaf was very thick, somewhat like a cactus, but without thorns. As soon as the leaf was revealed, people immediately smelled a strange and refreshing fragrance.
Pang Wanchun said, "This leaf is the real star. People often say that green leaves set off red flowers. This is the opposite."
I said, "Take him away, get out of here quickly, the police are coming soon."
Xiang Yu hoisted the herbs onto his shoulder and was about to leave. I quickly stopped him, saying, "There's no room in the cart, and it'll be too conspicuous." I knew he was so concerned because of Yu Ji's medicine, so I watched them dig up the herbs and asked Pang Wanchun, "How many pills can be made from this patch of herbs?"
"One herb, one medicine."
"Damn, no wonder 'Fighting Against Heaven' took me so long to recover the Four Heavenly Kings. It turns out this medicine is really hard to come by. What do we do now that we have the herb? Do you know its recipe?"
Pang Wanchun shrugged: "How could I possibly know? I've only heard that it's the main ingredient in that medicine."
By this time, everyone had hurriedly dug out most of the small yellow flower along its stem. This tiny cluster of flowers had a stem that was three or four meters long, and its roots were incredibly intricate and sprawling. Xiang Yu carefully held the flower, the long stem drooping down like a giant squid. No wonder it could survive in the dark; it seemed to need little sunlight, relying entirely on an astonishing amount of nutrients to live.
Someone found a bag, filled it with soil, and stuck the flowers in it. Xiang Yu asked, "Won't they die on the way?"
I said, "Let's not worry about that now, let's go."
We rushed out. The car that brought us here had already left. Of these fifty or sixty people, only Dai Zong was able to escape. The police would definitely cover this place up soon, and there was nowhere to get a taxi here.
Wang Yin brandished a key in his hand and said, "If you're not afraid of getting dirty, you can ride in my car."
We followed his hand and saw that his truck was parked outside the villa. I was the first to climb onto the back of the truck and pull Zhang Shun, who had difficulty moving, up. Then the rest of us jumped on. The truck had just finished hauling coal, and everything it touched was covered in black soot. As more people joined in, those who got on first had to crouch down. By the time everyone was on, the truck was packed like sardines in a can.
Wang Yin then pulled the canvas over our heads and said, "If I don't cover you up, people will see us and we'll be exposed."
Suddenly everything went black, and we couldn't see anything anymore. Some people started laughing and joking, and then we heard Li Kui shout, "Who flicked my head?" Someone nearby said, "It wasn't me..." Li Kui yelled again, "Damn it, I bet it's either that Pang guy or that brat Hua Rong, he's even wearing a thumb ring!" Pang Wanchun and Hua Rong called out from afar, "It wasn't me!"
Black Whirlwind asked in surprise, "If it's not these two, who else is wearing a thumb ring?"
Someone kindly suggested, "Maybe it was Third Sister who flicked it while wearing a thimble..."
Li Kui retorted, "Bullshit, why would she flick my finger?"
All that could be heard was Hu Sanniang's fierce retort: "Who gave you permission to touch me?"
Everyone paused for a moment, then let out a long "Oh—" sound, and someone chuckled mischievously.
Li Kui stood there speechless for a long while, and when he finally spoke again, everyone could tell he was feeling awkward and uncomfortable. He said, "Who is this? Her chest is bigger than mine..."
And so, in the darkness, people started poking and stomping at each other. I huddled in a corner, hugging my knees, feeling utterly dejected. Were these really the heroes of old? I remember doing this in the darkroom during our elementary school physical exams.
However, this is much better than I imagined. At first, I was really afraid that the heroes and the Four Heavenly Kings would take this opportunity to fight each other to the death.
Just then, someone next to me called out, "Where's Xiaoqiang? Why isn't he making a sound?"
I knew this guy was probably trying to harm me, so I didn't say anything. Instead, I quietly stood up the shovel that was lying in the corner and stabbed the guy hard in the back with the handle. Judging from the voice, the man seemed to be Zhu Wu. I heard him clutch his back and yell, "Zhang Shun, you wait until I get off the bus and settle the score with you!"
Zhang Shun's voice: "I didn't touch you."
"Bullshit! Who else uses crutches besides you..."
When the car arrived at the school, Wang Yin lifted the canvas, and everyone, all looking like dark-skinned monkeys, looked at each other in the sunlight and burst into laughter.
Xiang Yu clutched the flower tightly to his chest. Now, having gotten off the carriage, he didn't even bother to wash his face. He first grabbed a shovel, dug a deep hole in the flowerbed in front of the dormitory building, carefully planted the flower, and then actually moved a stool over and sat down to watch. I was sweating bullets and went up to him, saying, "Brother Yu, you don't have to look at it like that, do you?"
Xiang Yu stared at the flower bed without blinking and said to me, "Just tell someone to send me a few steamed buns. This time, I absolutely cannot lose any more."
I said, "When will you finish watching? And what about when you need to go to the bathroom?"
Xiang Yu thought for a moment but didn't answer me. I was really afraid he'd end up carrying the flower bed to the toilet. It's not that he's incapable of doing something like that; when it comes to matters concerning Yu Ji, his intelligence isn't much better than Er Sha's.
During this time, An Daoquan came and scraped some pollen and sap from the leaves, intending to study them further, but Xiang Yu sternly stopped him. It seems he didn't quite trust An Daoquan's medical skills. However, this was the only option at the moment, because none of us knew what the side effects of simply eating this herb would be.
I had no choice but to walk back alone. Halfway there, I saw a crowd gathered at the Film and Television Road. It's always like this here; whenever a film crew uses a studio, onlookers and those hoping to become extras to earn some extra money will crowd around.
I just glanced at it casually, but I didn't expect that the blackboard hanging outside the studio had the words "The Legend of Li Shishi" written on it.
I'd better check this out. I haven't visited Li Shishi's set since she started her acting career. I parked my car on the side of the road and swaggered inside. A security guard who was over 1.9 meters tall pushed me and said, "Really going in?"
I knew this guy was probably already annoyed by this group of people who were trying to take every opportunity to provoke him, so I wasn't angry and said, "I'm a friend of your boss, Mr. Jin."
The security guard said, "I don't know any Mr. Jin!"
I realized that the security guard probably didn't recognize Jin Shaoyan; he was likely hired by the venue rental company. Just as I was thinking about who to call, Xiao Mandou—the assistant director of "The Rangers of the Qin Dynasty"—who had lent me a horse, walked past me.
I hurriedly waved and shouted, "Director Man—Director Man—"
The security guard yelled at me, "What are you shouting for?"
Xiao Mandou frowned and glanced over when she heard someone shout. I continued waving, "Director Man, it's me!"
Xiao Mandou walked over quickly, looked me up and down for a moment, and smiled, "It's you!"
The security guard saw that we knew each other and had no choice but to let me in.
I held Xiao Mandou's hand and said, "Director Man, is that documentary filmed now?"