Tomb raiding: A mere 20 is nothing!

In early February, after finishing all her work, Shen Mingchao began packing her bags, preparing to return to Yucun for the New Year. But to her surprise, there were quite a few people traveling with her.

First, Xie Yuchen told her that he and Xiuxiu had decided to spend the New Year in Yucun, and that they could keep each other company on the way.

As the three were debating whether to fly or drive, Hei Xiazi, whom they hadn't seen in a long time, suddenly sent a message saying that he had finished his work and settled the final payment. He heard that they were planning to go to Yucun for the New Year and asked if they could take him along, as he could drive.

At the same time, Qi Qiu called, saying that he had bought study materials and wanted to go back to Yucun with him. He didn't have many relatives in Beijing, and it would be too lonely for him to live alone.

Shen Mingchao thought about the family fortune he had in hand and agreed.

That wasn't the end of it. In the afternoon, Aluminum Triangle also came to her. Su Wan started it all, crying and telling her that his parents had gone abroad for vacation, and that he was now the epitome of what people online say: parents are true love, and children are an accident. He was so pitiful.

Shen Mingchao nodded, ruthlessly exposing him: "Yeah, you're a prime example of all talk and no action."

"Huh? Is it that obvious?" Su Wan said, pulling a bottle of eye drops from his pocket and putting two drops into his eyes in front of everyone. Then, he pouted and wailed again, "My master has abandoned me too. Tomorrow, you certainly don't want me to spend New Year's Eve alone in my room, right?"

Shen Mingchao looked completely bewildered: "Wait, 'alone in an empty room'? Is that how you use that phrase?"

"Of course not." Li Cu grabbed Su Wan's neck and said in a sinister tone, "I recorded what you just said and sent it to your master. You're welcome, Wanzi."

Su Wan's eyes widened, and he gritted his teeth, saying, "Ya Li, we've been brothers for years, and you're trying to sabotage me like this?"

At the same time, Su Wan's phone rang, like a death knell, and he didn't dare to answer it at all.

Li Chu maintained his fake smile: "Your master is calling, Wan Zi, why aren't you answering?"

Although Li Chu completely agreed with Su Wan's statement that Hei Xiazi was old, he wouldn't say it to his face.

He can talk nonsense to Wu Xie to his heart's content. As for Hei Xiazi, that guy is ruthless and doesn't know his own strength when he strikes. You should think twice before messing with him.

At this moment, Su Wan was already calculating in his mind how much money he would need to survive against Hei Xiazi.

He glanced at the culprit and vowed to stick with his brother through thick and thin, so after answering the phone, he said directly, "Master, name your price and give me a good beating."

Hei Xiazi had already uttered half of his swear words, but upon hearing this, he swallowed them back and laughed instead.

"Payment? No problem. Second apprentice, don't worry, once I see Li Chu, I'll squeeze him into pear juice. By the way, I'll go ask Wu Xie if he'll add more to this job."

"Hey—" Li Cu snatched the phone, roaring, "Don't treat me like a tool for making money!!"

"Young man, don't be too hot-tempered. It's your honor." Hei Xiazi chuckled and suggested, "How about this, I'll keep the second apprentice's money, and we'll split Wu Xie's share. If you contribute a little more, I'll go easy on you."

Li Chu was utterly speechless: "You fucking eat three different kinds of food? Have you no conscience?"

Black Bear's laughter grew even more grating: "Without conscience, wouldn't they make even more money?"

"Damn it!" Li Chu rolled his eyes so hard they almost reached the sky.

"No way! I'll raise the stakes, make sure it's highlighted—" Su Wan reached out to grab the phone, but failed, so he had to shout loudly into the phone.

Li Cu held up his phone, dodging Su Wan while gritting his teeth and saying, "Are you out of your mind? Hiring outsiders to mess with your brother. Can't we fight each other? Why do we have to let a middleman make the difference? And such a heartless one at that!"

"That's because I can't beat you!"

While the two were bickering so fiercely that they seemed oblivious to everyone else, another person present quietly sneaked into the enemy base.

Yang Hao moved closer to Shen Mingchao and gently tugged at the corner of his sleeve with two fingers.

Shen Mingchao, who was enjoying the play, felt a pulling sensation and turned his head to ask, "Brother, what's wrong?"

"I..." Yang Hao had only managed to say one word when he lowered his head, squeezing out the rest of his words like toothpaste: "I live alone in my family."

Shen Mingchao understood. She smiled and said softly, "We don't need anyone's permission for this. Go if you want. It's the New Year, after all, it's all about having a good time."

"Okay." Yang Hao finally looked up, met Shen Mingchao's gaze, and said with a smile, "Then I'll set off the biggest and most dazzling fireworks."

No sooner had he finished speaking than a cell phone slammed straight into Yang Hao's forehead, causing him to cry out in pain.

"Ahem—" Li Cu spread his hands: "Sorry, Su Wan pushed me and I lost my grip."

"Ah! My phone!" Su Wan rushed over, carefully picked up his phone from the ground, and after checking it carefully, he found that the screen wasn't broken. He breathed a sigh of relief: "Thank goodness."

Shen Mingchao looked at Li Cu and asked with concern, "And what about you, brother?"

Li Chu fell silent, a rare occurrence for him. He couldn't possibly abandon his mother, who was just recovering from a serious illness, to spend the New Year elsewhere, so he forced a smile and said, "I won't go. I'll wait until after the New Year."

At this point, the number of people on this return trip has reached 7.

When they set off, Shen Mingchao and Huo Xiuxiu sat in the back seat of Hei Xiazi's car, while Xie Yuchen was in the passenger seat.

Qi Qiu originally wanted Shen Mingchao to ride in his car, but ultimately lost to his overwhelming strength. After Shen Mingchao spoke up, he reluctantly let Su Wan and Yang Hao sit in the back seat.

The two cars set off one after the other. After a short while, Hei Xiazi noticed something was wrong. He could clearly see in his rearview mirror that there was another car following them.

He tensed up instantly. He had just told Xie Yuchen about this and was planning to have the Xie family investigate when Shen Mingchao in the back seat turned around and saw a familiar car body and license plate number.

"No need, I know who it is."

"Who is it?" Huo Xiuxiu asked curiously.

"It's Brother Ke and his group." Shen Mingchao waved his phone. "Brother Zhang just messaged me saying they're going back to spend the New Year with the clan chief, and they're going the same way as us."

After parking the car at the service area, Hei Xiazi saw two ladies get out of the back seat and scoffed, asking Xie Yuchen, "Just passing by? Do you believe that?"

Do you think I believe you?

"What should we do then?"

Xie Yuchen shrugged: "Whatever."

Then he looked up and gestured to Black Bear: "If you can afford to offend the Zhang family, then go ahead."

Black Bear: "......."

He's capable of taking on one person at a time, but taking on three at a time is still quite difficult.

So, the two cars returning to Yucun became three cars.

Not long after they got back on the road, Hei Xiazi noticed another car following them. Fearing he might have misunderstood, he observed it for a while before finally confirming that the car was indeed following them.

After slowing down, he called out to let Shen Mingchao take a look at the car, but Shen Mingchao said he didn't recognize it.

Just as Hei Xiazi was about to ask Xie Yuchen to investigate, Xie Yuchen unexpectedly said that he knew the person.