Chapter 215: Ill Intentions

The moment he spoke, those were his first words. It caught me off guard. I immediately looked at the bridle he was holding and noticed that the spiked construction seemed to be the same as the ones hidden on Lu Ayao’s white whip.

The man had a calm expression and a light, agile posture, looking like a trained martial artist. His hair hadn’t been cut in a while; it was long, and to keep it from interfering with his movements, some of the loose strands had been braided. He was likely a member of the Lu Clan.

I looked at Lu Ayao. He clearly wasn’t surprised by this man’s arrival; instead, his expression suggested he had anticipated it. Recalling the man’s earlier cold indifference toward us, I couldn’t help but frown deeply.

I was just about to speak when the nearby bushes suddenly rustled again. The three of us jumped back two meters in fright. Then, under our terrified gazes, Chen Canghai scrambled out of the brush in a disheveled state. His head was covered in grass and snow, and a shotgun was slung over his shoulder.

“You? How is it you? Why are you here?” I was utterly stunned. I had never expected to see Chen Canghai here again.

However, it was the Lu Clan member behind me who answered. He let out a cold laugh. “It seems I wasn’t the only one following you. You’re thanking the wrong person. He’s the one who fired that shot just now. He’s the one you should be thanking.”

Qian Deli couldn’t tell who was who, but he seemed to understand that last sentence. He let go of me and rushed over to brush the leaves off Chen Canghai. “Grandpa, that marksmanship of yours was absolutely incredible! If it weren’t for you, our Young Master would have been eaten by that bear!”

As soon as he said that, I heard an extremely mocking sneer from the side. Without even looking, I knew it was that rude fellow from the Lu Clan. I turned around to see him walking toward Lu Ayao with a grin. The two of them began talking in low voices. The man’s smile was so sycophantic that my first impression of him was that of a “treacherous official.”

I went over to help Chen Canghai up with one hand and glanced around. The forest was pitch black, cold, and dry. I didn’t think this was a good place for a conversation, so I called out to the Lu Clan man, “If we’re going to talk, can we find somewhere else?”

The man glanced at me, his smile for Lu Ayao vanishing. He took the lead, heading up the slope. We followed silently behind him. After climbing two ridges, we reached a desolate stretch of forest that had been cleared of trees. The Lu Clan man wound his way around until he reached a tree stump and brushed away the snow with his hand.

I saw clearly that beneath the layers of withered leaves, a “door” leading downward had appeared. The man flipped the door open. Lu Ayao pulled out a fire-starter from his waist and lit it. After checking the underground passage, he was the first to descend. He Yu and I shared a look and followed him down.

The space below was quite large, resembling a cellar. It was much warmer than outside, with walls made of jagged, uneven stone.

As soon as He Yu reached the bottom, he tapped me and pointed. By the light of the fire, I could see black crates lined up around the cellar. These crates were identical to the ones we had seen on the ship, except their lids had all been pried open.

I took a distant look; they were all empty.

Once we were all on level ground, a dull thud echoed from above. The Lu Clan man descended the steep steps as if he were walking on flat ground. Suddenly, the atmosphere became awkward. Everyone stood facing each other, and no one seemed willing to be the first to speak.

Finally, Old Qian stepped forward with a dry laugh and said to Lu Ayao, “Master Lu, why don’t you introduce this gentleman to us first?”

“My family doesn’t have those stiff rules of yours,” the man laughed, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed. “I’m Lu Qianshan, of the same Lu lineage. I’ve been staying in the neighboring village for a long time. Tonight, the divinations were strange, so I headed into the mountains despite the snow to take a look. I didn’t expect to run into you.”

I didn’t believe his story and wanted to press him further, but He Yu grabbed me. I didn’t know what that look in his eyes meant, but then I heard him say, “There’s no charcoal here, and we can’t just hold these fire-starters forever. Old Lu, why don’t you come outside with me to find something to burn?”

Lu Ayao nodded. Seeing this, I moved to follow, but He Yu laughed and held me back. “You stay put. That bear carcass might attract other animals. If we take you along, we won’t be able to move as freely.”

The two of them left, and the cellar door closed once more. Old Qian sat down beside me, clutching his waist and groaning. Chen Canghai shook the dead leaves off his clothes, unloaded the shotgun, and engaged the safety.

I walked up to him, looking at his outfit of black shirt and trousers. “You were tracking us?” I asked.

My expression was serious enough that the questioning tone felt intense. He seemed momentarily startled by my demeanor, gripping the shotgun with both hands against his chest as his eyes began to dart around.

I knew he was searching for an excuse, so I immediately pressed a hand onto his shoulder. Facing the ear with the hearing aid, I said sternly, “You shouldn’t be here. You should be at your uncle’s funeral hall. Speak. Don’t lie to me; you won’t get away with it.”

Chen Canghai hesitated for a long while before saying, “I’m not lying to you. It’s thanks to your help that my uncle’s funeral could be held. After the funeral, I stayed in Henan. Later, I heard you went to the South China Sea, so I rented a room in the county and waited for you to return.”

This triggered a memory. I had returned from Yunnan in a hurry. According to He Yu, after Chen Canghai’s uncle died, he was the only one left in the family. It was truly pitiful for a teenager to have to handle a senior’s funeral alone. Later, I had obtained Chen Canghai’s bank account from Han Jian and had Xiao Wu transfer all my savings to him. It wasn’t much, but I hoped it would help him through the difficult time.

“I know what you’re looking for, but the situation was special then. I had no way to get the information to you through official channels, so I had to do it that way. I’m sorry. I was too reckless and scared you,” Chen Canghai apologized.

I was shocked. “The person who bumped into me outside the door was you?!”

Chen Canghai nodded.

“But you were in Henan. There were only three of us in that cabin in the South China Sea. How could you possibly know what I discovered back then?”

Chen Canghai simply smiled at my question, offering no clear answer. “In this world, unless a thing is never done, word of it will eventually get out. Obtaining such information isn’t particularly difficult if you have the right connections. I happened to take over my uncle’s business recently, so my intelligence network is naturally a bit more developed than most.”

Having said his piece, he found a place to sit down. His attitude made it clear he wasn’t going to be more specific. However, his uncle used to be in the tomb-robbing trade, and there were many things that truly couldn’t be discussed openly, such as certain illicit channels.

While I was still lost in thought, Lu Qianshan strolled past me with an air of leisure. I quickly called out to him and extended my hand in a friendly gesture. “I’m Gan Ji. I wanted to thank you for earlier. If you hadn’t caught that bear’s neck with your birdcage, I’m afraid I would have been in serious trouble.”

“I know who you are,” Lu Qianshan said, glancing at me sideways. He adjusted the cage in his hand, showing absolutely no intention of shaking mine. He spoke with a slow, mocking drawl. “Don’t get the wrong idea. I had no intention of saving you. I only stepped in to draw that Chen kid out.”

I immediately felt the malice radiating from him. I had no choice but to withdraw my hand, which was still hanging awkwardly in mid-air.

After he finished speaking, Lu Qianshan turned to look at me, idly playing with his birdcage.

“After all, I, Lu Qianshan, never lift a finger to save a useless waste.”