Tomb raiding: A mere 20 is nothing!

That was quite an unexpected answer.

Even the well-traveled fat man took a long time to react. But then, thinking about how ruthless the girl was when she killed the monster, it didn't seem so hard to understand.

that……

Shouldn't he make some preparations?

The fat man looked serious, stroking his chin in deep thought.

This piqued Shen Mingchao's curiosity, and he turned to ask, "Fatty, what are you thinking about?"

"I'm thinking I should go to the market tomorrow and get some deer antler, eucommia bark, cinnamon, and stuff like that, to make a nourishing soup and a pot of medicinal wine. We've known each other for so many years, I can't let my brother down in this regard, I have to make sure he gets everything he needs!"

Shen Mingchao:?

Is this something I can say openly and honestly in front of her?

I thought that given the fat man's age, he would find it hard to accept and would think she was joking. Unexpectedly, not only did she not question it, but she was already planning to help him improve his health.

She was both amused and exasperated.

The atmosphere lightened, and she casually teased, "As expected of you, Fat Mom, you're really loyal."

"Of course, the Ming Dynasty, I'm not bragging, back in the day I was—"

The fat man froze halfway through his sentence.

"What do you call me?!"

"Fat Mom," Shen Mingchao said matter-of-factly.

Upon hearing this address again, the fat man shuddered violently, his face turning ashen, and he repeatedly waved his hands in refusal.

"No, no, no, Mingchao, please don't joke with me. How can I, a grown man, be called 'Mom'?"

Seeing this, Shen Mingchao finally laughed and explained the truth: "I'm not joking, Fatty. In my world, there are really a lot of people who call you that."

"Hmm... it's probably a nickname for you. It makes you seem warm-hearted, always worrying about Wu Xie and the others, and you're a great cook. You give off a feeling of being a mother."

"But if you don't like it, I won't call you that anymore."

Joking aside, Shen Mingchao respects personal wishes more.

After listening to Shen Mingchao's words, the fat man remained silent for a long time, mainly because the amount of information in his words was too great.

During the previous confession session, the Zhang family member named Zhang Haixia vaguely hinted that there was a huge difference between their world and Shen Mingchao's world.

He was skeptical at the time.

He still doesn't quite believe it.

"Sister... Sister, don't blame me for being nosy, but I've seen all sorts of strange things in my life, but I've never seen anything like this. Just tell me one thing: are you really from another world?"

Shen Mingchao nodded: "Yes, it's another world. But a more accurate way to put it is that it's like transmigrating into a book."

"Transmigrated into a book?" Fatty chuckled self-deprecatingly. "The Ming Dynasty? I'm so ignorant, I don't quite understand what you're saying."

The sky in the distance is already beginning to lighten, just the right time to speak frankly and openly. Keeping secrets in your heart can be tiring.

She smiled and said, "In other words, what happened to you is a book in my world."

The fat guy's brain went blank.

What surprised him even more than knowing that Shen Mingchao and they were from different worlds was that his own world was a book.

My worldview collapsed at that moment.

The fat man became agitated, filled with disbelief: "So my entire life has been written by someone else? We're just characters on a page?"

"Fatty—"

Shen Mingchao met the fat man's gaze and said firmly, "The characters in books are fictional characters depicted by words, but the people I've met are living, breathing people."

"Besides, who isn't a puppet on a string, guided by fate? Me too. I came to this strange world without warning, not knowing why, and not knowing who to reason with."

At this point, she shrugged: "So, Fatty, don't get too attached to appearances."

The fat man was stunned for a long time, then finally chuckled helplessly: "At such a young age, you see things very clearly and you're quite good at giving advice."

He let out a long sigh, and once he was completely at ease, a wicked idea popped into his head.

He tentatively began, "The Ming Dynasty..."

"Um?"

"I'm just curious, does that book end with me, Fatty, making a fortune?"

"..."

You really haven't forgotten your original aspirations, Fatty.

Shen Mingchao shook his head mechanically.

The fat man's face immediately fell: "Didn't you make a fortune?"

"No," Shen Mingchao said with a helpless expression, "It's not finished yet, I don't know either."

"Depend on!"

Who would have thought it was for this reason? All that anticipation for nothing.

After hesitating for a while, the fat man waved his hand nonchalantly: "Forget it, I'm getting old. Having a group of brothers who have been through thick and thin with me, running a few shops, and living out the rest of my life in peace is enough. Making a fortune or not, that's all just wishful thinking."

"but--"

His tone suddenly changed, his expression softened, his playful smile faded, and a genuine tenderness appeared.

He raised his hand and ruffled Shen Mingchao's hair.

"She's just a young girl who's only come of age. She must feel very lost coming to this unfamiliar world."

Upon hearing this, Shen Mingchao felt a slight tingling in his nose and nodded gently: "A little."

"Silly child," the fat man sighed softly, his voice full of heartache, "You've suffered so much."

A surge of warmth welled up in my eyes starting from those words.

Shen Mingchao turned his head away, blinked upwards, and swallowed back the grievance that was about to overflow.

"It's alright, it's all in the past now."

"Besides, I have a direction now."

Shen Mingchao stood up.

The heavy darkness of night completely faded away, and the golden dawn spread across the sky, dispelling all the confusion.

Having a goal is equivalent to having hope.

A clear light shone in her eyes: "My family told me the truth is in the Blind Cemetery!"

Just then, footsteps sounded behind them.