Tomb raiding: A mere 20 is nothing!

Shen Mingchao fell silent.

Zhang Haiyan, who is usually very active, was unusually silent at this moment. He had one hand on the steering wheel, but his eyes kept glancing to the side.

He could feel his heart pounding uncontrollably, like a fish out of water, thrashing about with such force that it almost burst out of his throat.

The long silence was finally broken by Shen Mingchao. After thinking for a long time and finding that she really couldn't figure it out, she simply threw her mind to business and started rewarding herself.

So Zhang Haiyan watched as Shen Mingchao finished a whole ear of corn, ate an egg tart, devoured a bag of potato chips, ate a peach, and finally downed most of a cup of fruit tea. He was currently sucking on a lollipop.

Shen Mingchao's situation was exactly the opposite; this commotion was one-sided, belonging to him alone from beginning to end.

Zhang Haiyan unconsciously stirred the razor blade in his mouth, suddenly wanting to stab himself from an hour ago.

You didn't believe me, and now look what happened—you've got yourself into this mess and you're happy now.

The key point is that he brought this on himself, and anyone who comes here will tell him he "deserved it".

Just as Zhang Haiyan was feeling frustrated, a sweet female voice reached his ears: "Uncle, would you like some chewing gum?"

Shen Mingchao noticed early on that the driver was acting strangely; he seemed to be chewing something and his eyes kept drifting in her direction. After thinking for a moment, she figured it was probably chewing gum or betel nut.

She absolutely does not eat betel nuts; they are carcinogenic, and she would never touch them.

But she really did have a lot of chewing gum. No matter what the uncle was eating, he would give her a piece of chewing gum while he was driving her around; it was just a convenient thing to do.

A brand new green arrow appeared in sight.

Zhang Haiyan looked down, hesitated for a moment, and then accepted it: "Thank you."

He roughly guessed what Shen Mingchao had misunderstood.

only....

He can't tell the truth.

Whether it's the razor blade in his mouth, his identity, or some more hidden emotions, they should all be kept to themselves.

After a brief interlude, the car became quiet again for the second half of the journey.

The driver, who had been chatting away just moments before, suddenly became aloof, which made Shen Mingchao feel a little uncomfortable.

A flicker of curiosity crossed my mind, but I didn't intend to delve into it; after all, they were just strangers passing by.

Feeling utterly bored, Shen Mingchao opened the sinful shopping app and started buying, buying, buying.

Like the protagonists of those post-apocalyptic novels, she transmigrated into a completely new world. From daily necessities to all kinds of clothing, there were countless things she needed to buy.

Time flew by during that challenge.

After Shen Mingchao had his eyes dazzled by the choices, he finally put down his phone and rubbed his aching temples, only to realize that the car had already left the highway.

Looking out the car window, the distant mountains stretch endlessly, truly befitting Fujian, a place of strategic importance.

She remembered when the hairpin fire in Quanzhou happened, she and Shen Mingyue were still in high school. Because of their heavy workload and long commute, they added the incident to their shared wish list, thinking that they would have time to complete it after graduation.

Looking back now, it's clear that life is unpredictable; who knows whether tomorrow or the future will come first?

A faint sense of melancholy washed over him, and Shen Mingchao sighed unconsciously.

This extremely soft sigh did not escape the ears of Zhang Haiyan, who had been secretly observing.

He finally couldn't help but speak up, putting on a kind-hearted look and saying casually, "What's wrong, little girl? Why are you sighing for no reason? What's bothering you? Tell me, and I'll help you analyze it."

Knowing the other person meant well, Shen Mingchao smiled slightly. Unable to tell the truth, she simply replied, "It's nothing, I'm just a little homesick."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Haiyan was momentarily dazed.

Before he decided to take action, he had seen Shen Mingchao's information on Zhang Haike's computer—aside from his name and gender, the rest of the information was blank.

This is a direct slap in the face to the Zhang family's intelligence system.

In the end, an absurd conclusion was reached: this person seemed to have appeared out of thin air.

Zhang Haike said that Shen Mingchao might be a long-lost Qilin girl. He originally thought that it was perfectly normal for a member of the Zhang family to not have any family background, after all, none of the Zhang family members around him could have a complete pair of parents.

Now, as Shen Mingchao casually mentioned home, Zhang Haiyan's eyes gradually darkened, and his fingers unconsciously rubbed the steering wheel.

Could it be that someone deliberately erased Shen Mingchao's background information, making it impossible for them to find any clues?

The attraction of blood ties cannot be faked. Zhang Haiyan now believes most of the claim that Shen Mingchao is the Qilin Woman, but he fears that this is bait released by another unknown force.

It's one thing if I get caught up in it myself, but the clan leader can't be harmed. It seems I'll have to investigate this thoroughly when I get back.

While Zhang Haiyan was deep in thought, the car had already come to a steady stop at the entrance of Yucun Village. As the fake driver, he naturally couldn't meet with Wu Xie and the others, so to avoid trouble, he deliberately parked the car at the intersection some distance from the village.

Watching Shen Mingchao get out of the car carrying the cat, Zhang Haiyan slowly lowered the car window, a meaningful smile playing on his lips, and said loudly, "Little girl, until we meet again."

Shen Mingchao turned around and waved: "Goodbye, driver, drive carefully."

Hearing that title again, Zhang Haiyan's face darkened, and he thought to himself, "Next time I'll definitely disguise myself as a younger person."

Watching the car drive away until it disappeared completely, Shen Mingchao finally looked away. He was about to turn around and walk back into the village with the cat in his arms when his phone suddenly vibrated in his pocket.

She took it out and saw that the caller ID showed Wu Xie.

Just in time.

Shen Mingchao answered the phone, and Wu Xie's urgent voice came through like a barrage of raindrops: "Mingchao, where are you? Are you still in the car? Are you alright?"

Huh? Why does it sound so urgent?

Despite his doubts, Shen Mingchao answered truthfully, "Third Master, I've just arrived at the entrance of Yucun Village. I'm a little lost, so I might have to trouble you to come and pick me up."

A heavy sigh came from the other end of the line, followed by Wu Xie's slightly trembling voice: "Okay, it's good that you're alright. Don't hang up, we'll drive to the door to pick you up right away."

Shen Mingchao keenly sensed something was wrong and quickly asked, "Third Master, what happened? Why do you sound so nervous?"

Just as Wu Xie was about to speak, the fat man's loud voice suddenly came through the phone: "Sis, it's nothing, it's just that our Tianzhen misses you so much, she's worried something might happen to you on the way..."

Before he could finish speaking, Wu Xie interrupted him sharply: "Fatty! Don't talk nonsense! I..."

The other end of the phone suddenly became extremely noisy, with all sorts of sounds mixed together, making it painful to listen to.

Shen Mingchao silently moved his phone further away.

The world finally fell silent when a calm yet powerful male voice rang out.

"Stop fooling around."